Album Anniversaries in 2026
Album Anniversaries in 2026
By Oli Gonzalez
2026 is looking like another impressive one for metal music. Especially with the stacked festival scene here in the UK and Europe, and some impressive lineups being announced. In addition to the promise of new music from Gojira, Kreator, Megadeth, Visions Of Atlantis, and more! Though it’s fun to look back into the past and to think about our favourite albums over the years, those we hold most dear, those seminal works that made us fall in love with bands and genres as a whole. Plenty of these seminal works and albums will celebrating milestones this year; 10, 20, and 25th anniversaries of their release dates. As such, here’s a list of the albums that have meant the most to me over the years. There’ll be some that will resonate with you, some that you’ll be discovering for the first time, and there’ll most certainly be some I’ve missed from this list. Let’s start things off with the albums that are turning 10 in 2026…
Albums Turning 10
Despite this being a time when I wasn’t actively seeking out new because and was somewhat detached from the metal community, there was still some solid releases such as…
Sabaton – “The Last Stand”
Sweden’s finest musical export since Abba finished 2025 strong with their ‘Legends’ tour. In 2016, they released one of their finest studio efforts in a collection of ballads centred on the theme of famous final battles and last stands. This includes ‘Sparta’, the story of King Leonidas of Sparta holding off the advances of the vast Persian army before succumbing to their superior numbers, retold in a power metal form. Songs like this, ‘Shiroyama’ and ‘The Last Stand’ are composed to sound epic in large arenas, with huge choruses to be sung together in huge numbers. You can sing along in the shower, in your car, or living room to these in 2026. Or maybe live and in the flesh when festival season arrives!
Insomnium – “Winter’s Gate”
One of melodic death metal’s masterpieces, “Winter’s Gate” is essentially a 40 minute song broken into a series of movements. Movement’s that are born from an award winning novel vocalist Niilo wrote and tells the tale of a band of Vikings setting sail for a fabled land in the West. The music reflects different aspects of the story, with an early burst of the distorted guitars, frantic pace, and Niilo’s trademark fierce vocals representing the torment the group face as they navigate the harsh ocean’s waves and current. The music calms as they settle on the island, though the album ends in a savage and dramatic crescendo as the group eventually succumb to winter’s harshness and the wrath of the gods! Essential listening for any fans of melodic death.
Overhead, The Albatross – “Learning To Growl”
Perhaps the least familiar on this list, the Irish post rock band saw a significant rise in their stock and reputation in 2025! This was due to stunning performances at Damnation and Arctangent festivals. Though the short sets meant they were all but limited to playing material from late 2024’s effort “I Leave You This”. Whilst this is great album in its own right, hopefully the band will revisit the gem’s from “Learning To Growl” in 2026’s live arena. Songs like ‘Telekinetic Forest Guard’ exploring a more gentle and melodic side to the band, whilst their diverse and expansive compositional forms are evidenced in ‘Bara’ and ‘HBG’. Post rock fans should make this album part of their regular rotation.
Gojira – “Magma”
The French progressive metal act can seemingly do no wrong, having played every festival worth playing across the globe, and THAT moment they played the 2024 Olympic opening ceremony in Paris! One of many MANY reasons for their continued success was due to 2016’s effort “Magma”. Featuring some of their best work in ‘Stranded’ and ‘Silvera’, they demonstrate their ability to play with mechanical tightness and resounding musical proficiency built on top of boundless raw human emotion and energy. Underrated tracks such as ‘The Cell’ demonstrate these qualities too and may appear simple on the surface, but delve deeper and you’ll find yourself in a music theory busting realm of polyrhythms that will confuse the most advanced of mathematicians!
Cult Of Luna & Julie Christmas – “Mariner”
Two forces of nature collide. Cult Of Luna being one of the finest live metal acts on the planet, and Julie Christmas being one of the most gifted performers who simply born to be on that stage! Rather than clash and nullify each other’s abilities in a battle of egos, they both enhance and compliment one other’s abilities, elevating each other to heights not possible on their own. Julie and Johannes’ contrasting vocal styles work in wonderful synergy, whilst the musicianship is simply world class. I could listen to the guitar work on ‘A Greater Call’ for days and not get tired of it! No hyperbole, this is one of the greatest post metal albums of all.
Albums Turning 20
An important time in my life as I was learning my place in the world as a teenager, and discovering a wealth of music in these formative years. A selection of prominent albums from that time period…
In Flames – “Come Clarity”
The soundtrack to my teenage years, there was a period when In Flames were the sole band I listened to for several weeks and months. Largely due to the strength of this album, characterised by frantic bursts of primitive aggression from their early melodic death metal days, played by musicians who felt as though their lives depended on it! This combined with the soaring and instantly memorable choruses that gave each song much welcome character and identity. Songs like ‘Leeches’ and ‘Take This Life’ meet this description, whilst ‘Come Clarity’ take a more sombre and melancholy route. An important album in the band’s history and work that inspired a generation of bands after them.
Killswitch Engage – “As Daylight Dies”
Since the infamous departure of Jesse, “As Daylight Dies” was the second album with Howard behind the mic and the one where he established himself as not just an interim but a force that drove the band to new heights! Some of the bands classics such as ‘My Curse’ and ‘Arms Of Sorrow’ spawned from this album and showcased Jones’ undeniable vocal talent. Simultaneously, guitarist and backing vocalist Adam D puts in an under appreciated effort in ‘This Is Absolution’ and ‘Reject Yourself’ whilst delivering iconic riffs with partner in crime Joel. The forefathers of metalcore continued to leave their mark on the metal scene with a series of blistering and stunning classics in which other bands in the genre are compared against.
Trivium – “The Crusade”
After releasing one of the greatest metal albums of all time, “Ascendancy” in 2005, the pressure was on the deliver when “The Crusade” was released roughly 18 months later. For some, the band’s third album didn’t live up to the expectation. This was largely due to a significant compositional shift were the screams and growls of Matt Heafy in “Ascendancy” were used vary sparingly in “The Crusade”. Instead, he brought a clean singing style which had previously been seldom heard. Some of the criticisms and remarks that he was a James Hetfield wannabe were unjust, and some of the band’s most fond tracks such as ‘The Anthem’ and ‘Entrance of The Conflagration’ spawned from this album. The band also flexed their progressive metal muscles when producing the 8 minute instrumental masterclass in the final track of the album also named ‘The Crusade’. One of many underrated tracks in an underrated album.
Amon Amarth – “With Oden On Our Side”
I’ll never forget seeing the video to ‘Cry Of The Blackbirds’ for the very first time! Never before had I seen such a seamless blend of aesthetic melody and bruising death metal in one fierce package! This prompted me to get a copy of “With Oden On Our Side” and delve deeper into my new favourite band. This was a time when the band were playing smaller venues, in comparison to the arenas and festivals they’re headlining, and their sound was much grittier and closer to raw death metal. The story telling on this album – told by the ever fierce and commanding voice of Johann Hegg – was absolutely stellar! Whether it was the stories of battle in ‘Gods Of War Arise’, ‘Runes To My Memory’, or the Norse myths that inspired their earlier works, as is the case in ‘Hermods Ride To Hell’. Maybe they’ll revisit some of these classics in the live arena in 2026?
Hatebreed – “Supremacy”
As a teenager, I struggled to understand my place in the world, I was changing physically and emotionally in ways which I couldn’t understand. I was angry and didn’t know how to verbalise that! That’s why Hatebreed’s music and the primitive angst and aggression pouring out of “Supremacy” resonated so hard with me! Jamey Jasta’s powerful message and vocal delivery gave a voice to those feelings I couldn’t put into words. As I’m sure it has done to their legions of fans globally. Even as an adult, ‘Destroy Everything’ and ‘Defeatist’ are guaranteed to burst me out of an episode of the blues.
Albums Turning 25
A collection of albums released at a time when I was indoctrinated by the heavy side of music very early on, standing as classics not just for myself but for an entire generation.
System Of A Down – “Toxicity”
Wanna talk about cultural impact? This is simply immeasurable! With over 1 billion views on YouTube, this provides some kind of metric as to how many ears have listened to ‘Chop Suey’, and when placed alongside ‘Toxicity’ forms an undisputed soundtrack to a generation. Is this REALLY 25 years old already?!
Slipknot – “Iowa”
Whether their self-titled debut or “Iowa” was the band’s breakthrough album is up for debate. What’s not up for debate is the impact “Iowa” had and how it elevated the band to another level. ‘Left Behind’ was a near-permanent fixture on Kerrang! TV in 2001, whilst ‘My Plague’ reached a summit many artists can only dream of when it was included on the official soundtrack to the ever popular Resident Evil movie. How’s that for impact?!
Fear Factory – “Digimortal”
Whilst “Demanufacture” wins all the plaudits and credits as the bands magnum opus, “Digimortal” certainly isn’t to be overlooked. Featuring all the classic compositional elements and ingredients that fuelled the band’s rise to fame. Namely Raymond Herrera’s machine like drumming, Dino Cazeres providing the bone crunching distorted guitar riffs with Christian Olde Wolbers providing the crucial bridge between the two. This provided the necessary foundations for the melodic focal points in the industrial spiced synths and Burton Bell’s vocal onslaught. All of which can be observations in supremely crafted compositions such as ‘Linchpin’.
Machine Head – “Supercharger”
Maybe I’m in a very small minority here by thinking this is Machine Head’s best album (this is a mental take- Rory!), with some critics ranking it as the poorest, lurking in the shadows of “The Blackening” and “Burn My Eyes”. After all, hits like ‘Crashing Around You’ aren’t thought of in the same way as ‘‘Davidian’ and ‘Imperium’. This may well be a case of seeing the world through rose tinted glasses, but I’ll always associate this album with beginning my journey into the world of heavy and being enamoured by the skills of Rob Flynn and co.
Ill Nino – “Revolution Revolucion”
The one that started it all off for me! After seeing the video to ‘God Save Us’ on Kerrang!, my fate was sealed as a life long fan of the heavy side of music! After being brought up on a steady diet of alternative ‘dad’ rock (Iron Maiden, REM, U2), something lit a switch inside me as I had never seen anything as heavy nor aggressive as the sound of Ill Nino blurring through my parent’s TV. Purchasing a “Revolution Revolucion” CD allowed me to delve deeper into my new found obsession, being enamoured by the Latin American influences (acoustic guitars, tribal drums, and Christian’s Spanish lyrics) seeping into this relentlessly high energy nu metal sound. Whilst the band have undergone significant lineup changes since 2001, this album still remains one of my most treasured and crucial in my musical journey.
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