Metal Reviews

Since we're in a mood for lists, I thought this one was interesting... Today amazon delivered the first book I'll be using as a source for my essay on the cultural and social aspects of metal today, "Heavy Metal - The Music And It's Culture", by sociologist Deena Weinstein (she was interviewed a lot in Sam Dunn's documentary "A Headbanger's Journey"). Anyway, what surprised me was the list of sample listenings she included in the appendix as being "definitive metal as well as excellent albums that represent the genre over its various styles and eras". Some, like ACDC and Sabbath were obvious, but others were unexpected.

AC/DC - Back In Black
Accept - Restless and Wild
Amorphis - Tales From The Thousand Lakes
Angel Witch - Angel Witch
Annihilator - Alice in Hell
Anthrax - Spreading the Disease
Arcturus - La Masquerade Infernale
Armored Saint - March of the Saint
At The Gates - Slaughter of the Soul
Bathory - Under the Sign of the Black Mark
Benediction - Dreams You Dread
Biohazard - State of the World Address
Black Sabbath - Mob Rules
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Blind Guardian - Nightfall In Middle-Earth
Body Count - Body Count
Broken Hope - Loathing
Brujeria - Matando Gueros
Candlemass - Epicus Doomicus Metallicus
Cannibal Corpse - Butchered at Birth
Carcass - Heartwork
Celtic Frost - Into The Pandemonium
Cradle Of Filth - Cruelty and the Beast
Crowbar - Obedience Through Suffering
Death - Leprosy
Deep Purple - Machine Head
Deicide - When Satan Lives
Diamond Head - Lightning To The Nations
Dimmu Borgir - Enthrone Darkness Triumphant
Dio - Holy Diver
Down - Nola
Dream Theater - Images and Words
Edge of Sanity - Spectral Sorrows
Einherjer - Odin Owns Ye All
Emperor - Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk
Entombed - Wolverine Blues
Exciter - Long Live the Loud
Exodus - Bonded by Blood
Fear Factory - Demanufacture
Flotsam & Jetsam - Doomsday for the Deceiver
Forbidden - Forbidden Evil
Gamma Ray - Somewhere Out in Space
Godflesh - Slavestate
Grim Reaper - See You In Hell
Guns N'Roses - Appetite for Destruction
Hammerfall - Glory to the Brave
Helloween - Keeper of the Seven Keys, II
Hypocrisy - Osculum Obscenum
Iced Earth - Iced Earth
In Flames - Whoracle
Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast
Judas Priest - Painkiller
Judas Priest - Stained Class
King Diamond - Abigail
Krokus - Headhunter
Living Sacrifice - Reborn
Macabre - Sinister Slaughter
Manowar - Into Glory Ride
Megadeth - Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?
Mercyful Fate - Don't Break The Oath
Meshuggah - Destroy Erase Improve
Metallica - Kill 'Em All
Michael Schenker Group - Assault Attack
Ministry - Psalm 69
Montrose - Montrose
Morbid Angel - Altars of Madness
Mötley Crüe - Shout at the Devil
Motörhead - Ace of Spades
Napalm Death - Fear, Emptiness, Despair
Neurosis - Through Silver in Blood
Nuclear Assault - Game Over
Nugent, Ted - Double Live Gonzo
Obituary - The End Complete
Old Man's Child - The Pagan Prosperity
Overkill - Horrorscope
Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz
Pantera - Vulgar Display of Power
Possessed - Seven Churches
Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime
Rainbow - On Stage
Raven - All For One
Sacred Reich - The American Way
Savatage - Hall of the Mountain King
Saxon - Wheels of Steel
Scorpions - Virgin Killer
Sepultura - Chaos A.D.
Six Feet Under - Haunted
Slayer - Reign in Blood
S.O.D. - Speak English or Die
Suicidal Tendencies - How Will I Laugh Tomorrow If I Can't Even Smile Today
Sword - Metalized
Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak
Trouble - Manic Frustration
Tygers of Pan Tang - Crazy Nights
UFO - Strangers in the Night
Vader - Live in Japan
Venom - Black Metal
Voivod - Killing Technology
Witchery - Dead, Hot and Ready
Yngwie J. Malmsteen's Rising Force - Marching Out


Apart from the complete lack of black metal, this seems to me to be the list of someone who really knows their metal.

what the fuck? Body Count?

No Sodom, Kreator, Destruction?
and Immortal and Bathory's Blood Fire Death

Im actually pretty impressed that they managed to include all those examples.. Normally it would be like master of puppets, ride the lightning, justice, reign in blood, number of the beast, piece of mind, etcetc

Some of the stuff are IMO misplaced.

You can't possibly choose a Brujeria album as your top 100 metal albums of all times...

These lists are pointless.

Body Count, bitch.

Not a bad list all in all, although I'd have chosen other albums by some of the bands... When Satan Lives? Mob Rules? Wolverine Blues? Slavestate? Fear Emptiness Despair? (fine, can see why it was chosen, but over the rest?) The End Complete? Chaos AD?

And I must get my act together and review that Brujeria album, it's like a rubbish but totally hilarious action film from the 80s.

Damn right I would have picked Wolverine Blues from Entombed.

Better than most 'mainstream' metal lists. Actually that would be a good 'what to check out if ur a n00b' list.

Although obviously Cradle of Filth and Dimmu Borgir and Old Man's Child instead of listing some Darkthrone or Burzum or Enslaved or Immortal or a million other bands is black metal blasphemy.

Surprised Arcturus is on there, good choice

That list is better than most in "metal" magazines.

Nice that Dio-Sabbath gets a mention, but why would you go with Mob Rules over Heaven & Hell?

And Iced Earth's ST? Instead of Stormrider or Something Wicked?

There's some odd ball choices is what I'm saying.

Agree