Average Rating: 3.96 Rating Variance: 0.34 Objectivity Score: 57% (Somewhat Balanced)
Sort by: Rating | Release Date | Rating Date | Name2016 Darkthrone Arctic Thunder3.5Gorguts Pleiades' Dust4.0Vektor Terminal Redux4.5Dark Funeral Where Shadows Forever Reign3.5A positive surprise, nothing earth-shattering but an enjoyable album nonetheless.Destroyer 666 Wildfire4.0Voivod Post Society4.02015 Batushka Litourgiya4.0Worthless (FIN) Grim Catharsis3.5Very nice groovy no-tricks death metal. Slow-to-mid tempo all the way, but doesn't get boring thanks to sensible song lengths. Nice atmosphere and natural, powerful sound. Could have been mastered with a little more dynamics, but not a big flaw.Sacrilegious Impalement First Three Nails3.5Gruesome Savage Land4.02014 Opeth Pale Communion4.0Ranger Shock Skull3.5Dead Congregation Promulgation of the Fall4.0Triptykon Melana Chasmata4.0Lost Society Terror Hungry3.0Despite having longer songs and a touch of atmosphere more, this doesn't quite justify the band's current strengths as well as the debut. While most of the riffs range from good to great, the songs themselves could be better. The boys absolutely kill on stage though, seen them twice.Azrael Rising Anti-Gravity3.0Solid raw black metal, nothing too unique but God in His Blue Temple is well worth a listen.Nuclear Omnicide Bringers of Disease3.5Blasting death/thrash metal from Finland. The boys have certainly taken some influence from Sadus, particularly Illusions. Great start for 2014! 3.7/52013 Obliteration Black Death Horizon4.5This is what you get if Celtic Frost, Autopsy and Necrophobic had group sex. Good sex.Inquisition Obscure Verses for the Multiverse4.0Not as immediate a listen as the previous album, but it's an album that gets better by more listens. Inquisition are sure one of the most interesting and unique black metal bands around at the moment. 3.8/5Carcass Surgical Steel3.5Grave Miasma Odori Sepulcrorum4.0Ranger Knights of Darkness4.0Gorguts Colored Sands4.5Colored Sands roughly sounds like Gorguts with a more dynamic production and some Deathspell Omega influences mixed in. Can't be too bad.Speedtrap Powerdose4.0Finnish speed metal! Powerful high-pitched vocals, effective fast riffs and catchy songs make this another great metal release of 2013.Exhumed Necrocracy4.0While you can't really call this original, it's obvious Necroticism-era Carcass worship after all, but guess what? It's done damn well, so I'm not giving a fuck. One of the best death metal offerings in 2013.Die Schwarze Sonne Das Letzte Licht4.0Very very good raw black metal with a distinct atmospheric edge - but without relying very much on synths, keyboards or ambient noises.Lost Society Fast Loud Death3.5Darkthrone The Underground Resistance3.5Brutality Ruins of Humans4.0Paysage d'Hiver Das Tor4.5A long journey of distant and cold emotions, where Wintherr is the best of all.Krypts Unending Degradation4.0Convulse Inner Evil2.5Voivod Target Earth4.0I was very pleasantly surprised when I heard a few songs off this on youtube. Then I thought 'right, I NEED to get this album some time' and I did. Definitely no disappointment, Target Earth really sounds quite much like a natural successor for Dimension Hatross and Nothingface.Church of The Dead Vol. 1 Stay Out of My Grave3.52012 Vomitor The Escalation2.0Pretty disappointing, the attitude and evilness is there but most of the songs go nowhere.Denial of God Death and the Beyond3.5Deathspell Omega Drought4.0Another welcome addition of bizarre black metal with prog.Dying Fetus Reign Supreme3.5Brutality in more old school vein, not only speed but some beefy riffing and respectable vocals as well. A very good brutal/technical death metal release. And Trey Williams is a fucking machine gun with the drums.Backyard Mortuary Lure of the Occult4.0Cattle Decapitation Monolith of Inhumanity2.5Inverloch Dusk|Subside4.0My expectations for this were quite high (for obvious reasons), and it surpassed them. Containing only three songs, it feels just right. It's intriguing how Inverloch sounds much like their father band, but still somehow different. Think of "The d" and Incantation having sex, it would result in something like this. Much recommended if you dig either of those bands.Overkill The Electric Age3.5Desaster The Arts of Destruction3.5Even if not the most unique and memorable, The Arts of Destruction is an enjoyable album that any fan of blackened thrash should give a spin.2011 Cataleptic Strength Within3.0Vektor Outer Isolation4.5Esoteric Paragon of Dissonance4.0Vader Welcome to the Morbid Reich3.5Good ol' Vader does it again - nothing new, but the old tricks are used pretty well. Despite being hardly ground-breaking and kinda samey, it's definitely a pleasant and consistent listen of thrash-tinged death metal.Toxic Holocaust Conjure and Command3.5Beherit At The Devil's Studio 19903.5Probably even better than The Oath of Black Blood, raw and bestial as fuckDeathspell Omega Diabolus Absconditus3.52010 Inquisition Ominous Doctrines of the Perpetual Mystical...4.0Some of the most unique black metal today. Traditional in a good way, obscure in a good way.Deathspell Omega Paracletus4.0Heavy, dark, unrelenting, cold, complex, hypnotic - all to make this a great black metal release.Dio At Donington UK: Live 1983 & 19874.0The 1983 live is marvelous, sound is a bit rough but delivers all the rawness and energy. Dio and everyone is on fire. The second disc is very good, but less engaging and not quite as energetic.Destroyer 666 To the Devil His Due4.0Whether you know Destroyer 666 or not, this is a great addition to any die-hard metalhead's collection.Rotten Sound Napalm2.5A decent EP, the production is painfully brickwalled compared to Exit. Haven't watched the DVD yet, though.Triptykon Eparistera Daimones4.0Great start for Tom G. Warrior's new band Triptykon. Essentially following the style found on Celtic Frost's Monotheist, this is an excellent example of modern metal. A mesh of doom, thrash, black and whatever that sounds natural and unique.Immolation Majesty and Decay4.0Overkill Ironbound3.52009 Sacrilegious Impalement Cultus Nex3.5Quite promising band from Finland. They put more emphasis on melody and atmosphere than most raw Finnish BM bands. I wouldn't call they melodic BM though, more like a bit rawer Necrophobic in that sense. Really worth a listen!Vektor Black Future5.0This simply wipes the floor with every other thrash release that has come out after 1992. Damn son.Megadeth Endgame3.5Clearly the best Magedeth record since the phenomenal Rust in Peace. The album has got many great tracks such as the opening duo Dialectic Chaos, This Day We Fight! and Endgame. Then there's some quite uninspired, more "regular" heavy metal songs. Album lacks the originality of old-school thrash records, even though the instrumental section is great and Dave is doing pretty nice vocals, too (by Megadeth standards, of course). No big flaws on here really, just nothing very special. Nevertheless, this shows Megadeth is not a forgettable act even these days, and obviously puts the best efforts out of the Big Four in these days.Ascension With Burning Tongues (demo)4.0Some genuinely interesting stuff here, sounds like Deathspell Omega, but still isn't quite a carbon copy. They have doses of the aforementioned band's bizarreness, but Ascension resort more on traditional black metal riffs and more intelligible vocals, which works just fine to me. Enough of comparisons, if you're interested in finding new black metal that isn't a cheap rip-off of countless old bands, give this (and their second album Consolamentum) a listen.Suffocation Blood Oath3.5Testament Live at Eindhoven '874.0Archgoat The Light-Devouring Darkness3.5Raw and to the point. Bestial black/death metal in vein of Beherit or Blasphemy, with some nice doomy sections.2008 Deathspell Omega Veritas Diaboli Manet in Aeternum4.0One interesting record. I think the concept of making just one long song with somewhat separate parts works great, you more or less need to listen to the whole thing to get full experience. Very weird yet brutal. And above all, damn good.Arphaxat Loudun la Maudite4.0Cynic Traced in Air4.0Is this death metal? No, pretty much as much as Dream Theater are. Is this progressive? Much so. Jazzy? Also yes. Metal? Yeah, I'd say so, although not the usual kind. Well, is this any good? Definitely, but make sure you're open-minded and don't expect it to sound the same as Focus, or death metal.Acid Witch Witchtanic Hellucinations3.5Deathhammer Forever Ripping Fast2.5Some nice riffs here and there, but VERY one-dimensional overall.Hooded Menace Fulfill the Curse4.0While the album is very samey throughout, it's hardly a problem as this simply is some quality death doom.Metallica Death Magnetic1.5Toxic Holocaust An Overdose of Death...3.5Great modern thrash with good black metal-ish vocals and unique sound among most "thrash revival" artists. Recommended if you like various thrash metal with a dark vibe and a touch of crust punk (in a good way).Darkspace Dark Space III4.5On top of Darkspace's incredibly consistent discography, both quality and music-wise, Dark Space III can be called their best full-length to date. One of the most interesting black metal/ambient bands today.Esoteric The Maniacal Vale4.5Makes all life simply decay, frightening as fuck.Dead Congregation Graves of the Archangels4.0Easily one of the better death metal albums of the new millennium. NYDM done just right - by a Greek band.2007 Rituals of the Oak Hour of Judgement3.5Deathspell Omega Fas - Ite, Maledicti, In Ignem Aeternum4.5Megadeth United Abominations1.5Inquisition Nefarious Dismal Orations4.0It's kind of samey throughout, but if you like Inquisition or raw black metal it's a good addition. It's surprising they don't get more recognition here, considering they are one of the most interesting black metal bands at the moment.Sepulchral Aura Demonstrational CD MMVII2.0Pretty much a chaotic mesh of black and death metal, and not really in a good sense. Props for the morbid atmosphere this has though.Vomitory Terrorize Brutalize Sodomize3.5Some really brutal and heavy death metal. Even if nothing really spectacular, I enjoyed basically every moment.Sadistic Intent Resurrection of the Ancient Black Earth4.5This compilation contains their two best-known EPs, Resurrection and Ancient Black Earth, plus Morbid Faith 7". And fuck does it slay. Essential to anyone who likes their death metal evil and dark, in vein of early Morbid Angel and Possessed.2006 Denial of God The Horrors of Satan4.0It's such a shame the band isn't more known, because this rules. Definitely some of the better black metal from this millennium.Violator Chemical Assault4.0One of the very best "thrash revival" albums I've heard. So a fair warning: if you're looking for something new in thrash metal, don't care, this isn't anything new. Otherwise if you like hearing some damn good balls-to-the-wall thrash with great vocals, riffs and everything, definitely do listen to this.Iron Maiden A Matter of Life and Death4.0Peste Noire La Sanie des Siècles4.0Excellent outing on raw, emotional black metal. Not emotional in emo way, but the deliverance of hateful, empty, raw emotions is great. Has a nice variation as well.Doom VS Aeternum Vale2.0Celtic Frost Monotheist4.0If you are waiting for To Mega Therion Part 2, that certainly won't happen on Monotheist. The album is far more akin to the doomy atmosphere of Hellhammer than "old" Celtic Frost, and doing an excellent job at that. Monotheist is more polished and less sloppy for sure, but not an inch less doomy or heavy. If you're new to Celtic Frost, honestly this isn't the best starting point unless you are familiar with doom metal and other less straightforward stuff. But if you are ready to hear some very dark yet aesthetic doom metal with hints of thrash, black and whatever, do it and give Monotheist a listen.Vinterriket Lichtschleier4.0Drawn and Quartered Hail Infernal Darkness4.5Definitely one of the best death metal releases of the last decade. If you love death metal, do yourself a favour and listen to this. Now.2005 Helwulf Wolves of War & Blood3.0Darkspace Dark Space II4.0Bolt Thrower Those Once Loyal4.0Nortt Ligfaerd3.51349 Hellfire2.0Deathspell Omega Kenose4.5Sargeist Disciple of the Heinous Path4.0Sargeist may not reinvent the wheel with their second full-length Disciple of the Heinous Path, but it offers some very solid and varied black metal, with a good atmosphere. Six songs and no filler.Municipal Waste Hazardous Mutation4.0Hazardous Mutation might not have reinvented the wheel of crossover thrash. But it does contain several great riffs, fun songs and whatnot. What's best though, it simply FORCES you to damn MOSH!!Vinterriket Der letzte Winter - Der Ewigkeit entgegen3.5Destruction Inventor of Evil3.0Lathspell Fascination of Deviltry4.0Finnish band Lathspell's Fascination of Deviltry is a compilation that consists of their two early demos, namely Fascination of Devil's Art and Deviltry, in their entirety. Well worth every penny, if you can find it and you are into honest lo-fi demo black metal. Also has got a decent sound that isn't just a shitty mess.Dusk (HUN) Deathgate3.5Nile Annihilation of the Wicked4.0So Nile continues mutilating your ears with another massive album.Immolation Harnessing Ruin4.0Far from being Immolation's best, yet this still kicks some good ass. Awesome band.Beheaded Ominous Bloodline3.5An enjoyable brutal death metal record, short and sweet - with some ultra-guttural vocals!Taake Hordalands Doedskvad3.5This is kinda weird, need more listens. Riffs and musicianship is pretty much top class.Evoken Antithesis of Light4.5I'm just on the edge about whether to give this a 4 or a 4.5. Either way, this is some really good and no-cheap-tricks funeral/death doom metal. Very possibly will increase the rating during more listens. EDIT: And it's at 4.5 now. Awesome.Horna Envaatnags Eflos Solf Esgantaavne4.0Rotten Sound Exit4.0Some very intensive and pissed-off shit! Excellent grind, with that Entombed-esque guitar tone and all.Dead Congregation Purifying Consecrated Ground4.0Suffocation The Close of a Chapter4.5Sick....................................................................................too sick2004 Rammstein Reise, Reise3.5Very enjoyable piece of industrial metal and electronic.Inquisition Magnificent Glorification of Lucifer3.5Bloodbath Nightmares Made Flesh4.0An essential old school death metal album - even if it's released in 2004, don't let that fool you. This is Bloodbath at their best, they took the punishing sound they already had and cranked it up to 11, without compromising any of their good riffs or simplistic brutality. Nightmares Made Flesh shows that you can make great extreme metal without taking things too seriously, the Swedes were certainly having a fun time recording this.Megadeth The System Has Failed2.5Darkened Nocturn Slaughtercult Nocturnal March3.0A solid piece of black metal, gotta listen to it some more.Suffocation Souls to Deny4.0Souls to Deny might not be quite as strong as the past full-lengths, but boy is it still some sweet brutal/technical death metal from the forefathers of the genre.Deathspell Omega Si Monvmentvm Reqvires Circvmspice4.0Behexen By the Blessing of Satan4.0By the Blessing of Satan is a very authentic black metal album. No tricks, no flirting with excessive synths (doubt there's any), weird vocals, folk elements or anything. Just black metal, "true" kind, if you may. The production is very good, raw as it should be but not demo junk either, it's... just right. Behexen might not be utterly original, but they're great at what they do. Every fan of 90's classic black metal, give this a run!Drawn and Quartered Return of the Black Death4.0Hard to find bands like this today, making pretty atmospheric and genuinely evil old school death metal who still have something of their own. Check out their other albums as well.Ulcerate The Coming of Genocide3.02003 VolkeinBlucht To Consume the Darkness Whole....3.5Darkspace Dark Space I4.0Some really transcendental ambient black metal - it's heavy, fast, cold, dark and especially moody. You know, we live on this somewhat friendly planet with its blue sky, but outside that, it's just dark, cold space over and over to infinity.Toxic Holocaust Evil Never Dies3.5Fleshgrind Murder Without End2.5Exhumed Anatomy Is Destiny4.0Vinterriket Winterschatten3.5Spawn of Possession Cabinet4.0Spawn of Possession's debut Cabinet is sure one of the better modern technical death metal albums. Immense technicality combined with pretty well structured songs and a good production that is actually not mastered loud as fuck 4.2/5Gorerotted Only Tools and Corpses3.5Destroyer 666 Terror Abraxas4.0Watain Casus Luciferi4.0One of the better 'old school' black metal albums of this century. Some really great guitar lines here, very haunting. Consistency and good production (in black metal sense, nothing too clean) are the album's strongest points.Nehemah Shadows from the Past...4.0Sargeist Satanic Black Devotion4.0If you are seeking for new black metal that's honest, raw, rather atmospheric and actually good, this may well be the album for you!Drawn and Quartered Extermination Revelry4.0May not reinvent the wheel, but for all fans of old-school death metal and especially NYDM, this is a must-listen. Just like a few of their other albums.2002 Bloodbath Resurrection Through Carnage3.5A great modern old-school death metal album with a true Swedish sound. On one hand very consistent, on the other hand the album is very samey which is the biggest flaw.Porcupine Tree In Absentia4.0Darkspace Minus One4.0Behemoth Zos Kia Cultus (Here and Beyond)3.0Taake Over Bjoergvin Graater Himmerik3.5Survived the almighty boing, this is pretty unique stuff.Destroyer 666 Cold Steel...for an Iron Age4.5Filled with brilliant riffs and truly bestial vocals, Cold Steel... for an Iron Age is one mean metal album. Somehow the album is filled with quite brief but epic, yet unrelenting songs. I don't know how they do that, but who cares. Genre? In a way, mix of thrash and black metal, but not really after all. Just metal that fucking slays. Unavoidable for any fan of honest metal.Nile In Their Darkened Shrines4.0Classic Nile, nothing else needs to be said. Somewhat combines things from the preceeding two albums.Deathspell Omega Inquisitors of Satan3.5Krieg Destruction Ritual2.5Immolation Unholy Cult4.5Holy fucking shitschnizel, this is beyond good, beyond great.Immortal Sons of Northern Darkness4.04.0 or 4.5... stupid 0.5 increments. Whatever, this rules as does most of Immortal's material.Nehemah Light of a Dead Star4.5Easily the best traditional black metal album I've heard in ages. Brilliant stuff!Inquisition Invoking the Majestic Throne of Satan4.02001 Destruction The Antichrist3.0Contains a number of very good thrash tunes like the opening duo of Days of Confusion and Thrash 'til Death. Sadly much of the stuff is quite uninspired and samey, not very special for thrash. Their early stuff (up to Release from Agony, that is) is definitely better. Still worth a listen or two.Gorguts From Wisdom to Hate4.0Very close to 4.5, will probably raise the grade along with more listens. Essential, but well it's Gorguts after all.Sodom M-164.5Enough epicness, originality, rawness, purity, darkness and lots and lots more combined rtogether with great yet quite simplistic music and a bit black metal like vocals, and near rperfect consistency, this album is only what it's supposed to be: fantastic. With M-16 Sodom delivers you an atmospheric, but still very original, load of thrash that is ressential for all thrash fanatics. It takes some time to grow, and doesn't impress with technical awesomeness, but when listening to this, it isn't even needed. 4.5/5Pig Destroyer Prowler in the Yard4.0Some of the best and most furious grindcore in existence. They know not only how to blast the fuck out, but when to incorporate some crushing, heavy riffing and a violent atmosphere.Paysage d'Hiver Winterkälte4.5Simply monumental, the atmosphere is quite unbelievable.Gorerotted Mutilated In Minutes3.5I love how the Brits are so self-ironic with this, yet producing some quality grind with manic dual vocals.Dark Fortress Tales from Eternal Dusk4.02000 Nile Black Seeds of Vengeance4.0Quite massively underrated. Black Seeds of Vengeance is not only absolutely crushing, but tastefully crafted and at times even pretty melodic. Yes, the sound engineering isn't the best, but I personally dig the filthy, somewhat old school sound. Sadly this was to be the one and only performance of Derek Reddy behind the drum kit of Nile. His playing is absurdly inhuman, both in terms of hyperspeed and creativity. Possibly my favourite drummer they've had, sorry fans of Kollias.Dying Fetus Destroy the Opposition4.0Iron Maiden Brave New World3.5Decapitated Winds of Creation4.0One impressive album from a group of underage teens! Seriously, you couldn't tell the guys were this young haven't you read it somewhere.Vader Litany3.5Pretty much brutal in-your-face thrashy death metal. The production is not too good, very brickwalled. Nothing too bad though. 3.7/5Incantation The Infernal Storm4.0Underrated, this is basically what Incantation is all about.Emperor Emperial Live Ceremony4.5Deceased Supernatural Addiction4.5Some of the most enjoyable thrash metal from this millennium. The album is full of great riffs and interesting songs, showing also hints of death metal and yes, heavy metal here and there. It's hard to come up with a thrash album that doesn't sound like countless bands from the 80's and early 90's. If you don't believe me, I challenge you to listen to this album yourself, you won't regret it!Bloodbath Breeding Death3.5Immolation Close to a World Below5.0Unfortunately I have to give this a rating of five stars, I simply have no choice.Hypnosia Extreme Hatred4.0One extremely pissed off thrash album with touches of death metal (some of the riffs) and black metal (the vocals) that doesn't only rely on its niche of being some old-school thrash hailing the good old days. It does resemble the listener of Kreator more than occasionally, but the music is, simply put, just excellent extreme thrash that any fan of the genre should not miss.Destroyer 666 Phoenix Rising4.5Who the fuck gave this a 2, this is very high quality black/thrashDeathspell Omega Infernal Battles3.5MUCH better than the rating says. The album doesn't reinvent the wheel by any means, but it's certainly above average raw black metal. Admittedly DsO has outdone this by a big margin later, but fans of cold black metal should give this a go. The second half suffers from being demo quality (which it actually is, a demo), but it's not that bad. 3.6/5Desaster Tyrants of the Netherworld3.0Well worth a listen, despite the other ratings. Desaster plays a brand of blackened thrash that is more akin to the thrash side, black metal influences show in fast, powerful riffing and dark themes plus pretty quick overall pace. Don't except Tyrants of the Netherworld to be anything ground-breaking, but it's a consistent album with its highlights and no clear flaws. The epic title track is especially worth of a listen, and is likely the best deal on the album.Watain Rabid Death's Curse3.51999 Taake Nattestid Ser Porten Vid4.0Orange Goblin Time Travelling Blues4.0Great album by a great band, no frills, no tricks. Just good riffs and catchy, honest songs!Esoteric Metamorphogenesis4.0Not quite as good as the longer albums, for example The Pernicious Engima or The Maniacal Vale, though the styles are a little different as well. This would be the best starting point to the band though, as it's more of the "usual" doom metal.Testament The Gathering3.5Worship Last Tape Before Doomsday4.0Some absolutely devastating (and SLOW) funeral doom, yet beautiful at the same time. Not in a cheesy way though.Paysage d'Hiver Paysage d'Hiver4.5Immolation Failures for Gods4.0You can whine about the production, but not about the sheer quality the album definitely has. One simply does not get disappointed by Immolation.Immortal At the Heart of Winter4.51998 Metallica Garage Inc.1.52 Great songs? Yes. A great album? No, hell no. I'm not a huge fan of cover songs, and this album is almost completely ignoreable for me, almost. Am I Evil? and Blizkrieg covers are excellent, but IMO that's all good things here.Exhumed Gore Metal3.5Some truly sick stuff in the vein of old Carcass. Very chaotic but good.Death The Sound of Perseverance4.5Inquisition Into the Infernal Regions of the Ancient4.5Suffocation Despise the Sun4.0When not quite on par with their nearly phenomenal efforts before this, Despise the Sun is still well worth getting for fans of the band and genre.Nile Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren-Ka4.0This is one interesting record. Very brutal and chaotic, but at the same time very atmospheric. The atmosphere on here is dare I say, quite mysterious. Even if some fans may find it bad, I think the raw sound fits the album really well. Sadly most the songs feel a bit too short, but otherwise this is some great brutal yet atmospheric death metal.Blind Guardian Nightfall in Middle-Earth4.0Certainly the most accessible Blind Guardian album to this point, however it's far from uninspired or generic. Strengthens my opinion that Blind Guardian is the best power metal band ever.Paysage d'Hiver Steineiche4.5One massive album... uh, demo, whatever. All songs are very different from each other, yet the result feels consistent. Top tier ambient / black metal by no other than the Paysage d'Hiver mastermind Wintherr. I'm right on the fence whether to give this a 5 or not.Incantation Diabolical Conquest4.0Gorguts Obscura4.5There's one word I can describe Obscura with: A journey. The album is a journey through your mind, well, the music is there too, and it's simply excellent. My only real con is that the album is perhaps a little too lengthy.Bolt Thrower Mercenary3.5Very hard to decide between 3.5 and 4, but I'll be conservative for now. Not as essential as most of the band's cataloque, but if you like the band this is a safe buy.Skepticism Lead and Aether4.0Horna Kohti Yhdeksän Nousua3.01997 HammerFall Glory To The Brave3.5Children of Bodom Something Wild2.0Ulver Nattens Madrigal5.0Sincerely, this is one of the top black metal albums I've ever heard. Structured around lycanthropy, here you have eight songs of pure, raw, dark, lethal but still somehow beautiful black metal... I don't know how the guys did it, but this is one of the greatest things I own.Necrophobic Darkside4.0This is great and has a good atmosphere. This review is too short.Destroyer 666 Unchain The Wolves4.5Esoteric The Pernicious Enigma4.5Emperor Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk4.5Simply incredible. While a notch less raw and primitive than the debut, it's just as mean and evil. Just in a slightly different way. Emperor are one of the few bands who do 'symphonic black metal' right; Adding elements that add to the music as well, and not taking away anything.Immortal Blizzard Beasts3.5I can understand that the production puts off a bunch of listeners, it's kinda sucky. But behind that we have yet another good Immortal album with some great Morbid Angel influenced riffs. Nebular Ravens Winter and the epic Mountains of Might are noteworthy tracks.Horna Hiidentorni (demo)3.51996 Vinterland Welcome My Last Chapter4.5Undoubtedly one of the greatest black metal albums I've heard. Vinterland has found the perfect balance between rawness, melody and atmosphere on here. Sheer excellence from start to finish, a likely 5/5 album in the future.Gorgoroth Antichrist4.0Pantera The Great Southern Trendkill2.5Cannibal Corpse Vile3.0The songs are all VERY similar, I mean it's not that uncommon amongst death metal but the songs sound way too the same. The instrumental side is good but very generic, the vocals and production are quite good though.Desaster A Touch of Medieval Darkness3.5Best Desaster album I've heard so far. Much more black metal and epic than their later releases, but it definitely works here. Hell, I even find this pretty catchy, although not cheesy pop catchy. Fans of the band and second-wave black metal should definitely give A Touch of Medieval Darkness a try, especially the first three songs Skyline in Flames (Intro), In a Winter Battle, the title track and the epic Crypts of Dracul. Despite being quite lengthy, 51 minutes, it never gets boring.Cryptopsy None So Vile4.0Whilst slightly overrated, None So Vile is still one sick death metal album essential to every fan of the genre out there.Dark Funeral The Secrets of the Black Arts3.5Darkthrone Total Death3.5Burzum Filosofem4.0The first four songs are great, but then comes the pretty useless 25-minute instrumental collection of a few notes, and Decrepitude II which is not significantly different to the part I, only that it's a bit less interesting. Aside of those, this is excellent.Immolation Here in After4.5Slays just like many other albums of theirs. Great atmosphere and somewhat unconventional instrumentation in terms of death metal.Black Funeral Vampyr - Throne Of The Beast4.0Very good underground release, contains a very haunting and well... vampiric atmosphere. Needs more love.Sacramentum Far Away from the Sun4.01995 Summoning Minas Morgul4.5Being my first experience about the band, this album really makes me want to hear more. A great example of how to do atmospheric/ambient black metal right. Indeed, calling this just black metal wouldn't do this album justice. If you like highly ambient music and aren't the most elite black metal purist, you should try this.Immortal Battles in the North4.0Another great Immortal album, while not really as good as Pure Holocaust or At the Heart of Winter. I don't really get why this gets so much dislike. The execution is a little sloppier yes, but there are a good deal of great riffs and ferocious drumwork throughout the album. The production makes some of the riffs tricky to distinguish, though. Nevertheless, this is probably Immortal at their most extreme and pure in terms of black metal, and it turned out good.Krisiun Black Force Domain3.5Holy damn this is HEAVY. Very very fast but still catchy and skilled.Abigor Nachthymnen (From The Twilight Kingdom)4.0A unique, great piece of black metal. Abigor has its roots in the Norwegian second wave music, but have a sound of their own on here. A slight usage of female vocals and synths here and there make up a great effect. But trust me, there's no overuse, the music is mainly very harsh and true black metal, but with an elegant side. In a good way.Gamma Ray Land of the Free4.5If you don't like this album, you just suck.Blind Guardian Imaginations from the Other Side4.0Death Symbolic5.0Mr. Schuldiner takes you into a totally different world with Symbolic. The Album is so much full of everything awesome that I don't know what to say. This is simply the best album I own. RIP Chuck.Summoning Lugburz4.0Kataklysm Sorcery4.0Ulver Bergtatt - Et eeventyr i 5 capitler3.5A very good album, but was a slight disappointment for me as the black metal - or just metal - parts are not that many on this. The music itself is very well written though, not saying I don't want to listen to this just because it's not all that 'metal'. There aren't any specific flaws in the music, just the folk/black balance leans more to the folk side. With a bit more metal parts in it and/or more of a real mixture of black/folk (now it's more like separated black and folk parts) would make this better. I may sound harsh, but don't be fooled: it's a great record. I wouldn't recommend this to people who want 'real' metal, but for those who like good, ambient music that is a blend of folk and black metal music.Burzum Burzum/Aske3.5Sometimes simplicity delivers, and Burzum/Aske is one such occasion. Simple riffs, basic drumming, but so good atmosphere and tortured vocals that I simply like it.At the Gates Slaughter of the Soul3.0A good listen, but expected way more from this. Maybe melodeath isn't my thing though.Suffocation Pierced from Within4.5On Pierced From Within, Suffocation managed to compose more complex songs while still retaining the brutality and quality of the two previous albums. That combined with superb performances from each member and killer production, the album is nothing short of essential... Go get it NOW, goddammit.Dissection Storm of the Light's Bane4.5Some really, really good black metal with a good kind of melody. Not melody in your usual melodic metal sense, but something that adds to the music without taking away any of its heaviness and harshness. Actually that's what the album is: Heavy, harsh, cold but still melodic. And damn good.Mutiilation Vampires of Black Imperial Blood4.0As black as it gets, Vampires of Black Imperial Blood is one excellent listen - for experienced black metallers, that is. Don't be turned off by the ridiculously raw production and sloppy playing, since the songs are pure black metal gold.Darkthrone Panzerfaust4.0Too underrated, likely overshadowed by the phenomenal albums just before this. Panzerfaust is quite different with its more 'old school' approach, but that doesn't mean it's for the worse. The album is full of great tunes and no fillers. Variation is the album's strongest point, aside of the material itself of course. 4.1/5Deicide Once Upon the Cross4.0This is Deicide guys, real death metal that ain't for pussiesElectric Wizard Electric Wizard3.5Behemoth Sventevith (Storming Near the Baltic)4.0Severely overlooked, even if you can't really call this original, it's still some great quality cold black metal with really nice folk elements that actually fit the music.1994 Marduk Opus Nocturne4.0Excellent album, extreme speeds mixed with darkness, a hint of beauty and grim slower parts. The sound is cold like winter in Siberia.Gorgoroth Pentagram4.0A superbly atmospheric album, without any cheap tricks. No bullshit, just some great black metal!Dream Theater Awake3.5Slayer Divine Intervention2.0Enslaved Frost4.0fuckDarkthrone Transilvanian Hunger5.0Transilvanian Hunger is, simply put, one of the most phenomenal black metal albums ever. Even with the super-simplistic approach, the listener can't do anything but be totally hypnotized by sheer, pure black metal. In terms of black metal, this is second only to their A Blaze in the Northern Sky in my books. Eternal.Emperor In the Nightside Eclipse4.5Cannibal Corpse The Bleeding4.0Graveland The Celtic Winter3.0Pantera Far Beyond Driven2.5Incantation Mortal Throne of Nazarene4.5Just as good as their other two high points. Some of the best very best guttural vocals ever.Enslaved Vikingligr Veldi4.5Far too overlooked, this is early Enslaved at their best. Five songs and certainly no horseshit. An immense atmosphere to make you think about everything mystical.Mayhem De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas4.5Despite all the infamous events surrounding this album, music-wise this is excellent.rCalling this one of the most talented/capable lineups (well save for the vocalist Attila) ramong the Norwegian second wave musicians wouldn't be too far fetched.rAs this doesn't really have an abysmal production, plus having a few hints of death metal, rthis would be a great introduction into black metal. Add there great songs with variation, rthat's the recipe.Bolt Thrower ...For Victory4.0Thergothon Stream From The Heavens4.0Devastating atmosphere, extreme slowness, utter heaviness, bestial super guttural vocals and loads of dark emotion. Yes, this is funeral doom, done right.Cryptopsy Blasphemy Made Flesh4.0Don't think the production is shitty at all, probably a bit murky but that's all, I'm actually happy it's not uber clean and brickwalled to hellSatyricon The Shadowthrone3.5A fair disappointment after their more than promising debut Dark Medieval Times. While being oddly inconsistent - the songs themselves, too - the good parts keep this up.Burzum Hvis Lyset Tar Oss4.0Kingston Wall III - Tri-Logy4.0Graveland Carpathian Wolves4.0Evoken Shades of Night Descending4.0Dark Funeral In The Sign...4.0Dark Funeral/Into the Sign... EP is the best thing Dark Funeral have put out so far. In the Sign... version contains two Bathory covers (Equimanthorn and Call from the Grave), which are definitely worth listening to. Pretty faithful to the originals, just slightly different vocals and sound.1993 Immortal Pure Holocaust4.5A really, really great album of raw black metal by Immortal. They hit the black metal scene like a meteor with their second LP Pure Holocaust. The best single element is definitely the drumming, which is just superb, incredibly fast and with some variation, too (enough for black metal, personally). I'm just annoyed by the fact that I really don't know who did the drumming!! Most people say it was Abbath who was behind the kit when recording, but there's also statemets that it couldn't be him. Nevertheless, Abbath's vocal performance is great, exactly as it should be in black metal. Some say his voice is annoying on this album, for me it isn't. Demonaz does his job very well as well, not anything complex (as expected in ol' skool black) but the riffing is fast and very effective, and there's both maniac fast and slow, evil riffs. Still, it's purely the songwriting and atmosphere that are the best things. And that's what counts, especially in black metal. Album loses its half a point for being a little too short. While I have nothing against short (excellent) albums, some songs could've been a tiny bit longer. It's still great that the band didn't include anything even mediocre material on the album just to make it longer. Different, but just as essential as At the Heart of Winter.Marduk Those of the Unlight4.0You thought Marduk was all about being brutal as fuck? Wrong. Well at least for this and Opus Nocturne. Some solid traditional black metal right here with more (good kind of) melody and atmosphere than you might think.Voivod The Outer Limits4.5Necrophobic The Nocturnal Silence4.5About as good as blackened death metal gets. Killer riffs.Burzum Det Som Engang Var4.0Death Individual Thought Patterns4.5Death at its peak instrumentally. Even if just behind Symbolic and rHuman, Individual Thought Patterns does nothing but makes me drool liquid rgold. From start to finish.Morbid Angel Covenant4.0Suffocation Breeding the Spawn4.5The trivial aspect everybody notices is the lacking production, especially when compared to the heavy-as-the-ultimate-fuck-yet-clean-enough work Scott Burns did with their mighty debut, Effigy of the Forgotten. Personally it isn't that bad at all, everything can be heard pretty nicely, save for the bass drums at times. Mostly the sound is just different and unfinished. When you get over the "bad" production, the music on here, oh yes, is nothing but the same old Suffocation we all love. This is absolutely NOT your lacking, uninspired successor for a mighty debut album. No, no no no. I can say that apart from the production this is definitely on par with the debut, if not even slightly better. What you shall do, is to get rid of prejudices, the production is not that bad at all. And get this now. If you dig all-around great, very tight, vicious old-school death metal, you will dig this. If you still don't you might just be a plain fool. Emperor Emperor4.0A great EP, the versions of 'I am the Black Wizards' and 'Cosmic Keys to my Creations & Times' on this might be even slightly better than those on their debut album. Love the dark production and atmosphere.Disincarnate Dreams of the Carrion Kind3.5Morpheus Descends Ritual of Infinity3.5Behemoth ....From the Pagan Vastlands3.5Demilich Nespithe4.5When the Finns nail their death metal, it's guaranteed to be awesome. And in Demilich's case, weird as hell but induces the hardest boner.Cathedral The Ethereal Mirror4.0Darkthrone Under a Funeral Moon4.5Carcass Heartwork4.0If only all melodeath was like this. Death metal with a distinct melodic side while still not sounding like watered-down wimpy ass crap.diSEMBOWELMENT Transcendence into the Peripheral4.5One truly brilliant album - diSEMBOWELMENT have created a genuinely dark and devastating meld of death, doom and darkness on here - not to mention original. Essential to anyone searching for dark, atmospheric and heavy metal. Ambience the album creates is beyond words, listen to it yourself.Cynic Focus4.0Very interesting and layered album, needs several more listens.Enslaved Hordanes Land4.0Katatonia Dance of December Souls3.0A mixed bag, a few very good moments (especially Velvet Thorns (Of Drynwhyl)) but overall the albums sounds a little too long.Satyricon Dark Medieval Times4.0Their best and a must for anyone claiming to be a black metal fan.Coroner Grin4.0Dissection The Somberlain4.0Kingston Wall Kingston Wall II4.5Gorguts The Erosion of Sanity4.5Fuck Roadrunner for discontinuing bloody awesome metal records such as this. I'm pissed.1992 Brutal Truth Extreme Conditions Demand Extreme Responses4.0Bolt Thrower The IVth Crusade4.5Bolt Thrower is quite an exceptional example of death metal. Musically, or technically, the band remains pretty simple, and the tempos are mostly closer to doom metal than, say, grind. But they make it work. Actually, it wouldn't be far too wrong to call this a death/doom album. For The IVth Crusade, Bolt Thrower focused more on creating a dark, desperate atmosphere representing the horrors of war. The album doesn't have any insane blast-fests that rip you into pieces. Instead, it will devastate you with its melancholic atmosphere and make you think about how lucky you are not being involved in war, or the Fourth crusade of the 13th century.Darkthrone A Blaze in the Northern Sky5.0My ultimate Number One black metal album ever. Fuck you allDream Theater Images and Words4.0Megadeth Countdown to Extinction2.5Immortal Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism4.0While noticeably calmer than their later work, Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism has still got some of the band's best and most haunting riffs, and is a varied album overall. Abbath's vocals are rather typical, screechy black metal on here and thus different from the later albums, but he gets the job very well done. Props for the nice acoustic passages that seem to be largely absent on their other albums.Blind Guardian Somewhere Far Beyond4.5Holy shit, I thought they can't match the heights of Tales From the Twilight World. Man, I was wrong. This basically destroys all other power metal.Deicide Legion4.0What's wrong with you guys, not liking this as much as the debut? I mean, the debut is also great, but this, holy lord, is full craziness! About as unrelenting and demonic as death metal can be. DamnIron Maiden Fear of the Dark3.0Demolition Hammer Epidemic of Violence4.5Pantera Vulgar Display of Power3.0Sodom Tapping the Vein3.5Enslaved Yggdrasil3.5Very nice and raw debut demo/EP. More characters neededVader The Ultimate Incantation3.0I usually don't bitch about lack of variation on a death metal album, but this is just way too long and samey. Not a disaster though.Von Satanic Blood (demo)3.0I guarantee there's no simpler black metal recording than this... yet it's not bad. How? Because it's VERY bestial and the mood is really scary.rOnly for experienced RAW black metal fansIncantation Onward to Golgotha4.5Incantation's debut Onward to Golgotha is simply a crushing and tormenting slam of really filthy and dark death metal with tasteful doomy passages. Absolutely essential for fans of awesome death metal. 4.7/5Kingston Wall Kingston Wall I4.5This doesn't have a review yet? What the serious fuck!Skitzo (NJ) Skitzo (demo)3.5Sinister Cross the Styx4.01991 Cathedral Forest of Equilibrium4.5Suffocation Effigy of the Forgotten5.0The blueprint for all brutal death metal remains the best in the genre, and one of the very best in all of death metal.Death Human5.0I usually don't fancy remastered, remixed reissues or whatever of old albums. More often than not, the sound is essentially just louder, taking away from the dynamics and depth of the sound. But Relapse's new remix is stunning, you get cleaned-up sound, better sounding drums and DiGiorgio's bass is way more prominent, but the album still sounds like Human. No Megadeth's 2004 remix shit here. You can hear a number of nuances you couldn't before. I'd suggest to hear both the original (unremastered) and the new remixed editions though, as they are basically just two a little different takes on this classic album. Music wise everything has been said already, this is Death at their best alongside Symbolic.Beherit The Oath Of Black Blood3.5Pestilence Testimony of the Ancients4.0Atheist Unquestionable Presence4.5damnMetallica Metallica2.5Sarcofago The Laws of Scourge4.0Anacrusis Manic Impressions4.5Morbid Angel Blessed Are the Sick3.5Unfortunately a great drop in quality from the debut. But that doesn't mean this is bad by any means; Blessed Are the Sick is mostly just different, with not quite the same approach as Altars of Madness. Will probably raise my grading with more listens.Cannibal Corpse Butchered at Birth4.0Man how have I, a whole-hearted death metal fan, dismissed Cannibal Corpse for this long? Butchered at Birth may not be as layered as their peers' works at the time, but it's so damn fun to listen to. So many good, meaty riffs here. Some of the catchiest Death metal there is.Convulse World Without God4.0Dismember Like an Ever Flowing Stream4.0Suffocation Human Waste4.5An unrelenting EP with many classic tracks like Infecting the Crypts and Jesus Wept, both of which are among my very favourite Suffocation songs. Five tracks (if you don't count the bonuses) and zero bullshit, just the way it should be. Essential if you are a death metal fan.Autopsy Mental Funeral4.5Mental funeral doesn't demolish your family jewels with lightning-fast blast beats or double bass. It doesn't need to. What Mental funeral does, is that it fits the name perfectly. The atmosphere is unique for a death metal album, and every instrument makes sense at every moment. Still, Mental Funeral is far from being an overly-polished, boring product. The raw nature is very apparent and this is in no way a melodic metal release. When compared to the band's another excellent output, Severed Survival, the album is surprisingly different but still sounds like good ol' Autopsy. The consistency of Mental Funeral is close to perfect, every track has got something of its own and fits, but still the album feels like a book: not just a compilation of good songs, but excellent as a whole. And the same goes for the atmosphere. My only con would be the less badass bass guitar, which is still pretty apparent but can't be compared to DiGiorgio's performance on Severed Survival. Very highly recommended to fans of old school death metal. 4.5/5Sepultura Arise4.0Massacre From Beyond4.0Morbid Angel Abominations of Desolation3.5Some genuinely evil stuff, especially the vocals. Need to listen to this more.Overkill Horrorscope4.5Bolt Thrower War Master4.0I just gotta love the vocals. Awesome. Perfect sounding death metal with some grind parts.Ripping Corpse Dreaming With the Dead4.0Entombed Clandestine4.5Carcass Necroticism: Descanting the Insalubrious4.51991 was one sick year for death metal - Human, Mental Funeral, Effigy of the Forgotten, and many others. Necroticism: Descanting the Insalubrious is definitely right up there, being my favourite Carcass along with Symphonies of Sickness.Immolation Dawn of Possession4.5Rules. Everything is top caliber on this one. This review is likely too short.Coroner Mental Vortex4.5Messiah Choir of Horrors4.0Excellent old-school death/thrash metal all around!Fates Warning Parallels3.5A very good progressive metal album with excellent production, instrumentation and vocals. However it gets rather cheesy at points, but still easily a worthy listen if you're into prog metal.1990 Kreator Coma of Souls4.0A great album, Frank Godzik definitely adds an extra punch. However the album drags a bit towards the end, but it's still well worth listening.Slayer Seasons in the Abyss3.5Blind Guardian Tales from the Twilight World4.5Blind Guardian simply took my breath away with this. Awesome fusion of classic, fast guitar-heavy speed metal and old-school power metal without any cheesy use of synths. The vocals, while not quite perfected yet, are also fantastic for this type of music. 4.4/5Iron Maiden No Prayer for the Dying2.0Megadeth Rust in Peace5.0Annihilator Never, Neverland4.0Judas Priest Painkiller4.0Demolition Hammer Tortured Existence4.5Heavily underrated, this might not be as ferocious and technical as Epidemic of Violence, but its darker mood and superb riffs through a consistent album make this a forgotten gem.Anthrax Persistence of Time3.5Clearly the most serious and progressive Belladonna-era album of theirs. Definitely a grower, my rating now is a borderline 3.5/4. Might well rise in the future.Nocturnus The Key4.5Unique stuff, dark death metal with scifi and occult themes, atmospheric keyboards and thrash traits? Check. One of the most refreshing listens in a long time.Pantera Cowboys from Hell4.0Deicide Deicide4.0Entombed Left Hand Path4.5Hellhammer Apocalyptic Raids 1990 A.D.3.5An interesting record, going to the very roots of extreme metal gives a special feel. Superbly primitive at times, but so doomy that it's actually enjoyable. Plus those riffs.Bathory Hammerheart5.0Another massive album by Bathory, the original viking metal band.Death Spiritual Healing4.5Atheist Piece of Time4.5aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaBlasphemy Fallen Angel of Doom3.0As a lover of raw, filthy and dark-as-hell black metal, I very rarely complain about production. But on this it sadly annoys me, as it's inconsistent (meaning that on some tracks it's better/different that on some others) and most of the time much unbalanced, oriented to the left channel (at least on my CD version). I know I sound like a douche but a balanced L/R production is the very only thing I must have production-wise. Otherwise, this is pretty nice slab of some really hatred-full black metal with death metal influences. The vocals are really good, which is the best thing on this. Not your usual Norwegian screeching, but a very dark tone he has. Tracks worth of checking are at least Ritual and Darkness Prevails, the latter having one of the most demonic and hateful intros ever.Sadus Swallowed in Black4.5I don't think any real thrash/death metal fan could not like this. Swallowed in Black is one mean piece of thrash taken to the extreme in terms of aggression and technicality. Plus excellent songs. Get.Winter Into Darkness4.0As crushing as it gets. Insane death doom metal. Stupid 50 characters.Napalm Death Harmony Corruption4.0Suicidal Tendencies Lights...Camera...Revolution4.0Sanctuary Into the Mirror Black4.0Obituary Cause of Death4.0Forbidden Twisted into Form4.01989 Pestilence Consuming Impulse4.5Running Wild Death or Glory4.5Morbid Saint Spectrum of Death4.5Blind Guardian Follow the Blind4.0Overkill The Years of Decay4.5Voivod Nothingface5.0The pinnacle of Voivod's all-out space and scifi themed, bizarre progressive metal. There's simply none other like this than Voivod.King Diamond Conspiracy4.5D.R.I. Thrash Zone3.5A very fun listen with lots of great riffs on board! Some of the songs could be a little shorter, but even being slightly overlong the album keeps it up pretty well.Sarcofago Rotting3.5Carcass Symphonies of Sickness4.5Probably one of the greatest grind albums ever. Fucking sick.Kreator Extreme Aggression4.5This is really an excellent album, and Kreator are here on its top musically. While the rmusicianship is near-perfect here, album lacks some of the uniqueness and originality found ron Pleasure to Kill. Nevertheless, any thrash fanatic should get this album!Coroner No More Color4.5Coroner are one of the few bands who never do wrong. Kick-ass technical thrash!Morbid Angel Altars of Madness5.0Sepultura Beneath the Remains4.5Autopsy Severed Survival4.5So ace old-school, a bit doom-influenced death metal.Annihilator Alice in Hell4.5lol at 0Thrasher0 giving this a 2, what a true thrasherSodom Agent Orange4.0I'm struggling on whether to give this a 4 or a 4.5 ... Anyway, the better production enhances the drums nicely, and the drumming is a step up from Persecution Mania, as is the overall instrumentation. However, bits of the dark atmosphere is lost, and Angelripper's vocals aren't as evil on this one. That could be explained as natural progression, from a primitive group to an advanced band. Not really flaws, as the songs are still great quality... But heck, Persecution mania is something very evil. Still, this rules!Metal Church Blessing in Disguise4.0Terrorizer World Downfall5.0Holy hell I must have been a true pansy for not giving this a 5. This is just too goodBolt Thrower Realm of Chaos4.0Toxik Think This4.5This is insanely good. Very progressive, yet very catchy and very original. Puts a large amount of metal, let alone thrash, bands to shame.Obituary Slowly We Rot4.0Rules. One of the greater old-school DM albums. The guitar tone is one of the cruelest ever. A must hear for every death metal fan. It's not the fastest or most technical, but it's some real metal done just right!Exodus Fabulous Disaster3.5Whilst a slight disappointment, the album's variety is what keeps it interesting to listen to. First three tracks are especially great, plus the doomy "Like Father, Like Son". Would be a honest 4 had it not been a little too long. The two covers, while okay, don't really add anything to the album.Stone No Anaesthesia!4.0Fates Warning Perfect Symmetry4.5Destruction Live Without Sense4.0Music itself is easily worth a 4.5, but the sound – while fittingly raw – leaves to be desired. Otherwise an impeccable live album: a blast of a setlist, highly energetic and nice flow.1988 Manowar Kings of Metal3.5Anthrax State of Euphoria3.5Napalm Death From Enslavement to Obliteration4.5Agreed, this MUST be reviewed. Sigh! So great stuff.Helloween Keeper of the Seven Keys Part II4.0Metallica ...And Justice for All3.5Death Leprosy4.5Deserves more credit than it gets.rWhen does this go to a 4.0....Slayer South of Heaven3.5Voivod Dimension Hatröss5.0D.R.I. 4 of a Kind3.5Simple and fun crossover thrash - a great balance of hardcore and metal elements.Blind Guardian Battalions of Fear3.5Testament The New Order4.5Can't tell why hadn't I bothered to get this much, much earlier. A great example of classic Bay Area thrash.Queensryche Operation: Mindcrime4.5Iron Maiden Seventh Son of a Seventh Son4.5Stone Stone4.0Riot Thundersteel4.0Very exciting stuff, definitely one of the better heavy/power metal records of the latter 80's. The vocals are gold. 4.2/5Megadeth So Far, So Good... So What!3.0Overkill Under the Influence4.0Vio-Lence Eternal Nightmare4.0One of the purest thrash metal albums I've come across. No death metal influences, just very fast and very good thrash. The vocals might turn off some, but the overall instrumentation and great songs are enough of a reason to check this out, for anyone considering himself (or herself) a thrash fan. No bullshit, just 7 tracks of excellent in-your-face METAL!Bathory Blood Fire Death4.5Sadus Illusions4.5Coroner Punishment for Decadence4.5Ridiculously good, I can't see any thrash metal fan not digging this.Razor Violent Restitution4.0Crimson Glory Transcendence 4.5The band evolves their sound from the self-titled debut - to different heights. Not necessarily all-around better, just different. They score, just like with the debut.Running Wild Port Royal4.5Flotsam and Jetsam No Place for Disgrace4.0Fates Warning No Exit4.01987 Destruction Release from Agony4.5With no doubt a great Destruction release. It's got a pretty good deal of variety, 7 nearly equal songs, a nice intro plus a heavy, yet not a perfect production. Where Destruction does win hard, is uniqueness: You can easily recognize Schmier's psychotic vocal delivery, he sounds like a madman that accidentally managed to escape from a madhouse. Add there a bit odd but fitting production, with even pretty audible bass. The album really has got a creepy atmosphere that won't give up until the funny ending of Survive to Die. A few really good examples would be the solo section of the title track or the song Sign of Fear. If I missed something on here, it would be the furious guitar attack of Infernal Overkill.Sodom Expurse of Sodomy4.0Savatage Hall of the Mountain King4.5Jon Oliva has some of the most distinctive (and insane) vocals in heavy metal ever. Recommended? Yes, excellent album.Kreator Terrible Certainty3.5Even though I consider Blind Faith as one of the very best Kreator songs, the album itself is a severe step down from Pleasure to Kill. The dark and cataclysmic atmosphere is very much lost on this one, as is the cruelty.Tankard Chemical Invasion4.0Great, catchy thrash full of energy and humour, with some awesome vocals!Overkill Taking Over4.0Cacophony Speed Metal Symphony4.5Guns N' Roses Appetite for Destruction4.0Testament The Legacy4.5Even when The New Order and The Gathering are really good albums on their own, somehow they don't quite hold the magic The Legacy has got. Hard to explain, this simply god damn rocks.King Diamond Abigail4.5Death Scream Bloody Gore4.0This is where it all begun for Death and the genre itself. But even by modern standards, this stands out with its excellent riffs and quite consistent songwriting. For me this was the introduction into the genre, and this still rules.Voivod Killing Technology4.5Anthrax Among the Living4.5Coroner R.I.P.4.0With more straightforward song structures, R.I.P. is not quite as sophisticated as Coroner would become later on. Still, this is a genuinely great start for some of the best thrash metal bands ever. If you enjoy GOOD to-the-point thrash metal with technical guitars, don't miss this!Helloween Keeper of the Seven Keys Part I4.5A superb album in terms of not only power metal, but all metal. The first real power metal album delivers.Sodom Persecution Mania4.5My favourite Sodom album, full of evilness but never too primitive or samey. Short but sweet.Bathory Under the Sign of the Black Mark4.5Quorthon, a lone man gone years ago before the day. Mindblowing, especially as this is among the first released true black metal records!Sarcofago I.N.R.I.4.0This is so filthy and damned record I can only like itSepultura Schizophrenia4.5Great rifforama album from Sepultura, first of their three classic albums. Kicks you right in the nuts.Infernal Majesty None Shall Defy4.0Very interesting album, flawlessly combines a little death/black elements into excellent dark thrash. Give it a listen!Destruction Mad Butcher3.5Napalm Death Scum4.0Life?Running Wild Under Jolly Roger4.0Dio Dream Evil4.0Morbid December Moon3.5Sanctuary Refuge Denied4.01986 Saint Vitus Born Too Late4.5This is so good that it's definitely not even funny.Slayer Reign in Blood4.0Metal Church The Dark4.0A great thrash album, but to be honest, rarely touches the debut. The song structures are less layered on this, and unfortunately not really for the better. Don't get me wrong, it's well worth hearing though.Iron Maiden Somewhere in Time4.5Kreator Flag of Hate3.0Megadeth Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?4.5Dark Angel Darkness Descends4.5Sodom Obsessed by Cruelty3.0Metallica Master of Puppets4.5King Diamond Fatal Portrait4.0Kreator Pleasure to Kill4.5Soooo awesome, brings a smile to my face every time I listen to this. This is so madnessFlotsam and Jetsam Doomsday for the Deceiver4.5Destruction Eternal Devastation4.5Vulcano Bloody Vengeance4.0While nothing short of primitive really, this is very good. A great mix of very extreme thrash/death/black, take your pick. Only 23 minutes in length but more (well delivered) attitude than in 23 other bands combined. Recommended to fans of raw, somewhat old-school extreme metal.Sepultura Morbid Visions4.0What's with the low rating... It's evil, punishing, fast and lo-fi, just how I like it. Bloody underrated.Fates Warning Awaken the Guardian4.5Crimson Glory Crimson Glory4.5Exumer Possessed by Fire4.0Pure, punishing Teutonic thrash metal right here. A little-known gem from 1986.1985 Stormtroopers of Death Speak English or Die4.0Stormtroopers of Death proves that simple (crossover) thrash with a completely unserious sound or attitude can be awesome and heavy enough without sounding annoying. Thumbs up!Helloween Walls of Jericho4.5Walls of Jericho is something I would call the epitome of 'real' metal. You've got dozens of memorable, meaty riffs, great solo work, raw speed, enjoyable drumming and even audible bass guitar. Not forgetting some soaring but epic vocals. And last but not least, in ways quite simple but so damn powerful songs. One of the best metal albums of 1985, essential for anyone who claims to be a true metal fan.Anthrax Spreading the Disease4.0Celtic Frost To Mega Therion4.5Simply badass, some great thrashin' with hints of black and death metal.Slayer Hell Awaits4.0My favourite Slayer album. There's a great atmosphere haunting in the background through the entire record. Sadly a bit hard to get, but definitely worth the purchase if you're into old-school thrash. Too underrated!Dio Sacred Heart3.5Megadeth Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!3.0Exodus Bonded by Blood4.5One of the most insane and best Bay Area thrash albums ever. Exodus certainly isn't as accessible as say Metallica or even Megadeth, but this album is one brilliant blueprint of pure thrash metal. Save for a few moments and the production, Bonded by Blood is all killer, no filler and thus a definite must-have for anyone who isn't afraid to thrash.Overkill Feel the Fire5.0 Kill kill kill kill KIIIIIILLLLLLLL!!!Helloween Helloween EP4.0Possessed Seven Churches4.0Destruction Infernal Overkill4.5Fates Warning The Spectre Within4.5Yet another awesome Fates Warning album! Right up there with Awaken the Guardian. Absolutely one of the best releases of 1985.D.R.I. Dealing with It!3.5Sepultura Bestial Devastation3.0Not a bad EP, but the first full-length Morbid Visions is definitely a step up from this. The song Antichrist is probably the highlight.1984 Manowar Sign of the Hammer3.5Mercyful Fate Don't Break the Oath4.0Iron Maiden Powerslave5.0Destruction Sentence of Death3.5Slayer Haunting the Chapel3.5Metallica Ride the Lightning4.5Metallica's best and one of many great metal albums of 1984.Dio The Last in Line4.0WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK Rules.Celtic Frost Morbid Tales4.0Raw, straightforward and kicks major ass. Awesome.Sodom In the Sign of Evil4.0Manowar Hail to England3.5Judas Priest Defenders of the Faith3.5Metal Church Metal Church5.0Bathory Bathory4.01983 Slayer Show No Mercy4.0My favourite Slayer at the moment, along with Hell Awaits. So many great riffs and a unique atmosphere. Sure they would get heavier and more diverse later on, but man this is something special...Mercyful Fate Melissa4.5Metallica Kill 'Em All4.0Dio Holy Diver4.5Iron Maiden Piece of Mind4.0D.R.I. Dirty Rotten3.5Exciter Heavy Metal Maniac4.01982 Accept Restless and Wild4.0Despite being a little inconsistent, it is classy heavy metal with speed metal and hard rock touches here and there. Props for Fast as a Shark and Princess of the Dawn.Manowar Battle Hymns4.0Iron Maiden The Number of the Beast4.5Venom Black Metal2.51981 Venom Welcome to Hell3.5May be a one trick pony, but it's filled with straightforward and fun songs that are easy to headbang to.Black Sabbath Mob Rules3.0King Crimson Discipline4.5Motorhead No Sleep 'til Hammersmith4.5Rush Moving Pictures5.0Iron Maiden Killers3.51980 Motorhead Ace of Spades4.5Saxon Wheels of Steel4.0Black Sabbath Heaven and Hell4.0Iron Maiden Iron Maiden4.5Rush Permanent Waves4.5Even when sandwiched between two of the most legendary prog albums of all time, Permanent Waves is another brilliant performance by Rush.1978 Rush Hemispheres5.0One absolutely brilliant progressive rock album. I don't think any more needs to be said, listen to it yourself.Dire Straits Dire Straits4.0Van Halen Van Halen4.01977 Rush A Farewell to Kings4.0Rainbow On Stage3.5A great live release from one of my favourite hard rock lineups!1976 Rainbow Rising5.0Rush 21124.5Camel Moonmadness4.5Judas Priest Sad Wings of Destiny4.0Return to Forever Romantic Warrior4.01975 Rush Caress of Steel4.0Rainbow Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow3.5Camel The Snow Goose4.5Rush Fly by Night4.01974 King Crimson Red5.0Camel Mirage5.0What the fuck is wrong with Allmusic, first they gave Camel 2/5 and then 2.5/5 for this??? Biggest piece of sacrilege everGentle Giant The Power and the Glory4.5Yes Relayer4.51973 Herbie Hancock Sextant4.0Pink Floyd The Dark Side of the Moon4.5King Crimson Larks' Tongues in Aspic4.5Camel Camel4.5Great debut by Camel, providing smooth and well written prog rock from start to finish. and yea that maggot who gave this 2/5 at Allmusic clearly doesn't know shit1972 Deep Purple Machine Head4.0One truly fine hard rock album with some tasteful blues elements - essential for any fan of hard rock, or, simply great old-school music.Yes Close to the Edge5.01971 King Crimson Islands3.5Possibly the hardest KC album to rate, but when you're in the right mood, this is a very nice listen.Yes Fragile4.5Definitely a step up from the already great The Yes Album, to big heights.Van der Graaf Generator Pawn Hearts4.0Deep Purple Fireball4.0Black Sabbath Master of Reality4.5Gentle Giant Acquiring the Taste4.5Yes The Yes Album4.0Jethro Tull Aqualung4.01970 Gentle Giant Gentle Giant4.0The beginning of one of the best, most distinctive and consistent progressive rock groups ever.King Crimson Lizard4.0The 666th rating for this album, must be a sign. Very hard to decide between 4.5 and 4, but it's secondary, this is a really good album. Fans of the band should definitely not miss this.Genesis Trespass4.5Laugh at me for giving this a 4.5, but this is some really enjoyable folky progressive rock. The mood is quite light for the most part yes, but at the same time adds to the mysterious feeling which I like.Black Sabbath Paranoid4.5Deep Purple Deep Purple In Rock4.0The First of the streak of their three best albums, and of course the legendary Mark II line-up. That said, this is just great as the next two, although containing the best Deep Purple song ever, and one of the greatest songs ever in general, Child in Time.King Crimson In the Wake of Poseidon4.0Black Sabbath Black Sabbath4.01969 King Crimson In the Court of the Crimson King5.0One with a decent taste in music simply can not deny the greatness of this. It's progressive, it's deep, it's light, it's beautiful, it's strange. It's In the Court of the Crimson King.Jethro Tull Stand Up3.5Miles Davis In a Silent Way5.0Frank Zappa Hot Rats4.51961 John Coltrane Olé Coltrane4.51959 Miles Davis Kind of Blue4.5
Bands: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
