Best Album of the Decade 2010 to 2019- AND WE HAVE A WINNER!!!!!!!!

[KevShmev]

Here goes nothing...

1. Neal Morse Band - The Similitude of a Dream
2. Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused to Sing
3. Storm Corrosion - Storm Corrosion
4. Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
5. Neal Morse - Testimony 2
6. Spock's Beard - X
7. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
8. Neal Morse Band - The Grand Experiment
9. Devin Townsend Project - Epicloud
10. Haken - The Mountain
11. Dream Theater - The Astonishing
12. Flying Colors - Flying Colors
13. Muse - The 2nd Law
14. Van Halen - A Different Kind of Truth
15. Rush - Clockwork Angels

[wolfking]

Not sure how I would even begin to put this together..

Same.  Dedicating time will be a mission.

[KevShmev]

Not sure how I would even begin to put this together..

Same.  Dedicating time will be a mission.

Speaking of which, Styx's The Mission might be my most surprising great album of the decade.  I did not see Styx releasing an album of that quality again coming.

[IDontNotDoThings]

Here goes nothing...

1. Neal Morse Band - The Similitude of a Dream
2. Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused to Sing
3. Storm Corrosion - Storm Corrosion
4. Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
5. Neal Morse - Testimony 2
6. Spock's Beard - X
7. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
8. Neal Morse Band - The Grand Experiment
9. Steven Wilson - Hand. Cannot. Erase
10. Devin Townsend Project - Epicloud
11. Haken - The Mountain
12. Dream Theater - The Astonishing
13. Flying Colors - Flying Colors
14. Steven Wilson - To the Bone
15. Muse - The 2nd Law

For as much different stuff as I listen to, the prog sure dominated at the top for me this decade, largely due to Neal Morse and Steven Wilson.  I ended up putting The Astonishing in my top 15 because it dominated my CD player for a long time and I do still love most of it a lot, haters be damned. 

Just missing the cut were the Van Halen album, the newest album by Neal Morse Band and Rush's Clockwork Angels, the last of which probably would have made it and ranked high if it sounded a lot less muddy.

We'll allow lists of 15 albums to allow for the large time period, but let's limit it to two albums per band please. Any posts before this one are grandfathered in. Any albums after the two per band limit will not be counted.

[KevShmev]

Damn it. 

My list has been edited.

[lonestar]

Yeah....exactly...don't judge my math until it actually matters man, I'm on pain meds right now.

[IDontNotDoThings]

 

[Crow]

My top 15 of the decade is *picks 15 random buckethead albums*

[Buddyhunter1]

King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard's entire discography (exactly fifteen, hey!)

[The Curious Orange]

I know we have a limit of 2 per artist, I decided to limit myself to 1 per artist and exclude solo projects, spin-off albums, etc:

10. Pearl Jam - Lightning Bolt
9. Cellar Darling - The Spell
8. Jewel - Picking Up The Pieces
7. Iron Maiden - The Final Frontier
6. Drive-By Truckers - Go Go Boots
5. Bruce Springsteen - Wrecking Ball
4. Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events
3. Rush - Clockwork Angels
2. Marillion - Sounds That Can't Be Made
1. Nightwish - Endless Forms Most Beautiful

[Stadler]

Good call with Wrecking Ball.  GREAT record.

[Bentower]

OK, I did think of five more to make it fifteen after all. Some glaring omissions, actually.
It's unfortunate how only a few of my old, old favourites that remained active during this time were as inspired as before, for example plenty of bands in the thrash and prog metal domains.

Bong - Mana-Yood-Sushai
Clutch - Earth Rocker
Om - Advaitic Songs
Orphaned Land - All Is One
Ulver - The Assassination of Julius Ceasar

added to:

Anathema - We're Here Because We're Here
Björk - Vulnicura
Flying Colors - Second Nature
Master Musicians of Bukkake - Far West
Joanna Newsom - Divers
Ott - Mir
Ott - Fairchildren
Steve Von Till - A Life Unto Itself
Swans - To Be Kind
Scott Walker - Bish Bosch

[Elite]

So, I made this list based on the (emotional?) impact they had on me and my music tastes over the last decade or so. There's albums I've spun on repeat for days that are missing from this list and some of the albums might not even be the best by their respective artists, but whatever. This is a 'final product' as best as I can do. Ask me again in 10 days, and it might be slightly different.

---

1. Leprous - Bilateral (2011)
Did anyone really expect anything else?

2. Obsidian Kingdom - Mantiis (2012)
My God, this album is intense, and awesome. Read the write-up I did in my last top 50 albums to see described in detail why I love this stuff so much.

3. Haken - Aquarius (2010)
Cemented my preference towards progressive metal for years, until I discovered .. different stuff. Remains my favourite Haken album for its youthful quirkiness and I'll fight anyone over it.

4. Anathema - We're Here Because We're Here (2010)
Stunned me on first listen and remained a staple in my CD-player for about 6 years afterwards.

5. The Devin Townsend Project - Deconstruction (2011)
Ki is better, but that was released in 2009.

6. Ulver - Messe I.X - VI.X (2013)
Ulver only has two releases that top this one, but they were released in different decades. The last 5 years or so have been pivotal with regards to my musical tastes. Ulver was instrumental in my tastes going towards experimental stuff. This album is flawless.

7. Kamasi Washington - The Epic (2013)
My most recent discovery on this list, but what an album this is. Even at three hours long, it remains entertaining and frankly very engaging throughout.

8. Swans - To be Kind (2014)
Don't try this at home.

9. Agent Fresco - Destrier (2015)
I could have gone with their other album as well. Still gets played heavily by me.

10. Ulver - The Assassination of Julius Caesar (2017)
Almost as good as Messe I.X-VI.X, but way more accessible. Fantastic stuff to witness live as well.

11. Wilderun - Sleep at the Edge of the Earth (2015)
A modern masterpiece that could potentially climb over more time.

12. East of the Wall - The Apologist (2011)
Thanks, Parama.

13. Dvne - Asheran (2017)
The best progressive metal album in the last 5 years. In my opinion (probably a good idea to add that..)

14. Karnivool - Asymmetry (2013)
My summer of 2013 was filled with three albums, namely this one...

14. The Ocean - Pelagial (2013)
... this one, and a third one by a certain band called Haken.

15. Casualties of Cool - Casualties of Cool (2014)
It took me 5 years to 'get' this record. Both literally and figuratively.



Honorable mentions I feel I must add:

Flaming Row - Elinoire (2011)
Steven Wilson - To The Bone (2017)
Messa - Feast for Water (2018)
The Hirsch Effekt - Holon: Anamnesis (2012)
VOLA - Inmazes (2015)

[ariich]

Two number 14s, Rich?

[Elite]

Yes, because I screwed up in there. But I should probably drop Casualites of Cool to the HMs.

[Sacul]

Elite, I'm happy to see you giving that much love to Messe . Wished I liked The Epic, it's just way too long for me.

Bong - Mana-Yood-Sushai
Clutch - Earth Rocker
Om - Advaitic Songs
Orphaned Land - All Is One
Ulver - The Assassination of Julius Ceasar

added to:

Anathema - We're Here Because We're Here
Björk - Vulnicura
Flying Colors - Second Nature
Master Musicians of Bukkake - Far West
Joanna Newsom - Divers
Ott - Mir
Ott - Fairchildren
Steve Von Till - A Life Unto Itself
Swans - To Be Kind
Scott Walker - Bish Bosch

Really cool list, glad to see Scott Walker and Om mentioned

[Crow]

Yes, because I screwed up in there. But I should probably drop Casualites of Cool to the HMs.

No don't

Also thanks parama for introducing me to The Apologist too
And Holon Anamnesis too
Really good list overall tbh

[jingle.boy]

After having further perused my '10-'19 list of albums, below are the ones that are 5* rating top-to-bottom that are unlikely to bump anything out of the list I already posted.

Blessed By A Broken Heart - Feel the Power
The Chronicles Project - When Darkness Falls
Eagleheart - Reverse
Epysode - Fantasmagoria
Fates Warning - Theories of Flight
Hemina - Venus
Lost in Thought - Opus Arise
Mindmaze - Resolve
Moon Safari - Lover’s End
Now Or Never - II
Prospekt - The Illuminated Sky
Serious Black - As Daylight Breaks
Threshold - March of Progress
Vandroya - One

[SwedishGoose]

So I just went back and edited mine..... how could I forget Karmakanic - Dot...... sorry to see Vulkan - Observants go but so be it.

[Elite]

Yes, because I screwed up in there. But I should probably drop Casualites of Cool to the HMs.

No don't

Also thanks parama for introducing me to The Apologist too
And Holon Anamnesis too
Really good list overall tbh

It was Parama who introduced me to it, yes. Not Cyril.




---


Also, now that I've thought more about this list and my music tastes over the last decade.. a shit ton has happened in that time. I was still in high school at the beginning of 2010. I've moved out, started studying, finished two master degrees, had a bunch of different jobs, have started a career, got a girlfriend, bought a house... and my music tastes evolved with it. Looking back on the list, it's not representative of what I listened to over the last 10 years at all. I think most music I listened to predates 2010 and some of the more impactful albums I discovered along the way were not from this decade. That said, I'm still pretty pleased with how the list turend out, so it's okay.

[King Postwhore]

 

Cyril>Parama

[Dr. DTVT]

So, since I posted the Secret Santa, I've gotten a few PM's asking how I've been doing - BTW thanks.  Figured I'd throw my hand out at this, as I noticed that my music purchasing has tailed off the past two years, maybe it's time to come back.

Geez this was hard, my initial write anything that might make it list was 33 albums, and making some of those final cuts was brutal.  A lot of bands I love are going to get no love here.  No DT, Devin Townsend, Epica, Spock's Beard, Byzantine, Headspace, Ne Obliviscaris, The Dear Hunter, Iris Divine, Riverside, or Subsignal, and those are just ones that made the initial list.  Doing this reminded me of a ton of stuff I forgot about.

Right now I can't make the final cut, so here are the sixteen in roughly year order.

Unitopia - Artificial
Flaming Row - Elinoire
Between The Buried And Me - Paralallax II: Future Sequence
Thank You Scientist - Maps of Non-Existent Places
Haken - The Mountain
Evergrey - Hymns for the Broken
Steven Wilson - Hand. Cannot. Erase.
Dream The Electric Sleep - Beneath the Dark Wide Sky
Avantasia - Ghostlights
Evership - Evership
Fates Warning - Theories of Flight
Big Big Train - Grimspound
Ayreon - The Source
Phideaux - Infernal
Mystery - Lies & Butterflies
IQ - Resistance

Thankfully live albums are disqualified, because as Bosk said Epica's Retrospective would make it.  It's a top 5 live album of all time for me.

[Crow]

Cyril>Parama

[Evermind]

1. Beyond the Bridge - The Old Man and the Spirit

Quite possibly my favourite progressive metal album after The Human Equation at this point. The biggest advantage over most Ayreon albums is that it's more concise. Also, the story is fantastic. Definitely and without any doubt my favourite album of the decade.

2. Ayreon - The Theory of Everything

The album that reignited my love for progressive rock and metal and made me start buying physical CDs way more actively than earlier. My wallet isn't thankful, but I am. The story is good, the sinners are great, also the art is gorgeous. I still have a poster with the art hanging on the wall at work. Hopefully I'll witness this album performed live one day.

3. Haken - Aquarius

Quirky, adventurous and gorgeous, and once again, concise enough to fit on one CD. Haken may be more mature now, but they didn't re-capture that spark that's present on Aquarius. Maybe it's a good thing as their other albums are also very strong, but they're not as amazing as this one, in my opinion. The last three songs run is spectacular.

4. Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused to Sing

The album that got my best friend and his wife, who are both metal fans, into prog rock. Maybe not very original material here, but the execution is flawless. The title track is one of the few things that usually makes me shed a few tears at the live show.

5. Steven Wilson - Hand. Cannot. Erase.

I didn't think Steven could top Raven, and maybe he didn't, I'm not sure because these two are interchangeable for me, but this album is also fantastic. Not a weak track here, and a lot of fantastic ones. I saw Ancestral on all three SW shows I witnessed, and man, it never gets old.

6. Headspace - I Am Anonymous

Another incredible prog metal record, and one I'm surprised isn't mentioned more often in this thread. This is the album where Damian shines most, I think. I mean, if you don't count Ayreon live shows. Almost all tracks are on the longer side here, but they never get boring. Fantastic songwriting.

7. Nightwish - Imaginaerum

About two years ago I was quite surprised to realize that this is my favorite Nightwish album now. This album was in my heavy rotation for the last few winters and I don't expect it to change for the next few years. The band sounds very inspired here, not afraid to make some risky decisions for the song's directions. The result is stellar.

8. Avantasia - The Mystery of Time

Yeah, I know. Not Ghostlights and not Moonglow. The Mystery of Time is still my favorite Avantasia from this decade. I raved about it quite a lot in the respective band thread.

9. IQ - The Road of Bones

I remember including this album in my Top 50 in 2014, and hoping it wasn't too soon, worrying about its staying power and so on. I needn't have worried. This record is still going strong after five years. Definitely my favorite IQ record and one of the finest albums of the decade.

10. Fates Warning - Theories of Flight

After mediocre DiaDL, this album surprised me. Fantastic songs, Ray sounds great, it's as if the band suddenly found its second wind. Very impressive album this late in a career.

11. iamthemorning - Lighthouse

You've seen me raving about this around GMD, so yeah, this is still great.

12. Leprous - Bilateral

My opinion about this changes from month to month. Sometimes it's Bilateral that amazes me, sometimes it's The Congregation. I'll give a nod to Bilateral today as a more diverse album and the milestone in the band's career.

13. Anathema - Weather Systems

This album is unlike anything else in my audio library, I think, and a great example of the band capturing something unique on the record. Always lovely to listen to this.

14. Arch / Matheos - Winter Ethereal

Judging simply by the fact I've been spinning this for probably half a year now and that I'm yet to get tired of it, and none of the 2019 releases came close to it so far... Yeah, I think this album deserves to be here.

15. Mark Knopfler - Privateering

To be honest, sometimes I do skip a track on this one, but to be fair, it has twenty tracks. It also has some of my favourite ballads ever on this, and plenty of other fantastic songs.

Honorable mentions:

Primal Fear - Delivering the Black
Dimension Act - Manifestation of Progress
Leprous - The Congregation
David Gilmour - Rattle that Lock
The Gentle Storm - The Diary
Haken - The Mountain
Evergrey - Hymns for the Broken
Blind Guardian - At the Edge of Time

[lonestar]

Get out of my head Ruslan!!! Probably 6 or 7 from my list there.



Very surprised not to see Headspace on more lists.

[romdrums]

Very surprised not to see Headspace on more lists.

I Am Anonymous is a damn fine record, but I don't know that it's better than a lot of the albums that are on people's lists.  It barely made my top 20 for 2012 (though it would probably move up more than a few places if I did the rankings today).

[Elite]

Very surprised not to see Headspace on more lists.

Listened to that album heavily in the year iot was released, but barely came back to it at all.

[lonestar]

I still go back to both of them on a regular basis, although I have a special affinity for Wilson's vocals.

[IDontNotDoThings]

03. iamthemorning - iamthemorning

I was just going through all the votes to verify each of the albums' release years, & this was the only one that I couldn't find. As far as I can tell, iamthemorning doesn't have a self-titled album. Did you mean "~"?

[Evermind]

03. iamthemorning - iamthemorning

I was just going through all the votes to verify each of the albums' release years, & this was the only one that I couldn't find. As far as I can tell, iamthemorning doesn't have a self-titled album. Did you mean "~"?

Yes, apparently ~ doesn't work for some streaming platforms so it's self-titled.

[IDontNotDoThings]

03. iamthemorning - iamthemorning

I was just going through all the votes to verify each of the albums' release years, & this was the only one that I couldn't find. As far as I can tell, iamthemorning doesn't have a self-titled album. Did you mean "~"?

Yes, apparently ~ doesn't work for some streaming platforms so it's self-titled.

Ah, that makes sense actually. Thanks.


Also @Ninjabait, I noticed that you edited your list to include 4 iamthemorning albums. There's a 2-albums-per-band rule in place, so I'm just gonna keep your old list in the archive until you change it again, just so you know.

[Train of Naught]

Okay, I’ll give it a shot. One per artist

1. Slice the Cake - Odyssey to the West
2. Rishloo - Living as Ghosts With Buildings as Teeth
3. Cult of Luna - Vertikal
4. BTBAM - Parallax II
5. Leprous - Bilateral
6. Hypno5e - Acid Mist Tomorrow
7. Anathema - Weather Systems
8. The Dear Hunter - Act IV
9. God is an Astronaut - Helios / Erebus
10. Agent Fresco - Destrier
11. A Swarm of the Sun - The Rifts
12. Bossk - Audio Noir
13. Alcest - Kodama
14. Periphery - Periphery II
15. Haken - The Mountain

[Kilgore Trout]

4. Karnivool - Sound Awake
9. The Dear Hunter - Act II
10. God is an Astronaut - God is an Astronaut

Sound Awake is from 2009, Act II from 2007, and God Is an Astronaut from 2008. And rules have changed, you can name up to 15 records.

[Train of Naught]

Oops, edited now

I stupidly assume that Spotify years are correct all the time, without considering they may have done complete takedowns to re-release the album digitally.

[IDontNotDoThings]

Also The Great Misdirect is from 2009