Photo by Jon Hadusek
You won’t see any household names on this list. The first half of 2015 has been dominated by rookie bands and upstarts, and they’re ushering in a new wave of heavy music. If there is any continuous thread here, it’s the unbridled originality of the artists. They remain true to their own vivid personalities and express a range of emotion through metal, from the vegan doom of Vile Creature to Bell Witch’s romantic horror. There are six months to go and plenty of releases on the horizon, but these are our picks for the year’s best metal albums so far.
–Jon Hadusek
Senior Staff Writer
10. Ghost Bath – Moonlover
Questions about their true country of origin and allegations that they’re just a Deafheaven copycat (Sunbather vs. Moonlover, “Dream House” vs. “Happyhouse”, “The Pecan Tree” vs. “Beneath the Shade Tree”) aside, Ghost Bath delivered unto us this year a remarkable work of post-black metal. Wonderfully composed chords shine through a gloomy atmosphere that acts as a backdrop to Nameless’ operatic howls. Tragic, yet somewhat empowering, Ghost Bath present here a work worth more thought than what’s been put into trying to figure out the band’s true identities. I won’t mind the mystery as long as this band continues putting out work like this. –Sean Barry
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9. Tribulation – The Children of the Night
Tribulation wears the many faces of metal, but never claims any sole façade. The band’s sophomore album, The Children of the Night, is at once thrashy, black, and gothic. Think Into the Pandemonium-era Celtic Frost: The intent of each track is different, and there’s a clear, consistent progression of ideas, as if Tribulation is afraid of getting bored of itself. Fans of traditional heavy metal and NWOBHM will swoon over the guitar interplay of Adam Zaars and Jonathan Hulten. Their solos breathe and flow, lending a cohesiveness to the record. —Jon Hadusek
8. Mondo Drag – Mondo Drag
Mondo Drag’s self-titled record is their most inspired work yet. It sounds like a lost artifact of the proto-metal era, the missing link between ’70s heavy psych acts like Atomic Rooster and the spiraling chaos of krautrock. Each song touts a tight groove and a remarkable solo or two, staying loose but never so loose as to wander into aimless jamming. The varied instrumentation and heavy use of flute and organ also help distinguish Mondo Drag among the recent crop of ’70s revivalists. —Jon Hadusek
7. Misþyrming – Söngvar elds og óreiðu
Hailing from the same land as the mighty and violent Eyjafjallajökull, black metallers Misþyrming released their searing debut album in February on Fallen Empire Records and have so far remained unsurpassable in terms of sheer ferocity. Söngvar elds og óreiðu (“songs of fire and chaos”) is relentless, with blazing riffs raining down upon the vocalist’s scorched-earth growls and cries. With an incomparable level of passionate aggression, Söngvar elds og óreiðu has for months been at the top of my list when it’s come to 2015’s best black metal. –Sean Barry
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