20.
The Sound of Perseverance by
DeathComing in at spot numero 20 is one that aside from it's ranking on my list, has always held a very special place in my heart. Death has an incredible discography to begin with (Leprosy and Symbolic coming in close second with this album), but this album really gets me on many different levels. It has the heavy as fuck moments I expect from all death metal; it has intelligent sounding wankery and deedling (technical terms); it has lyrics that oddly enough are very relateable (at least they always have been for me, in a comforting sort of way), and so on. This album IS a technical death metal album, and not just that kind of technical you get where guitarists play odd time sigs really fast every song. Plus, TSoP kind of reminds me of something that Devin Townsend once said about metal and why he personally enjoys playing it; that metal is a way for one to express everything that is much bigger than us or much bigger than what we can fully wrap our heads around. And I feel this is what TSoP does, particularly in the lyrics. They have a very nihilist feel to them (hell, the inside booklet has a quote from Frederick Nietzsche), but in an almost comforting way. They describe human behaviors in such a way that I both relate to and help bring these ideas full circle. So to end this write up, R.I.P. Chuck Schuldiner. You were a genius amongst a sea of mediocre writers/musicians.
Highlight Tracks -
Scavenger of Human Sorrow, Bite The Pain, Flesh and the Power it Holds19.
A Night at the Opera by
QueenRight here, this very album, is one of many crowning achievements in rock history if you ask me. Hell, this album literally saved Queen's career from coming to a close at the time of it's release. And that alone deserves whatever amounts of praise it gets. This album is absolutely fantastic, lovely and rockin' all in one. And it's one of the few "flawless" Queen albums in my honest opinion. There isn't a single second I would exclude from this album. Which is funny, because my first couple of listens rendered me a little disappointed. But with each listen, my enjoyment for this album grew and grew. The way Freddie goes about his several different vocal styles throughout the album is the main attraction for me, followed up by the fantastic mix this album has and Brian May's lovely guitar tone. Not to mention, I was slightly floored after I read that no synthesizers whatsoever were used in the recording of this album. Which interested me, because there are several moments where I just have to sit and say to myself "How the fuck is that a guitar doing that thing?". God damn I love this album. Also, R.I.P. Mr. Freddie Mercury. One of the greatest, if not THE greatest, vocalist in rock history.
Highlight Tracks -
Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon, You're My Best Friend, Sunday Rendezvous, Bohemian Rhapsody 18.
Bucketheadland 2 by
BucketheadNow that I got the accessible Buckethead album out of the way a few spots back, let's talk about Buckethead at his most insane and fucked up. Which is honestly what this album is when summed up shortly; Insane and fucked up. The album is a loose concept album about a theme park run by Buckethead, and about a man who worked at the theme park and was fired so he goes insane and wants to kill everyone. That's the assumption I get from the sound samples throughout. Now, let's get to what it is all about musically. This album is fucking heavy. One of Buckethead's heaviest efforts. As our Bucket wearing hero plays this insane and fucked up music, he is really taking you on a musical journey through his imaginary theme park. The riffs actually work quite well with describing how you should feel if you were exploring the landscape that is Bucketheadland. It also helps that there are a ton of sound samples that play throughout the album to describe different areas of the park, peoples reactions to the park, and announcements about rules and regulations within the park. Yes, he went all out with this. At least, it feels like he did. It's definitely not an album you should listen to individual tracks from however. You will never get the full experience that way. It is a must that you listen to this all the way through. But be careful, you might go slightly mad by the time it's over.
Highlight Tracks -
Fuck that just listen to the whole god damn album