Best Mostly Metal Albums of 2017
It's the extremely belated best-of list no one asked for. Non-metal fans, 10, 13-16, 25, 28, 30, 33, and 35 may interest you. |
| 42 |  | Ex Deo
The Immortal Wars
An epic slab of death metal about Hannibal's march over the Alps. |
| 41 |  | Attic
Sanctimonious
Attic performs blatant King Diamond worship, but they do the king justice. Sanctimonious tells a gripping and evil story of a pregnant nun named Alice. Admittedly, this album is cheesy, but it is also addictive. |
| 40 |  | White Ward
Futility Report
Very proggy black metal with a smooth sax (instead of that obnoxious squeaking goose people always use in metal). This album will take you on a journey from black metal to jazz to light rock to electronic and back. |
| 39 |  | Shadow of Intent
Reclaimer
Halo-themed tech deathcore. Sounds terrible, right? Wrong. Intent use breakdowns judiciously and features neoclassical melodies. Is this even deathcore? |
| 38 |  | Bell Witch
Mirror Reaper
This gorgeous 80 minute behemoth of funeral doom feels shorter than it is. |
| 37 |  | Aeternam
Ruins of Empires
Montrously epic MENA prog melodeath |
| 36 |  | Crimfall
Amain
Epic and proggy folk metal with great storytelling and excellent female vocals. |
| 35 |  | Premiata Forneria Marconi
Emotional Tattoos
Exceptionally catchy and smooth Italian prog rock |
| 34 |  | August Burns Red
Phantom Anthem
Anthem features the same ABR metalcore writing, but all the segments are better than ever. Riffs are catchier, breakdowns are heavier, and the band doesn't need to make strange genre transitions to impress. |
| 33 |  | Elder (USA-MA)
Reflections of a Floating World
Incredibly melodic and flowing stoner/doom rock/metal, but a bit too meandering to get any higher for me. |
| 32 |  | Dyscarnate
With All Their Might
The album art says it all. This is pure pit-inducing, muscle-building, meathead death metal. However, the writing is strong and the pace varies enough that you can enjoy this outside of a gym. |
| 31 |  | Wormwood
Ghostlands - Wounds From A Bleeding Earth
Infectiously melodic blackened folk metal featuring great dynamics and the occasional heavy metal solo. The songs with female vocals are a step above the rest. |
| 30 |  | Lunatic Soul
Fractured
Dark electronic prog with haunting atmospheres and excellent vocals. |
| 29 |  | Benighted
Necrobreed
A brutal death metal onslaught with little twists to keep you on your toes (or creeped out). |
| 28 |  | '68
Two Parts Viper
Viper is fun, raw, and heavy all at the same time. The album blends hardcore with more accessible sounds of indie/alt rock. |
| 27 |  | The Great Old Ones
EOD: A Tale of Dark Legacy
Black metal can be a chore for me sometimes, but the wonderful melodies on this record create an effortless listening experience. |
| 26 |  | Cloak
To Venomous Depths
This band plays the same gothic death as Tribulation, but with a bit more death and less catchiness. |
| 24 |  | Jag Panzer
The Deviant Chord
These veterans of heavy/power metal prove they still have gas left in the tank (Ich habe ein Witz gemacht). |
| 23 |  | Replacire
Do Not Deviate
Tech death that keeps you on your toes with clean vocals and keys. |
| 22 |  | Converge
The Dusk in Us
Converge's trademark metalcore: absolutely blistering and gut-wrenchingly emotional. |
| 21 |  | Havok
Conformicide
Irate political thrash with one of the best rhythm sections in all metal and incredible production (especially the drums). |
| 20 |  | Wode
Servants of the Countercosmos
One raging wreckingball of black metal that just so happens to be as catchy and succinct as it is extreme. |
| 19 |  | Mastodon
Emperor of Sand
On EoS, Mastodon opts for a less sludgy and more accessible sound, including one completely radio-friendly tune, but they keep their proggy songwriting and wild drumming in tact. What the band lost in weight was converted melody. |
| 18 |  | Expander
Endless Computer
Disorienting, sci-fi themed, Ballou-produced crossover trash with a guitarist hooked on surf rock. |
| 17 |  | Ayreon
The Source
This is one massive prog metal concept album. It's 80 minutes and features more vocalists than a hip-hop album. Although the apocalyptic story drags a bit, the superbly written and diverse tracks seem to last half as long as they actually do. |
| 16 |  | Nova Collective
The Further Side
Four prog metallers from bands such as BTBAM and Haken unite to perform impressive jazz fusion wizardry (or wankery depending on who you ask). |
| 15 |  | Brand New
Science Fiction
Dark, dynamic, and, most of all, sad. Brand New's angst-ridden emo has come to a mature, morose end |
| 14 |  | The Night Flight Orchestra
Amber Galactic
A poppy 70's rock side project of members of metal bands such as Soilwork and Arch Enemy. This is an unabashed rehash of old ideas, but I love it. |
| 13 |  | Alestorm
No Grave But the Sea
These pirate-obsessed, folk metal jokers finally learn how to write great music to go along with their ridiculous lyrics. |
| 12 |  | Dawn Ray'd
The Unlawful Assembly
These UK anarchists create exceptionally catchy raw black metal. They use folk melodies and a violin to add levity to blistering black metal. |
| 11 |  | Aether Realm
Tarot
American made, Finnish sounding melodeath folk metal about tarot cards. Despite the album's length, these catchy and superbly written songs never get boring. |
| 10 |  | Caligula's Horse
In Contact
Pretty, upbeat prog metal with a friendly Australian accent and a hint of djent. In Contact is so light and accessible It could appeal to fans of prog rock and alt rock. |
| 9 |  | Pagan Altar
The Room of Shadows
Doom with a NWOBHM sound and excellent production, especially the intro to the title track. It's a stroll down Manilla Road on a Black Sabbath. |
| 8 |  | Bufihimat
I
Absolutely brutal tech-death that incorporates some Gorguts and Pyrrhon weirdness but manages to maintain headbangability throughout. |
| 7 |  | Lor
In Forgotten Sleep
A surprisingly unique and raw fusion of power metal and folk metal from an underground band. They eschewed the tropes of these typically cheesy sub-genres. |
| 6 |  | Unleash The Archers
Apex
Canadian power metal band with the best female vocalist in all metal writes an album with a cohesive story and superbly written songs. |
| 5 |  | Mutoid Man
War Moans
Fun, catchy stoner rock influenced by variety of metal sub-genres and Converge. |
| 4 |  | Akercocke
Renaissance in Extremis
Proggy blackened death that repeatedly and suddenly transitions from punishingly heavy to full on prog-rock and back. The clean vocals may take some getting used to though. |
| 3 |  | Archspire
Relentless Mutation
Tech death that doesn't get lost in trying to be as technical as possible. It features insane vocals, memorable melodies, excellent rhythmic interplay, and even dynamics! At only 30 minutes in length, you won't get bored before the end. |
| 2 |  | Venenum
Trance of Death
Death (not the band) goes prog-rock, but not in an Opeth way. This still has a grimy old school sound, but the organ is in the band instead of the lyrics. The suite at the end is a highlight. |
| 1 |  | Pallbearer
Heartless
Gorgeous proggy doom. Heartless's crushing riffs float gracefully through extended songs . It's like watching a power lifter excel at ballet. |
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