Though there were some fantastic releases by a few classic bands in 2024, I didn’t feel that it was, overall, nearly as strong as some other years in recent memory for hard rock and heavy metal. The year also brought a few notably disappointing highly-anticipated albums from bands who have been very dependable in recent years, like Zeal & Ardor or Ad Infinitum.
While a few surprises are scattered among my 15 favorite releases of the year, I’m struck by the lack of newer and younger bands in my picks. A few debut albums show up on the list, but most are at least partially made up of veterans that I’ve been listening to for years. I’m willing to admit that maybe with everything going on in my life that 2024 was perhaps a year of musical comfort food for me.
Here are my thoughts on the year in hard rock and metal:
METAL MOMENT OF THE YEAR: Metal got perhaps its biggest global stage ever in 2024, being featured in the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. And we’re not talking a glorified pop act with a few heavy guitar riffs. No, it was progressive death metal band Gojira offering up an epic performance of “Mea Culpa (Ah Ca Ira),” a take on the song “Ca Ira” from the French Revolution. Complete with shooting towers of flame and a finale with streamers that resembled spraying blood, it was not what most of us expected to see at the Olympics, but it was awesome. I’ll admit that I mostly ignored everything else about the ceremony and the games, wasn’t even watching live when it happened, but I jumped online just as soon as I heard to find the clip. It was a bit of vindication for an old metalhead who has, for the most part, seen the heavier end pushed into the dark corners.
BEST EP: KIUAS – ‘SAMOOJA: PYHIIVAELLUS’: Kiuas was one of my favorite discoveries of the mid-2000s with a sound that was really all their own, blending power, folk metal, and death metal, while occasionally branching out into thrash or black metal territories. After 14 years away, this EP came as a very pleasant surprise to me. All three of the full songs on the album are very strong, but the star for me is “Through Purgatory,” which really captures the sound and feel that I loved on their debut Spirit of Ukko. Starting with a softer acoustic intro and Ilja Jalkanen’s distinctive vocals and building to a big dramatic chorus that showcases the band’s power. Here’s hoping that we hear more from them soon.
Standout songs: “Through Purgatory,” “The Pilgrimage,” “From the Anchorage”
Best of 2024 Metal and Hard Rock Albums
No. 15. SEBASTIAN BACH – ‘CHILD WITHIN THE MAN’: I really enjoyed Skid Row’s return to form in 2022, and I really hoped it would inspire Sebastian Bach to go hard. The lead single from this album, “What Do I Got to Lose?” (which thankfully uses proper grammar in the chorus and not the nails-on-chalkboard usage of the title), seemed to indicate that might be the case, coming out with a heavier edge more akin to the classic Skids. While there are some very strong pieces here, like the catchy chorus of “Freedom” and the aggressive riffing of “Vendetta,” there are also a number of forgettable tunes, too, which has typically been the Sebastian Bach formula. It’s a solid and enjoyable album, but not quite what I was hoping to hear.
Standout songs: “Everybody Bleeds,” “Freedom,” “(Hold On) To the Dream,” “What Do I Got to Lose,” “Vendetta”
No. 14. COREY GLOVER’S UNIVERSE – ‘COREY GLOVER’S UNIVERSE’: I had a little trouble finding this one when I went back to revisit it for my Best of 2024 list. Originally released under the band name Sonic Universe, apparently there was some dispute that led to a change to Corey Glover’s Universe. As the name would suggest, it’s the latest project of the Living Colour frontman, which also includes guitarist Mike Orlando (Adrenaline Mob), and bassist Booker King (Santana). It also won’t come as a huge surprise that the band sounds a lot like Glover’s primary outfit. Universe’s songs may take a few musical chances here and there that you wouldn’t hear in Living Colour, and it’s perhaps not quite as dedicated to the hook, it’s still right in the funk metal ballpark. That becomes clear from the opening track, “I Am,” probably the strongest song here.
Standout songs: “I Am,” “It Is What It Is,” “Turn a Blind Eye,” “My Desire,” “Higher,” “Come What May”
No. 13. DOMINUM – ‘HEY LIVING PEOPLE’: It seems that Napalm Records has never met a gimmick they didn’t like – pirates, dwarves, knights, space wizards, and now, zombies. This album was technically released in 2023, but since it came out on Dec. 29, I’m counting it as ’24. While there are a few more generic numbers here, Dominum largely delivers huge hooks that are punchy and quirky. I particularly love the Savatage and Queen-inspired “We All Taste the Same,” which was probably one of my most listened songs of the year, starting with a soft piano ballad and building to a bombastic and dramatic theatrical crescendo. That’s where they’re at their best, as on the infectious chorus of the opening “Immortalis Dominum” or the ’80s pop-flavored “Better Shoot Yourself.” On the downside, there are three covers – Dead or Alive’s “You Spin Me Round (Like a Record),” Midnight Oil’s “Beds are Burning,” and Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy,” which is the only one that fares sort of well.
Standout songs: “Immortalis Dominum,” “We All Taste the Same,” “Better Shoot Yourself,” “The Chosen Ones,” “Bad Guy”
No. 12. CATEGORY 7 – ‘CATEGORY 7’: This metal supergroup brings together incredible talents – vocalist John Bush (Armored Saint, Anthrax), guitarist Phil Demmel (Violence, Machine Head), guitarist Mike Orlando (Adrenaline Mob, Corey Glover’s Universe), drummer Jason Bittner (Shadows Fall), and bassist Jack Gibson (Exodus). With that lineup, you would expect a mind-blowing experience, but as with most supergroups, they deliver a solid album that doesn’t quite live up to what you imagined. With so many great musicians in the band, the songs typically end up being vehicles for them to show off their skills to the detriment of the overall composition. As a result, the tunes here are often amazing while you’re listening to them, but many of them don’t have the big hooks that stick with you later on.
Standout songs: “In Stitches,” “Apple of Discord,” “Exhausted,” “Runaway Truck,” “White Flags and Bayonets”
No. 11. DURBIN – ‘SCREAMING STEEL’: I am an unabashed fan of American Idol alum James Durbin’s 2021 debut release under this moniker, The Beast Awakens. It was a fun and passionate love letter to classic heavy metal. The follow-up is not quite as strong, but still very enjoyable. Of course, he was also competing against fantastic albums from some of those folks he pays homage to, like Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson and Judas Priest. There is a treasure trove of Easter eggs on the album for old-school metal fans as Durbin throws out the references almost non-stop. It’s definitely campy, but I don’t care. I’m still throwing horns and banging my head. The strongest track is also one of the shortest, “The Worshipper 1897,” which is basically a homage to Ronnie James Dio, and it made me wish that Dio had been around to possibly do a guest turn. I honestly thought I’d never listen to an album by a former American Idol contestant, but here we are, two records strong.
Standout songs: “The Worshipper 1897,” “Screaming Steel,” “Where They Stand,” “Made of Metal,” “Beyond the Night,” “Hallows,” “Power of the Reaper”
No. 10. MARILYN MANSON – ‘ONE ASSASSINATION UNDER GOD: CHAPTER 1’: I’ve had less time with this album than most of the others on the list, and I think it may be a grower, but right now it’s a tough call. It has some of the best work that he’s done in years, with the raging “Raise the Red Flag” being one of my favorite tunes of ’24. It’s an obvious nod to the accusations and legal issues that he’s faced recently, but the chorus punch – “my red flag is your white one soaked in blood” – is just a fantastic lyric. He spends a lot of time in Mechanical Animals territory, of course, but also dips back to the Antichrist Superstar sound for “Nod If You Understand.” Manson also delivers a catchy glam rock bopper on “Sacrilegious” and, naturally, works out his Bowie fetish in several places. But as strong as the really good songs are, it’s a very uneven record overall, with two or three of the nine songs on the short album not really being memorable after a few listens.
Standout songs: “One Assassination Under God,” “As Sick as the Secrets Within,” “Sacrilegious,” “Raise the Red Flag”
No. 9. CROSSBONE SKULLY – ‘EVIL WORLD MACHINE’: Here’s another “new” band that’s not. Put together by Alice Cooper bassist Tommy Henriksen and drummer Glen Sobel, and produced by Mutt Lange, who was responsible for a lot of the music that it mimics, Crossbone Skully features an ensemble cast with guest shots from the likes of Motley Crue’s Nikki Sixx and Def Leppard’s Phil Collen, as well as spoken word appearances from Cooper, Johnny Depp and Joe Perry. I would say its heavily influenced by AC/DC and early Def Leppard, but the truth is that much of it is almost paint-by-numbers copy of that classic hard rock formula. It’s still a lot of fun, though. They also take a couple of bizarre side trips into Dropkick Murphys-style Celtic punk (“Let’s Bust the Trust”) or Alice Cooper’s horror rock (“I Am the Wolf”). It’s simplistic, it’s catchy, and that’s what make it so enjoyable.
Standout songs: “The Boom Went the Boom,” “Evil World Machine,” “Money, Sex, or God,” “Everyone’s on Dope,” “Ima Bone Machine,” “I’m Unbreakable”
No. 8. KERRY KING – ‘FROM HELL I RISE’: I love when an artist steps out of their regular band and does something completely unique and unexpected. Ah, who the hell am I kidding? We all knew what this album was going to be, and that’s exactly what Kerry King delivers. It’s Slayer 2.0. I’m not even mad at him, though, because it has some pretty good Slayer tunes on it. King bucked what everybody expected, bypassing Phil Anselmo and choosing Mark Osegueda of Death Angel as his vocalist. It turned out to be a very good decision, as Osegueda is able to mimic the roars of Slayer vocalist Tom Araya, but brings a great energy to these songs. The tunes here are a mix of what you’d expect, some blazing thrashers, some mid-tempo melodic pieces, and a couple of heavily punk-influenced numbers. While I admit that the record didn’t have much staying power for me, only lasting a couple of months in my rotation, it was a nice little blast of Slayer-style energy.
Standout songs: “Residue,” “Idle Hands,” “Trophies of the Tyrant,” “Crucifixation,” “Toxic,” “Two Fists”
No. 7. KISSIN’ DYNAMITE – ‘BACK WITH A BANG’: German rockers Kissin’ Dynamite were at the forefront of the resurgence of glitzy 1980s-style hard rock in the 2010s, and they’re still waving that flag 14 years later on their latest release. While Back with a Bang is a little heavy on ballads and lighter fare for my tastes, the songs that hit for me hit hard. The driving “My Monster” and the blues-rock stomp “The Devil is a Woman” are as good as anything the band has ever released, and the former became the linchpin in the soundtrack of a novel that I wrote this year, so there’s no surprise that it was one of my most listened songs. They’re at their absolute best when they’re partying like it’s 1986, and there’s plenty of that to be found here.
Standout songs: “Back with a Bang,” “My Monster,” “Queen of the Night,” “The Devil is a Woman,” “More is More,” “Learn to Fly,” “When the Lights Go Out”
No. 6. BODY COUNT – ‘MERCILESS’: It’s been interesting to watch the progression of Body Count from their debut in the early ’90s when Ice-T set out to give his friend Ernie C a platform to showcase his guitar skills. Those early albums were raw, energetic and fun, but at times, sounded like they didn’t quite fully grasp the metal thing. All these years later, they are a well-polished metal machine. While it’s a little more uneven than some of Body Count’s recent releases, Merciless is still very solid. The record features guest shots from some heavyweights including George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher (Cannibal Corpse), Joe Bad (Fit for an Autopsy), Howard Jones (Killswitch Engage) and Max Cavalera (Sepultura, Soulfly). As they’ve done on the last few records, they also include a cover, and this one is surprising – Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb.” While it’s less a cover and more of a reimagining that uses some bits of he original song, it’s remarkable in the fact that David Gilmour was fully on board. Merciless hits hard and continues the hot streak Ice-T and company have been on for the last decade or so since returning to the scene.
Standout songs: “Merciless,” “The Purge,” “Psychopath,” “Fuck What You Heard,” “Do or Die,” “Comfortably Numb,” “Drug Lords”
No. 5. THE DEAD DAISIES – ‘LIGHT ‘EM UP’: I was thrilled when singer John Corabi (The Scream, Motley Crue) returned to the fold with the Dead Daisies. While I respect what Glenn Hughes has done over the years, I never felt that he was the right voice for this band. What we get here is exactly what we’ve come to expect from the Dead Daisies – 10 tracks of no-nonsense, straight up hard rock heavily influenced by the bands of the 1970s and ’80s. There’s not a whole lot more to say about it. It’s just good, high energy rock ‘n’ roll.
Standout songs: “Light ’Em Up,” “I Wanna Be Your Bitch,” “I’m Gonna Ride,” “Back to Zero,” “My Way and the Highway”
No. 4. JERRY CANTRELL – ‘I WANT BLOOD’: If you’ve been craving the feel of early Alice in Chains, I Want Blood is about as close as you’re going to get. Though I’ve liked some of the stuff he’s done with the reformed band, it’s never hit me the same way. And Cantrell’s last solo outing, 2021’s Brighten, was, as the title suggests, very jangly and pretty upbeat. So I hit play on the first single “Vilified” not expecting much. I got punched right in the gut with a heavy, grooving riff that sent me back to the early ’90s. That was followed by the melancholy “Afterglow,” and all of a sudden I was very interested. The nine songs on this album all have that same darkness and feel, and this record honestly feels like the natural follow up to Alice in Chains’ 1995 self-titled album, the last with late vocalist Layne Staley. It also makes me a little sad because I would have loved to hear what this album could have been with Staley, though Cantrell does very good homage to him on songs like “Off the Rails.” It’s heavy, it’s dark, it’s got those great harmonies. It’s pretty much everything I want from Cantrell.
Standout songs: There’s not a bad one here.
No. 3. BRUCE DICKINSON – ‘THE MANDRAKE PROJECT’: I’ve often said that I prefer Bruce Dickinson’s solo work to most of what Iron Maiden has put out over the past 25 years or so. His last three, starting with 1997’s Accident of Birth, have been both entertaining and consistent. While I think The Mandrake Project is a little more uneven than those three, it’s still quite good and finds Dickinson exploring some different sounds in addition to Maiden-esque tunes and those that are more like his previous solo work. “Rain on the Graves” is the first example, it has an almost bluesy feel that hits a little out of left field. I saw some reviewers call it “country.” It’s far from that, but you can hear perhaps a little bit of Johnny Cash influence in his verse delivery. He follows that up with “Resurrection Men,” which sounds a bit like the music that might accompany a Clint Eastwood spaghetti Western. For those looking for a more familiar sound, “Afterglow of Ragnarok,” “Many Doors to Hell,” and “Mistress of Mercy” fit the bill. Then there’s “Eternity Has Failed” for Iron Maiden fans. It will be very familiar as a modified version of it, “If Eternity Should Fail,” appeared on The Book of Souls (and was one of the strongest songs on that album). The last two tracks hit a little lull, with “Shadow of the Gods” turning into a kick ass song about halfway through after dragging for the first half and “Sonata (Immortal Beloved)” being a bit of a snooze. But the first eight reinforce my preference for latter-day Dickinson.
Standout songs: “Afterglow of Ragnarok,” “Many Doors to Hell,” “Rain on the Graves,” “Resurrection Men,” “Fingers in the Wounds,” “Eternity Has Failed,” “Mistress of Mercy”
No. 2. KITTIE – ‘FIRE’: At the beginning of the year, when I was thinking about what some of my favorite records of 2024 might be, Kittie was not on the bingo card. Yet, here we are. The band blasted onto the scene during the rise of nu-metal in the late 1990s and caught attention as a bit of an oddity at the time – a band of teenage girls playing heavy music. Their debut blew up largely on the strength of the single “Brackish,” but a heavier sophomore album didn’t produce the same results, and they pretty much disappeared – at least from my radar. Then the first single from this album, “Eyes Wide Open,” hit my ears and immediately got my attention. It’s a grooving chunk of heaviness in the vein of Lamb of God or Pantera. As the songs started to trickle out it became even more interesting with the mix of pummeling riffs and melodic interludes. At times, they go almost poppy, like the infectious chorus of “One Foot in the Grave,” but then they turn around and punch you in the face with a snarling basher like “I Still Wear This Crown.” Fire is by far the surprise of the year for me, as well as the comeback of the year. It’s Kittie’s best work by a long shot.
Standout songs: “Fire,” “I Still Wear This Crown,” “Vultures,” “We are Shadows,” “Wound,” “One Foot in the Grave,” “Grime,” “Eyes Wide Open”
No. 1. JUDAS PRIEST – ‘INVINCIBLE SHIELD’: In 2018, Judas Priest did the unimaginable for a heavy metal band with nearly 50 years under its belt. They released one of their strongest albums: Firepower, could hold its own with any of their classic albums. That was just a fluke, right? They can’t possibly do it again. Except, they did. Six years later, we have Invincible Shield, an album heavily influenced by their 1980s sound and once again packed with killer songs. While there’s still a lot of the feel of Firepower in the songs here, it pulls more from their 1980s catalog, even veering surprisingly into Turbo territory with the synth-heavy intro to “Panic Attack.” There’s a trip into the early ’90s and their heaviest album, Painkiller, on the title track. There are just straight-up bangers like “Trial By Fire,” and there’s some homage to Black Sabbath on “Escape from Reality” with it’s grooving slab of a riff and a latter-day Ozzy Osbourne vocal section from Rob Halford on an interlude after the second chorus. While a lot of bands this far into their career tend to rest on their laurels and their reputation, going through the motions on newer records, Priest refuses to do that, and while not every song quite hits the mark, the vast majority do. Realistically, I know we have a limited number of albums left from Judas Priest, and it’s nice to see them closing out their career with strong material.
Standout songs: “The Serpent and the King,” “Invincible Shield,” “Gates of Hell,” “As God is my Witness,” “Trial By Fire,” Escape from Reality,” “The Lodger”
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