Even after nearly a decade and a half, there truly is nothing else quite like Vildhjarta, despite the influence they've had on modern metal. Their stunningly technical instrumentals combined with top-class atmospherics and audio mixing leads to a downright otherworldly, mind-bending sound that has not been replicated. My #6 album of all time. Best song: paaradiso

Without question, the heaviest album I have ever heard in my life. Nothing else even comes close, really. HLB's sound is the apocalypse distilled into music, and that's nothing to be said about the sheer technicality of the album. While Vildhjarta is still better, it's not by much. Best track - Passage

Probably the strongest debut album ever. Metalcore generally doesn't get any better than this, and every single song is top-class. Endlessly superior to their later work. The only issue is that the harsh vocals are kinda weak, though the stellar cleans more than make up for that. My #7 album of all time. Best song: Where We Go When We Die (that ending...)

I wasn't sure how The Raven Age would have improved after Conspiracy, but clearly, they know better than I do. This album is only held back by its length, practically everything else has a slight edge over their previous stuff. Tears of Stone especially manages to hit similar highs to Grave of the Fireflies from Conspiracy, which is not something I ever expected to see even come close to being reached.

A major improvement over Greyview, especially in the vocals department, this EP hits highs in its third song that even Heavener couldn't. As If It Never Was comfortably holds a spot in my top 10 songs of all time.

There are very, very few albums that can come close to this. Invent Animate has, over the course of their albums, continuously refined their unique sound, and here it reaches its zenith. While Vik's vocals held Greyview back a bit, he's so improved so drastically here that his vocals are one of the album's strongest points - and everything else has improved over Greyview, too. My #3 album of all time.

This album hits both incredible, jaw-dropping highs, and some very disappointing lows. The title track is one of the greatest musical masterpieces I have ever heard, but then there's also DYWTYLM. Consistency is a killer when it comes to listening to it fully, but there are several tracks that hit like nothing else out there.

The peak of metalcore, in my eyes. Every song is distinct and memorable on its own, and yet they all still flow together extremely well when listening to the full album. Better Days comfortably holds a spot as one of my top 10 songs. My #4 album of all time.

This is one of the greatest albums I have ever heard, period. Heard it back in 2022, and every single song has been a mainstay of my music rotation ever since. 10/10, my #2 album ever.

Incredible album, as typical of Valiant Hearts. While it falls just slightly short of Odyssey, this band always seems to catch lightning in a bottle. My favorite band of all time, and my 5th favorite album.