My Top 10 Metal Albums of 2021
Every year we are treated to hard-working musicians who make music for themselves but also for the enjoyment of fans. This year had some of the best releases for music within the metal genre. The downtime due to the pandemic or the inspiration from those that have dealt with difficult challenges this year could be factors. Either way, there were many good albums this year. Personally, I like to reflect on the albums that really meant a lot to me while also objectively observing how bands create music as juxtaposed with their peers in the genre. Here are my top 10 metal albums of 2021:
10. Alluival — Sarcoma
The second full length album from Alluvial, Sarcoma, is an album that went under the radar this year. And that’s quite a sad fact considering how incredible this album is from start to finish. I have been a big fan of Wes Hauch even before he was a member of The Faceless a few years ago. Hauch has the perfect combination of older metal influences with an exceptional fresh take on an oversaturated metal scene. Not only are his guitar chops spectacular, but the guitar tone and flawless songwriting make this album exceptional. While the album is a heavy “guitar” album, the drums, bass, and vocals are also integrative and holistic. Part of this is due to the incredible production. At present, death metal can be stale and uninspired but Sarcoma is a familiar and fresh entry to the death metal world. Come for the chunky riffs, be wowed by the solos, and stay for the whole album working together seamlessly.
Favorite tracks: “Thy Underling” “Sarcoma” “Sugar Paper”
9. Turnstile — Glow On
Hardcore is a genre that is an ever-evolving genre. With historical roots in punk, hardcore continues to evolve in the 21st century with electronic and even some pop elements. The problem is integrating these influences while staying true to the hardcore sound and not become trendy, cliché, or “selling out.” Turnstile have created one of the most innovative and genre-pushing albums while maintaining allegiance to the hardcore genre. These Baltimore natives have been working very hard in the underground scene, winning over lots of fans, and not being afraid to push themselves, experiment with their sound, and force the hardcore scene to consider their brilliant evolution. Glow On has your standard hardcore drums, guitar riffs, and catchy choruses but also has elements of pop, ska, and alternative interlaced in a fresh and novel way. This is an album that is not only genre-bending but gets in your head and never leaves in all the best ways!
Favorite tracks: “Blackout” “Holiday” “ T.L.C”
8. Spiritbox — Eternal Blue
The rise of Spiritbox has been explosive in the past two years. The power of their rise is their effective online marketing to expand their fanbase. In not too dissimilar ways in which Suicide Silence gained a strong fanbase during the early 00’s Myspace era, Spiritbox have carefully crafted singles, YouTube one-take playthrough videos, and even promoting their music on Sirius XM. Spiritbox is the band metal needs at the current moment. Every metal band has been trying to find the new sweet spot that Metallica found years ago — how to be mainstream and maintain your metal roots. At present, many metal bands find themselves watering down their metal sound and going the alternative/stadium rock route. And look, this is understandable. It’s extremely hard to make a living as a band, much less a metal band.
While Spiritbox have straddled this tightrope of promotion to a mainstream audience, they have focused on writing very good music. Husband and Wife duo Courtney LaPlante and Mike Stringer are the soul of the band. Courtney’s powerful clean and harsh vocals and Mike’s intricacies on guitar provide layered and nuanced elements to their songwriting. These elements use some pop themes but also maintain a solid metal foundation to the instrumentation they utilize. The challenge for Spiritbox will be to continue pushing themselves musically without taking shortcuts in promotion and popularity that waters down their sound. I firmly believe they will only get better as a band and continue to set standards for modern metal acts.
Favorite Tracks: “Sun Killer” “Secret Garden” “Holy Roller”
7. Every Time I Die — Radical
One of the hardest things to do in music is for a band to stay fresh and relevant with their music. Every Time I Die (ETID) have been a band for over 20 years and are giants in the hardcore/metal scene. Their first couple of albums are momentous for heavy music and many young bands today have them as a direct influence. With every new album, my first question is “what can they say and offer that’s still relevant and not copy/paste of the ‘old days?’” Their latest offering, Radical, is everything you want and expect from an ETID album. For older fans like myself, it has the same groovy riffs, catchy choruses, and memorable lyrics. What is different is that they keep pushing themselves to find new ways of exploring their sounds. Tracks such as “Thing with Feathers” shows a dynamic side to them that explores various musical elements but with the ETID brand. This album has no filler tracks and is very engaging from start to finish. Once again, Every Time I Die continue to put on a masterclass for all the younger bands that, not only are they still around, but they still have something to say. They are still one of the best in the scene and, even after 20 years, show no signs of slowing down.
Favorite tracks: “A Colossal Wreck” “All This and War” “Hostile Architecture”
6. Deafheaven — Infinite Granite
Full disclosure — I did not like this album the first couple of listens. It’s not that it’s a bad album. It’s actually quite good on its own merits. I did not like that this was a Deafheaven album. Deafheaven has spent the past decade marching to the beat of their own drum. Their fusion of black metal and shoegaze/ambient/atmospheric genres somehow worked extremely well. They began to experiment with their cleaner vocals and reduced black metal riffs on their previous album. Infinite granite is a bold risk and after a few listens, I began to see how incredible their songwriting prowess and use of layering has matured. This almost feels like the direction Deafheaven must take as a band. Are there strong influences of Radiohead? Yes. Interpol? You bet. Smashing Pumpkins? Certainly. But their 90s influences enhance their maturation, not diminish it. The album will be more accessible to many other fans, but it is the boldness and execution that makes this album stand out. After many listens, I love this album and cannot wait to see where their musical evolution continues to takes them.
Favorite Tracks: “In Blur” “Great Mass of Color” “Mombasa”
5. Converge/Chelsea Wolfe — Bloodmoon I
The godfathers and titans of modern hardcore (finally) connect with one of the best modern-day soprano vocalists you will ever hear. Converge have been trendsetters since their inception. Jane Doe is still one of the best albums of the 21st century. They continued to push themselves with You Fail Me and, again, with Axe to Fall. The undercurrent for Converge is their dark tone that can be emotional and ominous under the traditional hardcore sounds. Enter Chelsea Wolfe. Her stunning and moody vocals have been (thankfully) disrupting various genres over the past decade. This collaboration is a match made in the stars. This album is dark, moody, intentional, conflictual, and absolutely gorgeous. It is incredibly difficult to reach into the depths of one’s soul and express, musically, the emotions and states of being that one can have. These two feed off each other with vocal harmonies, atmospheric guitars, and a controlled sense of aggression. These two wear it all on their sleeve and we are not worthy of their immense talent. We can only hope this experimental duo has a part II in the works sometime in the near future.
Favorite Tracks: “Blood Moon” “Coil” “Crimson Stone”
4. Mastodon — Hushed and Grim
One of the most curious things about Mastodon is that they write conceptual albums best. Their albums that are not conceptual are usually their weakest. They have an incredible ability to take their losses and suffering in their personal lives and weave a grand narrative in a conceptual story. Mastodon have crafted their signature sound since Leviathan but you can always hear their influences (looking at you Black Sabbath). But with each album, they continue to refine their sound and develop an incredible maturity that has them as one of the greats in progressive metal. This latest album could quite possibly be their best yet. The album is almost 90 minutes and does not feel long at all. Each song is focused but incredibly dynamic and layered. Their seamless shifting of vocals, incredible melodies, and exceptional songwriting are on full display. Their last album, Emperor of Sand (also a concept album), set a high standard for themselves. And yet, somehow, Hushed and Grim completely top it. It will always be hard to transcend their masterpiece, Crack the Skye, but this album comes very, very close.
Favorite Tracks: “Sickle and Peace” “The Beast” “Savage Lands”
3. Vildhjarta — Måsstaden Under Vatten
Epic. A highly overused but completely appropriate word for the new Vildhjarta album. These Swedish giants have created their magnum opus on their second full-length. It’s been 10 years since their first album and, in many ways, this album functions as the best kind of sequel. It pulls from many of the same themes as their first album and pushes them into another musical universe. The sound they have created on this album is tremendously expansive and breath-taking. This is due in part to the fantastic album production. Buster Odeholm is literally a jack of all trades. When he is not writing and perform guitar duties in his other band, Humanity’s Last Breath, he is pounding the drums in Vildhjarta and is producer extraordinaire for both bands.
Vildhjarta write extremely heavy and layered music. It is very difficult to produce an album that A. does not sound overproduced (read: too clean and sanitized) B. where the low-end 6–8-string guitars do not sound like mud C. capturing all their guitar layering while also hearing the drums and vocals not too high or too low in the mix. These things are important to keep in mind when listening to this album because Buster has given the world a production masterclass for heavy music and should be the standard for anyone in metal. This technical side of production alone makes the album stand out above all others.
Musically, this album is the most accessible 80 minutes you will ever hear. They have shed their “Meshuggah rip-off” comparisons long ago and have further crafted their own sound. They write interesting and heavy rhythmic riffs but juxtapose this with ambient, expansive, and open guitar layering. The songwriting is not simply heavy riffs thrown together with some ambient guitar parts. Rather, there is a woven narrative in their songs that contributes throughout the movement of the album. Another standout feature is the vocals on this album. The vocals are quite dynamic and captured the different moods of the track throughout which can be quite the challenge for 80 minutes of heavy music (As an aside: Vildhjarta have recently released the instrumental version of their album which is an entirely different listen and leaves one catching more of the layering that can sometimes be missed with the standard version).
This album could very well be in the number one spot for me. On my first listen I felt like I was immersed in a wall of sound that needed so many further listens to capture all aspects. This is an album that I hear something different with each listen and it only becomes greater and greater with each listen. Vildhjarta have truly created a defining piece of art and one only hopes we do not have to wait another 10 years for their third album.
Favorite Tracks: “Brännmärkt” “Heartsmear” “Penny Royal Poison”
2. Rivers of Nihil — The Work
Winter. A season known to be cold, bitter, and unforgiving. It is Rivers of Nihil’s latest album, The Work, that is loosely based on the season of winter. This is their fourth and final album based on the seasons, as their previous three were based on spring, summer, and autumn, respectively. The brilliant evolution and growth of Rivers of Nihil was markedly seen in their last album, Where Owls Know My Name. That album brought all their progressive influences and their own brand of death metal together to create a beautiful album. The addition of saxophone in various songs was a novel and wonderful effect. What would they do for their “winter” album?
The Work is a serious, mature, and complex concept album. Their album is heavy in terms of themes, tone, lyrical content, and yes, rhythmically. It is meant to be listened as a whole and probably in one sitting. Each song has a push-pull framework. The songs pull you and push you to explore what the next bar of music is going to be, what is the next connected theme, and it continually surprises you. This arrangement and composition for progressive metal that seamlessly fuses so many musical themes while keeping a steady concept is absolutely incredible. The album is 64 minutes but, honestly, it feels quite short because of how captivating the journey is throughout the album.
Musically, they have crafted a piece of art that will continue to get better and better with each listen. The wall of sound that hits you upon first listen is overwhelming in the best way. And it pulls you to go back and listen over and over to hear more and more of the dynamic layering. The drum performance and production is absolutely top notch. Each guitar solo is unique and fitting to the theme of the song. The vocals are fierce, enthralling, and emotional in the most honest way possible. The mix of the bass parts with the rhythmic guitars provides a very engaging and rich heaviness that drives the album. And yes, there is more saxophone on this album which offers some beautiful solos.
Rivers of Nihil have completed four albums based on a season. The Work ends this conceptual series with a statement. They have sharpened all of their abilities for this album, and it lands with such an exclamation. This is an album that would make all of their influences proud, and it is an album that has brought fans like myself so much joy. I cannot wait for their next album and where their evolution takes them.
Favorite tracks: “The Void From Which No Sound Escapes” “More?” “Episode”
- Between the Buried and Me — Colors II
Between the Buried and Me (BTBAM) have done the impossible. They made a perfect album, twice! BTBAM created their masterpiece, Colors, back in 2007 and it is not only seen as their best album but one of the most important progressive metal albums of the 21st century. Keeping their latest album very quiet, they announced at the beginning of the year that they had a new album and it was entitled Colors II. No one was expecting a sequel to their best album with such a high standard. Could they meet or transcend that standard?
One of the novelties of Colors was that it is, essentially, one long song. Each track flows seamlessly into the next track and the album demands to be listened to as a whole. BTBAM are no strangers of a wide diversity of genres that they infuse into each song. Over the years, they have moved from a hardcore to metalcore to finally landing within the progressive metal world. They keep all those early elements and refine it with precise transitions in each of their songs. Colors II is BTBAM at their finest. They have taken the amalgamation of all their musical influences, genres, and past albums with incredible technical skill and made it all work perfectly in this album.
When I am asked how to describe BTBAM’s sound, I usually describe them as “musically very busy.” They is a lot going on thematically but it is never chaotic or unfocused, in fact, quite the opposite. Each track is a mini journey that builds to the larger story. BTBAM makes very cerebral music while maintaining a very strong emotional connection to our humanity. I am usually overwhelmed when I sit down to listen to a new BTBAM album for the first time. During my first listen to Colors II, I was not overwhelmed — I was completely enraptured! They usually create a wall of sound with so many parts, but this has intensive layering on guitars, rich bass lines, and incredible amounts of intricate drumming. All of this is occurring at the same time and a it is equivalent to a musical state washing over you. Nevertheless, when I listened back to this album over and over, I could hear something different with each listen, as any good album should provoke.
BTBAM are no strangers to refining their sound and trying new things. In terms of structure, they still have long songs (which I love) but they are more refined and there is less of a “let’s-pack-as-many-notes-as-we-can” element. The songs themselves are very active, an almost movement of their own that carries you along. I was pleasantly surprised to hear in “Revolution in Limbo” the last 1/3 of the song with a Spanish style. In “Never Seen/Future Shock” they have some retro drum sounds that give the song a bit more spark. They still have their quirky elements as on “Fix the Error” and “The Future is Behind Us” but it feels less of a “why not” and more purposeful. Tommy’s vocals are the best they have been on any album. Paul and Dustie’s guitar riffs and solos are precise, mature, and ever-purposeful. Dan’s bass lines are incredibly fresh and his arrangement and composition for some of these tracks is the best yet. Kudos to Blake for continuing to prove to everyone that he is still the top drummer in metal and the steady “6th member” in producer Jamie King, still showing the best production for progressive metal.
BTBAM have been a band for almost 22 years and the current lineup has been together for almost 17 years. It is incredibly difficult for 5 people to not only stay together but to continue to push each other musically and only improve their sound. BTBAM still have something to say after all these years and they have transcended all other bands in metal. Colors II displays their talent, maturity, and musical genius that comfortably makes BTBAM the standard-bearers and kings of progressive metal.
Favorite Tracks: “Revolution In Limbo” “Never Seen/Future Shock” “Bad Habits”
