Can we all agree that the best metal overall was made in the 80s?

Yes, I like some 70s, 90s, 2000s, and 2010s stuff too but come on ....

Maybe during the 80s I thought that, but as the years have passed I've discovered that the 70s sound best to me and likely will remain that way.  A lot of the stuff I listened to in the 80s I'll probably never play again.

I'm not sure if the best was made in the 80s but, a high proportion of good albums where made in the 80s. The 90s has more albums I'm for more passionate about.

Definition of "Best" = my favorite? Yep. I won't be stuck up. Metal came into its' own in the 80's. The 70's was still hard rock and the 90's sure tried, but failed, to improve on the 80's. Anything after CFH was just being recycled, imo.

I agree.

For most people it all depends on when you grew up. My favorite decade is the 90s. Not surprising, really, because those were my teen years, or at least the years where things tend to leave big impressions on a teenager.

That's the thing about a post like this. It's got an inherent flaw. I am rarely blown away by anything these days, and that's been going on for a long time. But as a teenager? Man, shit would blow my mind all the time! And that's pretty much true for everyone, so we associate that time period with what we consider the "best" things ever. It's only true for us, really.

The 80s were undoubtedly an amazing era for music, but music in the 90s left a far bigger impression on me. Is it surprising that those who grew up the 80s weren't impressed with the 90s? Or that I wasn't all that impressed with the 00s? It's just how it goes. Opinions, you know.

What is "CFH"?

I'm starting to think that recently, things have really picked up for metal. Loads of good albums coming out and loads of underground bands sounding excellent. Remember the days of the 'bad demo' where people couldn't play properly, produce or mix (some could call is the ultimate Black Metal sound). I would say that it's just exploded SINCE the 80's, but not for the right reasons. Personally, too much has become mainstream to really stand proud and be a metal-head-reject.

S.D. wrote:

What is "CFH"?

Cowboys from Hell.

I am partial to the 1970's as much as the 1980's, but that's just me.

My interest in so-called "popular" music just happened to coincide with the birth of MTV. I was 11 years old when it went on the air in '81. I first heard Judas Priest, the Ramones, Saxon, Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, and many others thanks to that channel. Yes, Virginia, believe it or not there actually was a time when MTV didn't suck.

I turned thirteen in 1983, which brought the first big L.A. cheese-metal wave of Quiet Riot, Motley Crue, Dokken, and the rest ....then the thrash movement slowly made its way into the Jersey 'burbs a year or so after that.

Lots of good stuff was released after the '80s, and a goodly amount before the '80s as well, but mainly I'd say that the music released between, say, 1983 and 1990 has had the most impact on me.

Between the 1970's and 1990's a few things happened -
happened gloriously - Metallic 'kill em All' - Metal church - Slayer
Coverdale formed Whitesnake, Kiss took off the make-up
AC DC continued with Brian Johnson, Megadeth was formed -
Ace of Spades hit the stores - WASP - G-N-R's 'Appetite'
Ozzy had Randy briefly - Scorps - Accept - Running Wild - Doro
The list seems endless for just a mere 10 year explosion -
even the clothes and hair and vibe in the air - never again.
Unless a nuclear war - and we have to start from scratch again -
then for a mere 10 years - it will quickly zoom by like a shooting star -

Ya sure have a way with words, Glower!

Meh, it's all pretty much the same to me.

Well, as one might guess from my profile name, I agree!

mc666 wrote:

Meh, it's all pretty much the same to me.

Glower is the master of the metal haiku.

70's for me.

I like the 70s the 80s and the 90s. I also like extreme metal from the past 15 years in the 2000s.

Pornography was better in the 80s too.

Just sayin'.

I can't peg down one decade. Each has its merits.

If I had to name my three favorite years for metal music it would probably be 1980, 1984 & 1986 so yes. On the other hand there was a lot about the 80's scene that I hated then and hate now.

For me, its about '84-'93 and 2009 onwards.

Plenty of female-fronted metal bands from the 1980s.

Glower wrote:

Between the 1970's and 1990's a few things happened -
happened gloriously - Metallic 'kill em All' - Metal church - Slayer
Coverdale formed Whitesnake, Kiss took off the make-up
AC DC continued with Brian Johnson, Megadeth was formed -
Ace of Spades hit the stores - WASP - G-N-R's 'Appetite'
Ozzy had Randy briefly - Scorps - Accept - Running Wild - Doro
The list seems endless for just a mere 10 year explosion -
even the clothes and hair and vibe in the air - never again.
Unless a nuclear war - and we have to start from scratch again -
then for a mere 10 years - it will quickly zoom by like a shooting star -

Apart from the fact that Whitesnake, Scorpions & Accept were all fairly established bands by the end of the '70s

80's were the best IMO.

There is so much metal left to discover from this decade.

There is also the nostalgia part. I discovered metal during this period, so there are plenty of souvenirs.

I can agree with this and I think Eyesore summed it up pretty well.Nostalgia plays a big role.