The reputation of Ronnie James Dio’s namesake band rests primarily on the first two albums, but we find much to admire in the solid ‘80s metal stylings of their fourth effort.

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Def Leppard hit mega stardom thanks to two albums with titles seemingly lifted from the DSM, but purists tend to prefer this earlier release with its hard rock core slicked up by the legendary Mutt Lange’s production.

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How do the gods kill? With heavy, blues-based metal riffs, according to Glenn Danzig. And it’s hard to believe otherwise if you let yourself get fully immersed in this powerful statement on the loss of faith and the temptations of the dark side.

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Not as hard rockin’ as their previous two albums but not quite dipping back into their goth roots, the Cult’s fifth album is steeped in Ian Astbury’s characteristic Native American imagery and spiritual questing.

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On their seventh album, COC chart an epic struggle between sin and redemption while paying homage to their multiple hard rock influences and never, ever forgetting to groove.

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The third album in the so-called “Berlin Trilogy” is a triumph of pop mixed with the right dose of experimentalism. We love it so much we even let Bowie get away with slapping new lyrics on an old song.

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With one foot ankle-deep in the blues and the other kicking in the door to hard rock, Powerage is a raw rock classic that tends to get overlooked compared to the band’s later successes.

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The self-titled last album with lead singer Layne Staley is tough and uncompromising, full of bleak epics that resist the conventions of radio-friendly hard rock.

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The last album in Sabbath’s “Original Six” is frequently considered the last truly good album put out by the original lineup, though it isn’t talked about as much as the first three. But . . . that album cover, oh my, that album cover.

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