The Top 10 Thrash albums is a new list, as I felt the need to separate these from the Top 10 Mainstream metal albums list, which is becoming more commercial metal-core, nu-metal revival or even legacy artists who fall between those cracks. Some of these are bands who have made death metal albums previously or even black metal, but are closer to thrash than the genres they evolved from. If there were going to be any power-metal albums, they would most likely fall within the bounds of this list or the progressive list, though that genre is pretty stagnant without the big names releasing albums with enough regularity.
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 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 Thrash albums of 2025.
10-Spirit World-"Helldorado"
Despite being called "Deathwestern" the band's 2022 only used country & western music as a window dressing to perhaps bookend the album with. This time around it's blended to create a more Clutch-like swagger. This leaves the more metallic meat of the songs to groove with a darker energy.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/03/spiritworld-helldorado.html
9-Drain-",,,Is Your Friend"
Drain continues to take you back to the time when thrash merged with hardcore. The vocals have more of a Pantera-like scowl this time around. The songs have room to breathe and emote, rather than just hitting you with a rapid-fire pummel. They bring pretty effective breakdowns that will make the kids bust out karate, during this vulgar display of power
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/11/drain-is-your-friend.html
8-Sacrafice -"Volume Six"
This Canadian thrash band has been around since the 80s but never caught on like Voivod. They picked a decent time to stage a comeback with their 6th album. The the producer brought out elements of their sound that points them in a more Power Trip - like this direction.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/01/sacrifice-volume-six.html
7-Unleashed-"Fire Upon Your Lands"
I saw this Swedish band back in 1991 opening up for Morbid Angel. I tracked down " Where No Life Dwells' within the week, and wore that tape out as it was a darker, more dense sound than other death metal albums I owned at the time. Since those days, they have evolved into something more like a hard thrashing Pagan metal as they have become more Viking-focused. They are quick to take you to Valhalla it is clear they care about songwriting as conveyed in the powerful stomp the drums lock in on. Lyrically things feel like they are almost too thematic, but I guess everyone has their thing.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/08/unleashed-fire-upon-your-lands.html
6-Testament - "Para Bellum"
This marks the band's first album with Seven Spires drummer Chris Dovas, whose youthful exuberance gets the job done, even though you might prefer Gene Hoglan. Bassist Steve Di Giorgio, who goes back to "The Gathering," returns as well. . The emphasis tends to be on the rapid-fire style of thrashing, though they do return to their more signature groove, that makes the most Chuck Billy's powerful voice, that is also capable of melody,. His singing is one of the signature staples that set the band apart from the pack. It still works here.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/10/testament-para-bellum.html
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5-Propaghandi- "At Peace"
There are weird contradictions in life. One of them being for someone who does not like political punk, I do like this band. Perhaps it's because they are from Canada it hits differently. They have a brooding metallic edge to their sound that is perhaps brought out even more in the production of "At Peace," which is the band's 8th album. The urgency of the vocal opens the door for taunt, thrashing riffing, not is not a far cry from Bad Religion. I think the fact that they are so technically sound as musicians rather than guys banging four chords helps factor into why I like them so much.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/04/propaghandi-at-peace.html
4-Age of Apocalypse -"In Oblivion"
I loved "Grim Wisdom," so expectations are high for this one. There is more of a thrash feel, until things slow and get more moody and melodic. The lingering Life of Agony vibe is still there but they are e covering way more ground sonically this time around. Their cross-over sound brings punishing accents to pound you with what some might consider breakdowns. They sell the the melancholy while rocking the fuck out, which is what I liked about Life of Agony, that winning combination works equally well here.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/05/age-of-apocalypse-in-oblivion.html
3-Hooded Menace- ""Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration"
This band band from Finland improves with each album. Their last album, "The Tritonus Bell," snagged the number 3 spot in the Top 10 Death Metal albums of 2021 list here, but things have changed. What strikes me about this album is how melodic the guitar playing has grown. It is more of a tribute to classic metal with plenty of riffs that sound like they could have come from a King Diamond album, so that, of course, wins me over. The biggest difference is that the vocals are a more one-dimensional growl, though they are delivered with a great deal of purpose, and the lyrics can still be comprehended through the rasp, which is not unlike bands like Sodom or Kreator.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/08/hooded-menace-lachrymose-monuments-of.html
2-NITE-"Cult of the Serpent Sun"
The third album from this San Franciso 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. The snarled vocals give them more of a black metal sound, as you could have someone with their foot on the monitor yodeling and it would sound like a different ballgame. You can draw comparisons to bands like Angel Witch in this regard. Almost playing the kind of deliberate galloping thrash that evolved from bands like Saxon.
https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2025/01/nite-cult-of-serpent-sun.html
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