HailMetal.com has unleashed a new Top 50 list, this time featuring the Top 50 Death Metal Albums Of All Time. They have issued the following introduction to the list:

"HailMetal.com returns in full force with yet another Top 50 List. This time, the topic is death metal (if that wasn't already obvious to you). Why death metal? Well for much the same reasons as we did the thrash list, we are working off what we currently have the most knowledge of. Most of the staff here are fairly death metal savvy and as such we believe the ensuing list, whilst not going to please everyone, should have something for everyone, stir some heated debate and acknowledge as decent a breadth of death metal's contribution to music over the last 22 years (or thereabouts) as one possibly can, restricted to naming the Top 50 albums of all time.

The composition of the list was slightly different to that of the thrash list. Whilst in principal, it was the same idea (based on voting amongst the admins), weightings were implied on each of our individual knowledges and a hopefully less skewed or concentrated list has resulted (in English, unlike the thrash list, you won't see 4 or 5 albums by the big name acts). The change was in response to criticism of our thrash list, not that we think we got it incorrect, but just an acknowledgement to the fact that there are multiple approaches and interpretations of what could be considered 'the greatest' of all time.

Compared to the thrash list again, we have similarly taken a hard line as to what we consider eligible to death metal. Again there is room for interpretation, but to give you a flavour of how we drew the line in the sand, the most difficult was with the death / doom crossover - whilst KATATONIA, ASPHYX, AMORPHIS, OCTOBER'S TIDE were considered in, MY DYING BRIDE, MOURNFUL CONGREGATION, early CATHEDRAL, SKEPTICISM were all considered out. Other genre crossovers were less problematic, with only a handful of considerations such as DISSECTION and ZYKLON ever considered for the death metal list (but in the end left out). The line was drawn between death leaning towards the 'destructive' rather than having a 'reconstructive' purpose. Equally, we took a pragmatic approach and considered what the natural reaction would be when considering what genre the band fell into. Naturally simple aesthetics were key in making this distinction. And while I don't intend to define the genre, I suspect you could infer a definition from the above, and whatever your opinion with regard to some grey area bands may be, take solace in the fact that if it is included or excluded from this list, it will be relative to other lists we have or will compose.

The many difficulties in accommodating people's taste as well as some stubborn opinions (including my own) as well as our busy schedules made the list difficult to compose. Without dwelling on the latter, you will probably be able to instantly spot 'gaps' in the list. But these are not indeed 'gaps', but rather illustrations of a difference in opinion. For example, whilst I considered CRYPT OF KEREBOS' World Of Myths mandatory listening, Goran leaned towards BLOODBATH's Nightmares Made Flesh, Luke preferred THE ABYSS' The Otherside and Nick, GORGUTS' From Wisdom To Hate. None of the above made our list but were considered for the list and at the end of the day there unfortunately just wasn't enough room.

Furthermore, we have gone with an approach of acknowledging only one album per band. Therefore, where you may question why we don't have something like The Sumerian Cry or The Karelian Isthmus, it's not because we don't like the album, rather it was a case of saying that Death Metal, over 22 years has had more than 50 influential bands, and to try and narrow it down to less was more blasphemous than not individually acknowledging these aforementioned albums. We believe that the sentiment behind each album represented is also something of a representation of the bands full contribution to Death Metal as we know it. Furthermore, I will concede this Death Metal list has not been composed by 7 brutal death metal fans. Therefore, whilst there is some representation, brutal death fans are the most likely to be agitated by this list, but c'est la vie.

On that note, I will leave you with a list that will surely even rattle the very walls of hell with its unyielding respect for the most destructive forces in music death metal."

~ Mike [byrne]

HM Senior Staff

Go to this location to check out the list.