100 METAL ALBUMS IN 100 DAYS • Page 4

DAY 93



Darkthrone - A Blaze In The Northern Sky (1992)

Well, this is it. The last black metal album on the list. I actually listened to this one months ago (when AP was still up) when I was in the early 20's of this list. I couldn't get past the awful production, so after a few listens I shelved it and told myself I'd get back to it. So here we are at album #93 and I'm giving it another go.

I think it's a good thing that I listened to all those other black metal bands first, because I appreciated this album much more the second time around. All the trademark BM facets are there - the guttural and creepy intro sounds, the winter imagery, and the horrid production. Seriously, it's bad. During the spoken vocal parts it sounds like it was totally lifted off of another track with no effects and clipped right into the song without even trying to match the atmosphere. The band's label was so appalled at the terrible quality that they wouldn't release it unless it was cleaned up. The band threatened to release the album on another label, forcing their label's hand. And thus, A Blaze In The Northern Sky was created.

All the complaining about production aside, this album felt head and shoulders above the previous black metal offerings on this list. I thought the vocals were actually good, and there is some semblance of melody over the course of the record. The band apparently doesn't consider the album true black metal album as it contains leftover elements of their previous death metal days, which might be why I enjoyed it. I could actually hear riffs!

I couldn't really listen to this album multiple times in one sitting/day (even thought that's what I did). Still, it was much easier to appreciate this time around. As far as this list and the albums on it are concerned:

1. Darkthrone
2. Emperor
3. Immortal
4. Bathory
5. Mayhem

That will probably ruffle some trve kvlt feathers..

Overall: 8/10

Favorite songs: "In the Shadows of the Horns" "Paragon Belial"

 

DAY 94



King Diamond - Abigail (1987)

I went into this not knowing it was a concept album. Obviously, I was confused because they kept singing about Jonathan and Miriam and some baby. Only after listening to the album twice did I look into the story, but more on that in a moment.

I wanted to like this album. I know King Diamond is a talented guy, but I just can't for the life of me take the vocals seriously. I can do Halford and Dickinson, but this dude sounds like a cartoon character. It's even worse when he harmonizes with himself in falsetto. I just can't. There is nothing about them I enjoy. Sad thing too, because the riffs and solos are pretty solid.

As for the story, it's about a couple who moves into a haunted mansion despite being warned against doing so by seven horsemen. There's a ghost in the house and the wife becomes pregnant/possessed by a demon baby and she kills her husband then dies giving birth while the baby gets taken by the seven horseman into the woods to be nailed to a tree or something. IT'S PRETTY DAMN METAL.

Overall: 6.5/10 (higher without vocals, but only slightly so)

Favorite song: "Abigail"

 

DAY 95



Neurosis - Through Silver in Blood (1996)

This album was released 20 years ago on my 8th birthday. This is the only post-metal album on this list by a band not named Mastodon. I've always mildly enjoyed the genre, and it's good to listen to something different towards the end of this project.

For starters, this is a long album, clocking in at over 70 minutes, with four songs surpassing the 10 minute mark. The opening track builds up slowly before destroying you in a way that only post-metal can. The vocals were not at all what I was expecting, which was some kind of Godflesh-type grunting. They sound hardcore influenced, and upon further research it turns out the band started as a hardcore punk outfit and some traces of that remain on this album, especially the shouted vocals.

This album is massive.

Overall: 8.5/10

Favorite songs: "Purify" "Strength of Fates"

 

DAY 96



Repulsion - Horrified (1989)

Nah. That sums up this album in one word for me. Looking back over my ratings for the Napalm Death and Terrorizer albums, I can see that I don't particularly care for grindcore/goregrind/whatever - this album least of all. It's 30 minutes of slamming and banging spread over 18 songs, so at least it's mercifully short. DON'T listen to the "bonus edition" because the play time extends to 65 goddamn minutes. How could anyone stand that much of this noise? The vocalist doesn't even sound like he's that into it. The album sounds like pure mud and I could never tell what song I was listening to. Don't listen to this if you have anxiety.

Am I being too harsh? Yes I am.

Overall: 5/10

Favorite songs: can't be bothered to figure that out

 

DAY 97



Rainbow - Rising (1976)

Hell yeah, this album rules. Dio doesn't go into the obnoxious falsetto territories so I can actually stand his voice. And much like Holy Diver, this album gets me pumped AF. And it came out 40 goddamn years ago! That's nuts. The synths are amazing, the fantasy themed lyrics of "Stargazer" are badass, and the album is short enough to listen to multiple times without tiring of it. At least that's how I feel.

And that art? SO GOOD. I'm getting a fist clutching a rainbow tattoo on my butt.

Overall: 9/10

Favorite songs: "Starstruck" "Stargazer"

 

DAY 98



Metal Church - Metal Church (1984)

I didn't know if I'd be getting thrash or heavy metal with this album, as I'm unfamiliar with Metal Church. It was a solid hybrid of the two genres with some speed metal thrown in, reminiscent of Painkiller. The title track is catchy as all hell. There are a handful of drum beats I like to tap along to with my hands or in my head if I'm bored or my mind is wandering (examples: the breakdown of August Burns Red's "Barbarian" or the intro to "I Will" by Hands, etc) and the beat in the title track slots right into that collection. It's dope.

"Merciless Onslaught" is just that - a sub-3 minute speed metal infused instrumental track, followed by a semi-ballad. You know I hate ballads, but "God of Wrath" transitions back and forth between the fast and slow, so all is not lost. The vocals are great and the riffs are tight. I'd go to this church.

Overall: 8/10

Favorite songs: "Metal Church" "(My Favorite) Nightmare"

 

DAY 99 (nsfw album art)



Witchfinder General - Death Penalty (1982)

I gave this album a try months ago, grew bored of it, and moved on. Since I've put it off until literally the very end of the list, it's safe to say I don't consider it to be anything special. It sounds like Black Sabbath worship with inferior vocals, with a few good riffs here and there - namely on the opening track. The band took the above photo in the courtyard of a church without the church's permission. What's more metal than that, other than burning witches?

Lots of things.

Overall: 7/10

Favorite songs: "Invisible Hate"

 

The final album on the list was originally Skid Row's self-titled, but was changed to GNR's Appetite after a recommendation from a friend. I knew I wouldn't enjoy it even before listening to it so I threw together a few possibilities for the 100th album. Most of them are albums from bands on the list, a few aren't:

Entombed - Wolverine Blues
Megadeth - Peace Sells
Death - Individual Thought Patterns
Manowar - Kings of Metal
Overkill - The Years of Decay

Any thoughts? I'll probably just randomize it.

 

DAY 100 - THE FINAL DAMN DAY



Manowar - Kings of Metal (1988)

For the final album of this epic journey, I decided to go with what was perhaps the most glorious choice available to me. Just look at that album art. I've seen Manowar become a meme on the internet without ever having heard a song of theirs. After blessing my ears with Kings of Metal, I now understand why this is a thing.

Opening track "Wheels of Fire" is literally the sound of motorcycles revving up and terrorizing the countryside. The title track is all about how they're the greatest and most metal band ever because "OTHER BANDS PLAY WHILE MANOWAR KILLS." Song 4 is non-stop bass shredding. "Pleasure Slave" is SUPER awkward and I had to turn it down because it sounded like an orgy while "Woman, be my slave!" was chanted over and over. "The Warrior's Prayer" is an old dude telling an epic story about a huge battle to his grandson. It's quite hilarious.

Overall, this over-the-top combination of power/heavy metal doesn't suit my tastes, but it was highly entertaining at the very least.

Overall: 7.5/10

Favorite song: "Kingdom Come"



I will be posting an unnecessarily long and detailed blog post about this journey here pretty soon. Lots of thoughts to share. Stay tuned.

 

Hey, I did that thing where I posted about this experiment. Check it out here:

Clueless in Seattle: Listening to Metal for 100 Days

 

i think i'm gonna make my own list of 100 and do this

 

Hell yeah do it

This was a fun experiment that started my deep dive into metal in which I'm still immersed in to this day