Listmania: Metal Noise Top #5 Albums of 2024!

The natural order of things has been followed as we have counted down our top #5 singles and EPs so now it’s time for the albums that made 2024 a great year on Planet Metal. As ever there are a few rules to this game, one of which is that the artists you see on this list won’t have been on either of the other two lists. That would be LSD hallucination induced inception level madness and result in a trip to the funny farm where straight jackets and padded rooms are accompanied by powerful sedatives and no one wants to play that game… or do they?

“Phantazein” by Cognizance. Getting into our DeLorean and heading back 12 months to January 2024 with Doc Brown is easy when it comes to this one. A piece of Death Metal mastery that flirts with other subgenres in impressive fashion and once again finds Cognizance outdoing themselves by taking a different fork in the left hand path. The pace and energy of these tracks is enthralling, the technicality of their approach giving them a razor sharp edge with every moment clearly well thought out with meticulous attention to detail.

“Chasing Euphoria” by Lutharö.  Krista Shipperbottom’s motley crew from Canada have been on our radar for a very long time and with this record they reach their full potential, floating between Gothenburg sound inspired Metalcore, Power Metal and more Traditional Heavy Metal sonic abrasions. Masters of big, bold sing-a-long choruses that don’t lose any of the energy of the verses as well as slick riffs and vibrant leads, they truly have in their arsenal all the weapons to create amazing demonstrations of skill and here they do exactly that.

“Imperial Might” by Cyclops Cataract. An album of Blackened Death Metal soaked to the bone in themes of War and Annihilation three years in the making, this one continued the bands journey into chilling atmospherics and crushing sounds. Dark, low budget 1980’s science fiction film soundtrack inspired soundscapes, driving percussive battery, bombastic bass lines, savage plague winds of vocals and staccato riff breaks soaked in a bleak atmosphere are accompanied by divine melodies and haunting touches that paint a picture of pure horror. Enthralling and captivating this one is one to savour.

“City” by Tribe Of Ghosts. A concept album rich in science fiction themes of a dystopian future and societal collapse may feel like a brave undertaking for a debut album but for a band blazing a trail in Industrially tinged Post-Metal, it’s the ideal place to play. Recorded over five months this album is one with an incredible flow and cohesion to it with a distinctive beginning, middle and end. The vocal contrast between the lush cleans from Beccy Blaker and the punishing uncleans from Adam Sedgwick are perfectly balanced on a knife edge and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

“Moirae” by Hell Is Other People. Forty four minutes of immersive Post-Blackened Hardcore with atmospheric flourishes? Fierce vocals that oppose the intense melodies offered by the blackened guitars with dynamic rhythms to create a spellbinding contrast while capturing the imagination at the same time? This is one of those records that has to be heard to be believed. A heart ache for which there is no cure, this soul stirring magnum opus is a twisted vine that wraps around you, its sharp thorns cutting into the flesh as one pain subdues another.

There could have been so many more but here are a few honourable mentions worthy of your time: “Permanent Dawn” by Earthburner, “Inside The Sickened Mind” by Thrasherwolf, “Black Clouds Over The World” by Gates Open, “Kave” by Where’s My Bible, “Living Chaos” by Oceano