|
User
Reviews 12
Approval 96%
Soundoffs 12
News Articles 17
Band Edits + Tags 19
Album Edits 44
Album Ratings 495
Objectivity 77%
Last Active 10-15-22 8:47 pm
Joined 09-20-22
Review Comments 2,650
| Arth's TOP 2025, revised
Ranked loosely except for the top 10. | | 1 |  | Allegaeon
The Ossuary Lens
☑️ It's extremely rare for a death metal album to have me hooked in an instant, but this here did exactly that. Top-notch songwriting, engaging melodies, not even the brickwalled production could sink it.
Best cuts: Wake Circling Above, Dark Matter Dynamics, Imperial | | 2 |  | Coheed and Cambria
Vaxis III: The Father of Make Believe
☑️ I.e. Coheed and Cambria bringing their arena rock formula to perfection. Memorable, accomplished, I'm looking forward to the remaining two installments of the Vaxis series.
Best cuts: Goodbye, Sunshine, Searching for Tomorrow, Someone Who Can | | 3 |  | Morthar
10 Commandments
🇵🇱 I think those who have heard this can all agree it rules extremely hard. To those who haven't, I certainly recommend it. A fine slab of raw bm.
Best cuts: Traitor Pt. 2, Gallery of the Hung, Descending Terror | | 4 |  | Rodeo
X
☑️ A great stoner record from a severely underrated Euskara (Basque) band. Recommended for the enjoyers of Messa, or of fun dynamics and great melodies in general.
Best cuts: Zauriak, Malkoak, Dialektika_k | | 5 |  | Turbo
Blizny
🇵🇱 The absolute classics of Polish (thrash) metal have returned with yet another record full of sick riffs and hooks for days. The Cugowski brothers brought their talents as well and absolutely killed it.
Best cuts: Nowy rozdział, Zwyczajnie nie, Do domu | | 6 |  | Katatonia
Nightmares as Extensions of the Waking State
☑️ Not half as bad as some make it out to be. This is typical modern Katatonia - alternative metal with a progressive flair and a decent amount of gloom to it. Not too heavy on hooks, but still memorable and rich in riffs.
Best cuts: Wind of No Change, Lilac, Thrice | | 7 |  | The Last Dinner Party
From The Pyre
☑️ Them ladies did a magnificent job last year. Lovely and eclectic art-pop-rock, too artsy for its own good at times, yet undeniably fine.
Best cuts: Sail Away, This Is the Killer Speaking, Count the Ways | | 8 |  | The Birthday Massacre
Pathways
☑️ As a fan of their early albums, I gladly announce that TBM are still going strong. Dark alt rock and glossy synth pop at perfect balance, and the crooked fairytale aura persists.
Best cuts: Sleep Tonight, Whisper, Wish | | 9 |  | Goria
Paradoksu Ciąg Dalszy
🇵🇱 Biting and theatrical metallic hardcore from the underground. If such an intense debut is any indicator, Goria certainly is a formidable force.
Best cuts: Preludium, Paradoks 201, On | | 10 |  | Owls Woods Graves
Strix
🇵🇱 Half an hour of blackened punk that excels in rawness and aggression. Vile and crushing, not to be picked apart for tracks but a great complete experience.
Best cuts: The Flag Is Raised, Winged They Come | | 11 |  | Spiritbox
Tsunami Sea
☑️ Best cuts: Ride the Wave, Soft Spine, Fata Morgana | | 12 |  | Bloodywood
Nu Delhi
☑️ Best cuts: Nu Delhi, Bekhauf, Hutt | | 13 |  | Lacuna Coil
Sleepless Empire
☑️ Best cuts: I Wish You Were Dead, Gravity, The Siege | | 14 |  | Whitechapel
Hymns in Dissonance
☑️ Best cuts: Nothing Is Coming for Any of Us, Mammoth God | | 15 |  | Messa
The Spin
☑️ Best cuts: Fire on the Roof, Thicker Blood | | 16 |  | Beach Bunny
Tunnel Vision
☑️ Best cuts: Chasm, Tunnel Vision, Cycles | | 17 |  | Terrordome
Plagued with Violence
🇵🇱 Best cuts: Beast Sharp Razor Cut, Rzeka krwi | | 18 |  | Orbit Culture
Death Above Life
☑️ Best cuts: Inferna, Nerve, The Storm | | 19 |  | Avatar
Don't Go in the Forest
☑️ Best cuts: Captain Goat, Howling at the Waves, Don't Go in the Forest | | 20 |  | Faetooth
Labyrinthine
☑️ Best cuts: Iron Gate, October, Eviscerate | | 21 |  | Blackbraid
Blackbraid III
☑️ Best cut: The Dying Breath of a Sacred Stag | | 22 |  | Veilburner
Longing for Triumph, Reeking of Tragedy
☑️ Best cut: Ouroboreal Whorl | | 23 |  | Night Tapes
portals//polarities
☑️ Best cuts: helix, swordsman, leave it all behind, Mike | | 24 |  | Closterkeller
Argento
🇵🇱 Best cuts: Xiomara, Marina von Hoche, Mirun | | 25 |  | Haimad
When Night Rode Across the North
☑️ Best cuts: When Night Rode Across the North, Nen Cenedril | |
gabba
02.11.26 | awesome list, keep on rockin! | arthropod
02.11.26 | Done lol. Had to take precautions in case of Sput randomly deciding to blow it up. | Meborphus
02.11.26 | Love the inclusion of Beach Bunny in this group lol | arthropod
02.11.26 | Perfect to put between death and doom, isn't it? | AlkemestRedux
02.11.26 | Gotta give 1 and 2 listens. m/// | ScuroFantasma
02.16.26 | Cool list, some of these have me curious, 3 is such a weird album cover choice that I’m intrigued | arthropod
02.16.26 | Probably the most 'out of the basement' cover I've seen in a while, and the music is potent. Glad to have sparked your curiosity, some of these are obscure on Sput but go immensely hard as well. | Coast
02.17.26 | I hadn’t checked out Allegaeon’s latest and they’re actually touring Australia soon. I love Katatonia, this one not as immediate for me as the previous one. Only listened about 6 times, too much music to get through. Albums on my list ended up getting heard 10-20 times and it’s interesting how much better some albums can be after that many listens. | arthropod
02.17.26 | Definitely. I like to call it "Asymmetry syndrome" - the first listen doesn't work out, then the subsequent ones get better and better. Hence the new Katatonia on the list. I agree about Sky Void of Stars though, it was more immediate to me as well.
I don't know how Allegaeon fares on stage but the album is solid, only too compressed. I find the second half particularly interesting. It has a surprisingly high replay value to me, considering that I'm not a fan of death metal. |
|
