Fireign - Valley of Unrest (2002)
If this had normal vocals it would have been a great throwback NWOBHM album by these young Canadians. Lots of Angel Witch-y licks and twin leads. But the vocals I guess are supposed to be growls, but they're so weak, sounds more like bedroom black metal vocals. 2/5

A typical song: The Legend of Crusher
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmvGm9a ... Ym&index=2

Flaming Anger - Biosphere II (1997)
Technical thrash or progressive metal? I don't know. An interesting album all the same. What's stopping this from being great is the singer. He's ok, but can't match the music, neither vocal wise nor creatively. 3.5/5

A typical song: Lost in a Secret
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=935kRmL2t3M

Flegma - Flesh to Dust (1994)
Groove/death/punk/sludge. Not a winning concept. Had they gone the grindcore route with song lenghts under a minute, and energy to match it, this could have been a fun EP. Or if they had played dirty rock 'n roll like they do on the Kiss cover, this would have been passable. Now? Meh. 2/5

A typical song: Crown of Thornes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THG_cRj ... aI&index=2

This is another head scratcher, why did you buy it in the first place? Everyone knew he was jumping on the Pantera/Groove band wagon, that was a red flag to try before you buy in my book.
Anyway, I did and I found it to be a fuckin cool album full of memorable songs, great riffs and Halfords awesome vocals.
Unfortunately it was a total one-off fluke.

This thread feels like a reflection of a bygone era in the most fascinating way. In the modern age where streaming makes the "try before you buy" system so much more efficient, it's easy to forget how many CDs you could accrue that you end up not enjoying. Like sure, limited listening would inevitably make some of them grow on you over time but there are plenty that just...don't. Between that and how much of a pain in the ass it can be to actually sell everything off, I imagine those of us who still have collections have a bunch that we'd want out.

The Fates Warning disparity is interesting though. As much as I prefer the Alder era overall, I do think those two particular Arch albums have a lot of catchy vocal melodies. It's just that the weird phrasings can make them tricky to feel out.

Exactly.

Try before you buy has always been a thing, at least since I've been buying music anyway. Every single music store In town had a listening station of some kind where you could listen to the tape or CD that interested you.
In the case of Fight you had to be living under a rock to not know what that was about, so yeah I remember putting that tape on in store and being blown away by Into The Pit, Nailed To The Gun and Life In Black.
The only time you couldn't do that was if you read about a album in a mag and had to import it, then you had to rely on the reviewer to get it right with your tastes but you also gave that album a decent chance coz you just bought an expensive import.
I used to go into town on a Friday night or Saturday morning and spend hours trawling through the tapes and cds of the 6 music stores we had, listening to whatever interested me. Now there's 2, but neither are particularly good for metal or punk, so I rarely visit them.
But I am genuinely curious in this case of how and why Opus got War Of Words in the first place. He's explained why he keeps the albums he doesn't like, which I can understand, being a collector myself I do have many regrets of selling albums I shouldn't have and then having to rebuy later on.

Am I really that unique, having albums I don't like in my collection? To me, it's part of collecting to get a dud every now and then.

About that Fight album, it was 30 years ago! I have no idea why, where, how, or even if I bought that one. Back then with no spotify or youtube or the like, if you saw an album by a band you knew and liked, you bought it. And in the 90's, whatever "heavy" music you could find in the few media outlets that existed was grunge.

Flotsam & Jetsam - Cuatro (1992)
Not really liking the songs here, but Eric AK's voice and delivery lifts the material several levels. Also lots of nice twin leads, and the drumming is great. 3.5/5

A typical song: Natural enemies
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOKC4kvYQY8


Flotsam & Jetsam - Drift (1995)
I wonder if this was their idea of rock n' roll, trying to follow in the footsteps of Guns n' Roses. If so, they failed miserably. In any case, they were completely lost, as where many a good band during the 90's. 2/5

A typical song: Pick A Window
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3ubmqcFBtE


Flotsam & Jetsam - High (1997)
Now they are completely lost among groove metal, plaid shirts and bad production. 1/5

A typical song: High Noon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3ubmqcFBtE

I'm the same way. I like to collect full band discographies when possible and sometimes they release a dud or two, or four if you're Stratovarius. Albums are like Pokemon you don't just collect a few.

Haha life is hard for us collectors!

Forbidden - Twisted Into Form (1990)
Technical thrash is the kind of thrash I can dig. Lots of riffs, but with progression, a bit of dynamics, a bit melodic and a lot crazy vocals. 4/5

A typical song: Infinite
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDXC7T40Mg4

Have you ever heard the debut? Just as good - maybe even better than Twisted Into Form.

There's definitely only one Forbidden, even if there are singers that try to sound like Russ Anderson.

Isn't that one more regular thrash?

It's pretty technical as well. I'd say it's a bit riffier though. The only thing with the debut is that Russ can be a bit grating at times; particularly in the chorus of "Off The Edge", but songs like Chalice of Blood, March Into Fire, and my favourite, Follow Me, are some of their best work.

Forsaken - Iconoclast EP (2002)
The first two songs are really good, the next two not as good. I really like the vocalist here. He's got a big, dramatic voice, yet it's very relaxed. 3.5/5

A good song: Via Crucis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEK17vrYklE


Forsaken - Anima Mundi (2004)
The vocals aren't as good here, they are shoutier and he adds a strained rasp at times. The biggest problem though is that it's not really doom metal. It's slow and epic with doomy riffs, but I don't feel the despair and melancholy I associate with doom metal. 3/5

Note to MetlaNZ: I liked this one more when I got it.

A typical song: Kindred Veil
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeU3ZIF2IsU


Forsaken - After the Fall (2009)
They got a really annoying fuzzy guitar tone here, and the riffs are mostly uninteresting. 2/5

Note to MetlaNZ: I bought this one because I liked the above album.

Ironically, the best song is the one that is less doom metal and more hard rock: The Sage
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKmjGmMq0eM

Hey, no 5/5s in a while, I need new music, man!

It's coming!

A few things:

1. Opus, why on Earth does your Flotsam & Jetsam collection start with Cuatro and end with High???
2. Yes you do need to get Forbidden Evil and I'd recommend Omega Wave too, fantastic comeback album.
3. Gotta say this thread has been a fascinating insight into the mind of a fellow collector, a real rollercoaster ride of highs and lows. I was skeptical at first but it's actually been quite entertaining.

Oh, by the way Forsaken fuckin sucks.

1. As I've said before, I'm not into thrash, so NPfD never interested me. I did like When the Storm... , being on the technical side and had it on a tape dub. How could it not end with High?
2. Will look into it.
3. Thanks.

Frameshift - An Absence of Empathy (2005)
Now here's a hidden gem!
Progressive metal concept album by German guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Henning Pauly, with Sebastian Bach on vocals. A bit like Dream Theater, but more on the prog rock side. It's one of those albums, typically prog rock and metal, that I can listen to again and again and it never wears out.
After this album, Pauly and Bach got into a legal fight about rights, and that was the end of that collaboration. Such a shame, Bach's vocals are being used to the fullest here. Imagine what he could have done in the last 27 years with the right partners instead of whatever he's been doing.

If you have any interest in prog metal, get this! 5/5

Note to MetlaNZ: this is a typical album where if you just give a casual listen to some songs you might just skip it. It needs to be listened to in full, and with subsequent listens it just keeps growing.

Here's the whole album:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-QLmh3 ... dpEgJjzW7y

Freak Kitchen - Organic (2005)
Ia Eklundh, guitar wizard or crazy guitar professor or whatever you want to call him. This album is just about fun and great guitaring. 4/5

A typical song: Speak When Spoken To
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3bauBwyjek

I had no idea Bach even did this album. He sounds great here, musically not really my cup of tea but it's actually not too bad, glad to have heard it. But it does highlight that he has been totally under utilised since Skid Row.

I could stand to revisit that Frameshift album, it’s a very overlooked listen!

Galneryus - The Flag of Punishment (2003)
This is like a full opera, and I like opera. It's got an overture, a story arc and a grand finale. It even seems as if the songs are through-composed with how the arrangements doesn't have any static moments.
the guitar player (and main songwriter) is nothing short of a genius. Not for his shredding, but for his fantastic sense of melody and marvelous expression, sometimes going into Gary Moore-mode, like in this instrumental.

He also is an exceptional rhythm player. If you listen with headphones you can hear how he has doubled the rhythm guitar parts, but he doesn't pla it exactly the same. Instead there are small differences that bounces off each other in each channel.
The keyboards are also great, no matter if it's strings, harpsichord, hammond or piano, it all sits perfectly in the arrangements. 6/5

A typical song: Struggle for the Freedom Flag
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9F7Iri0acs


Galneryus - Advance to the Fall (2005)
Much more lead keyboards here, and the songs are more straight forward. Still just as great. 5/5

A typical song: Silent Revelation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhezNNz0q28


Galneryus - Beyond the End of Despair... (2006)
Anthemic songs. Big big choruses. Fists in the air. 5/5

A typical song: Raid Again
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lnoZanJVFI


Galneryus - One for All - All for One (2007)
And there they lost it. But what a run they had!
They incorporate heavier riffs, but they just seem thrown in for the sake of it. Doesn't really fit the rest of the song. There are even a couple of bad songs here (Don't Touch, The Flame). Chasing the Wind is a straight up pop song. And it ends with a lounge jazz instrumental. 3/5

A typical song: Last New Song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_rgmW-rXRM

Gamma Ray - Land of the Free (1995)
This was a pleasant surprise! I did not like Gamma Ray at all last time I listened to them, some 15 years ago. I used to be very picky about vocals, and I thought Kai sounded plain bad. Listening to it now I have no problem with his singing. He does what he does, and he does it well. But more importantly, it fits the music.
The complaints I do have is that the album is a bit too long. Take away Salvation's Calling, which isn't very good, and Time to Break Free, which doesn't fit with the rest of the album, and it would have been near perfect. 4/5

A typical song: Man on a Mission
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pm8JvqFK_3A


Gamma Ray - Somewhere Out in Space (1997)
This one is even better!
It has the perfect balance between heavy and light-hearted. The song writing/compositions are top notch. 0.5 points deduction because I don't like Kai's voice, but I can definitely live with it. 4.5/5

Note to MetlaNZ: Good thing I didn't get rid of these, eh?

A typical song:Valley of the Kings
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvMinDUDeQ4

Gamma Ray - Power Plant (1999)
Shorter albums are better albums! I cant understand why this is so hard to grasp. Cut the fat. Stay focused.
63 minutes are way too long, even if all songs are good, which they are not here. The Pet Shop boys cover is completely unnecessary, Heavy Metal Universe is dumb and bad, Short as Hell is sort of OK, but cut that one out and you got an album length of 48 minutes. Much better!
The good songs are really good, but 0.5 deduction for the fillers. 4/5

Kai is almost as good as Mike Amott at quoting/borrowing. I hear Maiden, Priest, Manowar, Queen, Sweet here.

A typical good song: Gardens of the Sinner
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVaw3VRgtmA

Gardenian - Soulburner (1999)
Here's another hidden masterpiece.
Gothenburg metal from Gothenburg, but with more focus on guitar riffs rather than guitar melodies. They have a great singer in Jim Kjell, who manages to growl melodically without losing aggressivity. But what this album has that puts them above the rest is guest vocals by Erik Hawk from Artch. He's providing additional vocals on six out of ten songs, not counting the instrumental, and sole lead vocals on one song, and his clean vocals fits so incredibly well.
The songwriting is very varied, in a subtle way, without being anywhere close to progressive or experimental. Just small twists and turns throughout.

This album doesn't just grow with consecutive listens, it grows as you listen to it. You go in to it expecting standard melodeath, but it never is. This is a must listen for anyone who enjoys different styles of metal. 5/5

Here's an un-typical song, but it's so damn good! Small Electric Space
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWN4m6LlhVs

A typical song: Ecstasy of Life
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLifFY-tsNU

Gargoyle - Nothing is Sacred (1988)
This could have been up there with Crimson Glory if the singer wasn't so lazy. The guitarist is riffing away as if his life depended on it while the singer stays in a dull, comfortable mid range for most of the time. He's got a great voice, and if he had somewhat kept up with the guitarist and gone a bit crazy now and then, this would have been a whole different story. 3/5

A typical song: Nothing is Sacred
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzVdq3wTRDA

I am so happy to see someone else who knows that Gargoyle record. I can see your point about the singer, but this was one of my first obscure metal albums I bought, so I really love everything about it. It would really benefit from a remaster though.

It is a good album for sure. But I tend to be overly critical when there is lost potential. Conversely, I'm much more lenient if a band doesn't have the best musicianship or if the singer is a bit off key now and then etc. as long as they just give it all they've got.

Gothic Stone - Haereticus Empyreum (2019)
Here's more wasted potential. Epic doom metal. Good vocals, good song writing, and programmed drums. Badly programmed drums. With bad sounding drum patches. What are these people thinking? "Sorry Mr. Drummer, we can't afford to let you record. This will do." Or is the drummer just too bad? Anyway, it offends me greatly and renders the album unlistenable for me! 3/5

A typical song: Dies Irae
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zta-6s2JMMk

@Opus
With regards to your issues with the length of Power Plant, how do you feel concerning the length of Somewhere Out In Space? I always thought that album could do without a few filler tracks so it tightens up a bit. Stuff like the two instrumentals, The Landing and Watcher In the Sky. While Watcher is a pretty good song, it's not any different from the original Iron Savior song Kai wrote and sang for. According to the MA page for the Iron Savior album, it's literally the same recording.

At 58 minutes and 14 tracks Somewhere Out In Space is obviously too long. It does have a much better flow than the others though. Lost in the Future is the one I would cut.

Grand Magus - Wolf's Return (2005)
Listening to this will put hair on your chest!
Simple, heavy and manly. Just like me. 5/5

A typical song: Kingslayer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1Nad4dvTEQ

Grand Magus - Iron Will (2008)
This one will give you a beard as well. 5/5

A typical song: Like the Oar Strikes the Water
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCWbFwF9Uyk

Grand Magus - The Hunt (2012)
This one is almost AC/DC simple. Still good, just not as good.
This will give you hairy legs at most. 4/5

An amazing song in two parts, Magus being Falconer: Son of the Last Breath
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZWAMMIHt0o

Sorry, too lazy to backread, but how many CDs, LPs, tapes do you have in your collection? Do you intend to listen to ALL of them? Are you only going to listen to everything (including non-metal albums) and just the metal titles here?

955 MA listed cds, plus about 100 hard rock cds, that's what I'm going to listen to. Might do prog rock after that.

I have about 400 titles "classical" cds. Some 150 LPs. 20ish cassettes.

I'd love to read along with your prog rock listen-through.