Burnt Offerings (1995) – ICED EARTH
ICED EARTH’s peak came in the mid-90’s when metal music had fallen out of favor in the mainstream. This is unfortunate because the band deserves more recognition. Burnt Offerings should be on all-time lists but has been relegated to a hidden metal gem. Listen to this album! It is complex, thematic, has great performances and showcases Jon Schaffer’s impressive song-writing craft.
Genre: Thrash Metal/Power Metal/Speed Metal
The Dark Saga (1996) – ICED EARTH
ICED EARTH’s follow-up to Burnt Offerings is more straight-forward than it’s predecessor, but no less impactful. It is also a concept album about the comic-book character Spawn, and it makes for a perfect binge-listening experience.
Genre: Thrash Metal/Power Metal/Speed Metal
The Sound of Perseverance – (1998) – DEATH
The Sound of Perseverance is the rare death metal album that transcends genres, and can be appreciated by metal fans of all sorts. Argued as DEATH’s best record by fans and critics, it is death metal with a sense of progressiveness and maturity. The performances themselves are worth a listen but even the song-writing is interesting and inventive.
Genre: Death Metal/Progressive Metal
Resurrection (2000) – HALFORD
After Rob Halford spent the 90’s experimenting with groove/thrash metal (FIGHT) and industrial metal (TWO), he returned to his JUDAS PRIEST roots with 2000’s Resurrection. The entire album is well-crafted, pure heavy metal that nearly every metal fan can enjoy.
Genre: Pure Heavy Metal
Toxicity (2001) – SYSTEM OF A DOWN
At #27 on Rolling Stone‘s all-time list, the article best describes Toxicity as “temperamental, emotional, and unhinged”. This album is indeed exciting, surprising, and inventive. Toxicity is all over the place but SYSTEM OF A DOWN is able to keep it from totally going off the rails. The result is a revolutionary metal album.
Genre: Alternative Metal
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