My Top 666 Albums Ever (THE CONCLUSION)

18) Pearl Jam - Pearl Jam (2006)

After a couple of albums that weren't very good ('Binaural' and 'Riot Act'), Pearl Jam decided to pick up their electric guitars again, and record their first full-on rock album since the mid-90's. I was skeptical upon its release, but it eventually became one of my favourite of their albums. It might sound like a mid-life crisis every time a middle-aged band decides to "return to their roots", but sometimes it's a long-needed palette cleanser that actually goes on to surpass a lot of the band's previous work. This is one of those times.
Best Songs: Life Wasted; Army Reserve; Inside Job

17) Nine Inch Nails - Broken (1992)

'Pretty Hate Machine', the debut album from Nine Inch Nails was seemingly more inspired by synthpop than their future records. The turning point came when Trent Reznor put together a band to tour behind that album... fed up with being ignored by the fans of bands they were opening for the band became more and more aggressive in sound. TVT, the label that released 'Pretty Hate Machine' were however demanding that the next NIN record sound like 'Pretty Hate Machine' (an album they had previously referred to as an "abortion"), and fuelled by the anger at the label's interference and inspired by the band's live performances, Reznor recorded this mini-album in secret as the ultimate "fuck you". It's fast, it's loud, it's angry, it's everything that people would come to expect from Nine Inch Nails, and the vital turning point in the band's career. Instead of releasing the band from their contract, TVT instead sold it to Interscope Records, a label that (for a while), Reznor had a much better working relationship with.
Best Songs: Wish; Last

16) Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream (1993)

Before recording for 'Siamese Dream' began, the media had hyped the band up as "the next Nirvana" - despite releasing their debut album months before most people had heard of Nirvana - which put an inordinate amount of pressure on Billy Corgan to come out with a huge record. This is not a good feeling to have when you are currently battling severe depression and undergoing writer's block. And to make matters worse, guitarist James Iha and bassist D'Arcy Wretzky who had become lovers were in the middle of a break-up so messy they couldn't even stand to be in the same room, and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin was in the grip of crippling heroin addiction. It's a wonder that 'Siamese Dream' ever got made, but with the help of producer Butch Vig (who had produced both the Pumpkins' debut, 'Gish', and Nirvana's 'Nevermind') Corgan slowly but surely began to write some of the most deeply personal songs of his career, starting with 'Today', a song that on a casual listen sounds bright and optimistic but upon closer inspection is an ironic look at the suicidal thoughts he was experiencing at the time. Moving into the studio for almost the entirety of the album's recording, Corgan managed to get the album finished despite band members disappearing for days on drug bender's, or locking themselves in the bathroom and refusing to record anything. It must have been a relief then, that 'Siamese Dream' became one of the biggest hits of the era, and is still highly regarded to this day, with its grandiose production featuring layers upon layers of guitars differentiating it from the rawer productions that had been released by other band's in that time.
Best Songs: Rocket; Disarm; Soma

15) The Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers (1971)

Every single song is a classic. The drafting of guitarist Mick Taylor to replace Brian Jones turned them into rock 'n' roll behemoths like they'd never been before.
Best Songs: Brown Sugar; Wild Horses

14) Michael Jackson - Bad (1987)

Most people prefer 'Thriller', but 'Bad' has a special place in my heart for being the first proper album I ever owned. I was only around three years old at the time, but I saw the music video for 'Bad' on TV, and it became my introduction to the world of music beyond whatever my family happened to be listening to. This album, and Jackson in general, was a huge part of my life and shaping the person I became as I grew up. 'Man In The Mirror' remains my favourite of his songs. It's sad that the side-effects of being able to inspire people like me were that his life became a huge mess, though.
Best Songs: Man In The Mirror; Dirty Diana

13) Guns N' Roses - Chinese Democracy (2008)

"But there's no Slash"... the most tiresome sentence in the history of music. 'Chinese Democracy' took far too long to record, I think everyone involved will admit to that (though production began in 1998, not 1993 like popularly reported). And the band's line-up fluctuated so much in the years it was being produced that, yes, it's less the product of a band and more of a collaboration between a huge group of musicians (the sort of thing no one complains about when Queens Of The Stone Age does it, by the way). But put away who is (and more often who isn't) playing on the record, and forget about all of the drama involved with the band that to put it bluntly has absolutely nothing to do with anyone but the people actually directly involved, and what you've got is a pretty fantastic record.
There are a few tracks that may throw off some fans of the bands older material (most notably the White Zombie-style 'Shackler's Revenge'), but there are also tracks that are exactly what you'd expect from Guns N' Roses ('Street Of Dreams', 'There Was A Time', and the heartbreakingly beautiful 'This I Love' among them). And after repeated listens, the songs that come most out of left-field have really grown on me. Along with members of the current line-up (Axl Rose, keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Chris Pitman, bassist Tommy Stinson, guitarists Richard Fortus and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, and drummer Frank Ferrer), there are also contributions from other musicians that have come and gone from the band's ranks over the years, guitarists Buckethead, Robin Finck and Paul Tobias and drummer Brain (of Primus). Josh Freese - who was the drummer at the beginning of production - is also credited with multiple drum arrangements (to those who accuse Axl of wanting all the glory for himself, how many band's credit people for drum arrangements, or in one case someone is credited for a suggestion), as well as co-writer of the album's title track.
After seeing the band many times over the years, including last year at the O2 Arena, I do believe that 'Chinese Democracy' is finally growing on casual listeners of the band, as more people seem to be singing along to the new songs every time. I can understand the original skepticism around the record, but not the outright hostility that it also generates from some people.
Best Songs: Better; There Was A Time; This I Love

12) Mother Love Bone - Shine (1989)

The debut EP from Mother Love Bone.
Best Song: Mindshaker Meltdown

11) Faith No More - The Real Thing (1989)

Faith No More's third album introduced the almost supernaturally versatile Mike Patton (he can croon as well as he screams and raps, and if you've played the Darkness videogame he did the voice of that force of pure evil without any sort of vocal filter) as the band's frontman replacing Chuck Mosley. Unlike later albums, 'The Real Thing' is an almost pure funk metal album, with rapped sections that are reminiscent of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but with guitar riffs that are far heavier than anything produced by that band, who assumed that they'd been ripped off when they first heard 'Epic'.
Best Songs: From Out Of Nowhere; Epic

10) Duff McKagan's Loaded - The Taking (2011)

After the release and original touring behind 'Sick', Loaded's drummer Geoff Reading decided to leave the band for personal reasons and suggested Isaac Carpenter as his replacement. Isaac is a former member of the band Loudermilk (who became Gosling), and is Dave Grohl's favourite drummer, which should give you an idea of what to expect. Perhaps inspired by the hard-hitting nature of the new addition to the band, 'The Taking' is a much darker and heavier album than Loaded's previous albums, which could only be exacerbated by the inclusion of legendary producer Terry Date (he of Pantera fame). Opening with the bottom-heavy slow-grind of 'Lords Of Abaddon', 'The Taking' hardly ever stops for breath, though there is lighter far in the mid-point of the album with 'Easier Lying', 'She's An Anchor' and 'Indian Summer' sounding closer to previous material than what had come before, but it doesn't take long for the harder sound to re-emerge in tracks like 'King Of The World', 'Your Name', and the extremely angry 'Follow Me To Hell'. It seems that the previous Loaded albums were the band merely experimenting whilst trying to find a sound that was their's. With 'The Taking', they may have found it. Time will tell.
Best Songs: Executioner's Song; Dead Skin; Cocaine

9) Pearl Jam - Ten (1991)

Another of the top albums of the 90's, Pearl Jam's debut album is one that helped define the era.
Best Songs: Alive; Black

8) Stone Sour - Audio Secrecry (2010)

Stone Sour's third album, and one of the most fantastic of recent years.
Best Songs: Mission Statement; Hesitate; Threadbare

7) Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger (1991)

1991 was certainly a busy year for great music. Along with Nirvana's 'Nevermind', you had 'Ten' by Pearl Jam, 'Gish' by Smashing Pumpkins, 'Uncle Anesthesia' by Screaming Trees, the Temple Of The Dog album, the two 'Use Your Illusion' albums from Guns N' Roses, and this... the breakthrough hit from Soundgarden. With Hiro Yamamoto replaced by Ben Shepherd, 'Badmotorfinger' features a lot more low-end than previous Soundgarden albums, and the riffs have an early Black Sabbath influence. And on top of all this is the voice of Chris Cornell, which by this point was really coming into its own. If you're going to lump all of the Seattle bands under one "grunge" banner, then I guess this is my favourite grunge album for being so amazingly awesome from start to finish.
Best Songs: Outshined; Slaves & Bulldozers; Jesus Christ Pose

6) Guns N' Roses - Use Your Illusion II (1991)

The second part of GN'R's 'Use Your Illusion' records is by far the superior of the two. As I mentioned before, the tracks on 'UYI1' that sounded most like they belonged on 'Appetite For Destruction' were some of the weakest they recorded, and it was when they were pushing their sound in new directions at this point in their career that the band were at their best. Well, 'UYI2' is almost entirely the latter kind of track, and the songwriting on display here is uniformly outstanding (with one minor exception in 'My World' that I don't think really counts as a song), with Axl Rose's 'Breakdown' and 'Estranged' showing just why he is my favourite songwriter. I like things to be big, and epic (something that is echoed in my taste in movies), and Rose delivers in spades. Slash's 'Locomotive' is also a huge standout. The one track that is most similar to 'AFD' on this album is 'You Could Be Mine', and is actually unique for those kind of songs for GN'R in '91 in that it can stand alongside any track on that album without any kind of shame whatsoever. As great as 'Appetite For Destruction' is - more on that later - Guns N' Roses wouldn't have become my favourite band without 'Use Your Illusion' showing exactly what they were all capable of.
Best Songs: Breakdown; Estranged; You Could Be Mine

5) Avenged Sevenfold - Nightmare (2010)

In 2009, Avenged Sevenfold entered the studio to begin work on their new album. Work on the album was sadly interrupted by the sudden and tragic death of their drummer, The Rev (aka James Sullivan). When the band eventually resumed work on the record with Dream Theatre's Mike Portnoy filling in on drums, the band seemed to have been revitalised recording some of the most emotional (though no less heavy) music of their career in tribute to their fallen friend. An especially poignant moment is 'Fiction', a song about death that just happens to feature vocals from The Rev himself, though it's the two lengthy tracks that are the actual stand-outs of the record.
Best Songs: Buried Alive; Save Me

4) Metallica - Death Magnetic (2008)

Let's put aside the issues with the mastering of the album, in which 'Death Magnetic' unfortunately fell victim to the "loudness wars" - a production technique used by record labels in order to make the music more noticable when played on the radio, but sacrificing overall sound quality. I'm aware that this is going to be unpopular (perhaps even more unpopular than my high placing of 'Chinese Democracy'), but based purely on the songs, I believe that 'Death Magnetic' is the perfect Metallica album. Why? Because it combines the thrash metal the band helped pioneer in the 80's with the more melodic side of the band's music that they picked up along the way in the 90's... plus it doesn't sound a thing like 'St. Anger' which is always a plus.
Best Songs: Cyanide; The Judas Kiss

3) Tool - Lateralus (2001)

The first post-A Perfect Circle Tool album, and the influence from that band is definitely evident in Maynard's vocals, who sings in much the same way that he did on 'Mer de Noms', rather than the rougher sound Tool sounds had become accustomed to. The composition of the actual album, however, is Tool's most ambitious to date, including a three track sequence that listened to exclusively comes to around 25 minutes, and the title track incorporating a structure based on the Fibonacci sequence. The lyrics of that track deal with humanity's eternal quest for knowledge and also incorporated other elements of Mathematical theory, including the song alternating between 9/8, 8/8 and 7/8 time signatures (987 is the sixteenth integer of the Fibonacci sequence apparently). There is also an alternative tracklisting that if listened to in the correct order turns the album into one continuous song with ends of each track seamlessly merging with the beginning of the next. This tracklisting was discovered when a fan took the line "spiral out" from the title track as an instruction.
So, with all of this complexity and hidden content, it's obvious that Tool intended to make their fans think beyond just listening to an album. And they get away with it, because it is undoubtedly one of the greatest albums that modern metal has ever produced.
Best Songs: The Patient; Parabola; Lateralus

2) Nine Inch Nails - Year Zero (2007)

'Year Zero' is another album that gave fans something else to think about beyond the music. This time, the actual album was just one part of a multimedia project that included videos, countless websites and even real life and basically transformed people's perceptions of what a concept album could be. The general idea was based on the current political climate in the US in 2007, and Trent Reznor kind of created a dystopian society based upon his ideas of where things would be if they carried on as they were - the kind of thing that people have been writing about for years to be sure, but it's fairly unique in the medium of music.
The first hint that this was something bigger was when someone noticed that highlighted letters on a tour t-shirt spelled out 'another version of the truth', and somehow got it into his head that this would be the domain of a website. He was absolutely correct, and things expanded from there... new hidden messages were being found everywhere. Reznor would hide USB sticks with tracks from the album on them, with things hidden in the sound files that you could only access by putting the album into professional software. At one point some fans were asked to search for packages which contained cell phones... the cell phones rang inviting them to a "top secret" meeting, which turned out to be a recruitment drive for a an underground resistance movement, as well as a surprise NIN gig which ended in a fake police raid.
And once again, all of this would have fell flat on its face if the music didn't stand up to the inventiveness of its conception. To make a long story short, this is number two on a list of my favourite albums of all time... the music didn't disappoint. Throughout its sixteen tracks it takes you on a fascinating trip through the future Reznor had imagined, and felt like a culmination of NIN's entire career until that point. It had the harsh electronics of 'The Downward Spiral' (with 'The Great Destroyer', he got in before the dubstep trend), the haunting instrumentals and large-scale scope of 'The Fragile', and at points even showed the commercial inventiveness of 'Pretty Hate Machine'. And to top everything off, NIN's live performances at this time (where Reznor was joined by Jeordie White, Allesandro Cortini, Aaron North and Josh Freese) were some of the best performances I've ever seen from any band ever.
Last week it was announced that Nine Inch Nails are returning with a tour and new music. I'm excited.
Best Songs: Survivalism; Vessel; God Given; The Great Destroyer

1) Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction (1987)

In a musical climate populated by cheesy pop or even cheesier "glam metal", in which bands paid more attention to their image and how much drugs, girls and money they could get, the world was crying out for something a bit different. Enter Axl Rose, Slash, Izzy Stradlin, Duff McKagan and Steven Adler... a band where drugs, girls and money happened, but they were a consequence of the music rather than the reason for it. A band that looked like the bunch of misfits they were, equally inspired by punk as they were hard rock and metal. A band that dispensed with the sleek production, and synthesiser heavy "rock" of the time, and instead released 'Appetite For Destruction', a raw, dirty, expletive-ridden album that combined the bluesy-hard rock of early Aerosmith with the venomous rage of the Sex Pistols.
People nowadays lump Guns N' Roses in with all of those band's that I referred to before... the Motley Crue's and the Poison's. But make no mistake, they were a very different beast. They had a lot more in common with the band's that were currently building up steam in Seattle than they did the rest of L.A. In fact, I believe that if it wasn't for 'Appetite For Destruction' whetting people's appetites for something that sounded less polished, and more honest, then 'Nevermind' would never have become the hit that it was. And I believe that deep down, Kurt Cobain knew this, but he also knew that he had to set himself against what came before, and chose the most prominent band of the 80's to focus on - a rivalry that then got played up by the media, which confuses people nowadays when Slash and Duff are good friends of Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl.
It's ironic that the hit that sent Guns N' Roses into the stratosphere is also the least indicative of what the rest of album sounded like, but 'Sweet Child O' Mine' is still one of the best rock songs ever... and to think that Slash considered that intro a joke when he first came up with it.
Did the fact that this was at number one actually surprise anybody, by the way?
Best Songs: Welcome To The Jungle; Sweet Child O' Mine; Rocket Queen