10 Perfect Metal Albums With No Bad Songs

When grunge hit the rock scene in the early '90s, the metal world didn't really survive intact. As much as bands in the thrash scene like Metallica and Megadeth were killing the stadium circuit, their days were numbered the minute that Smells Like Teen Spirit hit the airwaves, trading their complex solos in for something a bit more in line with the likes of Alice in Chains. It would have made sense for a band like Pantera to tone down their sound too, but Vulgar Display of Power was a different beast.

Almost as a reaction to the different alternative bands coming out at the time, the band's mission on this record was to make the heaviest record they could, turning the sounds of Cowboys From Hell into something a lot more gutteral. Although there were some ballads to be found on here like This Love, the majority of the licks coming out of Dimebag Darrell were some of the thickest grooves that the rock world had ever heard, locking in with his brother Vinnie Paul behind the kit and kicking you in the face from the moment the song starts.

While this fits into thrash just fine, Vulgar seemed to take everything heavy in rock from hardcore punk to metal and throw it under one roof here, all while locking in on a tempo that felt like Texas swing went through a pretty intense black metal phase. The age of Nirvana may have officially been upon us, but Pantera were proud to fly the flag for metal and get the entire world to headbang to it.