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Hard Rock is defined here as being more aggressive than rock n roll, but not dark or mean enough to be considered by Metal, by anyone who knows anything about metal. These are not the coolest albums, but the best, fuck what other blogs say. After I sort through the top 10 albums of all the respective genres, I use those lists to compile the top 20 albums of 2025.
10-Soul Blind -"Red Sky Mourning."
The band's sophomore release finds them leaning into the grunge side of things, with a powerful stomp that reflects the Alice In Chains side of the Seattle equation. They sometimes employ a taunt Helmet-like punch to balance out the more s drugged out and depressed moods. I appreciate the balls that the guitar is slinging at the groove-centered stomp that drives these songs.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/10/soul-blind-red-sky-mourning.html
9-Silly Goose-"Keys to the City."
What I've heard from these guys in the past has been fun. They are fine-tuning their take on nu-metal. They are more deliberate with a more Linkin Park-like formula kicking in on the chorus, while they rap like Limp Bizkit on the verses. The sung parts do show he has been working on his vocal range. This time around, they built up the songs into a more metalcore-like breakdown.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/10/silly-goose-keys-to-city.html
8-SCOWL- "We Are All Angels."
This album hooked me in as they have grown away from being a punk or hardcore band and making catchy 90's alternative music for 2025. F Kat Moss only uses a harsher, hardcore-flavored snarl as a point of accentuation. Her main style of delivery is a slacker croon that has more in common with Veruca Salt.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/04/scowl-are-we-all-angels.html
Of all the bands that wanted to be Tool in the late 90s, Chevelle did it with the most emotion. They did it so hard that eventually they found their own sound. Pete Loeffler has denied that they are a metal band, but they punch with a dynamic intensity. The mix is very in-your-face, so I can understand how they might be mistaken for a metal band. When we are comparing the hooky style of songwriting that is the band's standard, that includes songs like 'The Red" that set the bar for them. This is a reasonable expectation to have, and they live up to it here.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/08/chevelle-bright-as-blasphemy.html
6-VOWWS-"I'll Fill Your House With an Army."
This band has gained a bit of a buzz as they ride a 90s-inspired sound that, at one point, leaned into darkwave and post-punk. They have gained more of an edge, feeling closer to the nu-metal revival. Munky from Korn showing up on the album only gives more evidence in this regard. The album was co-produced by Billy Howerdel of A Perfect Circle. His contributions draw a fair comparison of where this album is heading sonically.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/10/vowws-ill-fill-your-house-with-army.html
5- Love is Noise-"To Live a Different Way."
Produced like a shoegaze album, but it has Myspace emo vibes at its beating heart. This is most evident in the vocals. The vocals are almost pop-punk with nu-metal vocal accents popping in to give them more edge. Cameron Humpry is the creative engine of this project, and he seems to have a knack for blending all the right elements at the right time.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/06/love-is-noise-to-live-different-way.html
4-Deftones-"private music"
Five years is the longest gap between Detones' albums, and here we are, after the band sorted through some shit and wrote new music. Everyone was stoked to hear big loud guitars again, but let's be real, and clarify the fact that the chug of guitar here is different than the chug of guitar from "Around the Fur". It's understandable since it's been 30 years since "Adrenaline" came out, even Iron Maiden became a different band 30 years into their career. What has worked in this band's favor is that their fan base grew with them, which kept these guys relevant over the years, instead of getting lumped in with the other nu-metal bands.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/08/deftones-private-music.html
3-Superheaven- "S/T"
The third album by this band, which built a buzz with their first two albums. They have a 90s sound that occupies the middle road between grunge and shoegaze, recalling "Gish" era Smashing Pumpkins, but with a less androgynous vocal approach. In fact, the vocals owe a bit more to Helmet in how they occupy space. This space is created by the grooves of their drummer. They do not allow the atmosphere to bog them down as the songs retain their smooth momentum.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/04/superheaven-st.html
2-Bush - "I Beat Loneliness."
The band's 2022 "The Art of Survival" was the number 1 hard-rock album of the year, as it was pretty close to perfect, so the bar is high here. Who would think Gavin Rossdale would be bringing it this hard this late into his career? He is apparently modern rock's most underrated songwriter. It's more atmosphere than what they hit you with at the onset of the previous album. It's a brooding as you would want him to be, but with a kick ass riff driving the song. It's the band's 10th album, so they clearly know what they are doing.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/07/bush-i-beat-loneliness.html
1-Freeze the Fall - "The Red Garden."
Big radio rock that hits with an infectious bite. Their anthemic choruses are balanced by the brooding atmosphere that is dark enough to keep me interested, despite the hopeful mood they build. This young Canadian trio is great songwriters who sometimes find their overall sound following a 90s formula, which proves highly effective as it puts in the number one spot, beating out veteran acts so the future clearly holds big things for them, if you have not heard this album yet, do yourself a favor and give it a listen, as it took the top spot for a reason.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/05/freeze-fall-red-garden.html
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