u/josefhautala1995

I wrote a list a week or so back, and I decided to do a quick revisit of the albums, and this is my final ranking.

S TIER

#1. Stained Class
#2. Sad Wings of Destiny
#3. Painkiller

A TIER

#4. Nostradamus
#5. Invincible Shield
#6. Firepower
#7. Defenders of the Faith
#8. Angel of Retribution

B TIER

#9. Redeemer of Souls
#10. Sin After Sin
#11. Screaming for Vengeance
#12. Jugulator

C TIER

#13. British Steel
#14. Ram it Down
#15. Rocka Rolla

D TIER

#16. Killing Machine
#17. Turbo
#18. Point of Entry

F TIER

#19. Demolition (can't even finish this album ago

#1. Painkiller (10/10)
#2. Stained Class (10/10)
#3. Nostradamus (9.5/10)
#4. Sad Wings of Destiny (9/10)
#5. Defenders of the Faith (9/10)
#6. Firepower (9/10)
#7. Invincible Shield (9/10)
#8. Jugulator (8.5/10)
#9. Redeemer of Souls (8.5/10)
#10. Angel of Retribution (8.5/10)
#11. Screaming for Vengeance (8/10)
#12. British Steel (7.5/10)
#13. Ram it Down (7/10)
#14. Sin After Sin (7/10)
#15. Rocka Rolla (7/10)
#16. Point of Entry (6/10)
#17. Killing Machine (6/10)
#18. Turbo (5/10)
#19. Demolition (1/10)

This is one of the only four Iron Maiden albums that are entirely filler-free (the other three being A Matter of Life and Death, Senjutsu, and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son).

Every song on it is great. No skips. I hear a lot of people hate on Isle of Avalon and Mother of Mercy; I don't get it. Both those songs are bangers. It also has The Talisman and Starblind, which are two of the greatest songs in their entire catalogue.

My ranking of the album would be

#1. Starblind (I seriously love this song and the lyrics)

#2. The Talisman (en vivo version is even better and is the best vocal performance of Bruce's career)

#3. The Man Who Would Be King (incredibly underrated song. I love the storytelling and the ending)

#4. The Alchemist (this song is just so much fun. Definitely the most punchy track on the album)

#5. When the Wild Wind Blows (an oddly wholesome/warm-sounding epic)

#6. Mother of Mercy (I don't get why this song is considered the worst on the album. It's a haunting song with a fantastic intro and outro)

#7. Coming Home (Very personal song and one of the only power ballads Maiden ever did)

#8. Satellite 15...The Final Frontier (a fantastic intro that would be higher if Satellite 15 didn't go on longer than it needed)

#9. Isle of Avalon (Really progressive and fun song. Doesn't feel its length at all)

#10. El Dorado (despite being last, this is still a lot of fun, and I thoroughly enjoy it. It's not as musically interesting as the rest though)

I just finished my comprehensive re-listen of every Swans album. Here is my new ranking.

S+ tier

#1. Soundtracks for the Blind 
#2. The Glowing Man 
#3. Children of God
#4. To Be Kind 
#5. White Light from the Mouth of Infinity
#6. The Seer
#7. leaving meaning.  (insanely underrated and underappreciated)

S Tier

#8. The Great Annihilator
#9. Filth 
#10. Birthing 

A Tier

#11. The Burning World 
#12. My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky

B Tier

#13. Cop
#14. Love of Life
#15. The Beggar
#16. Greed
#17. Holey Money

S tier: 5/5 (these four songs are interchangeable for #1 spot)

#1. Climbing up the walls (most experimental and interesting song sonically speaking on the album)

#2. Exit Music (most emotionally powerful song)

#3. The Tourist (dark, atmospheric, and a perfect closer)

#4. Karma Police (the section in the middle is arguable the best part of the whole album)

A tier: 4.5/5

#5. Subterranean homesick alien (such an underrated song my god. It’s the most atmospheric song on the album, and it provoked a feeling of both discovery and profound loneliness)

#6. Electioneering (another underrated track, just a rocking tune)

#7. Airbag (an exceptionally pleasant intro that really sucks you into the album)

B tier: 4/5

#8. No surprises (sad song, but not as musically interesting)

#9. Lucky (still good, but doesn’t knock my socks off like most others)

#10. Let down (this song gets better in the second half, but the chorus isn’t my favorite)

#11. Paranoid android (this is the only song that doesn’t make me feel anything, despite being musical impressive. If I want complexity I’ll listen to Rush. What I love about Radiohead is the atmosphere and the emotions, both of which lack on this song)

#1. Soundtracks for the Blind: The greatest album of all time. Emotionally heartbreaking, musically overwhelming, just a beautiful and extremely experimental/unique album from beginning to end.

#2. The Glowing Man: The greatest of the rebirth trilogy. Every song is amazing. Even underrated tracks like People Like Us and When Will I Return are fantastic to me.

#3. To Be Kind: Another no skip masterpiece. This one is so iconic at this point, I don't even know what to say about it. Everything about it is perfect.

#4. Children of God: Swans became the band we all know and love with this behemoth of an album. Experimental rock and gothic folk mixed with industrial noise rock, incredible....

#5. White Light from the Mouth of Infinity: This album is their most transcendent work. It feels like I'm being lifted into heaven when listening to this.

#6. The Seer: Although not quite as strong as the two that followed, this masterpiece can't be understated. It's incredibly intense and has some incredible songs (especially Avatar, which is the best song of all time for me)

#7. The Great Annihilator: Gothic rock mixed with post-punk and experimental. It's beautiful, dark, and honestly unexpected for them.

#8. Filth: The debut, the one and only, the album that defined noise rock/new wave/industrial. It's relentlessly brutal and intense, but mesmerizing at the same time.

#9. The Burning World: This album does NOT deserve the hate it gets. It's a beautiful gothic folk album with many incredible songs on it. More stripped back and less experimental for sure, but beautiful, raw, and honest. We see a side of Gira that he didn't show in any other Swans album, and God Damn the Sun is one of the greatest songs ever written and has the best lyrics of any Swans song.

#10. leaving meaning: Another underrated gem. I love this album from beginning to end and have no idea why it gets slept on. It feels extremely reflective after the mammoth rebirth trilogy. Some view that as a weakness; I view it as a breath of fresh air and very introspective.

the rest of the list for any curious

#11. My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky

#12. Cop

#13. Birthing

#14. The Beggar

#15. Holy Money

#16. Love of Life

#17. Greed