56 Legendary Rock and Metal Albums Celebrating 40 Years in 2026
In 2026, 56 landmark rock and metal albums released during one of the most intense and contradictory years of the 1980s — 1986 — will celebrate their 40th anniversary. This list does not aim to cover every release of the era, but highlights records that became cornerstones of the genre: from era-defining works by Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, Judas Priest, and Iron Maiden to major hard rock breakthroughs by Bon Jovi, Europe, Van Halen, and Queen that shaped the mainstream sound of the time.
1986 proved to be a rare moment when extreme metal, glam, hard rock, progressive music, and the alternative scene were developing side by side, rather than in isolation from one another. In the same year, albums like Master of Puppets, Reign in Blood, and Peace Sells… But Who’s Buying? were released alongside Slippery When Wet, Invisible Touch, and So, showing that rock music was operating on multiple levels at once.
Out of the hundreds of albums released in 1986, these 56 have truly stood the test of time, rather than becoming museum pieces. Four decades later, they continue to sound relevant, are regularly reissued, quoted, and celebrated, inspiring new generations of musicians and reminding us of a period when rock and metal were experiencing both a commercial peak and a creative explosion.

AC/DC
Who Made Who

Accept
Russian Roulette

Alcatrazz
Dangerous Games

Alice Cooper
Constrictor

Angel Dust
Into the Dark Past

Bad Brains
I Against I

Beastie Boys
Licensed to Ill

Billy Idol
Whiplash Smile

Black 'n Blue
Nasty Nasty

Black Sabbath
Seventh Star

Bon Jovi
Slippery When Wet

Bonfire
Don’t Touch the Light

Boston
Third Stage

Candlemass
Epicus Doomicus Metallicus

Cinderella
Night Songs

Cro-Mags
The Age of Quarrel

Dark Angel
Darkness Descends

David Lee Roth
Eat 'Em and Smile

Destruction
Eternal Devastation

Europe
The Final Countdown

Exciter
Unveiling the Wicked

Fates Warning
Awaken the Guardian

Flotsam and Jetsam
Doomsday for the Deceiver

Genesis
Invisible Touch

Grave Digger
War Games

Holy Moses
Queen of Siam

Iron Maiden
Somewhere in Time

Journey
Raised on Radio

Judas Priest
Turbo

King Diamond
Fatal Portrait

Kreator
Pleasure To Kill

Krokus
Change of Address

Megadeth
Peace Sells… But Who’s Buying?

Metal Church
The Dark

Metallica
Master of Puppets

Motörhead
Orgasmatron

Ozzy Osbourne
The Ultimate Sin

Peter Gabriel
So

Poison
Look What the Cat Dragged In

Queen
A Kind of Magic

Queensrÿche
Rage for Order

R.E.M.
Lifes Rich Pageant

Racer X
Street Lethal

Rage
Reign of Fear

Ratt
Dancing Undercover

Sepultura
Morbid Visions

Slayer
Reign in Blood

Sodom
Obsessed by Cruelty

Stryper
To Hell with the Devil

Tankard
Zombie Attack

Tesla
Mechanical Resonance

Van Halen
5150

Voivod
Rrröööaaarrr

W.A.S.P.
Inside the Electric Circus

Warlock
True as Steel

















