the Top 10 Extreme Metal Albums of 2023

Extreme metal encompasses many sub-genres, all of which shun mainstream aspirations with their commitment to intensity, but that is not to say that these albums are the heaviest ever, as all of the albums listed in our Top 10 Extreme Metal Albums of 2023 list are very song-oriented, some even have melody, perhaps this year even more so than the past. The bands here did not fit neatly into other genre lists, because they blended other harsh genres, such as black metal or hardcore into these warped versions of grindcore or screamo.  They are all very dark and lash out with their own forms of sonic fury, but they are the albums that proved best at it.  After I sort through the top 10 albums of all the respective genres, I use those lists to compile the top 10 albums of the year. 2023. The very fact these bands made it on the list speaks to how great these albums are, so it's not a slight that the number 8 album is above the 9th album, there is something that just gives it an edge that makes me want to listen to it more. After all, we can try to look cool and pick the hippest bands for a list, but at the end of the day what makes an album the best is that it makes you want more, you look forward to listening to it again. Perhaps you can find your next favorite on this list; and have included links to reviews of these albums if you want to check out the audio on these guys. Anyway here are the top 10 Extreme Metal albums of 2023.

10-Melancholia - 'Book of Ruination" 

There is something about this raw crusty attack combined with a memorably melodic hook to its savage riff that My ears find compelling. The drummer is really serious. There is a jazz-like manner in which he turns some of his percussive phrasing around. The organic nature of the recording sounds like they are jamming in their rehearsal space you stumbled in on their creative moment. The punchy attack is relentless, but they are hitting you with worthwhile riffing. This album is a  testament to the quality stuff Brutal Panda is putting out these days. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/11/melancholia-book-of-ruination.html

9-Bandit- 'Siege of Self" 

Philly grinders are perfecting this brand of death grind. The guitars are the most death metal in their approach. The vocals are screamed in a manner of many extreme sub-genres of metal. The guitar solo on the title track seems to be more intent on just causing chaos.They rage while still writing catchy riffs. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/12/bandit-siege-of-self.html

8-Rana- "Richtfeuer" 

This German band hits a sweet place of sonic darkness. They carry a crusty pulse before they throw themselves into a malicious black metal blast. The more hard-core stomp this evolves into owes a debt to their crustier side. feel that represents how well they wove these sounds together. I can understand why some might think of this as black gaze, but there is a great deal more going on here. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/12/rana-richtfeuer.html

 

7-the Sept-  "MMXXIII" 

This Irish band is a late entry into this year's metal race, but a weird and wonderful one. They balance out a death metal lace grind-core with some raw and unsettling atmosphere. The vocals are uttered in a low growl or a rabid snarl. The grindcore side of their songwriting equation keeps things very economical and makes every chug count.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/12/the-sept-mmxxiii.html

6-Year of the Knife - "No Love Lost" 

 Madison Watkins proves she can cut it as the vocalist. Her abrasive scream gets the proper emotion across.  With a guest vocal spot from  Devin Swank of  Sanguisugabugg, Year of the Knife shows they are not as death metal as Devin's band but prove that Metal Core does not have to conjure images of the last days when Myspace ruled the Earth. , Despite being possessed by hate that is singular in focus, the energy and execution pull it through

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/09/year-of-knife-no-love-lost.html

 

5-Left to Suffer -"Feral" 

This metalcore band is not just jumping on the White Chapel bandwagon. They took things in a darker direction and seem to have just as much in common with the bands in the nu-metal revival. Sure "Artificial Anatomy" is geared toward the Tik Tok generation with its spastic electronic glitching. The commonplace phenomenon that occurs with bands who deal in the extremes of heavy, no matter their sub-genre, is they hit you with something that is sonically stunning in its immense sound. This earned a great deal of repeat listens.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/05/left-to-suffer-feral.html

4-Portrayal of Guilt -"Devil Music" 

At first, you might be fooled into thinking this is a more straightforward metal album, at least until you get to the atmosphere and dissonance that you might have come to love from these guys. They do however open up the album with some solid grooves. There are fewer moments of black metal menace or grindcore explosions, but it still works. There is an abundance of chaos, as the drummer attacks the riffs. The second half of this album is the first half reconstructed for a chamber orchestra. Bizarre indeed, but they are boldly going where the devil wants them.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/04/portrayal-of-guilt-devil-music.html

3-Sanguisugabogg : "Homicidal Ecstasy" 

At the core when you strip away the gore fixation that might seek to label them as gore-grind these guys are a death metal band. Their biggest influence is Cannibal Corpse, which can be heard in the drumming and the low muffled gutturals. How they set themselves apart from just being another spawn of Cannibal Corpse is their fetish for grooves. Does this have more of a hard-core feel? At times but it doesn't diminish the fact they are a death metal band.These guys learned you can be heavy as a hundred fucks and still write good songs

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/01/sanguisugabogg-homicidal-ecstasy.html

2-Fuming Mouth -"Last Day of Sun" 

This album of crusty death metal-infused anger grew on me with each listen. They lean into more of hard-core's punk side with the drumming putting them in the sonic zip code of bands like Ringworm  I appreciate the lyrical sentiments, and the overall oppressive mood, that still leaves room for melody shows they care about songwriting, but do not have to compromise to do so. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/11/fuming-mouth-last-day-of-sun.html

1-Dreamwell -"In My Saddest Dreams, I Am Beside You" 

This is not the heaviest band on the list, but they are the most extreme metal band whose songs beg for you to listen to them more than the other bands on this list. They shift from black gaze to more melodic forms of hardcore and harsher expressions of metal. Their singer is a pivotal force in what enables these transformations. Sometimes hard-core shouted vocals bring the abrasion crashing against the transcendence, which is littered oddly with blast beats. It is not the first time I have heard screamo blended with black metal, but this is done in an angular fashion that is more unique.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2023/12/dreamwell-in-my-saddest-dreams-i-am.html