Gormoth/ForevercolD/Haldokló Csillagok (HUN)
Release: Oh, My Bitter Addictions and Ez a szomorú Világ
Atmospheric Black Metal
Prolific doesn’t even begin to cut it when talking about these three projects spearheaded by one man known simply as Adam. 41 individual releases across the three projects, each showing a slightly different shade of atmospheric black metal, dealing with themes of grief, loss and death these are deeply affecting releases. Absolutely drenched in atmosphere and emotion, every note, and phrase is felt, sure to bring listeners back time after time.
Lungtoucher (U.K.)
Release: My Consort, Eternal
Post Black Metal
Coming in late in the year with a December release the one man act out of Swindon dropped one of the best EPs of the year. Blending furious black metal riffage with spooky, haunting almost cinematic passages listeners are dragged through a hellscape complete with demons and devils and all that is evil. What initially seems like some good old straight up black metal quickly evolves into something more expansive and otherworldly. By the time it reaches full stride, it feels less like an EP and more like a descent—each track peeling back another layer of its ritualistic atmosphere. The songwriting has a confidence that belies its modest runtime, twisting familiar black-metal tropes into something darker, stranger, and far more immersive than you expect going in.
Rancid Cadaver (U.K.)
Release: Mortality Denied
OSDM
The debut full length release from Glaswegian Old School Death Metallers pulls out every trick in the death metal playbook and then some. There are no frills or tricks to this it’s just proper Death Metal full of buzzsaw riffs and rhythmic pounding that can feel like being run over by a tank. The B Movie narration’s interspersed throughout the record just add to the grit and grime, and most importantly the horror of it all, in what ends up being a real stand out for Death Metal.
Read the full review: https://www.noizze.co.uk/rancid-cadaver-mortality-denied-album-review/
Noctambulist (NED)
Release: Noctambulist II: De Droom
Post Black/Blackgaze
Post black metal doesn’t get much better than this, with ethereal, soaring and for a large part uplifting riffs and melody. Blending that hopeful, albeit bittersweet sound with the bleak nature of black metal creates a genuine emotional response in listeners. Further exploration into post punk realms on this sophomore release have evolved their sound out of just being another post black/blackgaze band, they balance the hostility with beauty, the despair with hope and the shade with light.
Self Destruction in Your Dreams (JAP)
Release: 焦葬
DSBM/Blackgaze
There are four words to perfectly describe what the Japanese outfit have produced here “this is fucking bleak”. Sharp, relentless and repetitive riffs that swirl around your head, pounding drums bring forth a sense of impending doom. All of this underscored by the howling, wailing vocals sounding like a complete emotional breakdown. This isn’t a comfortable listen, the overall atmosphere is of dread and despair, and never looses that even when it goes into full shit kicking mode. Underneath it all there’s a glimmer of beauty, expressed through the keys, something light something hopeful, something pure.
Rhûn (U.S.A.)
Release: Burial Pact
Atmospheric Black Metal
Building off the debut album from 2024, Falls of Rauros side project, Rhûn, allow their more experimental side to flow further. Exploring atmospheric, post metal, dark ambient, blackened death and even some doom throughout the EP. If any of this sounds like it would be confused over the course of a 20-minute release, then fear not, the production on these blends and flows everything together excellently. The riffing is beefy and thick, the vocals harsh and heavy, strings and keys flowing underneath everything, building up that atmosphere. This is immediate, it feels like its own living entity, almost reacting to itself and pushing itself forward like a force of nature.
Bloodfang (GER)
Release: Bloodfang
Thrash/Heavy Metal
Possibly the most fun EP of the year, the Germans bring a mix of thrash and trad metal with a big old dollop of black metal thrown in for good measure. This is music for wearing chain mail and swinging a sword to. Its schlocky horror vibes blend perfectly with the speed and swagger the band are playing with, it’s seditious and slimy and smothered in sleaze. The charm is in how fully they commit to the bit—no irony, no restraint, just pedal-to-the-metal mayhem delivered with a crooked grin. Every riff feels like it’s been ripped from a midnight monster flick and fed through a rusty wood chipper. It’s gloriously ridiculous, and that’s exactly why it works
Theophnonos (U.S.A.)
Release: Allegheny Rains
Black Metal/Mathcore
Absolute, unadulterated chaos. The type of music that drags you under and pummels you into submission, rarely relenting and when it does, it’s just to hit you back even harder. The tight and precise mathcore foundations blending with the esoteric and hostile black metal, chaos done in two different ways, each serving to push the other further. There’s a real whiplash thrill in how violently the two styles collide, like watching tectonic plates grind against each other. Just when it seems think the whole thing is about to collapse under its own convulsions, it snaps into a moment of razor sharp clarity that somehow makes the next plunge into madness hit even harder.
Lavizan Jangal (IRN)
Release: True Iranian Black Metal
Black Metal
Black Metal, at least the traditional styles, above all should sound mean, evil and fuelled by bitter hatred and that’s exactly what you get here. It’s little wonder that a country with the problems like Iran faces inspires this type of music, what’s more impressive is when they are able to release it. Moulded by their surroundings of urban Tehran this record sounds dangerous, what it lacks in production value which can at times be thin and tinny (although that’s not a problem in BM circles) they more than make up for in their conviction to everything they do. It’s raw, it’s heavy and it feels vital, carrying that unmistakable sense of real-world tension you only get from bands operating under genuine pressure. There’s an urgency here that can’t be faked — a volatile, combustible energy that turns even the roughest moments into something gripping and undeniably authentic.
Atomic Goatcrime (ECU)
Release: Thermonuclear Humanicide
Black Metal/Grindcore/War Metal
If a full scale nuclear bombardment had a sound this might be damn close, fast, chaotic, abrasive and unforgiving. Ultimately this is the sound of unchecked violence. Atomic Goatcrime continue the longstanding tradition of South American bands being absolutely brutal. With blast beats like machine gun fire and riffs like razor wire, nothing is left on the table. It’s messy, it’s muddled, there’s little variation, and it hits oh so hard. If you’re still standing after the first track, it’s only because the band allowed it. The sheer ferocity becomes almost hypnotic, a blur of carnage that dares you to keep up. It’s the kind of release that doesn’t ask for your attention so much as it tears it from your skull and grinds it into the dirt.
Subterranean Lava Dragon (U.S.A.)
Release: The Great Architect
Progressive Death Metal
On top of having one of the best band names going, good grief these are good. There’s expansive songwriting without losing intensity, virtuosity without pomposity, restraint without losing heft, in short these guys sure can play. SLD tread the tightrope many progressive and technical death metal bands do, unlike many of their contemporaries, they are able to display their abilities, create complex and evolving songs, without becoming sterile. This still, for those who like their death metal crusty and grim, will be too much, but what this does bring is a delicate and finely tuned balance between progression and aggression.
Voidchrist (AUS)
Release: Only Worms Rule Here
Black Metal/Drone
One thing is for sure this isn’t for everyone, this is crushing, overwhelming and deeply oppressive. Blackened noise/drone that hits like a few hundred tonnes of bricks, everything about it is loud and in your face, focussing on any one particular aspect becomes a challenge, everything is so prominent within the mix. However, this gives huge replay value, whether your focussed on the droning, buzzing and downright filthy guitar work, or the vocals that sound like they’re coming from the very depths of the ocean. One thing is for sure this isn’t for everyone, this is crushing, overwhelming and deeply oppressive. Blackened noise/drone that hits like a few hundred tonnes of bricks, everything about it is loud and in your face, focussing on any one particular aspect becomes a challenge, everything is so prominent within the mix. However, this gives huge replay value, whether your focussed on the droning, buzzing and downright filthy guitar work, or the vocals that sound like they’re coming from the very depths of the ocean, there are loads to get from this.
Ysbrydnos (U.K.)
Release: Saint Derwyddol
Atmospheric Black metal
Creeping, haunting and sinister, sounding as if it’s crawled out of the undergrowth of the very Welsh forestlands from which this band hails. In a short space of time the man behind this, known only as Ysbryd (spirit) expertly displays chaotic speed, menacing mid-tempo and atmospheric soundscapes to create an EP that transports listeners to a place where they are followed by a stalking presence, always behind, always watching. This has some of the best vocal work on a black metal release of this year, it gives life to the atmosphere that is crafted through the instrumentation. The EP lingers long after it ends, each note leaving a shadow that seems to crawl along your spine. It’s music that doesn’t just set a scene, it inhabits it, making you feel both small and exposed in the forests Ysbryd conjures so vividly.
Esox (ITA)
Release: Watery Grave
Black Metal
Beautifully constructed and deeply thought-provoking, this really showcases the softer edges of the Atmospheric Black Metal, the only true harshness to be found in the vocals, and even this is not evocative of spite driven rage or even a bleak self loathing despair, this feels more like the sound of natural collapse. Acoustic interludes and clean vocal passages add texture, whilst the synth work helps to build tension. It’s a rough and ready mix but well worth the investment.
Frightful (POL)
Release: What Lies Ahead
Death Metal
Old school meets new school in the tight and technically proficient assault the Poles bring for their sophomore release. Leaning into a melodic, blackened riff style with technically excellent structuring (especially in the lead lines and drumming) elevates this ODSM ethos and vibe into dizzying new heights. The breakneck speed and crushing heaviness plays off against the intricate passages to make something that feels both classic and contemporary at the same time. There’s no hesitation, no filler, just a band fully locked into their own momentum. Even the more melodic flashes feel sharpened to a lethal edge, giving the record a sense of forward drive that never dips, never loosens, and never stops demanding your full attention.
Føsphene (U.S.A.)
Release: Føsphene
Atmospheric Black Metal
Coming seemingly out of nowhere Føsphene have dropped one of the top releases of the year. This has a bit of everything, the anguish and dread in the atmosphere, the riffs (boy has it got riffs) the chaos that all make up a great black metal record. Where it truly shines is in the unexpected, the melodic lines, the intricate, verging on progressive structures, the lilting bass line, void of distortion, the flows underneath it all like a river carving its way to the ocean, adding warmth to an otherwise cold record. What really cements its impact is how naturally all those left-field touches slot into the storm — the melodies don’t break the atmosphere, they illuminate it, like faint lanterns flickering through heavy fog. That warm, wandering bass doesn’t soften the blow either; it anchors it, carving through the distortion like an undercurrent beneath crashing waves. Instead of diluting the aggression, these subtler layers give the brutality more shape and weight, making the heavy moments feel even heavier when they hit.
Funeral Dancer (U.S.A.)
Releqae: Friends of the outer wave
Black’n’roll
Big ol’ choruses, a swinging, grooving beat and shredding solos, what’s not to like? This is music made for tiny clubs, sweat and stale beer dripping from the ceiling whilst some (presumably) leather clad maniac shrieks a rock n roll sermon at you. This is music to drive fast and spin donuts to, this is just pure exhilaration and energy. With duelling leads right out of the Maiden playbook and a bouncing 4/4 stomp to keep everything moving. The riffs are absolutely massive, whilst still keeping their black metal roots strong. You can almost see the crowd fist pumping and jumping through every moment of this record, if this is the debut full length release then Funeral Dancer could be a band to watch out for.
Détresse (AST)
Release: Pessimiismes
Black Metal
Simplicity is the key here, and when it’s done to this standard it becomes something moving. At its heart that’s what this is, tremolo chord progressions and simple drum beats, both at speed and mid paced, the way black metal should be no frills. Combined though, it’s sorrowful, wistful, introspective, and the use of melody gives it space to breath and grow. The sort of sounds to accompany long walks alone, through dense forests and open grasslands, places where battles have been fought hundreds of years ago, this would just add to the atmosphere. Even in its basic repetitive, monotonous at times, nature this choice creates quite a heavy and heady experience for listeners, like a weight, not a great weight, just something noticeable, pushing down on you, becoming harder to bear as you lose energy. It’s very effective at becoming more intense as the album goes on without really changing tact, it’s not beating you into submission, it’s just not leaving you be until you do submit.
Fǽge (NED)
release: Hreóƿan
DSBM
Slow, haunting and relentless, the debut release from the unknown Dutch artist drags you under and holds you in place in their world of pain and despair. This is a slow and methodical descent into the abyss, of tortured mind. The pacing may suggest that this would offer space and brevity, that is not the case, over the course of the 3 tracks here it simply never lets up, it never kicks you right in the teeth, but it just doesn’t stop, no empty spaces, no light just the perpetual journey through darkness. The raw, Lo-Fi shroud only deepens that sense of suffocation, giving every instrument a ghostly smear that keeps you locked inside its dim, airless space. Even at its slowest the music never feels stagnant — it drags you forward with this grim inevitability, like being pulled down a tunnel you can’t quite see the end of. And those vocals, caught somewhere between a ragged scream and a broken, wordless cry, cut straight through the murk, making the emotional weight hit even harder. It’s bleak, it’s uncomfortable, and it’s exactly what this kind of DSBM should be.
Labyrinthine Heirs (U.S.A.)
Release: Labyrinthine Heirs
Avant-Garde Death Metal
You’ll either love this or hate it, there won’t be an in-between. Critics will point to a couple of major things about this release, as negatives, but for those who can get past it these actually end up as part of this records appeal. There is a distinct lack of variation across this album, not to the point where every track sounds the same, but they have found their lane, and rarely divert from it. This serves to give it an almost drone quality, hypnotic and looping it becomes something to experience, and exist in rather than listen to. Then there is the overall sound of the record, what you get here are undeniably, blackened death metal riffs, and drum patters, a rasping evil vocal, everything you would expect from a band playing death metal with that blackened edge. Only it’s all done wrong, the guitars don’t have then right distortion, they’re too clean, too jangly, the drums are guided through their patterns rather than beaten half to death, the vocals whilst utilising that raspy black metal sound, are delivered like spoken word, clear annunciation and distinction. It’s the antithesis of everything it is taking from, like some Bizarro/mirror universe version of bands doing this thing, it’s recognisable but unfamiliar, and that is uncomfortable and yet deeply rewarding.