We hope that over the last 10 weeks you have made some great new album discoveries due to this absolute monster of all decade-ending lists. Better yet, we hope you have formed some new obsessions. We here at Metal Review did not put this together to be definitive or authoritarian; we did this because we love these bands and albums, and we hope that you will share that with us. Use this list for discovery and for expanding your library, and please, by all means, argue the shit out of it all below.
So now, without further ado: The Final Volume. And what better way to bookend everything than with Iron Maiden?
IRON MAIDEN – BRAVE NEW WORLD
Returning after a nearly decade-long hiatus, Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith re-energize this legendary band; Maiden finally putting the blandness of the Bayley years behind them and returning to show us kids today what metal really sounds like. Steve Harris’ gift for epic songwriting is still intact, but it’s lead single (and shortest track) “The Wicker Man” that will forever define Maiden’s comeback, that soaring chorus being exactly what we wanted to hear from Eddie and Co after all those wasted years. [EMI, 2000]
• • • •
DEVIN TOWNSEND – TERRIA
In many ways, Terria is Devin Townsend’s most musically accomplished work; in others, it’s his most head-scratching. Whichever way you see it, songs like “Earth Day” and the beautiful “Deep Peace” showcase everything that makes Townsend’s music so distinctive and great; dense layers of ambient guitars and vocals supplement deceptively poppy core structures, with Townsend’s emotional vocals and stream-of-consciousness lyrics delivering hooks so bizarre its hard to believe how incredibly catchy they are. Deep, memorable, and undoubtedly unique, Terria takes you on a musical journey that you’ll want to revisit again and again. [InsideOut, 2001]
• • • •
IMMORTAL – SONS OF NORTHERN DARKNESS
A few years after the dramatic sonic makeover first revealed on the landmark album At the Heart of Winter, Immortal finally broke into mainstream metal consciousness with Sons of Northern Darkness. Neither with symphonic bombast, nor with extracurricular shenanigans did Immortal win the masses’ favor, rather it was with a cold, steely attack as sharp as the spikes on Abbath’s gauntlets. From the galloping thrash of “One by One’, to the epic lament of “Beyond the North Waves,” SoND saw Immortal ending their career (temporarily) in top form. [Nuclear Blast, 2002]
• • • •
BLUT AUS NORD – THE WORK WHICH TRANSFORMS GOD
A quintessential masterpiece. Universally praised by fans, musicians, and critics both in and out of the metal scene, Blut Aus Nord’s most successful attempt at twisting and reinventing black metal into a warped new design has already taken its place in the timeless halls of the mighty. Instead of just trying to sound disturbing, The Work…actually is perversely alien and otherworldly, eliminating all boundaries while changing the way many people listen to music. Its brilliance is undeniable. [Appease Me…/Adipocere, 2003]
• • • •
ANAAL NATHRAKH – DOMINE NON ES DIGNUS
A younger, more violent sibling to Slayer’s Reign In Blood–in style, if not in stature–and the most direct release in their catalog. The sound of forced vomiting heralds nine sadistically fast, insanely vocalized pieces of utter musical carnage. Cleaner and more focused in their delivery, tracks such as “The Oblivion Gene” and “The Final Destruction Of Dignity” are prime examples of music designed to terrorize anyone within earshot. Dynamics be damned, this is a full-on bloodbath of the highest order. [Season of Mist, 2004]
• • • •
ARSIS – A CELEBRATION OF GUILT
Right place, right time? Or just that fucking good? Well, Arsis’ debut was a killer combination of both. In a world starved of MDM heroes, this upstart duo’s worship-combo of Heartwork, …AFJA, and Storm of the Light’s Bane was as refreshing as it was opportune. James Malone’s championship riffing (2:30 of “The Face of My Innocence,” anyone?) and jaw-dropping soloing was the cocaine-coated candy to starving, withdrawn melodeathsters. ACoG stands as one of the most impressive, energizing debuts ever. [Willowtip, 2004]
• • • •
BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME – ALASKA
That rare album that would be the Number One Album of Year if it were released each year, Alaska stands as one of the true testaments to extreme musical creativity and skill. Though some saw their scattershot precision and unpredictability as unnerving and unfocused, most saw the album as a brave, genre-defying melting pot. “All Bodies” and “Selkies” fused grindcore, power metal, acoustic beauty and death metal into one elegant, eloquent and extreme foray into envelope-shattering brilliance that even with 2008’s magnificent follow up, Colors, the band has yet to match. [Victory, 2005]
• • • •
NEVERMORE – THIS GODLESS ENDEAVOR
Dark/thrash/prog/power/whatever metal band Nevermore ride Warrel Dane’s singularly bombastic vocals and Jeff Loomis’ endless array of solid shred riffs to metallic glory on this one, redeeming themselves from the admittedly problematic Enemies Of Reality. This Endeavor is a snarling, dense masterwork of desperation, anger, and intensity the likes of which only Nevermore could create, with a musical depth and aggression matched only by the lyrics. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, Nevermore does cerebral moodiness better than most–and never better than this. [Century Media, 2005]
• • • •
DRUDKH – BLOOD IN OUR WELLS
Drudkh’s fourth opus was the first in a line of divisive releases. Some fans saw it as a dull and clumsy reiteration of the fiery passion of their earlier albums; others saw it as a bold, highly rewarding take on epic black metal. Whether you loved it or hated it, Drudkh threw everyone for a loop with this album’s deliberate pacing (with nary a blastbeat to be found), surprisingly emotional vocal work, and some of the most scorching guitar solos ever to surface on a black metal record. The album’s deviation from expected norms still doesn’t sit right with many listeners, but Blood In Our Wells proved Drudkh’s ability to step outside of black metal’s boundaries into something even more mammoth in scope. [Supernal, 2006]
• • • •
DECREPIT BIRTH – DIMINISHING BETWEEN WORLDS
Californian tech-death outfit Decrepit Birth topped Metal Review’s Best of 2008 list with this jaw-dropping, head-spinning display of melodic leads, bone-breaking riffs, machine-precise drumming, and surprisingly catchy song-craft. Guitarist Matt Sotelo leads the charge, as nearly every split-second of this is drenched in shred-tastic guitar wheedle…but don’t let that turn you off. Diminishing Between Worlds is a rarity, a dizzying display of technicality that is as enjoyable to fans of bare-bones death metal as it is to the muso types. [Unique Leader, 2008]
• • • •
There you have it. 100 Essential Albums from a sprawling, ambitious decade in heavy metal. Raise ’em up.
