by Elise Yablon | Jan 4, 2026 | New & Noteworthy
New & Noteworthy is Metal Insider’s weekly column highlighting some of the newest rock and metal releases coming out each week. Kicking off 2026, this week’s new music includes albums from the likes of Excavated Graves, Fuath, Wildhunt and Dawnbreaker amongst the...
by Jordeana Bell | Jan 4, 2026 | Lists, Top 10
If you’d asked me at the end of 2024 what 2025 would bring for metal, I’d have drawn a neat little diagram: a few tours, a reunion no one needed, a legacy album. Reality? Metal showed up like a drunken uncle at a wedding, breaking every rule, mixing...
by Zenae Zukowski | Jan 3, 2026 | Lists, Top 20
This year’s combined list came together a bit differently. Not every list followed the top-ten format: some were longer, others shorter, and a few were left unranked. With that in mind, we compiled a unified list by recognizing albums that appeared more than...
by Meryth Smirnoff | Jan 2, 2026 | Lists, Top 5
05) Lunatic Soul, The World Under Unsun ( Inside Out Music) Composer Mariusz Duda’s solo project arrives as his first double album, focusing on the pain and long road left by a toxic relationship. From atmospheric melodies to electric guitar riffs...
by Emily Schneider | Jan 2, 2026 | Lists, Top 20
Top 20 Albums of 2025 (not ranked, just vibes) 2025 was a whirlwind of a year; discovering music is easier than ever thanks to the internet. Yet, I definitely didn’t get around to hearing as many new albums as in years past; the craving for familiarity was...
by Zenae Zukowski | Jan 1, 2026 | Metal By Numbers
2025 has officially come to a close, and what a year it was. We saw some significant losses: Ozzy Osbourne, Ace Frehley, Brent Hinds, Tomas Lindberg, to name a few, alongside bizarre news cycles, band quarrels, breakups, and major lineup shifts. Now, we’re ready to...