Symbolic (studio album) by Death (Metal)
Death (Metal) bestography
Symbolic is ranked as the best album by Death (Metal).
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Symbolic track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 84 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.
Symbolic rankings
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Symbolic collection
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Symbolic ratings

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Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 226 ratings for this album.
Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
---|---|---|---|---|
80/100 ![]() | 05/14/2023 00:06 | ![]() | ![]() | 73/100 |
100/100 ![]() | 05/07/2023 22:23 | TheSmithsAreDead | ![]() | 85/100 |
90/100 ![]() | 04/10/2023 20:54 | dougcummings | ![]() | 73/100 |
100/100 ![]() | 03/23/2023 08:27 | ![]() | ![]() | 91/100 |
40/100 ![]() | 03/07/2023 03:03 | JPin8497 | ![]() | 74/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
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This album is rated in the top 1% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 81.1/100, a mean average of 79.7/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 81.5/100. The standard deviation for this album is 18.7.
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Symbolic comments
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Probably their best in terms of composition but it lacks atmosphere, so I will always prefer Leprosy.
Death metal for intellectual savages
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+Symbolic
+Perrenial quest
+Crystal mountain

Symbolic was a game-changer for me.
This album intrigued and inspired me to keep going further down the rabbit hole as far as heavy music was. I've been a fan of a number of metal (and other forms of heavy) bands nearly since I got into music as a whole, but when I first heard this a couple of years ago, it flipped a switch. A drummer of 10 years at the time, I heard Gene Hoglan's playing and just kinda went ".......Oh.....". What an uncompromisingly brilliant set of drum performances.
Chuck's writing was never more consistently gripping than here as far as I'm concerned, and I say that having a lot of love for nearly the entire Death discography. His lyrics on Symbolic are sharp, poignant, and in some cases pertinent to what we are experiencing 25 years after the record dropped.
A blistering beauty and one of the most complete and completely engaging albums I can reference.
Seguía Chuck Schuldiner en su particular travesía hacia la perfección musical dentro del Death Metal de corte técnico y progresivo, y lo rozó con los dedos en 1995 acompañado de Bobby Koelble, Kelly Conlon y el mítico Gene Hoglan en la batería. No nos engañemos, Death siempre fue la banda de Chuck y hacía con ella lo que quería cuando quería. El padre del Death Metal nos ofrecía en 'Symbolic' un disco excelente, capaz de dividir a la crítica entre los que consideraban esta obra como una genialidad y los que tachaban a Schuldiner de fabricar un trabajo demasiado accesible para tratarse de Death Metal. Por suerte, el tiempo puso cada cosa en su sitio, y canciones como "Crystal Mountain", "Zero Tolerance" o "Symbolic" forman parte de una interminable lista de temas imperiales que Chuck Schuldiner dejó para la posteridad. Genio y figura hasta la sepultura. El más grande.
One of the best, if not the best, death metal albums ever. Chuck's songwriting is at its peak on this album, and while not quite as technical as Human, it is still extremely technical. A good starting place for someone who is interested in death metal.
The best songwriting overall across all death metal and easily in the argument for top 10 best metal albums period. This isn't them at their most brutal or even technical but them firing on all cylinders as a core unit. A true masterpiece of melody. Basically, it's fucking Symbolic. Anything else?
Not their most progressive nor their most heavy but it certainly features their best songwriting. nothing short of a masterpiece and one of the best albums ever released in any genre.

Ridiculously technical. 'Symbolic' was the first metal record that completely won me over. It's a complete record not a track by track experience. It blends speed, musicianship, melody and symbolic lyricism into an incredible listening experience. Listen to the 'Live in Eindhoven' if you haven't already.

Masterpiece

One of the most technically impressive metal albums I've ever heard
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