My other lists:
Tasty Stuff Not Currently Featured On MS
So I Heard You Like Opeth...

A concise list of my metalhead man-crushes (now featuring ladies.)

While there is little introduction required for some of these bands and their front(wo)men, there are no words that can accurately describe such jaw-dropping talent anyhow. The albums and youtube links listed are meant to display the full capacity of vocalists' talents, not the bands' most quality or popular tracks - click the links below and behold the prowess.

1.Abstrakt Algebra - Abstrakt Algebra

2.Adagio - Underworld

3.Akercocke - Words That Go Unspoken, Deeds That Go Undone

4.Amorphis - Silent Waters

5.Anaal Nathrakh - Vanitas

      View entire list ››

- only studio albums
- only albums featured on MS

1.After Forever - Decipher

2.Agalloch - Ashes Against The Grain

3.Ahab - The Call Of The Wretched Sea

4.Alcest - Souvenirs D'un Autre Monde

5.Amon Amarth - With Oden On Our Side

      View entire list ››

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

      View entire list ››

*** READ ME *** This list is about the greatest metal albums of all-time, from all sub-genres and all countries. You won't see bands like Deep Purple, Rush, BOC, Zeppelin, etc., nor will you see bands like Tool, Rage ATM, Melvins and Soundgarden. While I love many of those bands, my definition of metal does not include them.

1.Black Sabbath - Paranoid

2.Metallica - Ride The Lightning

3.Iron Maiden - Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son

4.Death - Symbolic

5.Mercyful Fate - Don't Break The Oath

      View entire list ››

Doom on you! As with my Post-stonersludge list, this is a list of 25 doom albums by artists of varying stature that i enjoy. And by "enjoy", I mean "suffer through, eagerly awaiting the end ... whether the close of the album or my own imminent demise, so long as the misery stops." woe is me. and woe is you, too.

1.40 Watt Sun - The Inside Room

2.Ahab - The Call Of The Wretched Sea

3.Akelei - De Zwaarte Van Het Doorstane

4.Anathema - The Silent Enigma

5.Candlemass - Nightfall

      View entire list ››

More doom on the way: as of 14th June I'm slowly adding a few albums, hopefully to reach the 50 mark.

1.Candlemass - Nightfall

2.DoomSword - Let Battle Commence

3.Mourning Beloveth - The Sullen Sulcus

4.Skepticism - Lead And Aether

5.Shape Of Despair - Angels Of Distress

      View entire list ››

1.40 Watt Sun - The Inside Room

2.Ahab - The Call Of The Wretched Sea

3.Anathema - The Silent Enigma

4.Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath

5.Candlemass - Epicus Doomicus Metallicus

      View entire list ››

Here are the most captivating atmospheres I've ever heard. Including metal and non-metal albums. Grouped according to genre and one album per band.

1.Division By Zero - Independent Harmony

2.Beyond Twilight - The Devil's Hall Of Fame

3.Riverside - Out Of Myself

4.Suspyre - When Time Fades...

5.Redemption - The Fullness Of Time

      View entire list ››

1.Black Sabbath - Master Of Reality

2.Black Sabbath - Paranoid

3.Katatonia - Discouraged Ones

4.My Dying Bride - The Angel And The Dark River

5.Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath

      View entire list ››

I've been listening to Metal since 2005 and it has become my biggest passion in life.

Rarely a day goes by where I don't listen to it in one form or another. The bands I listened to in my teens inspired me to pick up the guitar (and later drums) and start making music of my own.

So here are the albums that have stood out and made the largest impact on me. To be as transparent as possible, I've labelled albums as 'nostalgia bias' where my memories of the album give it an advantage over others.

(Score is an average of each album's song ratings, full list located here. There are a ton of albums that I've rated 9/10 in the 'TBR' tab that may never make it to this list, be sure to check those out.)

If you discovered any new albums or like the same sort of metal, be sure to give this list a thumbs-up and leave a comment so more people can find these amazing bands!

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

Genre-Specific:
Top 50 Black Metal Albums
Top 50 Melodic Death Metal Albums
Top 45 Thrash Metal Albums
Top 40 Power Metal Albums
Top 30 Doom Metal Albums
Top 30 Heavy Metal Albums

1.Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral

2.Opeth - Blackwater Park

3.Metallica - Master Of Puppets

4.Edge Of Sanity - Crimson

5.Opeth - Still Life

      View entire list ››

Slow/Depress/Funeral/Love/Gloom/Beauty/Sorrow/Obscure/Cold/Atmospheric/

1.Ahab - The Call Of The Wretched Sea

2.Akelei - De Zwaarte Van Het Doorstane

3.Amorphis - Tales From The Thousand Lakes

4.Anathema - The Silent Enigma

5.Corrupted - El Mundo Frio

      View entire list ››

Some albums are really good. Many of these are good all the way around. And, in many cases, there is a single song that stands out, sometimes it's the last song on the album. This is a list of those songs.

For a more in depth look at this, I've codified each into a given category:
Type 1 - 'The long song at the end.' Often the title track. These have a tendency to be most well written and dynamic pieces on the album.

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

2.Abigail Williams - Becoming

3.Agalloch - The Mantle

4.Amon Amarth - Versus The World

5.Anekdoten - Vemod

      View entire list ››

An entirely subjective list of my all-time favourite metal albums, well lets better say albums/genres featured on MS, since not all here is precisely metal.
Objective quality is not a criteria here, just how much I like the album. Ordered by preference, top down.

1.Anathema - The Silent Enigma

2.Opeth - Morningrise

3.Estatic Fear - Somnium Obmutum

4.My Dying Bride - Turn Loose The Swans

5.Slayer - Seasons In The Abyss

      View entire list ››

My personal top 50 list.
(In no particular order)

1.Decrepit Birth - Polarity

2.Agoraphobic Nosebleed - Agorapocalypse

3.Blue Öyster Cult - Blue Öyster Cult

4.Joe Satriani - Time Machine

5.Earth - The Bees Made Honey In The Lion's Skull

      View entire list ››

Wanna know what I headbang to on the regular? The releases that have seen countless re-spins... Well, this is a very simple list and something you've probably seen a lot of other MS users do in the past. Basically, I'm just going to list what are essential metal albums for me, my all time gems & masterpieces (very subjective and some are also in there due to nostalgia and sentimental value).

There's no particular ''Genre'' that I'll be covering and I will also try to limit myself to two albums per band and a few of my favorite tracks or highlights per album. Of course everything in this list is just my opinion, meaning that I'm not saying these albums are all masterpieces or whatnot, it's just my personal favorites. I hope most of you will agree with me and those few who don't, well... it's okay to be wrong, the next step is acceptance

🇨🇦 = From Canada, My Country!

Last Updated: April 15th, 2024

1.Absu - The Third Storm Of Cythrául

2.AC/DC - High Voltage

3.Alestorm - Black Sails At Midnight

4.Alien Weaponry - Tū

5.Amon Amarth - Fate Of Norns

      View entire list ››