The 35 Best Metal Albums of 1991

Here are the 35 best metal albums that were released in 1991.

Each new decade guarantees some sort of shift or evolution in music, from the mainstream to the deep underground. While metal may have reached its most commercial peak around this time and the few years prior, extreme metal was just starting to thrive during the early ’90s.

While Metallica, Pantera and Ozzy Osbourne kept metal’s spirit from being completely extinguished from the public eye, metal was becoming twisted and mangled into intense new forms — death metal, black metal, grindcore, sludge, doom etc. Another leap in advanced musicianship arrived, bringing jazz-fusion into the extreme metal mix. Meanwhile, black metal was lurking with lo-fi qualities and oftentimes simplistic guitar work with that genre’s landmark release year coming in 1992.

Alternative metal avenues were also being explored right in step with the genre-smashing alt-rock that rose to prominence during this decade.

Around the world, pockets of extreme metal were developing, each yielding their own timeless sound and style. Viking metal, prog metal, folk metal… 1991 was a year where heavy metal shed its skin and became an even bigger beast.

READ MORE: Best Metal Songs of Each Year Since 1970

See all of the best metal albums of 1991 directly below!

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