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10 Most Important/Influential Albums of All Time Part 2
After
the success of the first installment of this set of lists I felt I
needed to do a part 2 to cover some of my other favorite artists.
In case you missed the original premise of this, I
was
thinking that it might be an interesting prospect to see
what were some of the most important and influential albums of all time
when it comes to some of the undeground's notable luminaries.
These are lists that are not necessarily the favorite albums
from
each individual, but the albums that played pivotal roles in shaping
our journies
throughout our lives. Hopefully these lists will give
you a little more insight into these artists while at the same time
broadening your own musical horizons.
Guest
list from T. Ciekals of Djevel/Nettlecarrier
Merciless- The Awakening I
bought this on cd when i saw it at the local black metal store in
Stavanger
where i grew up. The reason i got it was because one of the guys in the
band
wore a Bathory shirt on the bandpicture- Then it had to be
good. and it was!
A-ha - Scoundrel Days
Waay
ahead of their time . I got this when i was 7 and I remember me and my
mother
went downtown every Saturday and asked the dude in the
recordstore the
same question over and over again in weeks; Has the new A-ha cassette
arrived?
How else would we know in 1986?
Bathory-
Under the
Sign of the Black Mark The first
black metal
album i bought and to this day I hold it as my all time fave no matter
genres.
Absolutely amazing.
Entombed-
Left Hand
Path
This album
sums up for
me what death metal is all about. I still remember how strange I
thought it was
that the first print of the cd had pink Entombed logo, that did NOT
make sense
haha. Class from start to end.
Darkthrone- Under A
Funeral Moon The
sound of evil and probably the only album that makes the temperature in
the
room drop.
Gehenna-
Seen Through
the Veils of Darkness, 2nd Spell This album is important to
me since it
represents a period for the black metal crew in Stavanger where me and
the
Gehenna guys are from. I played in Neetzach and we shared rehearsel
room with
Gehenna. Listening to it takes me back to the time when we
attended
Gehenna rehearsels and worshipped Satan. Magnificent.
Sonic Youth- Dirty I
have always been
into indie music like Sonic youth. This album is just fantastic with
the short
punky stuff combined with the longer mesmerizing tracks. Kim Gordon
probably
did some of her best work on this album. Timeless.
Isengard-
Vinterskugge This
album took me by real surprise when it was released. In Stavanger (on
the west
coast of Norway) the rumor about Darkthrone was that they would do one
more
album after Under a funeral moon and then disappear. So all of a sudden
getting
this album was a thrill Once again i was in the local black metal store
and the
owner told me he had an album i might like- I was especially amazed by
the
track Dommedagssalme. Sadly the titletrack was made "popular" by lots
of ignorant and lame kids and was in many ways the beginning of the end
back
then, at least for me. I remember I took it with me to school
and played the track
"Ut i Vannets dyp Hvor Morket Hviler" EXTREMELY loud in the cantina
so all the kids had to eat their lunch listening to it haha. They all
complained but I was in charge of the music that day as we took turns
on that,
so there was nothing they could do. That was the last time i
was allowed
near the stereo.
Enslaved-
Vikingligr Veldi Their best work
ever. The repetitive riffs on this album is extremely good. All the
songs
except from Heimdallr is more than ten minutes long and the
riffs
just keeps on and on without ever getting boring. I remember buying
this album
together with the second Abruptum album ; In Umbra....." and
it took
weeks before i listened to Abruptum as I could not stop listening to
this
enslaved album.
Immortal-
Pure
Holocaust This was the album
that really gave blastbeats a face for me. The rumors said that Abbath
fainted
in the studio from exhaustion haha.
First
of all I liked the fact that they had changed their drummer since he
looked so
lame on the Diabolical album cover and sort of disturbed my
impression of
Immortal. Back then it was almost more important to look cool and evil
than
being able to play good.... stupid but true.
The violence combined with atmosphere is sublime on
these tracks and the
way the chords are used was very new to me. I ordered this from Osmose
when it
was released together with a shirt I remember got me in trouble at
school since
everybody thought I was promoting the Nazi Holocaust.
Obviously I thought
this was good since it made me come off as more evil.
Portishead-
Dummy In 1996 when I stopped
listening to only
black metal this was probably the album i listened to most. It has a
darkness
and sadness to it that appealed to me very much and still does. It's so dark and chill and
sometimes almost
has a religious feeling. I am really into dark jazzy stuff and this
album has
the perfect amount of that combined with nice beats
Satyricon- Dark
medieval times I
first heard this on the "Det Svarte
Alvor" documentary on Norwegian television just before it was released
and
I instantly took the bus downtown and tried to find it in the local
black metal
store, but he had no idea what I was asking about, but two weeks later
the
album came out and it all fell into place. For me it's a perfect
Norwegian
black metal album full of moods and atmosphere.
Guest List from Fredrick
of Entrench
Iron Maiden-A Real Live
One
The first album I ever bought. This got me
into metal and music in general. Not
the
best live album at all, but it has its moments and has meant a lot.
Kreator-Terrible
Certainty Quite obvious on my list.
The past aggression
and the ability of the future meets in a mash of madness.
Black
Sabbath-S/T This
album(and the rest of early Sabbath) got me to pick up the guitar again
when I realized
that I actually could play the songs that I loved. I had tried earlier
to play
Maiden tunes but failed miserably and quit.
Ritual
Sacrifice-The Early Years compilation This blew my mind when I
bought it in 2007,
this is probably the cd that I've worn out most in the last 6 years.
Love everything
about it, it just simply kills. Also
the
lyrics have made a huge impact on my own writing.
Accept-Balls
To The Wall Memories
This is the
soundtrack to my youth, i can't even think back without hearing this
stuff in
my head. Great for booze filled nostalgic trips today.
Helloween-S/T
MLP This
was a huge influence early on. Kai Hansen is better than you, me,
everybody!
One of my all time favourite recordings.
Candlemass-Epicus
Doomicus Metallicus Like many others, this is
the album that
introduced me to doom. For good and for bad times, this one never fails.
Merciless-The
Awakening
No superlatives enough to describe Roggas vocals. My
biggest vocal
influence.
Death-Spiritual
Healing
The introduction to death metal I believe, this
album is still one of my
favourites.
Blind
Guardian-Battalions of Fear Much like early Helloween
this was a major
reason why Entrench was started in the first place.
Guest List of Kim of Infant Death
Judas Priest = Sad
Wings of Destiny
Carcass = Symphonies of Sickness
Napalm Death = From Enslavement To Obliteration
Mayhem = Live in Leipzig
Terrorizer = World Downfall
Hans Rotmo = Varres Jul
Nuclear Death = Bride of Insect
Deathstrike = Fuckin Death
Mercyful Fate = Don't Break The Oath
Nuclear Assault = Game Over
Guest list from Jeffrey Mhaghnuis of Ptahil/Demonic
Christ
1.
IRON MAIDEN - Number of the Beast This was
the release that started it all for me. Watching the video for the
song "Number of the Beast" on some midnight video show, Night Flight
I think it was. My Grandmother starts to panic & turned off the
tv so I only
caught a glimmer of the first verse into "6-6-6, the Number of the
Beast", making the aura of Heavy Metal music for me the arcane secret,
not
only holding evil but unknown knowledge as well.
2.
DIO - The Last in Line
I was first exposed to this by the "We Rock"
video. This is also one
of the first times I can remember feeling powerful from the music. I
always
knew there was something special about music & my connection
with it. I
always felt a presence surrounding music. But this was like being super
charged
with something not just positive, but a good feeling to stand one's
ground and
to carve one's own path. Something great for me to get ready to before
I went
to school to deal with all the shitheads. "We Rock" & "The
Last in Line" were always listened to in the morning & the rest
of the
cassette was played on my headphones at night. Laying in bed letting
the magic
of Dio's music helped me to escape.
3.
SLAYER - Show No Mercy
I remember getting this cassette as an
appeasement to behave on a trip out of
town to some funeral wake that my Grandparents felt they had to attend.
Listening to the song Black Magic on a night drive in heavily wooded
areas on
my way to see a dead body of someone I never met = AWESOME!
4.
CELTIC FROST - To Mega Therion I
remember being hit with orchestration when this cassette started, then
being
hit in the face with "The Usurper". HEY! To Mega Therion was
a killer release that made me instantly snag up Morbid
Tales and Into The Pandemonium. All being a bit different from each
release was
very interesting to me. I still cannot forgive them threw their L.A.
Tampon
Phase. But those 3 releases are great.
5.
BATHORY - Under the Sign of the
Black Mark This is one of those releases in my
collection that I had to eventually get
several copies of over time due to constant use. "Woman of Dark
Desires"; "Equimanthorn"; "Enter the Eternal Fire"
Come on! Driving in the hills of western Pennsylvania
& West Virginia to this
cassette at midnight to the break of dawn was one of the greatest times
in my
life. Stopping on abandoned roads & blaring this from my car
and sitting in
the dark woods at night.
6
MINOR THREAT - Out of Step
7.
BLACK FLAG- Slip It In
8.
CHARGED GBH - Leather Bristles, No
Survivors & Sick Boys These 3
releases of, Minor Threat; Black Flag; & GBH all hit me at once
in
High School when I made friends with a punker from the next town over.
Saturday
afternoons skateboarding, playing in a hardcore band called, The
Cretins (Thank
You Troma) and watching Flipside Video Issues. Those were the days.
9.
DARK THRONE - A Blaze in the
Northern Sky
This release, for me was my introduction to
Norwegian Black Metal music. I
loved Soulside Journey as far as Death Metal goes & picked this
up thinking
it was going to be another great Death Metal release. But found it to
be
something far, far darker. Soon after I heard all the Norwegian church
burning
stories. Mayhem & Burzum soon followed in my collection.
10.
MAYHEM - De Mysteriis Dom Satanas This
release was EVIL! So evil members died & killed each other
during it's
creation. Churches got burnt to the ground, lives were ruined, and the
world is
a much darker place since MAYHEM recorded this album. You can hear the
malevolence seeping over in tracks like "Pagan Fears"; "Funeral
Fog"; "Freezing Moon" &
"De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas".
Guest list from Pete Slate of Druid Lord
1.
Kiss - Kiss Alive -
I remember
being in about the 4th grade and a
kid in my class brought in the double LP and booklet for "Show and
Tell." The album cover was so amazing to me and the booklet had color
live
shots of each member. I was totally blown away seeing Gene spitting
blood and
Ace playing his guitar. So, not to long after my friend brought it over
I heard
the tracks "Rock Bottom", "Parasite", and "Got to
Choose." I was hooked from that moment on. I had a
fascination/obsession
with the band for years after until about the "Unmasked" period.
2.
Black Sabbath -
Master of Reality - The one thing about
having older brothers is the fact that they give or pass things down to
you
over the years. My brother not wanting his record collection gave me a
number
or LP's. I was about 10 I think. So I see this Black album cover with
huge
purple letters. I had heard the name Black Sabbath but never really
listened to
them except for the songs on the radio. So I get this LP and it's dirty
as
hell. My friend at the time "Tracy "grabs the album and washes it
with soap and water. I was thinking like "what the hell." To my
surprise the album looked great and sounded great. When that needed hit
the
vinyl, I got shivers down my spine. At this point I had heard nothing
so heavy
as the "Master of Reality" album. This was the point I knew that I
wanted
to be a guitar player.
3.
AC/DC - Powerage -
I remember going into a Kmart
as a kid buying the "Back in Black" album when it came out. There was
all this hype around the band. I jammed the hell out of the record. So
that
nest Christmas II asked my mom for the "Powerage" and "High
Voltage" LP's. I never, ever thought she would purchase these for me
since
she wasn't a rock n roll fan, but to my surprise I got both. Both of
these
albums are my favorite AC/CD records, but Powerage is my ultimate
choice. The
raw power of "Rock n Roll Damnation, Down Payment Blues, and Sin
City." Such a great album. In fact I had a cover band back in early
high
school that played "Sin City" live...good times.
4.
Uriah Heep - Demons and Wizards - This was one of
those used record store finds for me when I was about 13. Totally was
into the
Rodger Dean gatefold
album cover. That
album while not as heavy as let's say Black Sabbath" still kicked ass.
I
used to like all the cool studio shots of the band on the inside cover.
This is
one of those LP's that I still listen to today.
5.
Slayer - Haunting the Chapel - I remember
walking into a Peaches Records in 1984 and the album had just come out.
At this
point I had not bought their "Show No mercy" record so this was my
first listen to the band. When I put my huge "Radio Shack" headphones
on and heard "Chemical Warfare" I was like what the hell is this? So
fast, heavy, raw...I didn't know how to take it at first. The album
grew on me
in fact I think I played it every day for month. Anytime I saw the name
Hanneman (RIP) or King on the lyrics I knew it was going to kick ass.
Still one
of my Slayer favorites.
6.
Metallica - Ride the Lighting -
I wore my damn
turntable out on this one. James and Cliff. Man watching those dudes
bang their
heads in unison was an inspiration within itself.
7.
Celtic Frost - Too Mega Therion - To this day I
still worship CF. This was the epic album. Giger gatefold album, heavy
production, killer band photos. Frost is my #1 inspirational albums for
playing
heavy music. Druid Lord draws a lot from frost. In high school not many
people
even heard of CF so I would purposely crank the cassette as loud as I
could in
the school parking lot. Screw you Bon Jovi.
8.
Possessed - Beyond the Gates -
My #2 most
inspiration album. For most it was "Seven Churches." I also dig that
album but "Beyond..." showed a lot more progression in terms of
music. Yes the production was just weird but the guitar riffs, Jeff's
vocals, the
leads totally make that album. Possessed is one of my all time favorite
bands.
No one has ever come close to sounding like Jeff. Total metal worship
here.
9.
Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas - Mayhem!!!!!! My
true favorite Black Metal band of all time. I was playing metal during
this
period. This is before I joined up in Acheron. I was a huge "Dead"
fan. Anything he recorded sounded so damn awesome. When he committed
suicide I
really thought that was it. In fact I remember reading old zines with
interviews
with Mayhem and writing to the band. In fact I still have a letter from
Dead.
Anyway, after the
murder of Euronymous,
it seemed everyone loved Mayhem but for me it was more that than. I
truly felt
the cold vibe of the music. When
this LP
finally came out I was totally impressed with Atilla's vocals and the
music was
still has haunting and sinister as ever.
10.
Massacre - From Beyond - What's not to
like about this album. It's one of the best death metal albums of all
time.
Yes, i also dig old Death but "From Beyond" was great. Lee's vocals
still to this day cannot be matched. Rozz's guitar sound was so fucking
heavy
back then. I remember seeing them in a club in FL and his whammy bar
solo broke
a wine glass at the bar...true story. I mean this is the rhythm section
from
the Leprosy album. What is not to like? Also, I loved the writing style
of the
lyrics on this album. Classic.
The last few bands
were more personal favorites than inspirational but I had to list them.
When I
think inspirational I think "this is what got me to play music and
influence my style." I would say that Possessed, Celtic Frost, and
Black
Sabbath really had the biggest effect on my guitar playing. There is
always
Bathory, Necrovore, Venom, UFO, and the list could go on and on.......
Guest List of Eric of Akitsa/TheSyre/Beast
Within/Pohjast
Iron Maiden =
Powerslave
Bathory = Hammerheart
Ministry = Psalm 69
Burzum = Filosofem
Sodom = Persecution Mania
Laibach = Nova Akropola
Darkthrone = Transilvanian Hunger
Kreator = Extreme Aggression
Cathedral = Forest Of Equilibrium
Godflesh = Streetcleaner
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