The 'What Are Your Favorite Albums of the Year' Thread

[ariich]

10/10 albums:

1. The Dear Hunter – The Color Spectrum: The Complete Collection – I still slightly prefer Act III, but this collection of EPs just covers so much and does all the different styles so well. Incredible album.

2. Haken – Visions – I wasn’t sure if a second album would be as good as Aquarius, which itself had surprised me with how good it was after the enjoyable but flawed demo. But for me Visions surpasses everything else they’ve done and is a lot more coherent than Aquarius. Masterpiece.

3. Dream Theater – A Dramatic Turn of Events – Amazing album that has become my number 2 DT record. I’ve liked all of DT’s recent output and Black Clouds in particular is very high in my DT rankings, but this album just seems that little bit more refined. 

4. Thrice – Major/Minor – As with TDH, this album isn’t quite as special for me as Beggars, but it’s still a really fantastic album. There are so many great songs and no real duds at all, and the whole vibe of the album is really amazing.


9/10 albums:

5. Hiromi – Voice – This has fast become one of my absolute favourite jazz albums; she’s an incredible player but on this album her musicality and song-writing have really come to the forefront. Amazing album!

6. Protest the Hero – Scurrilous – Love this album, the band have really refined their song-writing a bit as this album contains so many great melodies. My favourite album of theirs.

7. Devin Townsend – Ghost – Devy showing that he really can make great music in any style, beautiful album.

8. Pain of Salvation – Road Salt Two – Another fantastic album from them, can’t actually decide which I prefer out of this and RS1, but both are great.

9. Petter Carlsen – Clocks Don’t Count – Amazing album, really a lot of exciting and dramatic than his first, and his voice is just angelic. Everyone should check this album out!

10. Manchester Orchestra – Simple Math – Only discovered these guys very recently but they’ve managed to crack my top 10 for the year with this album. Great indie-rock a la TDH, maybe not quite as exciting but with a lot of the same qualities.

11. Tori Amos – Night of Hunters – Always been a bit of a Tori Amos fan but this album is simply the best thing I’ve heard from her. Atmospheric and gorgeous.

12. Fair to Midland – Arrows and Anchors – Didn’t quite live up to my expectations after Fables which is one of my favourite albums, but still an amazing album in its own right!

13. Opeth – Heritage – Very interesting and unusual album from Opeth. Because of the production it doesn’t have the power that most of their stuff does, but there is something very beautiful about it. Amazing stuff.

14. Devin Townsend – Deconstruction – My brain struggles to cope with this album, and yet it’s strangely addictive and really very enjoyable. Devy seems incapable of doing any wrong these days!

15. Ulver – Wars of the Roses – This has quickly become one of my favourite Ulver albums, I like the way it has more energy than the previous album but is less dark than many of the ones before that. Amazing stuff!

16. Mastodon – The Hunter – Always been a moderate fan of Mastodon; didn’t really like the older stuff but dug Crack the Skye quite a lot. However they’ve really hit their stride with this latest album!


8/10 albums
17. Foo Fighters – Wasting Light – probably their best album.
18. Dredg – Chuckles and Mr. Squeezy – screw the haters, I love it!
19. Within Temptation – The Unforgiving – bit samey, but lots of great stuff.
20. In Flames – Sounds of Playground Fading – excellent return to form.
21. Stateless – Matilda – lovely album.
22. Amplifier – The Octopus – another return to form, nearly as good as their debut.
23. The Decemberists – The King is Dead – really nice folk music.
35. Blackfield – Welcome to my DNA – very solid album on a par with the first two.
24. Karmakanic – In a Perfect World – not as fantastic as Who’s the Boss, but still very good.
25. Between the Buried and Me – Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues (EP) – lots of good stuff in here.
26. Amorphis – The Beginning of Times – very solid album, but nothing very unexpected.
28. Florence & The Machine – Ceremonials – not as exciting as her first but a really nice album still.
29. Machine Head – Unto the Locust – probably their most consistent, but without such high highs.
30. Textures – Dualism – their best album, these guys get better and better.
31. Bright Eyes – The People's Key – very interesting album full of great ideas.
27. Steven Wilson – Grace for Drowning – mostly a really great album, but let down slightly by filler.
32. Anathema – Falling Deeper – amazing idea and beautiful sound.
33. Wolverine – Communication Lost – solid release from these guys, slightly lacking punch though.
34. Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band – That's How We Roll – return to form, really fun jazz album.
36. The Aristocrats – The Aristocrats – very enjoyable jam-rock.
37. Mother Mother – Eureka – Fun album, nice return to form after a slightly dull second album.

7/10 albums
38. Sylosis – Edge of the Earth
39. James Blake – James Blake
40. Radiohead – The King of Limbs
41. Unexpect – Fables of the Sleepless Empire
42. The Antlers – Burst Apart
43. Cher Lloyd – Sticks + Stones
44. Noel Gallagher – Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
45. Bon Iver – Bon Iver, Bon Iver
46. Symphony X – Iconoclast
47. Evanescence – Evanescence
48. Rebecca Ferguson – Heaven
49. Foster the People – Torches
50. Kit Downes Trio – Quiet Tiger
51. Evergrey – Glorious Collision
52. Shpongle – The God Particle (EP)
53. Sarah Fimm – Near Infinite Possibility

6/10 albums
54. Polkadot Cadaver – Sex Offender
55. Trivium – In Waves
56. Megadeth – Th1rt3en
57. Alestorm – Back Through Time
58. Children of Bodom – Relentless Reckless Forever

5/10 albums
59. Matt Cardle – Letters
60. DisasterPEACE – Rise of the Obsidian Interstellar

lol/10 albums
61. Lou Reed & Metallica – Lulu

[wolfking]

I forgot to put Eden's Curse's Trinity in my top 10.  Amazing melodic, hard rock album.

[AcidLameLTE]

Rich, you make me sick.

[dethklok09]

Top 5 (however the amount that each is better than the other is quite small)

Foster the people - Torches
Bon Iver - Bon Iver
The dear hunter - The color spectrum
Radiohead - The king of limbs
Sleeping with sirens - Let's cheers to this

I haven't listened to too many

awesome year for music

[ariich]

Rich, you make me sick.

Why?

[bss4life15]

Top 5
5.Neal Morse-T2
4.Mastodon-The Hunter
3.Dream Theater- ADTOE
2.BTBAM-Parllax
1.Devin Townsend-Deconstruction

[Remco]

Herrr is mine.

Click here to listen to a song I selected from each album.

10. Radiohead – King of LimbsImage
9. Primus – Green Naugahyde
8. Jack Conte – VS4
7. Opeth – Heritage
6. DeWolff – Orchards/Lupine
5. Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues
4. Danger Mouse & Danielle Lupi – Rome
3. Spinvis – Tot Ziens, Justine Keller
2. Steven Wilson – Grace for Drowning
1. FAT32 – FAT32

1. FAT32 – FAT32 (Experimental)

I’m not really sure if this album deserves the first place of the list. It’s really painful to give Steven Wilson the second place. But this album is just, so surprising and creative! I’ve had a reputation as an extremely tight energetic psychotic live duo (keys and drums). And I was really put off by the idea of a studio album of these guys. It’s music that’s only meant to be played live. Well as it turns out. I was wrong! Of course there’s nothing like the live experience of these guys. But they’ve captured the energy really well in the recording. It’s just a great chaotic energetic mass of experimental noise Nintendo-core polka. It’s not an album for everyone. But if you are willing to try something completely fresh and you like extreme. FAT32 will rock you world.

2. Steven Wilson – Grace For Drowning (Prog/Jazz/Experimental)

Musically speaking by far my favourite album of 2011. Steven Wilson explored the more classic side of prog. Which isn’t really such a weird thought. Considering that the same man remastered the whole King Crimson discography the past years. You can expect some lengthy weird free-jazz solo’s, choirs, King Crimsonesque riffs. But of course Steven also managed to stay true to his own sound. And his ambient and electronic  side, in songs like Index. This is an album EVERYONE should have.

3. Spinvis – Tot Ziens, Justine Keller (Pop/Rock/Experimenteel/Sfeer)

Erik de Jongh (Spinvis) is a Dutch pop pioneer. Well known for his far fetched weird poetic lyrics. This is the first album as Spinvis since 2008. In between 2008 and 2011 he did some projects that I really didn’t care for. So I was kind of sceptical about this album. But it took only one session to realize that I was seriously wrong. This album is a masterpiece! Beautiful instrumental experiments, weird lyrics and his soothing sweet voice to glue the whole thing together.

4. Danger Mouse & Danielle Lupi – Rome (Spaghetti western/Soundtrack/Pop)

I’ve got just a few words on this record. A masterpiece! With Jack White as a guest vocalist, you really can’t go wrong. Top Notch.

5. Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues (Folk/Pop)

This really is the best thing that happened in pop music in a couple of years. Must have.

6. DeWolff – Orchards/Lupine (60′s/70′s/Psychedelisch/Rock)

DeWolff is a young Dutch psychedelic rock band. And are known for their use of the Hammond, their clothing style and their unbelievable live shows. On this album they’ve used a somewhat different songwriting strategy. Instead of jamming until they’ve got songs. A lot on this album was actually deliberately composed. And this is something you mustn’t underestimate! Their best record till this date.

7. Opeth – Heritage (Prog)

To be honest, I’ve just heard this album this week for the first time. It’s still Opeth, but completely ignoring their metal elements. The song writing has become even more important on this album. And by taking a step away from metal. A lot of musical doors that would’ve otherwise been closed are opened now. A very brave step for a progressive death metal band.

8. Jack Conte – VS4 (Indie, Alt. Rock)

A CD filled with good songs and some exceptional greatness. I love the fact that he put a little chamber orchestra together for some of the songs on this album. Like “Off With His Head” and “Away”. Check him out on youtube. You won’t be disappointed

9. Primus – Green Naugahyde (Experimental Rock)

PRIMUS IS BACK! With a weird ass slapbass progressive funk redneck style comedy extravaganza. I really didn’t expect their comeback would be this awesome!

10. Radiohead – The King of Limbs (Alt. Rock, Electronic)

This was after Steven Wilson his new album my most anticipated record. I really hoped Radiohead would add more instruments and less synths/drumcomputers. This didn’t happen. But after a number of listening sessions I started enjoying a great part of this album.

[Jamesman42]

I don't much rate or rank things because I usually don't really care. Tiers are much better for me:

Great releases (albums that can be played without hesitation of enjoyment)
 
Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events
Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Thrice - Major/Minor
The Dear Hunter - The Color Spectrum
Hillsong United - Aftermath
Codes in the Clouds - As the Spirit Wanes
Eisley - The Valley
Cloudkicker - Let Yourself Be Huge
 
Good releases (not as good as the above but still very, very enjoyable)
 
Mogwai - Earth Division (EP)
Cynic - Carbon Based Anatomy
Neal Morse - Testimony 2
Radiohead - The King of Limbs
Disasterpeace - Deorbit
Disasterpeace - Rise of the Obsidian Interstellar
 
Mediocre releases (won't get much or any playtime from me)
 
Opeth - Heritage
Within Temptation - The Unforgiving
 
Releases that I cannot fairly place yet or haven't listened to (I'll get around eventually and I want to)
 
Scale the Summit - The Collective*
August Burns Red - Leveler*
Amplifier - The Octopus
Amplifier - We're Here Because We're Here
Mastodon - The Hunter*
John Mark McMillan - Economy
Derek Sherinian - Oceana
Redemption - This Mortal Coil
dredg - Chuckles and Mr. Squeezy
Falling Up - Your Sparkling Death Cometh
Evergrey - Glorious Collision
Kimbra - Vows*

* means I have listened to it and I remember enjoying it, just needs more listens to place

[Microdomus]

So here`s top 10 albums list:

01. Noel Gallagher`s High Flying Birds
02. Devin Townsend - Ghost
03. Paradise Lost - Draconian Times (Remaster)
04. The Devil`s Blood - A Thousandfold Epicenter
05. Megadeth - Thritheen
06. Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
07. Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events
08. Devin Townsend - Deconstruction
09. Anathema - Falling Deeper
10. Burzum - Fallen

[obscure]

Myung's Top 10 2011



(dreamtheater.net)

10. Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
9. Blackfield - Welcome to My DNA
8. The Red Hot Chili Peppers - I'm With You
7. Trivium - In Waves 
6. Staind - s/t 
5. Radiohead - The King of Limbs 
4. Yes - Fly From Here 
3. Megadeth - TH1RT3EN 
2. Opeth - Heritage 
1. Death Cab for Cutie - Codes and Keys  (Chemistry, lyrics, and production)




Rudess's

10. Devin Townsend - Deconstruction
9. Symphony X - Iconoclast 
8. Radiohead - The King of Limbs 
7. Black Country Communion - 2 
6. Beardfish - Mammoth
5. The Aristocrats - s/t 
4. Apparat - The Devil's Walk 
3. Modeselektor - Monkeytown
2. Opeth - Heritage 
1. Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning (Although yes, I did play on this album, that is NOT why I chose it! It is an album full of mystery and imagination, melody and sonic adventure. There is real inspiration to be found and the best music happens when one can tap into the muse like Steven Wilson. )



Petrucci's

10. Steel Panther - Balls Out  Buy 
9. Bon Iver - s/t
8. Adele - 21
7. The Aristocrats - s/t 
6. Young the Giant - s/t 
5. Joe Bonamassa - Dust Bowl 
4. Chickenfoot - Chickenfoot III 
3. Opeth - Heritage 
2. Trivium - In Waves 
1. Red - Until We Have Faces  (I just love everything about the Red album. The songwriting, playing and production are all stellar!)

[MetalManiac666]

Pretty cool that Petrucci likes Bon Iver.

[Heretic]

Who doesn't like Bon Iver?

[Nekov]

Who doesn't like Bon Iver?

I don't dislike Bon Iver, but I don't like it either. It just doesn't do anything for me.

[Sigz]

Yeah I listened to the newest album and was just bored as all get out.

[TioJorge]

1. Steven Wilson - Grace For Drowning
2. Gorillaz - The Fall (I'm going to randomly count Snoop Dogg's song featuring Gorillaz as the main composer, 'Sumthin' Like This Night'. Not that it matters. It's just sex, pure sex)
3. Radiohead - The King of Limbs
4. Opeth - Heritage
5. Thomas Giles - Pulse
6. Between The Buried and Me - The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues
7. Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events
8. Chevelle - Hats Off To The Bull

A few of these switch around, like Opeth and DT; but I think that covers it...  What a great year.

[Lowdz]

So here`s top 10 albums list:

01. Noel Gallagher`s High Flying Birds
02. Devin Townsend - Ghost
03. Paradise Lost - Draconian Times (Remaster)
04. The Devil`s Blood - A Thousandfold Epicenter
05. Megadeth - Thritheen
06. Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
07. Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events
08. Devin Townsend - Deconstruction
09. Anathema - Falling Deeper
10. Burzum - Fallen

Even accounting for personal taste no album of Noel Gallgher's should ever r ank above a DT album... 

[Global Laziness]

1. Haken - Visions
2. Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events
3. The Devin Townsend Project - Ghost

Here's my list:

1.   Haken – Visions
2.   Dream Theater – A Dramatic Turn of Events
3.   Devin Townsend – Ghost
4.   Protest the Hero – Scurrilous
5.   Steven Wilson – Grace for Drowning
6.   The Dear Hunter – The Color Spectrum
7.   Wolverine – Communication Lost
8.   Long Distance Calling – Long Distance Calling
9.   Discipline – To Shatter All Accord
10.   Caligula’s Horse – Moments from Ephemeral City

11.   Explosions in the Sky – Take Care, Take Care, Take Care
12.   Opeth – Heritage
13.   Scale the Summit – The Collective
14.   Anathema – Falling Deeper
15.   Bon Iver – Bon Iver, Bon Iver
16.   Presto Ballet – Invisible Places
17.   Neal Morse – Testimony 2
18.   Ozric Tentacles – Paper Monkeys
19.   Mogwai – Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will
20.   Animals as Leaders – Weightless

[TAC]

The TAC Top 10:

1. Dream Theater- A Dramatic Turn Of Events What can I say. My most anticipated release in a long time, and it delivered. One hiccup with BMUBMD, but the rest of this album is perfect. I am still listening to this often and it keeps getting better.

2. Theocracy-As The World Bleeds This is a great follow up to the masterpiece Mirror Of Souls. A great combo of Power Metal and classic early 80's speed/thrash. Terrific vocals, great songwriting, very melodic, just all around fantastic.

3. Saxon- Call To Arms Saxon has been on a very solid run over the last 10 years, but I think Call To Arms is the best of the bunch. They've taken the modern Saxon and infused it with their own early 80's influence to give us an incredible album. Hammer Of The Gods may be my song of the year!.

4. Enbound-And She Says Gold This is my "find" of the year.  Debut album by a Swedish quartet. Great playing and vocals. Not quite Power, not quite Thrash, but a very melodic blend. Here's a promo vid for Combined The Souls https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xV4qO80k3iI

5. Arch/Matheos- Sympathetic Resonance Wow, where the fu%k did this come from and who the hell expected this. This is an incredible accomplishment. A great album. John Arch sounds incredible, and Jim Matheos sounds so inspired. You really have to hear this to believe it.

6. Redemption- This Mortal Coil Another incredible album from Redemption. Fantastic playing and this might be my favorite album by them. A bit more digestable than Snowfall, yet grander in stature. You can hear Nick's passion in his words and music. A stunning album.

7. Gary Moore- Live At Montreax 2010 Gary's last concert is documented here as he returns to his 80's rock catalog for the 2010 summer tour. He also has old friend Neil Carter back in the band. The show features 3 great new tracks that would've been included on his next album, an Irish rock record. Gary Moore was the first live artist I saw on stage (my first concert Def Lep/Krokus/Gary Moore 3/25/83) and I've been a huge fan ever since.

8. Anthrax- Worship Music This album really took me by surprise, and it has truly grown on me with each listen. To hear Charlie and Frank chugging along like that brings back so many memories. I'm Alive gives me goosebumps.

9. Iced Earth- Dystopia I did not expect this. Their best most complete album since Something Wicked.!

10. Motorhead- This World Is Ours Like Saxon, Motorhead has continued to churn out one solid album after another. But This World Is Ours seems to stand out a bit more. It feels really inspired and Phil Campbell really stands out on this. Great..umm..melodies make this very memorable. Brotherhood Of Man is up for the TAC song of the year.

[obscure]

^ Thank you!

[Zantera]

Okay, came back home today, so here's my favorite albums in 2011.
I'll narrow it down to 10 on this list, but my complete list is covering my top 80 releases in 2011, so if you're interested you can check that out. At: https://www.sputnikmusic.com/list.php?memberid=538698&listid=91715

1. The Dear Hunter - The Color Spectrum
Where to start with this one? 2 ½ hours of music, and out of 36 songs, there are only one or two who I feel are slightly weaker then the rest, mostly due to being a bit too repetitive.
However, this monster reaches so many styles, it covers so much ground, that I would definitely consider it for an album to take with me to a deserted island, I can listen to this no matter what mood I'm in.
It's also impossible to pick a favorite EP or song, some days I would say the Blue EP, some days it's the Yellow, some days it would be the White, The Color Spectrum just has so much quality.

2. Pain of Salvation - Road Salt Two
A fairly nice surprise. I didn't really care much for Road Salt One, at the time I thought it was a good album but not much more. Road Salt Two however is a much better album, the lows are much higher, and the highs are much higher.
The Physics of Gridlock - Possibly their best song since BE. (which has a few amazing ones)
All in all I would rank this as their fourth best album, but seeing as I generally don't like the 70's thing, this has a really warm place in my heart.

3. Amplifier - The Octopus
Another really EPIC album, this is a double album by one of the more modern Progressive bands, Amplifier.
Their take on the genre is very wall of sound/Porcupine Tree meets Oceansize-ish at times, but they have a very distinctive sound after all, and since Oceansize broke up, this is one of my high hopes.
This double album is very epic, has a great mix of different type of songs, and I think it's an album that many here on the forum would love. If you're into bands like Porcupine Tree, Oceansize or Anathema (to name a few), I would recommend this.

4. Tori Amos - Night of Hunters
This album really surprised me, man it was SO good when I first heard it.
After the initial reaction it just kept on growing, a song like "Star Whisperer" clinged on very early, but the rest of the album clicked more and more, and it has the potential to grow even more then it already has.
Really good classical-music, a genre I should check out more.

5. Petter Carlsen - Clocks Don't Count
Another album that really surprised me this year, I hadn't heard his music before, but I knew Sander was praising him a lot, so a new album was a good opportunity to check him out.
The album was better then I had expected, and I can only hope that his coming albums will be as good.
Atmospheric, singer/songwriter-ish, poppy and catchy, I can see why Anathema loves this guy.

6. Steven Wilson - Grace For Drowning
Majestic and epic, I'm not quite sure how to else describe it. Most people here already know it, so there's not much more to add.

7. Kimbra - Vows
A big surprise, I thought it would be stereotype/boring pop-music (not that I dislike pop!), but the album really surprised me, and "Cameo Lover" has become one of my most played songs in 2011.
The girl has talent, and the music is not your "everyday"-music.

8. Cloudkicker - Let Yourself Be Huge
My favorite Post-Rock album this year.
It may be short, but the music it has is just really beautiful and soothing, and it makes me feel at peace.

9. Thrice - Major/Minor
More solid then Beggars, but not quite as good as Vheissu or The Alchemy Index.
Still, a superb album.

10. Bass Communion - Cenotaph
Ambient, dark and majestic. Could easily have been my favorite Steven Wilson-album this year, but as of now GfD is slightly higher.
However, with time I feel like this album can surpass it.

Oh yeah, don't forget to check my full list. (the link above)

[Jirpo]

Loving reading all these lists! I'll come up with one of my own someday

[Iarwain]

My ranking. Some albums are missing, as I still haven't listened to them enough to decide where to place them, but I don't think those will rank very high.

6/10 (Mostly good but with flaws, or ones that still haven't completely clicked with me)

61. Sect - Doomsday
60. Spellcaster - Under the Spell
59. Giant Claw - Midnight Murder
58. Fen - Epoch
57. Falls of Rauros - The Light That Dwells in Rotten Wood
56. Rotten Sound - Cursed
55. No Fuzz - Whatever
54. Días de Septiembre - Días de septiembre
53. Natalie Walker - Spark
52. This Station of Life - Antithetic
51. Obliti Devoravit - Obliti Devoravit
50. Lisabi - Au Diable Les Bananes
49. Dornenreich - Flammentriebe
48. Radiohead - The King of Limbs
47. Boris - Attention Please
46. Ulver - Wars of the Roses
45. Side of Despondency - Cancellation
44. Within Temptation - The Unforgiving
43. Lantlôs - Agape
42. King Creosote & Jon Hopkins - Diamond Mine
41. Black Cobra - Invernal
40. Disfigured - Amputated Gorewhore
39. Raein - Sulla linea d'orizzonte tra questa mia vita e quella di tutti
38. Non Dolet - Inner
37. Love Inks - E.S.P.
36. Departures - When Losing Everything Is Everything You Wanted
35. Lights - Siberia
34. Alva Noto + Ryuichi Sakamoto - Summvs

7/10 (Good ones)

33. Devin Townsend Project - Deconstruction
32. Animals as Leaders - Weightless
31. Natural Snow Buildings - Waves of the Random Sea
30. Katy B - On a Mission
29. Cultura Tres - El mal del bien
28. Boris - Heavy Rocks
27. Opeth - Heritage
26. Kate McGill - Replaced
25. Essence - Lost in Violence
24. Moradin - Ancient Stone and Mystic Woods
23. Æthenor - En form for Blå
22. Petrychor - Effigies and Epitaphs
21. Aksumite - The Gleam of Wetted Lips
20. disasterPEACE - Rise of the Obsidian Interstellar
19. Bruce Lamont - Feral Songs for the Epic Decline
18. Ash Borer - Ash Borer
17. The Civil Wars - Barton Hollow
16. АукцЫон - Юла
15. Leyland Kirby - Eager to Tear Apart the Stars
14. Alkalys - A Pack of Lies
13. Emmon - Nomme
12. Frank Turner - England Keep My Bones
11. Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes

8/10 (Great ones)

10. Earth - Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light 1
9. Крода - Schwarzpfad
8. Unexpect - Fables of the Sleepless Empire
7. Blut aus Nord - 777 - Sect(s)
6. Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events
5. Boris - New Album
4. Moonsorrow - Varjoina kuljemme kuolleiden maassa
3. Emilie Simon - Franky Knight
2. CunninLynguists - Oneirology
1. Wolves in the Throne Room - Celestial Lineage (Best of the Year)

No nines or tens for me this year, unfortunately. But other than that it was a great one. Hope 2012 is just as good or better.

[Gorille85]

Cool list Iarwain!

[Nel]

Alright, I'm throwing Noel Gallagher's solo album onto my list. This is actually a pretty fun album.

I... don't plan on listening to Beady Eye though.

[Zook]

1. The Magnificent - S/T
2. Nightwish - Imaginaerum
3. Redemption - This Mortal Coil
4. Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn Of Events
5. Evanescence - S/T
6. Symphony X - Iconoclast
7. Within Temptation - The Unforgiving
8. Shattered Skies - Reanimation EP
9. Iced Earth - Dystopia
10. Disturbed - The Lost Children

I might be forgetting something. I would have liked to put Theocracy's new album on this list but it's not 2008 and the album isn't Mirror Of Souls... Oh, and 10 is pretty much a throw away since it's a collection of B-sides. Still better than Asylum...