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1.
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Devin Townsend - Empath
(10/10 - Progressive metal - 74mins) An amazing journey through a beautiful dream that I wish never ends. A great summary of basically Devin's entire career, we get everything between the chaotic "Hear Me", the quirky and mysterious "Sprite", and lush ambient on "Borderlands" (And that is naming about 5% of the sounds you'll hear on this album). Go listen to this masterpiece. |
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2.
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Andrew Prahlow - Outer Wilds, Outer Wilds: Echoes Of The Eye
(10/10 - Soundtrack - 63/43mins) Perfect music for a perfect game. |
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3.
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Gareth Coker - Ori And The Will Of The Wisps
(10/10 - Soundtrack - 183mins) |
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4.
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Memories Of Old - The Zeramin Game
(10/10 - Symphonic power metal - 68mins) Personally the most emotional album of all time. Not only is it heartwarming and cathartic, but the story grips me in such an unmatched way. On top of that, all 12 tracks are incredible, full of great solos, vocals and keyboard melodies. No PM album will ever come close. Anyone who enjoys the more triumphant and theatrical side of PM and isn't afraid to jerk a few tears in the climax of the title track, should check this out immediately. |
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5.
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Wintersun - Time I
(10/10 - Extreme power metal / Symphonic metal - 40mins) The best example of film-score adjacent metal (Turilli, take notes). Great riffs and the overall atmosphere is overwhelming. |
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6.
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An Abstract Illusion - Woe
(9.9/10 - Progressive death metal / Melodic death metal - 60mins) The best hour of death metal I've ever heard. Structured brilliantly, you can feel the emotions resonating from every riff and lyric, with the atmosphere becoming crushingly beautiful towards the end. |
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7.
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Persefone - Aathma
(9.8/10 - Extreme progressive metal - 63mins) Everything on this album works perfectly. The riffs, the solos, the vocals, the symphonic elements, the ambient sounds, the motifs. This band's songwriting skills are off the charts, and this perfect album showcases them at their best. |
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8.
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Aquilus - Bellum I
(9.8/10 - Atmospheric black metal / Neoclassical / Neofolk - 61mins) A very dark and ethereal journey through thick forests and along quiet rivers. Production is astounding, the way the vocals come across as a harsh whisper on the wind is goosebump-inducing. |
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9.
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Dream Theater - Dream Theater
(9.7/10 - Progressive metal - 68mins) A consistently solid album with plenty of DT's best songs, no criticism. |
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10.
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Dream Theater - Black Clouds & Silver Linings
(9.6/10 - Progressive metal - 75mins) Holds three of JP's best solos, three of DT's most emotional climaxes, DT's best part of the Twelve Step Suite, LaBrie's best chorus, and more. |
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11.
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Wintersun - Time II
(9.6/10 - Extreme power metal / Symphonic metal - 48mins) Not as instantly mind-blowing and taste-changing as the first half, but equally incredible in terms of songwriting, melody, structure and composition. Fantastic solos and riffs throughout. |
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12.
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Hans Zimmer, Jacob Shea, David Fleming - Blue Planet II
(9.5/10 - Soundtrack - 71mins) My favourite soundtrack album, oddly to a nature documentary. Unnecessarily incredible music that matches the awe of the oceans. Diverse and goosebump-inducing all the way through. |
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13.
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Devin Townsend - Transcendence
(9.5/10 - Progressive metal - 64mins) When asked the definition of a modern prog album, this will be my answer. Transcendence never leans into the commercialism of Epicloud, nor the genre-bending insanity of Empath, resulting in a diverse collection of mid-range prog tracks, all of superb quality. Just like Deconstruction, it is a consistently enjoyable album with exciting and chill-inducing moments scattered throughout. |
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14.
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Rhys Lindsay - Exo One
(9.5/10 - Soundtrack - 38mins) Unique, strangely nostalgic and liminal, this soundtrack is perfection that suits its game incredibly well. |
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15.
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Majestica - A Christmas Carol
(9.5/10 - Symphonic power metal - 41mins) Well written concise songs with great vocals. One of the most heartwarming albums ever. |
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16.
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Heretoir - The Circle
(9.4/10 - Post black metal - 65mins) With some of the best production and writing in metal, this album is surprisingly diverse, especially in its first half. Not a single weak moment on this masterful record. |
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17.
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Aquilus - Bellum II
(9.4/10 - Atmospheric black metal / Neoclassical / Neofolk - 58mins) The more epic and less unsettling half of Bellum, with equal amounts of jaw-dropping moments and the beautiful yet haunting sound this genius has nailed. |
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18.
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Jani Liimatainen - My Father's Son
(9.4/10 - Melodic heavy metal / Power metal - 58mins) A great musical achievement from Jani, one that will hold a special place in his fans' hearts. Very melodic and mature for PM, with a great closer. |
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19.
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Against Myself - Unity
(9.4/10 - Symphonic metal - 59mins) For female-fronted symphonic metal, this is an unreal masterpiece. Not a weak song to be found (except the bonus track) only great riffs, solos, orchestration and songwriting. |
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20.
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Nightwish - Endless Forms Most Beautiful
(9.4/10 - Symphonic metal - 73mins - Abridged) |
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21.
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Circus Maximus - Nine
(9.4/10 - Progressive metal - 57mins) For vanilla Prog, one of the best albums ever. Maybe one weak song, but even that one has a great solo. Choruses are effective bursts of energy, a trait many prog bands lack. I've read a few comments saying this album sounds like Coldplay, and to them I say - people, "Burn After Reading" has blast beats on it! |
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22.
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Anthriel - Transcendence
(9.4/10 - Progressive metal - 65mins) Very Symphony X-like, but surprisingly even better. Songwriting skills of these musicians is insane. No weak tracks. |
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23.
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Persefone - Spiritual Migration
(9.3/10 - Extreme progressive metal - 70mins) A few minor aspects cause this to fall behind Aathma, but SM is still an incredible and unique masterpiece. The Consciousness tracks are stellar and together make up my favourite instrumental track ever. The one really subtle recurring melody is also fantastic and can be found all over the place. |
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24.
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Devin Townsend - Deconstruction
(9.3/10 - Extreme progressive metal - 70mins) Never really understood why I preferred this to Ziltoid, which I also quite like. The narrative and humour style are different on both albums, and I feel Deconstruction has better balance with quality music, instead of the music driving the story. I really like the absolute clash of styles here, the prog/symphonic/avant-garde/electronic storm. A bit of all eras of DT thrown in. |
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25.
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Countless Skies - Glow
(9.2/10 - Melodic death metal - 44mins) Proggy and atmospheric melodeath at its finest. Many highlights in every song, with an uncanny ability to conjure images in my mind. The album cover and song titles suit perfectly, and the vocals sound like a surreal duet of Devin Townsend and Niilo Sevänen. |
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26.
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Wilderun - Epigone
(9.2/10 - Extreme progressive metal / Symphonic metal - 62mins) A mature and subdued evolution of the bombastic and downright awesome Veil. Incredible rises and falls in energy throughout, with fantastic songwriting. |
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27.
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Ne Obliviscaris - Citadel
(9.1/10 - Extreme progressive metal - 48mins) If we remove the interlude, we have a perfect album. I would like there to be one more proper song, but I doubt NeO could make anything as insanely outstanding as the long songs on this album. Each is a journey on their own, and are the best in the band's discography. I honestly think if we took the three lengthy tracks from here and scattered them throughout the four tracks on Urn, we'd have an absolutely earth-shattering album. |
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28.
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Soen - Imperial
(9.1/10 - Melodic progressive metal - 42mins) Melodic and melancholic, this heavy mid-paced album is a lovely experience, every time. Atmosphere is unmatched. |
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29.
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Wilderun - Veil Of Imagination
(9.1/10 - Extreme progressive metal / Symphonic metal - 66mins) Reaches a impossibly high emotional peak in the final track, with some amazing moments, more so than Sleep despite having a less flawless structure. |
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30.
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Avantasia - Moonglow
(9.1/10 - Symphonic metal / Power metal / Melodic hard rock - 70mins) Highlight after highlight, Tobias' best work by a landslide. Leans strongly into all the best parts of his sound while creating some incredible tracks. |
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31.
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Persefone - Metanoia
(9.1/10 - Extreme progressive metal - 57mins) Another incredible offering from Persefone that dips its toes into perfection (Merkabah, Anabasis) and maintains a focus on a darker and more emotional atmosphere than previous records. |
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32.
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Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn Of Events
(9.0/10 - Progressive metal - 77mins) Another solid offering from DT, with each song being a perfect example of how great modern DT is. Very unique atmosphere created in some of the longer songs, and as usual a few smashing choruses ("Bridges In The Sky" most notably) |
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33.
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Nospūn - Opus
(9.0/10 - Progressive metal - 71mins) Another incredible Prog concept album. Structured perfectly, with no weak moments, and a 25-minute double punch climax. Variety put forth is exactly what I expect from a prog album, and even though it results in a couple of moments where I was thinking 'is this really necessary?' It is an easy 9. |
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34.
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Devin Townsend - PowerNerd
(9.0/10 - Melodic heavy metal - 44mins) |
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35.
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Insomnium - Winter's Gate
(9.0/10 - Melodic death metal - 40mins) The hype is real. The best Finnish melodeath album/song ever. Riffs, melodies and dynamics are incredible. |
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36.
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Nightwish - Yesterwynde
(9.0/10 - Symphonic metal - 62mins - Abridged) |
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37.
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Wintersun - Wintersun
(9.0/10 - Extreme power metal - 54mins) Took me a while to appreciate the songs here, but they are all splendid, with fantastic production. |
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38.
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Aquilus - Griseus
(9.0/10 - Atmospheric black metal / Neoclassical / Neofolk - 79mins) Another ethereal masterpiece from this mysterious alien by the name of Waldorf. Longer form and more variety within specific songs than Bellum I, it's not worse, it just lacks a strong structure between tracks. |
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39.
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Wilderun - Sleep At The Edge Of The Earth
(9.0/10 - Extreme progressive metal / Symphonic metal / Folk metal - 54mins) An amazing journey through hills and valleys with a low fog hiding the sun... Yes I took that from the album art. Much folkier than Veil, with a flawless structure. |
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40.
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Steven Wilson - Hand. Cannot. Erase.
(9.0/10 - Progressive rock - 65mins) Another artist just making proper art and not choosing a genre and making 8 songs in it. Awesome structure and diversity, plenty of beautiful moments and fantastic lyrics. |
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41.
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Haken - Visions
(8.9/10 - Progressive metal - 71mins) The definition of a prog concept album. Intriguing story, recurring melodies, an incredible conclusion. Never too self-indulgent either... At least by my ears. |
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42.
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Ostura - The Room
(8.9/10 - Symphonic metal / Progressive metal - 74mins) Executed excellently, symphonies sound absolutely huge with catchy and memorable songwriting and intriguing story. |
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43.
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Equilibrium - Sagas
(8.9/10 - Extreme folk metal - 79mins) Best folk-adjacent metal album ever. A goldmine of riffs from every corner of the metal spectrum, with the closer being one of the best songs ever. |
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44.
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An Abstract Illusion - Illuminate The Path
(8.9/10 - Extreme progressive metal / Melodic death metal - 69mins) Rumour has it playing "Drop This Planet Of Dust" full blast can summon a blizzard in Alice Springs. Cold blackened extreme-prog done expertly. A nice amount of ambient influences also come as an advantage to this album. |
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45.
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Avenged Sevenfold - City Of Evil
(8.9/10 - Heavy metal / Progressive metal - 72mins) One of my few gateway albums that still hold up today. Diverse songwriting, and always exciting to return to. Introduction of symphonic elements on "The Wicked End" and "Strength of the World" is nice, and the thrashier songs early on the album are filled with lots of great interludes. |
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46.
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Cave Sermon - Divine Laughter
(8.9/10 - Post metal / Sludge metal / Ambient - 60mins) A unique and recent masterpiece, blending genres flawlessly. |
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47.
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Anubis Gate - Horizons
(8.8/10 - Progressive metal - 65mins) An incredible atmosphere full of intellectually driven melodic and chordal songwriting that is unique to Anubis Gate. Intriguing concept too. |
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48.
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Nightland - The Great Nothing
(8.8/10 - Melodic death metal - 46mins) One of the best recent melodeath albums, symphonies are excellent but never in-your-face, and the atmosphere is majestic. Instrumental track "101 Megaparsecs" gives some strong Ad Astra vibes, and the ending section of "For Once My Name" is probably one of the most emotionally intense blasts of extreme metal out there. |
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49.
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Periphery - Periphery IV: Hail Stan
(8.8/10 - Progressive metal / Djent - 63mins) The next three albums will not stay in the same preference order no matter how much I listen to them, but this is the order I find myself considering mostly true. "Reptile" is there best song to date, and even the lower points of this album have many redeeming qualities, overall I believe it is a step above the rest of the band's discography. |
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50.
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Periphery - Periphery V: Djent Is Not A Genre
(8.8/10 - Progressive metal / Djent - 70mins) Full of excellent highlights both album-wise and career wise. Very proggy for a previously core band. Not all the songs are consistent in quality, but there are a lot of masterpieces, just like 3 and 4. |
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51.
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Periphery - Periphery III: Select Difficulty
(8.8/10 - Progressive metal / Djent - 64mins) "Simpler" songwriting and a few remaining core elements, but still remains one of the band's best albums. After two meh songs, we get nine masterpieces. |
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52.
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Opeth - Ghost Reveries
(8.8/10 - Extreme progressive metal - 66mins) Opeth's brief peak, one which boasted perfect songwriting, production and performances with more than a handful of amazing moments. |
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53.
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Devin Townsend - Z²
(8.8/10 - Progressive metal / Melodic metal - 60/57mins) Sky Blue is Dev's best attempt at the poppy sound, has more of an epic Transcendence feel then Epicloud. Dark Matters is a very different approach to Ziltoid, but ultimately is one I enjoy much more. Both albums are around 8.5-9.0/10 for me, I've chosen to rank them together. After all, Dark Matters is quite a difficult one to rank precisely. |
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54.
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Devin Townsend - Epicloud
(8.8/10 - Progressive metal / Melodic metal - 50mins) This man can do no wrong. Insanely high energy with an excellent flow thanks to the ambient segues between tracks. A lot more fun than Lightwork, with equal quality in terms of simple songwriting, even making great use of the all-too-common I-V-vi-IV chord progression. Like all Devy albums, it's a huge grower. |
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55.
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Avenged Sevenfold - The Stage
(8.8/10 - Progressive metal / Heavy metal - 73mins) A nice maturation from their early sound, much heavier and proggy with even more influences, and somehow better solos too. |
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56.
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Sleep Token - Take Me Back To Eden
(8.8/10 - Art pop / Alternative metal - 63mins) The songs only use what they require, the melodies are great, the lyrics are unique, and the whole album is a full package - it feels like I've really experienced something when it's over. |
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57.
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Dream Theater - Train Of Thought
(8.8/10 - Progressive metal - 69mins) Insanely heavy album from DT, but one with plenty of highlights. One of few gateway albums that hold up today for me. "Honor Thy Father" is gut-wrenchingly emotional. |
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58.
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Warforged - I: Voice
(8.7/10 - Progressive death metal - 73mins) Essentially one continuous song, which is an effective formula for prog-death. Engaging and unpredictable with great riffs and atmospheric breaks. |
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59.
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Midnight Oil - Blue Sky Mining
(8.7/10 - Pub rock - 47mins) The rare occurrence where I fully enjoy a rock album front to back. This local band's melodic sensibilities took a ridiculous leap on this album (check "Stars of Warburton"), with the songwriting much more mature and less commercial than that on predecessor Diesel and Dust. The lyrical themes feel more interconnected than your average Aussie rock, especially with "Antarctica" serving as a musical and lyrical conclusion unique amongst such bands. |
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60.
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Disillusion - The Liberation
(8.7/10 - Melodic death metal / Progressive metal - 62mins) Lots of heart along with heaviness and downright disturbing moments - the "where were you?" whisper in "The Mountain" sends chills every time. The piano and cello are excellent, and the extensive tight harmony in parts of "Wintertide" is pleasing to the ears. "Between" is technically seperate, but was included in the download I bought, so I will consider it part of the album. It is a great song, a nice hopeful epilogue that doesn't lessen the devastating impact of the official closer. |
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61.
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Earthside - A Dream In Static
(8.7/10 - Progressive metal - 63mins) |
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62.
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Karlahan - Exile
(8.7/10 - Extreme progressive metal / Melodic death metal - 56mins) Extremely diverse within the spheres of prog, melodeath, symphonic, and many smaller influences, notably funk and folk. Lovely melodies all around, with great use of choral arrangements, and excellent songwriting, notably in the closer. |
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63.
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Crow Black Sky - Sidereal Light: Volume Two
(8.7/10 - Atmospheric black metal - 36mins) Short and sweet, this 4-track atmoblack album is one of the best of the genre. It's unique, with an effective cosmic atmosphere, as well as excellent songwriting, chord progressions and solos. |
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64.
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Heretoir - Nightsphere
8.7/10 - Post black metal / Ambient - 42mins) Initially omitted from the list due to the longest song being fairly meh, but I think the remaining songs are too damn good. "Sanctum" follows two melodic ideas throughout most of its runtime, yet stays engaging and satisfying. The production is excellent, and the ambient soundscapes are some of the best in metal - Every time I hear "The Death of Man" and that huge, heavy ambience swells up, I can barely comprehend what I'm listening to. |
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65.
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Devin Townsend - Terria
(8.7/10 - Progressive metal - 71mins) Essentially a proto-Empath. Extremely diverse as always, chordal songwriting is excellent, with many sublime melodies and solos throughout. Good ambience with a huge sounding production that isn't perfect but is very good for '01. Even the hidden track is fun. |
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66.
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Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory
(8.7/10 - Progressive metal - 77mins) This unsurprisingly ranks in my top 5 DT albums, in part due to my love for Broadway and unhinged theatrics. The storytelling and songwriting here is excellent, with barely any moments of redundancy. |
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67.
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Illumishade - Another Side Of You
(8.7/10 - Melodic metal - 59mins) Beautiful vocals, guitar solos, and songwriting. Nice dose of prog into a relatively commercial album which does wonders. |
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68.
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Illumishade - Eclyptic: Wake Of Shadows
(8.7/10 - Melodic metal - 41mins) Cinematic and structured to the point of genius, it's absurd how well made this album is. Overall I think I like the songs slightly less than the sophomore, but the flow and storytelling here is undeniable. |
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69.
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Haken - Aquarius
(8.6/10 - Progressive metal - 72mins) Piano-driven songwriting here is something to behold - combined with their theatrics and eclectic genre shifts, an excellent album awaits. Dark atmospheres and more jubilant choruses are both present, with some seriously groovy riffs. |
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70.
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Against Myself - Tides Of Insanity
(8.6/10 - Symphonic metal - 54mins) Best batch of fresh-sounding riffy symphonic metal in a long time. Great songwriting and production, with a closer that stretches beyond my comprehension of the word 'perfection'. |
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71.
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Pentakill - III: Lost Chapter
(8.6/10 - Melodic metal - 46mins) Lots of influences on a catchy and enjoyable album, including symphonic (midsection of "Lost Chapter", "Edge Of The Night"), djent ("Predator"), AOR ("Redemption"), prog ("Executioner's Calling"), and metalcore ("Aftershock"). I believe this is a virtual band created by game developers (with guest appearances) at Riot Games, with League Of Legends in mind. |
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72.
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Be'lakor - Coherence
(8.6/10 - Melodic death metal - 61mins) Consistent and groovy with plenty awesome riffs and moments. |
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73.
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Devin Townsend - Lightwork
(8.6/10 - Progressive metal - 103mins) Twenty great Devy songs. Nuff said. |
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74.
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Rhapsody Of Fire - Glory For Salvation
(8.6/10 - Symphonic power metal - 66mins) Probably the only Rhapsody album I'll ever rate this highly. Everything clicked with this album. Minimal narration, which is for the best since Christopher Lee has sadly passed. Neoclassical shredding is kept to a minimum, and the band seem to have focused on writing some shorter catchy bangers with high quality orchestration. Vocalist is also better than Fabio ever was, even letting loose a couple lines of harsh(er) vocals. |
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75.
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Devin Townsend - Accelerated Evolution
(8.6/10 - Progressive metal / Melodic hard rock - 53mins) This one is the proto-Epicloud. Catchy bangers all around, a great bridge between styles old and new. Early-Devy's distinctive wah-drenched major pentatonic warbling is still present from Terria, with some melodies more reminiscent of Empath or Lightwork, as well as many great songs in a hard rock vein. |
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76.
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Epica - The Holographic Principle
(8.6/10 - Symphonic metal - 72mins) Heavy symphonic metal with death-adjacent influences done right. Lots of highlights with only one of two weak songs. All very consistent, meaning my favourite tracks jumps around a bit, but usually settles on "The Phantasmic Parade" or "Universal Death Squad". |
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77.
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Iapetus - The Body Cosmic
(8.6/10 - Extreme progressive metal - 70mins) Interludes, unlike the usual, lift this album greatly, giving it an excellent structure. The space theme is great and shines through the music in a few songs. |
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78.
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The Contortionist - Clairvoyant
(8.5/10 - Progressive metal / Post-rock / Ambient - 54mins) Very unique in atmosphere with some beautiful melodies and chord progressions, not to mention amazing synth. |
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79.
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Wintersun - The Forest Seasons
(8.5/10 - Extreme power metal / Symphonic metal - 54mins) Huge, sprawling compositions that explore many ideas throughout, all excellent. Only issue is the production. Aspects of it sound great, particularly the orchestral elements, but altogether it becomes a mess. |
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80.
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Borealis - Illusions
(8.5/10 - Melodic progressive metal - 62mins) A more upbeat and symphonic Evergrey, with heaps of emotion and great songs. |
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81.
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Thomas Bergersen - Seven
(8.5/10 - Neoclassical - 57mins) An awesome modern symphony, highly motivational and nostalgic, a good one to throw on in the morning. |
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82.
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Turilli / Lione Rhapsody - Zero Gravity (Rebirth And Evolution)
(8.5/10) - Symphonic power metal - 53mins) It's an original sound for Rhapsody, to the point where I agree that this should've been released under another name. Turilli takes a fantastic approach to songwriting here, especially in the interludes and choruses. The Latin gets a bit much, but from a musical standing point this album is phenomenal, if a bit repetitive. |
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83.
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Threshold - Legends Of The Shires
(8.5/10 - Progressive metal - 82mins) Hard rocking prog with great songwriting and melodies straight from pop music. Lots of pace changes and incredible transitions, cherry on top is the awesome lyrics. |
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84.
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Cain's Offering - Stormcrow
(8.5/10 - Power metal - 58mins) Enjoyability at the max for PM, not too cheesy while maintaining some absolutely epic moments, most notably instrumental track "I Am Legion". |
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85.
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Stratovarius - Survive
(8.5/10 - Power metal - 58mins) Very enjoyable for PM in '22, no weak tracks, just riff-fueled heaven. |
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86.
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Induction - Born From Fire
(8.5/10 - Power metal - 58mins) Well written power, highly catchy with wide range of elements like symphonic, disco-esque, death-adjacent and proggy. |
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87.
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Insomnium - Anno 1696
(8.5/10 - Melodic death metal - 72mins) Adding Songs of the Dusk in the deluxe edition does so much for an already great album, the most diverse offering in their discography, with no songs sounding similar. |
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88.
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Max Richter - Ad Astra
(8.5/10 - Soundtrack - 127mins) |
