Top albums of 2020

2020 has been an awful year for all of us. But in terms of metal, it was excellent.

With the year coming to an end, what are your top releases (5, 10, 15, 20...)?

I still have four albums on the way: Sodom, Iron Savior, Blue Oyster Cult and Armored Saint.

Once i get to give those a proper spin, i will finalize my list accordingly.

Let's read what you've got .

I think I only bought like ten albums. I guess I'm not hip. Going to be a couple of years until I get to 20 or so 2020 releases.

Lari wrote:

I think I only bought like ten albums. I guess I'm not hip. Going to be a couple of years until I get to 20 or so 2020 releases.

I am planning on catching up on some 2020 releases, during 2021 (Wolf, Heathen, Raven, Cirith Ungol...).

I'm trying to figure out my 2020 list.

I am not even sure how many 2020 releases I heard, and I'm too lazy to go digging thru my stuff at the moment, but off the top of my head Stryper (Even the Devil Believes), Raven (Metal City), AC/DC (Power Up) and Sylent Storm (The Fire Never Dies) prob got the most play from me.

I bought Eternal Champion - the new one.
White Tower.
Also White Magician ‘Dealers of Destiny’ ( for Warlord fans )
SOLICITOR - “ Spectral Devastation “.

Glower wrote:

I bought Eternal Champion - the new one.
White Tower.
Also White Magician ‘Dealers of Destiny’ ( for Warlord fans )
SOLICITOR - “ Spectral Devastation “.

That Solicitor album rules!!

Gorepot - School Girl Sashimi
Splattered Entrails - Ossuary
Napalm Death - Logic Ravaged By Brute Force
Gorepot - Things Asians Do When They Are Done With Homework
Incantation - Sect of Vile Divinities
Aborted - La Grande Mascarade
Katalepsy - Terra Mortuus Est
Pig Destroyer - The Octagonal Stairway
Benediction - Scriptures
Molested Divinity - Unearthing The Void

I am planning on making a list but need to revisit stuff so the recent release bias does not creep in.

nevermore wrote:

Glower wrote:

I bought Eternal Champion - the new one.
White Tower.
Also White Magician ‘Dealers of Destiny’ ( for Warlord fans )
SOLICITOR - “ Spectral Devastation “.

That Solicitor album rules!!

Yes it does! Awesome album!

Checking Solicitor right now on YouTube. Pretty good stuff.

Gilbert wrote:

Checking Solicitor right now on YouTube. Pretty good stuff.

Yeah, this smokes, getting a real solid Agent Steel vibe from this.

Here is my list:

Top 30 of 2020

1. Night Flight Orchestra - Aeromantic
2. The Marcus King Band - El Dorado
3. Glacier - The Passing of Time
4. Kansas - The Absence of Presence
5. Haken - Virus
6. Blue Oyster Cult - The Symbol Remains
7. AC/DC - Power Up
8. Neal Morse - Sola Gratia
9. Pride of Lions - Lion Heart
10. Brother Firetribe - Feel the Burn
11. Sodom - Genesis XIX
12. Tokyo Motor Fist - Lions
13. Confess - Burn em all
14. Testament - Titans of Creation
15. Haunt - Mindfreeze
16. Demons and Wizards - III
17. Serious Black - Suite 226
18. Wilderun - Veil of Imagination
19. Deep Purple - Whoosh!
20. Grave Digger - Fields of Blood
21. Falconer - From a Dying Ember
22. Vega - Grit Your Teeth
23. Ambush - Infidel
24. Hell in the Club - Hell of Flame
25. Passion - S/T
26. Hexx - Entangled in Sin
27. Bloody Heels - Ignite the Sky
28. Primal Fear - Metal Commando
29. Vandenberg - 2020
30. Black Swan - Shake the World

The rest (in no particular order)

Depraved Entity - Queen of the Night
Electric Orange - Encoded
Ghoultown - El Dorado
Havok - V
Road Warrior - Mach II
Ensiferum - Thalassic
H.E.A.T. - II
Gotthard - #13
Firewind - S/T
Black Phanom - Zero Hour is Now
Hextar - S/T
Ancillotti - Hell on Earth
Glen Kaiser - Swamp Gas Messiah
Jonne - Tuhka
Heathen - Empire of the Blind
Fierce Heart - War for the World
Dead Earthlings - S/T
Course of Fate - Mind Weaver
Stryper - Even the Devil Believes
The Waymaker - S/T
Vicious Rumors - Celebration Decay
Wolfpakk - Nature Strikes Back
Wolf - Feeding the Machine
Witchspell - S/T
Traveler - Termination Shock
The Outlaws - Dixie Highway
Stallion - Slaves of Time
Snakeyes - Evil Must Die
Siren - Back from the Dead
Serenity - The Last Night
Savage Blood - Downfall
Saint - The Calf
Ross the Boss - Born of Fire
Psychotic Waltz - The God-Shaped Void
Ozzy Osbourne - Ordinary Man
One Desire - Midnight Empire
Love and War - Edge of the World
Dirty Shirley - S/T
Dextar Ward - III
Northern Flame - Twisted Reality
Vhaldemar - Straight to Hell
Hazzerd - Delirium

Awesome list .

I only purchased 14 new 2020 releases this year, so here they are in alphabetical order.

AC/DC - Power Up
Ace Frehley - Origins, Vol. 2
Armored Saint - Punching the Sky
Black Swan - Shake the World
Ghoultown - Curse of Eldorado
LA Guns (Riley version) - Renegades
Lucifer – Lucifer III
Morse / Portnoy / George - Cov3r to Cov3r
Ozzy Osbourne – Ordinary Man
Phil Campbell & the Bastard Sons – We’re the Bastards
Sons of Apollo – MMXX
Stone Temple Pilots – Perdida
Testament – Titans of Creation
Zakk Sabbath - Vertigo

Being more selective, I can honestly say I've enjoyed all of them, with the exception of 2 that I found to be lackluster and a bit disappointing. Feel free to guess which 2. And no comment on the LA Guns disc, because it hasn't arrived in the mail yet.

I still have three releases on the way: Iron Savior, Armored Saint and Vicious Rumors.

Once i receive those 3, i would have bought a total of 36 2020 releases. Not bad, given the current circumstances.

I should have my top list ready once i have given those a proper spin.

My top 20:

20- Rising Steel, Fight them all
19- Primal Fear, Metal commando
18- Cloven Hoof, Age of steel
17- Grave Digger, Fields of blood
16- Stryper, Even the devil believes
15- Ross The Boss, Born of fire
14- Ozzy Osbourne, Ordinary man
13- LA Guns, Renegade
12- Glacier, The passing of time
11- Metal Church, From the vault
10- Traveler, Termination shock
9- Mystic Prophecy, Metal division
8- Oz, Forced Commandments
7- Hexx, Entangled in sin
6- Warfect, Spectre of devastation
5- UDO, We are one
4- Hitman, Destroy all humans
3- Tokyo Blade, Dark revolution
2- Iron Savior, Skycrest
1- Blue Oyster Cult, The symbol remains

Nice list Gilbert! BOC seems to be a fairly common contender for best of the year (deservedly so)

exact33 wrote:

Nice list Gilbert! BOC seems to be a fairly common contender for best of the year (deservedly so)

I had never been familiar with BOC. I only owned a best of which i barely listened to.

When I first heard The Alchemist, i was instantly hooked. The entire album smokes. I am personally surprised that BOC have topped my list!

Lots of honorable mentions (in no particular order):

Iron Angel
Testament
Sodom
Axel Rudi Pell
Annihilator
Rage
Wolfpakk
Havok
Torch
Ancillotti
Mindless Sinner
Armored Saint

Interesting video from Wargod:

Stryper-Even the Devil Believes
Armored Saint- Punching the Sky
Wolf- Feeding the Machine
Warbringer-Weapons of Tomorrow
Heathen- Empire of the Blind
Testament- Titans of Creation
Solicitor- Spectral Devastation
Haunt- Mindfreeze
Gama Bomb- Sea Savage
Hex-Entangled in Sin

Here's my top 10:

1. Armored Saint - Punching The Sky
2. Testament - Titans Of Creation
3. Solicitor - Spectral Devastation
4. Havukruunu - Uinuos Syomein Sota
5. Kirk Windstein - Dream In Motion
6. AC/DC - Pwr/Up
7. Madrost - Charring The Rotting Earth
8. Raven - Metal City
9. Cirith Ungol - Forever Black
10. Haunt - Mindfreeze

My favorite ep:
Lor - Edge Of Eternity

I only bought 4 releases from 2020. I have a few on the want list but haven't gotten around to getting any of them yet. The 4 I purchased are :

Rage - Wings Of War
Testament - Titans Of Creation
Metal Church - From The Vault
Ace Frehley - Origins Vol. 2

I am expecting Vicious Rumors and Shok Paris cds in February, once the lockdown has been removed. Still missing many 2020 releases: Heathen, Cirith Ungol and Raven.

I gave those albums a listen on YouTube but i didn't feel the urge to buy them. At least not for the time being.