These are my favorite progressive/power metal albums that I have listened to. Some of them are for musical technique and others are simply because they blew my mind with the crazy story lines or whatever!

1.Symphony X - Paradise Lost

2.Symphony X - The Odyssey

3.Masterplan - Aeronautics

4.Nightwish - Dark Passion Play

5.Theocracy - As The World Bleeds

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1.Opeth - Still Life

2.Arch Enemy - Burning Bridges

3.Nevermore - Dreaming Neon Black

4.Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory

5.Demons And Wizards - Demons And Wizards

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The best album of each year (and one close 2nd) from the past 20 years. Some years were much harder than others to choose the best 2 albums.

1.In Vain - Ænigma

2.Summoning - Old Mornings Dawn

3.Dissona - Dissona

4.Ne Obliviscaris - Portal Of I

5.Obscura - Omnivium

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1.King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King

2.Empyrium - Songs Of Moors And Misty Fields

3.Agalloch - The Mantle

4.Windir - Arntor

5.Moonsorrow - Kivenkantaja

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1.Iron Maiden - Fear Of The Dark

2.Metallica - Metallica

3.Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory

4.Judas Priest - Painkiller

5.Annihilator - Set The World On Fire

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Alphabetically sorted list of concept albums I know and love them so much to feature them here. Just one album per band in case they have more.

1.Agalloch - Faustian Echoes

2.Aina - The Metal Opera - Days Of Rising Doom

3.Avantasia - The Metal Opera Part I

4.Ayreon - The Human Equation

5.Crystallion - Hundred Days

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Here is my provisional favorite-metal-albums-of-all-time-list! Enjoy!
The first 10 albums are in pretty accurate order. However, after that, it becomes harder and harder to separate the albums clearly. Thus, you can say that I enjoy album x on the list as much as the others in the interval of (x-5) to (x+5). For example album 37 would be as much enjoyed as 32, 33, 34, ..., 42, or something like that.

1.Cult Of Luna - Somewhere Along The Highway

2.Disillusion - Back To Times Of Splendor

3.Grand Alchemist - Intervening Coma-Celebration

4.Opeth - Blackwater Park

5.Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory

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I picked one album by each of my favorite bands for this list. Keep in mind that after the first few albums I put on the list, it became increasingly difficult to figure out where to place artists in my list. Also, this is kind of how my favorite bands lie now, as far as how often I listen to them - whereas some of these bands used to be much more frequently played, years ago. But this is, more or less, a list of my favorite albums by my favorite bands.

1.Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory

2.Seventh Wonder - The Great Escape

3.Symphony X - The Odyssey

4.Circus Maximus - Nine

5.Haken - Visions

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I tried to put one album per band, so it was a fucking hard choice in many cases.
Anyway, all of them are great albums in it' genre.
No order followed.

1.Almah - Fragile Equality

2.Andre Matos - Mentalize

3.Arryan Path - Ira Imperium

4.Avantasia - The Metal Opera Part 1

5.Astral Doors - New Revelation

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1.Tool - Lateralus

2.Porcupine Tree - In Absentia

3.Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory

4.Devin Townsend - Ziltoid The Omniscient

5.Agalloch - The Mantle

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Lots of genres, not repeating any Band (except Therion, but with 3 different styles). You cannot go wrong with this list, some nice Starts to any kind of Metal.
The list is sorted by year, but has not any particular order. Enjoy!

1.Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime

2.Atheist - Unquestionable Presence

3.Therion - Symphony Masses - Ho Drakon Ho Megas

4.Cynic - Focus

5.Amorphis - Tales From The Thousand Lakes

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Kinda saw another relative lists on here that state this, one bad and one inspirational, so thought I might do my own.

Alphabetic order. And don't ask why a lot of Testament stuff is there, if their albums hadn't had so much impact, Testa wouldn't be my favorite band.

1.AC/DC - Back In Black

2.Accept - Stalingrad

3.Agalloch - The Mantle

4.Amon Amarth - Versus The World

5.Anthrax - Spreading The Disease

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The label metal includes heavy, power, black...

1.Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory

2.Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime

3.Rush - 2112

4.Symphony X - V: The New Mythology Suite

5.Opeth - Still Life

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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

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1.Death - Human

2.Opeth - Still Life

3.At The Gates - Slaughter Of The Soul

4.Dismember - Like An Ever Flowing Stream

5.Emperor - Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk

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