The Top 10 Black Metal Albums of 2025

It is not surprising that Black Metal's popularity continues to wane in the hipster metal scene. It's now called problematic by poseurs who were only into it for superficial reasons in the first place, as the genre has always represented misanthropic hate and nihilistic disdain for the world. These albums captured what black metal should be with very little compromise. Black metal is a sub-genre of metal that is for the true outsiders. Here are the bands that captured it best. 

 After I sort through the top 10 albums of all the respective genres, I use those lists to compile the top 10 albums of 2025. The very fact that 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, and you look forward to listening to it again. Perhaps you can find your next favorite on this list, and I 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 Black Metal albums of 2025

10-Cult Burial- "Collapse of Pattern, Reverence of Dust."

It seems all too often blackened death metal bands add the wrong parts of the two genres. These guys seem to get the atmosphere and aggression combo before going into a more winding technical riff for the second song. The vocals are produced to give the growls the biggest roar for your buck. When they chug along at a very deliberate pace, it gives the vocals more purpose. The use of a present bass in the mix is effective and creates a darker backbone for the songs

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/08/cult-burial-collapse-of-pattern.html

 

9-Karg-"Maroduer" 

This is the band's 9th album, and Black metal seems to be at the core of their DNA, as it's the attitude propelling the aggressive tendencies, and even in how the atmosphere is approached. The vocals are not screamed but shouted in a forceful yet pained manner. More melodic and angular than what I expect from any metal coming out of Germany, with some turns into a more in-your-face black metal approach, 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-karg-maroduer.html

8-Deafheaven- "Lonely People With Power." 

On this album, they have balanced out the varied elements of their discography, right down to the deliberate chug the song transitions into. Having made their way onto the rock festival circuit, you had to wonder how much playing with big mainstream bands would influence them. Truth be told, when I saw them at Rockville, there was little compromise on their part to win anybody over. 6 albums into their career, I think it is safe to say if they were going to sell out, they would have by now. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/03/deafheaven-lonely-people-with-power.html

          

7-This Gift is a Curse-"Heir." 

This Swedish band plays a confrontational style of black metal that carries hard-core roots in its aggression. They do not just blast at you, but bring various influences. At times, layering things with like spoken female vocals before their more hard-core side of the band surfaces, and sparse places where they blast along in the vein of most black metal bands these days. It's the darker creep of the riffs that makes them stand out from the pack.  

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/01/this-gift-is-curse-heir.html

6-Shining-"Divided You Stand &United You'll Fall." 

Sweden's Shining should need little introduction here to regular readers, as they are one of the biggest bands from the depressive black metal sub-genre.  They have evolved past the weeping drama they once invoked. A gritty mix of covers and originals that finds them spreading their hatred in the best way possible.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/07/shining-divided-you-stand-united-youll.html

 

5-1914-"Viribus Unitis."

This Ukrainian band is branded as blackened Death-doom. It is the band's fourth, the second since their country was invaded by Russia. That conflict is the inspiration for this album. They go from black metal to a more deliberate crunch to back on a blackened path until the more melodic doom elements also begin to creep in. They color the songs with chanted vocals and wisely placed blast beasts to craft actual songs that are effective rather than an angry burst of sound. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/11/1914-viribus-unitis.html

 

4-Grima - "Nightside" 

This Russian band brings a more overt aggression than I remember from their last album.  There is almost a more Dissection-like layering to the guitar here. The vocals are more anguished, with the black metal shriek doubled by a lower death metal growl.  The production is great; it's a stellar mix with nothing buried. For some black metal purists, this might be too much of a sell-out, although we should be well past that point of contention by now.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-grima.html

3-Abigail Williams- "A Void Within Existence." 

One of the rare American Black Metal bands that has stood the test of time as a legitimate representation of what their genre is, with the same level of sonic darkness as their European counterparts. There is a bigger sound that pushes them more in the direction of a band like Behemoth.  The guitar work begins to dazzle over the commanding march. They find the perfect blend of bleak melody with enough black metal bombast to keep the dynamics balanced.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/05/abigail-williams-void-within-existence.html

2-Morast-"Fentanyl"

This is what black metal should be. Darkness and misery forged into music. It carries a dreadful throb, that is not what you might think of as depressive black metal, but they succeeded in capturing the despair of a junkie in a manner so real we have not heard it since mid-2000s Nachtmystium. I did not know fentanyl was big in Germany, but it's spread worldwide now, as I am sure the trailer parks of Europe in the Eastern Bloc are spreading it like roaches.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-morast.html

1-Blut Aus Nord - "Ethereal Horizons." 

The French Black Metal band's 16th album shows Blut Aus Nord never makes the same album twice, and they are embracing every side of the genre here while cloaking them all in their signature atmosphere. It is like listening to a smoke machine envelop a band rather than just seeing it on stage. Atmospheric black metal is being pushed in new directions, while the pained moaning of the clean vocals cuts through the thickness of sound, bringing' Mercyful Fate's earliest incarnations of black metal to mind. There is the needed cauldron of blast beats and tremolo-picked guitars needed to identify their blackened intent, but not sounding like everyone else in the process

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/10/blut-aus-nord-ethereal-horizons.html

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pst609

the Top 10 Black Metal Albums of 2025 ... so far

This was set in motion two years ago when too many journalists tried to erroneously hail hot garbage as the best black metal album of the year. This compelled me to set things straight, as such a claim is disrespectful to the genre; therefore,
I decided to uphold this mid-year tradition. Just sounding good from a production standpoint is not going to make the cut, since studio magic alone is not what black metal is about. Though I am not looking for something to sound like trash in the name of being cvlt either. I am also not paying homage to bands that are just press darlings for whatever social reason of the day might be. After all, Blackbraid continues to show what he got right about Native representation is being an alcoholic. I want bands who are effective at creating darkness, so with that said, here are the top 10 Black Metal Albums of 2025 ...so far.

10- Ritualmord- "This is Not Lifelover" 

Lifelover's remains turned to Hypothermia and Kall. This comes from the guitarist who formed Hypothermia. This was where the songs that were too experimental for that project as they continued to evolve as musicians. This is the first full-length of the project following three EPS. The mood is similar to what they have done before, even if they are not using the typical sonic building blocks of black metal to get there.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/01/ritualmord-this-is-not-lifelover.html

9- Void of Hope- "Proof of Existence" 

Finland's black metal scene is expanding beyond the raw black metal bands like Horna. It is also cool that depressive black metal is making more of a comeback. It's dark and more emotive than the normal blasting black metal that wants to sound like Darkthrone when even Darkthrone doesn't sound like the band they are trying to imitate anymore. The vocals have a nasty howl. The music carries a very deliberate throb.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-void-of-hope.html

8-Karg- "Maroduer" 

The band's 9th album finds attitude propelling the aggressive tendencies, and even in how the atmosphere is approached. The vocals are not screamed but shouted in a forceful yet pained manner. More melodic and angular than what I expect from any metal coming out of Germany

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-karg-maroduer.html

7-Grima- "Nightshade" 

The theme of this album is to honor Taiga, the spirit of the Siberian forest. If these guys are from Siberia, I can only wonder what it's like getting to band practice, as it's pretty harsh there. This is their 6th album, so they have been doing this a while, and it's apparent in how things flow in their playing.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-grima.html

6-Abigail Williams - "A Void Within Existence"

 Abigail Williams is one of the rare American Black Metal bands that has stood the test of time as a legitimate representation of its genre, with a sonic darkness on par with their European counterparts. This album effectively captures the darkness that this project embodies. The atmosphere brought by the guitar hits the sweet spot of making things sonically heavier.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/05/abigail-williams-void-within-existence.html

5-Morast- "Fentanyl"

This is what black metal should be. Darkness and misery forged into music. It carries a dreadful throb, that is not what you might think of as depressive black metal, but they succeeded in capturing the despair of junkie in a manner so real we have not heard it since mid-2000s Nachtmystium. I did not know fentanyl was big in Germany, but it's spread worldwide now, as I am sure the trailer parks of Europe in the Eastern Block are spreading it like roaches. 

 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-morast.html

4-Void of Hope- "Proof of Existence" 

Finland's black metal scene is expanding beyond the raw black metal bands like Horna. It is also cool that depressive black metal is making more of a comeback. It's dark and more emotive than the normal blasting black metal that wants to sound like Darkthrone when even Darkthrone doesn't sound like the band they are trying to imitate anymore. The vocals have a nasty howl. The music carries a very deliberate throb.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-void-of-hope.html

3-Deafheaven- "Lonely People With Power" 

The band continues to balance out the varied elements of their discography, right down to the deliberate chug that the song transitions into. Having made their way onto the rock festival circuit, you had to wonder how much playing with big mainstream bands would influence them. Truth be told, when I saw them at Rockville, there was little compromise on their part to win anybody over. 6 albums into their career, I think it is safe to say if they were going to sell out, they would have by now.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/03/deafheaven-lonely-people-with-power.html

2-Hexvessel- "Nocturne" 

Seven albums into their legacy, this Finnish band continues to ebb and flow with both neo-folk and black metal in their veins. In some way, this picks up where "Polar Veil" left off; in other ways, it expands upon it, with more layered voices that sound like the hippie choir persona of their folk era, now haunting this album, and finds a more balanced blend of those melodic folk textures.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/05/hexvessel-nocturne.html

1-NITE- "the Cult of the Serpent Sun" 

The third album from this San Francisco metal band. They walk a line between black metal and traditional metal. I can hear where Tribulation might have occupied a similar sonic space at one time if they had not turned into a goth band. If you want a classic metal-sounding album that is just not reheating leftovers but is writhing with an inner darkness, this album is for you. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/01/nite-cult-of-serpent-sun.html

Thanks for reading, please "like" and share on social media to give music a voice 

https://www.facebook.com/abysmalhymns

Check out our Podcast below 

https://www.youtube.com/@abysmalhymns666

pst298

Febuary's Top 10 Albums

 It's time for February's top 10 albums. Staying abreast of the month's highlights might help casual readers see what they missed and check these artists out. I am not writing little blurbs on them; I am just linking the reviews. Inclusion here does not mean that these albums have been released this month, but it is a list of new or upcoming albums I have enjoyed the most, I have albums in my in-box that are not coming out til April so I am normally way ahead of the curve in this regard. They are ranked in order of what I have listened to the most. This month there is a wide variety from goth to death metal so you may find your new favorite among them. Here are the Top 10 albums of February

10-Bong-RA -"Black Noise" 

Industrial 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/bong-ra-black-noise.html

9-KARG-"Maroduer" 

Black Metal 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-karg-maroduer.html

8-Grima-"Nightside" 

Black Metal 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-grima.html

7-Void of Hope- "Proof of Existence" 

Depressive Black Metal 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-void-of-hope.html

6-Decripsy-"Deific Mourning" 

Death Metal 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/decrepisy-deific-mourning.html

5-Corlyx _"Purple Pain" 

Goth 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/corlyx-purple-pain.html

4-Morast- "Fentanyl" 

Black Metal 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/black-metal-history-month-morast.html

3-RWAKE- "The Return of  Magik" 

Sludge

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/rwake-return-of-magik.html

2-Year of the Cobra-"s/t" 

Grunge 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/year-of-cobra-st.html

 1-Hangman's Chair - "Saddiction"

 

Doom-Gaze / Depressive Hard Rock

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/02/hangmans-chair-saddiction.html

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Black Metal History Month- Morast : "Fentanyl"

This is what black metal should be. Darkness and misery forged into music. It carries a dreadful throb, that is not what you might think of as depressive black metal, but they succeeded in capturing the despair of junkie in a manner so real we have not heard it since mid-2000s Nachtmystium. I did not know fentanyl was big in Germany, but it's spread worldwide now, as I am sure the trailer parks of Europe in the Eastern Block are spreading it like roaches. There is a denser more deliberate attack on the second song with the vocals dropping into a lower growl. 

It's been a few years since I gave "Ancestral Void" a listen, but it seems they are more committed to the emotional current of black metal on this album. There is less of a death-doom vibe on this one. though they are not pouring on blast beat, and keeping things at a doomy pulse on songs like "Walls Come Closer". The bass has more grit and steps forward in the mix. Once again I beseech all black metal bands to add more bass in the mix as it makes things heavier and here is a case in point. The vocals are at their most articulated, almost reminding me of Entombed. There is a more apocalyptic trudge to the blackened sludge of "A Thousand and More".  The vocals have a similar bark as the previous song. Though their pattern is punchier and catchier. In some ways executed more like a death metal band uses vocals, but the music carries more texture to keep its blackened roots. 

"Akasha" feels like it might have the most interesting lyrics, though the vocals feel more distorted from a production standpoint, as the sweeping riffs provide a more black metal ground for them to howl against. The vocals are used most deliberately on the last song when they lock into the chant of "Rise from the fire, but the fire comes back". Before this, the guitars let the chords hang for the bulk of the song to give the brooding pulse of the song room to breathe. I'll give this album a 9.5, as it works off a uniform murky throb, with nuances to give the songs their identity, as a whole weighing it against perfect black metal albums that might score a 10, those would have more dynamics, but what is offered here makes up for it with the realistic passion for oblivion possessing these songs. 

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Cvlt Nation Sessions : Bathory's s/t Debut

Once again my other blog family Cvlt Nation is releasing a tribute album to offer a different look at an old classic, this time around it's the self titled debut from Bathory .  As you might guess I am going to continue to review these with an impartial ear. To be honest, while I appreciate the historic nature of this album, the first album from Bathory is not  my favorite it's too close to punk and the production sucks. This is what makes it appeal to punks crossing over into metal. For my money Bathory did not get good until Quorthon who originally got his start in an oi! band started getting more metal and breaking out the epic Viking hymns on "Hammerheart" . In fact it had been so long since I listened to the first Bathory album that I went and pulled it up so I could do an a/b these songs against the originals. These bands have better production value than what was going on when this album originally recorded. Grave Coven gives "Hades" more of a death metal touch. You are still reminded to how similar Bathory and early Slayer are in my respects. There are still hints of early thrash in the original version of the "Reaper", Plagues clearly comes from more of a grinding hard core back ground gives "Reaper' a little rougher beating.

 One case where the original version is improved upon would be True Love's take on "Necromansy" which is slowed to achieve something that is darker and feels more sinister than the original. Expander and Worsen offer pretty straight forward versions of the more feral songs "Sacrifice" and "In Conspiracy with Satan" to remind us of black metal's thrash roots. After True Love the next best performance might be Morast's slaying of "Armageddon". It's very deliberate and powerful. Ultha goes full blasty mcnasty on "Raise the Dead", if this was an original it might not be half bad , but it takes some of charm out of the chorus at this pace. Things stay raw and nasty for Fever Nest's version of "War'.  While this is rawer than some of the other songs, the production value is overall pretty solid on all of these songs. Bathory fans will find this a worthwhile listen and a free downloaded version is available on Cvlt Nation's Bandcamp page. I'll give this an 8.5. Which might be a tad higher than what I would rate the original version.