Top 20 Hard Rock and Metal Albums of 1985

Heavy music was at war with itself in 1985 — and from the conflict emerged a slew of groundbreaking albums from one of hard rock and metal’s most consequential years.

Our list of the Top 20 Hard Rock and Metal Albums of 1985 shows just how diverse the year was, running the gamut from proto-extreme metal to esoteric synth-rock.

Glam metal extended its commercial reign, bolstered by the likes of Motley Crue and Ratt. Other hard rock elder statesmen, such as Aerosmith, AC/DC and Kiss, also released new albums, hellbent on proving they could still rock alongside the bands they had practically birthed.

But a backlash against this poppy, sex-obsessed strain of hard rock was brewing in the underground. The nascent thrash metal revolution reached a fever pitch in 1985, with three members of the “Big 4” releasing landmark albums — almost as if they were setting the stage for Metallica‘s earth-shattering Master of Puppets the following year. Other promising upstarts such as Exodus and Overkill made their mark on the scene, blowing the lid off the thrash movement.

Other ’70s holdovers continued embracing the technology and trends of the time, scooting further away from traditional hard rock but still keeping the core tenets intact. Meanwhile, some artists foreshadowed the alternative rock and metal boom of the ’90s with music that boldly defied easy classification.

See all of these triumphs and more in our list of Top 20 Hard Rock and Metal Albums of 1985.