So, this is going to be an interesting one fellow Otaku & Metalheads.
We’re now over halfway through 2025. As of this past June, we are halfway through a decade that seems to be getting worse and worse, and I’m not sure if it’s going to get better. Even so, the music of the 2020s has been incredible, and given that I’m a metal guy, I’ll die on the hill and say that Heavy Metal still has it’s claws in this time (Especially in 2020). Given we’re halfway through this time, I thought it would be fun to look at what I think are some of the best albums that have come out so far. The albums that show off the fact as dogshit as things are (And things are really dogshitty), there is still some slivers of light & positivity floating around. I won’t waste anymore of your time, so here are the top albums of the 2020s.....so far!
2020) U.D.O. - We Are One (Song)
I reviewed this album just a few weeks ago in the middle of July, so I won’t repeat too much here. We Are One absolutely needed to come out in 2020, what with it’s upbeat nature & social messaging that was all too important during that time, and has only become more needed in the just over 5+ years since it’s release. If anything, with the political climate being what it is right now in not only the United States but all over the world it seems, maybe this album should have been released in 2025 instead. I said it in both reviews that the social messaging is a little goofy, and I still stand by that, but it’s still powerful more often than not. Definitely a great release to open up the decade!
2021) Mastodon - Hushed And Grim (Song)
Hard to believe that one of the biggest icons were together for over 20 years, only for one of the founding members to leave just a few months ago & badmouth them pretty hard in the process. It’s a shame, because the final record they made together in 2021 will always be the pinnacle of their talent in my eyes. Hushed And Grim is a bit on the bloated side (Almost plays for an hour & a half), but even with that bloat, Mastodon created what forever be the best thing they’ve ever made. Taking all of the emotion from Emperor Of Sand & Cold Dark Place, turning it up to 11, and placing it within some of the strongest instrumentation & vocal work they’ve ever done, it’s easy to see why many fans showered it with nothing put praise. I was only listening to the band for over 4 years by the time Hushed And Grim came out, but it’s because of that record that I might just stick around until the end of their career.
2022) Ozzy Osbourne - Patient Number 9 (Song)
The funny irony about me selecting this record was that it was actually one of my no. 5 albums of 2022 instead of it being a number 1. Fundamentally sharing many issues with it’s predecessor, Patient Number 9 makes it onto this list for two reasons. First, the faults of this release were far more smoothed out than what came before. They’re still there, but it’s nowhere near as bad. Secondly, Ozzy’s increasing bad health kinda moved me to pick this release. Anyone who saw the Black Sabbath concert not too long ago will attest that, as badass as he was singing on the throne, it was also obvious that he was suffering in some way. We all thought he was going to go away when Ordinary Man came out back in 2020, and now.....Patient Number 9 is sadly his last.
2023) Waldgeflüster - Unter Bronzenen Kronen (Song)
The Paradise Lost side project Host gave us a look into their past unfettered by company interference with IX, while Alice Cooper’s tribute to touring and the open road with Road was a fun ride. With German Black Metal masters Waldgeflüster, and their mini-release Unter Bronzenen Kronen, we have what is perhaps one of if not the most emotional releases of 2023. Bite-sized for sure (Only 4 songs), but in just under a half-hour you’re treated to a record that truly tugs your heartstrings & shakes your soul so much that the aftershock come around for a bit of time after you’re done. It might take a few go-arounds for it to permanently stick, but the music is so good it’s not an issue!
2024) Judas Priest - Invincible Shield (Song)
With Ozzy having passed away not too long ago, I now have my fingers crossed for Rob Halford. Though not that much younger than Ozzy (Currently 73, but will turn 74 later this month), I definitely saw how old he looked when I saw him for the first time last year. Luckily, he’s been healthy & clean for quite some time, so I’m not too worried. Even if he does pass away, he’s leaving on a high note with 2024's Invincible Shield! Released roughly half a century since their very first record, there was a very good reason why it was one of my number 1 albums of last year. Though the songs fluctuate between great & good (Never bad or okay), the overall experience of the release is why so many people have stuck with them for so long. Again, I’m not too worried if Rob passes on into Heavy Metal Heaven, but if he does.....he left on a high note.
2025) Destruction - Birth Of Malice (Song)
I’ll be repeating this in December, but there was no other choice to put here (With maybe one exception). On principle alone, 2025 needs one of the titans of German Thrash Metal to take the mantle. I’ve talked about Kreator and Sodom plenty of times, but I don’t think I’ve ever talked about their compatriot Destruction before. Formed around the same time as the previously mentioned bands, along with Tankard, Destruction certainly knew how to be brutal pretty much all the time, and Birth Of Malice continues this. Perfectly reflective of what this year has been like (We got these last few months incoming, so we’ll see if things improve), Birth Of Malice reminds me very much of Sodom’s 1992 near Death Metal experience Tapping The Vein: it’s dingy, dirty, bloody, gory, violent, and reflective of the world’s politics perhaps a little too well. Even if things do come back even a little in 2025, I still won’t change my opinion that Birth Of Malice is 2025's best album.
And these were what I thought the best albums of the 2020s were so far. The Heavy Metal that’s come out in this decade has been pretty intense, but if the rest of this era is anything to theorize, then things will probably get more intense. Not only that, but things might change by the time we get to 2029, and thus some light may come back into the world. So with that, this list is done, & I got the final review of 2020 coming.....it’ll be quite a bit jolly. See you in the middle of August!
