Metal music thread

This is an experiment born from a few posts in the main LQ music thread. It may work, it may not, but either way, I felt the topic was worth addressing in its own thread. OK, so we already have a music thread on LQ, why do we need a specific one for metal?

For two reasons - firstly, it seems that on Linux fora there are quite a few metal listeners who don't discuss their tastes without particular reason, also, the discussion in the previous thread from last weekend could have gone on longer, but I personally didn't want to clog up the thread and alienate other posters with post upon post about it.

Thirdly, and I suppose that this counts as a valid reason as well, metal music - like classical, like folk, like electronica - has a multifarious array of subgenres, and exploring those in any depth is probably best done properly in a dedicated topic.

The albums that started this whole thing off in the last thread [with thanks to orbea and descendant_command] are:

• Draconian - Souvran [2015, Sweden, gothic/doom metal]
• Theatre of Tragedy - Ai(C)gis [1998, Norway, gothic metal/rock]
• The 3rd and the Mortal - Tears Laid in Earth [1994, Norway, doom metal]
• Candlemass - Epicus Doomicus Metallicus [1986, Sweden, doom metal]
• Funeral - In Fields of Pestilent Grief [2002, Norway, doom metal]
• Trees of Eternity - Hour of the Nightingale [2016, Sweden/Finland, doom metal]
• Saturnus - Paradise Belongs to You [1997, Denmark, death/doom metal]
• Black Lodge - Covet [1995, Norway, death/doom metal]
• Unholy - The Second Ring of Power [1994, Finland, death/doom metal]
• Scald - Will of Gods Is a Great Power [1996, Russia, doom metal]

A final point - metal is an extremely inclusive genre, that is to say, if you're not familiar with it, you will be welcomed into the fold in no time [as a follow-on point, I would recommend the first six or so albums from the small list above as an example of some starting points, rather than the last four albums]. Secondly, this thread is not existent to say that people who listen to metal music listen to metal exclusively, many metal listeners also listen to an array of other music from all over the spectrum. A lot of metal listeners are surprisingly open-minded [e.g. I was quite amused when having a drink with Mick Kenny from Anaal Nathrakh to find that one of his favourite artists was Madonna].

This thread can also be about metal culture, artwork, scenes, live events, literature, history, anything related. It would be interesting to see who else listens to metal music here on LQ - or who is interested in it - and to see what ideas/recommendations can be shared.