With nu metal ruling the onset of the new millennium, the future of heavy metal was uncertain. Just like any other trend, though, nu metal soon went the way of the Dodo bird. Many of the groups that typified the ‘90s nu metal sound either disbanded or reformed with a modern hardcore groove. Soon metalcore took the crown as the new form of lucrative metal. Out of metalcore, came yet another sub-style known as deathcore.
The blending of various style of heavy music exemplified the 2000s. While styles such as melodic death metal, black metal and nu metal emerged during the previous decade, bands created something new through a mixing of the old. One new movement didn’t seek to create new styles, but brought back the sounds of old. Spearhead by Virginia’s crossover masters, Municipal Waste, the tag “New Wave of Thrash Metal” began popping up all over the place.
Not only did new ideas prevail during this decade, but also bands that surfaced during the past decade finally broke through to larger audiences. The melody driven death metal of Sweden and the satanic hordes of Norwegian black metal finally broke into the mainstream, at least as close as these harsh sounds will ever get. Even the disparate combination of folk music and heavy metal finally landed American shore, resulting in multiple “pagan metal” tours.
The new millennium also saw metal’s most famous and celebrated artists return to glorious form. Rob Halford returned to Judas Priest, released two albums and undertook several tours, including main stage performances on Ozzfest. Dio reunited with Black Sabbath under the moniker of Heaven and Hell. Iron Maiden kept rolling on, despite an egging by Ozzy’s crew during Ozzfest. Megadeth created their best albums since the early ‘90s and even Metallica finally produced an album worth noting. This may be the last hoorah for these groups. The next millennium will give us the answer of who will carry their torch. Perhaps, it will be some of the artists listed below.
1. Into Eternity - Buried in Oblivion (Century Media)
Many will say the following albums with Stu Block as their vocalists reigned over this one, but these albums showed the group losing much of its Dream Theater sound. Also, Block tends to overdo his screaming vocals. Buried in Oblivion contained aggression, melody, sweeping guitar leads in league with Yngwie Malmsteen, memorable riffs and deeply touching lyrics of a personal nature. With song titles such as “Spiraling into Depression,” “Isolation” and “Black Sea of Agony,” Buried in Oblivion will keep that frown upside down.
2. Opeth - Blackwater Park (Music for Nations Records)
Blackwater Park was the album that brought Opeth to the United States for the first time. Opeth’s progressive changes between soft clean passages and roaring death metal on this album were not only original for a melodic death band, but were innovative. Opeth’s prog/death metal sound made them unique amongst an explosion of Gothenburg, Sweden clones. Songs such as “The Leper Affinity” and “The Drapery Falls” have become mainstays on Opeth’s live set.
3. Immortal - Sons of Northern Darkness (Nuclear Blast)
Sons of Northern Darkness showed Norway’s coldest band perfectly bridge the hyper blasting, blizzard attack of their early records with the epic heavy metal rhythms of their newer sound. Horgh’s drum sound seemed derived by Thor, while Abbath’s voice became more frog-like and frosty. Sons of Northern Darkness is a black metal album that should stay “immortal” throughout time.
4. Nevermore - Dead Heart in a Dead World (Century Media)
Nevermore followed the dreary themes of Dreaming Neon Black, but became even more biting and cynical on this nihilistic-themed album. Here we have yet another album mixing ferocity and melody, but from a thrashy point of view. Dead Heart in a Dead World revealed Jeff Loomis tuning down his guitar sound and raising the bar as one of rock’s true legendary axe slingers. Warrel Dane pushed his vocal tones, in some places, to the highs of his former band, Sanctuary. Few albums possess the ability to get under one’s skin as Dead Heart in a Dead World.
5. Kreator - Hordes of Chaos (SPV)
Unlike many of their thrash metal peers, Kreator has only gotten better with time. Like a fine wine, Hordes of Chaos showed Kreator drastically improving with time. Speed was still a major factor on this album, although not to the extent of early records, but the band paid much greater attention to dynamics—switching from one infectious riff to another. Whether moving between hardcore breakdowns, swift speed metal or old school fist pumping mania—Hordes of Chaos showed Kreator at its most lethal form.
6. Agent Steel - Order of Illuminati (Scarlet)
Although not as recognized in the thrash movement as Kreator, Agent Steel is nonetheless a tremendous force in the thrash/speed metal movement. Order of Illuminati stayed with the conspiracy/subversive movement themes of the group’s second era, and boy, did they ever put these ideas into context. Bruce Halls pushed his vocals to the heights of metal greats such as Halford and Dickson. His voice, combined with the dual guitar harmonies and thunderous gallops of guitarists Bernie Versailles and Juan Garcia resulted in one haunting album!
7. Amon Amarth - With Oden on Our Side (Metal Blade)
Picking a masterpiece album for Amon Amarth is a lofty task because these Swedes have strayed little from the melodic death metal sound of their debut Once Sent From the Golden Hall. With Oden on Our Side, however, showed the group its epic sound to the next level. Songs such as “Asator” and “Hermod's Ride to Hel – Loke’s Treachery, Part 1” animated the tales of their Norse pas. Even though this age is forgotten and forlorn, Amon Amarth keeps these ancient tales in fresh in the minds of the modern metal head.
8. Arch Enemy - Wages of Sin (Century Media)
When Arch Enemy brought in Angela Gossow as their vocalist on Wages of Sin, the group made the decision that brought them stardom. She not enlivened the group’s live show, but savagely transformed Arch Enemy’s vocals. The Amott brothers’ solos sounded sharper than ever, and crescendo rhythms matched the intensity of Angela’s throat-ripping screams. Lyrically, Wages of Sin went for the throat, leaving the cliché’ metal lyrics for later endeavors. Death metal never looked so good!
9. Strapping Young Lad - Strapping Young Lad (Century Media)
This self-titled effort may not be as noisy or grinding as their other records, but the musical change ups were more accessible. Here, Heavy Devy recreated the cybergrind sound so similar to Fear Factory, but added elements of classic heavy metal and thrash (Townsend often pushes his vocals into a Dio-like direction). SYL represents Devin Townsend’s strange worldview in many ways, but is reserved enough to make a more memorable impression than his other efforts.
10. Ihsahn - angL (Candlelight)
Since the latter years of Emperor, Ihsahn had an ever-increasing focus on progressive movements, but unlike many of his Norwegian peers, Ihsahn never completely forsook his black metal roots. With angL, Ihsahn presented his best mixture of black metal and prog rock. Asgeir Mickelson of Borknagar once again pulled off an amazing performance behind the drum kit. Ihsahn’s trademark screeches paired with Mikael Åkerfeldt’s patented growls on “Unhealer” was one of the highlights of 2008!
11. The Crown-Crowned in Terror (Metal Blade) 12. Ensiferum - From Afar (Spinefarm) 13. Absu - Absu (Candlelight) 14. Nile - Black Seeds of Vengeance (Relapse) 15. Lamb of God - Ashes of the Wake (Epic) 16. Iced Earth - Something Wicked: The Crucible of Man (SPV) 17. Shroud of Bereavement - Alone Beside Her (Screaming Ferret) 18. Dark Tranquility - Damage Done (Century Media) 19. King Diamond - Give Me Your Soul…Please (Metal Blade) 20. Municipal Waste - The Art of Partying (Earache) 21. Emperor - Prometheus-The Discipline of Fire & Demise (Candlelight) 22. Agalloch - Of Stone, Wind, and Pillar (The End) 23. Borknagar - Empiricism (Century Media) 24. Cathedral - Endtyme (Earache) 25. Agalloch - The Mantle (The End) 26. Melechesh - Sphinx (Osmose) 27. My Dying Bride - The Dying Hours (Peaceville) 28. Kreator - Enemy of God (SPV) 29. Unearth - The Oncoming Storm (Metal Blade) 30. Alestorm - Captain Morgan’s Revenge (Napalm)
