31 Rock + Metal Albums Turning 20 in 2026

What were the big albums that shaped rock and metal back in 2006? It’s hard to believe that 20 years have flown by, but here we are ready to enter 2026 and some of our favorite albums are now 20 years old.

What was happening back in 2006? Facebook moved from college campuses to open registration while Twitter was just getting off the ground. Dexter was the most killer new show on TV. Borat was racking up the box office bucks (very nice) and in the music world, emo was reaching its peak era lead by My Chemical Romance’s The Black Parade.

It was a year in which Bring Me the Horizon introduced themselves, sounding much different than they do today. Trivium and Underoath took great strides in becoming key players for the next decade plus. And Stone Sour emerged from Slipknot’s shadow to become true hard rock heavyweights.

Red Hot Chili Peppers were doubling down with their Stadium Arcadium double album. Muse were emerging as one of the hottest bands on the planet. Mastodon dropped their latest metal masterpiece and little did we know that Tool was going to make us miss them for what seemed like 10,000 Days.

READ MORE: The Most Anticipated Rock + Metal Albums of 2026

The year 2006 was truly a transitional year in the world of rock and metal as nu-metal had all but been phased out, emo was thriving and metalcore was churning out the next big bands right and left.

Let’s take a look back at what was big in 2006 as we reflect on these 31 Rock + Metal Albums Turning 20 in 2026.