Top Everything Metal Thread

[antares]

Have you heard of the DEATH tribute band SYMBOLIC by any chance? They did a concert with some of the former members of DEATH and released a DVD. I just ordered it last week. I can't wait to watch it.

Your list is missing HEARTWORK - CARCASS, HEAVEN AND HELL - BLACK SABBATH, and at least one album by MERCYFUL FATE/KING DIAMOND. I would probably choose ABIGAIL or MELISSA.

I haven't heard of them, will check them out.
But I have the two Death tribute CDs, '99s Demonic Plague and '03s Together As One. Both left me pretty unimpressed, most of the bands just aren't up on the technical level of Death.

Heartwork is my favourite Carcass album, don't like their other stuff too much.
King Diamond is ok but not Top 10 material for me.

Manowar - Triumph of Steel, Louder than Hell (man does their new stuff SUCK)
Iced Earth - Burnt Offerings
Iron Maiden - Fear of the Dark
Demons & Wizards - Demons & Wizards

Yeah I guess everyone agrees that Manowar's new stuff suck ass. Also Iced Earth's new stuff sucks, it went down with Horror Show imo and just became worse. Burnt Offerings is great but it's my least favourite of their older albums.
Also Fear of the Dark is one of the weakest albums from Iron Maiden imo. But I guess also not many agree with me that Brave New World is their best album.
I had high hopes in Demons & Wizards before their first album came out but I really can't find anything good in their music. It's like the worst parts of Iced Earth and Blind Guardian combined for me

[drauch]

Really??? I love Manowar's last album Gods of War. Why all the hate?

[maxlords]

Manowar - Triumph of Steel, Louder than Hell (man does their new stuff SUCK)
Iced Earth - Burnt Offerings
Iron Maiden - Fear of the Dark
Demons & Wizards - Demons & Wizards

Yeah I guess everyone agrees that Manowar's new stuff suck ass. Also Iced Earth's new stuff sucks, it went down with Horror Show imo and just became worse. Burnt Offerings is great but it's my least favourite of their older albums.
Also Fear of the Dark is one of the weakest albums from Iron Maiden imo. But I guess also not many agree with me that Brave New World is their best album.
I had high hopes in Demons & Wizards before their first album came out but I really can't find anything good in their music. It's like the worst parts of Iced Earth and Blind Guardian combined for me

I enjoyed the first Demons & Wizards album...but couldn't stand the 2nd one. As for Iron Maiden, honestly, Brave New World would be nearly equivalent to Fear of the Dark for me.....I don't know why I really enjoyed FotD, but I did and do.

Iced Earth's newer stuff is all crap, but I'm only going by the albums I own....bought most of their discography in a lot off eBay. I need to check out some good Blind Guardian too.

And Manowar....*sigh* Have the put out a good album since Louder than Hell aside from the live stuff? I really really hated Gods of War...it felt 10X more pretentious than the older stuff. And I'm a fan....I'm already aware how pretentious and silly they are

Hey antares (or anyone else).....looking at the kind of stuff that I like...can you recommend anything? I have a hell of a time finding new bands that I can actually get into. Mastadon is already on my list tho Already looking at Coheed & Cambria, Dark Tranquility, Demon Hunter, Mudvayne, Sevendust, Warbringer, Throwdown, Within Temptation, and Skeletonwitch too. Those are all based on recommendations, but I haven't been in a metal mood for about 2 months.

[burgerkingdiamond]

Have you heard of the DEATH tribute band SYMBOLIC by any chance? They did a concert with some of the former members of DEATH and released a DVD. I just ordered it last week. I can't wait to watch it.

Your list is missing HEARTWORK - CARCASS, HEAVEN AND HELL - BLACK SABBATH, and at least one album by MERCYFUL FATE/KING DIAMOND. I would probably choose ABIGAIL or MELISSA.

I haven't heard of them, will check them out.
But I have the two Death tribute CDs, '99s Demonic Plague and '03s Together As One. Both left me pretty unimpressed, most of the bands just aren't up on the technical level of Death.

Heartwork is my favourite Carcass album, don't like their other stuff too much.
King Diamond is ok but not Top 10 material for me.

Manowar - Triumph of Steel, Louder than Hell (man does their new stuff SUCK)
Iced Earth - Burnt Offerings
Iron Maiden - Fear of the Dark
Demons & Wizards - Demons & Wizards

Yeah I guess everyone agrees that Manowar's new stuff suck ass. Also Iced Earth's new stuff sucks, it went down with Horror Show imo and just became worse. Burnt Offerings is great but it's my least favourite of their older albums.
Also Fear of the Dark is one of the weakest albums from Iron Maiden imo. But I guess also not many agree with me that Brave New World is their best album.
I had high hopes in Demons & Wizards before their first album came out but I really can't find anything good in their music. It's like the worst parts of Iced Earth and Blind Guardian combined for me

this trailer may have you excited. This band has got talent.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2IrQIBrOos

As for Carcass, yeah I really only enjoy Heartwork and Swansong. As for Iced Earth, I like Horror Show a lot. And Glorious burden is alright too, but the older stuff is definitely the best. Even the first album is awesome, although the singing is either love it or hate it. I think it's cool.

Iron Maiden... They used to be my all time favorite band a few years ago. Since then I've gotten more into heavier stuff like DEATH. However I agree that Brave New World is really good. It grows on you. Nomad is probably my favorite tune off it, then probably Out of the Silent Planet (I have a pretty sweet picture disc vinyl off this single). Next best Maiden album for me is Powerslave. Fear of the Dark is pretty lame I agree. I actually like No Prayer for the Dying better from that era, although it's generally not highly regarded.

You should check out my old band. I started it back in 2004 in my last year of high school. We lasted a few years, until our other guitar player moved back home to Tel Aviv. (btw, I played guitar)

http://www.myspace.com/bloodquest

[antares]

Hey antares (or anyone else).....looking at the kind of stuff that I like...can you recommend anything?

Here are some album recommendations if you are mainly into Heavy and Power Metal:

Annihilator - Metal
Cage - Hell Destroyer
Danzig - II Lucifuge
Destiny's End - Transition
Evergrey - Torn
Jag Panzer - Mechanized Warfare
Nevermore - Enemies Of Reality
Savage Circus - Dreamland Manor

[maxlords]

Thanks man! Will check those out!

I've got a Danzig album or two DLed, and I have a couple of Evergrey albums, but not sure if I have that one. The others are all new to me

*gets to DLing to check em out*

I buy albums if I like em, no worries!

[bulletcurtain]

@burgerkingdiamond

That Death tribute band Symbolic wouldn't happen to be from Montreal would they? They open for a lot of bigger bands here; I specifically remember seeing them opening for Dismember. I'm surprised to hear that they're featured in a DVD with ex-Death members; I thought they were just a small time tribute band. Good for them!

[burgerkingdiamond]

@burgerkingdiamond

That Death tribute band Symbolic wouldn't happen to be from Montreal would they? They open for a lot of bigger bands here; I specifically remember seeing them opening for Dismember. I'm surprised to hear that they're featured in a DVD with ex-Death members; I thought they were just a small time tribute band. Good for them!

I know they are Canadian, so chances are they are the same band.

[antares]

I've got a Danzig album or two DLed, and I have a couple of Evergrey albums, but not sure if I have that one.

The first 4 Danzig albums are all great, the second is just my favourite. From Evergrey imo the first two are rubbish, the rest is all awesome.
The bands I recommended really have many great albums I just think it's easier to get started if you get a specific album name.

If you want to get into Blind Guardian I really love their older stuff but many people favour their newer albums. And if you like BG I'm sure you will like Savage Circus. This band was founded by the ex BG drummer and the singer sounds a lot like Hansi Kursch from BG only difference is he is really a good singer And their music sounds like the evolution of the older BG albums, it's really how Blind Guardian should sound today.

[jonny5]

Mastadon is already on my list tho Already looking at Coheed & Cambria, Dark Tranquility, Demon Hunter, Mudvayne, Sevendust, Warbringer, Throwdown, Within Temptation, and Skeletonwitch too. Those are all based on recommendations, but I haven't been in a metal mood for about 2 months.

Odd to see Coheed and Cambria in that list, as they really aren't a metal band. They have some kind of harder edged songs, but metal.....really?

Don't get me wrong, I really like them(older stuff more so than their last couple albums) but they are amazing live!!! SOOOOOOO tight!

I rarely listen to anything even approaching metal anymore so I really don't have anything else to add to this conversation; That list just caught my eye.

[PainAmplifier]

I can recognize pretty much 99.9% of everything I'm seeing posted so far...so to contribute I'd like to post some of my best recommendations you may have never have heard of.

Phantasm - "A Soul's Nightmare" From 'The Abominable", an incredible album that simply never got the exposure it should have had.

...woops hit submit instead of preview...

[PainAmplifier]

..continuing. Hopefully I can stop hitting the wrong button.

3 Inches of Blood - "Deadly Sinners" Traditional/Thrash Metal. Unique in that there where 2 vocalists for this band. At least until recently, where it seems one of them left.

Abigor - "Weeping Midwintertears" Black Metal, one of the best albums I have ever heard that does the super raspy and shrill perfectly. This is off the 'Verwüstung / Invoke The Dark Age' album. All of the Abigor albums were quality, but they did shift in style within black metal and related, so even if you like this you might not like later stuff or vice versa.

Absu - "The Coming of War" Black/Mythological Occult Metal.

Aesma Daeva - "Disdain" Metal/Operatic/Atmospheric , seriously just listen to this. Their sound changes somewhat each album, but they're incredible. If you like Therion at all, this is probably worth checking out as well.

Akercocke - "Axiom" Black/Death/Acoustic. These guys are unique. It's metal but they mix a lot of varied influences together in a incredible manner that sounds great.

Altar - "Wasted World" Death metal underrated and largely unknown.

Ancient - "Willothewisp" Black Metal, another band pretty much the center of one man, he's another who hasn't been satisfied to keep repeating the same sound over and over. I consider the album this track came from his best. (Mad Grandiose Bloodfiends)

At the Gates - "Blinded by Fear" No one mentioned these guys yet? I'm surprised.

Bewitched - "Hard as Steel (Hot as Hell)" Fun as all hell, straight up thrash metal.

Bloodbath - "Breeding Death" Death metal supergroup, great stuff.

Bolt Thrower - "For Victory" Awesome Death Metal Band. You can't go wrong with these guys.

Brujeria - "Petitis te Invoco" Death metal (spanish), a must listen.

Cancer - "Hung, Drawn and Quartered" Death metal classic!

Candlemass - "Bewitched" Doom metal from the masters. Featuring the incredible voice of Messiah Marcolin.

...I'm not even through the C's yet! have to cut it short for now though. I'll try and pick some more top tracks out later.

[burgerkingdiamond]

Yup. Danziug II : Lucifuge RULES.

[Herr Schatten]

If you want to get into Blind Guardian I really love their older stuff but many people favour their newer albums.

Really? I think few people do. Actually, I don't know anyone who prefers the newer stuff. Their earlier albums (up to and including Nightfall) are all great, with Tales and Imaginations probably being their strongest offerings. The first two (Battalions and Follow the Blind) are a little rough around the edges, but overall good fun. Somewhere and Nightfall both have their weaknesses, but each one contains a couple of really outstanding tracks.
Their newer stuff suffers from being over-thought and over-produced. Opera and Edge of Time both still have a couple of decent tracks among all the filler, but Twist in the Myth is really quite poor.

IMO, Hansi should never have started to take singing lessons. His voice is just not made for the registers he tries to explore in recent years. I also think they really should stop recording in their own studio. I know it's all too convenient to be able to do that, but it's almost always a good idea to have a producer from the outside working on your tracks, you know, someone who hasn't spend the last year and a half hearing them over and over. Come to think of it, I'd give the same advice to Manowar and Iron Maiden.

[drauch]

Nightttttttttttttttttttttttt falllllllllllllllllllll! Great album.

[antares]

Really? I think few people do. Actually, I don't know anyone who prefers the newer stuff.

My mistake, I just have another understanding of their old and new stuff. For me their old stuff are their first 4 albums up to Somewhere Far Beyond which are all awesome imo. Their newer stuff begins with Imaginations for me because that's the point where they shifted away from their original style.
Imaginations isn't a bad album but it was a huge dissapointment for me when I first heard it. Nightfall just sucks imo, nothing of their original style is left. So this is what I meant with old and new stuff and many people favouring their new stuff.
I actually liked Twist In The Myth because the sound goes in a different direction than their previous albums.
But I couldn't stand their newest album. Downloaded it, heard it once, deleted it straight away.

IMO, Hansi should never have started to take singing lessons. His voice is just not made for the registers he tries to explore in recent years.

[Herr Schatten]

My mistake, I just have another understanding of their old and new stuff.

I see. For me, "new stuff" means everything post-Nightfall. You probably already guessed that. I never really did mind them moving away from their original style, so I enjoyed both Imaginations and Nightfall. I can totally see why someone who's a lot into BG's earlier albums might dislike those, though.

[Matsunaga]

3 Inches of Blood - "Deadly Sinners" Traditional/Thrash Metal. Unique in that there where 2 vocalists for this band. At least until recently, where it seems one of them left.

Good choice, love 3 Inches of Blood. The other singer did leave the band after the 3rd album, now one of the guitarists does the secondary vocals.

[PainAmplifier]

Some more 'top' metal here...

Cathedral - "Autumn Twilight" Some of the best Doom/Stoner Metal ever. This comes from the EP that was released between "Forest of Equilibrium" which was incredibly slow doom, and the follow up "The Ethereal Mirror" that sped things up nicely, which I consider their best work.

Cemetary - "And Julie is no More" Death metal, although learning a bit more towards Goth/Doom for this release. (Godless Beauty). Cemetary is one of those projects that ended up showcasing the evolution of the main member/originator. (Mathias Lodmalm) Their first album was pretty much a old school pure death metal, but the sound of the guitars was very unique. Later releases had them experiment with more varied influences, eventually the band as a name folded, recovered and evolved. Even though their sound changed radically over the years, much like Tiamat, I never found the quality lacking.

Chastain - "For Those Who Dare" Heavy Metal, with the awesome voice of "Leather Leone". (The last album with her on vocals in fact.) I consider this to be their best album. I'm still looking for some of their earlier stuff though. Like the Scorpions, they have a long and storied history.

Cirith Ungol - "Chaos Rising" Heavy Metal with the Love it or Hate it vocals of Tim Baker. From their last full length album, this is one of their best tracks although I prefer some of the early albums a little more. Although their cover of "Fire" (The Crazy World of Arthur Brown") from this album really needs to be heard!

Crimson Glory - "Promise Land" Progressive Metal, from their 'Strange and Beautiful' album. Well worth the price of admission.

Crowbar - "My Agony" Sludge/Doom metal. From their first album 'Obedience thru Suffering". Like Motorhead, they seem to have found a sound and are taking it forward until the end. I recommend starting here at the beginning though.

Darkwell - "Pictures of Strive" Gothic metal, from their 'Suspiria' album. This vocalist is no longer with the band apparently, and I don't like the voice of her replacement on the last album. She sounds a bit too nasal for my ears. Regardless though, this album is a top quality release though. Anway, I had to laugh at how emo some of the pictures from the uploader where for this video. It really doesn't match the music at all.

Death Angel - "The Ultra Violence Thrash Metal. Incredible track from their very first album. A great band that was very young when they did this, plus they were all related in some way. (Cousins at least from what I recall) The band eventually broke up and reformed many years later, some members have come and gone, but they are still putting out some good music. This track still remains my absolute favorite though.

Death Breath - "Death Breath" Death Metal. 100% pure and unadultered non-techical Death Metal, from Nicke Andersson (ex-Entombed).

Demilich - "The Sixteenth Six-Tooth Son of Fourteen Four-Region " Death metal, with some of the most 'Gurgly' vocals ever put to music. Some of the most impossibly obtuse song titles ever written as well. This was pretty much a one album band, but what an album it was!

Demolition Hammer - "Infectious Hospital Waste" Thrash Metal. A truly under exposed classic slab of thrash. You can get all three of their studio albums on a single 2CD compilation, but I consider their first album my favorite, even though their second album seems to have been the favorite of other ciritcs.


...all for now, but I have a lot more having waiting in the wings...

[PainAmplifier]

...and keeping the best of the best rolling on in.

Demoniac - "Burn the Witch" Death Metal, Sound Familiar? It should, this is where the Guitarists for Dragonforce came from. Both Sam Totman and Herman Li played in this band, so although Li tends to get a bit more attention in Dragonforce for some reason, this track came from an album before Li joined. As such you can really hear the Sam's guitar playing loud and clear here. Not too be taken seriously at all, this was pretty much a 'party band' and its all done in fun.

Desultory - "Life Shatters" Death Metal, just a touch of goth. Their next album was more of a hard rock sound and it pretty much tanked there, but they recently put out a new album that is a fine return to the form that this track is a prime example of.

Devastation - "Idolatry" Thrash metal. An absolutely incredible song, from a rock solid album. Sadly this was their last album. I've heard some rumors of a reunion and new album, which I can only hope are true and they can return to the quality and intensity of this album.

Devil's Whorehouse - "Howling" Heavy Metal tinged with a good amount of punk/rock/black. Originally started by playing Samhain/Misfits covers, this band features the guitar work (on bass!) of Morgan Hakansson of Marduk fame. Great music, especially if you are a Misfits/Samhain fan.

Diabolos Rising - "Satanic Propoganda" Techno-Black Metal. A side project band between members of Impaled Nazarene and Necromantia. This was a very experimental album/band. The band name was later changed to Raism for some reason and a few more releases were done before the band/project split-up/ended.

Dismal Euphony - "Lunatic" Gothic/Black Metal. Earlier releases where closer to 'standard' black metal, while later releases ventured further into rock territory. Eventually this band just seemed to disappear. This album sits at a high point in the bands sound and I recommend it.

Dismember - "In Death's Sleep" Death Metal. While this band would later head into the Death N Roll sound territory along with Entombed, they later would return to the more straight up death metal sound eventually. This track off their first album is a prime example of the best of this band.

Dissection - "Thorns of Crimson Death" Melodic Death Metal. From 'Storm of the Light's Bane', a great album from start to finish.

Dyoxen - "Overcome" Technical Thrash Metal. A one-off album since the members split afterwords due to musical differences. But this is a great example of some really good thrash metal that isn't Metallica or Megadeath or one of the other big name bands remembered from the early era of thrash.

Edge of Sanity - "Twilight" Melodic Death Metal. The 'original' band that Dan Swano was a part of. I would have posted 'Crimson' instead, as I consider that the best song ever done by this band, but at a bit over 40 minutes long that's a five parter on you tube. ^_^;

Ghoul - "What a Wonderful World" Thrash-Death metal. A satirical take on the title.

Ghoultown - "Under the Phantom Moon" Western(Cowboy)-tinged melodic death metal. Unique and great sound, this is a band to give a listen to. Be sure to look for the video that features Elvira!

...more classic slabs of top ten quality music to come yet!...

[PainAmplifier]

Not going to let this thread die...so on with the metal!

God Dethroned - "The Grand Grimoire" Black/Death. A great album, this release was full of great songs from start to finish. Including two of my favorites, 'The Art of Immolation' and this track.

Godflesh - "Like Rats" Industrial. From the 'Streetcleaner' album. This album is pretty much the pinacle of what I like in Industrial music. While Godflesh has more really great albums, this one is a must listen above all others.

Gorefest - "Erase" Death Metal/Rock. The title track to a very awesome album. Somewhere at a midpoint from the blast of old school death metal, and the newer 'Death N Roll' that Entombed and Dismember were also moving towards, this album was the perfect mix of the two styles.

Grave - "Bloodshed" Death Metal. This track comes from the album 'Soulless', which I think belongs in a Criterion collection of Death Metal somewhere along with the 'And here I die' EP.

Grim Reaper - "When Heaven comes down" NWOBHM. Grim Reaper put out some pretty good Heavy Metal, starting with their 'See You in Hell' album/song. But It's the "Rock You To Hell" album that this track comes from that I think deserves the award for top tens.

Gutted - "Cold in the Coffin" Death Metal. I'm saddened that this band only ever put out this one album, because this one is incredible from start to finish.

Hammerfall - "Glory to the Brave" Power Metal. Hammerfall has put out some good music over the years, but tracks like this make their first album the best of their best.

Hellion - "Screams in the NIght" Heavy Metal. A cult band that's been on again off again over the years, this title track is the perfect summary of how good this music is.

Helloween - "I Can" Power Metal/Thrash. I've never quite understood all the accolades this band has gotten over the years for some of their earlier works, but "Better Than Raw" turned out not only this great track, but an entire album of some great metal.

Hollenthon - "Son of Perdition" Death/Classic Metal. Filling that void between Death Metal, Classical Music and other traditional/folk/mythical influences, Hollenthon needs to be heard to feel the Majesty within it's sound.

Hookers - "Behold God's Candy" Punk/Metal. Filling that void between the Misfits and Motorhead, you owe it to yourself to check this album out if you like those.

Hypocrisy - "Eraser" Death Metal. Hypocrisy has had some ups and downs over the years, but with tracks like this I can forgive the merely 'good' music that gets put out between tracks like "Roswell 47" or this one.

Immortal - "At the Heart of Winter" Black Metal. Sheer icy awesomeness. Immortal just can't be compared to any other band, and albums like "At the Heart of Winter", "Blizzard Beasts" or "Sons of Nothern Darkness" just stand alone on an icy peak in the nothern wastes somewhere, perfectly preserved for ever...

Jungle Rot - "Face Down" Death Metal. A really great band, that doesn't get quite the exposure that it deserve(s/d).

Kataklysm - "Sorcery" Death Metal. While their current sound/albums are closer to a more standard (although still really good) death metal, it's the sound from the 'Sorcery' album that I always end up going back to.

Konkhra - "My Belief" Death Metal. I lost track of this band, but "Weed out the Weak" and "Spit or Swallow" were both really good albums that are worth checking out.

Lake Of Tears - "Forever Autumn" Metal. LISTEN TO THEM! The songs from this band strongly remind me of early Black Sabbath before Ozzy first split off. The sound, the writing, the way each album is different and yet the same quality shines through. The Albums 'Headstones', 'A Crimson Cosmos' and "Forever Autumn' are the best of the best though.

[Herr Schatten]

Lake Of Tears - "Forever Autumn" Metal. LISTEN TO THEM! The songs from this band strongly remind me of early Black Sabbath before Ozzy first split off. The sound, the writing, the way each album is different and yet the same quality shines through. The Albums 'Headstones', 'A Crimson Cosmos' and "Forever Autumn' are the best of the best though.

I second this. LoT may not be the best instrumentalists in the world, but they sure as hell know how to write fantastic songs. In addition to the albums you already mentioned, I find their 'reunion' album Black Brick Road equally appealing. I also like the songs on The Neonai a lot, even though the album suffers a bit from being so cheaply produced.

Btw, has anyone mentioned Sentenced yet? They are among my absolute favourites. With the exception of the first one, all their albums are excellent.
Sentenced - Nepenthe (This is with the original singer.)
Sentenced - Noose
Sentenced - Vengeance is mine

[PainAmplifier]

I second this. LoT may not be the best instrumentalists in the world, but they sure as hell know how to write fantastic songs. In addition to the albums you already mentioned, I find their 'reunion' album Black Brick Road equally appealing. I also like the songs on The Neonai a lot, even though the album suffers a bit from being so cheaply produced.

Btw, has anyone mentioned Sentenced yet? They are among my absolute favourites. With the exception of the first one, all their albums are excellent.
Sentenced - Nepenthe (This is with the original singer.)
Sentenced - Noose
Sentenced - Vengeance is mine

I haven't reached the "S"'s yet. ^_^; But I agree that Sentenced has put out a lot of really great albums over the years. My favorites are 'North from here' and 'Amok'. My collection is only missing 'Crimson' and 'Story: A Recollection'.

[PainAmplifier]

...continuing on with the greatness!

Le'Rue Delashay - "An Evening Eclipse" Classical. Or as his website says, "Modern Symphonic Classical Orchestration". His work has also appeared on several (Death/Heavy/Black) Metal records from the "Root of all Evil" records label. (He was a part of the band "Lorde of all Desires" for example.) Although the albums put out under the name Le'Rue Delashay are Orchestral recordings, they aren't focused on the big bombastic sounds you hear from composers such as "ES Posthumus". His work makes a great alternative to the Symphonic Metal or Classical Arranged music that you hear from bands such as Therion or Apocalyptica.

Lordi - "Blood Red Sandman" Heavy Metal. The perfect fusion of KISS and GWAR. More well known in Europe due to winning the Eurovision contest for "Hard Rock Hallelujah" one year, I've added them here, simply because there are some people who *haven't* heard their awesomeness yet.

Lost in Tears - "Without You" Gothic Heavy Metal. This sounds to me like a Fusion of Lake of Tears (Headstones) and Type O Negative (The vocals are almost a dead ringer). Either way, it's some incredible music that needs to be heard.

Marduk - "Materialized in Stone" Black Metal. Marduk has always been pretty extreme, although after 'Opus Nocturne' they turned the speed up quite a bit for awhile. 'Panzer Division Marduk' for example is pretty much a blur of speed throughout. When it comes to no-keyboard black metal, Marduk is one of the few bands that has maintained a high level of quality throughout their discography.

Massacre - "Nothing" Death Metal. Reviewers hated this album and even the band wasn't happy with it in the end...but I love it. The mix of hate and anger in the vocals just make this the perfect album to express bad relationships.

Master - "American Freedom" Death Metal. Paul Speckmann has been putting out some really good death metal through Master ever since the 90's. He's moved from the US to Czech but that hasn't stopped the music from being top notch.

Memento Mori - "Lost Words" Power/Doom Metal. This track comes from the one album Messiah Marcolin didn't do vocals for, but they aren't that far off from Marcolin and the quality doesn't suffer at all.

Moonspell - "Alma Mater" Gothic Metal. Moonspell went from Symphonic black metal, to gothic rock and back to gothic metal. But their second (Wolfheart) and third albums (Irreligious) are some of the best gothic metal ever released.

Morgana Lefay - "To Isengard" Power Metal. Plagued by band/contract/lable issues and style changes over the years, Morgana Lefay nonetheless managed to release several slabs of great metal for us to enjoy.

Morgion - "Travesty" Doomdeath. Morgion was pretty much doomed by an unstable lineup but it was more than enough for them to release the absolutely incredible "Among Majestic Ruin" album as well as two other albums.

Morgoth - "White Gallery" Death Metal. Morgoth ended up evolving itself into oblivion with their last album,(Feel Sorry for the Fanatic) but their first four releases are enough to keep them firmly in the death metal history books. (Eternal Fall EP, Resurrection Absurd EP, Cursed and Odium.)

Yet more to go...

*Edit* - Corrected the link for Morgana LeFay's "To Isengard".

[Herr Schatten]

Morgoth - "White Gallery" Death Metal. Morgoth ended up evolving itself into oblivion with their last album,(Feel Sorry for the Fanatic) but their first four releases are enough to keep them firmly in the death metal history books. (Eternal Fall EP, Resurrection Absurd EP, Cursed and Odium.)

I actually liked Feel sorry for the Fanatic quite a bit. It's a really good album, even though it doesn't sound much like the stuff Morgoth used to stand for.

I almost always appreciate it when a band evolves. Few bands can afford this, however, because alienating their fan base can quickly mean that they can't pay their bills anymore. That's why you see so many musicians plagiarising themselves and releasing soulless carbon copies of their earlier successes rather than following their musical desires.

If you like Morgoth, you should check out Disharmonic Orchestra. You might like them.

[PainAmplifier]

Morgoth - "White Gallery" Death Metal. Morgoth ended up evolving itself into oblivion with their last album,(Feel Sorry for the Fanatic) but their first four releases are enough to keep them firmly in the death metal history books. (Eternal Fall EP, Resurrection Absurd EP, Cursed and Odium.)

I actually liked Feel sorry for the Fanatic quite a bit. It's a really good album, even though it doesn't sound much like the stuff Morgoth used to stand for.

I almost always appreciate it when a band evolves. Few bands can afford this, however, because alienating their fan base can quickly mean that they can't pay their bills anymore. That's why you see so many musicians plagiarising themselves and releasing soulless carbon copies of their earlier successes rather than following their musical desires.

If you like Morgoth, you should check out Disharmonic Orchestra. You might like them.

I agree, Feel Sorry for the Fanatic wasn't a bad album, but just as importantly it was a *jarring* change from their previous albums. Odium was different from Cursed, but it wasn't a huge change over either.

I like it when a band evolves also, but I also appreciate it more when the band doesn't forsake what it has done before. Also, the change/evolution needs to be done smoothly in stages or else the new style needs to be such a massive improvement that the old style can be over looked. When it comes to Metal however, going from heavy to light is *always* going to be judged harder than the reverse simply because 'heavyness' is what defines the majority of music in the metal genres.

Thus Metallica going from 'Justice' to the Black album was seen as a 'bad' change for fans of the older works, while for a band like Pantera, going from the more glam metal of 'Metal Magic' to the much heavier sound of 'Cowboys' or 'Vulgar' is seen as a positive thing.

For a band like Lake of Tears or Tiamat, the evolution from a harder/heavier beginning to a 'softer' style was seen as a positive because it was done in stages or the change was an actual improvement. For Tiamat, this would be the evolution from the rather generic/bland 'Sumerian Cry' getting better and evolving all the way through to 'A Deeper Kind of Slumber' even though the sound changed away from the 'heavier' beginnings. After that with 'Skeleton, Skeletron', 'Prey' and 'Judas Christ' things kinda stagnated and thus the popularity dropped as a result. 'Amanethes' can be seen as a 'return to form' if you will.

For Lake of Tears, I think it was a gradual evolution from 'Greater Art' which is arguably their heaviest/fastest release to 'A Crimson Cosmos' where the 70's stoner/Floyd sounds had taken a firm hold. But it was one that also had a lot less change in the end. Daniel Breneare just keep the quality high on each release more consistent than many other bands do when evolving.

[Rob]

I would never listen to a metal (or any) band called Lake of Tears.

[PainAmplifier]

I would never listen to a metal (or any) band called Lake of Tears.

Why not? Good music is what your listening to, not reading the band's name. Although I see nothing wrong with Lake of Tears in any way as a band name either.

[Herr Schatten]

I would never listen to a metal (or any) band called Lake of Tears.

Your loss. They happen to be quite awesome.


@PainAmplifier: I pretty much agree with everything you said. However, I'd rather see a band move into a direction I don't like than not moving at all.

A prime example would be Kreator, who evolved very gradually from their thrashy roots to something very different. I, for one, really liked how they kept exploring new grounds. Then, with Endorama, they obviously took one step too far, to where their older fan base wouldn't follow them anymore, quite similar to what Morgoth did with Feel sorry for the Fanatic. So, after record sales hit rock bottom, they decided to play it safe and just kept regurgitating their pre-Coma of Souls sound over and over. I can understand why they're doing this, but it completely killed my interest in the band.

[Rob]

Wish there was more power metal in this vein and to this standard.