Best Black Metal Albums of 2024
Undertaking the task of exploring the Best Black Metal Albums of 2024 is as thrilling as it is challenging. This year has witnessed a remarkable surge in creativity from established acts as well as rising talents, resulting in albums that do more than just uphold black metal’s long-held traditions—they push the genre into bolder, more imaginative territory. Although the best black metal albums of 2023 were class, this year is second to none!
As we reach the final months of 2024, it becomes impossible to ignore how the style has branched out, absorbing new influences and increasing its emotional range. Releases such as Malist’s Of Scorched Earth and Diablation’s Irrévérence illustrate this growing diversity, weaving melodic layers and atmospheric passages into their fierce core sounds. Projects like Suldusk’s Anthesis, with its delicate blend of folk elements, and Gaerea’s Coma, embracing both intensity and accessibility, further show the genre’s capacity to evolve gracefully. Even more experimental works, like Dawn Treader’s Bloom & Decay, prove that black metal continues to reach beyond its familiar shadows.
What’s most exciting is that many of these under-the-radar artists are stepping into the spotlight, not merely mimicking the past but crafting compelling music that draws in fresh audiences. By assembling these standout releases into a carefully considered list, we can better understand the movements reshaping the black metal soundscape.
Black Metal Albums Tier List 2024
Let’s dive into the 2024 black metal albums tier list and discover which ones emerged as personal favorites, and why their dynamic presentations, thematic depth, and fearless experimentation ensure they’ll remain significant touchstones in years to come.
Black Metal Albums of 2024 Ranked
The time is now: let´s declare which are the best black metal releases of 2024:
- Diablation – Irréverence review:
- Suldusk – Anthesis review:
- Stellar Remains – Wastelands review:
- Kvaen – The Formless Fires review
- Griffon – De Republica review:
- Servant – Death Devil Magick review:
- Dawn Treader – Bloom & Decay review
- Gaerea – Coma review:
- Malist – Of Scorched Earth review
- Doedsmaghird – Omniverse Consciousness review
- Final Ranking of the Best of Black Metal 2024:
Diablation – Irréverence review:
Released on September 27, 2024, through Osmose Productions, Diablation’s Irrévérence steps from the French underground like a secret storm brewing behind tall gates. Within these symphonic black metal halls, sound builds in towering layers, while fierce guitar work and haunted voices circle one another like dancers in moonlight. Tracks such as “Le dernier roi” and “Éternel” unite sharp edges with ghostly whispers, and quiet spoken interludes feel like echoes of old warnings drifting across empty fields. In these sounds, listeners glimpse a world crumbling, yet somehow also thriving in its shadows. Diablation’s music confirms their place among France’s rising black metal voices—thoughtfully composed, richly layered, and powerful as a long-hidden prophecy revealed at last.
Suldusk – Anthesis review:
On March 1, 2024, in a corner of Australia where the leaves know ancient secrets, Suldusk released Anthesis via Napalm Records. Emily Highfield’s voice drifts between gentle murmurs and wild cries, as if channeling spirits both kind and cruel. The music rests between quiet folk strumming and the restless surge of blackgaze guitars, forging a sound neither fully tamed nor wholly savage. Each note is given room to breathe, allowing listeners to sense both the raw soil beneath their feet and a clear night sky overhead. On “A Luminous End,” Raphael Weinroth-Browne’s cello arrives like a final lantern guiding travelers out of the forest. Anthesis becomes such a journey through loss and understanding, each step blending darkness with softer hues of memory.
Stellar Remains – Wastelands review:
Stellar Remains unveiled the Wastelands EP on February 15, 2024, through Gutter Prince Cabal Records. Though brief, this solo work by Dan Elkin gathers many shapes of metal—old-school death, progressive, blackened edges, and daring experiments—and welds them into a steady, determined whole. Each track feels like a distinct landscape, changing colors and textures as the listener moves forward. Despite its short run, Wastelands stands strong, a reminder that true depth does not require endless length. What matters here is that each note is carefully placed, leaving a lasting impression.
Kvaen – The Formless Fires review
During mid-2024, Kvaen presented The Formless Fires, a Viking black metal release that breathes with both icy winds and gentle folk warmth. The band’s fierce guitar work and changing tempos feel like warriors marching through changing landscapes: sometimes slow, deliberate steps, other times sprinting into battle. Within these songs, old beliefs and natural forces rise as central characters. Glimpses of neoclassical touches and folk-inspired melodies break through the darkness, lighting the way forward. This album continues Kvaen’s proud tradition, blending careful polish with chaotic guitar solos.
Griffon – De Republica review:
On February 16, 2024, Griffon offered De Republica via Les Acteurs de l’Ombre Productions. It’s a black metal work dressed in neoclassical and baroque finery, as if the band reached back in time to borrow old melodies and fierce ideals. The album ponders the meaning of freedom, law, and revolt, turning these themes into fierce riffs and stately arrangements. Songs like “L’Homme du Tarn” and “The Ides of March” unite stormy intensity with thoughtful harmonies, supported by historical echoes that make it seem as though the past itself has risen to speak. This is not just another album—it is a thoughtful collection of ideas painted in dark, vibrant tones.
Servant – Death Devil Magick review:
Servant’s Death Devil Magick, appearing on September 20, 2024, via AOP Records, renews German black metal’s inner flame. This record balances the dark, primal feel of traditional black metal with newer ideas that shimmer beneath the surface. On tracks like “Sin” and “Magick,” raspy guitars, fierce drums, and eerie vocals twist together, creating both tension and beauty. The production is clear and strong, making every layer stand out. The result is music that welcomes old fans while inviting curious newcomers into a innovative and strangely alluring sound world.
Dawn Treader – Bloom & Decay review
Under the guidance of Ross Connell, Dawn Treader has released a work that feels as expansive as a distant horizon seen after a rain. Bloom & Decay spans 53 minutes, and for the first time in this project’s life, human voices rise amid the layers of blackgaze guitars. It’s a bold step, and it lands with startling impact. In the album’s finale, a recitation of Bukowski’s “The Laughing Heart” by Tom Waits doesn’t serve as a simple curiosity—rather, it lays bare the album’s spirit of fading and flourishing, reminding the listener that loss and renewal are woven together.
Though the album’s sound can be dense, the production leaves just enough space to let each moment breathe. Listen to “Idolator” and feel how Connell’s vocal howls strike like sparks through the thickness of the guitars. The political sampling in “Iron Price” may stir debate, but it also anchors the music in the world that created it, linking the album’s large, sometimes otherworldly atmosphere to issues that we cannot ignore. Dawn Treader has taken a stride forward here, charting a path that honors familiar darkness while embracing fresh light. Awesome artwork by the way.
Gaerea – Coma review:
In their newest offering, the Portuguese force known as Gaerea has not merely advanced but seemingly broken through an old boundary, entering a world of fresh possibility. With Guilherme Henriques now guiding their voices and Sonja Schuringa joining the guitar ranks, Coma stands as a daring act of renewal. The band’s shift toward a more melodic approach does not feel like an awkward turn, but rather like a tree naturally extending its branches toward the sun.
Within “The Poet’s Ballet,” storms of sound give way to quieter moments, each serving the other with deliberate grace. “The Poet´s Ballad” and “Coma” slip delicate threads of melody into the band’s familiar darkness, making even the most intense passages feel inviting rather than unforgiving. Clean vocals appear not as a compromise, but as a new brush in the group’s growing palette, allowing them to paint emotions in unexpected hues. In a nutshell, Coma will remain as a compelling, versatile, easy listen for every metal fan.
Malist – Of Scorched Earth review
In the early weeks of 2024, when the soil still held its winter stiffness, Malist released its fifth musical work, Of Scorched Earth. The work, overseen by Ovfrost alone, drifts through currents of black metal that refuse to remain static. It seizes the listener by drawing them through passages of shifting speed, unexpected stylistic revisions, and tranquil, acoustic flickers. While a handful of the songs stretch themselves a bit beyond what might be considered comfortable limits, the underlying tale—human existence kneeling before the relentless power of the wild—resonates, intensifies, and reverberates long after the final note. The dark hum of these melodies has continued to stir souls, anchoring the album firmly in the consciousness of those attuned to such music. In these recordings, one witnesses Malist’s own journey: not a clumsy march, but an assured stride through fresh territory. That is why although Of Scorched Earth was released almost a year ago, it resisted as one of my favourites.
Doedsmaghird – Omniverse Consciousness review
October 11, 2024, arrived with an almost electric hush as Doedsmaghird unveiled Omniverse Consciousness through Peaceville Records. Collaborators Vicotnik and Camille Giradeau have fashioned something that heaves and shivers at the margins of expectation, an enterprise that twirls black metal’s essence into a grand experiment. Songs flicker between industrial clangs and strange, spectral textures, their patterns unpredictable, like old maps that lead to territories hovering between starlight and dream. “Sparker Inn Åpne Dører” and “Then, to Darkness Return” shatter simple definitions, wandering in swirling patterns that bring to mind abandoned factories and forgotten shrines hidden beneath neon constellations. The album dares to fling listeners into a sonic labyrinth, leaving them to navigate their own interpretations and question the very nature of musical borders, as if the “omniverse” were not merely a concept, but an invitation to stretch the mind beyond all familiar contours. Omniverse Consciousness is as complex as its creators name, and I loved it.
Which is the Best Black Metal Album of 2024?
Every album on this list is above any high standard, but only one is getting the prize. In this occasion, despite being a tough decision, Doedsmaghird – Omniverse Consciousness is the Best Black Metal Album of 2024. Congratulations!
Final Ranking of the Best of Black Metal 2024:
- Diablation – Irrévérence | 10º
- Suldusk – Anthesis | 9º
- Stellar Remains – Wastelands | 8º
- Kvaen – The Formless Fires | 7º
- Griffon – De Republica | 6º
- Servant – Death Devil Magick | 5º
- Dawn Treader – Bloom & Decay | 4º
- Gaerea – Coma | 3º
- Malist – Of Scorched Earth | 2º
- Doedsmaghird – Omniverse Consciousness | 1º
Remember that all of the albums which are listed in our rankings are featured in our official Spotify playlists!
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