Best Sludge Metal Albums of All Time
Ya sooo all of these are lead heavy. Im not including Sleep and Electric Wizard as I will reserve those for a future stoner metal list. Enjoy and please feel free to add any brain-crushingly heavy sludge albums in the comments:) Keep in mind this is my opinion. |
| 1 |  | Neurosis
Through Silver in Blood
Possibly the heaviest album ever made and the heaviest album on this list (IMO). Instead of heavy riffing like on your average sludge record, we get these straight up nasty atmospheric downtuned guitars that sound like the orchestra of hell. Scott's vocals feel like he's crying out in agony with everything he has and is really quite emotional, especially for a sludge record. Theres also this dense tribal-like drumming that adds a nice layer of dynamics to the music that makes the music feel primal and beast-like. Thats what this album is: a beast. |
| 2 |  | Melvins
Bullhead
Another band whose most sludgiest album is up for debate. Personally I go with Bullhead because I think they took what was fantastic from Gluey Porch Treatments and Ozma and wrapped it up into a perfect package known as Bullhead. Melvins arguably invented this sub-genre and this album shows why they were on top at the time. |
| 3 |  | Crowbar
Sonic Excess in Its Purest Form
Its no secret that deep in the south lies a land of concrete riffs and slow tempos. NOLA's own Crowbar have essentially perfected this southern sludge with perhaps one of the heaviest albums of all time. I know some people will say Odd Follows Rest is better, but I think this album is just as heavy with more memorable tracks than OFR. The production is sooo satisfying on this as well, which only adds to the brutal sonics that this album delivers in excess;) |
| 4 |  | Isis
Panopticon
Like Neurosis, Isis delivers a different type of sludge metal that is more atmospheric and brooding. This isn't a record I can just pick a random song and head bang to. This is an album that must be experienced as a whole and an inquisitive mind that tries to decipher all that is going on in this beautiful sludgy goodness. |
| 5 |  | Acid Bath
When the Kite String Pops
It was really hard to pick between this and Paegan Terrorism Tactics as the superior album, and really, it changes depending on the day. Today I'm picking WTKSP as it is considered a monumental debut album by one of metal's best kept secrets. This album incorporates straight up lethal sludge with groove metal and even some death growls thrown in the mix. Although the band was short-lived, this album showed that they were not to be messed with. |
| 6 |  | Thou
Heathen
Just listen to it |
| 7 |  | Eyehategod
Dopesick
Not only this album, but this band is super important to me. My first introduction to metal was rather a peculiar one. I didnt like thrash metal or glam, and those were really the only subgenres of metal I knew about in my early years. I stumbled upon a band called Kyuss, and before I knew it , I was obsessing over all their albums as well as the stoner/desert metal genre. One day I tried finding some more similar bands, and ended up seeing a band called Eyehategod on Pandora. I had recently become an atheist, so I obviously was quite intrigued. Masters of Legalized Confusion came on. Despite the noise, I had this connection to it. Sure the song was really distorted and the vocals could be interpreted as being horrible. But the song evoked this feeling of desperation and urgency that I had not really heard in music yet. The sludgy guitars and the insane lyrics just sounded cool to me. I got hooked on this album ever since.
Also, that intro to Ruptured Heart Theory though? Savage. |
| 8 |  | Down
NOLA
These guys are riff machines. All their albums are quite good, but to me, their debut has the most memorable tracks and coolest sounding production. I just love its raw sonics and Phil's mixture between screams and southern-inspired melodies. |
| 9 |  | Grief
Come to Grief
Back in my youth, my parents caught me blaring this in the garage and asked me if the speakers were broken. .....They weren't. |
| 10 |  | High on Fire
De Vermis Mysteriis
Currently my favorite High On Fire record as it is perhaps their heaviest and best produced. Such a fun record to rock out to with almost all the tracks being distinct and memorable. This will probably be higher up on my list in the future. |
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