40 best heavy metal albums of 2021!
40 best metal albums of 2021!
And finally! 2021 was a living hell of a year. But, at least we had some soundtrack to the apocalypse that we’re facing every day. This is our list of the best 40 metal albums of 2021! As always, the hardest part is to rank ‘em all so that makes sense in the end. Anyways, you might find some new bands or listen to some albums you’ve skipped this year, so yeah! Top Lists are the best way to discover some new music! So, what is your favorite album of 2021? Do you agree with our list? Was the ranking horrible? Let us know in the comments below! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Cheers!
40) Angelus Apatrida - Angelus Apatrida
(Century Media Records)
Thrash things up! Angelus Apatrida’s self-titled album is a solid thrash metal album! This is a prime example of how new thrash metal bands should sound like! Their latest release has a Machine Head vibe going. These guys need more recognition! I tell you that! You’ll have a lot of fun by listening to this release! THRASH ‘n’ BURN!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/angelusapatrida
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angelusapatrida/
39) KK's Priest - Sermons of the Sinner
(Ex1 Records)
Look who’s back! If K.K. Downing + Tim "Ripper" Owens combo isn’t good enough, I don’t know what the hell is! The band released 5 videos: - Hellfire Thunderbolt, - Sermons of the Sinner, Brothers of the Road, Raise Your Fists, Return of the Sentinel. Tim Ripper’s vocals are still screeching high. K.K. Downing’s riffs and leads are simply shredding! If your ears and soul thirst for some pure heavy metal, look no further from KK’s Priest – Sermons of the Sinner!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KKsPriest
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kkspriest/
38) Rob Zombie - The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy
(Nuclear Blast)
A 7th studio album by the legendary Rob Zombie. The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy is a pretty cool album. You gotta give him credit for a title like that! As always, every Rob Zombie release covers a wide variety of genres, from country and blues on one side to pure heavy metal on the other. Fans of Rob Zombie will be delighted for sure! You hear one second of the album and you’ll know it’s ROB ZOMBIE! This album is perfect for some Twisted Metal carnage! \m/
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RobZombie
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/robzombieofficial/
37) Melvins - Working with God
(Ipecac Recordings)
24th (that’s right!) studio album by the Melvins. The guys just can’t fail. The band did 3 covers on this release: "I Fuck Around" i.e. "I Get Around" by The Beach Boys, "1 Fuck You" (Harry Nilsson cover), and "Good Night Sweetheart" (The Spaniels cover). But the original stuff simply kills! Buzzo Almighty keeps on rockin’! This album is a big FUCK YOU for everybody! (pun intended).
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/melvinsarmy
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melvinsdotcom/
Bandcamp: https://melvinsofficial.bandcamp.com/
36) Rivers of Nihil - The Work
(Metal Blade Records)
The proggiest album on the list. Rivers of Nihil’s latest studio release The Work is really strong overall. You can hear anything ranging from Pink Floyd to brutal death metal. The band released a video for the song Clean. The Work is swaying from left to right, and Rivers of Nihil’s soundscape is open wide. Literally, everyone will find some parts breathtaking, whether you are a fan of more brutal or softer, proggy music.
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/riversofnihil
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/riversofnihil/
Bandcamp:https://riversofnihil.bandcamp.com/
35) Ektomorf - Reborn
(Napalm Records)
Jeez! If you are up for some relentless groove metal carnage, look no further than Ektomorf! The band released videos for "Reborn", "And the Dead Will Walk", "Smashing the Past" and "Fear me". Reborn is a full-speed-ahead, 200 miles per hour thrash metal ride! Ektomorf’s music formula hasn’t changed a bit but it still KILLS! If you crave some groovy thrash metal, look no further than the latest Ektomorf! These guys are still the finest Hungarian heavy metal export! And I doubt someone will change that in the future!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/EKTOMORF.official/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ektomorf_official/
Bandcamp:https://ektomorf.bandcamp.com/album/reborn
34) Nervosa - Perpetual Chaos
(Napalm Records)
Girl power! Nervosa’s 4th studio album, Perpetual Chaos is a relentless thrash metal release. These girls are simply killing it! The band did a video for Guided by Evil, and man, we are talking about a full-speed-ahead, aggression-driven thashterpiece! Kudos for the artwork! As a whole, this album keeps delivering. Deadly vocals, punishing leads and killing riffs. Could you ask for more? If you missed this one, you are at loss. If you ask me, Nervosa is holding the throne of the best all-female metal band!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nervosa
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nervosathrash/
Bandcamp: https://nervosa-brazil.bandcamp.com/album/perpetual-chaos
33) Mordred - The Dark Parade
(M-Theory Audio)
Another epic thrash metal release! We haven’t heard anything new from these guys since 1994! But alas! Mordred’s The Dark Parade. Their new approach includes keyboards & turntables with those scratches that may remind you of Linkin Park or something. However, the songs are thrashy as fuck! It may not be the cup of tea for those who like sterile-sounding thrash metal. One of the songs even features trumpets, total Balkan-style! The Dark Parade is a great comeback album by the cult Bay-area funk thrash veterans. It gotta be eccentric to a certain degree, right?
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MordredBand
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mordredband/
Bandcamp: https://mordred.bandcamp.com/album/the-dark-parade
32) U.D.O. - Game Over
(AFM Records)
Udo Dirkschneider ladies and gents! Game Over is a 17th studio release of the German heavy metal veterans! The band released videos for Metal Never Dies and Prophecy. With every U.D.O. release, you get some pure heavy metal! They are simply one of the most consistent heavy metal bands out there! Game Over has some epic tunes throughout the whole release! U.D.O. is always fun and easy to listen to! Hands down for these leads; and when Udo’s vocals are in question, I can’t underline enough that U.D.O. is the AC/DC of heavy metal!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/udoonline
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/u.d.o._official/
31) Eyehategod - A History of Nomadic Behavior
(Century Media Records)
As brutal as always! Their stoner doom meets hardcore approach is so damn good! And you can tell that their formula works for the 6th time as well! And after 7 years of waiting, it was totally worth it! All the sludge, noise, screeching feedback coming out of the amps will make your skin crawl! Their electric guitar wizardry is on par with anything from the stoner/doom metal genre! This is actually one of the biggest surprises of 2021! Eyehategod’s A History of Nomadic Behaviour is a superb release worthy of your time and money!HAAYYYAAAAAGHHH!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialEyeHateGod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eyehategodnola/
30) Helstar - Clad in Black
(Massacre Records)
One of the best traditional heavy metal releases this year! Helstar’s Clad in Black is actually an album with 3 completely new tracks and 3 legendary covers – Judas Priest - "Sinner", "Restless and Wild" (Accept), and "After All (The Dead)" (Black Sabbath). The singer nailed it! That is one of the best Judas Priest covers of all time! But anyways, new songs rock! These guys are simply killing it! The album would have gotten a better spot on this list if there were new tracks only. Anyway, Helstar – Clad in Black. A dose of metal you need!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Helstar.Metal/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/helstarofficial/
29) Accept - Too Mean to Die
(Nuclear Blast)
Go Accept! These guys have been keeping it heavy for the past 40 years, and they still manage to deliver some high-quality heavy metal! Top-notch heavy metal laced with classical music such as "Ode to Joy" and other works of classical compositors are festering in this album! The song "Samson et Dalila" is based on the theme of the same name by Camille Saint-Saëns as well as a theme from "From the New World" by Antonín Dvořák. The band released a video for The Undertaker. Wolf Hoffmann and the boys delivered some good heavy metal pounding! Yet again!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/accepttheband
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/acceptworldwide/
28) Iron Maiden - Senjutsu
(Parlophone)
Good old Iron Maiden. Eddie being a Japanese Samurai is simply one of the coolest artworks this year! The band’s 17th album is more than a solid one! The band released videos for The Writing on the Wall and Stratego. Senjutsu is a really good Iron Maiden album. But still, it could have been a way shorter. 120 minutes of music is just tiresome. It still amazes me how Bruce Dickinson can pull those screams off year after year after year. The man simply can’t fail at what he is doing! UP THE IRONS!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ironmaiden
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ironmaiden/
27) Agent Steel - No Other Godz Before Me
(Dissonance Productions)
It just can’t get higher than Cyriis’ vocals. Agent Steel’s No Other Godz Before Me is the 6th studio release by the speed metal veterans. This was Cyriis’ big comeback! Of course, the title is a reference to their classic track - “Bleed for the Godz”. The last time he Screamed for the Godz was on Agent Steel’s 1987 Unstoppable Force album. Gotta say that his voice hasn’t changed at all! The riffs are all about power chords and open strings. It’s funny that Cyriis is actually the only original member in Agent Steel. But still, No Other Godz Before Me is probably the best speed metal release of this year.
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AgentSteelOfficial2/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/agentsteelofficial/
26) Fear Factory - Aggression Continuum
(Nuclear Blast)
Let the groovin’ begin! Aggression Continuum is Fear Factory’s 10th album. Dino Cazares and Burton C. Bell are simply one of the most iconic duos on this list! The boys have released videos for Disruptor and Recode. As the title suggests, Aggression Continuum is a circle of destruction without end. The mighty guitar grooves topped with Burton’s amazing clean vocals is a formula that many can’t say no to! Oddly enough, the vocals for this album were finished in 2017. But damn, it was worth the wait! The new material is awe-struck groove/nu-metal carnage! Fear Factory’s Aggression Continuum is brutal in so many ways!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/fearfactory
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fearfactory/
25) Bongzilla - Weedsconsin
(Heavy Psych Sounds)
Good old Bongzilla! Weedsconsin is the 5th studio release by the stoner metal masters. The album is raw and dirty, like the fattest blunt you can find! The artwork reminds of that dragon from Super Mario. But he seems to be flying way too high. Muleboy’s witchy vocals haven’t changed a single bit! The album is strong overall. Bongzilla’s Weedsconsin is a really chill, slow-motion sonic carnage worthy of every fans who like it raw and dirty! For Bongzilla, every day is a 4/20 celebration with loud heavy metal noises in the background. And oh yeah, LEGALIZE IT around the globe and beyond! IT CAN SAVE LIVES!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Bongzilla
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bongzillaofficial/
Bandcamp: https://heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/bongzilla-weedsconsin
24) Flotsam and Jetsam - Blood in the Water
(AFM Records)
GODDAMN! Fourteenth studio album by the legendary thrashers Flotsam and Jetsam. The band released videos for Burn the Sky and Brace for Impact. Blood in the Water is a more-than-strong thrash metal carnage! The band is killing it! Flotsam and Jetsam is one of those bands that mix traditional heavy metal with Bay area thrash metal assault. Michael Gilbert’s riffs combined with Eric A.K.’s vocals work in perfect harmony! Kudos for the leads! This album gets better with every listen! Flotsam and Jetsam delivered some high-quality stuff this year! Blood in the Water is, without the shadow of a doubt, one of the finest thrash metal albums of this year!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/flotsamandjetsam.official
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flotsamandjetsamofficial/
Bandcamp: https://flotsamandjetsamlive.bandcamp.com/album/live-in-phoenix
23) Massacre - Resurgence
(Nuclear Blast)
Now that’s what I call old-school death metal! What instantly caught my eye was that great album cover! You know what to expect just by looking at it! Seven years of waiting and it was damn well worth it! Massacre’s Resurgence is an album coming straight from the epicenter of death metal – Tampa, Florida. The band is keeping the place & spirit alive! Massacre did a video for Whisperer in Darkness. Kam Lee’s growls are so brutal after all of these years. The album also has this grindcore, Napalm Death style, and that KILLS! This one definitely deserves your attention and in case you haven’t heard it yet, do it ASAP!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Massacreflorida
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/massacre_band_official/
Bandcamp: https://massacreband.bandcamp.com/
22) Obscura - A Valediction
(Nuclear Blast)
It’s tech-death time! Obscura have released their 6th studio album this year. A Valediction is simply one of the best technical death metal albums of 2021! No doubts about that! The band released videos for Solaris and A Valediction. Obscura is pushing the envelope of sheer and utter technicality even further! Steffen Kummerer is simply killing it! His guitar skills are as powerful as his lethal growls. Jeroen Paul Thesseling nailed those fretless bass parts! A Valediction is a tech-death carnage that keeps on giving! Obscura even brought some dissonance to spice things up! To sum it up, their latest album is crushing! P.S. NOT ENOUGH ARPEGGIOS!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RealmOfObscura
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/realmofobscura/
Bandcamp: https://obscura.bandcamp.com/album/a-valediction
21) Ministry - Moral Hygiene
(Nuclear Blast)
Good old Ministry. For the 15th time in a row, industrial metal pioneers keep on giving! Gotta say the album is more than relevant in these murky times. The band released videos for Search and Destroy (The Stooges cover) and Disinformation. The album features guests like Billy Morrison, David Ellefson (ex-Megadeth), Arabian Prince (ex-N.W.A.), and Jello Biafra. This time, Al Jourgensen did a great job both guitar and vocal-wise. The album is catchy and it possesses this weird atmosphere that you will get hooked on more likely than not. Ministry’s Moral Hygiene is an exceptionally good industrial metal release! Gotta say that this thing was in my playlist for ages!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/WeAreMinistry
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/weareministry/
Bandcamp: https://ministryband.bandcamp.com/album/moral-hygiene
20) At the Gates - The Nightmare of Being
(Century Media Records)
Goddamn. Melodic death metal veterans are back with yet another stellar release! At the Gates’ The Nightmare of Being is as brutal as it gets! The band really knows how to balance things out. Not only that the record possesses catchy melodic tunes but it also is shrouded in dissonance. I really enjoy the way they executed that! Kudos for that! Other than death metal, there are also some black metal juices flowing around throughout the whole thing. At the Gates also released a video for The Nightmare of Being. Thomas Lindberg’s monstrous growls are still as heavy as they were back in the day! Regarding the riffs, Martin Larsson and Jonas Stålhammar are killing it!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AtTheGatesOfficial
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atthegates_official/
Bandcamp: https://atthegates.bandcamp.com/
19) Jinjer - Wallflowers
(Napalm Records)
Let the groove begin! Jinjer keeps evolving! Their 4th album, Wallflowers is a storm of djenty dissonance! Wallflowers is really a great record. And you should know that already! The songs are heavy & aggressive and the whole album is like a giant emotional rollercoaster. And of course, what makes the riffs shine are Tatiana’s masterful vocals. The way she shifts from clean vocals to growls is beyond comprehension! You can tell that she is giving a 100% of her vocal cords in each song on the album! The production is great, you can hear everything clearly. Jinjer’s Wallflowers is a must-listen for everyone who didn’t give this album a chance! And make no mistake, Jinjer is Ukraine’s best export!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/JinjerOfficial
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jinjer_official/
Bandcamp:https://jinjer-jinjer.bandcamp.com/album/wallflowers
18) Darkthrone - Eternal Hails......
(Peaceville Records)
An album that sounds as if it was re-recorded on some old tape. No polishing, no nothing. Pure black metal \m/. The album itself has this Venom-meets-Voivod from the RRROOOAAARRR era. The band released videos for "Hate Cloak" and "His Master’s Voice". The album art is the actual painting "Pluto and Charon" (1972) by the British space artist David A. Hardy. As the 18th studio album from Darkthrone, Eternal Hails...... was quite a surprise! Fenriz and Nocturno Culto are actually the best duo on the list! Unlike most of black metal, this album is really catchy and easy to listen to. Kudos for keeping it simple! Darkthrone’s Eternal Hails...... is one of the coolest albums of this year! Not overproduced, just raw AF!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Darkthrone-101075189934422/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/darkthroneofficial/
Bandcamp: https://peaceville.bandcamp.com/album/eternal-hails
17) Hypocrisy - Worship
(Nuclear Blast)
GODDAMN! The 13th release of the Melodic death metal gods – Hypocrisy! Worship is definitely one of the best melodic death metal releases of this year! We are talking about a concept album that deals with all of these crazy conspiracy theories that are out there in the ether! Just by looking at the album cover, you will realize that one of these is about ancient aliens. The band released two videos: Chemical Whore and Dead World. Chemical Whore deals with the horrors of the pharmaceutical industry. When it comes to the music, you get nothing but bone-breaking riffs! Peter Tägtgren’s ingenuity is hardly matched within the genre! The guy knows how to make brutal riffs sound even more brutal when covering them with his monstrous growls.
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/hypocrisy
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hypocrisyband/
16) Portal - Avow/ Hagbulbia
(Profound Lore Records)
Lo and behold! The mighty Portal have released 2 albums this year so technically they will be on the same spot in the list! These are some most unlistenable albums on this list. That’s for sure! And that isn’t anything new for a band like Portal. Each of their albums is unlistenable to the pesky little mortals who are accustomed to clear notes and music. But Portal’s Hagbulbia and Avow, these albums will make your ears SUFFER. Portal fans are surely craving for noise avant-garde like this, however, mortals beware! So if words like: cacophony, dissonance & noise don’t click with you, STAY AWAY FROM THIS ALBUM! You have been warned. These albums may depict how Frodo felt when he put on the ring while being haunted by the Nazghul. Anyways, my cat got scared by the first song, just to let you all know that!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/PORTALDEATH
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/portal_officialhorror/
Bandcamp: https://profoundlorerecords.bandcamp.com/album/avow
15) Mastodon - Hushed and Grim
(Reprise Records)
Mastodon’s 8th studio album! Hushed and Grim is a pretty good album! It is dedicated to the band’s former manager Nick John (R.I.P.). Even though the album itself has a lot of bad reviews, I must say that Hushed and Grim is really a quite enjoyable release! The production is great and so are the songs. The only downside is that the album is way too long (1 hour and 26 minutes). I mean, we are talking about MASTODON, things are supposed to be GIGANTIC, right? Still, the riffs are groundbreaking! It seems that the band wanted to push themselves further by making 15 songs that last at least 5 minutes each. Despite all the terrible reviews, this album deserves more attention! The music varies from brutal thrash metal to proggy, rock vibes. Some of the songs even have Cynic vibes.
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Mastodon
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mastodonrocks/
14) Memoriam - To the End
(Reaper Entertainment)
By the gods! To the End is 4th studio album by the Birmingham death metal legends Memoriam. And with every album, they are getting better and better! Dan Seagrave did a masterful job by painting the album cover for this groundbreaking release! Karl Willets’ monstrous growls haven’t changed a bit! The guy is crushing! Memoriam’s To the End is by far one of the strongest death metal albums of 2021! These guys are getting better and better! This release simply keeps on delivering with every listen you take! What’s cool is the fact that Memoriam doesn’t try to be Bolt Thrower part 2 or anything like that. The legacy of the once-mighty death metal band does not seem to be a burden to them. They don’t try to copy-paste B.T. work, but keep bringing some classy death metal to the table! Highly Recommended!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Memoriam2016
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/memoriamuk/
Bandcamp: https://willettsio.bandcamp.com/album/requiem-for-mankind
13) Carcass - Torn Arteries
(Nuclear Blast)
Grindcore masters are back! Carcass’ latest album Torn Arteries keeps your adrenaline on the maximum level! Those riffs sound like a barrage of rapid-fire and there’s no chance that you can miss this! The band released videos for Dance of Ixtab and The Scythe's Remorseless Swing. Jeff Walker, Bill Steer, and Daniel Wilding are just one of the greatest death metal/grindcore trios at the moment. I still can’t make my mind up on what’s deadlier, Jeff Walker’s riffs or haunting vocals... Regarding the artwork, it’s so cool! The latest album, Torn Arteries was worth waiting for 8 goddamn years. And after Surgical Steel, Torn Arteries is usually what happens! I really love the way Carcass can make a delicate balance between the melody and the brutality. In fact, who can say no to Carcass’ sonic brain surgery?
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialCarcass
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carcassband/
Bandcamp: https://carcass.bandcamp.com/
12) Cynic - Ascension Codes
(Season of Mist)
Damn! The very first Cynic album since the death of Sean Malone and Sean Reinert (RIP LEGENDS!). So the lineup on this one is: Paul Masvidal on guitar and Matt Lynch on drums. The album itself is a really good one! As always, Cynic’s mastermind brought forth some out-of-this-galaxy music. In this one, Masvidal brought some more proggy elements to the table, especially the use of keyboards that sound just like prog-rock of the 70s. I hope that Cynic’s Ascension Codes is not the last thing we’ll hear from this band! The band’s legacy is so big. I know it can be hard to have the whole legacy of this legendary band on Paul Masvidal’s shoulders, but it would be nice of him to keep releasing this beautiful music! I’m pretty sure nobody can say no to the new Cynic album! Fuckin’ A!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Cynicofficialpage
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cynic_official/
Bandcamp: https://cyniconline.bandcamp.com/album/ascension-codes
11) E-Force – Mind Bender
(Mighty Music)
Here we go! A 5th studio brainchild by E-Force, Mind Bender is a must-listen for all who like it groovy & thrashy! This thrasher trio sounds unstoppable! Hands down for the artwork! Eric Forrest (ex-Voivoid) also did a cover of Voivod’s song "Insect". The guys nailed it! And they didn’t want to copy-paste it note by a note which is cool! Eric Forrest sounds better than ever! What’s cool about this album is that the spacey and eerie songs that were added to the mix, create a really unique atmosphere. And the trippy parts is where this album really shines! That gives the whole album some tasty flavor and breaks the monotony of your average thrash metal album! E-Force’s Mind Bender has these dissonant, breathtaking, Voivodian-sounding riffs that get into your brain and rips it apart! E-Force’s Mind Bender is a highly recommended release for all fans of thrash metal
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/eforceofficial
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eforcethrash/
10) Asphyx - Necroceros
(Century Media Records)
As if the artwork wasn’t brutal enough! Dutch death metal veterans Asphyx have released their 10th studio work! Necroceros is as deadly as the title and the artwork suggest! Asphyx is one of these bands that just can’t make a bad album! The band released videos for Botox Implosion and The Nameless Elite. Martin van Drunen is still on top of the game! His growls are second to none! The riffs? Well, you just can’t get enough of Asphyx’s riffs, can you? They are fast or slow, and always brutal enough to crack the bones in your body! Necroceros is the perfect death metal release that is here to stay! The album itself has some political songs that are pretty relevant to current world affairs (Cough, cough). To make it plain and simple, Asphyx’s Necroceros is by far one of the greatest death metal albums released this year! Hands down for that!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/officialasphyx/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/asphyxofficial/
9) Sunless - Ylem
(Willowtip Records)
Yes! Sunless’ Ylem wins the prize of the most dissonant death metal album in 2021! These guys are beyond awesome! This is their 2nd album, and just like its predecessor, it is filled with these wicked sick riffs! The guitar work on this one is so intense! What’s great about their music is that they manage to merge the dissonant aspects with melodic, proggy stuff. It sounds so good and refreshing as if your ears are taking a break from this dissonant calamity when the clean riffs kick in. When growls are in question, they are as heavy as the riffs and artillery-like drumming. These guys deserve more attention! Especially if you are into bands like Gorguts, Artificial Brain, Deathspell Omega, and others! Sunless’ Ylem is by far one of the best dissonant death metal releases in 2021! Ylem (whatever that means) is like a supersonic journey through the galaxy. But beware, your mind may dissipate in the process!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/sunlessband
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sunlessband/
Bandcamp: https://sunlessband.bandcamp.com/album/ylem
8) Full of Hell - Garden of Burning Apparitions
(Relapse Records)
This one is apocalyptic from start to finish! Full of Hell’s 8th studio album – Garden of Burning Apparitions is one of the most dissonant albums of the year! The grindcore masters absolutely nailed it! Within 20 minutes, they turned the world upside-down a couple of times. And like on every Full of Hell album, the music may vary from total noise on one end and dissonant death metal grindcore carnage on the other. I must say that "Industrial Messiah Complex" is one of the coolest song titles I heard in a while! The part where they used tons of delay in that track is soooo coool! Dyllan Walker’s growls sound as he is the ghoul that infected too many crypts. His vocal capabilities are worthy of the title "The Mouth of Sauron". When riffs are in question, Spencer Hazard made some crushing material. No matter what you like, Full of Hell’s Garden of Burning Apparitions will make your ears bleed!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/fullofhell
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fullofhell/
Bandcamp: https://fullofhell.bandcamp.com/
7) Artillery - X
(Metal Blade Records)
Danish thrash metal veterans are back! For the 10th time! Artillery’s X is as good as it gets! Not many bands can deliver such great thrash metal assault! X is an absolutely stellar thrash metal masterpiece! No one brings such brutal yet melodic thrash metal riffs like Artillery does! That is also what makes them one of the most consistent bands in the thrash metal world. They simply never fail! The band did videos for Turn up the Rage and In Your Mind. The guitarist Michael Stützer did an outstanding job as always! The singer, Michael Bastholm Dahl has yet again proved to be worthy of the band’s name! So if you love head-chopping yet melodic thrash metal riffage and high pitch vocals, Artillery’s X is a proper way to go! Simply one of the best thrash albums of this year! These guys deserve a lot more attention and respect because their consistency, influence, and virtuosity can hardly be matched by most thrash metal bands!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ARTILLERY.DK
Bandcamp: https://artillerymetal.bandcamp.com/
6) Pestilence - Exitivm
(Agonia Records)
What a band name for these murky times! The mighty Pestilence can’t fail! Exitivm is as if you mixed Testimony of the Ancients and Spheres! The album is just great, to say the least! Patrick Mamelli really knows how to cook things up! The band released a video for Morbvs Propagationem. The songs are very well thought out and packed with tons of dissonance! Those screeching guitar sounds just made my day! And the production is perfect! You can hear everything clearly! Exitivm is more than just a 9th release by the Dutch death metal veterans! Hadeon was a great album and now we get another striking release! It is mindboggling to see and hear that Mamelli managed to release an album like this with a completely new lineup! Pestilence’s Exitivm is by far one of our favorite death metal releases of 2021! Those chunky, noisy, dissonant riffs just make my day every time I hit the play button! Highly recommended!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Pestilenceofficial/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pestilenceofficial/
Bandcamp: https://agoniarecords.bandcamp.com/album/exitivm
5) Negura Bunget - Zău
(Lupus Lounge)
RIP Negru! Zău is the very first Negura Bunget album released after Negru’s death. Zău is an exceptional album! And what is great about it is that it has a lot of variety involved. For instance, one track is completely ambiental, while the other is pure, rancid black metal carnage. On steroids. Also, what always made Negura Bunget so unique is the fact that they are from Romania and they never shied away from using Balkan folk music and instruments. The band did a video for the song Brad. The band is singing in their native language, so that makes things even more interesting as well! But the coolest thing of all is that Negru is listed in the lineup on this new release, which means that he either took part in writing the songs or he actually recorded some of the songs for it. All in all, Negura Bunget’s Zău is a great black metal album that goes from calm to stormy. And what’s most important, it rules!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/negurabunget
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/negurabunget/
Bandcamp: https://negura-bunget.bandcamp.com/
4) Gojira - Fortitude
(Roadrunner Records)
YES! Gojira’s 7th brainchild. Fortitude is what Roots is to Sepultura. These French metal masters have incorporated a lot of tribal sounds on their latest album. You can hear all these cool instruments that give the songs unique flavor. The songs themselves are as if they were made by the heaviest matter in the universe! (no pun intended lol). And of course, no Gojira album can go without their unique trademark dissonant chords and pick slides. The band released videos for Amazonia, Another World, Born for One Thing, The Chant, Sphinx. With Fortitude, Goijra brought their heavy riffs on one hand, and clean singing and proggy elements in the other. With that being said, Gojira didn’t lose the heaviness nor melody on their latest album. They perfectly balanced their way through this. French groove metal masters are still in their prime! Joe Duplantier’s vocals are so good after all these years. Regarding the tribal elements, Gojira went political by raising awareness of the destruction of the Amazon rain forest and the tribes living in it. Kudos for that! Regarding Gojira’s Fortitude, you can tell that the Kaiju is alive and well! Vive la France!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/GojiraMusic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gojiraofficial/
3) Graveyard –Time Ran Out
(Independent)
BRING IT ON! Graveyard’s 3rd album Time Ran Out is a brutal album that won’t have any mercy for your ears! This is by far the best Graveyard album up to date! The guys simply outdid themselves with this one! And that is an understatement! The only bad thing about this release is that it lasts under 23 minutes. Time Ran Out is an album that ranges from old-school black metal to death metal with a lot of dissonant moments on top of everything. Fans of Voivod, Darkthrone, Dodemisgard, Anaal Nathrakh would dig this release, for sure! There are quite a few moments on this album that will blow you into smithereens. The songs are so damn brutal and the guitar sounds like WW1 tank tracks destroying everything before them! The RAz’s vocals are giving these riffs a whole new level of aggression. If genres are in question, the basis of this album is black metal, but the thing just drips with some tasty outbursts of death and thrash metal! The biggest surprise in Time Ran Out are the perfectly executed guest vocals in the song “Gruesome Forest”. Hands down for that! The band released a gruesome video for The Slaughterhouse Experience that deals with the horrors of the meat industry. And yeah, the whole album is reminiscent of a giant meat grinder that rips everything to shreds. And let me say this, the dissonant side of this release is what makes it glow in the dark! If the album was longer, it would harm your health and sanity! Highly recommended!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/PHILOSOPHIESOFTHEREALITY
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atomikhurdaci/
Bandcamp: https://graveyardthe6thextinction.bandcamp.com/album/time-ran-out
2) Cannibal Corpse - Violence Unimagined
(Metal Blade Records)
Well, well, well! Cannibal Corpse ladies and gents! Their 15th studio album Violence Unimagined is a relentless death metal piece of art! This is the very first Cannibal Corpse album to feature the legendary Eric Rutan (ex-Morbid Angel, Hate Eternal). The artwork looks cool but is miles away from the sick stuff CC fans might expect. What can be said about this album? It breaks bones and induces heart attacks to the weak! This band simply knows what to do. The riffs are beyond brutal! Not to mention George Corpsegrinder Fisher’s rancid growls that sound like your worst nightmare ON STEROIDS! Paul Mazurkiewitz’s extreme drumming assault mixed with these crazy riffs that Eric Rutan and Rob Barrett brought to the table simply can’t fail! Also, Alex Webster’s bass playing is great as always! Rutan also produced the album and I must say that everything sounds phenomenal! When it comes to the lyrics, you get your fix of the nastiest blood & gore your soul craves for! In purely musical terms, Red Before Black was more of a thrashy sounding record, while Violence Unimagined sounds 100% death metal! Just by looking at the songwriting credits, you can see that Cannibal Corpse is working like a real band, where everyone has their creative input! Kudos for that! That is how it’s supposed to be! The band released videos for Necrogenic Resurrection and Inhumane Harvest. Cannibal Corpse’s Violence Unimagined is a death metal masterpiece par excellence! You really get what you always expect from Cannibal Corpse – extraordinarily brutal death metal!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/cannibalcorpse
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cannibalcorpseofficial/
Bandcamp: https://cannibalcorpse.bandcamp.com/
1) Exodus - Persona Non Grata
(Nuclear Blast)
And we have a winner! Bay Area Kings are still in their prime! This is the very first Exodus album written after Gary Holt left his duties in Slayer. The band released videos for songs The Beatings will Continue (Until Morale Improves) and Prescribing Horror. The latter deals with the infamous Thalidomide scandal in which more than 10 000 babies got deformed at birth due to the side effects of the drug that was first made as to the antidote for sarin. This is, by far, one of the most political songs on the album. I wonder why... Lyrics-wise it’s like "Chemikill" part 2. Music-wise, Persona Non Grata is THE BEST thrash metal release of this year and there’s plenty of reason for that! The guys were in thrashing rage mode when they were writing these songs. I'll tell you that! Gary Holt and Lee Altus are riff factories! And also, their guitar leads are just as striking! They simply cannot run dry of these juicy thrash metal songs! Steve Zetro Souza’s vocals are still intact after all these years! So in this case, this crazy world situation was very helpful for Exodus to get enough time for a crushing record like this! What’s funny about this album is that it lasts for 1 hour and there is not a single second on it that will bore you. I am also glad to say that bands like Exodus make thrash metal still relevant. Even though they are all in their 50s, Exodus can put half of today’s metal scene into a trash can. And what’s beyond reason is that Tom Hunting did all the drums in such a majestic way! Get well soon buddy! Regarding the overall sound, Exodus’ Persona Non Grata is the logical continuation of the path the band took since Tempo of the Damned! Congratulations! You guys have made the album of the year! This album is gonna make some major live carnage. P.S. even golf carts may be involved!
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/exodusattack
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/exodusbandofficial/
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