TOP 50 of 2014.

The great return of Empyrium!

Album rate 8 & above

Album count: 144
Average rating: 7.04

1.Empyrium - The Turn Of The Tides

2.Mors Principium Est - Dawn Of The 5th Era

3.Fen - Carrion Skies

4.Anathema - Distant Satellites

5.Moanaa - Descent

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1.Opeth - Pale Communion

2.Sólstafir - Ótta

3.Lunatic Soul - Walking On A Flashlight Beam

4.Ne Obliviscaris - Citadel

5.Insomnium - Shadows Of The Dying Sun

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I began this decade in my final year of high school, in the early phases of my metal journey (Mastodon, Machine Head, Dream Theater, Pantera and Avenged Sevenfold were still recent discoveries). One Masters degree and one PhD later, I'm now a tax-paying Londonian, and have ploughed through what must be comfortably over 2000 new releases during the previous ten years. To commemorate the end of a turbulent decade, I've put together a list of the albums that have stuck with me throughout this decade - I wouldn't consider this to be a 'best albums' list, as there have been some truly ingenious works released in more avant-garde territories, but ultimately these are the albums that have ended up dominating my listening habits, or otherwise making a sufficient impression to make this list.

1.Sylosis - Monolith

2.Sylosis - Edge Of The Earth

3.Amorphis - Under The Red Cloud

4.Be'lakor - Of Breath And Bone

5.Cult Of Luna - Vertikal

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The best album of 2014 is Sky Blue by Devin Townsend imo, but it's a double album so rated likewise.

1.Hail Spirit Noir - Oi Magoi

2.Empyrium - The Turn Of The Tides

3.Agalloch - The Serpent & The Sphere

4.Fen - Carrion Skies

5.Ne Obliviscaris - Citadel

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As is the case with my other lists, this is for my own organizational purposes and is designed purely to help me keep track of all the many black metal bands and albums that I enjoy, since I can't keep all of this information in my head. It has no other benefit whatsoever and will likely result in tantrums should anyone else see it. I'm aware that I haven't listened to every black metal album that I should have. I only went down to the 6s on this list, so it's possible that I have listened to your favorite black metal album that you desperately need to suggest and I thought it was terrible. There are a lot of heinously incompetent black metal bands out there.

On the off-chance that you've found this and actually care about what I think (you shouldn't), be advised that my favorites come first. Some are favorites in the general sense; some are favorites within black metal. The first few of those are in some order and not so much after that.

Because this is for my own purposes and not intended to be a definitive list of pure black metal, there are some black metal-adjacent bands, or albums by black metal bands that may not themselves be black metal. That's why you'll find so much Sigh clogging up the top of the list. I prefer to keep whole discographies together on one list. I used to include Primordial, Forefather, and other such bands, but a while back I created a list for folk and I decided that those artists would fit better there.

I update these lists very infrequently. This was last updated December 7, 2022.

1.Sigh - Imaginary Sonicscape

2.Sigh - Graveward

3.Dissection - Storm Of The Light's Bane

4.Sigh - Heir To Despair

5.The Meads Of Asphodel - The Murder Of Jesus The Jew

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2008 might've been my first proper taste of metal, with the acquisition of albums from the likes of Metallica, Megadeth, Black Sabbath and that most grandiose of gateway bands, DragonForce. 2009 might've seen me expanding my palette, with Iron Maiden, Alice In Chains, Avenged Sevenfold, and more entering my world, and Guns N' Roses triumphantly re-entering it. But 2010 was when I delved into more 'intense' stuff with Machine Head, In Flames, and most notably of all, Sylosis, and saw my relationship with metal shift from ever-increasing interest into full-blown love affair. To commemorate this 5-year anniversary, and because I love making lists, I decided to do a retrospective of the best albums and songs that have been released during this time period, and give brief tributes to them. Yay music!

1.Sylosis - Edge Of The Earth

2.Sylosis - Monolith

3.Protest The Hero - Volition

4.Orphaned Land - The Never Ending Way Of ORwarriOR

5.Be'lakor - Of Breath And Bone

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1.Machine Head - Bloodstone & Diamonds

2.Ne Obliviscaris - Citadel

3.Mors Principium Est - Dawn Of The 5th Era

4.Bloodbath - Grand Morbid Funeral

5.Kauan - Muistumia

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Cos, y'know, same shiz different year. Ran out of space again so will post final album opinions in comments.

1.Infestus - The Reflecting Void

2.Dirge - Hyperion

3.Nero Di Marte - Derivae

4.Steve Rothery - The Ghosts Of Pripyat

5.Agalloch - The Serpent & The Sphere

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1.Ne Obliviscaris - Citadel

2.Psygnosis - Human Be[ing]

3.Machine Head - Bloodstone & Diamonds

4.Descend - Wither

5.Yob - Clearing The Path To Ascend

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2014 is upon us and as per usual here is yet another unimaginative top list!

1.Monarch - Sabbracadaver

2.Nasheim - Solens Vemod

3.Earth - Primitive And Deadly

4.Darkspace - Dark Space III I

5.Lethian Dreams - Red Silence Lodge

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I'll start off by saying that I wasn't planning on doing a list so early on in the year, but I've come across numerous albums that I'd like to share with people who enjoy my lists (or people who hate my lists).

This list will be a little different than my 2013 list. I created that list at the end of the year, and then decreased it to my Top 25 of 2013. This list will be a compilation of all 2014 albums I've come across and given a listen.

1.Beyond Creation - Earthborn Evolution

2.Artificial Brain - Labyrinth Constellation

3.Ophis - Abhorrence In Opulence

4.Ghost Brigade - IV - One With The Storm

5.Infestus - The Reflecting Void

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Revised to TOP 20 but might still update...
Last updated: 3/14/15

1.Lantlôs - Melting Sun

2.Eden Circus - Marula

3.Moanaa - Descent

4.Fen - Carrion Skies

5.Pet Slimmers Of The Year - Fragments Of Uniforms

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Favorite albums of the year.

1.Ne Obliviscaris - Citadel

2.Rishloo - Living As Ghosts With Buildings As Teeth

3.Lantlôs - Melting Sun

4.Gates - Bloom and Breathe

5.Falloch - This Island, Our Funeral

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Thank you all once again for all of the suggestions and recommendations from 2014, and for following this list over the year! I can't promise I'll get to all of the suggestions, nor will I make this list as much of a priority. However, I will probably get to them at some point in the near future. The only thing I need to do is adjust my ratings, which are skewed very high at the moment.

1.Qualeaceans - Capture Of Ziz

2.Amogh Symphony - Vectorscan

3.Schammasch - Contradiction

4.Kayo Dot - Coffins On Io

5.Stoic Dissention - Autochthon

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my favorite albums in this year so far ...

1.Nightbringer - Ego Dominus Tuus

2.Anaal Nathrakh - Desideratum

3.Darkspace - Dark Space III I

4.Bergrizen - Scherbengericht

5.Infestus - The Reflecting Void

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