Refused, The Shape Of Punk To Come: A Chimerical Bombination In 12 Bursts (1998)
Redefining what punk rock could be before bowing out for more than a decade, Refused made a record that would go down in history as one of the most daring of its age. And come on, it has New Noise on it, one of the most undeniable anthems ever.
Bathory, Under The Sign Of The Black Mark (1987)
Like Sabbath before them, Swedish black metal pioneers Bathory’s first six albums are essential, all with creative character and influential importance of their own. But it was on the pitch black Under The Sign… that mainman Quorthon truly nailed his black art. Atmospheric, icy, brutal and fine-tuning the evil darkness of the band’s first two releases into something genuinely overpowering, it is a masterclass in Satanic majesty.
Baroness, Yellow & Green (2012)
Even in a body of work as glittering and near-flawless as Baroness’, Yellow & Green stands as a towering monument to the band’s deep well of creativity. So vast it needed two discs to contain it all, it is a marvellous, beautiful journey through rock music at its most intelligent and articulate, a celebration of the band's skill and craft.
Cradle Of Filth, Cruelty And The Beast (1998)
Cradle Of Filth weren’t exactly playing around on their earlier full-lengths, but it was on this one that their epic black metal matured. The production might be pants, but there’s no denying the power of these songs.
twenty one pilots, Vessel (2013)
Though featuring a handful of tracks from their previous full-length rerecorded, Vessel demonstrated to the world what twenty one pilots were capable of. Genre-hopping like it was going out of style, this is truly the work of masters in their element.
Code Orange, Forever (2017)
Slamming together elements of metal and hardcore and doing so with a humbling ruthlessness sets this album apart from the masses. It proved that Code Orange were not afraid to step outside of such boxes only makes for a stronger record.