Q Magazine's 50 Heaviest Albums Of All Time

This is a little interesting list i came across. Too bad it's not in order.

The Heaviest album i've ever heard is The Birthday Party's live compilation Live 1981-82 which is about as violent/extreme/heavy any rock band can get.

This is sure to spark debate, but remember everything is subjective. And also remember its in alphabetical order (if you couldn't tell already) so no 1-50 ratings.

• AC/DC – Let There Be Rock
• Aphex Twin – Classics
• Big Black – Atomizer
• The Birthday Party – Junkyard
• Black Sabbath – Master Of Reality
• Miles Davis – Dark Magus: Live At Carnegie Hall
• Deep Purple – Machine Head
• DJ6666 – Death Breathin’
• Einsturzende Neubauten – ½ Mensch
• Godspeed You Black Emperor – Levez Voz Skinny Fists Comme Antennas To Heaven
• Guns N’ Roses – Appetite For Destruction
• Iron Maiden – The Number Of The Beast
• The Jesus And Mary Chain – Psychocandy
• Robert Johnson – King Of The Delta Blues Singers
• Killing Joke – Killing Joke
• King Crimson – Red
• Korn – Korn
• Kyuss – Blues For The Red Sun
• Led Zeppelin – Physical Graffiti
• Manic Street Preachers – The Holy Bible
• Marilin Manson – Antichrist Superstar
• Mayhem – Deathcrush
• Mc5 – Kick Out The Jams
• Metallica – Master Of Puppets
• Method Man – Tical
• Ministry – Psalm 69
• Mob Deep – Hell On Earth
• Motorhead – Overkill
• My Bloody Valentine – Isn’t Anything
• Napalm Death – From Enslavement To Obliteration
• Nine Inch Nales – The Downward Spiral
• Nirvana – In Utero
• Pantera – Vulgar Display Of Power
• Pixies – Surfer Rosa
• Primal Scream – Xtrmntr
• Public Image Limited – Metal Box
• Rage Against The Machine – Rage Againsed The Machine
• Scarface – The Diary
• Sepultura – Roots
• Slayer – Reign In Blood
• Slipknot – Slipknot
• Sonic Youth – Evol
• Soundgarden – Louder Than Love
• Suicide – Suicide
• Swans – Cop
• The Stooges – Fun House
• Tricky – Pre-Millennium Tention
• Various – Natural Born Killers OST
• Venom – Welcome To Hell
• Neil Young And Crazy Horse – Weld

i remember being just a kid & hearing Scum by Napalm Death & thinking that it was the heaviest, most extreme album i had ever heard. it definitely inspired my love of the more extreme forms of metal. just as much as my Possessed & Bathory albums did before that. just took it to another level. nice to see that Napalm Death's From Enslavement To Obliteration (their second release) made that list. it's just as heavy & extreme. they both still hold up to this day.

They're just trying to appeal to the population as a whole.

EvyMetal wrote:

They're just trying to appeal to the population as a whole.

Agreed. Most on the list are not "heavy" in the metal sense, but just dark, some are loud, and some are heavy. I hate inclusive lists that try to appeal to everyones tastes.

GrandNational wrote:

EvyMetal wrote:

They're just trying to appeal to the population as a whole.

Agreed. Most on the list are not "heavy" in the metal sense, but just dark, some are loud, and some are heavy. I hate inclusive lists that try to appeal to everyones tastes.

It's not an inclusive list trying to appeal to everyone's taste. It's a genuine attempt at documenting the heaviest albums through time. Because the thing is the Birthday Party and Jesus And Mary Chain's records that feature on that list are way heavier than any technical death or black metal release.

rattpoison wrote:

The Heaviest album i've ever heard is The Birthday Party's live compilation Live 1981-82

...seriously?

Muloc7253 wrote:

rattpoison wrote:

The Heaviest album i've ever heard is The Birthday Party's live compilation Live 1981-82

...seriously?

Have you heard it.

rattpoison wrote:

GrandNational wrote:

EvyMetal wrote:

They're just trying to appeal to the population as a whole.

Agreed. Most on the list are not "heavy" in the metal sense, but just dark, some are loud, and some are heavy. I hate inclusive lists that try to appeal to everyones tastes.

It's not an inclusive list trying to appeal to everyone's taste. It's a genuine attempt at documenting the heaviest albums through time.

Of course it is. It's a 'something for everybody' list. I like pretty much every artist on their, and I guess they may have pushed their boundaries in their day on the mainstream level, but these no way document the heaviest albums.

Maybe they just worded it wrongly. If it wasn't 'heaviest albums' and was more 'Examples of heavy music for people that have never listened to anything heavy before' it would make more sense.

But still...Manic Street Preachers? Marilyn Manson? Nirvana? Guns N Roses? That last one is the worst - there are literally hundreds of similiar sounding albums that came way before that and were much heavier. Are you really suggesting that Candlemass or Megadeth were not as heavy or heavier than Guns N Roses?

And what's with the rap albums? I like Mobb Deep and Scarface, but how is it in any way heavy? Hard-hitting, aggressive, extreme, maybe even quite brutal in the case of some hiphop artists, but how is it heavy in any way, shape or form?

Maybe to people that only listen to mainstream music this list might be convincing, but to anybody that listens to any underground metal they should know better. No Cannibal Corpse? Exhumed? Why put 'Vulgar Display of Power' when the follow up albums were heavier? Wouldn't happen to be coz it's a more popular album would it? Listing Slipknot, but no death metal whatsoever? Aphex Twins? Pixies?

These albums are examples of heaviness, but no way come close to documenting the heaviest of all time by anybodys stadards, bar maybe the inclusions of Slayer, Napalm Death and Mayhem.

rattpoison wrote:

Because the thing is the Birthday Party and Jesus and Mary Chain's records that feature on the list are much heavier than any death/black metal albums.

I beg to differ.

rattpoison wrote:

Muloc7253 wrote:

rattpoison wrote:

The Heaviest album i've ever heard is The Birthday Party's live compilation Live 1981-82

...seriously?

Have you heard it.

I'm on my way to download some tracks now. I'm not disregarding it right off, I just find it slightly hard to believe.

Well what you will find is the most violent/psychotic/extreme/heavy piece of howling white noise ever committed to plastic or wax.

Actually, I stand corrected. This is a pretty damn heavy recording. I'm listening to 'Release the Bats' right now, I'm liking it a lot. While I've certainly heard heavier, this must definately have been the heaviest for it's time. It's definately on the same level as Venom.

FALLEN ANGEL OF DOOM by BLASPHEMY should be on that list too.

krokus wrote:

FALLEN ANGEL OF DOOM by BLASPHEMY should be on that list too.

Precisely

Aswell as the first Sacrifice album. And Hellhammer's Apocalyptic Raids EP. And Torture Squad's Pandemonium.

Ride The Ligtning Is heavier Than MOP,imo.

SoldierUnderCommand wrote:

Ride The Ligtning Is heavier Than MOP,imo.

I was going to point that out too, but I'd use Kill 'em All instead. Also, Arise is heavier than Roots, and Schizophrenia is heavier than Arise etc.....

Muloc7253 wrote:

rattpoison wrote:

GrandNational wrote:

EvyMetal wrote:

They're just trying to appeal to the population as a whole.

Agreed. Most on the list are not "heavy" in the metal sense, but just dark, some are loud, and some are heavy. I hate inclusive lists that try to appeal to everyones tastes.

It's not an inclusive list trying to appeal to everyone's taste. It's a genuine attempt at documenting the heaviest albums through time.

Of course it is. It's a 'something for everybody' list. I like pretty much every artist on their, and I guess they may have pushed their boundaries in their day on the mainstream level, but these no way document the heaviest albums.

Maybe they just worded it wrongly. If it wasn't 'heaviest albums' and was more 'Examples of heavy music for people that have never listened to anything heavy before' it would make more sense.

But still...Manic Street Preachers? Marilyn Manson? Nirvana? Guns N Roses? That last one is the worst - there are literally hundreds of similiar sounding albums that came way before that and were much heavier. Are you really suggesting that Candlemass or Megadeth were not as heavy or heavier than Guns N Roses?

And what's with the rap albums? I like Mobb Deep and Scarface, but how is it in any way heavy? Hard-hitting, aggressive, extreme, maybe even quite brutal in the case of some hiphop artists, but how is it heavy in any way, shape or form?

Maybe to people that only listen to mainstream music this list might be convincing, but to anybody that listens to any underground metal they should know better. No Cannibal Corpse? Exhumed? Why put 'Vulgar Display of Power' when the follow up albums were heavier? Wouldn't happen to be coz it's a more popular album would it? Listing Slipknot, but no death metal whatsoever? Aphex Twins? Pixies?

These albums are examples of heaviness, but no way come close to documenting the heaviest of all time by anybodys stadards, bar maybe the inclusions of Slayer, Napalm Death and Mayhem.

This is exactly what I was getting at. Good to see some people actually understand.

Muloc7253 wrote:

Actually, I stand corrected. This is a pretty damn heavy recording. I'm listening to 'Release the Bats' right now, I'm liking it a lot. While I've certainly heard heavier, this must definately have been the heaviest for it's time. It's definately on the same level as Venom.

It's nuts isn't it Muloc.

Anyway 'Heavy' means alot of things, if we were to take it literally as in it's 'large weight' meaning than we would have a whole list of Cathedral's, Sonn O)))'s and other drone and doom bands who's music sounds like slow moving mountains.

The reason why i say the Birthday Party is heavier than any technical death metal band is because there is an unpredictable psychosis bubbling underneath, singer Nick Cave is more animal than human because no human could make those ear splitting screeches and screams and it's just totally unhinged and creates moments of dark creepiness. It's like the Stooges L.A. Blues times 10 live with Nick Cave's primal howling and formative writings over the top.

That to me is heavier than any technical death metal band because everything's deliberate, wires are exposed and is all done by the book when it comes to that (non)extreme form of music. It's too easy to hide behind a blast beat or patented death metal growl. What's so 'heavy' about that.

Another one of the heaviest records i've heard is the Manic Street Preachers Holy Bible. Totally dark, heroin addled and uneasy album. Songs about being eaten from the inside by Anorexia and Nazi genocide all being soundtracked by the left over clanging metal scraps of PIL and Wire. Oppressive and so hard to listen to. Hits like a sledgehammer every time i listen to it without ever diminishing over every listen. So totally 'Heavy'.

Heavy as a descriptive term cannot only be ascribed to sonics, it's also feel, mood, lyrics and impact.

rattpoison wrote:

Muloc7253 wrote:

Actually, I stand corrected. This is a pretty damn heavy recording. I'm listening to 'Release the Bats' right now, I'm liking it a lot. While I've certainly heard heavier, this must definately have been the heaviest for it's time. It's definately on the same level as Venom.

It's nuts isn't it Muloc.

Anyway 'Heavy' means alot of things, if we were to take it literally as in it's 'large weight' meaning than we would have a whole list of Cathedral's, Sonn O)))'s and other drone and doom bands who's music sounds like slow moving mountains.

The reason why i say the Birthday Party is heavier than any technical death metal band is because there is an unpredictable psychosis bubbling underneath, singer Nick Cave is more animal than human because no human could make those ear splitting screeches and screams and it's just totally unhinged and creates moments of dark creepiness. It's like the Stooges L.A. Blues times 10 live with Nick Cave's primal howling and formative writings over the top.

That to me is heavier than any technical death metal band because everything's deliberate, wires are exposed and is all done by the book when it comes to that (non)extreme form of music. It's too easy to hide behind a blast beat or patented death metal growl. What's so 'heavy' about that.

Another one of the heaviest records i've heard is the Manic Street Preachers Holy Bible. Totally dark, heroin addled and uneasy album. Songs about being eaten from the inside by Anorexia and Nazi genocide all being soundtracked by the left over clanging metal scraps of PIL and Wire. Oppressive and so hard to listen to. Hits like a sledgehammer every time i listen to it without ever diminishing over every listen. So totally 'Heavy'.

Heavy as a descriptive term cannot only be ascribed to sonics, it's also feel, mood, lyrics and impact.

I guess it depends on one's definition of heaviness. I do also agree that that the unrestrained, wild kind of heaviness is much more powerful than calculated technicality.

Still, on those levels, Burzum's debut is the heaviest that they come.

Yeah, those albums were mostly chosen cuz they were easily the heaviest smurf poo of their time (even Robert Johnson kinda deserves to be up there). Neil Young's Weld or Miles Davis's Live at Carnegie Hall, no matter how soft Neil Young may seem, is actually pretty heavy. To those who protest some of the albums inclusions on this list, think for a moment of:

a) how heavy music was when they came out
b) whether or not you've even heard it

heaviest <> best

I like that Ministry's Psalm 69 is on that list. Since I absolutely HATE extreme metal, that album is one of the heaviest of the 3100 that I own.

This damn list again. I hate lists like this. But OK, I;'ll play along. I'd say they blew it by not including the following....

The Monks- Black Monk Time
The Doors-s/t
High Tide- Sea Shanties
T2- It'll All Work Out in Boomland
Freedom's Children- Astra
Van Der Graf Generator- Vital
Paris (Bob Welch) -s/t
Judas Priest- Sad Wings (c'mon now!)
Warsaw (Joy Division)
Discharge-Why?
Celtic Frost- Morbid Tales
Nasty Savage- S/T
Oz- Fire in the Brain
Candlemass- Epicus Doomicus
Sevenchurch- Bleak Insight
Danzig- How The Gods Kill
and something by Obituary

And others. All psychologically and sonically heavy for their time.

More....
Bang-S/T
Groundhogs- Split
Lucifer's Friend- S/T
Aerosmith-Draw the Line (sober up guys!)
TSOL- Dance With Me
Bauhaus- In the Flat Field

Good call on the napalm death. Not so much korn or marylin manson.

Unfortunately, I wasn't around when Reign In Blood came out, but I have a fond memory of my first listen. It was back in December. It was late in the night, after dark, and I was in my hot tub on our outside deck (where I listen to a lot of music). It was pitch black, and there was an intense wind storm going on. The wind was over 100 km/h, and thrashing me around the hot tub. I should also mention that this was my first extreme album. I popped it in to the cd player, and was immediately mesmorized by the opening riff of "Angel Of Death". I had plenty of heavy albums in my collection, but this was different. Over those next 34 minutes, I had my a** handed to me. They were the perfect conditions in which to listen debut the album.