A compact but stylistically divergent group of releases awaits this week, from Carrion Vael, Death Cult, Marianas Rest and Total Annihilation. We've some big names showing up in January, and here's the first real taste: Kreator –  Krushers Of The World  (thrash metal) Ov Sulfur –  Endless  (symphonic deathcore) Soen –  Reliance  (progressive metal/hard rock) Soulbound –  sYn  (industrial/alternative metal) TOP PICK OF THE WEEK Total Annihilation - Mountains of Madness Genre:

We've got a long awaited return as well as an exciting debut among these releases from Ectovoid, Push!, The Ruins of Beverast, Stranguliatorius and Uuhai. There's life up top as well, gradually ramping up the prestige of the month: Alter Bridge –  Alter Bridge  (hard rock/alternative metal) Beyond The Black –  Break The Silence  (symphonic metal) Bite Down –  Violent Playground  (metalcore/hardcore) Lionheart –  Valley Of Death II  (metallic hardcore) TOP PICK OF THE WEEK The

Don't go thinking it's over for good metal this year, as proved by these releases by Funeral Vomit, Lychgate, Taedifer and Weft. Nothing to speak of is coming out from any big names this week, so let's get straight to the highlights. TOP PICK OF THE WEEK Weft – The Splintered Oar Genre: Atmospheric/avant-garde black metal Subjective rating: 4.5/5 Objective rating: 4.5/5 Country of origin: USA If you're (for some reason) looking for only one last, freshly released album to lis

Darkness descends and teeth are gritten in the last proper batch of releases of the year, as we look at Martröð, Orbis de Ignis, Pincer+, Sun Of The Suns and Windswept. The mainstream releases are all very of-the-time, and markedly less dark: Abbie Falls –  Life is just a temporary plan Lord Of The Lost –  Opvs Noir Vol. 2 Volumes –  Mirror Touch Zero 9:36 –  They Were Always Here TOP PICK OF THE WEEK Martröð – Draumsýnir eldsins Genre: Black metal Subjective rating: 4/5 Obje

The time has come, the year has gone. What an amazing year for music. Making my top 10 albums for this year was very difficult, there was some last minute movement going on below the top 3, and day by day things can change, but I’m just gonna go with my gut. The top 3 have been locked for a while. I joined Decibel Warfare late in the year, some of these will have a link to reviews I have up already, but I am going to include some thoughts for each album on this list. I must w

Label: Metal Blade Records Release Date: April 11th 2025 Where to start with this one. Well, I’m gonna keep this one contained and let the music speak for itself, so after reading this, or while reading this, listen to the fucking album. I have a running list I like to keep of my personal album of the year starting from 1969 (I wasn’t born til long long after that). Black Sabbath, Dio, Iron Maiden, Sepultura, Hatebreed, Dimmu Borgir, Lamb Of God, Opeth, Rammstein, God’s Hate.

If you're already tired of the Christmas music, here are a few heavy sonic scouring pads from Bläkken, Blood Red Throne,  Enthroned, Sepulchral and Skogskult.  It's getting quiet in the big leagues, but here's a few stragglers: Persefone –  Live In Andorra  (live album) Profiler –  Masquerading Self  (EP) TesseracT –  RADAR O.S.T  (live album) Upon A Burning Body –  Blood Of The Bull Also, since I had to miss out on last week, here's the big stuff from week 49:  1349 –  Winte