Slamaholic Riv’s Top Metal Releases 2024

What’s up slammers it’s almost the end of the year so I thought it’d be a good time to recap my favourite metal releases of 2024. These will be sorted into 3 categories, Top 10 Albums, Top 5 EPs, and Honorable Mentions. 

Firstly, my honourable mentions, albums this year that I loved but just didn’t make the top 10 because the releases this year have been so good. This is my first time doing any of this so thank you to anyone who reads!

Honorable Mentions

- Undeath, More Insane; a super cool melodic/progressive death metal record that has some sick fuckin riffs and awesome melodies, but it gets edged out by other albums doing a similar thing but better.

- 200 Stab Wounds, Manual Manic Procedures; this album is dirty and grimy and everything good about 200 stab wounds amplified, but somehow it feels incomplete as a record. A lot of the songs sound a bit too samey making the record drag on near the end, but this album is still a fuckin banger

- Extermination Dismemberment, Butcher Basement Revamped; yeah this album fucking slams so hard it’s heavy as shit and the bass drops make my bones rattle, I fuckin love this album but since it is technically a revamp/re-record of a pre existing album it feels wrong putting it in the top 10.

- Fit For An Autopsy, The Nothing That Is; the new album from deathcore kings Fit For An Autopsy is fuckin heavy, and does not disappoint- for the most part. The front half is loaded with fucking rippers, like Spoils of the Horde, and Saviour of None; Ashes of All, however as the record progresses the songs start becoming same-ier, and dragging on longer than the songs realistically need. 

- Oxygen Destroyer, Guardian of the Universe; A pure blisteringly fast and discombobulating death/thrash record about Godzilla, delivering unrelentingly heavy and fast thrash riffs with death metal groove and suitably awesome Godzilla movie samples. 

Top EP’s of 2024

5) Restrictor Plate, Slamtona 500, I fw this EP heavy it’s not too long and it’s just some grimy ass slam grooves about cars n shit you gotta love it

4) Street Soldier, Walk With Tha Talk EP, Yorkshire UK Hardcore boys coming back with another fucking ripper EP, 4 songs of UK Hardcore Heavy at its finest

3) BOLTCUTTER, The Slamz: Chronicles, Vol 1, this EP lowered my IQ more than Party Cannon, I am now obsessed with chain break chuggery and need the full length album NOW. Filthy gangster grooves rivalling Peeling Flesh, and samples that changed the way my friends and I talk so that has to count for something. 

2) Corpse Pile, Hardgore Deathmetal, the guitar tone on this EP makes me want to rip my jaw off. Dodgeball snare got me bricked up in the middle of Tescos wondering who had the balls to tune a snare that high. Tight shit. 

1) Disembodied Tyrant/Synestia, The Poetic Edda, what can I say about this EP that hasn’t already been said? This EP contains some of, if not the best deathcore released this year, rivalled only really by Disembodied Tyrants second EP release this year, The Tower Part 1. The fusion of classical symphonic instruments and composition is one that has become standard and frankly boring for deathcore now, since Lorna Shore and its consequences, however The Poetic Edda takes it to another level and blows every other deathcore release this year out the water. Absolutely blistering drums, disgusting gutturals, and beautiful orchestral arrangements make this my top EP for 2024.

Top 10 Albums of 2024

10) Aborted, Vault of Horrors, despite their long departure from deathgrind and the debates on their supposed “heaviness” since, Aborted prove that they are still worthy of their death metal fame, with a horror movie themed album, featuring a new vocalist feature on every track, delivering brutally heavy and groovy modern death metal and deathcore riffs. A personal stand out is the opening track, ‘Dreadbringer’ based off of ‘The Thing’

9) seeyouspacecowboy, Coupe De Grace, seeyouspacecowboy departs from their typical frantic, dissonant and chaotic take on hardcore and instead produces a catchy mix between hardcore, metalcore, emo, and deathcore, in a concept album telling stories between each track, taking a more melodic and pop structured approach to the songwriting, but in a way that for once works out in a bands favour. Also, the interlude track ‘Respite for a Tragic Tale’ is beautiful and makes me want to hug my wife more.

8) Fulci, Duck Face Killings, Italian brutal death metal kings Fulci returned with a new album this year, based off of horror director Lucio Fulci’s film ‘New York Ripper’, sampling excerpts from the movie, combined with fast and dirty riffs, and slow groovy saxophone jams with TV-CRIMES, and rap verses with Knife. Overall the Italian death metal outfit delivered a fantastic, heavy, and interesting brutal death album. 

7) Terrified of God, Vomit Forth, Vomit Forth comes back for a 3rd album, evolving from blackened death to full on Christ-fearing, god-grinding brutal death. I love this album, the disgustingly brutal vocals and heavy grooves mixed in with suitingly creepy samples. The album doesn’t overstay its welcome and offers a quick, heavy, creepy, and violent experience.

6) Entabeni, Vulvodynia, The South African Deathcore kings Vulvodynia return for a new album, delivering crushing technical deathcore riffs and face ripping slamming chugs, making for a heavy and crushing album that makes me proud to be South African. With features from the likes of Peeling Flesh and Bodysnatcher, the album doesn’t relent in any instrumental department, with impressive vocals and beautiful almost Polyphia like solos, this album is an absolute gem of 2024.

5) Infectious Jelqing, Them Young Wiggas, fuck yeah I love this album, real slamming Wigga shit, not much else to say, bump this shit 

4) Kublai Khan TX, Exhibition of Prowess, Fifth album my Texan hardcore outfit Kublai Khan TX is fucking heavy, groovy, and brutal. The way Kublai Khan are able to produce such fantastic heavy hardcore while maintaining a focus on percussive rhythm, rather than melody, is a fine line to walk, bordering on same sounding songs, yet they are still distinguishable by the memorable grooves and vocal performance from Matt Honeycutt. Khan is King.

3) Gatecreeper, Dark Superstition, sliding into the top 3, Gatecreeper deliver a truly noteworthy old school death metal release, blending melodic riffs with harsh production making this album truly sound like an old school masterpiece. Unrelenting chainsaw guitars and brutal vocals make this album one of 2024s best. 

2) Knocked Loose, You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To, again, another album that is hard to say what hasn’t been waxed lyrical on previously, this hardcore bands 2024 release rocketed them to new heights this year, deservedly so, with an absolute masterpiece of an album. They keep their brutal, scary, and overwhelming sound they were so beloved for, and evolve it further, taking previous atmospheric horror experimentation heard in releases such as ‘A Tear in the Fabric of Life’, and the ‘Upon Loss Singles’. This album is as deserving of the #1 spot as the other pick, but in the end I had to place it down to personal preference. 

1) Peeling Flesh, The G Code, this album is peak slam, smooth gangster grooves, crushing chuggs, both funny and well suited musical samples make this album my personal favourite of 2024. 

If you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed my list and please feel free to argue with me in the comments over how shit my taste is. 

💚