7) Metallica, Hardwired… to Self-Destruct (Blackened Recordings)

This making the list surprised me. Maybe it was my low expectations, or maybe it was the cringeworthy title track kicking off what it otherwise a fantastic album. I think with Hardwired we’re seeing a Metallica that is reinvigorated, and has finally learned to write and play in a way that fits with how they have aged. Let’s face it, we will never get another Kill Em All, but do we really need that? This is a breath of fresh air into a band that’s biggest success in my lifetime was a live album(you know the one). It is far from a perfect album, but if this is the direction we will be seeing Metallica move in, I approve. Let’s just not talk about the artwork.

Track Pick: “Now That We’re Dead” because “Spit out the Bone” is too obvious a choice.

6) Gygax – Critical Hits (Self-Released) 

Critical Hits is what you get when you combine the rock and roll styling of Thin Lizzy and nerdy awesome hobbies like Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering. Recommended to me earlier in the year by a fan of a college radio show I was a part of, I became hooked instantly. As far as debut albums go, Gygax rolled a crit on this one. 

Track Pick: “Chain Lightning”

5) Avenged Sevenfold, The Stage (Capitol) 

Nobody knew what to expect with the new Avenged Sevenfold album with the  new addition of Brooks Wackerman (Tenacious D, Bad Religion) on drums, mostly because they gave us a whole 24 hours notice that the album was coming out before it dropped. The Stage finds the band expressing a love and fascination with science, religion, the universe at large. The release was a pleasant surprise to say the least, and should be remembered as the band’s most existential and experimental album to date. They even tapped Neil Degrasse Tyson for a monologue on the closing track, “Exist.”

Track Pick: “The Stage” or “Exist”