I have finally caved in and made a top 200 list. The main focus here is metal, so no Rush, no King Crimson, Deep Purple, or GY!BE are in the list, but I do still love those bands and others that could have qualified.
The list mostly contains albums, but some EPs, demos, splits, and compilations are also featured every now and then. I also tried to avoid including demos or EPs that were too short but there’s still a few of them.
Enjoy!

1.Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory

2.Windir - Arntor

3.Dissection - Storm Of The Light's Bane

4.Sigh - Hangman's Hymn: Musikalische Exequien

5.Vektor - Terminal Redux

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Welcome to what I consider the "1001 Metal Albums You Must Hear Before You Die" or in other words, a list of records of various genres in the arrays of Metal and Hard Rock that I deem essential or at least very recommended to listeners of hard and heavy music. This may be a very overwhelming list but I essentially try to collect all albums in the History of Metal that strike me as worthwhile. May this be a guideline for people that seek for an entrance to a particular genre or certain bands. In no means I am saying, that this list is indisputable by any means. I consider these my personal picks for albums that should be listened to by die-hard metal fans at least once. Hopefully you can discover some new music or relate with my picks. If I missed something that you would include in such a list, please tell me in the form of a comment. Enjoy! \,,/

1.High Tide - Sea Shanties

2.Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath

3.Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin

4.Sir Lord Baltimore - Kingdom Come

5.Josefus - Dead Man

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This list is meant to be an extensive, but by no means exhaustive, collection of the greatest (modern) metal albums and eps. Running the gamut from avant-garde to trve norweigan black metal. *As someone who is young in age, my tastes tend to revolve around the period of the 80s to the present.* Although certain metal albums from before will certainly be featured, the period of the 60s-70s will be under-represented. I refer you to this excellent list to gain a better appreciation for some of the best metal from that period: https://rateyourmusic.com/list/freis/martin_popoffs_the_top_500_heavy_metal_albums_of_all_time/

1.P.H.O.B.O.S. - Phlogiston Catharsis

2.Paara - Riitti

3.Pagan Altar - Mythical & Magical

4.Pagan's Mind - Enigmatic : Calling

5.Paganizer - Into The Catacombs

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Old school Death Metal albums

1.Abscess - Seminal Vampires And Maggot Men

2.Acrostichon - Engraved In Black

3.Amorphis - The Karelian Isthmus

4.Asphyx - Last One On Earth

5.At The Gates - Slaughter Of The Soul

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A lot of bands have great debut albums. Obviously this list is just a fraction of all the great debut albums out there, but it's a start. I'll keep expanding this list continuously, so all suggestions are welcome (granted they are featured on MS). All the albums here are ranked according to genre and then alphabetically. If a certain album belongs to the (in your opinion) wrong genre, then definitely let me know.

1.

2.Aarni - Bathos

3.Arcturus - Aspera Hiems Symfonia

4.Diablo Swing Orchestra - The Butcher's Ballroom

5.Sadness - Ames De Marbre

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1.Adramelech - PsychoStasia

2.Armageddon - Crossing The Rubicon

3.Asphyx - Last One On Earth

4.At The Gates - Terminal Spirit Disease

5.Atheist - Piece Of Time

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RANKING CRITERIA :

- Originality
- Songwriting
- Performance

Neither the popularity among the fans nor the commercial success (or unsuccess) of the albums were taken into account in the selection.

1.Metallica - Ride The Lightning

2.Iron Maiden - The Number Of The Beast

3.Metallica - Master Of Puppets

4.Black Sabbath - Master Of Reality

5.Iron Maiden - Piece Of Mind

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The choice of the albums was made according to aesthetic criteria, taking into account only the musical merits of the recordings. Neither the popularity among the fans nor the commercial success (or unsuccess) of the albums were taken into account in the selection.

1.Anacrusis - Screams And Whispers

2.Megadeth - Rust In Peace

3.Death - The Sound Of Perseverance

4.Pantera - Cowboys From Hell

5.Death - Symbolic

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1.Anacrusis - Screams And Whispers

2.Heavy Load - Full Speed At High Level

3.Fatal Opera - The Eleventh Hour

4.Fatal Opera - Fatal Opera

5.Sacred Blade - Of The Sun + Moon

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Varied avantgarde/progressive/technical stuff. In no particular order.
Tell me how many do you know of them

Quality may vary.

Also try the QUC: Black Metal list.

TO CHECK: Cosmic Atropy, Impetuous Ritual, Diocletian, Pyrrhon, Portal, Scrambled Defuncts, Separatist, Martriden, Luciferion, Emeth, Axamenta, Silent Kingdom

1.Edge Of Sanity - Crimson II

2.!T.O.O.H.! - Order And Punishment (Řád A Trest)

3.Lykathé - Elvenefris

4.Element (USA) - The Energy

5.Unmoored - Indefinite Soul-Extension

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