Well 2025 has certainly been one of the years of all time thus far. The miserable summer heat coming full force (at least it’ll be the coolest summer for the rest of our lives!), economic uncertainty, and nonstop horrors at home and abroad streamed directly to our phones 24/7 if we’re not already living them ourselves. I had been thinking recently that the year was kinda lacking in bangers thus far, but going back through everything I’ve listened to made me completely reevaluate that assessment. Releases from Wardruna, Havukruunu, and Deafheaven are easy highlights in their respective discographies, and Felgrave’s Otherlike Darknesses remains my AOTY thus far (see my review that was totally an exercise in brevity). Along with these heavy hitters there’s been a plethora of great releases we haven’t highlighted elsewhere (with some minor exceptions), so let’s dive in and see what else 2025 has brought us so far.

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Bronze Hall — Honor & Steel

Bathory is no doubt one of the biggest inspirations for all kinds of black metal, yet I’m always on the lookout for bands taking more direct inspiration from my favorite era of Quorthon’s music: the viking metal of Hammerheart and Twilight of the Gods. Finnish solo act Bronze Hall are one of the best examples I’ve heard in a long time, hitting hard with a more lo-fi, synth-heavy take on the style right from the first notes of the album. Infectiously crushing riffs, shredding solos, and plenty of mood-setting acoustic guitar and dungeon synth passages. Epic, bombastic, triumphant, Honor & Steel has it all (without sounding anything like a mediocre clone in the process).

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Pestifere — There Was Never Light

Bands inspired by the Swedish melodic black/death classics are easy enough to come by, but finding a band that manages to put a unique twist on the style is much harder. Minneapolis power trio Pestifere have done just that with their multilayered third full-length, a decidedly more progressive take on the style best represented by acts like Sacramentum. Melodies that transform and reappear, an almost tech thrash sensibility to some of the riffage, and some extended acoustic guitar jams that wouldn’t be out of place on Panopticon record. Scattered amongst the melodicism there’s an underlying darker edge in the form of more dissonant chords that I would associate with bands like Krallice and Yellow Eyes, rounding out the rest of this uniquely developed sound. A tremendous release from a band previously unknown to me, and something fans of all the aforementioned artists should be listening to. A fine addition to my forward-thinking melodic black metal collection.

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Vespéral — La mort de l’âme

I don’t normally go for punk-influenced black metal, but Quebec’s Vespéral know how to do it right. While there’s a lot of punky rhythms and energy on La mort de l’âme, there’s even more gloomy synths and plodding atmospherics; the two styles come together surprisingly well. “VII – Souffle glacial” is pretty much straight post-punk featuring some off-kilter clean vocals that may not be particularly good, but any other way just wouldn’t suffice. Goth rock adorned with corpsepaint or black metal with an undercut, however you slice it this is great album; the cherry on top is one of the hardest cover arts of the year.

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Zeicrydeus — La grande hérésie

I didn’t have a Phil Tougas lead bass black metal project on my 2025 bingo card, yet here we are with a fantastic album that will absolutely be making its way to a high spot on my AOTY list. Fusing the trad metal-inspired, pinch harmonic-laden melodic riffs of ’90s Hellenic black metal with thrash and even a touch of power metal à la Running Wild and Manowar, La grande hérésie is just as dynamically composed as it is a fucking blast to listen to. We all should know by this point how incredible Tougas’ guitar playing is, and his show-stealing bass performance here is no different; he plays to the strengths of the instrument as opposed to simply trying to recreate his six-string solos on four. One of the best surprises of the year that I’ve been listening to nonstop since it dropped in April. TOTAL ZEICRYDIAN VICTORY!!!!

Ian also had some words about Zeicrydeus in his mid-year recap.

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Kaikkavaltias — Routaa ja rautaa

I’ve been talking “castle metal” a lot this month, and Finland’s Kaikkavaltias have been unleashing the most lo-fi, dungeon synth-laden, and heavy metal-inspired take on the style since their debut EP in 2023. Like Weald & Woe’s recent full-length, Routaa ja rautaa sees sole member Magus Olaus dialing down the more overt Obsequisms that characterized earlier material in favor of a rhythmic, bassy sound first teased on last years fantastic split with symphonic black act Silent Millenia. There’s even some experimentation in the form of rocking ’80s heavy metal throwback (complete with clean vocals) in “Teräksen taika”. The highlight of the EP is the 11 minute closer “Valtakuntani siluetti laskevan ilta-auringon syleilyssä III”, serving as the sequel to the first two parts that closed out Astu and bringing back in glorious fashion the lead melody I praised all the way back in my 2023 honorable mentions. Fellow castle metal enthusiasts do not miss out!

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Magus Lord — In the Company of Champions

Adding to the list of bands heavily inspired by viking-era Bathory is the debut from Magus Lord, a new project from M. (Lamp of Murmuur). I was highly critical of Saturnian Bloodstorm, but thankfully In the Company of Champions doesn’t stray into the territory of not doing much more than copying its influences. Galloping heavy metal riffs and cavernous synths, an atmosphere equally epic and grim. These create a great sense of both nostalgia and freshness that reminds of the first time I heard Stormkeep’s Galdrum… in this case sounding like a long-lost fusion of Hammerheart and Summoning’s Minas Morgul. M.’s barking rasps may sound a bit out of place for this style, but in addition to some backing choral vocals he gives a Quorthon-worthy clean performance on the title track and a cover of Belarusian doom/folk band Gods Tower. An atmosphere made for descending into the dark depths of Khazad-dûm.

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Imipolex — Acts of Vulgar Piety

Death metal has to really stretch the established bounds of the genre to get my attention nowadays (e.g. Felgrave, Imperial Triumphant, Ulcerate), so it’s always exciting when a band does manage to pique my interest. Maine’s Imipolex do just that with their psychedelic death/black metal that I saw pitched as a bad acid trip, and that’s a pretty apt description; it’s an album as surreal as its excellent cover art. Atonality and dissonance reign supreme, but there are some incredible melodic moments that provide a brief respite from the murk (namely “Machine Priests”). The black metal elements come through in the form of big walls of chords, but the guitar tone and manner of riffing keep the whole thing firmly rooted in the depths of weird death metal. A must-listen for fans of the avant-garde.

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Skjolden — Insouciant Metaphysical Grandeur

Any release from the Obsequiae/Inexorum/Majesties crew is gonna have me excited, so to hear Carl Skildum had a brand new melodic black metal project incoming was quite the reason to celebrate. Not only is he the sole performer, but he even stepped out of his comfort zone to handle mixing and mastering duties. A constant with Skildum and co. is their ability to create music that is ultimately positive in a genre known for its darkness, and Insouciant Metaphysical Grandeur is no exception. If song titles like “The Fever Swamp of Magickal Thought” and “Can’t Kill My Love” are any hint that this isn’t exactly the most hateful, trve kvlt album out there, then let the soaring melodies, mystical keyboards, and multilayered riffs oozing heavy metal bombast cement that notion. Black metal need not always be about death and cold grimness; the enduring strength of the genre is the innumerable forms and moods it can take, in this case one equally heavy and beautiful.

Check out Chris’ un-insouciant review here.

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Vulning — The Wound

On paper, this album shouldn’t work for me as well as it does. Black metal meets progressive/post-metal in the vein of Lateralus in a number of parts — perhaps a case of ‘guy who only knows Tool: “getting a lot of Tool vibes from this”‘, but it’s a pretty spot-on description from the grooves and clean vocals right down to the guitar tones — yet there’s an energy and sincerity here that belies the pretentiousness many with that band at this point. This is a multifaceted, genuine effort from a talented set of musicians who give it their all, and just so happen to make some good (yet accessible) prog black metal in the process. Just compare the fierce blasts and violin-accentuated melodies of “Nine Lights” with the syncopated jam that is “Home” to see the range Vulning are capable of. That this is their debut full-length after only a 2023 split with Sadness is pretty remarkable; at 66 minutes The Wound is a lot to take in, but by the conclusion of “The Altar” you’ll have been glad to experience the entire journey.

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Keep yourself and your loved ones safe, and maybe I’ll see you at Fire in the Mountains. Look out for the dude with long hair, tats, and a beard (and maybe a Far Away from the Sun backpatch). It’s gonna be a fest for the ages.

— Colin