Avantasia

One of two Avantasia albums released in 2010, The Wicked Symphony continues in the tradition of its predecessors: bombastic, slightly humorous, hard rock-derived power metal. The result is often a little ridiculous, but the album knows it's often cheesy and over-the-top, which makes it a lot easier to swallow. From the up-tempo, anthemic power metal tunes to the progressive to the awesomely sappy ballads, The Wicked Symphony is more complicated and richly textured than its twin, Angel of Babylon. As usual, Avantasia mastermind Tobias Sammet has enlisted numerous stars of metal and rock, among them Klaus Meine, Tim "Ripper" Owens, Alex Holzwarth and Eric Singer. Considering how many songs Sammet wrote for this dual album project, it's a wonder he didn't spread himself too thin ― on both records there are collectively few forgettable or throwaway tracks. And although the albums are best taken in tandem, they're strong enough to exist independently.