Yesterday, CMJ came out with their year-end list of the most played metal albums at college radio in 2013. The magazine ranked their list based on what college radio around the country played. A bit about how CMJ came up with their list: There isn’t a spin detection system at college radio like there is at commercial radio, so each week, the list is based on metal directors at college stations submitting a list of their top ten most-played albums. We reached out to some of the stations that we know and published our own top ten list yesterday, but this is based on the performance of what people reported. While we heard from about 17 stations, there are generally at least 100 stations around the country reporting their charts every week.
It should be noted that there are some conspicuous absences on the list, like Carcass’ Surgical Steel and Deafheaven’s Sunbather. Carcass actually came in at #21, while Deafheaven, for as groundbreaking an album as it was, wasn’t serviced to the majority of college radio. While Deafheaven did chart over the course of the year, it wasn’t among the bands appearing on the chart in part for this reason.
20) Devildriver, Winter Kills (Napalm)
19) Kvelertak, Meir (Roadrunner)
18) Dream Theater, Dream Theater (Roadrunner)
17) The Dillinger Escape Plan, One of us is the Killer (Party Smasher/Sumerian)
16) Motorhead, Aftershock (UDR)
15) Holy Grail, Ride the Void (Prosthetic)
14) Megadeth, Super Collider (Tradecraft)
13) Amon Amarth, Deceiver of the Gods (Metal Blade)
12) Chimaira, Crown of Thorns (eOne)
11) Clutch, Earth Rocker (Weathermaker)
10) Voivod, Target Earth (Century Media)
9) Darkthrone, The Underground Resistance (Peaceville)
8) Avenged Sevenfold, Hail to the King (Warner Bros.)
7) Ghost B.C., Infestissumam (Loma Vista)
6) Protest the Hero, Volition (Razor & Tie)
5) Killswitch Engage, Disarm the Descent (Roadrunner)
4) Skeletonwitch, Serpents Unleashed (Prosthetic)
3) Children of Bodom, Halo of Blood (Nuclear Blast)
2) Black Sabbath, 13 (Republic)
1) Hatebreed, The Divinity of Purpose (Razor & Tie)
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