METAL HAMMER are continuing their series of album of the decade on the mags site and this week sees MACHINE HEAD’S ‘The Blackening’ having praise heaped upon it:

“Seeing as the band had taken to writing lengthier tracks on its predecessor, it was always a sure-fire bet that ‘The Blackening’ would continue this trend, but opening with the 10 minutes 37 seconds ‘Clenching the Fists Of Dissent’ was a decision that took balls the size of bulldozers. An all-out assault of stunning riffs, apocalyptic drums, a punishing chant-a-long beatdown and some snarling anti-war lyrics…‘The Blackening’ also features some of the finest ‘slower’ songs of Machine Head’s career in ‘Halo’ and ‘A Farewell To Arms’. Both clocking in at over 9 minutes, these represent 2 of the most audacious tracks in Machine Head’s back-catalogue and go to show just how far the band had come in the 13 years since ‘Burn My Eyes’.
This also represents the greatest thing about ‘The Blackening’ – the sheer range of musical landscapes that are visited throught the record. At its heaviest, it’s enough to make you want to open every door in your house via the power of a headbutt, but it’s also stunningly intricate and verging on the faultless in musicianship.”

Read the full piece HERE.

Last week’s album of the decade was none other than TRIVIUM’S ‘Ascendancy’…

“Of all of the bands to have broken through in this decade, no metal band has threatened to take the globe by storm quite like Trivium did with the release of ‘Ascendancy’. Mixing early In Flames thrash influences with the song-structures and vocal melodies of Metallica’s first four albums, the album dropped like a nuclear bomb onto the desks of every rock music magazine out there. Every once in a while, an album drops onto your desk that you just know is going to be huge and everyone knew that would be the case with Trivium.”

The full post can be seen by pointing your mouse HERE.

So far Metal Hammer have posted 4 albums of the decade. Check them all out HERE.