Best Italian Metal 1980-2000
The album are sorted in chronological order. The last four albums are renowned masterpieces; however, I have never particularly loved them: for this reason they have no vote and are at the bottom of the list. Please enjoy it and go rate what you like. |
| 1 |  | Vanadium
A Race with the Devil
One of the best hard&heavy records in Italy. A great performance of all the members, with Scotto and Tessarin in a great condition. 8/10 |
| 2 |  | Vanexa
Vanexa
One of the earliest Italian metal bands. It sounds very similar to NWOBHM. 8/10 |
| 3 |  | Black Hole
Land of Mystery
Psychedelic Horror Doom Metal with downtuned organ for a very underground work of art. 8.5/10 |
| 4 |  | Bulldozer
The Day of Wrath
The best album by the pioneers of '80 black metal. Lyrics are very original and funny. 8.5/10 |
| 5 |  | Fil di Ferro
Hurricanes
A little masterpiece from the '80s. Fil di Ferro play similar to Judas Priest and Iron Maiden, but with a certain dose of originality. The songwriting is at an high level. 8/10 |
| 6 |  | Unreal Terror
Hard Incursion
A NWOBHM-influenced little gem, with a great bass player. 8/10 |
| 7 |  | Dark Quarterer
Dark Quarterer
A beautiful Epic Metal album, it was totally remastered in 2013. 9/10 |
| 8 |  | Paul Chain
Opera 4th (as Paul Chain Violet Theatre)
A psychedelic record by the genius of Italian Doom Paul Chain. The first half is a 30 minutes psychedelic suite, the second half contains three doom metal pearls. 8/10 |
| 9 |  | Dark Quarterer
The Etruscan Prophecy
Another masterpiece by Italian best Epic Metal band. It's more refined than the debut, but less gloomy. 8.5/10 |
| 10 |  | Firehouse (ITA)
Firehouse
A great melodic heavy metal album, with great melodies and arrangements by the founders of Arachnes. 8.5/10 |
| 11 |  | Skanners
Pictures of War
One of the best Italian HM albums from '80s. 8/10 |
| 12 |  | Upset Noise
Nothing More to Be Said
One of the best crossover albums of the decade: perfect lyrics, melodies and rhythms, overwhelming anger and the right balance between hardcore immediacy and thrash structures. In two words, a little gem to be rediscovered. 8.5/10 |
| 13 |  | Crystal Phoenix
Myriam
It's a very strange album by a one-(wo)man band. It bleds '70s prog, doom, epic and folk with the dark voice of Myriam Saglimbeni. 8.5/10 |
| 14 |  | Death SS
Black Mass
A masterpiece by the Italian Mercyful Fate. "Cursed Mama" is a jewel. 8/10 |
| 15 |  | Moon of Steel (ITA)
Passions
The Italian answer to Crimson Glory. A powerful album. 8/10 |
| 16 |  | Paul Chain
Life and Death
Another pearl by the master of doom Paul Chain. This album is more traditional than the previous, but It contains some amazing songs like "Kill Me" and "Antichrist". 9/10 |
| 17 |  | Strana Officina
Rock & Roll Prisoners
One of the best Class Metal bands in Italy. The band splitted up due to the tragic death of Cappanera brothers. 9/10 |
| 18 |  | Devil Doll
Eliogabalus
The first Devil Doll's masterpiece. Classical arrangements and Gothic atmospheres. 9.5/10 |
| 19 |  | Broken Glazz
Divine
A great debut for the Turinese band. They blend technical thrash with a certain dose of classic heavy metal to compose melodic and proggy thrash metal songs. 8.5/10 |
| 20 |  | Death SS
Heavy Demons
Another masterpiece of the band. It's more classic metal-oriented than the previous albums, but more obscure. 8.5/10 |
| 21 |  | Paul Chain
Whited Sepulchres
Paul Chain emendates the excess of his previous album and releases one of his better works. Psychedelic Blues and experimentations at the highest level. 8.5/10 |
| 22 |  | Broken Glazz
Withdraw from Reality
A fantastic technical thrash metal album, in the vein of Megadeth and Annihilator. 8.5/10 |
| 23 |  | Malombra
Malombra
A bizarre juxtaposition between the dark and obsessive new wave of Red Temple Spirit, the dark prog of Jacula, Black Widow, Dark Quarterer & co., and the experimental doom of people like Paul Chain. It's just to try. 8.5/10 |
| 24 |  | Devil Doll
The Sacrilege of Fatal Arms
Another pearl by the genius of Mr. Doctor, a soundtrack for an unfoundable movie.8.5/10 |
| 25 |  | Garden Wall
Principium
The first masterpiece by one of the best prog metal bands of the '90s. 8.5/10 |
| 26 |  | Sadist
Above the Light
The incredible debut album by the Italian fathers of Progressive Death Metal. A masterpiece 9.5/10 |
| 27 |  | Testimonia
Testimonia
A great progressive thrash album. The songwriting is very various and solid, It could remind of Voivod or Anacrusis, or even the most technical Megadeth. Possibly the best Italian thrash metal album ever. 9/10 |
| 28 |  | Necromass
Mysteria Mystica Zofiriana
Mediterranean black metal album. 9/10 |
| 29 |  | Novembre
Wish I Could Dream It Again...
Novembre's debut, though it's a bit rougher than their most famous albums, is stil a very fascinating work, capable to take in a lot of different influences without loose its deep originality. And if you are going to say "hey, it's a clone of Brave Murder Day!", don't forget WICDA was released two years earlier than Katatonia's masterpiece. 8.5/10 |
| 30 |  | Opera IX
The Call of the Wood
Pagan Black Metal with female singer. 9/10 |
| 31 |  | Presence (ITA)
The Sleeper Awakes
An incredible prog metal album with the amazing singer Sofia Baccini. 8.5/10 |
| 32 |  | Arpia
Liberazione
Doom metal meets the darkest progressive rock. Interesting. 8/10 |
| 33 |  | Eldritch
Seeds of Rage
Power/Prog with the great pianist Oleg Smirnoff. 9/10 |
| 34 |  | In.Si.Dia
Guarda dentro te
One of the best Italian thrash metal albums ever released. Metallica's influences are obvious, buy they are revised with originality and with the help of very inspired Italian lyrics. 8.5/10 |
| 35 |  | Monumentum
In Absentia Christi
A band which mixes darkwave and Doom metal with middle-eastern and mediterranean sounds. 8/10 |
| 36 |  | Paul Chain
Alkahest
After a seesaw album like Dies Irae, old master Paul Chain enlisted the help of his fan Lee Dorrian (Cathedral) to package his more accessible album. Far from the psychedelic experiments started at the time of "Opera 4th", this platter shows the influence of the English doom of the early 90s (Cathedral and Paradise Lost above all), with excellent results. 8/10 |
| 37 |  | Sadist
Tribe
When you say "progressive death metal" you often have to listen virtuosistic non-sense bands. In this album, the sound of Death meets a true progressive attitude, in a very original platter. 8.5/10 |
| 38 |  | Sinoath
Research
A great album of death/doom, full of sick melodies and great gothic arrangements. 9/10 |
| 39 |  | Time Machine (ITA)
Act II: Galileo
The album which open the path for Italian melodic power/prog tradition. 8.5/10 |
| 40 |  | Altered Vision
Fantàsia
Incredible progressive metal album, featuring a lot of power metal and fusion jazz. 9/10 |
| 41 |  | Cruentus (ITA)
In Myself
I am amazed that "In Myself" is not counted among the classics of Prog Death. Released in 1996, this album is a crazy kaleidoscope that mixes together Death and Cynic, Voivod and Coroner, acoustic arpeggios and jazzy passages, avantgarde keyboards and jazz passages, Anthrax and Power Metal cues. A hidden diamond. 9.5 / 10 |
| 42 |  | Devil Doll
Dies Irae
An unique album. Industrial experimentalism, classical partitures, progressive, odd gothic metal mixed together in a true and total masterpiece by the most mysterious band in the world. 10/10 |
| 43 |  | Malombra
Our Lady of the Bones
The most mature work of Malombra. Elements derived from folk, psychedelia and classical music are added to their original doom/dark prog phormula. A fiercely avant-garde album and, still today, a unicum in the metal scene. 9/10 |
| 44 |  | Necromass
Abyss Calls Life
A great step ahead of their previous album, a BM recording full of complex rithmic patterns, obliquous and dissonant melodies and classic HM shades. 8.5/10 |
| 45 |  | Novembre
Arte Novecento
The less known record of November is a perfectly balanced mix of darkwave and gothic/doom, full of a prog attitude that can only leave you speechless. A fundamental piece in the band's mosaic. 9/10 |
| 46 |  | Presence (ITA)
Black Opera
A great step ahead for Presence, which improves the dark prog of the previous album in a magniloquent opera. 9/10 |
| 47 |  | Crown of Autumn
The Treasures Arcane
A piece of art. Melodic Death Metal, Gothic and black metal, with sumptuous folk, Symphonic, Epic arrangements. 9.5/10 |
| 48 |  | Cultus Sanguine
Shadows' Blood
Katatonia's "Brave Murder Day", Cradle of Filth's "The Principale of Evil Made of Flesh", Emperor's "Anthems of the Welkin at Dusk", Ancient Rites' "Fatherland".... This and much more in a kaleidoscopic album wich fuse together Black, Gothic and Doom. 9/10 |
| 49 |  | Serenades
The Age of Purity
A very good Gothic/Doom Metal album, in the mood of early Anathema. 8/10 |
| 50 |  | Will 'O' Wisp
Enchiridion
The debut of Will 'o' Wisp is an incredible kaleidoscope: the base is represented by a death / doom with strong progressive accents, which recalls what Sinoath did a couple of years earlier. Added to this are experiments that draw from avantgarde black to tech-death à la Sadist. A disc to discover. 9/10 |
| 51 |  | Zen
Gaze into the Light
Great prog metal for a very unlucky band. 8.5/10 |
| 52 |  | Acron
Labyrinth of Fears
Very dark prog metal and complex suites. 8.5/10 |
| 53 |  | Eldritch
El Nino
A great progressive metal album, with thrash and power influences. It could remind some stuff by Watchtower. 8/10 |
| 54 |  | Insider
Land of Crystals
After a mundane death/doom album, Insider chnge direction adding psych & prog elements to its proposal. 8/10 |
| 55 |  | La Caruta di li Dei
Mediterraneo Atto I
An odd album which blends black metal, progressive rock, mediterranean folk and lyrics sung in Sicilian dialect. Very original. 8/10 |
| 56 |  | Labyrinth
Return to Heaven Denied
Power/Prog with the great guitarist Olaf Thorsen. 8.5/10 |
| 57 |  | Maldoror
Ars Magika
An incredible way to play symphonic BM. Only four, long suites in which BM and gothic atmospheres are perfectly balanced. 9/10 |
| 58 |  | Aborym
Kali Yuga Bizarre
Absolutely scaring Industrial Black Metal. 9/10 |
| 59 |  | Cele Kula
The Moonlight and the Misty Night
Altought is more an EP than a full-lenght album, "The Moonlight and the Misty Night" Is a very good example of Gothic/Doom metal, with some good New Wave issues in the way of Monumentum and Canaan. 8/10 |
| 60 |  | Dakrua
Inner Wastelands
Bizarre album that mixes symphonic power and gothic rock. 8/10 |
| 61 |  | Evenfall
Still in the Grey Dying
It could be the best of Lacuna Coil, a perfect example of smart Gothic metal. There are no weak tracks, and the phormula used by the band is perfect balanced. Much more better than Within Temptation contemporary stuff. 8.5/10 |
| 62 |  | Lacuna Coil
In a Reverie
It could be the best of Lacuna Coil, a perfect example of smart Gothic metal. There are no weak tracks, and the phormula used by the band is perfect balanced. Much more better than Within Temptation contemporary stuff. 8.5/10 |
| 63 |  | Novembre
Classica
The third album of the band is that of the maturity. A mix of death, doom, gothic and prog that cannot leave indifferent and that places the Roman band in the Olympus of Doom Metal. 8.5/10 |
| 64 |  | Sodomy
Born of Undead
A little, hidden pearl of Deathrash Metal. 8/10 |
| 65 |  | Theatres Des Vampires
The Vampire Chronicles
A very good melodic black metal album, which blends the Gothic/Black Metal of Cradle of Filth and some influences by the Mediterranea scene (Rotting Christ, Cultus Sanguine, Opera IX). The songs are well written and the members proficiency is high. 8.5/10 |
| 66 |  | White Skull
Tales from the North
Power metal in the style of Grave Digger, but with more guitars and a (wonderful) female voice. 9/10 |
| 67 |  | Necrodeath
Fragments of Insanity
A milestone of proto-black metal. S.V. |
| 68 |  | Adramelch
Irae Melanox
Althought a very bad production, this is a very interesting epic/prog metal album. S.V. |
| 69 |  | Schizo
Main Frame Collapse
A chaotic and violent album which anticipates various features of Black Metal. It shows a grindcore-like approach. S.V. |
| 70 |  | Electrocution
Inside the Unreal
A very technical deathrash album. S.V. |
| 71 |  | Mortuary Drape
Secret Sudaria
Probably the last protoblack metal album. S.V. |
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