The 20 Best Hard Rock & Metal Albums of 2019

Sorry, for the bit of the delay, on this list, but regular work had kept me very busy. Regardless, 2019 proved to be another great year for heavy music. Many big name veterans put out some great music, but there are some young, up and comers who kicked major ass, as well. The year proved to be really good for thrash and death metal, in particular, I feel. Making this list wasn't easy and involved a lot of continuous, to the last minute, changes. Anyway, here we go! On a side note, man was black and grey a popular choice for artists as their cover color schemes last year!

Honorable Mentions:
Amon Amarth- Berserker
Korn- The Nothing
Lindsey Schoolcraft- Martyr 
Belzebubs- Pantheon of the Nightside Gods
Flotsam and Jetsam- The End of Chaos 

20. Entombed A.D.- Bowels of the Earth- The mighty Entombed A.D. are back motherfuckers! My full review: https://www.themastergio.com/2019/08/entombed-ad-bowels-of-earth-album-review.html

19. Darkthrone- Old Star- Majestically dark and cold, Darkthrone's latest release is an all engulfing and encompassing assault of old school Norwegian black metal. It combines with an epicness, and even bits of catchieness in songs like "The Hardships of the Scots", that helps to cement it as one the best black metal releases of last year. 

18. Traveler- Traveler- Canadian band Traveler makes their debut and give us what is the best music from a new group playing old school style heavy metal. My full review: https://www.themastergio.com/2019/02/traveler-traveler-album-review.html

17. Chelsea Wolfe- Birth of Violence- Chelsea Wolfe, one of the most original musicians of recent memory, gives us a haunting, powerful, and beautiful acoustic album with her latest release. It is the perfect album to heal and soothe my dark soul.  

16. Fit For An Autopsy- The Sea of Tragic Beasts- One of the best acts in all of deathcore, Fit For An Autopsy have delivered a monster of an album. One of their finest recordings ever, The Sea of Tragic Beasts is heavy, groove-filled, and sure to get mosh pits a blaze. For proof just listen to bangers like "No Man Is Without Fear" and the title track.

15. Possessed- Revelations of Oblivion- Possessed are back to kick your fucking ass straight to hell! Revelations of Oblivion is their absolute finest work since their rightfully heralded classic Seven Churches. This album is a wonderfully satanic mix of pounding death metal and unrelenting thrash. In all, one of the most killer genre benders in many a moon.  

14. Creeping Death- Wretched Illusions- 2019's best debut album came from this old school death metal styled Texas act. My full review: https://www.themastergio.com/2019/09/creeping-death-wretched-illusions-album.html

13. Toxic Holocaust- Primal Future: 2019- The best Toxic Holocaust album yet, and here is my review of it: https://www.themastergio.com/2019/10/toxic-holocaust-primal-future-2019.html

12. Mayhem- Daemon- It feels like forever since I last really enjoyed a Mayhem album. But, unholy fuck is it ever great to have that change. This is an awesome and dark blast of old school and righteously evil Norwegian sounds. From the cold feeling production to the raspy, demonic vocals to the blast-beat assaults this is everything we black metal fans fucking want and need!

11. Rammstein- Rammstein- All these years later Rammstein remain one of the kings of industrial. And, this self-titled rocker proves it. Hard hitting, fun, and catchy it really ranks among their best albums. The excellent production is among the best that you were likely to hear last year. And, the single "Deutschland" is one of my favorite singles that was released in 2019.

 10. Carnifex- World War X- Carnifex continue to grow outside of the confines of deathcore, while remaining entrenched in it. They do this by continuing to expand on the use of taking influences from other sub-genres, like black metal, as they have been doing for the last couple of releases. Tracks like "Visions of the End" are among some of the songs that got my adrenaline most pumped up. In short, World War X is brutal, angry, dark, merciless, and absolutely fucking kills! . 

9. Periphery- Periphery IV: Hail Stan- Periphery continue to be one of the best bands in their style of metal, being head and shoulders above many of the others like them. Their epic, complex, and diverse fourth album continues to prove that. On a side note, it has one of the most fun sounding titles of 2019!

8. Whitechapel- The Valley- This is a dark, powerful, and honest release from one of the kings of deathcore. It is perhaps their most mature album, yet despite some moments where it slows down, the band never loses any of its ferocity. The Valley is a haunting work and one among their finest recordings.

7. Death Angel- Humanicide- One of the great classic thrash bands, Death Angel have put out 2019's absolute best thrash album in Humanicide. As fucking good as their preceding album, The Evil Divide, was this album is even better. As a matter of fact, it is their best work since their classic heyday.

6. Jinjer- Macro- Jinjer is the metal success story of the year. The hardworking band achieved their biggest success yet, and I honestly believe that they are only going to get bigger. Their latest LP Macro is a killer bit of progressive/ d'jent metal. Killer groove, complex song structures, and varied influences (including reggae!) and sounds make this a record that, I feel, will be looked upon as a classic in the future. For now, it is their best yet and one of the coolest of 2019. 

5. Slipknot- We Are Not Your Kind- One of the biggest bands in all of metal, Slipknot put out their latest last year. And, honestly it ranks among the very best the band has ever done. It takes the best elements of their finest work mixes it all in a great and varied sounding disc. Heavy, catchy, and featuring excellent production proves that they are worthy of all the continued popularity and success that they continue to have.

4. The Agonist- Orphans- It is a crying shame that The Agonist are so underrated. They remain a fucking killer group, one that not only continues to make spectacular music, but in fact, with this album, have made their best one, yet! I absolute adore them and this album, is one of my most listened to of all of last year. 

3. Killswitch Engage- Atonement- The masters and gods of metalcore gave us another masterwork this time in the form of the amazing Atonement. It is an album that early on looked like it could take the top place. And, even though it didn't, it did come close. But, then featuring team-ups with former signer and current Light The Torch frontman Howard Jones ("The Signal Fire") and Testament frontman Chuck Billy ("The Crownless King") and more truly fucking ass kicking songs, how could it not?

2. Cattle Decapitation- Death Atlas- Fuck is this album ever brutal!! Cattle Decapitation is always a band that I am excited to hear their latest, and despite one or two reviews I heard/ read giving it a lower rating, I fucking LOVED this one!! It is yet another great release from one of the best extreme metal bands around. I spent a lot of time debating whether this should be number one or two. This may have taken the silver medal, but it came ever so fucking close to gold!

1. Abbath- Outstrider- From the moment I heard this album it felt like it would take the top spot. While, it wasn't easy to choose over the KsE or especially over Cattle Decapitation, it ultimately won. Now, while I absolutely adored the self-titled debut, this one is even better. Which in my book is saying a lot! Abbath's brand of fun, but still unquestionably ass kicking black metal is completely up my alley. With it's musicianship and awesome track list, Oustrtider makes it to the very top of this super competitive list, and in my eyes is the best metal album of 2019!

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The 20 Best Hard Rock & Metal Albums of 2016 part 1, 20-11

Another great year for heavy rock music draws to an end. This year marked a return of many thrash metal legends, including releases from the 3 of the big 4. The other band from The Big 4, Slayer, released an album last year, marking this the first time in many, many years since all four bands had released an album within a one year period. In fact in many ways, 2016 is the year of thrash metal.

As the music section of this site has grown exponentially, I have expanded my annual list from 10 to 20. This gives more bands and albums a chance to shine and considering how many I got my hands on, this year, it was the only right thing to do.

Anyway, let's not waste anymore time and get to it!

But, first let's start with some:

Honorable Mentions:
Witchery- In His Infernal Majesty’s Service
Vektor- Terminal Redux
Brujeria- Pocho Aztlan
Walls of Jericho- No One Can Save You from Yourself
Metal Church- XI
Epica- The Holographic Principle

20. Whitechapel- Mark of the Blade- While, I think this is definitely not as great an album as the one that proceeded it, Our Endless War, it's a very solid and crunching release, nonetheless. Pummeling with breakdowns and filled with anger, the album stands as a strong example of what deathcore done right sounds like. Songs like "The Elitist Ones" and the powerful "Bring Me Home", which showcases a new level of maturity and change for the band, rank among my favorite tracks of the year.

19. Death Angel- The Evil Divide- I've like Death Angel for many, many years, however, I never loved them. The Evil Divide, though, ranks not only as their best album in the last couple of years, but one of their best overall. It might, in fact, be their actual best album. The more I listen to it, the more I like it. Mark Osegueda is one of the best vocalists in all of thrash metal, and his vocals really shine this blistering ass kicker.

18. Aborted- Retrogore- This brutal and unrelenting release from Aborted serves as splatter worshiping death metal at it's most awesome. With songs like the title the track and "Whoremaggedon", it's really hard to stop listening to Retrogore. As the title implies the lyrics are filled with love for old-school gore flicks. This is accompanied by blastbeats and head smashing crunch, delivering a must own album for fans of blood drenched genre movies and extreme metal. Extra points for having one of my favorite album covers of the year!

17. Korn- The Serenity of Suffering- I haven't cared or particularly liked a Korn since probably See You on the Other Side. Enough so that I had mostly written the band off. So call me beyond pleasantly surprised when I heard this album. It really captures the classic Korn sound and reminds why I used to be obsessed with the band, and their music when I was in college. Filled with catchy hooks and the dark, introspective lyrics that define their best output, this album truly brings back the popular late 90s metal sound.

16. Periphery- III: Select Difficulty- Definitely one of the most talented mainstream metal bands out there, Periphery sum up the best elements of the more popular sounds in heavy rock today. The instruments are played to perfection, while their signer Spencer Sotelo ranks as one of my personal favorite vocalists in modern metal. III: Select Difficulty captures a lot of this with a variety of sounds including really heavy tunes, longer more progressive songs, and softer more emotional tracks. "Marigold" and "Catch Fire" ranks among my most listened to songs of the year. 

15. Darkthrone- Arctic Thunder- Another band, I had long written off, black metal legends, Darkthrone returned with not only their finest release in many years, but one of their finest ever. It's a true  return to old school black metal with lo-fi production and a distant, cold sound throughout. The title is perfect to describe the album as the feel right the right thing to listen to during these cold winter days. Here then is another album that really brings back the 90s, only in a more underground aspect and does it awesomely.

 

14. Entheos- The Infinite Nothing- Entheos are the best new band of the year, and this is one of the finest debuts I have heard in ages. My full review of this amazing female-fronted progressive death metal album can be found here: http://themastergio.blogspot.com/2016/05/entheos-inifinite-nothing-album-review.html

13. Dark Funeral- Where Shadows Forever Reign- Unholy fuck, what a fuckin' album!! One of my most played black metal releases of this year, this dark, heavy, and deliciously evil album is one of the finest and outright listenable recordings Dark Funeral have ever put out. My full review: http://themastergio.blogspot.com/2016/07/dark-funeral-where-shadows-forever.html

12. The Agonist- Five- I've been a fan of The Agonist since their debut album, however, as much I love their old signer, they have really hit their stride with their current signer, Vicky Psarakis, and the last two albums that they recorded with her. A great mix of the driving and pounding, with more melodic elements, and very catchy hooks, Five is an infinitely playable album that gets me pumped up each and every time that I listen to it.

11. Carnifex- Slow Death- Slow Death is unarguably THE best deathcore album of the year. It showcases a band, Carinfex, that is willing to grow and mature as time passes. Incorporating more death metal elements than many of their counterparts, as well as other influences, like black metal in the amazing track "Drown Me in Blood", this album is a heavy and pissed off blast of pure fury. Carnifex are truly leaving many of their peers in this style of metal in the dust.

To be concluded...

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The 10 Best Hard Rock/ Metal Albums of 2015

There was a lot of great hard and heavy music made this year, so whittling this list down to just ten and then ranking them wasn't an easy task. Regardless, there were some definite gems, in particular when it comes to more extreme metal. A couple of the albums on here  even stand as the best work these bands have done, as of yet.

10. Lamb of God- VII: Sturm Und Drang- After all the legal troubles that their singer Randy Blythe unjustly went through, LoG got back together and released a killer album. It shows a band that is willing to grow and mature, embracing even cleaning signing and collaborations with others. The result is a heavy and thundering release that perfectly sums up one of the greatest American metal bands of the last few decades.

9. Halestorm- Into the Wild Life- Showing an ever growing and changing in sound, Halestorm's latest has some great rocking tracks, but it also slows it down for some moving and powerful ballads. A great and hook filled hard rock album, Into the Wild Life has some the catchiest songs that I have heard all year. It might be the album that I listened to the most amount of times this year, as a matter of fact! The beautiful Lzzy Hale continues to be one of the best signers in all of heavy music.

 
8. Disturbed- Immortalized- Just when it looked like one of the most popular bands in rock and metal were done, they come back. And, man do they ever come back! A crushing and chugging masterwork, this is one of their very best albums. But, it really should come as no surprise, as they have consistently ranked in my yearly best albums. On a side note, their beautiful cover of Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence" has become another huge hit for them. And, it's really one of the most beautiful songs that I have heard this year.

7. Bring Me the Horizon- That's the Spirit- In a bold move, this British metalcore band continued to move towards a more mainstream sound. But, I think they really succeeded with an accessible, but still hard rocking and dark hard rock/ metal ass kicker. It's one of their very best albums, and where I would usually be damning a band for this type of change, I can only sign their praises. Sometimes change is good, and sometimes it's fucking awesome!

6. Iwrestledabearonce- Hail Mary- One of the most abrasive and out-right heavy albums released this year, Hail Mary rarely slows down. It feels like your head is getting pummeled with a sledgehammer over and over again. Filled with piss and vinegar, but sprinkled with moments of serenity this is their best work to date. Signer the lovely Courtney Laplante has really breathed new life into one of the most original extreme acts out there.





5. Myrkur- M- Who would have thought that the best black metal album would come from pretty, Danish, former. pop signer, Amalie Bruun, but so is the case with M. It is a haunting, beautiful, heavy, and atmospheric work that takes all of the best things in black metal makes a fresh and powerful album with it. Considering she is a one woman show, this is immensely impressive. Exceptional musicianship and an all encompassing sound make this a future classic of the subgenre.

5. Cattle Decapitation- The Anthorpocene Extinction- This band just keeps getting better and better and that is saying a lot. Quite frankly, I did not think they could top their last album, the masterful Monolith of Inhumanity, but holy fuck did they ever! This is death/ grindcore at it's very best and most brutal. Machine gun drums and crunching brutality combine with various screams of lead signer Travis Ryan, for a full speed assault on the senses. This is blistering and utterly eviscerating metal that cuts your guts open then fucks you in the cut that it leaves. Utterly killer!  

3. The Agonist- Eye of Providence- It's always a gambit when a band gets a new signer. Especially when the band is so closely associated with that signer. It comes as a great accomplishment when said band does that and then ends up making the best album of their entire career (thus far, anyways). And, so is the case with The Agonist's Eye of Providence. Gorgeous Vicky Psarakis has more than taken the reigns. Her joining the band has breathed new and fresh life into band, giving them a great mix of the melodic and catchy with the fast and crunchingly heavy. Quite possibly the metal album that has the best grooves released this year.

 
2. Periphery- Juggernaut: Alpha and Omega- Releasing a double album is always a gamble and one that doesn't really pay off. But, Periphery have given us one of the very best double albums in the history pf metal. It also stands as one of the most technical albums I have heard all year. Complex and ever changing, yet always flowing with energy, the songs are completely captivating and enveloping. As a whole, it's a sonic feat, and as separate it's hard to pick which is the better half. But, it doesn't matter, cause either way it ranks as the year's second best album (and certainly the best of the ever more crowded djent subgenre).
 

1. The Black Dahlia Murder- Abysmal- TBDM has long been one of my very favorite death metal bands. And, that's cause they keep releasing amazing albums that capture the very best of melodic death metal. Abysmal is no different, in fact it is very well their best work since their classic Nocturnal. Considering how high in regards I hold the last couple of albums, this is saying a lot. Blast beats, melodic, soaring guitars, and head smashing sounds combine with Trevor Strnad's screeching and roaring vocals for pure death metal ecstasy. This albums pummels you from it's vicious opener, "Receipt", all the way to it's final track the savage "That Cannot Die Which Eternally Is Dead". Even the awesome cover is pure and classic death metal. What an album!
 

Honorable Mentions:

Chelsea Wolfe- Abyss
New Years Day- Malevolence
One-Eyed Doll- Witches
Trivium- Silence in the Snow
Nachtlieder- Female of the Species
Bullet for My Valentine- Venom
Cradle of Filth- Hammer of the Witches
Iron Maiden- The Book of Souls

So, now I would love to hear from you. What where your favorite metal/ hard rock albums of 2015?

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