Bring Back Glam! Picks the Best Straight Metal Albums of 2009
As promised, today we’ll look at the top straight metal releases of 2009. Yeah, I can flip from Poison, to Mayhem, to Britney Spears to Alison Krauss to Goatwhore without missing a beat. Don’t hate. These records rule and you should own them – even if you don’t like it particularly heavy, give props for the artistry. Here’s the list of seven because there wasn’t even 10 straight metal albums I liked enough to write about. I think 2008 was better for straight metal, but every other critic is gushing at how great the year has been, so be it. With that, my top seven:
07. Megadeth – Endgame
06. Heaven and Hell – The Devil You Know
05. Slayer – World Painted Blood
04. Goatwhore – Carving Out the Eyes of God
03. Saxon – Into the Labyrinth
02. Queensryche - American Soldier
01. Alice in Chains – Black Gives Way to Blue
Notice Mastodon isn’t here. I don’t dislike Mastodon. I’ve never met the band, never interviewed them, have nothing against them. I guess I just didn’t like Crack the Skye as much as every other metal writer on the planet. Sometimes it takes some major cojones to break from the pack. It seems like every list I saw also hated the new Queensryche, but not me. I think the Seattle band regrouped with American Soldier and made one of their best albums since Mindcrime. Opinions make the world ‘go round I guess.
What say you?
Tomorrow, a look back at the music of the decade.