By Anand Venkitachalam
New Delhi, Dec 31 (UNI) As the curtain falls down on 2025, we close the year on what has been a glorious year for heavy metal, and indeed what can even go down as one of the greatest in the annals of metal history; unfortunately, also one of the saddest given the tragic loss of titans like Ozzy Osbourne, and Brent Hinds.
But, still, the number of quality releases this year has been mind boggling, but few can be champions, and only one can be the victor.
So, without ado, let us dive into the 25 best metal albums of the year selected by a panel of music critics and editors, and drink a toast to these titans, in commemoration of their immortal metal spirits:
25. Deftones – ‘Private Music’: Ask, and thou shall receive. Deftones is a band that needs little introduction, though for the uninitiated, these guys are one of the premium 90’s metal bands, introducing an ambient sound that balances the heaviness and aggression of heavy metal, with a dreamy soundscape that you’d likely find in a Pink Floyd or Radiohead album.
This is the band’s first release in five years following 2020’s glorious ‘Ohms’. While it does not exceed its predecessor in quality, it certainly gives it a run for its money. Just give it a listen, that is all I can say.
24. Bloodywood – ‘Nu Delhi’: The metal titans of New Delhi are back to give us another dose of pure raging adrenaline, and they do so with incredible success, giving us another buffet of chunky riffs, thunderous growls, power-packed rapping, emotional vocals, and folk rhythms, albeit with greater experimentation as it brings in electronic elements to the fold. Plus, linguistically too this album is great for you as it has English, Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu, and even Japanese!
Whether you are a casual or first time listener to heavy music, or a hardened metalhead, Bloodywood knows exactly how to tickle your fancy. Not giving any further surprises, check this out!
23. Rivers of Nihil: The eponymous album by the US prog/tech death metal veterans continues the tradition of mixing technical, bombastic, instrumentation with sombre melodies, and jazz sensibilities, merging death metal riffs, and sweeping solos with saxophones. Keeping up with the quality of its predecessor, the latest self-titled entry by the progressive metal veterans is another high quality listen for musicians, music lovers, and metalheads.
22. Killswitch Engage – ‘This Consequence’: Short, raw, heavy, relentless and to the point, this new album by the metalcore juggernauts is just an all out fun ride. You got the old, tried and tested KSE formula which these guys have been using for the past two decades since their inception. But you know the saying “If it ain’t broken, don’t fix it.”
KSE knows this fact, and fully embraces it, polishing their tested formula to its peak, and delivers yet another masterclass in songwriting.
21. Between The Buried And Me – ‘The Blue Nowhere’: Well, this is one entry which impressed me in a manner, I frankly was not expecting. One of the most unpredictable bands of the progressive metal scene, BTBAM are songwriters in a league of their own, with a flair for writing stuff that cleverly borders on the thin line between annoying and awesome.
But this album ups the ante on madness, making you wonder whether these guys were high on crack when they wrote this. The ‘Blue Nowhere’ is perhaps one of the all- time weirdest albums I have ever heard, and insanely creative, to the point you can’t figure out whether you love or hate this album.
A definite recommendation for those who have a passion for musical exploration, for if you crave something unpredictable, out of the box, and totally unhinged, then here you are!
20. Harakiri For The Sky – ‘Scorched Earth’: The latest outing from this Austrian post-metal band is absolutely mesmerising. Bringing yet another blackgaze (mix of black metal and shoegaze) masterpiece, this bleak, melancholic, and captivatingly melodic album, simply immerses you in its rich atmosphere and vibe.
The harsh vocals could put some off, but they are delivered with such passion, that even those put off may just want to get into this, simply because the overall package is just surreal, for here, misery is made beautiful, and you can dream away the whole listen in a winter picture of gloom.
19. Cradle Of Filth – ‘The Screaming of the Valkyries’: The UK based gothic/extreme metal veterans leave little room for any debate regarding artistry and sheer poetry, dishing out a black metal and symphonic influenced theme, incorporating relentless, razor sharp metal riffs, blast beats, insane screams, complemented by beautiful female vocals, and melding it with haunting, Victorian style, gothic, imagery, both romantic and evil. For lovers of gothic metal or gothic music, this is a must!
18. Acrid Semblance – ‘The Land of Cowards’: The first melodic death metal band from India, this is the second album from these melo-death veterans in nearly two decades. So, I had little idea of what to expect, but suffice it to say that there was no disappointment here. This album is short, sweet, heavy, melodic, and an absolute blast to listen to.
Every track has got a catchy hook, and sweet licks, that grab your ears with zero effort. Less than 40 mins in length, you could dig this even if you are not a metal fan, given how tightly knit and well constructed this record is.
17. Sodom – ‘The Arsonist’: Ah, the legendary German thrashers really don’t do any wrong. Sure a few lukewarm releases here and there, but that is not an issue in ‘The Arsonist.’ A near 50-minute bout of pounding thrash, this is an unstoppable, unrelenting force of fury, packed to the brim with everything you want in a great thrash metal album. Sodom stands emblematic of the saying “There is no school like the old school.”
16. Primitive Man – ‘Observance’: The US-based masters of doom are back with their fourth record, and will bury you inside a mountain of crushing, monstrous, heaviness, by relentlessly dishing out the thickest, and beefiest riffs you can imagine, which never overstay their welcome.
Accompanied by some stellar drum work and monstrous vocals, despite its sheer heaviness, there are moments of melody, and musicality, giving it an underlying picture of solemn emotions and reluctant acceptance.
15. Melvins – ‘Thunderball’: From one ball of heaviness to another, the sludge metal pioneers from Seattle are back with their 28th record. Substantially improving upon its predecessor, ‘Thunderball’ is one of the best Melvins records out there, right up with their recognised classics like ‘Houdini’ and ‘Lysol’.
Blending the band’s signature ultra thick, heavy sludge metal riffs with the incorporation of some avant garde, noise, and electronic elements, ‘Thunderball’ is just another trophy for the long-time metal pioneers, who remain weird, heavy, and groovy!
14. Ashes of Ares – ‘The New Messiah’: The latest album by this criminally overlooked US based progressive/power metal band is a masterclass at songwriting, blending technical structures, chunky aggressive riffs, and operatic vocals with quite a restrained, simplistic, and no-nonsense, balls to the wall heavy metal.
Never overdoing or underdoing anything, ‘The New Messiah’ knows exactly what to do and what it wants to be, and does both with near perfection.
13. Sigh – ‘I Saw The World’s End (Hangman’s Hymn MMXXV)’: This Japanese experimental black metal group accomplishes what few can, delivering quality upon quality releases, and always innovating. Known for their unique take to the genre, Japan’s black metal icons produce an almost hauntingly bizarre kind of operatic drama, which is equal parts deranged, and raw, as well as nuanced, and grand.
There’s screaming vocals mixed with some great singing in Japanese, symphonic melodies, furious, hard-edged riffs, and an atmosphere that is very hard to fully describe. This is definitely not everyone’s cup of tea, but if you are a music enthusiast looking for something new and unheard of, well dear reader, you’ve hit the jackpot.
12. Vildhjarta – ‘Där skogen sjunger under evighetens granar’: Vocally entirely in Swedish, Vildhjarta are an underrated pioneering force in the world of modern day progressive metal. You got complex polyrhythms, bizarre time signatures, crushing heaviness, jarring riffs, and overall rhythmic technicalities, along with awesome harsh vocals, Vildhjarta is not your average run of the mill group, and definitely not for your average audience, but give it some patience, and you will be rewarded!
11. Dream Theater – ‘Parasomnia’: The latest album by the progressive metal legends, Parasomnia marks the 16th entry into the band’s expansive catalogue. Dreary, and haunting, this thematic concept album centered on the aspect of sleepwalking and nightmares is an excellent operatic experience, shaped to perfection by the group’s tried and tested formula, mixing mind blowing instrumental virtuosity with powerful, emotional vocals.
One of the heaviest LPs in the band’s catalogue, ‘Parasomnia’ doesn’t break any high ground, and neither does it have to. Rather, it is content on what it is, and strives for nothing else other than being a mammoth musical experience.
10. Teramaze – ‘The Harmony Machine’: The latest album from these ultra overlooked Australian progressive metal elites hits all the right spots. Incorporating pop-laden hooks, and melodies, within a heavy, progressive musical arrangement, ‘The Harmony Machine’ does not shy away from experimentation.
Seemingly straightforward, this album is actually quite complex in terms of its arrangements, and structures, and does not sacrifice the metal for the sake of adding criminally addictive hooks, which are so catchy, that you’ll find yourself singing them in your own workspace. Taking both elements in stride, this album by the Aussies is just a straight-up intoxicating experience.
9. Cryptopsy – ‘Insatiable Violence’: The Canadian technical death metal pioneers’ latest album lives up to its namesake in the truest sense, delivering a frantic bout of unrestrained, messed up, psychotic sonic assault.
There are little breathers, and no mercy in this cacophony of pure, brutal madness, dishing out razor sharp, precision riffs, blast beats, virtuosity and demonic growls with a strong focus on maintaining musicality. While not for everyone, for those who dig extreme music or a taste with the avant garde, Cryptopsy always delivers.
8. Omnium Gatherum – ‘May The Bridges We Burn Light The Way’: This Finnish melodic death metal sextette delivers beautiful harmonic melodies mixed with crunchy, fat, death metal riffs, and blast beats within a wider framework of complex musical arrangements, and progressive structures, while retaining a mainstream simplistic flow, making it a very delicious listen.
Eclectic, balanced, complex but straightforward enough, there is enough variety here to keep both snobs and noobs engaged.
7. Allegeon – ‘Ossuary Lens’: You got mammoth heavy riffs, pounding drums, relentless growls, screams, and sombre clean melodic vocals, mind numbingly complex song structures, and an unrelenting sonic assault which doesn’t sacrifice musicality, melding melody and brutality in equal parts extremely well.
Well, what more could you ask for? Allegeon is just what you need for to
pump you up with power for the rest of your day, or turn your brain to mush. This album is a pure no-skip listen that bombards you with a perfect combination of pummelling, heavy, sonic assault balanced with more melodic and soft moments, keeping this fresh, engaging, and just a lot of fun, making this a banger!
6. Fallen Letters – ‘Mindfractures’: The debut album from the Bengaluru based progressive metal group is this bizarre mix of several stylistically very different groups, such as Tool, Katatonia, and Agalloch, but hey, absolutely no complaints here, for these guys in their reverence for their musical idols, don’t sabotage originality, and as such bring in plenty of creativity with them.
There is a sombre, melancholic, atmosphere in this album which seems to gradually grow darker as the music becomes heavier and more complex. Kicking off with a more gloomy, mellow, progressive rock approach with bits of distorted riffs here and there, the album becomes structurally more and more technical with every passing song, entering into all out metal territory.
Clocking in at 50 minutes, you get the best of everything here, but combine this with their EP ‘Forlorn Pages’, – a sort of prequel to this – it becomes a much richer and more rewarding experience.
5. Testament – ‘Parabellum’: The Bay Area thrash legends have returned with yet another awesome record, delivering the full package. There is a stylistic change though, as this album incorporates strong death, black, and groove metal elements, featuring superb clean singing with goosebump inducing growls, some tempo changes, atmospheric moments, more complex structures, blast beats, and a very clean production, though still rooted in the raw and abrasive attitude of thrash metal.
Only problem with this record is chances of your neck hurting like crazy given how much you’d want to headbang hearing this gem.
4. Coroner – ‘Dissonance Theory’: The Swiss progressive/technical thrash metal veterans have returned after three decades, making this album probably one of the most hyped releases of the year. But did it live up to the hype? No. It blasted the wall that was the so-called hype and put me in total disbelief, at just how good this album is.
Far surpassing expectations, the band’s 80’s and early 90’s flair is very much intact, but 30 years is a long time, and they too have grown, employing a lot of jazz fusion elements, blended finely together with the use of a lot of groove and death metal elements.
3. The Reticent – ‘Please’: Well, hopefully no one ordered for the depression cart, because that is what this album is. Yet another masterpiece, The Reticent, as it always is the case, delivers yet another masterfully composed, emotionally devastating release.
Centred around the theme of depression, anxiety, and the longing to be heard, this thematic concept album employs nearly everything there is from jazz fusion, acoustic, progressive rock, to extreme metal, post metal, and more to convey that sense of desperation.
2. Paradise Lost – ‘Ascension’: The latest album by the English doom metal legends, ‘Ascension’ truly ascends, for it ascends the standards of music. A gothic styled melancholic release, Paradise Lost consistently maintains a dark, gloomy, and atmospherically dreary, haunting feel, balancing the crushing, heavy riffs with melodic and mournful passages.
Vocals alternate between emotionally sung clean passages with some aggressive overtones, and full-on death growls. The songwriting is simple enough, but has enough variety in structure and composition, to never make you lose interest. Gothic, dark, heavy, and ridiculously good, don’t do yourself the disservice of missing out on this masterpiece.
1. Amorphis – ‘Borderland’: The Finnish melodic death metal legends nab the title for Album Of The Year according to this humble writer. Decidedly much cleaner and softer than its predecessor, and in fact just fitting into the metal category, Borderland’s biggest strength is its sense of melody.
Seriously, this album packs in some extremely hypnotic and enchanting melodies which truly feel magical, so much so that it is surreal. The vocals are sublime, with the cleans and growls perfectly complementing each other.
