Let’s be honest, January was a horrible month for a plethora of reasons, which I’m not gonna get into here. Thankfully though, it gave us some pretty great music releases to distract us a little bit. I’ll take the wins where I can get ‘em.
Here’s some of my own favourite January albums to check out if you haven’t already. Albums are ordered by release date, with the exception of #1.
#1: Bone Weapon - Chaos Marked by Death of Sun
What’s better than some evil sounding death/doom? Evil sounding death/doom with lore!
I’ve always rolled my eyes at the “stank face” memes, the horns emotes, the “metal brotherhood”, and any other overdone metal quip you find online, but this album really is one that’ll make you go “OUGH!” with how dark and downright terrifying it sounds. It’s primitive, it’s chaotic, it’s suffocating. It’s death metal stripped down to its… bones.
Chaos Marked by Death of Sun is a 5-track display of concentrated violence - and I mean that in a literal sense, too, as the album weaves a paleolithic tale of black magick, cannibalism, and blood rituals between two ancient tribes: the Katu and the Matu. If you love a good fantastical short story, you can read more of the lore on their Bandcamp.
Blatant with its traditional death metal influences, frontman Fred M.G. states, “It’s both a response to and a deliberate steer clear of the hardcore-infused ‘caveman death metal’ thing.”
Now I like me some caveman death metal every now and then, but I’m sure I’m not alone in feeling that death metal had gotten a little oversaturated with bands that all wanted to be the next Maggot Stomp pageant queen for a while there.
Thankfully, Bone Weapon isn’t interested. The vocals are wild, and are just fuming with the Katu’s vengeance. The repetitive riffs and groaning bass create that claustrophobic, anticipatory atmosphere of the album’s mythical dilemma. And of course the explosive, maniacal drumming are a constant reminder of utter savagery. As far as heaviness goes, Chaos Marked by Death of Sun is like a supermassive black hole - and despite only being 30 minutes long, it’s sonically the size of one as well.
That all being said, I also need to put all the metallic praise aside for a second and commend Bone Weapon in not just crafting a story, but then reflecting it so accurately in sound as well. That is artistry if I’ve ever known it.
For fans of: Rippikoulu, Vastum, Incantation
Favourite track: Death Of The Sun
Listen on Bandcamp
Anna Pest - Dark Arms Reach Skyward With Bone White Fingers II: Be (Not) Afraid
Anna Pest is back with yet another technical-cyber-deathgrind-something album that completely defies the barriers of genre and makes you wanna take a sword to every single one of your oppressors.
If you prefer your music to be more meat-and-potatoes and consistent, you probably want to keep scrolling. Luckily for me, I’m more excited by the chaotic.
The intimate lyricism is by far the height of the album for me, and if you do choose to listen, I strongly recommend reading it. It really opens up the album, and allows you to be taken along vocalist April Hutchins’ deeply personal journey rather than strictly being pummeled with unbridled deathcore aggression for an hour.
The interlude tracks - the spoken-word Introjection and the mostly-instrumental Air - are also great in this regard. They break the album into its intended separate acts (as described on their Bandcamp page), and give the listener a breath of fresh air, inspiration, and hope. I also love the sprinkles of poppy electronic sounds and autotuned clean vocals, they’re a great contrast to the ferocity and give Dark Arms a nostalgic charm.
You can tell a lot of love and care was put into this album. It’s an uplifting tale about love, self-discovery, the power of community, and fighting back. It’s empowering and inspires an uprising.
For fans of: Shadow of Intent, Angelmaker, Distant
Favourite track: Moongazer
Listen on Bandcamp
Ellende - Zerfall
I love black metal when it refuses to be cliché. I love hearing different guitar and vocal styles, I love when it embraces modern production rather than rejecting it, and I love when my ears aren’t being assaulted by blastbeats the entire time - especially if that time is an hour. Thankfully, one-man post-black metal band Ellende checks off all of those boxes with Zerfall.
On the first listen I was intrigued but not instantly hooked. The second listen is what reeled me in. I love the tonal shifts, the operatic vocals, the beautiful melodies, and how many different instruments are used to create this gem of an album.
Another thing I can’t get over is just how fluid this album is. The sounds are so varied and yet every section flows effortlessly into the next - it’s incredibly captivating, and ensures this heavily emotional hour-long album never overstays its welcome. It makes Zerfall (meaning “disintegration”) almost relaxing despite how bleak its lyrical themes are, but that darkness is never lost with L.G.’s shrieks and P.F.’s intense drumming.
When music in a completely different language is able to communicate its atmospheric and emotional intent so clearly, that’s a successful piece of art. Bravo Ellende!
Sidenote: I loved learning that L.G. paints his own album artwork as well; much love to artists who are artists!
For fans of: Harakiri for the Sky, Der Weg einer Freiheit, Wolves in the Throne Room
Favourite track: Ubertritt
Listen on Bandcamp
I Promised The World - I Promised The World
Former emo kids rise up, I can feel my bangs growing out again.
This little post-hardcore EP is blasting me back 18 years. The intro track left a bit to be desired on my first listen, but hang on to your checkered Vans ‘cause it gets better. The guitars are nice and clear, and shift between heavy and melodic sections seamlessly. The poppy vocals and the screams are endlessly switching around and harmonizing, almost like they’re dancing. It’s awesome to hear something like this in 2026.
Their music videos for A Pure Expression and Bliss In 7 Languages are quite charming as well - intentionally released in low quality and with that greenish filter of the 2000s. If it weren’t for the lack of gauged ears and skinny jeans that were two sizes too small, I’d think they were from 2006.
I Promised The World is definitely not reinventing the wheel here, but these kids are onto something amazing and I can’t wait to hear what they do next. Now let’s all go to Hot Topic - back when they had bricks and the evil font!
For fans of: Underoath, Saosin, Misery Signals
Favourite track: Bliss In 7 Languages
Listen on Spotify
Malignant Aura - Where All of Worth Comes to Wither
If you don’t like songs with double-digit runtimes, this album isn’t for you. Everyone else, grab your plate and take a seat, because Malignant Aura have returned with another platter of delicious doomy death metal.
Starting the album off with gongs and bells was a brilliant way to set up that eerie, despairing atmosphere before the meat of the album drags us into soul-crushing agony. It’s the nice little appetizer before the main course.
Despite the last three tracks being over ten minutes each, they contain enough pushing and pulling that none of them drag on. They’re constantly changing the pace and keeping themselves interesting, and I’ve gotta commend the musicianship here as I felt the band’s previous release didn’t quite achieve this.
You can argue it doesn’t really flow, and I might agree a little, but I can’t deny the last 3 and a half minutes of Languishing in the Perpetual Mire are completely and insanely beautiful. They don’t really fit in with the rest of the song, but on my life I felt my heart melt and soul being lifted out of my body.
Really melancholic, really grim, really gorgeous. A total sonic assault from start to finish.
For fans of: Incantation, Mournful Congregation, Hooded Menace
Favourite track: Languishing in the Perpetual Mire
Listen on Bandcamp
Nightmarer - Hell Interface
Dissodeath titans Nightmarer made a permanent name for themselves with their 2023 release, Deformity Adrift (my 2023 album of the year), and they kept the excitement going with their 2024 rerecording. I remember asking, “How the hell do they make their music sound so enormous?”, and their latest EP - Hell Interface - has me asking this once more.
Compared to Deformity Adrift, this release sounds much more open - there’s more nuance, more vocal ranges, and more exploration. But rest assured, the intensity has reached new heights, and Nightmarer is still very much Nightmarer.
Every single track on Hell Interface sounds huge, like an all-powerful deity bellowing down their commands. This is largely in part to to the double vocal attack by John Collett and new secondary vocalist Christian Kolf. The breathy growls we all recognize are just oozing with aggression and malevolence. Even the shouts and clean vocals sound like desperate cries from the depths of Hell.
My only complaint is that I wish this was a full album, ‘cause I want more.
For fans of: Gorguts, Ulcerate, Replicant
Favourite track: Shame Spiral
Listen on Bandcamp
Some other releases worth mentioning:
Archvile King - Aux Heures Désespérées [Black metal]
Miasme - Keep Them at a Distance [Post-black]
MudTomb - MudTomb [Death metal]
Ominess - Ominess [Black/Doom]
Redivider - Sounds of Malice [Death metal]
Skulld - Abyss Calls to Abyss [Death / Crust]
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