Is there any one metal album that we can all agree is an absolute classic?
- Thread starter Elric of Melniboné
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no country for old wainds
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their best album IMO. if i'm being objective i might maybe rank PARANOID above it, but no others.
EspaDa
Damage Case
TechnicalBarbarity
Poser Disposer
TechnicalBarbarity
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yeah, "crappy" might have been too harsh. Definitely the weakest track on the album though.
EspaDa
Damage Case
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TechnicalBarbarity
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crimsonfloyd
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TechnicalBarbarity
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no country for old wainds
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'wheels of confusion', 'snowblind' and 'under the sun' are top ten sabbath songs, 'tomorrow's dream' and 'cornucopia' are top 20 ('supernaut is actually my least favourite of the metal tunes and that's good too), and it feels more aesthetically unified than most of the others while also being among their most unique tonally (i barely know another album with anything close to that wintery coked out atmosphere). also the most enveloping/overwhelming on a purely sensory level due to an all time great production job, even by sabbath's amazing standards. i accept that it's flawed and that you could regard the interludes/ballad as filler, which i only half-agree with myself, but that isn't enough to really hurt it, not to mention that most sabbath albums have their share of flaws.
TechnicalBarbarity
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Under the Sun is my favorite track from that album(even though they did "borrow" from DP's Flight of the Rat in that song). Supernaut, Snowblind, and Cornucopia are also 5/5.
crimsonfloyd
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Maybe you're wrong?
What are the weak points of the album in your opinion?
Vol 4, for the most part, sticks within the terrain settled by Paranoid and Master of Reality. At its best, i.e. "Wheels of Confusion," the opening riff of "Cornucopia," and "Under the Sun," it results in some rather epic doom. However, it doesn't offer much new. There are a few hints of the progressive elements that characterize the next four releases: the latin-esque passage on "Supernaut" and the glitzy synth at the end of "Snowblind," but at this point they're only hints.
I wouldn't say any of the metal tracks are bad; they're all at least solid. However, too often, Sabbath seem to be going through the motions with songs that are adequate, but lack both the distinctness or memorability of the tracks from the prior albums.
As for the non-metal tracks, they're not Sabbath's best. "Changes" is OK, if you're in the mood for an sad sod ballad, but certainly doesn't even come close to the magic of "Caravan" or "Solitude." Also, "FX" is an absolutely terrible piece of experimental ambient. I know a lot of Sabbath albums have folk or ambient interludes, but none is so dull as "FX." Putting these two tracks back-to-back was a mistake, as it makes a long lull within Side A.
All in all, it's still a good album, and I would give it a B if grading it, B- at my most cynical. However, its easily the least engaging and least important of the first six albums.
no country for old wainds
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SABOTAGE is a pretty enjoyable clusterfuck of already established styles, not nearly as important and original as people like to claim.* not that i'd expect hipster agalloch fans to agree.
*except 'symptom of the universe' is god tier obvs
*except 'symptom of the universe' is god tier obvs
crimsonfloyd
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TechnicalBarbarity
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A minute and half interlude that's not even a song shouldn't effect your rating of that album. But hey.
Sabotage is probably their best. Neck and neck with Mob Rules
crimsonfloyd
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A minute and half interlude that's not even a song shouldn't effect your rating of that album. But hey.
I count everything when I rate an album. If they didn't want it to count, they shouldn't have put it on.
EspaDa
Damage Case
Sword of Kalki
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Too many to chose from, but Screaming For Vengeance is, or should be, a contender.
For Traditional, straight up Heavy Metal at any rate.
For black metal, I would say either ITNE or Transylvanian Hunger, overplayed though they may be.
Death metal (of which I'm not really a fan of outside a few early bands) I would have to go with either Possessed Seven Churches, Scream Bloody Gore / Leprosy or Altars.
Thrash, Bonded By Blood or Show no Mercy.
But, then you have Venom - Black Metal, and Mercyful Fate - Melissa to take into consideration.
Interesting thread.
For Traditional, straight up Heavy Metal at any rate.
For black metal, I would say either ITNE or Transylvanian Hunger, overplayed though they may be.
Death metal (of which I'm not really a fan of outside a few early bands) I would have to go with either Possessed Seven Churches, Scream Bloody Gore / Leprosy or Altars.
Thrash, Bonded By Blood or Show no Mercy.
But, then you have Venom - Black Metal, and Mercyful Fate - Melissa to take into consideration.
Interesting thread.
In The Nightside Eclipse used to be one of my favorite BM albums, but I dunno now. It just doesn't have the staying power. Towards the Pantheon, Into the Infinity of Thoughts, and Inno A Satana are still songs I jam to but I don't really feel the others anymore.
Sword of Kalki
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I only break it out once in a moon, but it still works for me. Especially the mid-section of Into The Infinity Of Thoughts.
The album that lost it's appeal for me rather quickly was their follow up. IX Equilibrium was (to me) what Anthems was trying to be, but I always felt they were at odds with the direction they wanted to take at the time, ergo we have the schizophrenic Anthems, an album afflicted with a bit of a personality crisis.
