give me some metal

No Sleep `Til Hammersmith by Motorhead
Paranoid by Black Sabbath
Master of Puppets by Metallica
Reign in Blood by Slayer
Piece of Mind by Iron Maiden

A few more that'll deepend your understanding of the genre:
Bathory - Hammerheart (epic viking stuff done in a garage)
Celtic Frost - To Mega Therion (rocking riffs and some experimentation makes good bedmates, or at least penpals)

And if you want some understanding of newer metal too:
Suffocation - Pierced from within (one of the defining points of brutal death metal. The rhythms are where it's at, pretty much)
Brutal Truth - Need To Control (grindcore, but with a more experimental bent than most of what came before, yet very focused. Lots of indietypes like this. If you want to explore the roots of the genre, try Napalm Death, Repulsion and, the first band that didn't fall apart at high tempos, Terrorizer. And the proto-bands like Deep Wound and Siege)

You might want to nudge into bands like Judas Priest and Accept too, but be aware that the former went through several approaches to metal, while the latter were one of those bands that showed how much fun a guitarist could have in the genre, though the guitars admittedly don't sound that impressive nowadays. The guitarsolo in "Love child" is great. Quite a golden nugget in the middle of a song that I have serious trouble enjoying. Expect an AC/CD-wannabe vocalist.

HMm, incredibly unfocused posting this. Well, let's say that my post just introduced you to Opeth-songwriting then!

fairly 'accessible' modern metal:
Katatonia - Discouraged Ones (indie-friendly gloomy rock/metal hybrid)
Anathema - The Silent Enigma (idem)
Emperor - In The Nightside Eclipse (atmospheric & furious nordic black metal)
Amorphis - Tales From The 1000 Lakes (catchy death metal + finnish folk)
Death - Individual Thought Patterns (tight technical melodic death metal)
Dissection - Storm Of The Light's Bane (VERY melodic & catchy metal updating Iron Maiden style heavy metal with modern production & energy)
3rd & The Mortal - Tears Laid In Earth (soprano vocals + ethereal metal)
Samael - Ceremony Of Opposites (triumphant, midtempo rock 'n rollin' metal)

a lot harsher or more minimalist:
Cryptopsy - None So Vile (nec-plus-ultra in complex & brutal death metal)
Entombed - Left Hand Path (great songwriting and the most charismatic crunchy guitar sound you've ever heard)
Darkthrone - Transilvanian Hunger (anti-aestheticism taken to its sonic extremes: raw, harsh, primitive, minimalist, hypnotizing)
Burzum - Hvis Lyset Tar Oss (melancholic, droning shoegazer metal with hysterical shrieked vocals)
Immortal - Battles In The North (the aural equivalent of standing in a furious hailstorm at minus 30 degrees)
Napalm Death - Scum (primitive two-chord crust/punk buried under a huge mass of muddy distortion)

Avoid Overkill at all costs. (NEVER understood their appeal).

Helloween - Keeper of the Seven Keys Part II
Metallica - Ride the Lightning
Megadeth - Peace Sells
Exodus - Impact in Imminent
HIM - Love Metal
Annihilator - Never Neverland
Iron Maiden - Seventh Son of a Seventh Son & Number of the Beast
Xentrix - Dilute to Taste
Slayer - Reign in Blood (seconded)/ South of Heaven
Anthrax - Persistence of Time

Opeth - Blackwater Park
My Dying Bride - Like Gods of The Sun
The Gathering - Mandylion

USA Modern Metal (sludge/experimental/hardcore):

Neurosis - Times of Grace
Isis - Oceanic
Mastodon - Remission

John is way OTM here. I don't think I've listened to any recent metal record quite as much. Works wonders for boring drives to work.

And is it physically possible for the drummer to be playing some of that stuff? He sounds like a madman. Only complaint: A bit more of the Halford screams would be fun.

The newest one is called Death Cult Armageddon (I think it comes out next week), and it's not quite as good as Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia, at least to my ear.

Sepultura - Arise
Morbid Angel - Gateways... and the first two.
Death - Symbolic
Napalm Death - Enemy Of The Music Business

I like the hardcore metal from the late '80's a lot too: Cro Mags, COC, SOD, MOD, DRI, Crumbsuckers, Excel, Final Conflict, Judge etc etc...

http://www.agathodaimon.de/images/absu.jpg

They're probably the best metal liveband at the moment, it's too bad they have so many problems putting their tours together (McGovern can understandably not do drums and vocals simultaneously). I love how Absu sounds so undeniably AMERICAN (a logical descendent of Slayer et al), where most other US black metal bands are merely generic copies of European bands.

And while we're at it, how brilliant is the CD booklet of Tara? Amazing artwork and it's about the size of a short novel...

I still think probably the strongest metal album of recent years is Immolation's Unholy Cult though. Surprisingly so, considering it's not a very diverse thing, but they really hit paydirt on that one, right up there with the likes of "Blessed are the sick" and "None so vile" for pure classic death metal goodness.

and are the routine purist dismissals of Dimmu Borgir justified?

and are the routine purist dismissals of Dimmu Borgir justified?
Yes and no. I do think a lot of people dismiss them out of hand, for little to no good reason. I haven't heard their last couple of albums, but before that I just found them tedious. The first couple of albums were sort of gothy black metal, a few cool melodies here and there (one song being a complete rip-off/"cover" from an Amiga game!!) but personally I found it more embarassing than anything.
Their third album, "Enthrone Darkness Triumphant" was a big change, more symphonic, thrashier... But far too little content, imo. It was fun for a few listens, and then I got completely sick of it, and most people I've talked to had the same experience.
After that it's pretty much been more of the same, but a bit more diverse.

This is one of the few bands where I prefer that they sing in English rather than their native tongue, as their Norwegian lyrics were even more pathetic.

I tend to tell everyone to go check them out and try to leave the bashing behind, as there IS something there that I'm sure would appeal to many, particularly fans of the likes of Bal-Sagoth and (DB-clone) Old Man's Child.

But whenever I hear any DB nowadays, I can't help but roll my eyes, and this has been true for the times I've heard some of the new ones somewhere too.

Still, it SHOULD be kept in mind that the people who constantly go out of their way to bash them, are people who have no interest in that general sort of thing anyways, particularly the types who are into hardly anything else than "raw black metal" and "apocalyptic folk music", haha.

W/r/t Dimmu Borgir, I don't know why people are down on them. I love the symphonic stuff, and think they're about 80 times better than Old Man's Child. As I said above, the new album isn't as good as the one before it, but they're both well worth hearing. Some of the new one sounds like Laibach collaborating with Danny Elfman - and I mean that in a positive way.

How good is that Six Feet Under track!!!!!eleven

Never listened to 'em before... Chris Barnes is on it and I think he's a twat, but this is a beaut...

I second Judas Priest- get the 2CD "Metal Works 73-90" for a great intro. Probably the poppiest-without-being-embarrassing metal you'll ever hear, and consistently great with repeat listens.

Get Ministry "Land of Rape and Honey", NIN "Broken," and KMFDM "Angst" which are the original classics on the electronic side of things. Those albums ruled high school for me. Nailbomb "Point Blank" is also good, it's really, really harsh but accessible because the songs are punky, but with electronic stuff in there, so it has a pretty original sound. (Add that to the Sepultura rec cuz it's their side project.)

Anybody who says gothic metal is embarrassing & bad has never heard Theater of Tragedy "Velvet Darkness They Fear." Ethereal strings and female soprano vocs combined with death metal growls & riffs. It's the most melodic and also the harshest metal I've ever heard, total classic.

Sorry, I'm going to have to disagree rather vehemently... I bought that album when it came out, and tried, tried and tried again, but it just got WORSE! There's a few decent melodies in there, but overall I find it more embarassing than anything. I really don't like the vocals either.
Yet I like My Dying Bride a lot, who at times dip into the same pool (though later in the evening, when it's full of people's filth)
I can't remember there being much harshness in it, but that might be because I'm desensitized by ridiculously over-brutal/harsh/aggressive/anguished/hilarious bands already.

Anyways, Siegbran's list is really good, a very nice primer to most of the bigger things over the past decade.

I'll add: Cynic - Focus
THE statement in overtechnical "deathish metal"; yet it's got a human spirit too, obviously the result of guys who think John McLaughlin and Tony Williams are way cooler than the typical metal-heroes.
For something similar in spirit: Atheist - Unquestionable Presence, though this might sadly not be too easy to get hold of nowadays.

For the sake of throwing some newer albums into the mix, as most mentions in this thread are older classics:
Gorguts - Obscura (well, must be a few years now, guess it's from '96 or so... The title fits it nicely, a very odd approach to death metal, full of chords that make me giggle and maze-like songs. And audible bass!)

Enslaved - Below The Lights (ex-Viking band goes experimental, maybe even prog? Very exciting, yet not afraid to rock(metal?) like nobody's business)

Maudlin Of the Well - Bath & Leaving Your Body Map (now known as Kayo Dot on Tzadik records, I believe. Think sorta experimental metal, deathy bits, emo-bits, acoustic coziness and general somewhat selfconscious experimentation that works really well. Also has tons of metalfans yelling "THIS IS GAYYY!" which is always good)

Destroyer 666 - Phoenix Rising (when you just need to do that pumping your fist and chugging beer in ever-so-manly manner, preferrably while wearing furry Manowar-boots and writing about your teachers in your Livejournal)

And I'll repeat:
Immolation - Unholy Cult (brilliant death metal, possibly in my top 3 at the moment)
Absu - Tara (thrashy black metal, not too esoteric, more fun; like the ol' black metal bands in spirit)

The Super4joint Ritual record is enjoyable, as is (believ e it or not) the new Hansel und Gretyl. The new Metallica is probably the best metal record I've heard all year, plus I like the live Fu Manchu, even if that borders on not being metal. Folks keep saying good things about Dimmu Borgir. I'll have to check that out.

As for catalog, Reign in Blood, And Justice For All, Powerslave, old Motorhead and the first couple of Sabbath records are as good a start as any. Also load up on pantera, a terribly underrated band.

haha, rock.. carry on

Right back'atcha, Rock Soldier!

All the more appropriate considering A Certain Lead Song From A Certain Album named after a region of Texas. Now whoEVER could that fellow be?

That first Fastway album, however, does contain the mightily rifftastic "Say What You Will," which I do indeed adore.

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00008OLIK.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000000OQF.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

I'm not suggesting that it's an essential metal album -- it ain't bad -- but I'm kinda gobsmacked that it hasn't been cited, given the prominence it once enjoyed.

okay, if we are opening up the genre of "metal" including hair-metal, hard rock, then:

Skid Row - Slave to the Grind
Bon Jovi - New Jersey
Poison - Flesh and Blood
Van Halen - 1984
Cheap Trick - Heaven Tonight
Journey - Escape
Alice Cooper - Goes To Hell