LATEST EDIT: December 12/2016- Added a whole bunch of progressive rock albums; processing earlier suggestions on the list.

Assembled below are some choice selections in alternative metal, prog rock, prog metal, jazz and avant-garde metal. I don't necessarily consider these styles to be my favourite (I do have a penchant for post-metal and cavernous death metal these days), but they have been the foundations of my taste for the last seven or eight years.

1.

2.Soundgarden - Down On The Upside

3.Rishloo - Living As Ghosts With Buildings As Teeth

4.Karnivool - Asymmetry

5.Blindead - Absence

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Almost all album titles fall in one of two categories: The album shares the title with one of its songs (the title track) or, alternatively, the album title is independent from the songs (no title track).

However, there are examples of songs that have a central link to the album title without sharing the same name. In these cases, certain lyrics from the song were chosen as the album title.

This (alphabetical) list shows the names of these “hidden title tracks” and the central lyrics that gave the name to the corresponding album.

Please feel free to suggest more of your favorite metal/hard rock examples of these “hidden title tracks”.

1.40 Watt Sun - Wider Than The Sky

2.A Forest Of Stars - A Shadowplay For Yesterdays

3.Acid Bath - When The Kite String Pops

4.Agalloch - The Mantle

5.Agalloch - Ashes Against The Grain

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----Updated every weeks----

I'm looking for all genres without exceptions, with currently little preferencies for Progressive, Death and Black metal! Listenning to every albums 2 or 3 times at less before including it in my list.
I specify my favourite songs in order of preferency

❤ = Amazing song!

1.Vektor - Terminal Redux

2.Be'lakor - Vessels

3.Thank You Scientist - Stranger Heads Prevail

4.Meshuggah - The Violent Sleep Of Reason

5.Hypno5e - Shores Of The Abstract Line

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Welcome to my 2016 list. Most of you are aware how lists on MS work :- If the album appears at the top it's amazing (imo) and highly recommend you give it a listen... if it's featured at the bottom then I probably don't like it. If you have any recommendations for albums, feel free to leave a message in the comments section!!

1.Whispered - Metsutan - Songs Of The Void

2.Mesarthim - Pillars

3.Equilibrium - Armageddon

4.Omnium Gatherum - Grey Heavens

5.Twilight Force - Heroes Of Mighty Magic

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Here are my favourite releases (8+ ratings) from 2016! This year, my preferences are ranked in order of how I'd rate them. I didn't manage to listen to an exceptional amount of new music this year, so please feel free to recommend and share some releases I may not have gotten to.

Impression about 2016: A terrible year for prog and alternative metal, if I had to be honest, mostly because my expectations were sky-high for releases from Headspace, Haken, Third Ion and Dissona. On the other hand, Vektor revitalized the stagnant genre of thrash with an incredible release. It was a decent year for post-metal or post-influenced things (Départe, Moanaa, Bossk, Blindead), but it was tough to top some of the gems from 2015 (mainly, Sunpocrisy's Eyegasm, Hallelujah! album). Finally, the combination of krautrock with metal in 2016 tantalized me frequently earlier in the year (exemplified by the music of ZÖN and Vaults of Zin).

1.Départe - Failure, Subside

2.40 Watt Sun - Wider Than The Sky

3.Gorguts - Pleiades' Dust

4.Aluk Todolo - Voix

5.Vektor - Terminal Redux

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My favorites of the year as they come. No order.

1.Krallice - Hyperion

2.The Black Queen - Fever Daydream

3.Deströyer 666 - Wildfire

4.After The Burial - Dig Deep

5.Abbath - Abbath

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For me more than you, as the sheer amount of music in the world has turned me into a goldfish as far as remembering what I've listened to and what I thought of it. However, if you find something cool from here, more power you my friend!

1.Cult Of Luna - Mariner [Collaboration]

2.Fallujah - Dreamless

3.Moonsorrow - Jumalten Aika

4.Death Grips - The Bottomless Pit

5.Iamthemorning - Lighthouse

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One of source of entertainment in the couple of months since I've joined MS has been watching albums careen up and down the 2015 top 20. I thought it might be interesting to compile a list of every album that shows up on the 2016 top 20 list at any point during the year (modulo how often I'm actually able to observe the list) along with some statistics. Ranking on this list is ordered by peak rank, then last date at that rank, then end of year rank.

1.Insomnium - Winter's Gate

2.Trees Of Eternity - Hour Of The Nightingale

3.Aenaon - Hypnosophy

4.Dark Tranquillity - Atoma

5.Anaal Nathrakh - The Whole Of The Law

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★★★★★ - Masterpiece!
★★★★½ - Excellent!
★★★★☆ - Great!
★★★½☆ - Very Good!
★★★☆☆ - Enjoyable!
★★½☆☆ - OK, Nothing Special...
★★☆☆☆ - Mediocre/Poor
★½☆☆☆ - Don't Touch
★☆☆☆☆ - I Want My Money Back

1.Cloudscape - Voice Of Reason

2.Adam Wakeman & Damian Wilson - Weir Keeper's Tale

3.Fifth To Infinity - Omnipotent Transdimensional Soulfire

4.Dissona - Paleopneumatic

5.Bloodiest - Bloodiest

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1.Dream Theater - The Astonishing

2.Redemption - The Art Of Loss

3.Circus Maximus - Havoc

4.Haken - Affinity

5.Eumeria - TBA

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**DISCLAIMER: This list is based on my own opinion and musical taste, and should not be taken otherwise.
-
In compliance to 2015's list, I've decided to orginize this year's list a bit differantly, as well as taking off 2016 releases from 2015's list.

Self-explainatory list that's used mostly for personal reminders of upcoming releases.

1.Neal Morse - The Similitude Of A Dream

2.Oddland - Origin

3.Iamthemorning - Lighthouse

4.Riverside - Eye Of The Soundscape

5.Ihsahn - Arktis.

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My favorite progressive metal albums (derived/mixed genres included). Lot of stuff still missing here since I have a terrible memory I think everything here is at least 8,5/10.

Please, feel free to drop suggestions. I'd love to make it more or less complete one day.

I will eventually rate these albums too...

1.Dream Theater - Awake

2.Dream Theater - Images And Words

3.Dream Theater - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory

4.Dream Theater - Train Of Thought

5.Redemption - Snowfall On Judgment Day

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My favorite to least favorite from 2016. I will be adding and moving albums as the year goes on.

1.Epica - The Holographic Principle

2.Testament - Brotherhood Of The Snake

3.Avantasia - Ghostlights

4.Allegaeon - Proponent For Sentience

5.Brymir - Slayer Of Gods

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❤ Favorite
♫ Good
✔ Some music worth listening
✘ Disliked

When the date and style of music is not noted is that I plan to listen this album.
I also clarifies what is my favorite music on each album.

Enjoy !!!

1.Vektor - Terminal Redux

2.Metallica - Hardwired?To Self-Destruct

3.Hypno5e - Shores Of The Abstract Line

4.Haken - Affinity

5.Be'lakor - Vessels

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Scoring copied from Sword_Chant:

✮✮✮✮✮ - Incredible, possibly Album Of The Year
✮✮✮✮½ - Awesome
✮✮✮✮ - Solid release
✮✮✮½ - Good release
✮✮✮ - Not bad
✮✮ - Disappointing
✮ - Bad / very bad

1.Be'lakor - Vessels

2.Moonsorrow - Jumalten Aika

3.Borknagar - Winter Thrice

4.Ihsahn - Arktis.

5.Fleshgod Apocalypse - King

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