The purpose of this feature is to give you an unbiased and diverse look at what the StonerRock.com Community thought were the best albums released in the year 2005. Well, as diverse as possible considering that we`re mostly die-hard heavy rock fans! We`ve provided a total of 4 lists to ensure as much diversity as possible. The first list was compiled from a poll (via our Top 25 Albums of 2005 contest) conducted among the general members of the StonerRock.com Community, the next list is from an individual StonerRock.com Community Member (the winner of the Top 25 Albums of 2005 contest), and the final 2 lists were compiled by the staff here at StonerRock.com. We hope these lists provide new fans with ideas for which albums they should pick up first and the die-hard fans with a list of great albums that they`re missing out on.
A great many of the albums listed below are available for purchase in our All That`s Heavy Online Music Store. Those that are available will be linked directly to that album in the store or you can just click here to go to the main page of the store. Sorry for the shameless self promotion but it`s the sales from the store that keep StonerRock.com online - if it weren`t for those sales we wouldn`t be able to bring you this feature. Please support StonerRock.com by doing some of your record shopping with us.
And now onto the feature, starting with the StonerRock.com Community Top 25 Albums of 2005.
StonerRock.com Community Top 25 Albums of 2005
Between January 1st and 31st, 2006 we ran a competition on StonerRock.com that our community members could enter by submitting their "Top 25 Albums of 2005" lists. This was run like a poll with very strict rules. There were well over 1,000 lists submitted this year and we painstakingly went through every list and compiled a master list and then alloted points based on a strict and fair criteria. We won`t reveal our system for determining the points because we don`t want people to cheat the next time we run a poll/competition like this but we will guarantee that this list is very accurate and gives you an almost perfect representation of what albums the StonerRock.com Community favors.
- High on Fire - Blessed Black Wiings (11050 pts)
- Queens of the Stone Age - Lullabies to Paralyze (8696 pts)
- Clutch - Robot Hive/Exodus (7585 pts)
- Corrosion of Conformity - In the Arms of God (6688 pts)
- YOB - The Unreal Never Lived (5340 pts)
- Sunn 0))) - Black One (5027 pts)
- Pelican - The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw (4924 pts)
- Witchcraft - Firewood (4634 pts)
- Dozer - Through The Eyes of Heathens (4468 pts)
- Hermano - Dare I Say (4441 pts)
- Om - Varations on a Theme (4438 pts)
- Brant Bjork and the Bros - Saved by Magic (4266 pts)
- Earth - Hex: or Printing In The Infernal Method (4183 pts)
- Cathedral - The Garden of Unearthly Delights (4091 pts)
- Red Sparowes - At the Soundless Dawn (3763 pts)
- The Atomic Bitchwax - 3 (3605 pts)
- Acid King - III (3370 pts)
- Jesu - Self Titled (3349 pts)
- Bongzilla - Amerijuanican (3254 pts)
- Ufomammut - Lucifer Songs (3107 pts)
- Grand Magus - Wolf´s Return (2964 pts)
- Spiritual Beggars - Demons (2736 pts)
- Dead Meadow - Feathers (2435 pts)
- Crowbar - Life`s Blood for the Downtrodden (2254 pts)
- The Hellacopters - Rock & Roll Is Dead (2203 pts)
Click here to view the Community Top Albums Master List - Contains all albums that were voted for by StonerRock.com Community Members in the "Top 25 Albums of 2005" contest....
Click here to view the Community Top 25 Albums of 2005 - Contains all of the individual entries submitted to our Top 25 Albums of 2005 contest!
Contest Winner`s Top Albums of 2005 List
In a random drawing Jeff Ryan (aka LordNyarlathotep) of the USA was selected as the lucky winner of our "Top 25 Albums of 2005" contest. As part of his prize (which also included his choice of $250 worth of stuff from our All That`s Heavy Online Music Store) his "Top 25 Albums of 2005" list that he submitted is being included as part of this feature so here it is:
Jeff Ryan`s Top 25 Albums of 2005
(Top 25 Albums of 2005 Contest Winner)
I couldn’t believe it, I had just returned from a trip, and had spent too much money. Thought I would have to put off my stoner rock wish list for about a year. Then bam, there it was, the email stating “Congratulations” (thought oh look more spam, what did I win 2 million???). Luckily it also said StonerRock.com.... I don’t even know if I read it other than $250 and “start shopping”.
The list for 2005, represents for me, the albums that obviously had the sound I wanted but also represent a lot of what stoner rock is. Whether it is going in an experimental direction like Pharaoh Overlord or caressing your guitar like Colour Haze, to heavy ass sludge, i.e. Ufomammut, or even some straight up rock and roll like Wolfmother, I think the 2005 list captures everything that makes Stonerrock what it is, the best damn rock there is. To me 2005 was one of the best most diverse years around for releases, and I could not get enough of all the CD’s released last year, most of them were in the CD player for weeks at a time.
- Circulus - The Lick on the Tip of a Letter Yet to Be Sent
- Witchcraft - Firewood
- Ufomammut - Lucifer Songs
- Sunn 0))) - Black One
- Earthride - Vampire Circus
- Earth - Hex: or Printing In The Infernal Method
- Pagan Altar - Judgement of the Dead
- Pharaoh Overlord - # 3
- Reverend Bizarre - Crush the Insects
- Grand Magus - Wolf´s Return
- Wolfmother - Self Titled
- Capricorns - Ruder Forms Survive
- Bongzilla - Amerijuanican
- Sula Bassana - Dreamer
- Witchcraft/Circulus - Split 7 inch
- EyeHateGod - Preaching the End Time Message
- Cathedral - The Garden of Unearthly Delights
- Acid King - III
- Spiritual Beggars - Demons
- Graves At Sea/Asunder - Split
- Sunn 0))) - The Grimm Robe Demos
- Ramesses - The Tomb
- Drunk Horse - In Tongues
- Queens of the Stone Age - Lullabies to Paralyze
- Earthling Society - Albion
Arzgarth`s Top 25 Albums of 2005
(Arzgarth is the Editor-in-Chief of StonerRock.com)
I listen to too many goddamn albums.
It’s a hazard of the job, and to be honest, I’m not really bitching about it. After all, if it weren’t for this high-profile editor job of mine, I wouldn’t have heard La Ira de Dios, Drink the Bleach, or Black Mountain in 2005.
All the same, due to the number of albums I listened to and loved last year, it wasn’t particularly easy making this list. The top five fell into place relatively quickly – they’re the ones that I listened to the most, the ones that I made time to listen to. I’ve been a fan of COC since their Blind days, and In the Arms of God was an awesome album (still is, actually). Lamont and We’re All Gonna Die are local bands that I’ve seen live far too many times to count, and I’ve yet to get tired of them. Dozer, like COC, was a returning favorite, and The Mos Generator was a great surprise.
But after that it got a little blurry. At the beginning of the year, it would’ve been impossible to think High on Fire wouldn’t be in the top 10, but as the month’s passed, I had less desire to listen to Blessed Black Wings. Great album and probably my favorite of the three, but I just don’t have the urge to listen to it all that often. As a result, it got pushed down as I made room for the likes of Hognose and Sweatmaster.
But I’m rambling. The end result is that these 25 albums are the ones that made a lasting impression, the ones that I keep going back to. The consolation prize goes to Peeping Tom, who would’ve made it in the top five for sure, if not for the fact that their self-titled album came out in 2004.
\m/
Arz
- Corrosion of Conformity - In the Arms of God
- Lamont - Muscle, Guts and Luck
- We`re All Gonna Die - The Wreck of the Minot
- Dozer - Through The Eyes of Heathens
- The Mos Generator - The Late, Great Planet Earth
- Bible of the Devil - Brutality Majesty Eternity
- Black Mountain - Self Titled
- Acid King - III
- Ufomammut - Lucifer Songs
- YOB - The Unreal Never Lived
- Hognose - El Sombrero
- Minsk - Out of a Center Which is Neither Dead Nor Alive
- Sweatmaster - Tom Tom Bullet
- La Ira de Dios - Hacia el Sol Rojo
- Players Club - Coextinction
- Pharaoh Overlord - # 3
- Earthride - Vampire Circus
- Drink the Bleach - Self Titled
- Drunk Horse - In Tongues
- Clutch - Robot Hive/Exodus
- Anthrax - Alive II
- Crash and Burn - The Value of Mistrust
- Greatdayforup - Flores de Sangre
- High on Fire - Blessed Black Wiings
- SubArachnoid Space - The Red Veil
Dan & Melanie`s Top 25 Albums of 2005
(aka El Danno & Hellmistress. Dan and Melanie are the owners of StonerRock.com)
Our lists were so similar this year that we decided just to combine them into one list. I guess that`s what living and working together 24 hours a day 7 days a week will do!!
- Drunk Horse - In Tongues
- The Hellacopters - Rock & Roll Is Dead
- Dozer - Through The Eyes of Heathens
- Acid King - III
- Dead Meadow - Feathers
- The Atomic Bitchwax - 3
- Om - Varations on a Theme
- Biblical Proof of UFOs - 8 Track Demo[n]s
- Queens of the Stone Age - Lullabies to Paralyze
- Clutch - Robot Hive/Exodus
- YOB - The Unreal Never Lived
- Early Man - Closing In
- Hermano - Live at W2
- Yellow #5 - Demon Crossing
- Planet Gemini - Wizards Blood
- Insider - Simple Water Drops
- 35007 - Phase V
- Ufomammut - Lucifer Songs
- Black Mountain - Self Titled
- Yawning Man - Rock Formations
- Orange Sunshine - Homo Erectus
- Freedom Bleeder - 10 out 10
- Sword - Lord by Fire
- Sheavy - Republic?
- Truckfighters - Gravity X
