Greatest Death Metal Albums (Revision Version)

[Lew]

I redid this list since it needed updating.
-Lew

Background: Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal known for its aggressive sound, guttural vocals, distorted guitars, and fast, complex rhythms. Featuring intricate riffs, blast beats, and unconventional song structures, it creates a dark, chaotic ambiance. Themes often explore mortality, violence, and horror, often with graphic imagery. Emerging in the mid-1980s with pioneers like Death and Possessed, it has since branched into diverse substyles such as technical, melodic, brutal, and progressive death metal. Despite its intensity, the genre is admired for its energy, technical skill, and creativity.

Criteria: These Death Metal Albums were chosen for their musical and lyrical creativity, originality, technical skill, influence, and popularity within the genre.

Edited By: Lew
Last Updated: 2026-04-25

1. Covenant - (1993) Morbid Angel
2. Symbolic - (1995) Death
3. Seven Churches - (1985) Possessed
4. My Arms, Your Hearse - (1998) Opeth
5. Scream Bloody Gore - (1987) Death
6. Individual Thought Patterns - (1993) Death
7. None So Vile - (1996) Cryptopsy
8. Annihilation of the Wicked - (2005) Nile
9. Slaughter Of The Soul - (1995) At The Gates
10. Heartwork - (1993) Carcass
11. Human - (1991) Death
12. Jester Race - (1996) In Flames
13. Altars Of Madness - (1989) Morbid Angel
14. Necroticism: Descanting The Insalubrious - (1991) Carcass
15. Focus - (1993) Cynic
16. Deicide - (1990) Deicide
17. Revelations of Oblivion - (2019) Possessed
18. Unquestionable Presence - (1991) Atheist
19. Blessed Are The Sick - (1991) Morbid Angel
20. The Bleeding - (1994) Cannibal Corpse
21. The Gallery - (1995) Dark Tranquility
22. Effigy of the Forgotten - (1991) Suffocation
23. Close To A World Below - (2000) Immolation
24. Obscura - (1998) Gorguts
25. Like An Ever Flowing Stream - (1991) Dismember
26. Nespithe - (1993) Demilich
27. Pierced From Within - (1995) Suffocation
28. Left Hand Path - (1990) Entombed
29. The Stench of Redemption - (2006) Deicide
30. Clandestine - (1991) Entombed
31. World Downfall - (1989) Terrorizer
32. Slowly We Rot - (1989) Obituary
33. Symphonies of Sickness - (1989) Carcass
34. Here In After - (1995) Immolation
35. Severed Survival - (1989) Autopsy
36. Tales from A Thousand Lakes - (1994) Amorphis
37. Consuming Impulse - (1989) Pestilence
38. Horrified - (1989) Repulsion
39. Hidden History of the Human Race - (2019) Blood Incantation
40. Piece of Time - (1990) Athiest
41. Crimson - (1996) Edge of Sanity
42. Tomb of the Mutilated - (1992) Cannibal Corpse
43. Stare Into Death And Be Still - (2020) Ulcerate
44. The End Complete - (1992) Obituary
45. The Satanist - (2014) Behemoth
46. Colored Sands - (2013) Gorguts
47. Leprosy - (1988) Death
48. Demigod - (2004) Behemoth
49. Cause of Death - (1990) Obituary
50. Legion - (1992) Deicide
51. Imperative Imperceptible Impulse - (2021) Ad Nauseam
52. Mental Funeral - (1991) Autopsy
53. Morbid Visions - (1986) Sepultura
54. Cancer Culture - (2022) Decapitated
55. Onward to Golgotha - (1992) Incantation
56. Dark Recollections - (1990) Carnage
57. Damage Done - (2002) Dark Tranquillity
58. Ascetic Reflection - (2022)Altars
59. L'Enfant Sauvage - (2012) Gojira
60. The Apostasy - (2007) Behemoth
61. Codex Omega - (2017) Septicflesh
62. In Their Darkened Shrines - (2002) Nile
63. The Scythe Of Cosmic Chaos - (2018) Sulphur Aeon
64. Fiction - (2007) Dark Tranquillity
65. Decline - (2016) Vermin Womb
66. The Way of All Flesh - (2008) Gojira
67. Nihil quam vacuitas ordinatum est - (2015) Ad Nauseam
68. Swampsong - (2003) Kalmah
69. The Malkuth Grimoire - (2015) Alkaloid
70. Heirs to Thievery - (2010) Misery Index
71. A Monument to Silence - (2021) Alustrium
72. The Great Mass - (2011) Septicflesh
73. Torn Arteries - (2021) Carcass
74. Nightbringers - (2017) The Black Dahlia Murder
75. Everything Is Fire - (2009) Ulcerate
76. Epitaph - (2004) Necrophagist
77. A Perfect Absolution - (2012) GOROD
78. Alphaville - (2020) Imperial Triumphant
79. Atonement - (2017) Immolation
80. Trance of Death - (2017) Venenum
81. Dasein - (2016) First Fragment
82. Acts of God - (2022) Immolation
83. With Oden on Our Side - (2006) Amon Amarth
84. Retrogore - (2016) Aborted
85. Abyssal Gods - (2015) Imperial Triumphant
86. Visitations From Enceladus - (2020) Cryptic Shift
87. Exodromos - (2013) Wormed
88. Anomalies - (2005) Cephalic Carnage
89. Pleiades' Dust - Gorguts
90. Harmony Corruption - (1990) Napalm Death
91. Stone's Reach - (2009) Be'lakor
92. The Empire - (2016) Vader
93. The Enduring Spirit - (2023) Tomb Mold
94. The Necrotic Manifesto - (2014) Aborted
95. Lifeblood - (2021) Brand Of Sacrifice
96. The Wreckage of Stars - Black Crown Initiate
97. Majesty and Decay - (2010) Immolation
98. TerrorVision - (2018) Aborted
99. Something Wicked Marches In - (2019) VLTIMAS
100. Slumber of Sullen Eyes - (1992) Demigod[/list]

__________________

REMOVED LIST:

Criteria: These Death Metal Albums were chosen for their musical and lyrical quality, creativity, originality, influence, and popularity within the genre

Edited By: JRA
Last Updated: 2012-11-16

https://digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/best ... metal.html

1. Altars Of Madness - (1989) Morbid Angel
2. Human - (1991) Death
3. Scream Bloody Gore - (1987) Death
4. Seven Churches - (1985) Possessed
5. Unquestionable Presence - (1991) Atheist
6. Necroticism: Descanting The Insalubrious - (1991) Carcass
7. Blessed Are The Sick - (1991) Morbid Angel
8. Pierced From Within - (1995) Suffocation
9. Left Hand Path - (1990) Entombed
10. Cause of Death - (1990) Obituary
11. Legion - (1992) Deicide
12. Mental Funeral - (1991) Autopsy
13. Like An Ever Flowing Stream - (1991) Dismember
14. Nespithe - (1993) Demilich
15. Heartwork - (1993) Carcass
16. Slaughter Of The Soul - (1995) At The Gates
17. Individual Thought Patterns - (1993) Death
18. Clandestine - (1991) Entombed
19. Focus - (1993) Cynic
20. World Downfall - (1989) Terrorizer
21. Deicide - (1990) Deicide
22. Slowly We Rot - (1989) Obituary
23. Covenant - (1993) Morbid Angel
24. The Bleeding - (1994) Cannibal Corpse
25. Morbid Visions - (1986) Sepultura
26. Leprosy - (1988) Death
27. Symphonies of Sickness - (1989) Carcass
28. Harmony Corruption - (1990) Napalm Death
29. None So Vile - (1996) Cryptopsy
30. Here In After - (1995) Immolation
31. Severed Survival - (1989) Autopsy
32. My Arms, Your Hearse - (1998) Opeth
33. Tomb of the Mutilated - (1992) Cannibal Corpse
34. Symbolic - (1995) Death
35. Tales from A Thousand Lakes - (1994) Amorphis
36. Consuming Impulse - (1989) Pestilence
37. The Gallery - (1995) Dark Tranquility
38. Effigy of the Forgotten - (1991) Suffocation
39. Piece of Time - (1990) Athiest
40. Horrified - (1989) Repulsion
41. Close To A World Below - (2000) Immolation
42. The End Complete - (1992) Obituary
43. Jester Race - (1996) In Flames
44. Annihilation of the Wicked - (2005) Nile
45. Slumber of Sullen Eyes - (1992) Demigod
46. Onward to Golgotha - (1992) Incantation
47. Dark Recollections - (1990) Carnage
48. Crimson - (1996) Edge of Sanity
49. Abducted - (1996) Hypocrisy
50. Obscura - (1998) Gorguts

[Lew]

I re-made this list to keep it up to date.
If you have any suggestions on the placements or someone new, let me know.

[Fido]

Well, I've just looked at the top and what the hell man. Altars of Madness at #12 is INSANE.

[Sherick]

Covenant at #1 is pretty insane too. Honestly needs to flip with Altars of Madness, but it's a good list otherwise.