Friday Metal: Top 10 albums of 2010

As always, based entirely on my own subjective criteria, quirks, and whims. In (rough) ordinal ranking:

1. Iron Maiden, The Final Frontier

Watch the video for the title track here.

2. High on Fire, Snakes for the Divine

3. Ludicra, The Tenant

4. Soilwork, The Panic Broadcast

5. Enslaved, Axioma Ethica Odini

6. The Sword, Warp Riders

7. Eluveitie, Everything Remains As It Never Was

8. Bison B.C., Dark Ages

9. Barren Earth, Curse of the Red River

10. Alcest, Écailles de lune

Honorable mentions:

Conducting from the Grave, Revenants
As I Lay Dying, The Powerless Rise
Intronaut, Valley of Smoke
Dillinger Escape Plan, Option Paralysis

Best album from 2009 that I didn’t hear until 2010:

Amorphis, Skyforger

Albums that got a lot of critical praise that I haven’t had a chance to hear yet (but hope to soon):

Kylesa, Spiral Shadow
Agalloch, Marrow of the Spirit

Best non-metal album:

Arcade Fire, The Suburbs

Best album by a dead person:

Johnny Cash, Ain’t No Grave