Just a list, with not much order except for the top three.
Sigh - Imaginary Sonicscape (2001)
Psychedelic rock fused with elements of symphonic black metal, progressive rock/metal, pop and orchestral pieces. Heavy use of Moog synths and one of the most deranged albums I have ever listened to. The cross genre swapping can make you think the album would be schizophrenic and thinly spread, but it all melds together quite well in a way that only Sigh can do. Thankfully they've improved and built on that sound in the ensuing 11 years since its release, with their newest album In Somniphobia (2012) really capturing the essence, while still being something completely unique unto itself. If you're a metalhead, you owe it to yourself to check this album out.
Enslaved - Axioma Ethica Odini (2010)
For the longest while I thought Enslaved would never release an album quite as mesmerizing as Below The Lights (2003). While their material from about 2000 on wards was listenable and enjoyable, I never felt like it quite lived up to Below the Lights. Then 2010 rolled around and they dropped Axioma Ethica Odini which was pretty much what if Pink Floyd were to make a black metal album. Absolutely sublime from start to finish.
Killing Joke - Killing Joke (1980)
Despite being from the same basic geographic region, producing the same type of music at the same time as other post-punk bands, Killing Joke don't seem to get the respect their more popular counterparts like The Fall and Joy Division get. Their first self-titled album is easily one of the most compelling debuts in my memory, filled to the brim with the aggression and mentality of the punk movement, but also with the intelligence and musical skill of the hard rock/ progressive rock bands from the same time. What's better is they have managed to reach a state many bands from their time have not, they have continued to put out amazing album after amazing album, every single one of them dominating bands that are half their age. Don't let their newest album MMXII (2012) slip you by, it's one of the best albums of the year.
16 Horsepower - Sackcloth 'n' Ashes (1996)
Little band from Denver Colorado that started a big movement, or at least big within the country scene. With songs like "Achey Breaky Heart" giving the wrong impression of country to an uninitiated audience, it's a relief that bands like 16 Horsepower can exist that make full use of the country twang, but put in the emotion and songwriting one would expect from folk. Songs about betrayal, murder, religion, and love populate the lyrics, with an intriguing dark and unsettling sound that really laid the foundation for the emerging "Gothic Americana" sound found in North America.
CunninLynguists - A Piece of Strange (2005)
When I finally decided to try and get into hip hop, CunninLynguists were one of the first acts I was given. I can't really think of a better group to get someone who dislikes the trappings of mainstream hip hop, but still knows that something more has to exist, into the genre. Well written verses, hypnotic beats and rhythms, and a real sense of earnest intelligence and substance behind the lyrics. While the album does falter a little towards the end, it is still one of my favourite albums to put on at night.
Opeth - Damnation (2003)
I feel like I need to address this right up front, I love Opeth's heavy material. The way they marry the aggression of death metal with the intricate and elaborate stylings of progressive rock make me hard in the trouser region, and I would be remiss to not state that Mikael Akerfeldt's death growls are some of the best in the entire genre, and his clean singer puts most other singers to shame. Okay now that an appropriate amount of tongue-bathing has been given I think Damnation is their most consistent and beautiful album. It takes a lot of courage to completely neglect your trademark sound, especially just after putting out two heavy albums in as many years, one of which exploded your popularity in the North American market and made it cool to like metal again after Nu Metal ruined it for everybody else.
Corb Lund - Horse Soldier! Horse Soldier (2007)
Easily one of my favourite country albums and my favourite piece of material that Corb has ever put out. Amazing rhythms, well written lyrics, and a heavy focus on history, one of my favourite subjects. A good balance between seriousness and humour, and the humour delivered in such a positive fun way that you just can't help but smile at. Seriously check this one out if you want to get into Country, but want something more than just Johnny Cash suggestions.
Okay so here's my top three.
Blackalicious - Blazing Arrow (2002)
While CunninLynguists may have been one of my first hip hop groups, Blackalicious was my real first. Before I heard them I thought hip hop capable of nothing more than exploitative songs that glorified violence, objectified women, and seemed to offer nothing insightful into the topics that often plagued the environment that spawned it except in a very superficial "Fuck the police" kind of way. Sure a few songs may have something behind it, but nothing in a concrete fashion. A cook in the kitchen I worked in overheard this statement and took me out to his car where we proceeded to hotbox it and he put on the song "Alphabet Aerobics" that showcased Gift of Gab's amazing flow. He then gave me a burned copy of Blazing Arrow and I gained a new appreciation for the genre and learned a lot about it and the underground scene.
Type O Negative - Bloody Kisses (1993)
With most metalheads, the order of bands that get them into metal (or at least the ones they're willing to admit to) usually goes as followed
1) Iron Maiden
2) Metallica
3) Megadeth
4) (Wild card, but usually Judas Priest)
The first three suit me, but rather than Judas Priest, I instead got Bloody Kisses by Gothic metal pioneers Type O Negative and have loved the band ever since. While a lot of the self-deprecating humour found in their lyrics eluded me til I got a bit older, but some of their more overt songs like "Kill All the White People" and "We Hate Everybody" struck a chord with me. I was also really getting into the Gothic-Punk Roleplaying game Vampire: The Masquerade at the time and the album really suited the game.
Strapping Young Lad - City (1997)
I can say unequivocally that I probably would have dropped out of high school if it wasn't for this album. Devin Townsend's anger was so similar to my own, this feeling of alienation and disinterest from everyone around you. The cloying feeling of being silenced, not by some brutal authority, but just by disinterest from the people around you, even though all you want to do is create something beautiful for these same people to enjoy. City was almost always in my CD player on the walk to and from school, and if it wasn't it was in my CD wallet that I carried around in my backpack. The album touched me on an emotional level that only a few other pieces of entertainment have been able to and still remains my "go-to" album if I've had a shitty day.
