So, things are gonna be different this year, fellow Otaku & Metalheads.
2025's best albums of the year is going dark. Darker than anything I’ve ever done for any of these lists. This year.....was not really good here in the United States, or in much of the world to be honest. There were a few slivers of light, but for much of the rest of 2025 we were given darkness that rivaled anything that 2020 shoved in our faces. Because of that, I decided to step out of my comfort zone somewhat, and select albums that aren’t always the kind I like. There’s a familiar face or two to be sure, but for the most part these are bands that definitely wear black a lot of the time. The subject matter is certainly darker, but the musical talent still shines bright as the sun. I won’t waste anymore of your time, so here are my top 5 albums of 2025. Let’s begin.
5) Patriarkh - Prophet Ilja (Song) & Waldgeflüster - Knochengesang I (Song) & II (Song)
And then there’s Waldgeflüster. These Black Metal masters from Germany have also had an interesting history with me: I first found them in 2019, and despite being placed at no. 5 on that year’s top 5 list, they were a nice take on a metal subgenre that’s one of my least favorite. Fast forward to 2023, and their mini-album Unter Bronzenen Kronen was an emotional colossus that hit me pretty hard. Then, just last month on the 7th, they come roaring back with Knochengesang, and it was gorgeous. These guys never delve into the stereotypes that Black Metal is known for, opting for themes of Nature & Heathendom, with occasional delving into some serious emotions. The instrumentation continues to be well-performed & atmospheric, and the vocal work goes between clear & precise, to screeching yet powerful at the drop of a hat. If some of the albums at my no. 1 spot weren’t released this year (hint hint), then I might have actually put this there. Even though I didn’t, there is no denying that Knochengesang is one of the band’s best.
4) Lordi - Limited Deadition (Song) & Ghost - Skeletá (Song)
Okay, I had to have a little of what I call “Fun” darkness on this list. Music that, while dark on the outside, is actually a delight on the inside.....and these two records fit the bill perfectly!
First off, Lordi continues to nothing but a ton of fun! For over 2 decades, these Finnish beasts have conquered their native country, Europe, and by extent the rest of the world with their own miss of KISS tribute & devotion to all things spooky. Limited Deadition continues the gimmicked records since 2018's Sexorcism, as they opted to go for the theme of 80s action figure commercials & 80s horror (With some smattering of modern-day spooks), and it shows through the carrying over of heavy keyboard & synths from Screem Writers Guild from 2023. The guitars & bass are drowned out a little because of this, but the overall experience is rock solid. If you liked their outing from 2 years ago, then you’re certain to love this!
We’ve also got the return of Ghost to these lists! Not since 2018's Prequelle have I actually sat down & listened to one of their records, on account of a perceived slight coming from me (Long story). Skeletá is one of, if not their most, pop-sounding records that they’ve ever released. Impera from back in 2022 definitely has more pop in it when compared to Prequelle, but the band’s 2025 outing has that aspect front and center. Outside of the fact that perhaps it’s a little too much on some tracks, for the most part it all got me to smile! Tobias Forge and the rest of his Nameless Ghouls continue to provide some fun spooks, all the while slowly infiltrating your mind with each note. If they can stay like this for their next few releases, I might just be back in the Ghost faithful. If not? Then I can still say that Skeletá was a fine treat for 2025 & fun to listen to at least once.
3) Paradise Lost - Ascension (Song)
Back in 2020, the boys from Halifax gave us the dark colossus Obsidian, which coincidentally was also at my no. 3 spot that year. Then in 2023, we were treated to the side project Host and their first record IX, and that was a great look back at their electronic phase. Here in 2025, they deliver us Ascension, and by God was this wonderful! Bringing back a little more Doom Metal into the fold, the album might be darker than what they released in 2020, but only just. Everybody in the band is giving it their all (Nick Holmes’s voice is especially on point in this album), and there’s not a single moment where they’re not sucking in any capacity. The only thing that will be a hurdle to jump over for some is how soul-crushing Ascension can be, but if anyone can get past that, they’ll find quite a treat.
2) Ministry - The Squirrely Years Revisited (Song)
Sometimes, darkness isn’t from some monster or some dusty eldritch tome. Sometimes, darkness comes from our past. From a part of our lives where we might not have been proud of ourselves. Not only that, but we look back at that darkness, and come to the conclusion that maybe it wasn’t all bad. If you told me that Uncle Al would take a look at music he’s almost despised since the 80s prior to 2023, I would have laughed right in your face, but here we are! The Squirrely Years Revisited is an album that the most longtime of Ministry fans have been begging for, and for newer fans that are hyper curious: a collection of songs from both With Sympathy & Twitch, Al Jourgenson reinvented the songs as only he could (along with the rest of Ministry), and while a tiny few might not hold up as well when compared to the rest of the record, the overall experience is just a high-quality nostalgia blast that hits hard! If the entire experience was solid, I might have put it at number one. However, there were two releases that were all too appropriate for the end the list. One from the end of March, and the other from the end of June, & perhaps a surprise as well. Even so, this trip into Ministry’s distant past is a memorable one for sure!
Before we get to my number 1 album of 2025, it’s time to talk about this year’s honorable mentions, and I’m doing something different this go around. The albums I’ve selected to come here are honestly just as good as what’s on the main list, and maybe even better in some cases. So much so, that I’ve given the both of these some recommendations as to where they might go on the main list if they did. With that out of the way, here are 2025's honorable mentions.
HM1) Majestica - Power Train (Song)(No. 4 or No. 1)
Majestica has had an.....interesting history with my little corner of the internet. Despite having a wonderful first album back in 2019, for whatever reason I never talked about it on my top 5 albums list that year, then their take on A Christmas Carol in 2020 (Which I looked at back in August) became one of my no. 1 albums of that year. With Power Train, we get something somewhat different. It goes back to what Above The Sky was like with how jumbled it can be, but it manages to also have some of the focus that A Christmas Carol had. The end result is an album that’s not as stable as the 2nd one, but faaaar more focused than what Majestica first released. I do find it to be a shame that this one isn’t gimmicky like A Christmas Carol, as the title track of the album alludes a magical journey by way of a train ride. Even though it’s obviously not the case, Power Train is a fun & goofy time. If you didn’t like Above The Sky & it’s randomness, Power Train might be a good substitute!
HM2) Werewolves - The Ugliest Of All (Song)(No. 5)
Out of everything that came out this year, this is the album that surprised me. As most of you know, Death Metal is one of my least favorite subgenres, and the gore filled side of it even more so. I was never a fan of when it decides to be gross & shocking, yet for some reason.....I happen to like this one. Now, I don’t plan on listening to it over & over, but something about The Ugliest Of All just works for me. Maybe it because of the fact that, despite being covered from top to bottom in gore & viscera, there’s moments where the album’s not completely unleashing arterial spray all over you. Hell, even when you’re practically being bathed in blood & guts, the instrumentation is thunderous, and the vocals don’t fully sound like the cookie monster. Again, I’m probably not going to listen to The Ugliest Of All a horde of times, but I’ll still enjoy it once in a while.
1) Destruction - Birth Of Malice (Song) & Sodom - The Arsonist (Song) & Sabaton - Legends (Song)
I don’t think there was any other album in 2025 that more than earned the right to be number one. I don’t think there was any other record that could encapsulate was this year was like, especially in my home country. On principle alone, this release absolutely needed to make it to this spot! To suggest anything other release would be heresy of the highest degree. Much like Kreator’s 2017 behemoth of a release in Gods Of Violence, another cornerstone of the German Thrash Metal scene perfectly encapsulated what it was like in the world, and especially here in the United States. Birth Of Malice is not a pretty release: it is ugly, dingy, dirty, and sheds a light upon things that most normal people don’t want to see. However, it’s a perfect reflection of what this year was like from beginning to end, and it’ll possibly stay that way until things change.....if they ever do.
There also happens to be Sodom at no. 1 as well. It’s been almost a decade since I last had these Teutonic Titans on a list of mine, and while Decision Day was fantastic.....this album is a behemoth of war. You’re gunning down soldiers in a helicopter, lightning up fields with fire, bombing enemy strongholds, and it’s not pretty. Thrash Metal in general never tries to glorify war and it’s horrific aftermath, and Sodom are one of those bands that definitely knows how to make it bleaker than some. Given all of the conflict that was happening all over this world (Not just here in the United States), The Arsonist had to be put at no. 1 on principle alone like Birth Of Malice. It reflected all of the chaos well, and might continue to do so if things stay the way they are.
Yet, for as serious as this list was, it needed at least a little light at the end of the tunnel, and one band in question was more than ready for the task. Swedish legends Sabaton have been on a record so far this decade, what with The War To End All Wars from 2022, the movie tour at museums to promote the album in 2023, their live tour last year with Judas Priest was incredible, not to mention their concert movie The Tour To End All Tours from 2024 as well. Legends? This is an album that’ll give you 20cc’s of happy injected straight into your ass! While perhaps there were too many singles, and some of the songs sounded similar to previous tunes on prior records, one can’t deny that they still known how to use history with their music, and the end result is just wonderful. Much like Heroes from 2014, the band decided to sing of iconic figures from warfare past, but this time they decided to delve much further into history they’ve ever done. From the Knights Templar, to Napoleon, to even Ancient Egypt, Joakim & the gang continue to mix serious history with their patented brand of Power Metal, and the end result is just fun for your ears. Definitely the right kind of band-aid to put on any wounds you sustained this year.
And those were my top 5 albums of 2025. A considerably darker list than perhaps anything I’ve ever posted, it’s a testament to how bleak this year was when compared to how this decade started off. Hopefully, 2026 is more upbeat & positive when compared to.....whatever the hell this year was. So, I will see you all in a few days when we’ll take a look my top 5 movies of the year, but tomorrow I have to post up something personal. It’ll be.....rough.
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If you’re curious as to what I thought of last year’s albums, click on the link below:
Top 5 Albums Of 2024
