Top Ten - 1994

Judging by how quickly the ratings drop into the 70s and below, 1994 looks like a weak year in music. This may be misleading, though, because I only reviewd 31 albums, due in part because of the popularity of Grunge at the time. But things could change if I eventually include some of those bands.

1994 Top Ten:
89.52 -- Running Wild - Black Hand Inn
86.23 -- Savatage - Handful of Rain
85.66 -- Pat Travers Band - Blues Magnet
84.14 -- Axel Rudi Pell - Between the Walls
83.61 -- Bruce Dickinson - Balls to Picasso
83.42 -- Threshold - Psychedelicatessen
83.32 -- Warrior Soul - Space Age Playboys
83.21 -- Megadeth - Youthanasia
82.26 -- Dream Theater - Awake
82.00 -- Riot - Night Breaker

Other 1994 releases:
81.78 -- Doctor Butcher - Doctor Butcher
80.17 -- Helloween - Master of the Rings
79.74 -- Dio - Strange Highways
78.64 -- Foghat - The Return of the Boogie Men
78.11 -- Stratovarius - Dreamspace
76.95 -- Mötley Crüe - Mötley Crüe
76.00 -- Pretty Maids - Scream
74.14 -- Black Sabbath - Cross Purposes
74.09 -- Helloween - Chameleon
73.70 -- Mägo de Oz - Mägo de Oz
70.97 -- Alice Cooper - The Last Temptation
70.81 -- Fight - War of Words
70.33 -- Symphony X - Symphony X
70.18 -- Blues Traveler - Four
69.12 -- Annihilator - King of the Kill
68.05 -- Yngwie Malmsteen - Seventh Sign
66.51 -- Queensrÿche - Promised Land
65.25 -- Emerson, Lake & Palmer - In the Hot Seat
61.35 -- ZZ Top - Antenna
58.87 -- Pink Floyd - The Division Bell
57.09 -- Fates Warning - Inside Out

Top Ten - 1997

The first thing you may notice about this list of 37 albums is that the Top Ten contains 11 albums (there was a tie for the tenth spot). The second thing you may notice is that the top-rated album is a non-English singing album (but still obviously very good). The third thing is that the scores are relatively low (but there are still many albums worth checking out). Finally, you may notice that some well-known bands released bad or mediocre albums (which you can safely avoid, unless you're a completist).

1997 Top Ten:
88.23 -- Tierra Santa - Medieval
87.32 -- Dickie Peterson - Child of the Darkness
87.24 -- Vanden Plas - The God Thing
86.92 -- Symphony X - The Divine Wings of Tragedy
86.63 -- W.A.S.P. - K.F.D.
86.55 -- Iron Savior - Iron Savior
86.54 -- Stratovarius - Visions
86.39 -- Hammerfall - Glory to the Brave
85.67 -- Bruce Dickinson - Accident of Birth
82.78 -- Saxon - Unleash the Beast
82.78 -- Therion - Theli

Other 1997 releases:
82.34 -- Axel Rudi Pell - Magic
81.69 -- Threshold - Extinct Instinct
81.15 -- Metallica - Reload
80.38 -- Megadeth - Cryptic Writings
79.89 -- Mogg/Way - Edge of the World
79.39 -- Tad Morose - A Mended Rhyme
77.85 -- Judas Priest - Jugulator
76.70 -- Gamma Ray - Somewhere Out in Space
75.97 -- Andi Deris - Come In from the Rain
74.43 -- Pretty Maids - Spooked
73.78 -- Aerosmith - Nine Lives
73.77 -- Glenn Tipton - Edge of the World
73.46 -- Edguy - Kingdom of Madness
69.61 -- Anvil - Absolutely No Alternative
69.14 -- Yngwie Malmsteen - Facing the Animal
69.10 -- Nightwish - Angels Fall First
68.86 -- Queensrÿche - Hear in the Now Frontier
67.11 -- Dream Theater - Falling into Infinity
66.72 -- Wizard - Battle of Metal
66.56 -- Dokken - Shadowlife
62.11 -- Brainstorm -- Hungry
61.64 -- Fates Warning - A Pleasant Shade of Grey
61.54 -- Hawkwind - Distant Horizons
60.59 -- Saviour Machine - Legend I
58.98 -- Kiss - Carnival of Souls: The Final Sessions
47.66 -- Mötley Crüe - Generation Swine

Rock Island - Chapter Five

You're walking on the far side of the island with Cinnamon when you spot (or think you spot) two men off in the distance. One has gray hair and reminds you of that "rich Corinthian leather" guy. He seems fairly tall, but that could be misleading as the other man is short; maybe even a little person. You think you hear the words "ze plane," but then Cinnamon is talking to you and turn your attention to her, the vision (or was it real?) already forgotten.

"So tell me some of the songs you have with you," Cinnamon says. This is music to your ears. You scroll through your MP3 player, reading heavy metal song titles aloud:

• Angel Dust - Follow Me, Pt. 2; Surrender
• Anvil - Bedroom Game; Metal On Metal
• Arjen Anthony Lucassen - Set Your Controls
• Axel Rudi Pell - Casbah; Live for the King
• Blood Ceremony - Master of Confusion
• Brainstorm - Hollow Hideaway; Trinity of Lust: Shiva's Tears; Worlds are Comin' Through
• Bruce Dickinson - Tears of A Dragon; Accident of Birth
• Butthole Surfers - Who Was in My Room Last Night?
• Candlebox - You
• Cans - The Key
• Circle II Circle - Out of Reach
• Cornerstone - Welcome to Forever; Once Upon Our Yesterdays
• Dark Moor - Nevermore
• Def Leppard - Rock Brigade; Wasted
• Dio - Holy Diver
• Dogface - Not Wanted
• Domine - The Ride of the Valkyries; Dawn of a New Day - A Celtic Requiem
• Dream Theater - Pull Me Under; Take the Time; Caught in a Web; Scene Four: Beyond This Life; Glass Prison; Great Debate
• Edguy - Out of Control; Piper Never Dies
• Elixir - Born Loser
• Fastway - Another Day; Say What You Will
• Feinstein - Rebelution; Streaming Star; Inferno
• Force of Evil - Dawn on Dominion/Hell on Earth
• Galactic Cowboys - I'm Not Amused
• Gamma Ray - Heading for Tomorrow; Rebellion in Dreamland; Heart of the Unicorn; New World Order; My Temple; Spiritual Dictator
• Great White - Desert Moon

With power dwindling, you stop, but unfortunately (or is it fortunately?) there will be another opportunity to finish the list.