My favorite Moonspell album features four-fifths of the Sin / Pecado lineup, the harshest vocals Fernando Ribeiro ever recorded, the very first lyrics he ever wrote, the heaviest guitar riffs Ricardo Amorim ever played, and the most haunting sound effects Pedro Paixão ever created - and yet it's not an official Moonspell album.
Confused? Then this is the perfect moment to finally find out what Moonspell's occult twin sounded like and to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Dæmonarch's first and only album.

Staff pick by:
Endorsed by: RaduP, nikarg, Nejde, corrupt

Call me a bumbling ignoramus, but for me the greatness of Anathema's early works is primarily associated with one particular musician: Duncan Patterson. I feel the same way with Antimatter, because contrary to popular belief that Leaving Eden is the magnus opus of the project founded by Patterson and Mick Moss, I feel those very special moments that can turn a good album into a real masterpiece only when both artists have participated.
It's the sophomore Lights Out that marks the most mature symbiosis of dark, atmospheric rock, gothic and trip hop in the band's impressive early phase and that best integrates the truly beautiful backing vocals of the two female guest singers. Needless to say, exactly 20 years after its release, also Moss' distinctive, warm voice has lost none of its allure.

Staff pick by:
Endorsed by: nikarg, X-Ray Rod, RaduP, Dream Taster

Here's a good New Year's resolution for you: listen to what the angels are whispering from far beyond, because they mean well with you. They want you to remember and rediscover an almost forgotten treasure, created long ago by an Ancient Entity. For thirty years, this dark and hidden gem framed by black, death and doom metal, has lain dormant, slumbering deep inside the Mountain Of Doom. But now it's time for you to heed the Sumerian Cry and to embark on The Southernmost Voyage, towards a Neo Aeon. Lady Temptress and her Dead Boys' Choir are already eagerly awaiting you there.

Staff pick by:
Endorsed by: Dream Taster, RaduP, nikarg, Deadsoulman, Yaniv, Redel

Who would have thought 25 years ago that Moonspell could create another real classic only one year after their debut, the truly grandiose Wolfheart?

Admittedly, they had to cut off a good part of their musical roots to bring Irreligious into being; the black metal of the early years has almost completely vanished. But instead the other driving force in the heart of the five Portuguese could fully unfold and bestow the still young gothic metal scene a dark and intense highlight: musically mature, full of dramaturgy, melancholy and bombast, atmospherically dense and catchy as hell, yet heavier than legions of imitators who fail to capture and copy the genius of this remarkable sophomore album until the present day.

Staff pick by:
Endorsed by: Deadsoulman, RaduP, nikarg, ScreamingSteelUS, Darkside Momo, Ivor, Dream Taster, Pierre Tombale, Redel

For many years, an old tape from 1988/89 lay dormant somewhere in the vaults of Quorthon's Heavenshore Studio, and it was probably due to the pressure and the pestering of his fans that exactly 25 years ago - on May 27, 1996 - these almost forgotten recordings were finally allowed to see the light of day.
Thank God Odin!
For even if Bathory's ninth studio album is somewhat overshadowed by previous milestones such as Blood Fire Death and Hammerheart, it is nevertheless one of the most important albums in Bathory's impressive discography. Because on the one hand, it marks the departure from the widely unpopular retro-thrash phase of Requiem and Octagon, and on the other hand, it is a return to Quorthon's true strengths: timeless Viking metal ballads such as "Man Of Iron", "The Woodwoman" and "The Lake", and epic battle hymns like "Gods Of Thunder Of Wind And Of Rain".

"Realms of the shadows bring me no fear
I may stand or be beaten and torn
The mountains will stand but the life of a man
Was decided long before he was born."

Staff pick by:
Endorsed by: RaduP, ScreamingSteelUS, Deadsoulman, nikarg, Redel