11) Ereb Altor, Hälsingemörker (Hammerheart)
What’s not to enjoy within Hälsingemörker from Sweden’s viking/black metal act Ereb Altor? It carries technical intricacies and clever guitar breakdowns at just the right moment and in the right dose. It’s a must-listen from beginning to end, in multiple spins, to grasp its whole essence.
Key Track(s): “Vi är mörkret,” “Träldom,” “The Last Step”
10) Eluveitie, Ànv (Nuclear Blast)
Switzerland’s Eluveitie have turned into a revolving collective, where the lineup keeps changing but remains consistent with strong musical execution. With the band’s mastermind, Chrigel Glanzmann, steering the folk metal ship, the group continues to prevail, despite lineup changes, giving a positive impression. Each new member brings something fresh to the table. 2025’s Ànv introduces Lea-Sophie Fischer behind the Hurdy Gurdy/violin. The record itself is a transcendent exploration of Celtic mythology through a blend of melodic death-metal-esque beats and spiritual-like medleys.
Key Track(s): “The Prodigal Ones,” “All Is One”
09) Coroner, Dissonance Theory (Century Media)
Coroner have proved that time is just a construct with their first album in over three decades, Dissonance Theory. The key is paying attention to the intricacies and technical spin only these Swiss thrashers can pull off, something they’d already established back in 1987’s R.I.P. 2025 has seen an incredible number of returns and overall great albums. Usually, thrash is reserved for one slot on the year-end list, but with Testament, Sodom, and now Coroner, each representing a different style, you’re getting more than one this year. Coroner’s return has reopened the door to a high-production sound and a multilayered exploration of thrash metal. It’s innovative, creative, and experimental, all wrapped in pristine technicality.
Key Track(s): “Sacrificial Lamb,” “The Law”
08) Testament, Para Bellum (Nuclear Blast)
Terminator 2 is one of my favorite movies. It’s a film I go back to countless times throughout the year. However, in the present day, it feels more like it was meant to be a warning for all of us about the dangers humanity faces with AI taking over. With that in mind, it seems Testament may share similar feelings about AI, but they go even deeper into how humans rely on technology, how it disconnects us from one another, and how it keeps us closed off, further and further away. How do you interpret these fears, anxieties, and that sense of lost, controlled chaos? Through fifty minutes of ruthless aggression, heavy thrash beats, and a delicious dose of black metal influences with Para Bellum. It’s an edgy, chaotic album that proves these thrash giants aren’t getting stale or slowing down, not even in the slightest.
Key Track(s): “For the Love of Pain,” “Infanticide A.I.,” “Meant To Be”
07) Hate, Bellum Regiis (Metal Blade)
At this point, I’d assume Behemoth’s new album would rank at the top of the list. However, within a similar genre, and coincidentally from the same country, Polish blackened death metal veterans Hate have climbed high this year with their new album, Bellum Regiis. Album number thirteen is fitting for them, and while they’ve explored varying styles over the years, this record stands out with more melancholy, personal reflection, and themes of battling the craving for power, wealth, and glory, along with the downfalls and destruction that come with it.
The title translates to A War of Royalty or A War of Kings, and the record delves deeper into black metal elements fused with death metal, with touches of black-and-roll aggression. The emotion behind the album stands out through blistering beats and anguished adrenaline.
Key Track(s): “Bellum Regiis,” “Prophet of Arkhen”
06) In Mourning, The Immortal (Supreme Chaos)
Sweden’s In Mourning have delivered their seventh offering with The Immortal this year, and it’s pretty brilliant. The band has evolved over the years in style and direction, and personally, I dig their latest blend of progressive melodeath, which transcends quite well with their new album.
Key Track(s): “Silver Crescent,” “Song of the Cranes”
05) Omnium Gatherum, May The Bridges We Burn Light The Way (Century Media)
Omnium Gatherum’s tenth record, and nearly thirty-year career, May The Bridges We Burn Light The Way, continues to highlight the band’s cinematic–esque direction since 2018’s The Burning Cold, where it fades in and out with the same medley, a closing chapter to their next collection of music. While the album didn’t feel as powerful or uplifting as 2021’s Origin, which was a time when the band could have called it quits due to the pandemic and significant lineup changes, they prevailed. So here we are, four years later. The theme surrounding the record goes back to a more traditional recording process, sharing darker themes of trials with addiction, regaining one’s strength, and building toward a more sonic medley rather than a feeling of conquering darkness with optimistic blast beats. The record did require a few additional listens, but in the end, it’s a strong, transcendent release (check out the interview/track-by-track review here).
Key Track(s): “Ignite The Flame,” “Barricades”
04) Paradise Lost, Ascension (Nuclear Blast)
Opening with “Serpent On The Cross” is what perfection feels like, and the album continues to run with excellence, making Paradise Lost true masters of the death/doom/goth metal craft. Ascension didn’t resonate as much as their prior effort, 2020’s Obsidian, which is why it fell back to the fourth placement. However, this is just a sliver of a distance because the record does make you go back to it on repeat and has mostly strengths (and you fall more in love with it after each listen). On a personal level, songs like “Darker Thoughts” brought some comfort. For Ascension, the record as a whole is masterful, and five years is just too long without a new Paradise Lost record, even though five years can feel more like five weeks these days (read my review here).
Key Track(s): “Serpent on the Cross,” “Salvation,” “Lay a Wreath upon the World”
03) Novembers Doom, Major Arcana (Lupus Lounge)
When there’s a new Novembers Doom album, I expect it to be within the top five. And unlike other artists this year who have dropped further down the list, the Chicago-based death/doom act didn’t disappoint in the slightest. Major Arcana arguably has the strongest, most suspenseful opening, followed by an explosive title track that makes you want to listen to it for hours on end. But wait, there’s more! Roughly 50 more minutes left to showcase different directions of doom, death, melodic changes, hooks, leading to one incredible record (read my review here).
Key Track(s): “Major Arcana,” “Mercy,” “The Dance”
02) Epica, Aspiral (Nuclear Blast)
Epica’s Aspiral lands at number two, but only by a hair, so close that I kept switching the top two spots back and forth. The margin between first and second place is razor-thin. With that being said, these Dutch symphonic metallers continue to mature with every record and tour, constantly growing more creative for their fanbase. It’s phenomenal what they do. Simone Simons’ vocals shine throughout Aspiral; they’re radiant and flawless compared to her humble beginnings on 2003’s The Phantom Agony. Don’t get me wrong, the debut still holds a soft spot and gets a yearly revisit, but following this band for so long means witnessing their evolution. Their maturity, growth, and overall cohesion as an ensemble make each member feel irreplaceable. The record explores new musical arrangements and moves in a different direction from the path they’ve followed since 2014’s The Quantum Enigma. It also pushes boundaries for Mark Jansen, whose harsh vocals, like Simone’s, have only strengthened over the last twenty-plus years. Epica have flourished into one of the strongest acts within the symphonic metal subgenre (Read my album review here.).
Key Track(s): “Darkness Dies in Light – A New Age Dawns Part VII,” “Metanoia – A New Age Dawns Part VIII,” “Aspiral”
