What albums do you think are perfect in every way?

[Jind]

There was an interesting thread over at the Telecaster Forums (http://www.tdpri.com) where someone asked the following question:

What records have you listened to that, after hearing every song and not finding any filler, you think are flawless?

It got me thinking about what albums I've listened to and about ones that I consider perfect in every way - songwriting, production, performance, that little something extra that makes an album stick in your head for days if not years?

I'm still thinking about my list, but wondered about what my fellow Sneapsters thought. Think really hard and give us some thoughts on the subject also don't just limit yourself to metal unless that's all you have for references.

Were talking about perfection here and not just by modern standards - you can take the time the album was released into consideration.

I'll post my list a little later as I'm still thinking about it.

 

[TheDriller]

Off the top of my head:

Blood Revolt - "Indoctrine"
Tom Waits - "Rain Dogs"
Deathspell Omega - "Kenose"
Dissection - "Storm Of The Lights Bane"
Neutral Milk Hotel - "In The Aeroplane Over The Sea"
Manic Street Preachers - "The Holy Bible"
Burial - "Untrue"
Miles Davis - "Kind Of Blue"
Neurosis - "A Sun That Never Sets"
Gorguts - "Obscura"
Rory Gallagher - "Deuce"
Drudkh - "Autumn Aurora"
Radiohead - "OK Computer"

each of these records is perfect, they grab my attention and refuse to let go.
they all have a production that is just perfect for the music and each is more than the sum of its parts.

 

[Skinny Viking]

Helloween - "Keeper II"
Gamma Ray - "Land of the Free"
Therion - "Vovin" & "Secret of the Runes"
Devin Townsend - "Ocean Machine"
SYL - "City"
Symphony X - "V"
Blind Guardian - "Nightfall"
Muse - "Origin of Symmetry" & "Absolution"
Danzig - "Danzig 1"
Judas Priest - "Painkiller"
Iron Maiden - "Number of the Beast"
Bruce Dickinson - "Chemical Wedding"
Virgin Steele - "House of Atreus Act I"
Amon Amarth - "With Oden On Our Side"
Faith No More - "Angel Dust"
Metallica - "Master of Puppets"

off the top of my head

these are all perfect to me in every way

 

[grywolf627]

Off the top of my head, in no particular order:

Boston - "Boston"
Dokken - "Back For The Attack"
Queensryche - "Operation: Mindcrime"
Rush - "Moving Pictures" & "Signals"
Scar Symmetry - "Holographic Universe"
Spyro Gyra - "Stories Without Words"
Skid Row - "Skid Row"
Iron Maiden - "Somewhere In Time"
Avantasia - "Wicked Symphony"
Kamelot - "The Black Halo"
Pantera - "Power Metal"
Leatherwolf - "Street Ready"
Circus Maximus - "1st Chapter"
Dream Theater - "Images & Words"

Besides having no filler material (at least, not to me), each of these is just perfect in their own ways (again...to me). I'm sure there's more if I take the time to think about it, but that's what immediately jumped at me.

Edit: @ Carlos - I've never really taken the time to check out Therion...I'll have to do that. Thanks for reminding me!

 

[muckypup1]

Fuck this is a hard list to choose!

Meshuggah - Catch 33
Soundgarden - Superunknown
Death - Leprosy
Decapitated - Organic Hallucinosis
Nevermore - This Godless Endeavor
Alice In Chains - Jar Of Flies/Sap
Gorguts - Obscura
Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream
Radiohead - In Rainbows
Deftones - White Pony
Buckethead - Colma

All these albums are perfect to me, every single song is incredible.

 

[DanLights]

Megadeth - Rust in Peace
Opeth - Ghost Reveries

That is all for now

 

[Skinny Viking]

Edit: @ Carlos - I've never really taken the time to check out Therion...I'll have to do that. Thanks for reminding me!

Either of those two I listed would be the place to start

Make sure to clear an hour to really be able to just sit and listen with no distractions, maybe with a glass of wine.

Enjoy!

 

[ratsapprentice]

Dissection - Storm of The Lights Bane
Suffocation - Effigy of the Forgotten
Slayer - Reign in Blood
Death - Individual Thought Patterns
Sepultura - Beneath the Remains
Decapitated - Nihility
Origin - Antithesis
Origin - Echoes of Decimation
Gorguts - Considered Dead
Deathspell Omega - Si Monumentum Requires, Circumspice

 

[Notuern]

Dokken - "Back For The Attack"
Queensryche - "Operation: Mindcrime"
Skid Row - "Skid Row"
Pantera - "I Am The Night"
Pantera - "Power Metal"
Pantera - "Cowboys From Hell"
Leatherwolf - "Street Ready"
MSG - "MSG"
Racer X - "Street Lethal"
Van Halen - "Fair Warning"
Ozzy Osbourne - "Ozzmosis"
Winger - "Winger"
Whitesnake - "Whitesnake/1987"
Metallica - "...And Justice for All"
Testament - "The Formation Of Damnation"
Annihilator - "Set The World On Fire"
Dream Theater - "Awake"

Thanks for the base to my list there Mark!

 

[slashvanyoung]

Slayer - Reign In Blood: To me, it's the blueprint for the "perfect" thrash record. Straight to the point, fast, raw, aggressive, cohesive, no compromises... and ANDY WALLACE.

Dream Theater - Images And Words: Redundancy - that's the only thing the album is missing, but DT made up for that in latter years. And there's KEVIN MOORE.

SYL - City: Who knew that the sonic equivalent to an epileptic seizure could be so good?

Cynic - Focus: Bad production? My ass! The music on this transcends every production imaginable.

Social Distortion - White Light, White Heat, White Thrash: A very real and unmasked melange of Punk, Hard Rock, Cash spirit and Springsteen attitude.

The Misfits - Walk Among Us: Not only a genre-defining record, but arguably it's best too.

Misfits - American Psycho: The Horrorpunk status quo 15 years later.

Cryptopsy - None So Vile: The meanest Death Metal grooves ever put to record.

Dio - Holy Diver: The magnum opus of a god.

Ulver - Bergtatt and Perdition City: How often did a band put out records that were as perfect as they were different?

Jason Becker - Altitudes: The epitome of shred records, put out by a guy whose talent was as big as the tragedy he should face.

AC/DC - Highway To Hell: The AC/DC formula is as simple as it is successful. Never executed better than on this record. No, not even on Back In Black.

Judas Priest - Painkiller: That's what happens when people start to write you off as a heritage act.

Helloween - Keeper Part 2: The first one set out to become one of the greatest Power Metal records of all time. The second one came to trump it. Whenever I hear Kiske's performance, I shed a little tear for the talent he decided to waste.

Michael Jackson - Thriller: The best pop record ever made. Simple as that.

The Beatles - The White Album: Immaculate.

Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction: THE essential Hard Rock record.

Nevermore - Dreaming Neon Black: Sure, "Dead Heart..." sounds better, but when DNB captures you, you understand why it's that one record they'll never top. Warrel wouldn't disagree.

Pantera - Cowboys From Hell: Yeah, the guitars sound way better on "Vulgar...", but "Cowboys..." sounds like the best of pre- and successor thrown together.

Skid Row - Skid Row: With "Slave..." they went more metal, but the debut simply hasn't even one weak song.

Aphex Twin - Drukqs: It's the "Reign In Blood" of IDM.

Danzig I - III: If you ever hear these records, you'll understand why most Danzig fans desperately want to see the second coming of Christ.

 

[grywolf627]

^ Thank you for mentioning Holy Diver! I'm ashamed to have forgotten to put that on my list!

 

[Skinny Viking]

^ I'd say we're on the same page with a lot of stuff

 

[JayB]

Pantera - "Vulgar Display of Power"
Eminem " Marshall Mathers LP"
Metallica "...And Justice For All"
Killswitch Engage "The End Of Heartache"
Avenged Sevenfold "Waking The Fallen"
Pennywise "Full Circle"
Parkway Drive "Horizons"

 

[ahjteam]

Faith No More - Angel Dust
Faith No More - King For A Day, Fool For A Lifetime
Pantera - Cowboys From Hell
Pantera - Vulgar Display of Power
Metallica - Master of Puppets
Metallica - The Black Album
Karnivool - Themata
Slipknot - Slipknot
Machine Head - Burn My Eyes
Machine Head - Thru The Ashes Of Empires
Lamb Of God - As The Palaces Burn
Waltari - Big Bang
Waltari - Yeah! Yeah! Die! Die! Death Metal Symphany in Deep C
Deftones - White Pony
Deftones - Around The Fur
Nirvana - Nevermind
Radiohead - OK Computer
Nicole - Suljetut Ajatukset
Killswitch Engage - The End of Heartache
Lenny Kravitz - 5
Children of Bodom - Hate Crew Deathroll
Chimaira - The Impossibility of Reason
Clawfinger - A Whole Lot of Nothing
Backstreet Boys - Backstreets Back
In Flames - Reroute To Remain
Devin Townsend - Ziltoid The Omniscient
Devin Townsend Project - Addicted
Diablo - Eternium
Disco Ensemble - First Aid Kit
Disco Ensemble - Viper Etchics
HIM - Greatest Lovesongs Vol 666
Fear Factory - Demanufacture
Fear Factory - Archetype
Guns n Roses - Appetite For Destruction
Ill Nino - Revolution Revolucion
POD - Satellite
Iron Maiden - Best Of The Beast (I honestly think it is a better than any of their albums a whole)
Korn - Take A Look In The Mirror
Korn - Issues
Korn - Untouchables
Korn - Korn
Korn - Follow The Leader
Sub Urban Tribe - Sub Urban Tribe
Sub Urban Tribe - Manimal
Nightwish - Wishmaster
Living Colour - Pride
Major Label - ...And The Machines Will Never Wake Us
Marilyn Manson - Antichrist Superstar
Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
Mindless Self Indulgence - Frankenstein Girls Will Seem Strangely Sexy
Mokoma - Kurimus
Mr Bungle - California
Mr Bungle - Mr Bungle
No Doubt - Tragic Kingdom
The Offspring - Smash
One Minute Silence - Buy Now... Saved Later
Orgy - Candyass
Papa Roach - Infest
Stam1na - Stam1na
Stam1na - Uudet Kymmenen Käskyä
Static X - Wisconsin Death Trip
Static X - Machine
Static X - Cannibal
Pariisin Kevät - Meteoriitti
Pariisin Kevät - Astronautti
Peeping Tom - Peeping Tom
A Perfect Circle - Mer De Noms
A Perfect Circle - 13th Step
American Head Charge - The War Of Art
Queen - Greatest Hits I & II (Same thing as with Iron Maiden)
Rage Against The Machine - The Battle of Los Angeles
Rage Against The Machine - Rage Against The Machine
The Rain - Kiitos Ja Anteeksi
Rammstein - Mutter
Rammstein - Sensucht
Raptori - Moe!
Raunchy - Confusion Bay
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication
Red Nex - Sex & Violins
Roadrunner United - The All-Star Sessions
Sepultura - Roots
System of A Down - Toxicity
Sikth - The Trees Are Dead & Dried Out Wait For Something Wild
Skunk Anansie - Stoosh
Slayer - Reign In Blood
Snipe Drive - Cables
Soulfly - Soulfly
Soulfly - Dark AgesSteve Vai - Sex & Religion
Stone - No Anaestasia
Strapping Young Lad - Alient
Strapping Young Lad - City
Devin Townsend - Inifinity
Stratovarius - Infinite
Terapia - Joona
Tomahawk - Tomahawk
Tomahawk - Mit Gas
Tool - Lateralus
Tool - Aenima
Turmion Kätilöt - Hoitovirhe
Velcra - Between Force And Fate
Velcra - Consequenses of Disobidience

 

[Felix Neumann]

The Beatles - The White Album: Immaculate.

Good choice! The best element on this work clearly is the variety. There is no single boring moment on this one.

But I personally would say "ABBEY ROAD" is the best album of em. In every sense IMO

 

[slashvanyoung]

Good choice! The best element on this work clearly is the variety. There is no single boring moment on this one.

But I personally would say "ABBEY ROAD" is the best album of em. In every sense IMO

Oh Felix, believe me, I had a really hard time choosing but forced myself to take only one. I mean, IT'S THE BEATLES! :Spin:

Could have been Revolver, Rubber Soul, Abbey Road... well anything.

And HUGE -1 for myself for not including Faith No More's "King For A Day..." in my list.

 

[Felix Neumann]

Could have been Revolver, Rubber Soul, Abbey Road... well anything.

So true, bro..so true! I totally like the Magical Mystery Tour album (although it´s not an official one) "I´m the walrus, strawberry fields, Penny Lane and all this songs is so GOD Revolver is one of my faves, as well.

 

[tarbh666]

Megadeth - Rust in Peace
Anthrax - Persistence of Time
Iron Maiden - Seventh Son
Death - Human
Deicide - Legion
Morbid Angel - Altars of Madness
Carcass - Necroticism
Entombed - Clandestine
Emperor - Anthems
Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas

All albums that I never feel the urge to press skip. Classics, and I have fond memories of hearing them all as each one was released. Landmark albums of their respective genres.

 

[P-E]

Damien Rice - O

then (only a little bit less perfect)

Dark Tranquillity - The Gallery
Wintersun - Wintersun
Death - The Sound of Perseverance

 

[GarethSE]

ask me today and you will get one answer
ask me tomorrow and you will get another