1. Stormkeep- Tales of Othertime
While countless bands have built off the ideas 90s black metal legends like Burzum and Darkthrone, the more melodic, symphonic style of the era has remained less explored. Stormkeep remedy with that with an album soundly rooted in the sounds of bands like Emperor, early Dimmu Borgir, Dissection, and early Borknagar. However, this album is by no means derivative, producing an original album within that tradition. The riffs are dark and epic, with sweeping melodies backed by majestic yet restrained keys. The songs are dynamic, ranging from 8-11 minutes, with interesting shifts and developments. This lends to the fantastical nature of the record. The vocals are a raspy but well articulated growl; some well-timed clean vocals and modulated spoken lines draw out the conceptual nature of this record.
2. Converge & Chelsea Wolfe- Bloodmoon: I
This collaboration between metalcore legends Converge and Chelsea Wolfe, the most relevant goth rock artist of the 21st century, is a truly great collaboration. While elements of both artists' traditional sounds can be heard here, they ultimately produce an original record that stands on its own. This is primarily a doom/sludge metal album, with dense and heavy guitars that sound as if they were recorded within a cathedral. The vocals vary greatly, with Jacob Bannon offering a mix of hardcore shouts and more alt-rock style clean vocals, while Chelsea Wolfe shows of her full range, from the banshee screams to soft ethereal coos. There's great variety between tracks, with some some more direct goth and alternative rock songs interspersed between the longer slabs of sludge. The name implies this record is evidently a part 1, meaning this may just be the beginning.
3. Lamp of Murmur- Submission and Slavery
On Lamp of Murmuur's debut, the one man band offered a compelling mix of DSBM stylings with the raw savagery of France's Les Légions Noirs and a touch of goth rock. On the sophomore record, the goth rock elements are even more pronounced. As the Sisters of Mercy inspired album cover implies, this is more of a true fusion of raw black metal and goth rock, though it's still primarily black metal. True goth rock progressions, guitar solos, and eerie gothic crooning can be found throughout the record. The album is a little short, with only three original metal tracks, adding up to 25 minutes. These are surrounded by two ambient tracks and a Christian Death cover, which is a fairly vanilla closer. However, those three original metal tracks offer some of the best black metal/goth rock fusion we've ever seen.
4. Archspire- Bleed the Future
The first word that comes to mind when thinking of Archspire is "fast." There's plenty of fast death metal, but I have trouble thinking of another band that plays this sort of technical death metal at such break neck speeds. None of the precision is lost with the speed, and if your mind can keep up, there's a ton of nuance to appreciate. The songwriting is also quite strong, with mid-tempo and "just fast" passages countering the "warp-speed" passages. There's a nice mix of savage, crushing progressions and wonky melodic progressions that are surprisingly catchy. For such a complex album, this is very addictive. Pinched notes are peppered throughout, often used as transitions, though some clean progressive lines are deployed as well.
5. Ad Nauseum- Imperative Imperceptible Impulse
The sophomore release of Ad Nauseam is the latest contribution to the avant-garde extreme metal tradition highlighted by the likes of Deathspell Omega and Ulcerate. If you enjoy those sorts of artists, you will not want to miss this one. This is cold and unrelenting death metal loaded with eerie jagged progressions and buzzing leads peppered in the backdrop. The arrangements are complex, with lots of twist and turns produced through shifts in tempo and intensity. The musicianship is stellar throughout, with the drumming managing the constant shifts with expertise. The guitar tone is interesting, as there's little distortion on the guitars, making the record less heavy than than your average death metal album, but sharper and more chilling than most.
6. Epica- Omega
Nine albums in, Epica is still going strong.
Omega is a record that is focused and consistent, with a ton of memorable songs. This is a fairly safe album that gives listeners what they'd expect from Epica: sweeping, dramatic songs with heavy riffs and sweeping orchestral elements. There are a ton of sticky choruses, aided by Simone Simons angelic voice, which sounds as good as ever. There is a bit more of a pronounced Arabic flair to this record, with a number progressions that are clearly inspired by Middle Eastern music, and even some of the backing vocals allude to this tradition. Still, even if this isn't overly ambitious, it's very well executed and will please fans of Epica, while also serving as a good introduction to newcomers.
7. Effluence- Psychocephalic Spawning
Psychocephalic Spawning is one of the weirdest death metal albums I've ever heard. Effluence is by and large a one man band, though guests do perform the guitar solos. The foundation is blast beat driven brutal death metal, with lots of chaotic chug riffs, peppered with a large dose of pinched notes and scaling. The vocals are a low gurgled growl that I'm pretty sure is wordless. However, there is a lot of strange layering on this record that makes this a record that sounds like no other. There's a ton of odd percussion, including cow bells, xylophones, and chimes. The synths are equally odd, adding bubble sounds and atonal ambient layerings. The culminating result is a mind-bending record.
8. Trhä- Endlhëtonëg
There are a few mysterious acts on the 2021 list, but none more so than Trhä. Little is known about Trhä, other than someone who goes by Thét Älëf performs everything. If I had to guess, this act is Scandinavian, but I could be completely wrong on that. The music is raw, lo-fi atmospheric black metal. The production is paper thin, with the keys standing at the forefront of the mix, creating an cold, dark magic vibe. The guitars and drums are somewhat buried in the mix, and sound quite muddy. The vocals are a gremlin screech that's bulked up with lots of reverb. Trhä is unafraid to explore large stretches of ambient, and even the metal parts feel pretty ambient. If you are looking for a record that is equal parts beautiful and creepy, then Endlhëtonëg is for you.
9. Ethereal Shroud- Trisagion
Ethereal Shroud is a one man band from England that plays in a "dark metal" style that fuses elements of black and doom metal with symphonic and ambient elements to create a dreary and archaic sound.
Trisagion is an ambitious record, with a mere three tracks adding up 64 minutes. The songs naturally take on a number of forms throughout their massive lengths, but probably not as many as one would expect, as there is a good amount of repetition on this record, allowing the listener to be immersed in the atmosphere. And the atmosphere is quite good. The guitars have a shivering quality to them, that make them feel mountainous, while the touch on the keys is soft, giving them a dreamy quality, like clouds floating across the sky.
10. Wolves in the Throne Room- Primordial Arcana
Wolves in the Throne Room are one the most consistent black metal bands, and have struck a really nice balance between having an established sound and ensuring that each album is unique. As you would expect from Wolves in the Throne Room, Primordial Arcana is a dark, melancholic, woodsy album with lots of atmospheric elements. The usual chilling tremolo is present with a peppering of melodic leads and eerie keys. However, the songs are far more compact than on prior albums, with only one song lasting more than 8 minutes. The tighter compositions do not compromise depth, but do result in some tracks that stick a little easier. It's far from their best, but is still a strong contribution to their deep catalogue.
