1.1914 - Where Fear And Weapons Meet

2.Stormkeep - Tales Of Othertime

3.Mare Cognitum - Solar Paroxysm

4.Every Time I Die - Radical

5.Archspire - Bleed The Future

      View entire list ››

For those interested in suggestions of albums by genre

Removed:
- Trolls
- Limp bizkit outside of Alternative category
- albums already nominated. After the results, I will add the nominated albums that don't receive enough votes to be displayed in the results, as "staff write-ins".
- albums with a release date not in 2021

1.

2.Heleven - Into The Oceans

3.Imminence - Heaven In Hiding

4.Lantlôs - Wildhund

5.Leprous - Aphelion

      View entire list ››

1.Khirki - Κτηνωδία

2.Fange - Pantocrator

3.Stormkeep - Tales Of Othertime

4.Mastodon - Hushed And Grim

5.Turnstile - Glow On

      View entire list ››

My personal favorite 75 metal albums of the year, this year has been pretty good when comes to heavy metal, especially within black and melodic death metal, also a good year for symphonic metal.

My favourite non metal albums of the year

Spotify playlist:
2021

1.Swallow The Sun - Moonflowers

2.Helloween - Helloween

3.Ethereal Shroud - Trisagion

4.Turnstile - Glow On

5.Havengarth - The Path Through Reminiscence

      View entire list ››

Do you know this feeling when you stumble across a random word, and then suddenly that name pops up just about everywhere? That specific term haunting yours truly has long been "Portland, Oregon". It seems to me that every new discovery was founded in Portland, apparently every other album was mastered at Brad Boatright's Audiosiege Studio in Portland, and every single of my favorite bands had, at some point, performed on a stage somewhere in Portland.

In the 1980s, LA was undeniably the world's glam metal capital, alongside with San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal as a counter development. Then we witnessed the death metal boom of the early 90s, with Tampa, Florida as its global hotspot. Not to forget the New York punk and hardcore scene (NYHC), the rise of sludge metal from the swamps of New Orleans during the late 80s, grunge from Seattle gaining mainstream prominence in the early 90s...
Apparently, there has always been a tendency in the US towards rapidly developing, locally restricted music scenes, in whose environment a completely new style or genre could develop in order to have a lasting impact on the global musical landscape within a few years.

So I just had to find out if my mind was playing tricks on me or if Portland really is the current capital of the US for heavy music and extreme metal - hence this list.

Inclusion criteria:
featured on Metal Strom and
established in Portland or
a long-term creative phase in Portland or
still active and currently based in Portland
(that's why Leviathan is here but Lurker Of Chalice isn't)

Only one album (preferably the most recent full-length album) per band.

By the way, according to this article, Portland harbors the highest amount of active metal bands per capita in the US. Quite a surprise, isn't it?

While we are at it, what's your favorite Portland band?

1.Abhorrent Affliction - Forever Will He Reign

2.Acathexis - Acathexis

3.Ænigmatum - Deconsecrate

4.Ævangelist - Dream An Evil Dream III

5.Agalloch - The Serpent & The Sphere

      View entire list ››

F*ck 2020! 2021, here we go!

1.Gråt Strigoi - Communion Of The Nameless

2.Vouna - Atropos

3.Ethereal Shroud - Trisagion

4.Noltem - Illusions In The Wake

5.Big Brave - Leaving None But Small Birds [Collaboration]

      View entire list ››

1.Hulder - Godslastering: Hymns Of A Forlorn Peasantry

2.Thy Catafalque - Vadak

3.Helloween - Helloween

4.Helheim - WoduridaR

5.Stortregn - Impermanence

      View entire list ››

1.Cannibal Corpse - Violence Unimagined

2.Spectral Wound - A Diabolic Thirst

3.Hulder - Godslastering: Hymns Of A Forlorn Peasantry

4.Hellcrash - Krvcifix Invertör

5.Wolf King - The Path Of Wrath

      View entire list ››

My top to bottom list of everything from 2021 I've spent time with and have also purchased either physically or digitally (which is why most of them have high ratings). Releases featured on MS only. Whole number ratings out of 10 and my personal opinions included.

NOTE: I am no longer updating this list. 2021 was a very busy year for me personally so I did not get to as much music as I wanted... here's to fixing that in 2022. You can check the list out here: https://metalstorm.net/users/list.php?list_id=7089

1.Vola - Witness

2.Between The Buried And Me - Colors II

3.Stormkeep - Tales Of Othertime

4.Thy Catafalque - Vadak

5.Gravesend - Methods Of Human Disposal

      View entire list ››

1.Trhä - Endlhëtonëg

2.Spectral Wound - A Diabolic Thirst

3.Suffering Hour - The Cyclic Reckoning

4.Ad Nauseam - Imperative Imperceptible Impulse

5.Belore - Artefacts

      View entire list ››

1.Turnstile - Glow On

2.The Armed - Ultrapop

3.Lingua Ignota - Sinner Get Ready

4.Panopticon - . . . And Again Into The Light

5.Thirdface - Do It With A Smile

      View entire list ››

1.Beast In Black - Dark Connection

2.1914 - Where Fear And Weapons Meet

3.Duskmourn - Fallen Kings And Rusted Crowns

4.Grima - Rotten Garden

5.Gojira - Fortitude

      View entire list ››

This list is meant to be an extensive, but by no means exhaustive, collection of the greatest (modern) metal albums and eps. Running the gamut from avant-garde to trve norweigan black metal. *As someone who is young in age, my tastes tend to revolve around the period of the 80s to the present.* Although certain metal albums from before will certainly be featured, the period of the 60s-70s will be under-represented. I refer you to this excellent list to gain a better appreciation for some of the best metal from that period: https://rateyourmusic.com/list/freis/martin_popoffs_the_top_500_heavy_metal_albums_of_all_time/

1.Haar - The Wayward Ceremony

2.Hacride - Lazarus

3.Hades - The Dawn Of The Dying Sun

4.Hænesy - Garabontzia

5.Hæthen - Shaped By Aeolian Winds

      View entire list ››