While it wasn’t a great year for new metal, there were some keepers
There were some new stuff from big artists like Lamb of God, Rammstein, Blind Guardian, Meshuggah, and Allegaeon. While I like these albums, I feel like they were not great enough to catch my attention for too long. Below are some albums I enjoyed a little more. Hope you enjoy them too.
1. BLACKBRAID – Blackbraid I
Blackbraid are a one man atmospheric black metal band. Lots of cool Native American themes and instruments. I really enjoy the soft instrumental parts, then get slammed with violent metal. The riffs are melodic and catchy. Think Agalloch, but with more of a indigenous feel. This is the debut album, and it’s a must! Check out “The River of Time Flows Through Me” below.
2. DEVIL MASTER – Ecstasies of Never Ending Night
Devil Master play catchy, dirty, blackened thrash. Think Midnight, but with keyboards and I would say a bit more variety with guitar effects, as well as creepy spoken word randomly thrown in once in a while. They were one of my highlights at Psycho Las Vegas 2022.
3. AUTOPSY – Morbidity Triumphant
What more could be written about Autopsy? They are dirty, death metal legends. The latest album is no exceptions. They have seemed to scaled back their technicality, and production, and have given us a putrid death metal masterpiece, dripping with mold. This is closer to their album Mental Funeral, than it is to Macabre Eternal.
4. NITE – Voices of the Kronian Moon
I first heard Nite live at Hell’s Heroes fest in 2022, and they were fantastic. Rockin’ horror themed metal with lots of Motorhead vibes, with a bit more melodic guitar solos. This shit cranks! Fun and catchy. You are sure to have riffs stuck in your head.
5. CHAT PILE – God’s Country
I don’t listen to a ton of bands that sound like Chat Pile. I would describe them as noise or sludge. The name is fascinating. “Chat Pile” is a term I am familiar with, due to watching a short documentary on YouTube on Picher, Oklahoma. Picher was once a busy mining town, but is now a ghost town, due to the huge “chat piles,” or huge mountains of dusty waste rock that contains toxic levels of lead. Anyhow their music seems to express the toxic behaviors of humans. This is definitely a odd one for me on this list, but I just can’t help liking them
6. SUMMERLANDS – Dreamkiller
I get ’80’s arena hard rock feelings with this one. Think Dokken, Dio and Accept all rolled together. But all of them in their absolute prime. Summerlands are from Texas and have members of one of my favorite bands right now, Eternal Champion. You will be taken back to a time you may too young to remember.
7. RIOT CITY – Electric Elite
While I am not as floored by this album, as I was their debut album, Burn The Night, I am still impressed by the incredible clean screams and relentless speed metal riffing. Judas Priest “Painkiller” meets early Agent Steel. If that sounds up your alley, give Riot City a listen!
8. KAMPFAR – Til Klovers Takt
I have been into Kampfar for a very long time. They do the viking black metal thing, without sounding pretty. It’s angry, dirty, and at times… very epic. This is not catchy Amon Amarth riffs. This is in your face black metal. If you want more folk in your viking metal, I suggest you check out Árstíðir Lífsins.
9. DARKTHRONE – Astral Fortresss
More nostalgic black metal. I just can’t help it. I have enjoyed all Darkthrone albums, and this one is no different. Not every song is great, but I do keep going back to this one. “Impeccable Caverns of Satan” is probably my favorite song. It starts out slow and mysterious, then hits you with some classic Celtic Frost worship. I am not sure I would recommend this album to someone not familiar with Darkthrone. You’d probably want to start with their earlier work.
10. DREAM UNENDING – Song of Salvation
Now for something a little more in the doom category. Dream Unending are a band that has a lot of elements of early doom like Dark Tranquility, Tiamat, and Thergothon. They seem to also take the psyche/dreamy sound to an extreme at times. Minimalistic Pink Floyd sounds with layers of atmosphere. This album really takes you on a ride, with loud, crushing riffs, to slow, atmospheric guitar solos. Death metal vocals, along with clean male and female vocals. Vocals in general are used sparingly. Relax, fire one up, and listen to Dream Unending.
So it’s been a pretty decent year for metal releases. Be sure to check out Todd’s review. He has some gems in there, as well as Astrid’s and Jesse’s reviews. Stay tuned for Eric and Overlord’s review, as well as our videos on YouTube.