It is the time for Christmas and the yearly lists of the best albums of the year. Different magazines and radio shows have their own lists, and the forums have eager discussions about these lists. One of the music styles that causes the most discussions, is metal rock. Here are a few of the candidates for this year’s best metal rock album, international and Norwegian that I have photographed this last year and before. (Picture above: Enslaved, from the last Hole In The Sky Festival in Bergen 2011)

Spin Magazine has Baroness with Yellow & Green as their #1. Baroness are on top 5 on many of the other lists, and theirs seem to be the most mentioned album this year. Baroness played at the Oya Festival in Oslo in August.

The German Metal Hammer has lists from the editorial members, and Baroness is also represented on many of these lists. Another band high on some of the lists, are Gojira with L’Enfant Sauvage. I photographed them at Parkteatret in Oslo on their L’Enfant Sauvage tour.

Loudwire also has Gojira on their list, on #5, while Between The Buried And Me with The Parallax II: Future Sequence is on top.

Soulfly, with Max Cavalera in front and their 2012 album Enslaved, are represented on several lists, also lists created by metal musicians in Metal Sucks. I photographed them at the Norwegian Wood festival in 2006.

Meshuggah with their album Koloss are on many lists, but they don’t top any of them. They headlined the last night of the Inferno Festival in Oslo, Easter 2011.

The Norwegian edition of Metal Hammer has their own list Norwegian metal bands, and their #1 is Riitiir by Enslaved. They are also #2 on Metal Storm‘s list. This picture is from the Norwegian Wood Festival in 2011.

Other Norwegian bands on this list are Nekromantheon with their album Rise Vulcan Spectre. They played at the Norwegian showcase festival, by:Larm in February this year.

El Caco is also on the lists from Metal Hammer Norway with Hatred, Love & Diagrams. They played at Rockefeller Music Hall in Oslo in November.

You can see more pictures of these bands and many others at my picture site Artist Pictures. All the pictures are © Per Ole Hagen, and must not be used without written permission.