1.Moonlight Sorcery - Horned Lord Of The Thorned Castle

2.Sacred Outcry - Towers Of Gold

3.Atavistia - Cosmic Warfare

4.Alkaloid - Numen

5.Warmen - Here For None

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"Very good" or above. The top 20 are the best of the year. Everything else ranges from 8 to 9.5 on a "10" scale.

1.Afterbirth - In But Not Of

2.Cattle Decapitation - Terrasite

3.Godthrymm - Distortions

4.Fvnerals - Let The Earth Be Silent

5.Notturno - Inside

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1.Crystal Coffin - The Curse Of Immortality

2.Exulansis - Overtures Of Uprising

3.Ne Obliviscaris - Exul

4.Blackbraid - Blackbraid II

5.Frozen Dawn - The Decline Of The Enlightened Gods

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1.Fires In The Distance - Air Not Meant For Us

2.Insomnium - Anno 1696

3.Fen - Monuments To Absence

4.Godflesh - Purge

5.Incantation - Unholy Deification

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Forget the MSA's, this is the best of list you've all been waiting for. Why 23 albums? Well, because I can that's why.

1.Fires In The Distance - Air Not Meant For Us

2.Urne - A Feast On Sorrow

3.Cattle Decapitation - Terrasite

4.Saturnus - The Storm Within

5.Frozen Soul - Glacial Domination

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1.Fires In The Distance - Air Not Meant For Us

2.Oak - Disintegrate

3.Sermon - Of Golden Verse

4.Bizarrekult - Den Tapte Krigen

5.Soen - Memorial

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To Celebrate Metal Hammer's Tumultuous Albums of the Year list, I'm releasing my top 25 Albums of the year early. It might change once the Awards come around.

1.Saturnus - The Storm Within

2.Insomnium - Anno 1696

3.Miserere Luminis - Ordalie

4.Æolian - Echoes Of The Future

5.Sacred Outcry - Towers Of Gold

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1.Fires In The Distance - Air Not Meant For Us

2.Tomb Mold - The Enduring Spirit

3.Cattle Decapitation - Terrasite

4.Church Of Misery - Born Under A Mad Sign

5.Kalmah - Kalmah

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1.Fires In The Distance - Air Not Meant For Us

2.Ne Obliviscaris - Exul

3.Hellripper - Warlocks Grim & Withered Hags

4.Sworn - A Journey Told Through Fire

5.Insomnium - Anno 1696

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1.Fires In The Distance - Air Not Meant For Us

2.Thy Catafalque - Alföld

3.Omnerod - The Amensal Rise

4.Ne Obliviscaris - Exul

5.Terminalist - The Crisis As Condition

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Chronological order…

1.Grá - Lycaon

2.Leiþa - Reue

3.Azgaroth - Kohti Unholaa

4.Nothingness - Supraliminal

5.Katatonia - Sky Void Of Stars

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1.Majesties - Vast Reaches Unclaimed

2.Devangelic - Xul

3.Wings Of Steel - Gates Of Twilight

4.Obituary - Dying Of Everything

5.Fires In The Distance - Air Not Meant For Us

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1.Avatarium - Death, Where Is Your Sting

2.Belphegor - The Devils

3.Cabal - Magno Interitus

4.Sedimentum - Suppuration Morphogénésiaque

5.Kalmah - Kalmah

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Based on first impressions - re-listens often make me change my mind. Though this was not a great month - this is the first time I put any 3/5 star album on my top 10 and I'm not thrilled about it.

1.Voyager - Prince Of Fire

2.The Ocean - Holocene

3.Supersonic Revolution - Golden Age Of Music

4.Deathstars - Everything Destroys You

5.Fires In The Distance - Air Not Meant For Us

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1.Atavistia - Cosmic Warfare

2.Fires In The Distance - Air Not Meant For Us

3....And Oceans - As In Gardens, So In Tombs

4.Katatonia - Sky Void Of Stars

5.

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