After a monthlong odyssey, our Halloween-themed Spookiest Album Cover battle concludes with Black Sabbath squaring off against Iron Maiden.
Sabbath’s self-titled 1970 debut album – the one featuring the mysterious witch-like woman on the cover – defeated Frank Zappa, AC/DC, Uriah Heep, and Dio to get here.
Meanwhile, Iron Maiden’s Killers – featuring an axe-wielding Eddie mid-murder – bested King Crimson, Kiss, Meat Loaf, and Ozzy Osbourne to reach the finals.
Who wins the ultimate prize? That’s up to you. You can vote once an hour from now until 11:59 PM EST on Friday, Oct. 30. The winner will be revealed on Halloween.
- Iron Maiden Killers defeated Ozzy Osbourne Bark at the Moon 61% to 39%
- Black Sabbath Black Sabbath defeated Dio Holy Diver 78% to 22%
- Iron Maiden Killers defeated Meat Loaf Bat Out of Hell 74% to 26%
- Black Sabbath Black Sabbath defeated Uriah Heep ..Very ‘Eavy… Very ‘Umble 77% to 23%
- Ozzy Osbourne Bark at the Moon defeated Megadeth Countdown to Extinction 71% to 29%
- Dio Holy Diver defeated Alice Cooper Raise Your Fist and Yell 74% to 26%
- Meat Loaf Bat Out of Hell defeated Judas Priest Painkiller 59% to 41%
- Iron Maiden Killers defeated Kiss Creatures of the Night 85% to 15%
- Megadeth Countdown to Extinction defeated The Mothers of Invention Weasels Ripped My Flesh 70% to 30%
- Ozzy Osbourne Bark at the Moon defeated Funkadelic Maggot Brain 75% to 25%
- Dio Holy Diver defeated the Rolling Stones Goats Head Soup 59% to 41%
- Alice Cooper Raise Your Fist and Yell beat Captain Beefheart Trout Mask Replica 71% to 29%
- Uriah Heep …Very ‘Eavy… Very ‘Umble beat The Beatles Yesterday and Today 66% to 34%
- Black Sabbath Black Sabbath defeated AC/DC If You Want Blood… 84% to 16%
Round One Results:
- Black Sabbath Black Sabbath defeated Frank Zappa Thing-Fish 91% to 9%
- AC/DC If You Want Blood… defeated Tom Waits Bone Machine 61% to 39%
- The Beatles Yesterday and Today defeated Van Halen Balance, 62% to 38%
- Uriah Heep . . . Very ‘Eavy… Very ‘Umble, beat David Bowie’s Diamond Dogs, 61% to 39%
- Captain Beefheart’s Maggot Brain, beat Pink Floyd’s <emWish You Were Here ,50.25%to49.75%
- Alice Cooper’sRaise Your Fist and Yell beat ScorpionsBlackout 51 %to49 %
- The Rolling StonesGoats Head Soup defeated The Cure’sThe Head on the Door 86 %to14 %
- Dio’sHoly Diver defeated Queen’sNews of the World 72 %to28 %
- Ozzy Osbourne’sBark at the Moon defeated Peter Gabriel’sPeter Gabriel 80 %to20 %
- Funkadelic’sMaggot Brain defeated Metallica’sMetal Up Your Ass 65 %to35 %
- The Mothers of Invention’sWeasels Ripped My Flesh defeated Guns N’ RosesAppetite for Destruction 52 %to48 %
- Megadeth’sCountdown to Extinction defeated The Doors’Strange Days 75 %to25 %
- Iron Maiden’sKillers defeated King Crimson’sIn the Court of the Crimson King 72 %to28 %
- Kiss’ < emCreatures of the Night defeated Led Zeppelin’s< emPresence 67 %to33 %
- Meat Loaf’s< emBat Out of Hell defeated Jane’s Addiction’s< emRitual de lo Habitual 72 %to28 %
- Judas Priest’s< emPainkiller defeated Debbie Harry’s< emKooKoo 67 %to33 %
Top 25 New Wave of British Heavy Metal Albums
It’s no exaggeration to say that the New Wave of British Heavy Metal saved metal from itself.
Gallery Credit: Eduardo Rivadavia
- The Rolling StonesGoats Head Soup defeated The Cure’sThe Head on the Door 86 %to14 %