A crazy year as there are a lot of new releases from past bands I loved but just couldn't fit them in or didn't like them!
1) Humiliation (Mys)-Conflagration, cheating here as this is supposedly Dec 23rd 2023 release, but for some reason these guys albums are always later than the release date. This band is so good that they have climbed my list of best bands ever to #3 behind Vomitory and Bolt Thrower. They put out a new album every year, never change a thing and have 10 songs at just under 44 minutes. They also have a 2021 release that was never let out, then 2 weeks after this one it popped out, so 2 Humiliation albums at once!
2) Sentient Horror (US)-In Service of the Dead, these guys have only been active 10 years now, with this being just their 4th full length and quite an accomplishment. I've got many favorite US bands Cannibal Corpse, Malevolent Creation, Deicide, Massacre, Monstrosity, Jungle Rot, Immolation, Divine Empire, Hate Eternal, Morta Skuld, These Are They, Abysmal Dawn to name a few. Well SH has kicked them all down the ladder & are #2 on my list, with only the great Obituary over them as my favorite US band!
3) Fatal (Cri)-Disgusting Perception, this band has done something to me that not many bands have ever done, which is play it over and over for many days after it was released. Another perfect definition of straight up, pure, 100% Death Metal! Great riffs, great drumming and really great vocals make this a very special release and surprisingly from Costa Rica! Their only other release is a 2023 EP with 3 songs that are on this great release, but surprisingly they sound much different despite having the same vocalist but he doesn't sound the same as on the EP. Very underrated band as I see nobody has them on Youtube as a favorite 2024!
4) Tales Of Blood (Fra)-Breath of Repugnance, this was a very late 2024 release not hitting us until December 17th, but it grabbed me immediately! These French guys have been in action over 30 years but this is only their #2 full length, with their 2019 release being good also. A little short at only 34:17 but solid 9 songs of pure Death Metal!
5) Cryptic Hatred (Fin)-Internal Torment, a very solid band from the great Death Metal country of Finland! They have a superb 2022 release and it is impossible to say which of the two is better, as they both are great releases. They also have a 2 song split release in 2023 that surprisingly has 175 listens per my iTunes, which is very surprising to me. Keep it up guys, don't fix what ain't broke!
6) Burial Remains (Nth)-Adversarial, these Dutch guys became a big favorite of mine with their 2020 release which came in at #2 on my best of list. Their 2019 full length came in at #12 so they just keep on rolling with great Dutch Death Metal! They do it right with 9 songs, just over 37 minutes and no bullcrap!
7) Psycrotted (Ger)-Creations Of Insanity, new German band with only 2 singles out, released in 2022! This one is just how I like it, 10 songs at just over 48 minutes and only 1 short intro on song #7. Nothing different, nothing progressive or special just same ole, same ole great German Death Metal so keep up the great sound guys!
8) Manus Mortis (Ger)-Shores of Hell, a real solid release from a band that has been active since 2003 but only with a demo and 2 EPs, the last from 2014. More pure straight up German Death Metal. Metal Archives says back in their early years they had a keyboard player so very fortunate that ended with their 2003 demo! We do not need keyboards, flutes, monk chants or violins in Death Metal! Really good 11 songs at 43:12!
9) Primal Code (US)-Opaque Fixation, a really solid 9 songs at 38 minutes of pure Death Metal with the only negative being a waste of 39 seconds for an intro. I wasn't aware of these guys and their 2023 release of an EP but hoping for more from them down the road!
10) Morta Skuld (US)-Creation Undone, a band that has been around for 34 years now, damn where has time gone and I have really enjoyed their newer releases. They do it just the way I like, 10 songs at 44:28 with no bullshit and only music! I'm not good at comparing bands but damn I confuse them with These Are They & fellow Wisconsin guys Jungle Rot and surprisingly the drummer is ex-Jungle Rot guy Eric House, so no wonder I hear Jungle Rot!
11) Undead's Damnation (Esp)-World War Nightmare, Spain is climbing my list of favorite Death Metal countries! What we have here is another new band, first release of any kind with vocalist guitarist Raul Weaver from the great Mass Burial and Nasty Surgeons! This is 11 songs at 42:40 with not a second of bullshit! No dual vocals, no intros, just solid great pure Death Metal, just as I like it.
12) Hate Force (US)-Systems of Terror, these guys have a really good first release that made #16 on my 2019 list. They do 10 songs as I like it, at 39:16 with only 1 vocalist! I hope they don't change and keep giving us pure straight up Death Metal as they've been a good favorite of mine since their first release!
13) Just Buried (Rus)-Necro-Macro, another new band with a really great solid release of Death Metal! Russia is on a roll with good 2024s from Separatism, Corpse Worship, Septory, Double Homicide, Monastery Dead, Defect Designer, Incurable & Bluntforce! These guys have the drummer from Corpse Worship, so no wonder they are good. Only 2 small negatives are an intro of strange noises at 1:20 long and only 30 minutes of music, but still very good! Now we need some new Trigger & Entrenchment!
14) Skeletal Remains (USA)-Fragments of the Ageless, this band has been one of my favorite US bands in the last few years. They have 2 previous releases that have made my lists so no surprise this one has also. They do a real good cover of the great Hate Eternal song Messiah Of Rage! Just how I like it, 10 songs at over 45 minutes of pure Death Metal.
15) Bonestorm (Col)-Hidden Horizon, really like these guys and a solid release to go along with their good 2020 full length! Only slight negative is it is a bit short at only 36+ minutes with 3+ minutes of wasted intro & outro, BUT...they fix that with a really good cover of the great Bolt Thrower song Killchain! Just looked and I have 71 bands in my iTunes from the good SA country of Columbia and these guys lead in the number of plays!
16) Uninhibited (Ger)-Reign Of The Unholy, very good, underrated two man band here! They only have a 5 song EP released at the end of 2023. Another just how I like it, 12 songs at just under 44 minutes of straight up, no frills Death Metal! Great vocals, great riffs, no bullshit intros and just how Germany does it, GREAT Death Metal. The "U" bands have been on a roll this year as I have 15 in my list of 2024 releases!
17) Dying Grotesque (Ukr)-Celestial, a good band that I wasn't aware of, despite them having a 2020 release I didn't know about. I do have their 2021 EP but I've never given it any attention. A really solid release here of 8 songs, just a little short at 36:11 and other than a 40 second intro in front of one song this is very good and unfortunately a late in the year release coming November 29th or it could have been higher!
18) Suicide (Tur)-Devour The Fallen [full length] & Deliberate Delusion [ep], WOW, 35-year-old band here that are only on their 3rd full length release and I have just become aware of them! This is 2 releases, Devour The Fallen is a 38:46 long full length released in November & Deliberate Delusion is a 4 song 14:07 length EP released in May. Put the 2 together and you get 15 songs at 52:54 of some really solid great Death Metal!
19) Mercyless (Fra)-Those Who Reign Below, these guys have been around since the early days of Death Metal getting close to 40 years with now 8 full lengths to their credit. I've only been a moderate fan of them and feel this is my favorite release. Other than a short intro I don't care for this is some solid straight up Death Metal with 11 songs at near 43 minutes so if not a Mercyless fan give this one a try!
20) Necrot (US)-Lifeless Birth, another favorite US band of mine with a good solid release of 7 songs at 40+ minutes long. These guys have done what a lot of bands have done this year. It seems to be a new fad to have a song over 8 to 10 minutes long and usually the last song. There have been at least 10 to 12 bands I like that have done that and I'm not a fan of real long songs as they usually get slow and boring although the one here is good.
21) Karonte (Esp)-Nacer, Sufrir, Morir, another one I'm cheating on as this is supposedly an October 2023 release, but to my knowledge not available anywhere until early January 2024! As I said above, Spain has climbed my list of great Death Metal countries and this is another good one! These guys have been around now, unbelievably for 30 years. They have 2 full lengths out in 2006 and 2012 that I wasn't aware of and so glad I found this one!
22) Massive Self Killing (Fra)-Twelve Visions Of Chaos, what we have here is a very underrated album from an underrated band. They have a 2018 release that I completely ignored. The vocalist/guitarist is the bass player from good Death Metal band Voorhees and his vocals are very good and the guitar riffs are very appealing to me. It is as I like it, 9 songs over 42 minutes in length!
23) Carnal Savagery (Swe)-Into the Abysmal Void & Graveworms, Cadavers, Coffins and Bones, we've got 2 full length releases here, one from January & the other from November! These guys are giving Rogga a challenge in Death Metal. They have a 2020, 2021, two 2022s and now two 2024s so I'm sure we'll get some more good Death Metal from these guys in 2025!
24) Detest (Dnk)-A World Drowning In Detest, another old Dane band going back to their first demo being released in 1991 but they've only had 3 full lengths in 30 years! This is a little short at only 36:37 but still some really good solid Death Metal! Their 2021 release is a good solid one as well!
25) Ashes Reborn (Prt)-In Captivity, a good Portuguese band here that had a solid 2018 full length that made my best of year list and is still a good favorite. I really like the good guitar sound on this one and other than some intros I had to chop off the songs this is a really solid release.
26) Evulsion (Int)-Spiritual Putrefaction, got an international band here from Latvia, Lithuania, Russia and the US with the drummer also in the great Thrash band of Testament! These guys and gal have this debut album and this is a real solid 9 songs at 44:11 with no bullshit intros and nothing but solid Death Metal.
27) Stabwound (Fra)-As Humanity Dies, these guys have 2 demos from 2008 & 2010 I really liked and it took them a while to get back to us, but they finally did! France is a great Death Metal country and this has some great riffs and good vocals with only negatives are a 2:37 intro of sounds then a 9:23 long boring (to me) song to end it. A lot of bands are doing this 8 to 13 minute songs to end their albums recently, yuck!
28) Corpse Worship (Rus)-Cemetery Anthems, another good solid Russian band from a country that has been on a Death Metal roll with new Bluntforce, Incurable, Monastery Dead, Double Homicide, Septory, Separatism, Autopsy Night and now we need something new from the great Trigger! This is some good stuff with 7 songs at 37 minutes and a good follow up to their great 2021 & 2022 releases! No demos, no EPs, no splits, just 3 good solid full lengths!
29) Infiltrator (Ger)-Remnants Of Battle, I'm not much into one man bands but this guy with his 1st release really does some good solid Death Metal. I'm not good at band comparisons as all Death Metal bands sound different to me but this really has some Bolt Thrower vibes to it, so I suggest giving this guy a listen if you like Death Metal as I like it!
30) Bonebreaker (Chl)-Hell's Bullets, good newer band here with only this album and release date says April 23rd, 2023 but these guys aren't available on Bandcamp. So, with it being found on New Years Eve Dec. 31st 2023 I have to include it as a 2024! My favorite South American Death Metal country of Chile do it right!
31) Griefgod (Ltu)-Deterioration, another good new band that just formed in 2024! Not many great bands from Lithuania so maybe these guys can get them rolling! This is some good solid Death Metal with it being a little short at only 32 minutes but they do have a good 3 song EP released in 2020 by another name. They were Gilzeh then but are now Griefgod!
32) Tiger Battalion (Ger)-First Strike, 10 songs at 43:26 of pure, straight up Death Metal and guess what! A one man band that could be twin brothers in sound with the above Infiltrator! I've never been a big fan of 1 man bands, but damn has this guy got some Bolt Thrower in him also! He does a great cover of Bolt Thrower's Cenotaph and I'm really liking this release! This was released in August then in November came a 3 song EP from him as well.
33) Okult (Cze)-God Of Genocide, these guys are on a roll with 4 full length releases starting in 2019! They are a 5 man band with 2 past members and 1 current member of the good Cze band Dysangelium! More good solid pure straight up Death Metal and their 2022 release made #9 on my best of list so if you haven't, give that one a try too.
34) Commander (Ger)-Angstridden, another favorite band of mine and really loved their great release that made #14 on my best of 2018s! This is another very good album but has one small negative. The last song is 10+ minutes long and it seems that has become a popular new thing as I said above. New 2024 releases from these bands all have a 10+ minute song, Typhonian, Skelthal, Extrusion, Cardiac Arrest, Apep, Anoxide, Celestial Sanctuary, Blood Incantation, Reckless Manslaughter, Obscurial has a 9:27 long one and Necrot has one just under 9 minutes.
35) Contagion (US)-Spinal Cord Stew, we now have 4 US bands named Contagion with these guys hailing from my home state of Maryland! This is more of the same, boring (but not to me), straight up, no frills Death Metal with only a negative of it being very short at just 27 minutes long! Hope these guys keep it up and give us more soon!
36) Open Surgery (Swe)-Absolute Destruction, some more good Swedish Death Metal, although I don't believe these guys carry the great Swede sound, which is not a negative! They've been a big favorite of mine since their premier album in 2014.
37) Guillotina (Esp)-Primera Sang, good new band from the great Death Metal country of Spain! I found these guys on youtube then got them at Bandcamp as they really impressed me with their sound. Only negative is it's a little short at only 30:40 but very solid Death Metal. Let's hope for more from these guys!
38) Infern (Fra)-Turn of the Tide, France does some good Death Metal and we have a new band here with a first full length. Other than a couple intros I don't care for this band does some good Death Metal with 10 songs at just under 40 minutes.
39) Last Resistance (Ger)-Monument Of Warfare, another band I've been a big fan of and this one was a surprise when it popped out in April! As good a fan as I am of them I'm surprised their debut album in 2020 didn't make my end of year list! Their 2nd release came in at #20 so no surprise that I like this one!
40) Funeral Whore (Nth)-The Crystal Lake Massacres, surprise release here from another past favorite band of mine! A solid release but as I wrote about their 2016 release 8 years ago, they did the same with this one with intros & outros. The songs are very good, great groove and vocals but damn, why all of those terrible intro/outro sounds!
41) Bluntforce (Rus)-Forged Arrogance, never being a fan of any "core" metal I'm surprised I like these guys as they are labeled Death Metal/Hardcore at Metal Archives. Good thing is no bullshit intros but the negative is we only get 25:17 of music! This is a debut release so hopefully more to come as Russia really does some good Death Metal.
42) Massive Assault (Nth)-Metal Of Death, another favorite band from the great Death Metal country of my good buddy DDM! We've got full length #4 over 15 years and these guys keep doing it right! It is just as I like it with 9 songs clocking in at just over 40 minutes, with only 1 intro! Keep it up guys and give us more soon!
43) Monastery Dead (Rus)-Ego Sum Dolor, another good Russian band that has been around for 20 years and have 3 previous full lengths that I've had since released, but had them rated low in my iTunes. So it surprised me that after listening to this one numerous times I'm really enjoying it. Other than 20+ second intros on a couple of the songs it is pretty good solid Death Metal.
44) Aposento (Esp)-No Safe Haven, another favorite past band of mine from the great Death Metal country of Spain, but not so good to me with this one. They have been active for over 30 years and their 3 previous full lengths are very good so it just might be on me that this one isn't grabbing me like their previous releases.
45) Fervent Hate (Per)-In Rot We Trust, not many good Death Metal bands from Peru in my collection so these guys are coming in at #1! They've got a good 10 songs at 6 seconds under 40 minutes! Metal Archives has them listed as Death 'n' Roll but I hear nothing but good solid Death Metal. Only negative is some spoken words in a song or two.
46) Noroth (US)-Sacrificial Solace, some good pure Death Metal from a newer US band with 2020 and 2021 releases that I've completely ignored, despite having them and only listening to a couple songs. The negative here is there are 8 songs but only a total of 22 minutes. They also have a Oct 2024 split release with a 5:14 long song that can be added.
47) Insurrection (Can)-Obsolescence, some interesting Canadian Death Metal with a Technical edge to it from a band with 4 previous full lengths that I have completely ignored! Great riffs, good vocals and 11 songs at 42:02 make this just how I like it and guess what! Other than the opening intro, no intros or spoken words in the songs!
48) Dysangelium (Cze)-Jonestown, solid Czech band that I've been a mild to good fan of since 2012 with their 3 previous releases and now #4. They do it good and with my taste of 9 songs 3:37 to 5:06, just under 40 minutes for the whole album. The vocalist is also with a really good new Czech band Okult who have a super great album from 2022. If you like these guys check out Okult!
49) Deadspeak (Nth)-Plagues of Sulfur Bound, other than a worthless 1:48 first song this is some good solid Dutch Death Metal with the following 7 songs at 38:33! This is a newer band with only a 2021 EP of 5 good songs that I've had since it was released. If you like yourself some good Dutch Death Metal check these guys out but must say with all the great releases we get every year some get neglected. I've only had 5 listens to this but am catching up now!
50) Handle With Hate (Esp)-Wrath of the Keres, another good solid newer Spain band with only a previous full length release from 2021 that I wasn't aware of until I heard this one. They've got 8 good songs at about 38 minutes with the only negative of song #1 which is nothing but noise and spoken words. Delete that but keep the rest and probably should be higher up!