So we may not be as done with end of year lists as we thought. I couldn’t let a year go by without posting this one, as late as it is, but I don’t apologize for throwing it out there anyway. This list is always one of my favorites to write because it really helps showcase how dark music doesn’t have to be heavy, and vice versa. Some of the most affecting music I’ve listened to, some of the albums that have seen me through some pretty dark and grim moments, have been these; not ones that could be called “metal” by any stretch of the definition, but definitely “heavy” and “profound”. I know I’m not the only one on staff who dived headfirst into the non-metal side of the music world this year, and these albums, as always, rank up there with any of the ones that managed to top any metal-forward year end list. If you’re not familiar with any of them, get acquainted below:
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Lucy Dacus – Forever is a Feeling
In a post boygenius world, we can all still rejoice that each of the three core members of the group are still doing their own thing, because each of their own things have been, and continue to be, extraordinary. Of the two albums that came out this year post-hiatus, Forever is a Feeling is the one I spent the most time with (but more on Send a Prayer My Way later…), and for good reason: Lucy Dacus’s plaintive voice has always been a light in the dark, and the understated indie-folk-whatever that she creates is so beautifully subtle that I can’t help but get caught up in it. Forever sees Dacus expand on and incorporate a lot of the elements that made boygenius such a magical thing, and in the process she sounds more like herself than ever. Forever is a Feeling is truly a feeling.
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clipping. – Dead Channel Sky
It’s been five long years since we’ve had a new album from clipping., but that might be understandable considering how busy Daveed Diggs has been. From Disney to Broadway to television and more, Diggs has been blowing up for a long time, but write him off as a normie at your own peril. While Dead Channel Sky moves away from horror and into cyberpunk, Digg’s flow is as lethal as ever, and his talent behind the mic extends far beyond Hamilton. Meanwhile, the abrasive production that is a hallmark of clipping.’s sound is as startling as it always is, with a blend of harsh noise and power electronics setting the base for Digg’s deft lyrics. clipping. has always embraced cinema as an inspiration for their music, and Dead Channel Sky is no different, but the stylistic and thematic shifts in tone do a lot to keep their music moving forward into the future, whatever that looks like for them.
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Osi and the Jupiter – Larvatus
New Osi and the Jupiter is always something that I can count on to arrive with a predictable frequency and a predictable quality. Larvatus keeps this trend going full force. Reconfigured to a trio on this album, the requisite guitar, banjo and synth from Sean Kratz is as resonant as ever, hearkening back to the Nordic folk that started the project with a smattering of Appalachian folk threading through. As always, Kakophonix’s cello is the star of the show, and the lines weaved by the man are some of the most delicate and poignant that there have ever been in Osi and the Jupiter’s catalogue. Perhaps the unsung hero of the album, though, is newcomer Elyse Hirsch, whose bass work is as melodic and vital as any of the instruments on Larvatus, and her backing vocals effortlessly contrast Kratz’s in a way that brings about new dimensions in music that is comfortably predictable.
I actually managed to catch this one in time for a review! Read the full thing here.
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Planning for Burial – It’s Closeness, It’s Easy
I said it before in my mid-year round up post, and it’s still true even going into the beginning of 2026: when I wanted an album to sink into and experience a brief moment of ego death, It’s Closeness, It’s Easy was the album I turned to time and again. The way every piece of Thom Wasluck’s latest masterpiece comes together in so much detail while still managing to have that gorgeous fuzz around the edges is a dichotomy that I seek out constantly and can really only seem to find with Planning for Burial. There depth of emotion plumbed here is nothing short of magical, and it cuts like a knife to listen to some parts of this, but the fact that I gravitated so hard to to it speaks to both my emotional state most of this year and also the triumph of this album’s execution of its intended purpose. The pain is a feature, not a bug.
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Great Grandpa – Patience, Moonbeam
Patience, Moonbeam has been a long time coming, but you can forgive Great Grandpa for the time it took this album to get into our collective hands. The last six years have been ones of great transition, and you can forgive the Seattle group for coming out the other side of all that change a little different. However, in this case, the differences are what makes this album so exemplary. Everything they did well on their previous releases has been made so much more elegant and delicate, without sacrificing anything in the way of the carefully curated vibes they are known for. Every facet of their unique approach to songwriting has been polished and made more mature, as much as I kinda detest that as a modifier. Elevated maybe; no longer the “snack rock” that they coined but perhaps “hors d’oeuvres rock”.
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Backxwash – Only Dust Remains
What can you say about an artist that both takes no prisoners, refuses to be put neatly in a box, and is constantly reinventing herself? Only Dust Remains keeps the ruthless and pointed social commentary that is the biggest hallmark of Ashanti Mutinta’s lyrics, but the real star of the music has been the incredible variety of samples on display and how effectively she uses them to tell a story. The harsh noise that normally chops and screws these samples is mostly dialed back in favor of more melody, more synth work and some genuinely moving pieces (see “Dissociation” as a standout example). The beats here, as well, are some of my favorite beats on any electronic of hip hop release this year. As always, Mutinta knows her way around a flow that is equal parts menacing and heartwrenching, making you think and feel as much as it makes you bob your head.
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The Beths – Straight Line Was a Lie
I’m relatively new to The Beths, but I fell hard for them when I discovered them, and just in time for Straight Line Was a Lie to come out, it seems. There is something truly unique about what the New Zealand quartet do that I can’t quite put my finger on, but there’s an honesty about their music that bleeds through everything they do that sells me hard every time I listen to those catchy hooks and impeccable four-part harmonies that these songs are absolutely laden with. Straight Line sees the group double down on this honesty, whether in the form of their unique brand of humor and wit or with their soulful, tearjerking ballads, to equal amounts of success. Not to mention the instrumental prowess on display keeps getting better and better. It might not be the flashiest music, but digging in deep reveals a group that knows the fundamentals of great songwriting inside and out, and knows how to execute it with a style all their own.
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Panopticon – Laurentian Blue
It’s been so nice seeing Austin Lunn openly embracing his folk roots, beginning with The Scars of Man, and now continuing into Laurentian Blue. We already know the man can write and perform his ass off, and the usual suspects like Charlie Anderson and Andrea Morgan resume their usual guest spots, so you know the songs are going to hit the way only Panopticon songs can. But there is a confidence that is present here that I think Austin may have undersold on Scars that is on full display here. Laurentian Blue serves as a companion piece to …And Again into the Light, an album that I rated my number one for that year because of how much the subject matter of the album touched me, so it should make sense that Laurentian Blue is no different. Another home run from a guy who just can’t seem to stop hitting home runs.
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The Mountain Goats – Through This Fire, Across From Peter Balkan
If you thought the number one spot could be taken by anything else, you’re out of your mind. Somehow, the good boys that make the rockin’ tunes just keep on delivering more of what the world needs, this time in the form of an actual, for-real musical (or at least the skeleton thereof). Despite the amicable departure of Peter Hughes, the core of the Mountain Goats is still strong, churning out as catchy of a hook and as deft of a lyric as anything in the band’s catalogue. The real fun comes in the supplementation of this core by a few of the band’s close friends, such as one Mr. Lin Manuel Miranda on backing vocals. His influence reaches far beyond simple harmonies, though: Through This Fire is a complete story, told chronologically that is set to music in a way that feels fully realized and authentic. Considering the idea of this album literally came to John Darnielle in a dream, it might seems strange that this album is a complete package, but such is the prowess of all involved that this album once again sees them as a band that simply cannot miss.
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Steve Blanco – Imprints of Man
So I usually reserve this spot for an EP or shorter release that I wouldn’t normally qualify as taking up a full spot on the list, but this time I feel compelled to do something a little different. Imprints of Man wowed me so much that I feel like it has to go in this spot. I mean…jazz piano interpretations of classic Imperial Triumphant songs? What’s not to love, especially when Steve Blanco is just so FUCKING talented. Not only is he physically able to take these dense, avant garde black metal compositions, rearrange them and actually play them, in doing so he transforms them into something completely new and original. There are songs on here that I have loved for years, and listening to them in this light allows me to find facets of them that I was not aware existed. Imprints of Man might not be original tunes, but they feel fresh and completely revitalized.
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I would say this is it, but people who normally read my lists can probably guess that there’s one more in the works. Looking back has been a fun exercise for me, and I’m not ready to let go yet. I missed A LOT of 2025, so this has been a lot of recovering memories that got buried by life and the world around us. Good memories though, so going back through them has helped me realize that a year I thought I could just write off for the most part had a lot of bright moments as well as dark ones. Obviously, I have my wife (AND SHE’S BACK TO WRITING FOR THIS SITE!), and it’s good to remember that through it all, I had music: this music, these albums and all the ones that touched my heart and helped me plow through the bad times and celebrate the good ones. I’m hoping for more of the same in the months to come, and it looks like I won’t be disappointed.
-Ian