KidInTheDark666
What's yours is mine and what's mine is mine too
I was sure that Archers were gonna run with the victory here.
GREATEST METAL ALBUM CUP - Winner: Iron Maiden - Seventh Son of a Seventh Son!
- Thread starter LooseCannon
- Start date
MindRuler
Ancient Mariner
Don´t ever forget The Cure as influence on PL.
Archers, obviously. But that's a really cool PL album, I really enjoyed it. Thanks for the nomination as I hadn't heard it before!
Scorpions but it's close.
Iced Earth.
Symphony X.
Scorpions but it's close.
Iced Earth.
Symphony X.
Lampwick 43
Barstool Warrior
This.
Paradise Lost > Unleash The Archers (cool album though, needs more growls)
Scorpions < Motörhead - honestly couldn't care less about either of the albums, but at least 1916 is a cool song.
Wintersun > Iced Earth (cool album, but Wintersun is one of the best debut albums ever)
In Poseurs < Symphony X
Scorpions < Motörhead - honestly couldn't care less about either of the albums, but at least 1916 is a cool song.
Wintersun > Iced Earth (cool album, but Wintersun is one of the best debut albums ever)
In Poseurs < Symphony X
D
Deleted member 7164
Guest
I don't care for anything apart for SX so a single vote goes there, and I'm glad that it's not a tight match!
Divine Wings is top, absolute top. Romeo's riffs are spectacular.
Divine Wings is top, absolute top. Romeo's riffs are spectacular.
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
I appreciate the SX love, but if you’re throwing away votes why not give one to Apex?
karljant
Ancient Mariner
Once again this is a very dear album as far as I'm concerned so it desrves a deeper dive. Reminds me of a precise time in my life: a curiously contained spring (followed by a summer of excesses, to level things up 
).
Back in June 1995 the thing I can remember most was that I was studying like a madman to my college access exams to a point that it was almost obsessive. I was never a studying guy (quite the opposite... during my late teens my life was basketball, night life and a bohemia - but then again who wasn't?) so my parents really found the whole thing really strange. Fact was I was hell bent on being admitted in my first pick college. Other fact was a new Paradise Lost album was almost being released and the release date would coincide precisely with my birthday. So I took a break went to the record store, bought the album and locked myself for some more weeks with my Philosophy and Geography books and utterly kept the damned thing on continuous play for days. So: an album I listened to exhaustion while I was simply stuffing the works of Kant, Kierkegaard and Marx among others into my memory to the point it became my second nature for what seemed an eternity has everything to saturate me quickly and be avoided in a no time even if it's a good record, right? Wrong. And why? Because Draconian Times isn't neither good nor great. It's a masterpiece.As for the songs I should leave the best for last but I'll go throughout the tracks by order. So...
Enchantment... all I can say about this song is that it's probably one of my top 10 favorite tracks of all time. Paradise Lost is one of my favourite acts and by far the band I own more stuff of (almost every single, every EP, every album, limited editions, some bootlegs, you get the point...) and although my favorite album is One Second, I'm 100% sure while saying that Enchantment is by far my favorite track by the band. Everything sounds majestic and yet at the same time fragile, the way Gregg's guitar and Nick's voice makes you go through a roller coaster of strong mixed emotions and hues like the cover of the record itself (while other bands only work in grayscale) is absolutely mind blowing. And the orchestration... OH MY GOD! This album and this song in particular is the absolute and ultimate epitome of Goth Metal and where almost every single other band that tries to copy the band's blueprint ends up sounding corny and ridicule at best, the original stuff sounds truly triumphant. Mixing Sabbath, Bauhaus, Celtic Frost, Sisters Of Mercy, Christian Death, Dead Can Dance the outcome of this thing is absurdly glorious.
Hallowed Land follows and while being a much less immersive song the dynamics and details are simply top notch: Sabbath meets Christian Death with some early U2 on the lead guitar along with a great pre chorus and a superb drum work by mr. Lee Morris makes 2 out of 2 when it comes to absolute classics on Draconian Times so far.
Speaking of early U2 it's difficult not to listen to a bit of I Will Follow's guitar in the next song. The Last Time is simple yet addictive as hell and was my 1st contact with the record (bought the single some days before the album came out) and while it is quite uptempo there's a sadness and melancholy within this short "hit" that still puzzles me to this day.
Then follows another fan favorite and the second single out of the record. Forever Failure is a sad and melancholic melodic hymn that will hit you with the equal dose of beauty and bitterness. Plus Gregg delivers its better solo on the entire album on this one, doing it in absolute conformity with the song's ambiance: sad, depressive and contemplative.
Once Solemn begins and for all those who know the band's catalogue this is simply the band adapting Pity The Sadness to the more polished and softer mood of Draconian times while maintaining its DNA: Fast, "Sabbathesque", epic, melodic and exciting.
Shadowkings is as simple as catchy and addictive. Seems like the dudes mixed a bit of more accessible and linear Metallica, poured some goth leads on it and refined it with a state of the art Goth rock chorus... simply brilliant.
Elusive Cure's perhaps one of the more Gothic Rock prone songs here (lots of Sisters Of Mercy) but Aaron's rhythm guitar chug is always there giving it that edge.
On the other hand Yearn For Change is perhaps the least great track here but it still distills enough top notch Goth Metal details here and there to be more than relevant.
Shades Of God brings its mix of Sabbath and Into The Pandemonium era Celtic Frost, leaning a bit more into the Doom Metal area while the lead guitar keeps it coherent with the rest of the albumand man this song simply rules! One of My favorite tracks here that normally people tend to ignore.
Speaking of Into The Pandemonium Hands of Reason is a 100% perfect match between that seminal album and the rhythmic section (that simple yet delicious toms and Seteve's bass doodle in the beginning is really on point!) of a post punk song played some BPM's slower folding towards a powerful Doom metal chorus.
I See Your Face could be easily called "what if Black Album era Metallica wrote a Sisters Of Mercy song" and as much of an iminent failure this mix seems to be heading to, the final product is gorgeous, deep and touching. That's how great of a composer Gregg is.
And to close the album in yet another insanely high note we're presented with Jaded, another slow and melancholic tune that pours beauty and sadness in equal doses. And while being a bit similar to Forever Failure in both ambiance and pace, I still prefer this absolutely hidden gem. As matter of fact it's one of the (many) high points of this album and closes it perfectly.
Paradise Lost is a band that created a myriad of copycats with 1991's Gothic, an album that mixed Death Doom, peppered it with some Goth Rock guitars here and there along with orchestral arrangements and female vocals. Then wrote another stunning record in Shades Of God where they almost stripped down their sound to a more Into The Pandemonium meets Candlemass and Sabbath like Doom/ Goth album that gave us songs such as As I Die and Pity the Sadness making their name grow bigger and bigger. Not happy with that they once again evolved and single handedly defined the Goth Metal genre in Icon: a record bearing such excellence by now every single head in the metallic comunity turned to them. And when the pression and expectations were higher than before they refined the previous record in this absolute masterpiece that was rightfuly so praised by critics and fans along. Draconian Times is the result of a 4 record metamorphosis of increasing quality and innovation to a point that it's absurd and was one of the first records I nominated. So you fucking bet my vote goes to Paradise Lost. As matter of fact I'm even listening to the damned thing right now and sounds fresh as it did 25 years ago. Plus I'm happy I'm not studying while doing so.
P.S. : Little did I knew back then than 2 years after the band would release an even better album than its predecessors: the somehow infamous One Second that was demonized by some because " it was not metal" yet loved by many like me. But that's another story.
).Back in June 1995 the thing I can remember most was that I was studying like a madman to my college access exams to a point that it was almost obsessive. I was never a studying guy (quite the opposite... during my late teens my life was basketball, night life and a bohemia - but then again who wasn't?) so my parents really found the whole thing really strange. Fact was I was hell bent on being admitted in my first pick college. Other fact was a new Paradise Lost album was almost being released and the release date would coincide precisely with my birthday. So I took a break went to the record store, bought the album and locked myself for some more weeks with my Philosophy and Geography books and utterly kept the damned thing on continuous play for days. So: an album I listened to exhaustion while I was simply stuffing the works of Kant, Kierkegaard and Marx among others into my memory to the point it became my second nature for what seemed an eternity has everything to saturate me quickly and be avoided in a no time even if it's a good record, right? Wrong. And why? Because Draconian Times isn't neither good nor great. It's a masterpiece.As for the songs I should leave the best for last but I'll go throughout the tracks by order. So...
Enchantment... all I can say about this song is that it's probably one of my top 10 favorite tracks of all time. Paradise Lost is one of my favourite acts and by far the band I own more stuff of (almost every single, every EP, every album, limited editions, some bootlegs, you get the point...) and although my favorite album is One Second, I'm 100% sure while saying that Enchantment is by far my favorite track by the band. Everything sounds majestic and yet at the same time fragile, the way Gregg's guitar and Nick's voice makes you go through a roller coaster of strong mixed emotions and hues like the cover of the record itself (while other bands only work in grayscale) is absolutely mind blowing. And the orchestration... OH MY GOD! This album and this song in particular is the absolute and ultimate epitome of Goth Metal and where almost every single other band that tries to copy the band's blueprint ends up sounding corny and ridicule at best, the original stuff sounds truly triumphant. Mixing Sabbath, Bauhaus, Celtic Frost, Sisters Of Mercy, Christian Death, Dead Can Dance the outcome of this thing is absurdly glorious.
Hallowed Land follows and while being a much less immersive song the dynamics and details are simply top notch: Sabbath meets Christian Death with some early U2 on the lead guitar along with a great pre chorus and a superb drum work by mr. Lee Morris makes 2 out of 2 when it comes to absolute classics on Draconian Times so far.
Speaking of early U2 it's difficult not to listen to a bit of I Will Follow's guitar in the next song. The Last Time is simple yet addictive as hell and was my 1st contact with the record (bought the single some days before the album came out) and while it is quite uptempo there's a sadness and melancholy within this short "hit" that still puzzles me to this day.
Then follows another fan favorite and the second single out of the record. Forever Failure is a sad and melancholic melodic hymn that will hit you with the equal dose of beauty and bitterness. Plus Gregg delivers its better solo on the entire album on this one, doing it in absolute conformity with the song's ambiance: sad, depressive and contemplative.
Once Solemn begins and for all those who know the band's catalogue this is simply the band adapting Pity The Sadness to the more polished and softer mood of Draconian times while maintaining its DNA: Fast, "Sabbathesque", epic, melodic and exciting.
Shadowkings is as simple as catchy and addictive. Seems like the dudes mixed a bit of more accessible and linear Metallica, poured some goth leads on it and refined it with a state of the art Goth rock chorus... simply brilliant.
Elusive Cure's perhaps one of the more Gothic Rock prone songs here (lots of Sisters Of Mercy) but Aaron's rhythm guitar chug is always there giving it that edge.
On the other hand Yearn For Change is perhaps the least great track here but it still distills enough top notch Goth Metal details here and there to be more than relevant.
Shades Of God brings its mix of Sabbath and Into The Pandemonium era Celtic Frost, leaning a bit more into the Doom Metal area while the lead guitar keeps it coherent with the rest of the albumand man this song simply rules! One of My favorite tracks here that normally people tend to ignore.
Speaking of Into The Pandemonium Hands of Reason is a 100% perfect match between that seminal album and the rhythmic section (that simple yet delicious toms and Seteve's bass doodle in the beginning is really on point!) of a post punk song played some BPM's slower folding towards a powerful Doom metal chorus.
I See Your Face could be easily called "what if Black Album era Metallica wrote a Sisters Of Mercy song" and as much of an iminent failure this mix seems to be heading to, the final product is gorgeous, deep and touching. That's how great of a composer Gregg is.
And to close the album in yet another insanely high note we're presented with Jaded, another slow and melancholic tune that pours beauty and sadness in equal doses. And while being a bit similar to Forever Failure in both ambiance and pace, I still prefer this absolutely hidden gem. As matter of fact it's one of the (many) high points of this album and closes it perfectly.
Paradise Lost is a band that created a myriad of copycats with 1991's Gothic, an album that mixed Death Doom, peppered it with some Goth Rock guitars here and there along with orchestral arrangements and female vocals. Then wrote another stunning record in Shades Of God where they almost stripped down their sound to a more Into The Pandemonium meets Candlemass and Sabbath like Doom/ Goth album that gave us songs such as As I Die and Pity the Sadness making their name grow bigger and bigger. Not happy with that they once again evolved and single handedly defined the Goth Metal genre in Icon: a record bearing such excellence by now every single head in the metallic comunity turned to them. And when the pression and expectations were higher than before they refined the previous record in this absolute masterpiece that was rightfuly so praised by critics and fans along. Draconian Times is the result of a 4 record metamorphosis of increasing quality and innovation to a point that it's absurd and was one of the first records I nominated. So you fucking bet my vote goes to Paradise Lost. As matter of fact I'm even listening to the damned thing right now and sounds fresh as it did 25 years ago. Plus I'm happy I'm not studying while doing so.
P.S. : Little did I knew back then than 2 years after the band would release an even better album than its predecessors: the somehow infamous One Second that was demonized by some because " it was not metal" yet loved by many like me. But that's another story.
Last edited:
Just under 2 hours! Can I get some more love for Archers?!
Oh shit it's happening, Archers up by 1 with an hour left!!!!
Detective Beauregard
Leviathan of Doggerland
Same.
I like Apex, but I like Abyss better. Divine Wings destroys everything in this round... and it's not even Symphony X's most consistent album. However, the strong tracks like the first four, the title track, and Candlelight Fantasia make up for the two duds in the middle and the average Medusa.
I'm not a huge Scorpions fan (I think they're decent), but I also can't stand Motorhead.
Diesel 11
As you scream into the web of silence...
Random Diesel opinion: “The Eyes Of Medusa” is a pretty killer song with a ton of atmosphere. My only complaint is the middle section where everything just seems to drop out and halt the momentum. That’s actually exactly what I think of Iced Earth’s “Jack”, too.
Unleash the Archers fucking pulls it out, down by 5 to win by 1. Amazing. Absolutely amazing. Thank you all! That was it for Paradise Lost (a really great album), and Archers next faces Spinal Tap. I swear I didn't rig this.
Scorpions unseats Lemmy & friends, to move on. Motörhead is back in League 5.
Iced Earth fairly easily fends off Wintersun, who are done in the GMAC. Next up - Amon Amarth!
Symphony X quite easily crushes an In Flames album that might have belonged back in League 17, but probably not. It's League 3 before we see In Flames again.
Scorpions unseats Lemmy & friends, to move on. Motörhead is back in League 5.
Iced Earth fairly easily fends off Wintersun, who are done in the GMAC. Next up - Amon Amarth!
Symphony X quite easily crushes an In Flames album that might have belonged back in League 17, but probably not. It's League 3 before we see In Flames again.
For reference, it was legit, no sockpuppets:
Be’Lakor - Stone’s Reach (2009) How it got here List entries: n/a Maidenfans Nominators: @Saapanael | |
| League 7 - Match 9 | vs. |
Dream Theater - Systematic Chaos (2007) How it got here List entries: n/a Maidenfans Nominators: @The Dissident Previous Rounds: League 9: Defeated Rainbow - Down to Earth 14-7. League 8: Defeated UDO - Steelfactory 15-6. |
Rush - Power Windows (1985) How it got here List entries: n/a Maidenfans Nominators: @Jer | |
| League 7 - Match 10 | vs. |
Ayreon - The Source (2017) How it got here List entries: n/a Maidenfans Nominators: @Lampwick 43 Previous Rounds: League 11: Defeated Sabaton - Coat of Arms 12-10. League 10: Defeated Cynic - Traced in Air 11-9. League 9: Defeated Anaal Nathrakh - Hell is Empty & All the Devils are Here 18-5. League 8: Defeated Insomnium - Heart Like a Grave 13-8. |
Devin Townsend - Deconstruction (2011) How it got here List entries: n/a Maidenfans Nominators: @Mosh, @Shmoolikipod | |
| League 7 - Match 11 | vs. |
Bolt Thrower - Those Once Loyal (2005) How it got here List entries: n/a Maidenfans Nominators: @Dityn DJ James Previous Rounds: League 9: Defeated Nuclear Assault - Game Over 14-9. League 8: Defeated Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger 13-8. |
:format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(40)/discogs-images/R-4970224-1380956394-6276.jpeg.jpg)
Atlantean Kodex - The White Goddess (2013) How it got here List entries: n/a Maidenfans Nominators: @LooseCannon, @Perun | |
| League 7 - Match 12 | vs. |
Anthrax - Sound of White Noise (1993) How it got here List entries: n/a Maidenfans Nominators: @MrKnickerbocker Previous Rounds: League 9: Defeated Sabbat - Dreamweaver 15-8. League 8: Defeated Dream Theater - A Change of Seasons 12-8. |
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
Texting a relative who is a legitimate forum member to get them to vote is not cheating.
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
Damn straight!