2009 was a strong year for metal.  In my opinion, veteran groups seemed to dominate with solid albums.  The top three are very close and it took me awhile to decide which album truly was the best release of 2009.  Here they are...my picks for the top five metal albums of 2009:

1.)  Cannibal Corpse - Evisceration Plague

I loved their previous album Kill.  As a fan since their first release, I thought these guys put out their masterpiece with that one.  It was easily one of their best records in every aspect.  Well, they surpassed Kill with Evisceration Plague.  The title track is a creeping riff-fest that devours entire city blocks one at a time.  The production is amazing and the guitars are beyond heavy.  Everyone is on top of their game with this one.  I can't think of any band this far into their career that has ever put out two of their best releases back to back like Cannibal Corpse has.  The bar is set extremely high for their next one.  Good luck and I can't wait.

2.)  Nile - Those Whom the Gods Detest

As soon as you hit play on this album it rips your head off.  Opening with one of the best Nile songs ever, Those Whom the Gods Detest is a monster.  The chops are incredible and the songwriting has a groove to it that hasn't  been seen much by these guys previously.  This cements the legacy they have created for themselves and solidifies them as the best death metal band of the last decade.







3.)  Mastodon - Crack the Skye

Obviously not as heavy as the first two bands on this list, Mastodon is still pretty heavy.  Heavy enough to be included on my list.  This band continues to evolve and amaze me.  They get better with every record they put out and seem to push themselves out of a comfort zone that appears on their previous work, which is something a lot of metal bands don't do.







4.)  Heaven and Hell  - The Devil You Know

While the band themselves go by the name "Heaven and Hell" to me they are and always will be Black Sabbath.  The Mob Rules era line up is back together and still proving why they ARE metal.  Great record and a worthy successor to the criminally underrated Dehumanizer from 1992.  "Bible Black" is pure classic Sabbath.  I wish these guys would have gotten along better in the 80's so we could have more stuff like this rather than the "Sabbath" albums that were really Iommi solo records.  Get well soon Ronnie!!!







5.Old Man's Child - Slaves of the World

Galder's side "band" continues to impress me.  Much better stuff than his day job with Dimmu Borgir.  The playing is always great and the songs are catchy and well written, especially for black metal.


And there you have it...my top 5 and must have albums of 2009.  Feel free to share your top picks for 2009.

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Honorable mentions go to:
Katatonia - Night Is the New Day
Hypocrisy - A Taste of Extreme Divinity
Vader - Necropolis
Dying Fetus - Descend into Depravity
Suffocation - Blood Oath