The Extreme Music Forum's Top Recommended Albums Lists

[Lateralus14]

Hey all, so last week I started a little project on the ExMF group on last.fm. Members were asked to list their top 20-30 albums in both the genres of death metal and black metal (possibly other genres to come). Based on their rankings in their respective lists, albums were given points and ranked on a master list of top recommendations. Also, some observations from the project:

- 213 death metal releases and 154 black metal releases were submitted as favorites. In a sense, this hints at the impressive catalogue of metal.
- Each genre has a #1 frontrunner with a significant lead over the rest in terms of points. While other variables are at play (Mayhem having one major acclaimed full-length vs. several from Darkthrone, for instance), this shows that each genre has major milestones of historical significance.
- Black metal had notably fewer artists listed amongst the top of the ranks, demonstrating that black metal history has generally been defined by a small elite, particularly that of Scandinavia, in comparison to the wide variety of death metal bands.

Here are the two lists that are completed thus far:

Top 25 Recommended Death Metal Albums:

1. Morbid Angel - Altars Of Madness
2. Demilich - Nespithe
3. Incantation - Onward To Golgotha
4. Dismember - Like An Everflowing Stream
5. Demigod - Slumber Of Sullen Eyes
6. Possessed - Seven Churches
7. Immolation - Close To A World Below
8. Incantation - Mortal Throne Of Nazarene
9. Deicide - Legion
10. Gorguts - Obscura
11. Disembowelment - Transcendence Into The Peripheral
12. Immolation - Here In After
13. At The Gates - The Red In The Sky Is Ours
14. Septic Flesh - Mystic Places Of Dawn
15. Autopsy - Mental Funeral
16. Morbid Angel - Blessed Are The Sick
17. Atheist - Unquestionable Presence
18. Massacra - Final Holocaust
19. Autopsy - Severed Survival
20. Lykathea Aflame - Elvenefris
21. Necrophobic - The Nocturnal Silence
22. Bolt Thrower - Realm Of Chaos
23. Entombed - Clandestine
24. Molested - Blod-Draum
25. Dead Congregation - Graves Of The Archangels



Top 25 Recommended Black Metal Albums

1. Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas
2. Darkthrone - Under A Funeral Moon
3. Blasphemy - Fallen Angel Of Doom
4. Master's Hammer - Ritual
5. Darkthrone - A Blaze In The Northern Sky
6. Bathory - Under The Sign Of The Black Mark
7. Rotting Christ - Thy Mighty Contract
8. Bathory - Blood Fire Death
9. Sacramentum - Far Away From The Sun
10. Burzum - Hvis Lyset Tar Oss
11. Emperor - In The Nightside Eclipse
12. Immortal - Pure Holocaust
13. Beherit - Drawing Down The Moon
14. Darkthrone - Transilvanian Hunger
15. Sarcofago - INRI
16. Bathory - The Return......
17. Darkthrone - Panzerfaust
18. Celtic Frost - Morbid Tales
19. Enslaved - Vikingligr Veldi
20. Gorgoroth - Antichrist
21. Dissection - The Somberlain
22. Gorgoroth - Pentagram
23. Mortuary Drape - All The Witches Dance
24. Burzum - Det Som En Gang Var
25. Celtic Frost - To Mega Therion

 

[Onder]

Nice to see Dead Congregation on the death metal list, because it's very recent. Good lists imo. I agree about DMDS being the best black metal album of all time. I also like Rituál being above any Burzum. Seems like the HLTO fame is wearing off a little.

 

[Draehl]

Traditional Black Metal is very heavily represented there. Would be interesting to see a list specifically geared towards avant-garde/BM crossovers/atmospheric/etc. Burzum, Bathory, and Enslaved are the only interesting acts on that list :/

 

[Lateralus14]

There were plenty of "avant garde"/"atmospheric"/etc. albums listed...they just clearly didn't make the top 25

 

[The Ozzman]

Every other Morbid Angel album after Altars is better than Altars. The exception to that is the latest one.

 

[The Dark Soul]

Burzum, Bathory, and Enslaved are the only interesting acts on that list :/

I'm not sure that many people who are big into black metal will agree with this. There are a lot of amazing albums on that list. You should give them another chance.

 

[Westsiyeed]

Every other Morbid Angel album after Altars is not as good as Altars. The exception to that is Blessed are the Sick.

Yeah I agree.

 

[Onder]

Every other Morbid Angel album after Altars is better than Altars. The exception to that is the latest one.

I will show you the way to the pyre. People are waiting there with gasoline and matches.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

Every other Morbid Angel album after Altars is better than Altars. The exception to that is the latest one.

Heretic is worse than Illud, let alone Altars.

 

[Master_Yoda77]

This is an amazingly great list. I'd shift a few things around (Pure Holocaust, Drawning Down the Moon being a bit higher, and adding Engram to the list) but whatever. I like seeing Ritual on this list as well, but fuck #4? That's fucked.

 

[Lateralus14]

Don't look at me, Pure Holocaust was my #1 pick

 

[Mort Divine]

Traditional Black Metal is very heavily represented there. Would be interesting to see a list specifically geared towards avant-garde/BM crossovers/atmospheric/etc. Burzum, Bathory, and Enslaved are the only interesting acts on that list :/

Avant-garde/BM crossovers aren't black metal

 

[TechnicalBarbarity]

Hmmmm, so not a single Death album made the death metal list? Wow, that just automatically voids that list. Must be a fucking shitty ass group.


edit: well at least The Somberlain made it over Storm of the Light's Bane ... which is the way it should be. But still, the album itself is far too low on the list.

 

[Onder]

Hmmmm, so not a single Death album made the death metal list? Wow, that just automatically voids that list. Must be a fucking shitty ass group.

Actually, no.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

Elvenefris over the first two Death albums is pretty silly bro.

 

[Mort Divine]

It is, but neither really have any kind of place on the list.

 

[TechnicalBarbarity]

Elvenefris over the first two Death albums is pretty silly bro.

More like over a quarter of that list over almost any of Death's albums is pretty silly.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

More like over a quarter of that list over almost any of Death's albums is pretty silly.

I made the assumption that Onder, being Czech, might take my comment particularly personally. I really hope it worked.

 

[TechnicalBarbarity]

lol ... had flew over my head.

 

[The Ozzman]

Heretic is worse than Illud, let alone Altars.

Okay, I haven't heard Heretic either. I would definitely take anything that Steve Tucker did with the band over Altars.