Albums That Are 30 Years Old in 2025: Pick # 3

Join Pete Pardo as he looks back on his favorite albums from 1995 that are celebrating their 30th birthdays here in 2025.

[nightdrive]

Day 29 / #3: Gamma Ray - Land Of The Free
The fourth album by this German power metal band, and with singer Ralf Scheepers gone, Kai Hansen returned to vocal duties (he had stepped down from singing in Helloween.) I find the direction on the previous albums a bit confused, but on Land Of The Free everything finally clicks. Hansen's characteristic melodies manifest in full, and he does a good job on the vocals. For obvious reasons, this sounds a lot like classic Helloween. The album art even features the creature Fang Face from Walls Of Jericho, and Michael Kiske guests on both the title track and "Time To Break Free". Also, Kai had done some guest work for Blind Guardian, and Hansi Kürsch returns the favour in "Farewell". The final song "Afterlife" is a tribute to Ingo Schwichtenberg. It is by many considered the best Gamma Ray album, and the start of the golden era of the band.

#4 Summoning - Minas Morgul
#5 Ulver - Bergtatt - Et Eeventyr I 5 Capitler
#6 Running Wild - Masquerade
#7 Bal-Sagoth - A Black Moon Broods Over Lemuria
#8 Mörk Gryning - Tusen År Har Gått...
#9 At The Gates - Slaughter Of The Soul
#10 Immortal - Battles In The North

[joshcreasey]

29. Faith No More - King For A Day… Fool For A Lifetime

They continued their musical diversity on this album, though without guitarist Jim Martin. Digging The Grave is the best known song from this.

[sunsin]

3. No Doubt--"Tragic Kingdom"

[aic]

Faith No More - King for a Day Fool for a Lifetime

[iainhead]

Hi everyone, into the final stretch we go, and it's prog day for me today - going to be quite brief, weekends seem to be so busy at the moment, no time for long scribbles! Also, both my picks today have had a lot of love from us thus month, so not sure I'd be adding much to the conversation anyway.

MAIN: ARENA - Songs From The Lions Cage

The neo-prog band's debut, featuring ex Marillion drummer Mick Pointer and their main man Clive Nolan on keyboards. Oddly, given the acrimonious way Pointer was ousted from his previous band, Steve Rothery still pops up to play a solo on Crying For Help Part IV...

HM: PORCUPINE TREE - The Sky Moves Sideways

The band's 3rd album, and the first to get a US release, definite Pink Floyd vibes going on, right down to the Wish You Were Here structure, with the title track split into two lengthy phases either side of the shorter songs like Dislocated Day and The Moon Touches Your Shoulder.

[zacharyravn]

Pick 3: Dismember- Massive killing capacity. Easily my favourite album of theirs. Still has the legendary Swedish Boss HM2 driven guitar tone. Yet blends in more of a direct melodeth inspired sound, which makes this album instantly appealing to me.

[carl-johanfougstedt]

My pick for day 3 is Faith No More : King For a Day...Fool For a Lifetime. This is another great album from Faith No More. I´m not a huge death metal fan and I haven´t listened to Death, but I will probably check them out at some point.

[metalcousins]

Day29-Gamma Ray-Land of the Free.This is the 4th studio album from this German power metal band.Former Helloween guitarist/vocalist Kai Hansen formed this band in 1989.Land of the Free is my favorite Gamma Ray album to listen to, because it has a good speed metal type sound, mixed with epic power metal tracks.It’s almost a near perfect album with tracks like, All of the Dead and Rebellion in Dreamland.Both of these tracks have great melodies, and the guitar tone is perfect.My favorite song Land of the Free, which is considered the best track on the album, plays a mixture of slow and fast melodies, with excellent guitar work.Kai Hansen who is the genius who put together this band, is still going strong back and forth between Gamma Ray and Helloween.Overall Gamma Ray is one of my favorite power metal bands, and Land of the Free has a little bit of everything in it’s mix.This is my number 29 pick.

[danielfuentes]

My pick for day 3 from 1995 :"The Rite of Strings" by Stanley Clarke.A great jazz album.

[benjamingoldstein]

Day 30: Faith No More - King for a Day, Fool for a Lifetime
Day 29: Red Hot Chili Peppers - One Hot Minute
Day 28: Trouble - Plastic Green Head
Day 27: Morphine - Yes
Day 26: Primus - Tales from the Punchbowl
Day 25: Rancid - ...And Out Come The Wolves
Day 23: Green Day - Imsomniac
Day 22: Anekdoten - Nucleus
Day 21: Iced Earth - Burnt Offerings
Day 20: Aphex Twin - ...I Care Because You Do
Day 19: Autechre - Tri Repetae
Day 18: Opeth - Orchid
Day 17: Blind Guardian - Imaginations From the Other Side
Day 16: Dream Theater - A Change of Seasons
Day 15: Porcupine Tree - The Sky Moves Sideways
Day 14: Marillion - Afraid of Sunlight
Day 13: Swans - the Great Annihilator
Day 12: Dissection - Storm of the Light's Bane
Day 11: Alice in Chains - S/T
Day 10: Morbid Angel- Domination
Day 9: Death - Symbolic
Day 8: Satyricon - the Shadowthrone
Day 7: Darkthrone - Panzerfaust
Day 6: My Dying Bride: The Angel and the Dark River
Day 5: Paradise Lost - Draconian Times
Day 4: Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
Day 3: Immortal - Battles in the North
Day 2: Radiohead - The Bends
Day 1: Jethro Tull - Roots to Branches

[JoeDibiase]

Best Death album. My pick today Mad Seasons Above

[titusgeorge]

My number 3 could have been number 1, great songs start to finish, many have already picked this earlier, and a band that has my most highly anticipated releases this year if they do release it, and that’s Savatage’s “Dead Winter Dead”. The story, the music and the counterpoint vocals, which is one of my favorite things about this band. So many favorite songs, “This Is the Time “, “Doesn’t Matter Anyway “, “This Isn’t What We Meant” and “Not What You See”.
…
3. Savatage — “Dead Winter Dead”
4. Meat Loaf — “Welcome To The Neighborhood”
5. Marillion — “Afraid of Sunlight”
6. Toto — “Tambu”
7. Siloam — “Dying To Live”
8. Deep Blue Something— “Home”
9. Dog’s Eye View — “Happy Nowhere”
10. Van Halen — “Balance”
11. FM — “Dead Man’s Shoes”
12. Tyketto — “Shine”
13. Nelson — “Because They Can”
14. Bad Company — “Company Of Strangers”
15. Alanis Morissette — “Jagged Little Pill”
16. Disciple — “What Was I Thinking”
17. Alien — “Crash”
18. Goo Goo Dolls — “A Boy Named Goo”
19. John Wesley — “The Closing of the Pale Blue Eyes”
20. Skid Row — “Subhuman Race”
21. Collective Soul — “Collective Soul”
22. Dokken — “Dysfunctional”
23. Petra — “No Doubt”
24. Harvest — “41 Will Come”
25. Firehouse — “3”
26. Night Ranger — “Feeding Off The Mojo”
27. Eddie Money — “Love and Money”
28. Mike + The Mechanics — “Beggar on a Beach of Gold”
29. Bon Jovi — “These Days”
30. Candlebox — “Lucy”
31. Extreme — “Waiting For The Punchline

[Alfred_Domke_antispace-sounds]

Great pick, Pete!
My number 3 Porcupine Tree - The Sky Moves Sideways

04 Dream Theater - A Change of Seasons
05 Kevin Gilbert - Thud
06 Saga - Generation 13
07 Fight - A Small Deadly Space
08 Stanley Clarke, Al Di Meola, Jean-Luc Ponty - The Rite of Strings
09 Echolyn - As the World
10 Don Caballero - Don Caballero 2
11 Tiemko - Clône
12 Trouble - Plastic Green Head
13 Andy Summers - Synaesthesia
14 Death - Symbolic
15 Ozric Tentacles - Become the Other
16 Happy Family - Happy Family
17 Steve Vai - Alien Love Secrets
18 Tony MacAlpine - Evolution
19 The Enid - Sundialer
20 Joe Satriani - Joe Satriani
21 Jethro Tull - Roots to Branches
22 Anekdoten - Nucleus
23 Operh - Orchid
24 Biota - Object Holder
25 Björk - Post
26 Ben Folds Five - Ben Folds Five
27 Arthur Barrow - Eyebrow Razor
28 Tab Two - Flagman Ahead
29 The Mistakes - The Mistakes
30 Warren Cuccurullo - Thanks 2 Frank
31 Sieges Even - Sophisticated

[davidholmes]

3. The Bends by Radiohead

Choice cuts: "Fake Plastic Trees, " "Just"

4. Different Class by Pulp
5. Astro-Creep: 2000 by White Zombie
6. The Great Escape by Blur
7. Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness by the Smashing Pumpkins
8. Mirror Ball by Neil Young with Pearl Jam
9. Pure Phase by Spiritualized
10. Symbolic by Death
11. Dead Winter Dead by Savatage
12. Elastica by Elastica
13. Grand Prix by Teenage Fanclub
14. I Should Coco by Supergrass
15. A Northern Soul by the Verve
16. ¡Adios Amigos! by Ramones
17. A Black Moon Broods over Lemuria by Bal-Sagoth
18. Original Soundtracks 1 by Passengers
19. Post by Björk
20. Southpaw Grammar by Morrissey
21. Stanley Road by Paul Weller
22. Wowee Zowee by Pavement
23. The Blood Splat Rating System by Powerman 5000
24. Fourth Dimension by Stratovarius
25. Mouth to Mouth by the Blackeyed Susans
26. Thrak by King Crimson
27. Tilt by Scott Walker
28. Tragedies by Funeral
29. The Carnival Bizarre by Cathedral
30. Cascade by Peter Murphy
31. Kojak Variety by Elvis Costello

[mikeryanmikeryan]

Hi Pete. Good pick in Death. Here is my pick for day 29.
Pick # 3 - Gamma Ray - Land Of The Free

[alexp]

Radiohead: The Bends
I was obsessed with this band in the late 90s. This album is their most accessible. Every song is an anthem, and my friends and I listened to this constantly. For me, this is peak 90s alt rock songwriting.

1)Autechre: Tri Repetae
2)Henry Threadgill: Makin’ A Move
3)Bela Fleck: Tales From the Acoustic Planet
4)Joe Satriani: s/t
5)Elvis Costello and Bill Frisell: Deep Dead Blue
6)Wayne Krantz: Two Drink Minimum
7)Raekwon: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx
8)Ol’ Dirty Bastard: Return to the 36 Chambers
9)Elliot Smith: s/t
10)Bjork: Post
11)Tricky: Maxinquaye
12)Mr. Bungle: Disco Volante
13)Down: Nola
14)Goodie Mob: Soul Food
15)The Pharcyde: Labcabincalifornia
16)Scott Walker: Tilt
17)Mobb Deep: The Infamous
18) John Zorn: Filmworks III 1990-1995
19) Smif-N-Wessun: Dah Shinin’
20)At The Gates: Slaughter of the Soul
21)Morphine: Yes
22)GZA: Liquid Swords
23)Meshuggah: Destroy Erase Improve
24)Foo Fighters: s/t
25)KMFDM: Nihil
26)Ralph Peterson: The Fo’Tet Plays Monk
27) Kevin Eubanks: Spirit Talk II - Revelations
28) John Zorn’s Masada: Vav

[neugey]

Since I am working in the office now and unable to contribute during the usual AM, I'll post my honorable mentions today, and then my top 12 w/ my remarks tomorrow. A lot of my choices vary from Pete's ... we do all hear things differently!
Dark Tranquility - The Gallery (barely missed the top 12!)
Suffocation - Pierced from Within
Immortal - Battles in the North

Presidents of the United States of America - self-titled
King Crimson - Thrak
Van Halen - Balance

[lucasbrown]

3. Faith No More - King For A Day… Fool For A Lifetime


4. Anthrax - Stomp 442
5. Alice In Chains - Alice In Chains
6. Down - NOLA
7. Primus - Tales From The Punchbowl
8. White Zombie - Astro-Creep: 2000
9. Mr. Bungle - Disco Volante
10. Van Halen - Balance
11. Megadeth - Hidden Treasures
12. Clutch - Clutch
13. Dream Theater - A Change Of Seasons
14. Iron Maiden - The X Factor
15. Death - Symbolic
16. The Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness
17. Marilyn Manson - Smells Like Children
18. King Crimson - THRAK
19. Crowbar - Time Heals Nothing
20. Gov’t Mule - Gov’t Mule
21. At The Gates - Slaughter of The Soul
22. Green Day - Insomniac
23. Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow - Stranger In Us All
24. Savatage - Dead Winter Dead
25. Filter - Short Bus
26. David Bowie - 1. Outside
27. The Chieftains - Long Black Veil
28. G//Z/R - Plastic Planet
29. Foo Fighters - Foo Fighters
30. Darkthrone - Panzerfaust
31. Mad Season - Above

[independenceltd.]

King Diamond - The Spider's Lullabye
songs: From the Other Side, The Spider's Lullabye, To the Morgue

[Paul_Progressive]

# 3 David Bowie: Outside
When I was preparing my list for this month, I only saw at the last minute that “Outside” had been released in 1995. I had completely forgotten about this record and, above all, hadn't listened to it for a very long time. What a magnificent record this is and certainly Bowie's most complex and ambitious work. It fits in perfectly with my choice yesterday, because without the influence of drum'n'bass and industrial, “Outside” would not have become this masterpiece. And if you love David Lynch's films like I do, you'll never forget how “I'm Deranged” perfectly accompanied the car ride into the darkness at the beginning of “Lost Highway”.
# 4 Goldie: Timeless
# 5 Anekdoten: Nucleus
# 6 Porcupine Tree: The Sky Moves Sideways
# 7 Spock’s Beard: The Light
# 8 Fu Manchu: Daredevil
# 9 Neil Young: Mirror Ball
# 10 Alanis Morissette: Jagged Little Pill
# 11 Warren Zevon: Mutineer
# 12 Pulp: Different Class
# 13 Terje Rypdal: If Mountains Can Sing
# 14 Gov’t Mule: Gov’t Mule
# 15 Oasis: (What’s the Story) Morning Glory
# 16 King Crimson: Thrak
# 17 Björk: Post
# 18 Vic Chesnutt: Is the Actor Happy?
# 19 The Cardigans: Life
# 20 Bruce Springsteen: The Ghost of Tom Joad
# 21 Tricky: Maxinquaye
# 22 Emmylou Harris: Wrecking Ball
# 23 The Smashing Pumpkins: Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
# 24 Aphex Twin: …I Care Because You Do
# 25 Blind Guardian: Imaginations from the Other Side
# 26 Leftfield: Leftism
# 27 Brian Wilson & Van Dyke Parks: Orange Crate Art
# 28 Radiohead: The Bends
# 29 Annie Lennox: Medusa
# 30 The Chemical Brothers: Exit Planet Dust
# 31 Blur: The Great Escape