[Riff] Brady’s Top 25 Albums of 2025.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Time to go hard. (Image credit: @hardimages on Instagram).
The last few years, I’ve felt relatively ambivalent about the prospect of another calendar turnover on the midnight transition. Last night (NYE, obviously) I had a burst of hopefulness and optimism I haven’t experienced on New Year’s for a good few years. It’s been a rough trot for many of us in this batshit-insane decade thus far, and it’s totally valid to be dismissive or apprehensive about flowery superstitious promises for the year ahead.
Speaking of - I’m quite behind on posting some of the 2025-retrospective content (baked into a series I call Behind Screen and Speaker as it’s own Category), so let’s get started with a positive reflection - some of my personal favourite releases of 2025. From among far, far too many great contenders!
While you’re here - just letting you know also that my next Album Review will be HEALTH’s heavy-doof banger of an LP, Conflict DLC.
That’s coming soon, but it’s also one I recommend you go have a listen to. Right meow.
It’s really fun, hence why it’s on the Top 25 list below.
Go on - here’s the link and all:
Link to single ‘Ordinary Loss’ video (via the artists’ channel):
Right. You’ve had a fun bop and are feeling suitably pumped, yeah?
Awesome.
Let’s now check out my personal Top 25 Albums of 2025.
One positive aspect of the otherwise-insane times we find ourselves in, is this ongoing monsoonal downpour of fantastic heavy/alternative music releases. It just never stops and is showing no signs of slowing. I/we are here for it, frankly!
I’ve done my best to push through crippling option-paralysis and pick out the albums which stand headfirst above the rest.
This list isn’t in order of preference, rather demonstrating as a whole the 25 tippy-top absolutely GOATED releases. Each album title in the numbered list below contains a link to full-album streams, so you’ve got no excuses not to check some of these god-tier efforts out for yourself.
And The Winners Are….
Deafheaven (US) - Lonely People With Power (Post-Black Metal)
Martröð (Iceland) - Draumsýnir eldsins (Dissonant/Avant-Garde Blackened Death Metal)
Veilburner (US) - Longing For Triumph, Reeking of Tragedy (Experimental/Avant-Garde Death Metal)
Imperial Triumphant (US) - Goldstar (Avant-Garde/Dissonant Blackened Death Metal)
Blut Aus Nord (France) - Ethereal Horizons (Progressive/Post-Black Metal)
HEALTH (US) - Conflict DLC (Electronica/Industrial)
Dead and Dripping (US) - Brutal Scintillations (Brutal Technical Death Metal)
Der Weg Einer Freiheit (Germany) - Innern (Post-Black Metal)
To Be Gentle (US) - I Am A Spiritual Being Having A Human Experience (Blackened Post-Hardcore/Post-Metal/Screamo)
Dormant Ordeal (Poland) - Tooth and Nail (Dissonant Blackened Death Metal)
Floating (Sweden) - Hesitating Lights (Post-Punk/Post-Metal/ Gothic Rock/Death Metal)
Agriculture (US) - The Spiritual Sound (Black Metal/Blackened Post-Metal/Avant-Garde Rock)
Gridlink (US) - Perfect Amber (Grindcore/Mathgrind)
Barren Path (Japan/International) - Grieving (Deathgrind)
Voidceremony (US) - Abditum (Progressive/Technical Death Metal)
BYONOISEGENERATOR (Russia) - Subnormal Dives (Mathgrind/Jazz Fusion/Deathgrind)
Abigail Williams (US) - A Void Within Existence (Post/Progressive/Melodic Black Metal)
Faetooth (US) - Labyrinthine (Doom/Post-Metal)
Siege Column (US) - Sulphur Omega (Blackened Death-Thrash)
Warbringer (US) - Wrath and Ruin (Thrash Metal)
Fallujah (US) - Xenotaph (Progressive/Technical Death Metal)
Hell (US) - Submersus (Drone/Doom/Sludge)
Sulfuric Cautery (US) - Killing Spree (Goregrind/Deathgrind)
Testament (US) - Para Bellum (Thrash Metal)
Weeping Sores (US) - The Convalescence Agonies (Progressive Death-Doom)
All in all, a very avant-garde/prog-leaning list overall, which demonstrates just how rapidly the extreme metal scene in particular is diving bravely and studiously into many unknown tangential musical corridors. Props as well to Transcending Obscurity Records, who’ve taken a fair portion of the top releases from this list! Incredible work by Kunal and Co., same for all the other artists/labels working hard in the music industry at present (e.g. Willowtip, who also get a few nods on the list in total too).
Us Aussies might rip shit on our Yank allies any opportunity we get, but probs to our American contingent for surviving their year and coming out so strong musically - absolute domination of the Top 25! Rock, flag and eagle indeed.
If there’s time and/or if people wish, I’d be happy to post the full Top 100 list from last year. It’s not a biggie to do so; there’s many extremely-close contenders for the top 25 spot from 2025, and many of them lost out on a spot on the current list by a fraction of a portion of a hair.
It’s my intention (not a resolution, those rarely pan out long-term) to complete more album reviews this year, as well as continue promoting great independent/lesser-known heavy/alternative musicians.
To that end, stay tuned right here on the blog/socials for some upcoming releases I’ve had advance listens for and highly rate/recommend.
Here’s to another year of fantastic music!
Support the music industry - support your local scene.
As Always,
Peace, Love and Grindcore (2026 Edition) - Brady.
