A collection of the most original, insane and head spinning albums from the weirdest side of metal. Suggestions are welcome.

1.A Forest Of Stars - Beware The Sword You Cannot See

2.Angizia - Das Schachbrett Des Trommelbuben Zacharias

3.Akphaezya - Anthology II: Links From The Dead Trinity

4.Arcturus - La Masquerade Infernale

5.Arcturus - The Sham Mirrors

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1.Devin Townsend - Ocean Machine: Biomech

2.Lost Horizon - A Flame To The Ground Beneath

3.Wintersun - Wintersun

4.Empyrium - Songs Of Moors And Misty Fields

5.Mors Principium Est - The Unborn

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Take a look at the Top Album lists of recent years and you'll notice an obvious trend. In 2005 the average rating of the top 25 albums is 8.76. Jump to 2014 and the average among the top 25 has dropped to 8.26. An almost linear decrease is observable for the 10 years in between.

I was curious to see what a Top 100 for 2000-2014 would look like if I factored the votes to account for the 'rating decline'. I hope you find it interesting.

1.Agalloch - The Mantle

2.Opeth - Blackwater Park

3.Blindead - Affliction XXIX II MXMVI

4.Aquilus - Griseus

5.Nevermore - Dead Heart In A Dead World

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So here we are again . After many years of dedication and love to this music that we call progressive metal, here are some of the best albums that ever existed and made the earth a better place . Give to these albums the attention and the respect they deserve and you will be fully awarded. I think i will try and limit this list to 3 cd's maximum per band to make this thing more challenging .

1.Dan Swanö - Moontower

2.Cynic - Traced In Air

3.Cynic - Focus

4.Enslaved - Axioma Ethica Odini

5.Enslaved - Ruun

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Call me easily impressed or what, but 2009 has been an amazing year for metal releases for me. Being well into 2010, I had the chance to let everything sink in and the more memorable albums stand out more while certain release that had initially escaped attention could also be "auditioned". Having listened to over 230 releases, just narrowing down a list of top 30 has already been a challenge, but for an annual list to go over 20 kind of loses its purpose of recommendation, so I just tried even harder. At the same time, I allowed myself to cheat a little bit by using another list of overlooked albums and influential albums. Some that didn't quite make the cut: Bloodbound, Artillery, Delain, Fairyland, Dark Moor, Vomitory, Immortal, Paradise Lost, Amesoeurs, Skyfire, The 11th Hour, Process Of Guilt and Anaal Nathrakh

1.Thy Catafalque - Róka Hasa Rádió

2.Amorphis - Skyforger

3.Samael - Above

4.Sun Of The Blind - Skullreader

5.While Heaven Wept - Vast Oceans Lachrymose

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Ratings go from:

WORSHIP ❤️❤️❤️: Absolute greatness, a mindblowing album.
LOVE ❤️❤️🖤: Amazing release with very few flaws.
LIKE ❤️🖤🖤: Enjoyable but far from perfect.
DISLIKE 💔: Not very good or maybe not fitting my tastes.

I've decided to stop rating albums with a numerical value as I tend to feel uncomfortable with that. This list has a minimalistic, subjective and visceral approach, based purely on sensations and personal tastes. Mainly for personal use and doesn't pretend to be a serious ranking, but emerges from the need to remember which bands and albums I enjoyed and the ones I disliked. I constantly revisit new releases so first impressions may change over time. It usually takes 8-10 spins for me to get completely sure of a rating.

1.Æther Realm - Tarot

2.Abhoria - Abhoria

3.Acid Bath - When The Kite String Pops

4.Agrypnie - Metamorphosis

5.Allegaeon - Fragments Of Form And Function

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Good musical pieces are those that initiate an emotional reaction or a subconscious shift of your subjective perception. The best music are those that elicit the most positive or dramatic of changes to our psyches. This is a list that I return to occasionally for these effects.

It is subjective of course.

1.Agalloch - The Mantle

2.Agalloch - Ashes Against The Grain

3.Amon Amarth - Twilight Of The Thunder God

4.Arcturus - The Sham Mirrors

5.Atoma - Skylight

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My best of 2009

1.Epica - Design Your Universe

2.Trail Of Tears - Bloodstained Endurance

3.Wine From Tears - Through The Eyes Of A Mad

4.Be'lakor - Stone's Reach

5.Novembers Doom - Into Night's Requiem Infernal

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1.Kalisia - Cybion

2.Thy Catafalque - Róka Hasa Rádió

3.Karnivool - Sound Awake

4.Finsterforst - ...Zum Tode Hin

5.While Heaven Wept - Vast Oceans Lachrymose

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1.Arckanum - ÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞÞ

2.Excoriate - On Pestilent Winds...

3.Onirik - After Centuries Of Silence

4.Oranssi Pazuzu - Muukalainen Puhuu

5.Dishammer - Vintage Addiction

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A little list series where I list my top 20 favorite metal albums every year starting from the year I was born in.

2009 was one of the best, a lot of great release came out that year especially within black, Progressive and Death metal. Had to make some rough cuts so honorable mentions goes to: Róka Hasa Rádió by Thy Catafalque, Faith Divides Us - Death Unites Us by Paradise Lost, Evangelion by Behemoth, Liebe Ist Für Alle Da by Rammstein, Axe To Fall by Converge, The Great Misdirect by Between The Buried And Me, Endgame by Megadeth, Time Waits For No Slave by Napalm Death and In The Constellation Of The Black Widow by Anaal Nathrakh, over all a fantastic year.

1.Leprous - Tall Poppy Syndrome

2.Devin Townsend - Addicted

3.Diablo Swing Orchestra - Sing-Along Songs For The Damned & Delirious

4.Abandon - The Dead End

5.Be'lakor - Stone's Reach

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1.Shylmagoghnar - Emergence

2.Galneryus - Angel Of Salvation

3.Blindead - Affliction XXIX II MXMVI

4.Batushka - Litourgiya

5.Leprous - Bilateral

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**Trigger warning**

Albums and EPs rated 8.6+ from 100+ votes which I've given an 8 or lower to.

I've listened to and rated every album on MS that meets this criteria (at time of most recent update) - some of them multiple times - so I feel I can give my honest opinion.

The purpose of this is to list and order the albums that I simply don't "get" and to try re-listening to them in the hope of understanding why they've received so many 9 and 10 votes.

Ordered by my rating then MS rating then number of votes.

Updated: 03-Jan-24

My other lists:
Top 500 Albums (ordered & rated)
Top 25 EPs (also ordered & rated)
Top 200 Overlooked Albums (with genres)
So I Heard You Like Wintersun... (Time II find new bands)

1.Anathema - Judgement

2.Paradise Lost - Draconian Times

3.Anathema - Alternative 4

4.Motörhead - Ace Of Spades

5.Motörhead - Overkill

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most memorable releases sorted by year
* - especially interesting albums

1.

2.Ashenspire - Hostile Architecture

3.Soen - Imperial

4.Thy Catafalque - Naiv

5.Kayo Dot - Blasphemy

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Here are my top 25 of 2009, going to try to get more years done as I get more free time.

1.Be'lakor - Stone's Reach

2.Baroness - Blue Record

3.Amorphis - Skyforger

4.While Heaven Wept - Vast Oceans Lachrymose

5.Mastodon - Crack The Skye

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