Best album opener ever?

[mizzl]

And I don't mean best as a song, but best as an opener.


Everything in its Right Place, Airbag, Planet Telex - Radiohead
Deadwing, Even Less, Lightbulb Sun - Porcupine Tree
Of Two Beginnings, Used - Pain of Salvation
Deep - Anathema

[black_biff_stadler]

Metallica - Blackened

The buildup is really well executed and the fact that the guitar harmony is played backwards on tape is subtle and bizarre, yet works very well. Makes me feel like I can beat anyone at tetherball.

[Marvellous G]

Metallica - Blackened

The buildup is really well executed and the fact that the guitar harmony is played backwards on tape is subtle and bizarre, yet works very well. Makes me feel like I can beat anyone at tetherball.

Dammit, beat me to it. This or Battery.

[Zantera]

A few on the top of my head:

Oceansize - Commemorative 9/11 T-Shirt
Pain of Salvation - Foreword
Radiohead - Everything In It's Right Place
Agalloch - Limbs
Pendulum - Showdown
Thrice - Image of the Invisible
Anathema - Thin Air
Tool - Vicarious
Tori Amos - Spark
Mogwai - White Noise

[zxlkho]

Oceansize - Commemorative 9/11 T-Shirt
Radiohead - Everything In It's Right Place
Agalloch - Limbs
Anathema - Thin Air
Tool - Vicarious

Absolutely all of these.

[Ryzee]

I always like when albums start off with a loud jolt that smacks you in the face and announces that it is now time to rock!  Kind of like the way the Star Wars logo and theme come in after the silence of "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away..."

Some examples off the top of my head are Tom Sawyer on Moving Pictures (Rush), Am I Wry? No on Frengers (Mew) and Edge of the In Between on X (Spock's Beard).


Those are just examples of the kinds of openers I prefer though, not sure what I'd consider the "best ever."

[Marvellous G]

I'm gonna get flamed and throw this out here as setting the mood for the album perfectly, too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zATs3zd5noo

[zxlkho]

*flames*

[Millais]

two random favourites:

Opeth - Ghost of Perdition
Porcupine Tree - Even Less

[mizzl]

Pendulum - Showdown

F yeah I love that song

[wkiml]

Judas Priest - Hellion

[yorost]

Journey - Of a Lifetime

[MK_Ultra]

Muse - Take A Bow/Apocalypse Please (Intro can suck it)
Trivium - Kirisute Gomen
Iron Maiden - Aces High/Moonchild
Dream Theater - A Nightmare To Remember
Mastodon - The Wolf Is Loose
Megadeth - Holy Wars
Metallica - Ain't My Bitch/Fuel

[TempusVox]

The Beatles, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”
Pink Floyd, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond"
Rush, "2112"
Led Zeppelin, "Immigrant Song"

[Ħ]

Porcupine Tree - Even Less, Fear of a Blank Planet
Opeth - Ghost of Perdition

[The Letter M]

The Beatles, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”
Pink Floyd, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond"
Rush, "2112"
Led Zeppelin, "Immigrant Song"

I agree with all of these, oddly enough! Great openers...also, I'll add:

ELP's "Tarkus"
Yes's "Close To The Edge" and "Relayer", as well as "Going For The One
King Crimson's "21st Century Schizoid Man"
Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'"
Kansas's "Carry On Wayward Son"
Queen's "Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to...)"

-Marc.

[Liberation]

4. Katatonia - For My Demons [There are even more awesome Katatonia songs... but this one gets you into the atmosphere of the album after one note]
3. Riverside - Beyond The Eyelids [Incredible combination of power and atmosphere]
2. Dream Theater - Regression [I think it's one of these songs that you either ignore or absolutely love. Guess which one I am]
1. Opeth - The Moor 

[mizzl]

Pink Floyd, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond"

Oh god yes, the epicness of that opening

[MykeHavoc]

Judas Priest - Hellion

Win

[jag66]

Agree with the following that have been mentioned already:

Radiohead - Everything in its right place, Airbag
PT - Even Less, Lightbulb Sun
Oceansize - Commemorative T Shirt
Anathema - Deep
Pink Floyd - Shine..
Metallica - Blackened

some more decent ones:

Interpol - Untitled
Bjork - Hunter
Dire Straits - Tunnel of love
Depeche Mode - World in my eyes
Leftfield - Release the pressure
Massive Attack - Angel
Mogwai - Hunted by a freak
The Smiths - The headmasters ritual
Orbital - The girl with the sun in her head
Queens of the stone age - feel good hit of the summer
REM - Drive
Sigur Ros - Svefn g'englar (+ intro).. probably my favourite if it counts
Oceansize - The Charm offensive

[Ħ]

Queen's "Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to...)"

Not a song I would have thought of, but YES. (my fave Queen song)

[Lowdz]

Judas Priest - Hellion

2112


mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmDr Davis, telephone please...  (no, not the Motley Crue version!)

Manowar- Into Glory Ride. Remember nearly deafening myself having turned it up to hear what was going on in the intro before the riff kicked in and blew my eardrrums.

[yorost]

Solas - Darkness, Darkness
Ice Age - The Lhasa Road (No Surrender)

Rush, "2112"
Led Zeppelin, "Immigrant Song"

Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'"
Kansas's "Carry On Wayward Son"

On Kansas and Zep,

2112, while I love it I don't think the album flows so well as a whole.  It's really two halves to me, albeit both great, but that knocks it down from a great opener.
DSB: Too mediocre of a track compared to the rest of Escape.  A nice song to open the album, but I can think of six or seven Journey albums that had better openers for the whole.

[jingle.boy]

Immigrant Song would be my first choice, but I'll also add all the openers from Zeppelin I-IV

Good Times Bad Times
Whole Lotta Love
Immigrant Song
Black Dog

Shwing!

P.S.  The Song Remains the Same ain't too shabby either.

[cfmoran13]

Already mentioned:
Megadeth - Holly Wars... The Punishment Due
Metallica - Blackened

New:
Guns N' Roses - Welcome To The Jungle
Living Colour - Cult Of Personality
Machine Head - Imperium
Led Zeppelin - Achilles Last Stand

[Sketchy]

Pink Floyd, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond"

Oh god yes, the epicness of that opening

Parts 6-9 make a damn epic closer too.

[Sintheros]

Judas Priest - The Hellion

How is this even a question.

Riverside - Beyond the Eyelids is pretty good too.

[TAC]

Judas Priest - Hellion

Win

I agree!

Metallica - Blackened

The buildup is really well executed and the fact that the guitar harmony is played backwards on tape is subtle and bizarre, yet works very well. Makes me feel like I can beat anyone at tetherball.

Dammit, beat me to it. This or Battery.

Metallica has definitely done openers right. I would cast my vote for Hit The Lights, though. Very epic begining to that song & album.

[rush-signals]

Cheap Trick - Hello There
Kiss - Detroit Rock City

[chrisbDTM]

BTBAM - Foam Born A


such a cool mood. starts off an epic cd

[Metro]

Genesis - Watcher of the Skies, Dancing with the Moonlit Knight, Musical Box
Pink Floyd - Shine On, One of These Days, In the Flesh?, Speak to Me/Breathe
King Crimson - Larks' Tongues in Aspic Pt.1
ELP - Eruption(Or all of Tarkus for that matter), Endless Enigma Pt.1
Yes - Roundabout, Close to the Edge, The Gates of Delirium, Machien Messiah, The Revealing Science of God
Metallica - Battery, Hit the Lights, That Was Just Your Life, Blackened, Fight Fire With Fire
Meshuggah - Combustion
The Who - Overture/It's a Boy, Baba O'Riley, I am the Sea/Real Me/Quadrophenia
Rush - Cygnus X-1 Book 2: Hemispheres, 2112
Dream Theater - all of them

[Liberation]

Metallica - That Was Just Your Life

This is also a very good candidate.

[jjrock88]

"Hellion" without any question in my opinion.

[Zook]

The Glass Prison

[Heretic]

BTBAM - Foam Born A


such a cool mood. starts off an epic cd

this