Back in 2009, it was hard to believe that the first decade of the third millennium was already coming to an end, but it was easy to believe in the power of metal!

The genre could also look back on a relatively healthy ten years of innovation, including new bands just carving their identity (Portal, Revocation, Vektor, Baroness, etc.) as well as relative veterans that had already matured and established themselves as modern titans (Mastodon, Converge, Isis, Behemoth, etc.).

The year’s diversity really does speak for itself, but we’ll help it along with this list of the 15 Best Metal Albums of 2009.

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