TOP ALBUMS OV 2025 W/ METAL-AGED MOM & GAGE!
Immune to sentiment & personal drama, LISTMANIA 2K25 DAY 3 examines lists beyond the subjective, through the eyes of logic, lolbuttz, history & science. Here TovH replace this notion with a grindcore metal equivalent of U2: one-step ‘feel-it melodic hooks that stress comforting community & nice people for the trivial sake of emotion-validation! Disingenuous, it shows in the 2x posts a day form where linear weekly posts are repeated in swirlies; the commendable opinion-riffing & suffocating brilliance suck. Not Metal-Aged Mom and Gage!
Metal-Aged Mom
Let’s get one thing out of the way: the two albums I listened to most in 2025 were Ghost’s Skeletá and Sleep Token’s Even in Arcadia. I saw both Ghost and Sleep Token live this year and their new albums were on heavy rotation in my car (CDs, baby!). The world does not need more words written about these two albums. But 2025 was hardly all arena headline acts all the time. In fact, 2025 is probably my most diverse metal listening year ever. Writing the DEI Metal column has introduced me to so many trans and queer artists who are simultaneously making fucking amazing music and being demonized by the most powerful people in the world. So, yeah, I guess you could say that I’ve been radicalized by queer anti-fascist metal. Turns out, antifa is metal AF.
Transgressive – Not Like This
Independent
Fascism is here. Right now. But most people are going about their business as usual, blissfully ignorant about the horrors being inflicted on the world’s most vulnerable populations. Immigrants, the poor, people with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ people are the most openly targeted. But the fascists have really honed in on transgender people. This isn’t new, it’s been happening for years, but it has accelerated in the U.S. during Trump’s second term. The fucking president issued an executive order basically declaring transgender people as subhuman for fuck’s sake. The most powerful people in the country are laser-focused on dismantling every single thing that allows transgender people to live their lives, from their healthcare to the ability to use a public restroom. The goal is eradication. And no one is coming to the rescue.
No band understands or expresses this better than Transgressive and Not Like This is a testament to this moment in history. The backbone of Transgressive is guitarist and songwriter Alicia Cordisco who is one of the most talented and prolific artists making metal right now. Bethany “Beef” Pitts has been singing for Transgressive since late 2024 and her vocals give these songs both heft and beauty. “When your privilege shatters, remember all we said, because of your compliance we’re already dead,” Pitts sings on “When They Come for You.” A dire warning that far too many people will not heed. Not Like This is heavy and righteous stuff and, frankly, is what metal was made for. Transgressive is currently working on new songs, so we know that at least one thing will not suck in 2026.
Unreqvited – A Pathway to the Moon
Prophecy Productions
I vividly remember the exact place and time I first heard Unreqvited. Okay, that isn’t true, but it feels like I should because it was a turning point for me, musically. Or, not a turning point, really. More like a puncturing of a membrane that was preventing me from seeing the expanding universe. I think it’s fair to say that Unreqvited’s 2021 album Beautiful Ghosts was my gateway into black metal. I had not listened to a lot of black metal when I first heard the song “Autumn & Everley.” I thought, “Oh, black metal can be like this?” It isn’t all screaming and blastbeats recorded on a My First Sony in a wood paneled basement? Unreqvited is cinematic and sweeping, a dichotomy between the beautiful and the grotesque, exultation and pain.
A Pathway to the Moon leans more heavily into the beauty. There is more clean singing than on previous albums, but a mournful wail still flows below it all. I fucking love it. Unreqvited is a Canadian musician who goes by 鬼 (which translates into Ghost in Chinese). I don’t know his real name. But unlike, say, Sleep Token, he doesn’t wear a mask or anything and his picture is readily available online. I saw Unreqvited play live with a touring band near Detroit in 2023 and it was fucking transcendent. Before the show, I bought a shirt directly from 鬼 at the merch booth. I knew who he was, but I didn’t say anything. I felt sheepish. I did not feel like it was possible to put into words what Unreqvited’s music meant to me, how elated I was to be at the show. On Unreqvited’s Bandcamp page, along with tags like “atmospheric black metal” and “post-metal,” I noticed the tag “depressive black metal.” Maybe Unreqvited resonates so much with me because I am so deeply familiar with depression. There is an unceasing parade of horrors in this world that always trying to push me under, but so long as I remember that there are also moments of intense beauty worth coming back to the surface for, I will not drown.
Ashenheart – Tales From Eternal Dusk
Independent
I have come a long way in my appreciation of black metal in this past year. It may be that my ear is getting better at teasing out the beauty from the noise (not pejorative). Between the shrieking and the distortion, harshness was all I heard in a lot of black metal. But then I discovered bands like Eldamar and Unreqvited where the contrasts between the harsh and sublime are more pronounced. I don’t know where I discovered Ashenheart, but I think Bluesky. I found my way to their Bandcamp page and saw that they were in Michigan. I love finding Michigan metal bands to champion, and this made me even more receptive to their music before I even heard a note. Amanda Kauffman—who plays guitars, bass, and drums and is the band’s principal songwriter—lives in Traverse City (about 4 hours away from where I live just outside of Detroit), but the rest of the band does not. Steve Wiener, who plays keyboards and synths as well as guitar stuff, lives in New Jersey, and vocalist Alex Loach is in the UK.
Ashenheart’s association with antifascist black metal label Fiadh Productions, which put out Tales From Eternal Dusk on cassette (most Fiadh releases are cassette or vinyl, but sometimes they’re on CD, my preferred physical media. Tales From Eternal Dusk and 2024’s Faded Gold are available on CD from elasticStage), was yet another point in the band’s favor. And then, of course, is the music itself. Dark, snarling, cursed. But so alive; bright even. Steve Wiener’s keyboards and synth, as well as passages of acoustic guitar, open the songs up, rays of colorful light amidst the darkness. Tales From Eternal Dusk contains “original tales of dark fantasy.” Each song is like a classic short horror film shot in black and white, speckled with scratches and dust.
Melpomene – A Body Is A Suggestion
Independent
I don’t listen to a lot of instrumental metal. I don’t know why. Maybe because so many instrumental metal bands are made up of cis white guys. Melpomene’s A Body is a Suggestion is described as “emotional post-death” and contains ambient and jazz elements. The album is “a treatise on self actualization” meant “to emulate violent catharsis and its mystic aftermath; this is music by, for and about: queer, female, colored, and fringe experiences.” There are no vocals, but on their Bandcamp page there are lyrics that help put the music into an emotional and compositional context. The song titles and the lyrics speak to transformation. The album, both musically and lyrically, speaks to a progression of seeking, finding, containing, and becoming light.
The opening track is titled “Deadname.” Lyrics include, “Body and Mind / Smite the earth upon arrival / Intrinsically linked, but one must die.” The song “Skull Resonance” contains the lyrics: “I know what I have to do. Rend my flesh. Unveil the sun within.” The album ends with “I Am The Future Both Feared And Hoped For,” which concludes, “I Am The star that you wish upon / The void that you run from.” I would call A Body is a Suggestion “an important piece of music,” but that’s what people say when they know that something is good but they don’t like it and wouldn’t dare say so. But it’s true. This is not an album that’s going to change the mind of anyone who abhors queerness and transgender people. It is, to be fair, very niche. But this is an album that opens you if you allow it to.
Flummox – Southern Progress
Needlejuice Records
I have never attended a tent revival, but I did go see Tennessee’s Flummox play at a show near Detroit in May of 2025 and it was spiritual AF. There was a time not long ago when I would have probably listened to the first two songs on Southern Progress and said, “Ope (as I am from Michigan), not for me.” Not because it isn’t good, but it is very frenetic and noisy and hard to make sense of at first. The human brain loves recognizable patterns and is always searching for a familiar groove to snuggle into. That’s why so much pop music is scientifically designed to be catchy.
Southern Progress sounds like it was made in the lab of a mad scientist trying to use every single musical genre possible plus some that haven’t been invented yet. Flummox call themselves “a band of queers living in the Bible Belt” (they’re from Tennessee) and they describe Southern Progress as “a satirical and scathing critique of Christian nationalism, fascism, & collective trauma.” The album opens with the absolutely captivating Alyson Blake Dellinger singing, “Times were I thought I was just a strange boy until God said, ‘Fuck that, here’s some dysphoria,’ and I didn’t really understand why some asshole cloud king thought I’d look better with body dysmorphia.” The album ends with “Coyote Gospel,” an 8.5-minute opus that contains the lyrics, “If Christ came today, He’d be ashamed and put in chains by those proclaiming His name.” Can I get an amen?
Other 2025 albums I love and my life would be incomplete without
Alicia Cordisco – The Burden of I
Independent
Am I In Trouble? – Spectrum
Independent
Agriculture – The Spiritual Sound
The Flenser
Faetooth – Labyrinthine
The Flenser
An Abstract Illusion – The Sleeping City
Willowtip Records
If you’re a nerd, follow me on Bluesky. Support the artists you love as much as you can so that they can keep making the art you love.
Gage
10. Ada Rook – UNKILLABLE ANGEL
Independent
UNKILLABLE ANGEL released early this year (February 3, to be specific) and yet it has lived on my playlist constantly since then; it’s an easy choice for my top 10 list. This album has everything I want from a record: explosive rage, chill electronics, distorted guitars, distorted vocals, catchy choruses and neck-snapping breakdowns. What else could you possibly want from an industrial album? I just can’t get enough, the vocal delivery especially sets all of Ada Rook’s work apart from nearly anything else I’ve heard and this album is no exception.
Favorite tracks: “ALL Tails Deaths Animations,” “CLOUT STRIFE,” “LOSE YOURSELF,” “weed store kratom”
9. Tropic Gold – SICK TO DEATH OF EVERYTHING
UNFD
Tropic Gold is my obligatory metalcore pick of the year and I’d argue this one is a particularly strong choice. It’s all about the groove—I love to play this one in the car, it makes for perfect driving music with its high energy and stomping beats throughout the album. I also really enjoy the vocals and overall production on this record; the vocalist does a good job covering both distorted and clean vocals and has a unique sound to his voice which is much appreciated. A lot of metalcore vocals tend to get stylistically repetitive and easily forgettable, but not in this case. As I mentioned, the production is also notable, with every track painting a massive, open soundscape providing a highly immersive experience if you have the audio equipment necessary to fully appreciate it.
Favorite tracks: “THE ANGELS ARE GONE,” “DEAD TO ALL MY FRIENDS,” “HOLY HORROR”
8. Tallah – Primeval: Obsession // Detachment
Earache Records
Let me be frank, I think Tallah is singlehandedly holding up the modern Nu-metal movement. This album fucking rips, and it does so much to bring this slightly antiquated, highly-repetitive genre into the 21st century. Since Tallah’s first album in 2020 it’s been clear that they’re here to do something entirely unique while still remaining close enough to their influences to be approachable. The vocals and drums especially show what makes this album special. Justin Bonitz may be the single most talented metal vocalist I currently know of, be it high pitched shrieks, gutturals, clean swanky vocals, or that weird metal scat shit Korn does; he can do it all, and he does it better than anyone else I’ve heard. They also have Max Portnoy on drums, I don’t need to say anything other than the name Portnoy, you all get it. This is the pinnacle of modern Nu metal and truly shows that this genre isn’t doomed to just bring back the same sounds and styles every 20 years when it starts to regain relevancy.
Favorite tracks: “augmented,” “_la|cuna_,” “A primeval detachment,” “what we want”
7. Rivers of Nihil – S/T
Metal Blade Records
I’ve been a fan of Rivers of Nihil for a very long time; they’re one of the bands that got me into the death metal genre with their earlier albums. I’ve seen a lot of their older fans say they started to fall off with their 2018 album Where Owls Know My Name, and while I agree that they had a bit of a rough transition period between vocalists I think they’ve really come into their new style, especially with this newest album. Rivers of Nihil hits all of the right notes: there’s crushing breakdowns full of double kicks and guttural vocals but also a lot of the newer sound they’ve been exploring which adds an atmospheric and highly immersive edge to all 10 of the tracks on this album. I think the track “Despair Church” showcases this best: it has a perfect mix of classic RoN and new RoN, with crushing guitar tones, blast beats and distorted vocals, an atmospheric chorus with clean vocals, and a pseudo jazzy bridge to tie it all together. Give this song a chance, if you like it you’ll love the rest of the album.
Favorite tracks: “Dustman,” “Criminals,” “Despair Church,” “American Death,” “Rivers of Nihil”
6. Youth Code – Yours, With Malice
Sumerian Records
If you love heavy-duty industrial with harsh vocals and an antifascist political message, this one is perfect for you. Youth Code is another band I’m a long-time fan of, and they just keep getting better and better. I do love their early work but you can tell the production wasn’t quite there yet; this record fixes all of those problems while also introducing some more modern industrial sounds that really liven up their style. This record may be short given that it’s only an EP but I’ll be damned if I don’t put it on my list, I just can’t stop listening to it.
Favorite tracks: just listen to the whole thing, it’s only 17 minutes… you’ll either really love it or really hate it.
5. Signs of the Swarm – To Rid Myself of Truth
Century Media Records
You already know I had to throw in a crazy deathcore pick at some point, and here it is. I love a good wall of noise when I’m stressed out and this record has been providing me with the perfect outlet this year. Sometimes all I want is just nasty, low-tuned distorted guitars, blast beats, and constant screaming. This year whenever I’ve been in that mood, this is the album I’ve been putting on. There isn’t a whole lot else to say about this pick, just listen to it and enjoy it.
Favorite tracks: “HELLMUSTFEARME,” “Clouded Retinas,” “Sarkazein,” “Fear & Judgement”
4. Paleface Swiss – CURSED
Independent
Like Slaughter to Prevail stylistically but think Alex the Terrible is an insufferable chud? Me too, listen to this instead. Not only does this scratch the same itch, but they actually bring the genre forward by further developing the style unlike many others in that space. There’s even a direct diss track to Alex on this record making fun of his tough guy persona and frat boy personality. I love this record, it’s nothing groundbreaking but it’s a lot of fun, it’s heavy, and it’s great to bang your head to. Don’t take it too seriously and you’ll have a great time with it as well.
Favorite tracks – “…and with hope you’ll be damned,” “Enough?” (Alex the Terrible diss track), “Youth Decay”
3. Employed to Serve – Fallen Star
Spinefarm
Yes, I know I already put in my obligatory metalcore pick for the year but this one is too good to not include. Employed to Serve has been around for over 10 years at this point but I think they’ve finally found a sound that works for them. This record is phenomenal; it’s full of crazy unique synth and guitar lines, melancholy choruses, atmospheric ballads, and emotional breakdowns. It’s everything I want from a modern metalcore record and it doesn’t venture into the pop sphere like Sleep Token does for instance (really don’t enjoy their music, sorry, not sorry). If you want to wind down for the day and maybe even feel something, put this one on, you won’t regret it.
Favorite tracks: “Treachery,” “Fallen Star,” “Breaks me Down” (this one is my fav), “From This Day Forward”
2. Stray From the Path – Clockworked
SharpTone Records
Stray From the Path has been tearing up the hardcore scene ever since 2008 and for their final album they decided to go out with a bang, as it should be. As sad as I am to see them hang it up I do respect the hell out of them doing it on their own terms and never selling out. For a band that has done so much for me over the years I would be remiss to not include this album in my top 10. Consider this pick a memorial for one of the greatest bands to ever do it.
Favorite tracks: “Fuck Them All To Hell,” “Clockworked,” “Bodies in the Dark” (this one fucking bangs), “A Life in Four Chapters” (the 4th and final chapter in their police brutality series of tracks)
1. Ada Rook – 59 Nights
Independent
Hey, we’ve seen you before. Yes, this is the second Ada Rook album on this list; she released a total of 4 albums this year, so be glad I didn’t include all of them. (Trust me, I thought about it.) What can I say, I just love everything she makes. This one is much more melancholy and personal compared to the other choice, but I think that difference and duality is what made me choose the two I did to both start and end this list respectively.
Much of the same that I said for the other one still applies here, and I think this album is equally as good but for different reasons. For instance this album has a massive acoustic ballad near the end, which to my knowledge is the only time she’s ever put out something like that. Normally that isn’t my style but in this case there’s just so much emotion behind it and effort put into it, I can’t help but love it. The same can be said for the rest of this album. It’s close enough to her other work that if you like that you’ll like this, but it’s different enough that if you don’t love her other work you should still give this a shot, it may just change your mind.
Favorite tracks: “BROKEN BEACON,” “crossing.mp3,” “NEEDLED 24/7, ‘”chaos is the only way out,” she said normally,’ “shooting siblings”
Honorable Mentions
Ten56. – IO
Out Of Line Music
I’m going to keep the honorable mentions short. This is a killer deathcore record with some super unique guitar work, you’ll either love it or hate it, give it a shot, it can’t hurt.
Favorite tracks: “Snapped Neck,” “Earwig,” “Banshee”
Nine Inch Nails – Tron Ares Soundtrack
I would never put a soundtrack in a top 10 albums list, but damn this one got close. I do happen to have an undying obsession for Nine Inch Nails and anything Trent Reznor touches but I really do think this is one of the greatest soundtracks of the 21st century, almost certainly the best of the decade. It’s electronic, it’s weird, there’s tracks with vocals, it really does feel like it transports you directly into the Tron Grid. it’s like if Trent Reznor produced a Massive Attack record. I could go on about it for hours but I’ll let it speak for itself.
Favorite tracks: “As Alive As You Need Me To Be,” “I Know You Can Feel It,” “Who Wants To Live Forever,” “Shadow Over Me”
Make sure to check out LISTMANIA 2K25 Days I and II!
