Top 11 Metal Albums of the 1990s

The ’90s were a challenging decade for metal. The enormous growth of the genre in the ’80s certainly carried over at the start of the decade, with powerhouse classics from the Big 4 of thrash kicking things off at a steady clip. But what followed was the wholesale retreat of metal from the mainstream as alternative rock, grunge and bands like Nirvana challenged for cultural supremacy. Suddenly, the sullen and relatively sloppy Seattle sound was in, metal’s virtuosic grandstanding out. But metal never dies, and by the middle of the ’90s new mutations were sprouting up; the most visible, a rap-metal hybrid called nü-metal. Here, we turn it up to 11 with our list of the Top 11 Metal Albums of the 1990s:

The first decade of the 2000s was a unique one for metal music. The mainstream media had broken off their love affair with hard alternative rock for an array of rap, pop-rock and child stars who seemed to get younger and younger. Although MTV and the like rarely played anything heavy, the rise of the Internet made both popular and underground metal acts more accessible than ever. Waves of post-hardcore, metalcore and deathcore swept the scene with short periods of dominance. Underground metal acts from around the world ensured that metal got heavier, faster and more experimental. The metal “tree of life” was constantly growing new branches as its roots remained sturdy. Here, Loudwire presents our list of the Top 11 Metal Albums of the 2000s:

The 21st century started off rocking.