Another year of heavy metal has come and gone. There was a TON of music that came out this year, some were absolute gems and others I wouldn’t wipe my ass with.
So many enjoyable albums were released this year that my list went through multiple changes and re-writes, it doesn’t even resemble what I started with.
Here are my picks for the best metal albums of 2022. All opinions are my own and irrefutable. If you disagree, it’s because you are wrong.
Enchantment – Cold Soul Embrace
- A true comeback album.
- Scratches that itch for the old “Peaceville sound”.
- For fans of Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride, Anathema.
The Chasm – The Scars Of A Lost Reflective Shadow
- For fans of Shub Niggurath, Timeghoul, Nocturnus.
- The previous album received unnecessary flak for being an instrumental. This album should right that train for all you naysayers.
Moonlight Sorcery – Piercing Through The Frozen Eternity
- An excellent, icy-offering of melodic black metal to soothe your evil heart.
- An EP, but can’t wait for a full length.
- A great follow-up for those who enjoyed last years Stormkeep’s “Tales Of Othertime”
Corpsessed – Succumb To Rot
- A welcome inclusion for any playlist of cavernous, death metal.
- Haunting, memorable riffs.
- For fans of Father Befouled, Tomb Mold, Krypts, Incantation
Nite – Voices Of The Kronian Moon
- A good black ‘n’ roll album? You don’t say?!
- For fans of Venom, Cloak, Motorhead.
Jade – The Pacification Of Death
- A late addition (released November 25), but hot damn this took me by surprise.
- Dripping with atmosphere with death/doom riffage.
- For fans of Hooded Menace, Tchornoborg.
Sigh – Shiki
- Difficult to explain, but it’s Sigh. As a friend said, this is a “toned down version of Sigh; more accessible”.
- It’s weird and otherworldly – yet familiar at the same time.
- For fans of Celtic Frost, Venom, Sabbat.
Vile Rites – The Ageless
- Technical and fast with just enough “weirdness” to stand out on their own.
- For fans of Cynic and Sadus,
Ataraxy – The Last Mirror
- The record is paced very well, exploring all the elements of death/doom. It can be fast, slow and melodic at the right moments.
- For fans of Hooded Menace, Temple Of Void.
Mother Of Graves – Where The Shadows Adorn
- Bro.. Put this in your earholes now.
- For fans of Dan Swano, early era Katatonia,
Great, But Not Quite There…
- Grafvitnir – “Tunes Of Sitra Ahra”
- Hellfrost And Fire – “Fire, Frost and Hell”
- Temple Of Void – “Summoning The Slayer”
- Agathodaimon – “The Seven”
- Bloodbath – “Survival of the Sickest”
- Cosmic Putrefaction – “Crepuscular Dirge For The Blessed Ones”
- Disma – “Earthendium”
- Altars – “Ascetic Reflection”
- Kampfar – “Til Klovers Takt”
- Ripped To Shreds “Jubian”
- Pensees Nocturnes – “Douce Fange”
- White Ward – “False Light”
- Dream Unending – “Song Of Salvation”
- Worm – “Bluenothing”
Eric, just like a proper beer and wine hoarder, you always break out the good stuff come the holiday season!
I’m totally picking up on what Moonlight Sorcery is throwing down here. They may be blast beating their angry panda asses off, but I swear I’m hearing some mighty tasty high-end Yngwie Malmsteen-style finery in the riffing here, too.
Vile Rites is also a killer “first heard” for me here. That’s some twisted and sick stuff! Some hints of Negative Plane here (who BTW also came out with a killer album in `22).