"Novelty and innovation were both in stock as death metal had only been around for less than a decade, black metal - as it came to be recognized - was still fresh, progressive metal was bleeding into extreme metal, and the heavy metal old guard had taken a backseat, clearing way for newer acts. Metallica, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, and even Slayer had all either pivoted away from their original sounds, swapped band members enough to disrupt their creation processes, or both."
"A look at 1995's highest-rated metal albums on various music websites reveals as much. Death's Symbolic is at or near the top of all aggregates ("My favorite death metal records period." - Langdon Hickman), as is Dissection's Storm of the Light's Bane and Suffocation's Pierced from Within. Ulver, Blind Guardian, Gamma Ray, Down, and Dark Tranquility also consistently fill out most top 10s."
"Just beyond the typical top 10 lays an album that would shape metal more than anyone could've predicted at the time. Deadguy's Fixation on a Coworker somehow came out in 1995, even though that feels incorrect. It feels like it was recorded decades after Earth Crisis' Destroy the Machines (which also came out in 1995). For some reason, it's as if it exists on a different timeline from the rest of the metal landscape,"
Metal in 1995 experienced significant innovation across subgenres. Death metal remained young, black metal was newly recognized, and progressive metal fused with extreme styles. Established bands like Metallica, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, and Slayer shifted sounds or personnel, creating space for emerging acts. Pioneers such as Death and Bathory moved toward more expressive, less abrasive eras, influencing the new guard. Highest-rated records from 1995 include Death's Symbolic, Dissection's Storm of the Light's Bane, and Suffocation's Pierced from Within, alongside albums from Ulver, Blind Guardian, Gamma Ray, Down, and Dark Tranquility. Deadguy's Fixation on a Coworker stood apart and retroactively reshaped the genre.
Read at Consequence
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