I want to once again acknowledge a few of my favorite songs of the year that didn’t make the list of my favorite albums. Some of them were one-off releases, others were great songs on albums that weren’t strong enough to crack my list. Though there are quite a few fantastic early singles from 2025 releases that also came out this year, they’re excluded from this list as well. I’ll save them for next year. (Alphabetical, by artist. I’m not attempting to rank these.)
ALESTORM – ‘VOYAGE OF THE DEAD MARAUDER’: While the rest of this EP was mixed with an entertaining cover of Captain Tractor’s “The Last Saskatchewan Pirate” and the joke tune “Cock,” which is even more ridiculous than you might imagine from the name, the title track was absolutely epic. It showed a little different side of the band with guest Patty Gurdy, who has done a lot of work with Alestorm in the past as a hurdy-gurdy player, taking on some lead vocals. Between Gurdy’s soaring voice, frontman Chris Bowes’ piratical silliness, and keyboard player Elliot Vernon’s scathing death growls, it’s a potent mixture. It might be my favorite Alestorm tune since the No Grave But the Sea album.
ARMORED SAINT – ‘ONE CHAIN (DON’T MAKE NO PRISON)’: It’s not often that you see a metal band take on a soul cover, especially not one that’s previously been recorded by the Four Tops, Santana, and the Doobie Brothers. But the rhythm section of bassist Joey Vera and drummer Gonzo Sandoval lock into the rhythm, and singer John Bush delivers a suitably soulful, though still heavy, vocal. I was a little disappointed they didn’t play it when I saw them open for W.A.S.P. in December.
AVATAR – ‘MAKE IT RAIN’: I really hate when bands hold back a couple of songs so that they can release a deluxe edition of an album a year or so later. I’ll make an exception in Avatar’s case, as I’m never going to complain about new music from them. This was the better of two tracks released for an extended version of their 2023 album Dance Devil Dance. It’s what they do best, quirky melodies, a manic performance from frontman Johannes Eckerstrom, and blasts of heaviness.
EXIT EDEN – ‘RUN!’: One of my most anticipated albums of next year is from former Nightwish bassist Marko Hietala, but in 2024, he teamed up with the ladies in Exit Eden to out-Nightwish his former band. “Run!” has everything that I miss in the current iteration of Nightwish – mystical melodies, punchy choruses, and great harmonies.
FLOTSAM AND JETSAM – ‘HEAD OF THE SNAKE’: The thrash pioneers continue to pump out consistent and steady albums that give fans exactly what they want and expect. I Am the Weapon didn’t quite stand out enough and barely missed my best-of list, but it still had some great songs on it. This one is probably my favorite of the bunch.
PATTY GURDY – ‘PEG LEG SILLY-BILLY’: Chris Bowes and Patty Gurdy make their second appearance on my list of favorite songs with this tune from Gurdy’s solo album Tavern. Gurdy’s music is a bit more traditional and folk than what she does with other bands, and this is just a fun, goofy and silly little song – right up until the end, that is, when it takes a dark turn. A close second for the list is her duet with Marko Hietala, “I Am With You.”
BETH HART – ‘SAVIOR WITH A RAZOR’: While perhaps not technically hard rock, this number featuring Slash on guitar is a masterclass in absolute badassery. It’s slinky, smoky and loaded with DGAF attitude, and what’s more rock ‘n’ roll than that? Also give a nod to “Suga N My Bowl” featuring Eric Gales, another hard-rocking track from You Still Got Me.
THE HU – ‘THE TROOPER’: Many metal bands have covered Iron Maiden’s signature song, but this one is a little more special than most. I mean, it’s a Mongolian band, singing about a cavalry charge, in Mongolian. What’s not to like?
LYRIC NOEL – ‘CRY LITTLE SISTER’: For people of a certain age, this is the epitome of the perfect movie theme song. A lot of heavy bands over the years have tried and failed to cover it, including Marilyn Manson, who seems like the perfect candidate. Lyric Noel absolutely nails it, though. They capture the spirit of the original and give it just enough heaviness with cranked-up guitars and a few well-placed death growls that give it more oomph without overdoing it.
NEW HORIZON – ‘APOLLO’: While vocalist Nils Molin’s 2024 album with Amaranthe was a bit of a disappointment, his taking over for Erik Gronwall in New Horizon was not. Conquerors is a concept album with each song based on a conqueror, but not exactly like you may be thinking. While there is the obligatory cover of Iron Maiden’s “Alexander the Great,” which almost had to appear, it also tackles other types of conquerors, such as atomic bomb inventor J. Robert Oppenheimer, Jesus Christ, and in the case of this song, NASA. While a lot of the songs are great, this dramatic and symphonic piece is the one that has stuck with me most.
RATT – ‘REACH FOR THE SKY’: For the 40th anniversary of their best-known record, Out of the Cellar, we finally get to hear this track that was cut from the album (and also not featured on the album of the same name a few years later). It’s understandable why “Reach for the Sky” didn’t make the cut. Out of the Cellar was a fantastic record, and this tune really doesn’t top any of the songs that did make it. That said, it’s still a fun and catchy tune, and it’s nice to hear that classic Ratt sound again.
SAISEIGA – ‘STRANGE RAIN’: The opening track from Saiseiga’s 2024 album The Black Hole blends Arch Enemy, Soilwork and Dream Theater, along with some Japanese anime-style quirkiness. While the rest of the album didn’t quite live up to the promise of this single, falling into Arch Enemy clone territory more often than not, “Strange Rain” shows what the band is capable of doing. I’ll be keeping an eye on them.
SALTATIO MORTIS/BLIND GUARDIAN – ‘DARKENGUARD’: This is a suitably epic 9-minute symphonic, folk and power metal masterpiece with great melodies, catchy hooks and of course, Hansi Kursch vocals. It’s the kind of tune that makes you want to strap on your chainmail, grab a sword and fight against the forces of evil. Also a shout out for the jaunty “We Might Be Giants,” which failed to make the list only because they had Cristina Scabbia from Lacuna Coil and for some reason only decided to use her on the gang vocals. WTH?
SHOTGUN MISTRESS – ‘JUDE JUDAS’: Kings of the Revolution was a fun little blast of old-school hard rock, but not quite captivating enough to make my best-of list. Still, it delivered a few memorable tunes in “Shot Down,” “Mary Jane,” and my favorite from the record, “Jude Judas.” Plenty of attitude and nice hooks are really all you need.
WAGE WAR – ‘NAIL5’: I have a love/hate relationship with Wage War. On the one hand, they’ll release a heavy ripper of a tune and then on the next track give you the most milquetoast radio rock song imaginable. While Stigma had a few solid tracks, the infectious “Nail5” was really the only one that hung around for most of the year.
ZEAL AND ARDOR – ‘HIDE IN THE SHADE’: After their incredible self-titled album, Greif (German for griffin, not a misspelling of grief) was one of my most anticipated records of the year. Unfortunately, it was missing a lot of that blend of gospel and black metal that I’ve loved on previous records. The music here is a bit more experimental and often sounds like bandleader Manuel Gagneux’s other project, Birdmask, to my ears. It’s not bad, but just doesn’t hit me like their older stuff. “Hide in Shade” provided one of the few moments that gave me the vibe I was looking for.
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