Best Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Albums of the Past 25 Years

I figured this would be a fun topic. 25 years puts us just past the realm of Vulgar Display of Power and RATM. I know there’s plenty of industrial and stoner type albums others can chime in with but it’s not exactly up my alley. I’m also not very long winded so my reviews will be borderline the short, short version.

Gonna go with the power 12 here:

Monster Magnet – Powertrip: I probably don’t listen to this album enough but it’s probably the epitome of stoner rock for me. An incredibly consistent album with great grooves throughout.

Megadeth – Cryptic Writings: Probably the last truly great Megadeth album. I think it’s a step above Youthanasia and obliterates everything Metallica was doing at the time. Trust is easily one of my top 5 Megadeth songs.

Tool – Undertow: Not much to say here. Certainly an all time classic although sometimes I do wonder if I like Aenima better. I think Undertow wins out if you take away the fact you’ve heard it more.

Foxy Shazam – Foxy Shazam: Probably borderline not metal or hard rock but I’m not sure where I would categorize it. I would include Queen in any hard rock/metal list so I might as well allow Foxy Shazam. This band put out 2 albums that was hitting all the checkboxes for me before putting out something so awful it ended the band. I still love this album. Great melodies, great vocals, and just an overall really fun album. A better version of The Darkness.

Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats - Blood Lust: I really think these guys nailed the Sabbath sound here. This band sounds straight out of the 70’s. Just a sludgy kickass album.

Slipknot – Iowa: I know this band is hated by many here but this album is just brutal and will easily get your head banging. If I needed an album to listen to while locked up in a padded room, this is it.

Iron Maiden – A Matter of Life & Death: Wasn’t entirely sure which reunion Maiden album I liked best because I like them all but I think this one takes the cake for me. I don’t think Bruce has ever sounded better and there’s not a single mediocre song on this.

Guns N’ Roses – Chinese Democracy: I don’t care what anyone says, this album is great. If I had a choice between waiting 15 years for this album or 5 mediocre albums over the course of 15 years, I will take this album every day. This is Axl’s masterpiece.

Avenged Sevenfold – Nightmare: Another band everyone hates but this is a terrific album. Their last album to feature writing contributions from The Rev before his death. This is the one album that probably best displays who they are.

Bruce Dickinson – Chemical Wedding: There is nothing I can really say about this album other than listen to it. Bruce was on fire with his collaborations with Roy Z. Having a Bruceless Iron Maiden in the 90’s shouldn’t cause any grief among anyone when you get albums like this.

Bruce Dickinson – Accident of Birth: I tried not to pick multiple albums from the same artist for this list but I can’t do it here. This and Chemical go hand in hand for me. I slightly prefer this one. If Darkside of Aquarius was an Iron Maiden song, it would probably be in my top 5. It is that good. This album has everything, the crunchy guitars, beautiful soaring vocals, the “ballads”, the epics, the short fast rockers, it’s pretty much perfect IMO.

Accept – Blood of the Nations: This was my unquestionable #1. This album represents everything heavy metal should be and is my pick for the greatest comeback album from a band of all time across any genre. Wolf Hoffman enters god status here and Mark Tornillo wails throughout with every bit of emotion from what would’ve been considered a failed music career. How Teutonic Terror isn’t the metal song of the decade just blows my mind. It absolutely tears my head off every time. The vocals throughout the title track are spine chilling. This album is about as metal as it gets.

I'm probably forgetting an album that I'll regret for not including but I'll live with it.

 

Avenged Sevenfold (2007)
Buckcherry - 15
Shinedown - The Sound of Madness
Warrant - Ultraphobic
Hinder - Extreme Behavior

 

First Buckcherry album was close to making the list.

 

Opeth - Blackwater Park 2001
Agalloch - The Mantle 2002
Porcupine Tree - Fear Of A Blank Planet 2007
Katatonia - Night Is The New Day 2009
Overkill - Ironbound 2010
Fates Warning - Darkness In A Different Light 2013

 

Deftones - White Pony
Marilyn Manson - Antichrist Superstar
The Mars Volta - Deloused In the Comatorium
Queens of the Stone Age - Rated R
Queens of the Stone Age - Songs For the Deaf
Rage Against the Machine - Evil Empire
Soundgarden - Superunknown
System of a Down - Toxicity

 

Blue Oyster Cult - Heaven Forbid
Brain Surgeons - Denial of Death

 

I'll add...
Deep Purple ~ The Battle Rages On (1993), Purpendicular (1996), Now What?! (2013)
Rush ~ Counterparts (1993), Slaves & Arrows (2007)
Cheap Trick ~ s/t (1997)

 

Metallica Hardwired
Tool Undertow
RATM Evil Empire
Iron Maiden A Brave New world
Black Sabbath 13
Korn S/T

 

Most influential for me over the last 25 years have probably been:

Rammstein - Mutter
Porcupine Tree - In Absentia
Avenged Sevenfold - Hail to the King
Alter Bridge - Fortress
The Darkness - Permission to Land

 

Man, I dunno, but any list of the top 25 of the last 25 yrs is not complete without High On Fire’s The Art of Self Defense (2000).

I’m liking a lot of what people have posted so far.

 

I'm pretty much past my headbanging years, but of what I've heard and recall:

System of a Down: Toxicity
The Sword: Age of Winters
I guess Ozzy's Ozzmosis isn't 25 yet, but it's getting close!

 

Slash - 2010 album with guest vocalists

 

Great list here too. Thought about putting every one of these on my list too. Somehow completely forgot about Superunknown.

 

I could easily list over 100 albums from after 1993. After 2003 would be harder to do.

 

Way too many for me to name. I will say that I personally consider every album by Megadeth (including Risk), Pantera, and Tool to be among the best.

 

In This Moment - Black Widow

 

All the Europe albums since their comeback in 2004 have been great

But the last 3 ones, Bag of Bones (2012), War of Kings (2015) and Walk The Earth (2017) are phenomenal!

It was even voted as the best 2017 album. Here's the list

1. EUROPE – WALK THE EARTH
2. INGLORIOUS II
3. BLACK STAR RIDERS – HEAVY FIRE
4. TYLER BRYANT & THE SHAKEDOWN
5. GUN – FAVOURITE PLEASURES
6. THUNDER – RIP IT UP
7. CATS IN SPACE – SCARECROW
8. WAYWARD SONS – GHOST OF YET TO COME
9. NICKELBACK – FEED THE MACHINE
10. SAMARKIND
11. BIGFOOT
12. ALICE COOPER – PARANORMAL
13. SKAM – T.A.M.O.G.G.
14. DEEP PURPLE – INFINITE
15. STEVE WILSON – TO THE BONE
16. HUNTER & THE BEAR – PAPER HEART
17. THE CADILLAC THREE – LEGACY
18. FOOS – CONCRETE AND GOLD
19. QOTSA – VILLAINS
20. DARKNESS – PINEWOOD SMILE

And now they even have it as their official facebook photo

 

Faith No More - Album Of The Year


Rob Zombie - Hellbilly Deluxe


Rush - Clockwork Angels

 

Cats in Space - they're a prog rock band aren't they? I think I read about them in Classic Rock magazine and I've thought of trying them out.

 

Europe has put out some great albums recently.

 

The last 3 or 4 albums by Uriah Heep are very good.

 

interesting how 25 years can have so much less...compared to the previous years of greatness...