The best Black Metal releases of 2024

The year of 2024 has passed and a lot of black metal was brought to our table during the year. Black Metal Zine has seen a steady growth in visitors, and a big growth in bands reaching out to us for promotions.

We would like to thank you all for interacting and reading our articles. The year also brought us new members of the BMZ staff and to commemorate that we thought of making a collaboration of the best releases of 2024 together. That, my dear reader, is what will follow for the remaining content of this article.


KingGorthaur (BMZ photographer) picks:

My absolute favourite release of 2024 came from the Belarusian band Kristailer. Their release “In the Hearts of the Brave”.

The music is heavily driven by Zmei’s melodic guitar riffs that swipe across the battlefield like a burning sword, creating a magical atmosphere. The album has a great atmosphere, groove, and melodies.

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Zørza’s release “Hellven” is another top contender from 2024. The Polish band has seen great streaming numbers on the BMP YouTube channel after their release, and has a spot on many peoples AOTY charts.

The harshness of the vocals, melodic guitar riffs and the fantastic drive is what I find so good about this album.

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“Vessels by Which the Devil is Made Flesh” by Misotheist is my final pick for this article. The Terratur Possesion rostered band out of Trondheim, Norway, released this masterpiece on the first of March in 2024.

The captivating hooking riffs and the dark growl like vocals made this release one of my most listened to in 2024.

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Talvipäivänseisaus’ picks:

Necrophobic — In The Twilight Grey: The Swedish melo-black ensemble proves that they still have plenty of gas left in the tank. By combining NWOBHM-style melodies, versatile instrumentation and elements of classic death metal and black metal, Necrophobic proofs that it’s still possible to make Swedish melodic extreme metal sound original and dark three decades after the style’s heyday.

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Keys to the Astral Gates and Mystic Doors I & II: These two self-titled demos have turned this Wisconsin band into a mini internet phenomenon. Make no mistake, while some attention might be linked to the high meme-ability of the band’s name and aesthetic, there’s still an undeniable talent behind it all. The music is raw, weird, and engaging, and the quirky DYI aesthetic is a breath of fresh air in a saturated music market.

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Mefitis — The Skorian / The Greyleer: Mefitis continues to be one of the most exciting and boundary-pushing metal bands in the current day. To say I was hyped for this album is an understatement: The Offscourings, released four years prior, was my album of the year for 2021. Throughout 2024, I kept checking the band’s social media and Bandcamp sites over and over again, hoping for any signs of new music.

I was about to email the band personally to confirm if they are still making music. I was fearing the worst, when out of nowhere they released the single The Untwined One in late September. The album, the third in their discography, followed in November. Structured to be a double-album, The Skorian / The Greyleer has two titles and two sides with two separate recording processes. The album is the band’s experiment on the limits — and possibilities — of analogue tape recording. It’s also the band’s debut on Profound Lore Records and, like its predecessors, makes for a puzzling listen, worthy of endless replays.

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KiliSchauer’s picks:

Kirkebrann — Mot trellenes Forfall : As some of you might have seen already in the review, I hold this album extremely high in my tier list for this year. The pure melodic hardness and extreme vocals pared with raw aggression really made it standout for me.

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Paysage D’hiver — Die Berge: I don’t even know how to summarize this 2h opus magnum but with a few words: Atmospheric excellence paired with haunting vocals and great melodies it’s definitely an album for cold misty hikes through the mountains or city depending on where you are located.

Finally, Molh — Deus: A surprise, but a welcomed one. Pure Ukrainian aggressive atmospheric Black Metal that captures the mood of the current world. But more to that in the upcoming review.

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Roberto’s Picks:

Picking 3 albums out of an onslaught of black metal releases each year, is something that’s challenging to do, but we try anyway. For the first album, we go with the absolute stellar album Ciel Cendre et Misère Noire by French black metal band Houle. This album really had it all for me, great vocals, and drums, great theme and atmosphere and band photos to match that whole vibe, it was a complete package and my favorite album of 2024.

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Second pick would be House of the Black Geminus by Akhlys. This album is a showcase of how to put the idea of fear and terror into music. The entire album just oozes that atmosphere and I love it for it (hence the 9 rating). This album is the abyss itself, and if you stare to look it will stare back.

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And finally the second album, Vortex of the Worlds by Labyrinthus Stellarum. This album is even better than the first album of LS. The entire space theme is done with such flair it all just fits, and the entire album is just a journey. If you haven’t listened to this album yet, you really need to give it a try. And when you do, do so with headphones on. That really brings the album/music to life.

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What are your favorite albums of the year 2024? Please let us know.

We would love to know your favorite albums, you can let us know on our social media channels, or join us on discord, where we discuss all things black metal! Make sure to follow our Facebook page, Black Metal Zine, to receive notifications when we publish articles. Also check out our Instagram at @blackmetal.zine for concert pictures and more!

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