Since Metal Meltdown's inception in late 1997, I have always paused at the end of the year to count down my favorite releases of the moment. Looking back at these lists would surely cause me to reevaluate both which albums are missing and the individual rankings, and for that reason each list is simply presented here as it was given to the radio audience at the time.
Top 24 Albums of 2004
1) Sonata Arctica - Reckoning Night
2) Dionysus - Anima Mundi
3) Ayreon - The Human Equation
4) Edguy - Hellfire Club
5) Nightwish - Once
6) Dream Evil - The Book of Heavy Metal
7) Lordi - The Monsterican Dream
8) Megadeth - The System Has Failed
9) Therion - Sirius B
10) Symphorce - Twice Second
11) Angra - Temple of Shadows
12) Primal Fear - Devil's Ground
13) Silent Force - Worlds Apart
14) Cans - Beyond the Gates
15) Nocturnal Rites - New World Messiah
16) Chris Caffery - Faces
17) Pain Confessor - Turmoil
18) Within Temptation - The Silent Force
19) Axel Rudi Pell - Kings and Queens
20) Persuader - Evolution Purgatory
21) Iced Earth - The Glorious Burden
22) Motorhead - Inferno
23) Rhapsody - Symphony of Enchanted Lands II
24) Messiah's Kiss - Metal
2) Dionysus - Anima Mundi
3) Ayreon - The Human Equation
4) Edguy - Hellfire Club
5) Nightwish - Once
6) Dream Evil - The Book of Heavy Metal
7) Lordi - The Monsterican Dream
8) Megadeth - The System Has Failed
9) Therion - Sirius B
10) Symphorce - Twice Second
11) Angra - Temple of Shadows
12) Primal Fear - Devil's Ground
13) Silent Force - Worlds Apart
14) Cans - Beyond the Gates
15) Nocturnal Rites - New World Messiah
16) Chris Caffery - Faces
17) Pain Confessor - Turmoil
18) Within Temptation - The Silent Force
19) Axel Rudi Pell - Kings and Queens
20) Persuader - Evolution Purgatory
21) Iced Earth - The Glorious Burden
22) Motorhead - Inferno
23) Rhapsody - Symphony of Enchanted Lands II
24) Messiah's Kiss - Metal