iTokoloshe's 25 Of 2011
The 25 metal albums that crushed my skull in 2011. These are in no particular order. |
| 1 |  | Arch Enemy
Khaos Legions
Great melodies, crushing vocals and more of the same from Arch Enemy |
| 2 |  | Architects
The Here and Now
Catchier than their older material, but maintaining the edginess and showing some fantastic growth |
| 3 |  | Asking Alexandria
Reckless and Relentless
Love them or hate them, their mix of glam, electronics and metalcore will get your blood pumping |
| 4 |  | Black Tusk
Set the Dial
Rough, simple, dirty and attacking you from every direction |
| 5 |  | Cavalera Conspiracy
Blunt Force Trauma
Not as good as Inflikted, but still a headbanging thrasher from the Cavalera lads |
| 6 |  | Chimaira
The Age of Hell
A band in turmoil which is reflected in the music, but in a good way |
| 7 |  | Circles
The Compass
8 strings of goodness with some great melodies. Where do the Aussies keep finding these great bands? |
| 8 |  | DevilDriver
Beast
Another monster (or Beast...) from Dez and the boys that piledrives you through a table |
| 9 |  | Glamour of the Kill
The Summoning
Young band finding their feet and hitting some memorable high spots |
| 10 |  | Heights
Dead Ends
Like getting beaten up by a supermodel in nothing but her lingerie. Brutal and gorgeous |
| 11 | | Imicus
Animal Factory
Great rhythms, strong vocals and good aggression on this debut album. Its so underground that Sputnik Music doesn't have them listed |
| 12 |  | Machine Head
Unto the Locust
Wow, riffs of epic proportions, complex structured songs and all kinds of craziness |
| 13 |  | Mastodon
The Hunter
Psychedelic and fun. The shared vocals give them so many options on every song. And don't get me started on the riffs |
| 14 | | NightShade (FRA)
Lost in Motion
Surprisingly good. Not well known and without much hype |
| 15 |  | Northlane
Discoveries
Take 1 part x Aussie band add 1 part x 8 string guitars, shake them together and prepare to be flattened (with a smile on your face) |
| 16 |  | Rise to Remain
City of Vultures
This album confuses me. One listen and I love it, the next listen and I'm unimpressed, then another listen and I love it and so on. |
| 17 |  | Suicide SIlence
The Black Crown
Mitch Lucker's last album, and their best. The riffs got groovier but the aggression got amplified |
| 18 |  | Sylosis
Edge of the Earth
A tidal wave of complex sound. Unrelenting and powerful |
| 19 |  | The Black Dahlia Murder
Ritual
More of the same from BDM, which is great. Vocals to scare dragons and riffs to build castles |
| 20 |  | The Defiled
Grave Times
When i got this album as a Metal Hammer covermount I almost dismissed it as rubbish. Thankfully I gave it a go and discovered these guys. There is too much goodness to describe, if you haven't heard them, go listen to them. A great blend of all things metal. |
| 21 |  | The Devil Wears Prada
Dead Throne
TDWP have finally come good, they've always shown promise, but now they've released a killer of an album |
| 22 |  | Trivium
In Waves
Matt Heafy and the guys perfect their sound and produce a great album |
| 23 |  | While She Sleeps
The North Stands for Nothing
Only an EP and a teaser of things to come, but it introduces a band that will take over the world |
| 24 |  | Xerath
II
Great mixture of symphony and aggro |
| 25 |  | Burzum
From the Depths of Darkness
Although not technically a 2011 album, these re-recordings were released in 2011. Black metal with a cleaner production that is beautiful and haunting all at once |
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