Top 25 Most Influential Heavy Metal Albums of All Time

[Forostar]

Top 25 Most Influential Heavy Metal Albums of All Time, according to IGN Music:

01. METALLICA - Master of Puppets (Elektra Records, 1986)
02. BLACK SABBATH - Paranoid (Warner Bros., 1971)
03. IRON MAIDEN - Number of the Beast (Capitol Records, 1982)
04. MEGADETH - Rust in Peace (Capitol Records, 1990)
05. METALLICA - Ride the Lightning (Elektra Records, 1984)
06. OZZY OSBOURNE - Blizzard of Ozz (Jet Records, 1980)
07. SLAYER - Reign in Blood (American Records, 1986)
08. DIO - Holy Diver (Reprise Records, 1983)
09. METALLICA - ...And Justice for All (Elektra Records, 1988)
10. MOTÖRHEAD - Ace of Spades (Castle Music, 1980)
11. PANTERA - Vulgar Display of Power (East/West, 1992)
12. ANTHRAX - Among the Living (Megaforce, 1987)
13. BLACK SABBATH - Black Sabbath (Warner Bros., 1970)
14. FATES WARNING - No Exit (Metal Blade, 1988)
15. JUDAS PRIEST - Screaming for Vengeance (Columbia Records, 1982)
16. MÖTLEY CRÜE - Shout at the Devil (Elektra Records, 1983
17. MASTODON - Blood Mountain (Reprise Records, 2006)
18. OPETH - Blackwater Park (Koch, 2001)
19. PANTERA - Cowboys from Hell (Atlantic Records, 1990)
20. DEEP PURPLE - Machine Head (Warner Bros., 1972)
21. IRON MAIDEN - Piece of Mind (Capitol Records, 1983)
22. OZZY OSBOURNE - Diary of a Madman (Jet Records, 1981)
23. SEPULTURA - Roots (Roadrunner Records, 1996)
24. QUEENSRŸCHE - Operation: Mindcrime (EMI, 1988)
25. SCORPIONS - Lovedrive (Mercury Records, 1979)

To view the blurbs containing the explanation for each album's inclusion, visit

http://music.ign.com/articles/755/755929p1.html

What do you think ?


I find it strange to see a 2006 album (Mastodon) in this list (who's influenced by them??). Also Kiss would sound more logical then Motley Crue. One Helloween album wouldn't be that ridiculous either imo.

 

[Anonymous]

This is a very weird list, especially because the authors themselves don't even seem to know what they're trying to list. While the title is "The most influential...", they keep talking about "the best". That's a profound difference in my opinion. "Good" doesn't automatically mean "influential", and vice versa. While it works as a toplist (all the albums off that list that I've heard are excellent), the term "influential" needs my comment.

01. METALLICA - Master of Puppets (Elektra Records, 1986)
02. BLACK SABBATH - Paranoid (Warner Bros., 1971)
03. IRON MAIDEN - Number of the Beast (Capitol Records, 1982)

Fine with me, though I'd move "Paranoid" to number one. I'd be more comfortable if it was "Black Sabbath", though. Also, shouldn't "Number..." be above "Master Of Puppets"? Without Maiden, there would have been no Metallica...

04. MEGADETH - Rust in Peace (Capitol Records, 1990)
05. METALLICA - Ride the Lightning (Elektra Records, 1984)
06. OZZY OSBOURNE - Blizzard of Ozz (Jet Records, 1980)
07. SLAYER - Reign in Blood (American Records, 1986)
08. DIO - Holy Diver (Reprise Records, 1983)
09. METALLICA - ...And Justice for All (Elektra Records, 1988)
10. MOTÖRHEAD - Ace of Spades (Castle Music, 1980)

No complaint here, even if I'd change the positioning. How can Megadeth be more influential than Motörhead?

11. PANTERA - Vulgar Display of Power (East/West, 1992)
12. ANTHRAX - Among the Living (Megaforce, 1987)
13. BLACK SABBATH - Black Sabbath (Warner Bros., 1970)
14. FATES WARNING - No Exit (Metal Blade, 1988)
15. JUDAS PRIEST - Screaming for Vengeance (Columbia Records, 1982)
16. MÖTLEY CRÜE - Shout at the Devil (Elektra Records, 1983

Seems alright, even if I only heard the Anthrax, Sabbath and Priest albums. But if we're going for "influential", I'd rather put in "British Steel" (even if "Screaming For Vengeance" is leagues better) and move it upwards.

17. MASTODON - Blood Mountain (Reprise Records, 2006)
18. OPETH - Blackwater Park (Koch, 2001)

19. PANTERA - Cowboys from Hell (Atlantic Records, 1990)
20. DEEP PURPLE - Machine Head (Warner Bros., 1972)
21. IRON MAIDEN - Piece of Mind (Capitol Records, 1983)
22. OZZY OSBOURNE - Diary of a Madman (Jet Records, 1981)
23. SEPULTURA - Roots (Roadrunner Records, 1996)
24. QUEENSRŸCHE - Operation: Mindcrime (EMI, 1988)
25. SCORPIONS - Lovedrive (Mercury Records, 1979)

Sounds fine, though I'd probably have chosen "In Rock" by Purple. But then, "Machine Head" does contain the most famous hard rock song ever, so that's OK. I'd also rather see an earlier Sepultura album there.

Conclusion: If we swapped the Mastodon, Opeth and '92 Pantera albums for AC/DC ("Back In Black" or "Highway To Hell", not sure), Kiss (most probably "Alive") and Helloween (One of the first three) and change the positioning a bit, we'd have a deal.

 

[Raven]

They have 'Tenacious D' as one of the 'Honourable Mentions'.  How that is classed as either 'influential' or 'metal', I don't know.  Once again, a metal list for the popular...It's no surprise that Paranoid, Notb and Master of Puppets are there.  And, while the rest of the list is pretty stupid (Vulgar Display of Power is 'darker' and 'heavier' than anything by Possessed, Dark Angel et al from the 80's?), the top 10 or so are given.  Anyway, influential does not equate with good, as UltraBoris would no doubt be too happy to tell you...

 

[Onhell]

Good list, but agree with Perun and Forostar, also, I think there is too much Metallica, again maybe they were thinking "good" rather than "influencial."

 

[Anomica]

3 Metallica albums in the top 10, and only one Maiden??? Where is Led Zeppelin? Def Leppard? Kiss should indeed be an obvious choice. Who compiled this list?

 

[Albie]

Best thing to do is to submit your own list - whether here or a last.fm journal. Maybe I'll have a go myself this weekend.

Most certianly, I would have had at least AC/DC's Back in Black there as well as - possibly - Venom's Welcom to Hell.

 

[____no5]

don't give a shit for those list boys and girls
also don't forget that this thing is called music industry

...what is very sad though, is that 16 years old people (a considerable target group for metal industry) are highly influenced by such list (well ....I was!)

 

[Onhell]

Good point albie, but we should also define, "influencial". For example, Jon Schaffer of Iced Earth said in the Tribute to the Gods booklet that Kiss was the band that inspired him to become a musician and Maiden was the band that made him choose Metal as the genre he would write for. Musically he is more thrash (quite an american genre if you think about it) but the rythem section sounds a lot like Maidens. In Flames guitarists were also inspired by maiden and you can tell by their earlier more melodic albums.

What I'm trying to say is what are we including as infuence? how many people they inspired to pick up guitars or influenced their sound or both? For example, how many bands SOUND like maiden? Exactly only one that I know of, Tierra Santa, but how many cite them as big influences? Many. How many bands SOUND like Early Helloween? Too many lol, almost every power metal band from 97 to present, but how influencial was Helloween on Metal in general and world wide popularity? Not much.

 

[Forostar]

How many bands SOUND like Early Helloween? Too many lol, almost every power metal band from 97 to present, but how influencial was Helloween on Metal in general and world wide popularity? Not much.

Since 99% of the power metal scene do things Helloween did, I'd say Helloween had quite some influence on metal in general, since power metal is not the smallest part of Metal in general.

 

[Onhell]

Touché

 

[Natalie]

Yeah, I would definitely add AC/DC and Kiss to that list. And remove those 2001 and 2006 albums (I mean, no one's even had time to be influenced by them), and take away some of that Metallica. I think the authors are confusing 'influential' with popular. Speaking of which, where is Led Zeppelin? I mean, the fourth album should definitely be on that list, or Presence.

 

[Kynisk Sokol]

I'm disappointed by "best of" lists because they either tell part of the story (no death/black/doom), or every idiot in the book chimes in with the band-of-the-week (Mastodon) and dilutes them into garbage.

Possibly - Venom's Welcom to Hell.

Bathory's The Return... is a much better choice. It represents the possibilities of black metal without turning into some moronic, hokey jokey Motorhead clone.

Oh, and I'd like to know what's so influential about Pantera. All they did was steal Exhorder's groove-based thrash metal technique and water it down for morons. And that was after they went along with the glam metal trend.

I'm also wondering why there are several hard rock acts in an otherwise strictly metal list. Ah well, I wasn't expecting much from this list anyway.









OGM UR SCHU AN ELITSIT

 

[Onhell]

I'm also wondering why there are several hard rock acts in an otherwise strictly metal list. Ah well, I wasn't expecting much from this list anyway.

I wondered the same thing, but you have to realize that Metal came out of Hard Rock. Led Zepplin, Deep Purple, even Black Sabbath weren't "Metal", they were/are Hard Rock, until some dude somewhere dubbed this harder, heavier sound with "metal. "

 

[Kynisk Sokol]

I wondered the same thing, but you have to realize that Metal came out of Hard Rock. Led Zepplin, Deep Purple, even Black Sabbath weren't "Metal", they were/are Hard Rock, until some dude somewhere dubbed this harder, heavier sound with "metal. "

Sure Hard Rock influenced Metal, but so did Hardcore Punk (well, it influenced speed metal to be exact), if we're thinking like this, then there would also have to be Discharge, The Exploited, Ambiex and so forth in the list. If I was arsed, I'd do a list for extreme metal.

 

[Anonymous]

Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath were called "Heavy Metal" by their contemporaries in the seventies.

 

[Albie]

Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath were called "Heavy Metal" by their contemporaries in the seventies.

Indeed they were. Although, at the time, some of these bands (and others - I know Sammy Hagar was one) seemed to detest the phrase Heavy Metal and spent so much time trying to distance themselves from the so-called genre. It was in fact the NWOBHM phase that made it acceptable for a hard/heavy rock act to be called metal. This may explain why some people - even today - categorise these bands as such.

Bathory's The Return... is a much better choice.

As I've not heard that album, I can't comment. But my reasoning for Venom's debut was down to what they were doing in comparison to anyone else at the time. They were different. Then along came the Slayers, Onslaughts, etc.

 

[Kynisk Sokol]

But my reasoning for Venom's debut was down to what they were doing in comparison to anyone else at the time. They were different. Then along came the Slayers, Onslaughts, etc.

lIeK OfMG TeHYre TEh 00neeeqe inDividUeLSs11!11111oneeoneoevleveve!1111exclamationmark!

Difference for the sake of difference is moronic and influence is only half the story. I know this thread is titled "Top 25 Most Influential Heavy Metal Albums of All Time", but I can't see the point of including Venom if Bathory and Hellhammer/Celtic Frost did everything Venom did and a lot more. For the list to be better, the albums must be innovative and original in their voices, yes, but also have quality and spirit.

 

[Albie]

lIeK OfMG TeHYre TEh 00neeeqe inDividUeLSs11!11111oneeoneoevleveve!1111exclamationmark!

The one thing I would think you could not accuse me of doing is talking like the above, in the hope it may be conceived as being cool (or whatever). From my comments on Venom, I am drawing on actual experience - rather than what I may have read about - and the fact that some may say the quality and/or spirit is lacking, is purely subjective.

Which leads me to my first post in this thread - "do the list yourself, if you disagree".

 

[^^MeTaLeRo^^]

I reckon someone from IGN omited the "Painkiller" album 

 

[SinisterMinisterX]

...Although, at the time, some of these bands (and others - I know Sammy Hagar was one) seemed to detest the phrase Heavy Metal...

Maybe so ... but didn't he do a song called "Heavy Metal" for the soundtrack of the movie of the same name?

...

HYPOCRITE! :>[

---

For the list to be better, the albums must be innovative and original in their voices, yes, but also have quality and spirit.

No.

If the issue is influence, the originality has nothing to do with it. For example, it could be argued that there was very little originality on the first Zeppelin album. Most of it was hard-rock blues-jamming, and that was nothing new. Even "Dazed And Confused" was originated by the Yardbirds during their Jimmy Page era as "I'm Confused". However, that first Zep album turned a lot of people onto early heavy metal and was therefore very influential.

In other words, the most influential albums are the ones who brought something new to a large audience. If that new stuff was originated at a more underground level, that doesn't count for this list. The original, underground version may be influential, but not enough to get included on this list.

Likewise, quality and spirit have nothing to do with it. Although I love it, I know there are people who detest the Kiss live album Alive!. So let's assume, for the sake of argument, that Alive! is a bad album. Nonetheless, it inspired many teenagers to pick up guitars and emulate Kiss. It is very influential, whether you think it's good or not.