I am a fan of extreme metal music almost as much as I am a horror fan. So I thought this year I would do something different and present a list of my top metal albums of the year. It was a big year for metal in 2015 and it was very difficult to narrow things down to a best of list. I finally decided on the top six albums of the year. Why six you ask? I was only going to do a top five but there was one that I just couldn’t leave off the list so I just decided to do six – there you have it.\
These six albums are not ranked in any particular order; they are just my best six of the year.
I hope you enjoy these albums, if not, let me know in the comments. Here’s to a great upcoming 2016 in the world of metal!
Cradle of Filth: Hammer of the Witches
For my tastes, Hammer of the Witches is COF’s best album from their last few releases. It’s surely heavier than their past few. Their lineup is different from the last album. COF has two new guitarists and a new female singer. Of course Dani Filth always leads the way on vocals and his are never better than on this release. The new members add a different sound and I feel it’s for the better.
Hammer of the Witches is a powerhouse album for COF. The sound is just enough classic COF to satisfy longtime fans and a bit of newness to pull in some younger fans. Either way you like it, it’s an album not to miss and deserves to be counted as one of metals best albums of the year.
Lamb of God: VII: Sturm und Drang
I have to admit I haven’t always been a fan of LOG. They have grown on me in the past five years or so. The band themselves have grown during that time period as well. You may remember lead singer Randy Blythe’s imprisonment in a Prague prison about five years back due to a fans death at their show there. Blythe himself and the band have grown out of that experience both in their lyrics and music. This album is a more mature LOG but that doesn’t mean they’re any less heavier, oh no, in fact, I think they’re even more heavy than before.
Nearly every track on VII: Sturm und Drang kicks major ass.
Nightwish: Endless Forms Most Beautiful
I am unapologetically a fan of symphonic metal and Nightwish in particular. I have always loved their sound of heavy guitar riffs laced with symphonic film score keyboards. This album was particularly highly anticipated with this being the debut of new lead singer Floor Jansen. She has a spectacular voice and just the right touch the band needed for their frontwoman. EFMB is a much stronger album than their last, both musically and vocally. Definitely one of the best of the year!
Slayer: Repentless
Repentless is the first Slayer album in six years. It’s also the first album since the death of co-founding guitarist Jeff Hanneman who passed away two years ago. The band had something to prove with this album and I don’t necessarily think they proved they were up to the task but it is a decent Slayer effort. Now with that said, a decent Slayer effort is heads and shoulders above the rest of the dreck out there. No, it wasn’t Slayer’s best album but still better than most, which is why it earned a spot on the best of 2015 list. One final note, the music video for the track “Repentless” is one of the best music videos ever!
Children of Bodom: I Worship Chaos
I Worship Chaos was probably one of the biggest surprises for me. I didn’t expect an album like this from the band. It has all the normal COB stylings (minus one guitar player) with vocals on point and sounding incredible, guitar work up to the task of sounding incredibly heavy, and great keyboard moments. What I wasn’t expecting was the songs being so catchy, but in a good way. This album really shows progression for the band with nearly every track being just as good as the last. I Worship Chaos is solid from top to bottom.
Gruesome: Savage Land
Savage Land is pure guilty pleasure for me. Chuck Schuldiner’s Death was one of my favorite death metal bands ever. Gruesome’s Savage Land is very much in the same vein as Death. Not to say they’re copying the band just channeling their vibe. Savage Land is very much old school death metal which I seem to prefer to today’s sound. The band even got the same artist to do the artwork for Savage Land that did one of Death’s album covers. Is this anything new – no but it is a refreshing take on an old sound. Pure gold!
Ahab: The Boats of the “Glen Carrig”
This album almost didn’t make the list but I decided to include it at the last minute. Ahab invented a sub-genre all their own with nautical doom metal and the reason I decided to include this on my list was for one reason, it’s heavy as hell! If you like slow, grinding doom metal with vicious vocals, then Ahab is your band.
