Top Ten Albums of 2025 / Rob "The Metal Guy" Awards

 

   Well everyone, 2025 was a totally nutty year with plenty of moments that made me just wanted to throw my hands up the in air and scream, "Get me the hell off of this crazy planet!" From the constant talk about AI taking over to my city becoming insanely overdeveloped to where every single piece of land is being used to build overpriced condos that like look something out of a George Orwell novel, 2025 really felt like massive pile of feces floating in a toilet. Luckily music seemed to be the best medicine, as there were some extremely strong releases that came out this year. Also, the future of the Bay Area underground metal scene looks very promising with bands like Cardinal, Bezaliel and Varulf leading the way. Plus, Sentient Ruin showed up by continuing to release more uncompromising extreme metal albums this year. Although I must give Hells Headbangers major credit for the work that they did this year whether it be new releases, or re-issues of extreme metal classics like the Goreaphobia picture disc. In the end, 2025 may not have been a cake walk of a year, but then again, when is life ever completely without chaos...Alright enough rambling like a washed-up pro-wrestler from the 80's doing a shoot interview, here are my top ten albums from 2025...

10. Gawthrop - “Kuboa”

This South Korean sludge act sure unleashed a gruesome sounding album with the release of “Kuboa.” Definitely could hear influences like Noothgrush and Grief which is probably what drew me to the album right away after hearing the first preview song. Glad to see Sentient Ruin was the label working with the band for the album’s release as Gawthrop perfectly compliments the label’s diabolical and unapologetic extreme ethos. There are plenty of agonizing slow crushing riffs throughout the album painting a bleak and dystopian landscape where piles of bones lay across a desolate wasteland. 

9. Prophetic Suffering - “Rivalry of Thyself” 

The bestial death metal horde from Canada known as Prophetic Suffering unleashed a sickening decibel defiling onslaught with the release of "Rivalry of Thyself." From start to finish this album was utterly devastating and featured some savage guitar work to go along with the cataclysmic drumming. These sadistic maniacs don't experiment or try to go off the extreme metal script, which is why the album comes across as an unforgivingly raw and brutal assault without any remorse. Definitely a band to keep an eye on if you are a fan of monstrous sounding death metal. 

8. Phantom - “Tyrants Wrath” 

The maniac thrashers from Mexico are an insanely relentless force and have gained a solid international following over the years. I personally really enjoyed their debut album, “Handed to Execution,” a lot when I first heard that album. “Tyrants of Wrath,” is another solid release that features more merciless old school speed/thrash riffs, but even has more classic melodic metal touches which draws influence from the NWOBHM and early 80’s speed metal. Still, they know how to bring the intensity when it comes to heavy sounding palm muted riffs that can conjure up a mosh pit within seconds. Plus, they seem to be working extremely hard as I see them constantly sharing videos of their wicked live shows. 

7. Perdition Temple "Malign Apotheosis"

The new album from Perdition Temple was definitely a strong extreme release to come out towards the end of this year. For their fifth full-length album the band yet again demonstrated their vicious talents by hammering out some juggernaut sized death metal riffs. The album really invokes that old school sound which is great given how modern death has really become sterile sounding and seems to have lost that pestilent vibe that you heard coming out in the late 80's and early 90's. Perdition Temple knows how to come up with vile sounding tracks like "Kingdoms of the Bloodstained" and "Death Insurrection" to give the listener a chaotically deafening listening experience. 

6. Moonlight Haze - “Beyond” 

The epic power metal outfit known as Moonlight Haze once again created a truly impressive release. I tend to be extremely picky with my power metal as I have found the sub-genre to be getting a bit gimmicky with too many bands starting to become very forgettable. However, Moonlight Haze knows how to construct these triumphant sounding compositions to grab your attention. Also, the band’s singer has an amazing voice along with a tremendous vocal range. In think if you are into power metal then Moonlight Haze is a band to be checking out and I hope they come to the US for a tour. 

5. Matt Lasserre - “Jungian House Dreams” 

The mastermind behind Pale Cremation never seems to slow down and continues to create some killer releases. His new solo album that came out this year was a bit of a departure from his more doom and hard rock past, but he still found a way to captive listeners with some really impressive prog rock/post-punk influenced compositions. “Jungian House Dreams,” contains some ethereal synth arrangements, which gives the release a very dreamlike quality. Matt recorded plenty of fascinating compositions on this album that mixed all these different types of musical influences of his to make a very creative release. Having known Matt since his days playing bass in the band Scrape the Earth, I've really come to respect how much work he has put in over the years recording new music and furthering to explore his various musical interests. 

4. Uranium - “Corrosion of Existence”

Probably one of the most insane and down right mind altering extreme albums to come out this year. The one-man blackened industrial act behind Uranium has been conjuring up some real radioactively decimating releases in recent years with this one being surrealistically brutal from start to finish. Uranium combines all the abhorrent musical elements together to offer listener's a glimpse into an apocalyptic nightmare where humanity has become devastated by nuclear destruction. Sentient Ruin also did a great job with the album's release by offering a cool vinyl variant as well as printing some badass shirts/hoodies/long sleeve shirts (Still some available on Sentient Ruin's website). 

3. Demonsmoke - “Resin Wrought” 

Demonsmoke’s second full-length album and the follow-up to their monumental 2017 debut album “Morphine Moonshine,”is without question one of the heaviest albums that came out this year. The band increases the vile sludge and doom dose to an even more diabolically sinister level with “Resin Wrought.” The riffs on this album are vicious while the vocals add a venomous touch of pure unapologetic disgust. Definitely draws influence from Southern sludge metal, but has such a profoundly dark doom vibe that hooks you from the first suffocatingly distorted riff. Also, shoutout to the artist who did the album cover as it perfectly compliments the band's primordial demonically doom like sound. 

2. Lathe of Heaven - “Aurora” 

Lathe of Heaven's sophomore full-length album "Aurora" had to be one of the album's I was most looking forward to in 2025. The band's debut album "Bound by Naked Skies" is one of my favorite albums to be released within the last few and I still listen to it quite frequently. "Aurora," is a tremendous follow-up that shows the band's growth as songwriters, as well as their ability to compose these haunting and fierce post-punk atmospheres. The lyrical content is inspired by science fiction along with other topics that are extremely relatable to the current state of our world. I personally think Gage Allison is one of the best singers currently in the world of rock/punk/metal music, and he always seems to delivers the lyrics with such profound conviction to where you remember every word. "Just Beyond the Reach of Light," is a powerful song that I would consider to be the best song off of the album. 

1. The Chameleons - “Arctic Moon” 

I can already hear the elitist extreme metal fans reading this number one pick and saying, "You're number one pick is yet again a non-metal band?!" Well in the end, I am unapologetic about what I enjoy and in my opinion the best album to come out in 2025 was The Chameleons "Arctic Moon." For those not familiar with The Chameleons, they are a tremendously talented post-punk/new wave act from the 80's that I strongly believe deserves more credit for their work. The band's first three albums are utterly phenomenal and even though they did not sell millions of records, I believe they have established a profoundly loyal cult following that deeply treasures the band's recordings. "Arctic Moon" is a bit of a comeback album since they had not put out a new album since 2001. Even after all those years of not making new material, the band did not seem to miss a beat as the new song's a truly astonishing. Reg Smithies is a brilliant guitarist who constructs these mesmerizing landscapes featuring some very tranquil sounding guitar compositions. The song on the album that steals the show is "David Bowie Takes my Hand," which contains some powerful lyrical moments along with these very inspiring dynamic arrangements. Even if you are not a fan of this style of music, I really do recommend checking this album out given how well music was recorded and how meaningful the lyrics come across. 

The Rob “The Metal Guy” Awards

EP of the Year: Samiarus “Reign Destroyer” 

Best Live Performance of the Year: The Chameleons in Roseville, CA

Most Brutal Album Cover of the Year: Demonsmoke “Resin Wrought”

Label of the Year: Hells Headbangers (The Goreaphobia picture disc turned out great! So glad I ordered it!). 

Up and Coming Artist of the Year: Cardinal (A black metal band that is extremely talented and hopefully working on a full-length album). 

Intercontinental Metal Champions: Empty Chalice (Created this new category for bands who come to the Bay Area from another country and put on a killer show, which Empty Chalice did on May 31st of this year). 

Biggest Douche of the Year: Sleep Token 

Uranium “Corrosion of Existence”

    There are some bands that can easily write songs detailing the end of the world, although very few can mastermind a true nightmarish wasteland like Uranium. The one-man blackened industrial act has definitely captured my attention in the past with prior releases which featured some inhumanely insidious arrangements. This new offering titled, “Corrosion of Existence,” maintains an entropically surrealistic overall sound of sonic savagery and harrowing industrial noises, but pushes even further into the abysmal black void of humanity’s ultimate doom.  

    Teaming up once again with the mighty Sentient Ruin, a label known for promoting some of the most extremely unapologetic underground acts around, Uranium does not fail to deliver an album that compliments the label’s malevolent vision. Actually, I would say that Uranium is one of Sentient Ruin’s most diabolical and downright sadistic artistic visionaries, which is saying something as the label has put out a countless number of profoundly extreme sounding releases in the past. I would say that Uranium’s sound might be an acquired taste for some, but if anyone is looking of punishing industrial arrangements with bleak atmospheres clouded in the distorted ashes of nuclear fallout, then you will become instantly hooked by this latest release. 

    “Corrosion of Existence,” is an exploration into some utterly dark soundscapes and the opening track, “Bliss and Void,” marks the beginning of the aural annihilation. After hearing someone countdown as if getting ready to launch a nuclear missile to bring about apocalyptic destruction upon the world, you feel completely torn and twisted by all the dissonant sounds. Like with most industrial acts, the music creates a very harsh and sinisterly adrenaline pumping environment where one can become overwhelmed by the tsunami of agonizing noises. The vocals are completely grotesque which adds to the catastrophic mixture of vile distortion and frantic machine like sounds bursting through the storm of hellish noises. I thought the album’s second track, “Traffic Warden,” was more explosive, especially pertaining to the constant rush of tormenting aggression heard throughout the track which I would say is very similar to that of a band such as Godflesh. 

    There is no denying that Uranium is focused on creating these unconventional sounding landscapes where everything is in utter disarray, yet still manages to capture your attention in a hypnotically ruthless manner. “Descent Into Entropic Death,” contains some ear piercing sounds, while also throwing down plenty of monumental industrial rhythms. The overall composition with all these different abhorrent sounds thrown together achieves a very horrifying theme. Speaking of horrifying themes, “Concrete Tombs,” is probably the most effectively haunting and downright terrifying tracks off of the album. The atmosphere literally is void of all light as you begin to see miles of endless destruction and mounds of rubble from all the unspeakable devastation. I thought that the album could have ended right there, but Uranium decided to pile on more profoundly extreme arrangements with the final song, “Corrosion of Existence.” The song is appropriately title because you find your sanity begin to slip away as the music violently transitions from one suffocating direction to the next. 

    Uranium is an act that people can try and compared to other past extreme industrial and blackened death noises acts from all around the world, however, I would say that Uranium has definitely solidified their own unapologetically decimating artistic persona, especially on this new release. “Corrosion of Existence,” serves as another surrealistic exploration into the atrocities that shall befall humanity if we become victim to nuclear armageddon, which is why I would recommend checking out this album out if you are interested in such a serious and consequential topic. Musically, the album's overall sound is such that you'll either find it to be vividly enthralling, or sadistically overwhelming to the ears. Either way, I guarantee it will leave an impact on you, which seems to happen with a lot of artists on Sentient Ruin. 

Check out the track "Descent Into Entropic Death" below:

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/album/corrosion-of-existence

Uranium “Pure Nuclear Death”

    The American one-man savage doomsday composer behind Uranium unleashes a devastating full-length album that is brighter than a thousand suns and more devastating than anything one could have ever imagined. The mixture of agonizing black metal and surrealistic industrial elements creates a wasteland of post-apocalyptic sounding horror, making Uranium’s sophomore release, “Pure Nuclear Death,” an utterly haunting listening experience. 

    Uranium is working with Sentient Ruin once again, which comes as no surprise given the fact that Sentient Ruin was responsible for releasing Uranium’s cassette compilation “Wormboiler" back in 2021 as well as the band's first full-length album, “An Exacting Punishment.” This new release definitely continues the reign of industrial extreme blackened electronic chaos that one can hear on the previous releases, but I think this album goes even further into the entropic sounding landscapes where all light is devoured by a dark cloud of ash. 

    When I look at this album and the five tracks which are featured on it, I find that the entire release is one vivid sounding abysmal tale from beginning to end that almost traumatizes you as your mind is constantly being overloaded by these surreal arrangements. From the very first track, “Absolute Terror,” you are met with a festering swarm of raw aggressive guitar distortion and nerve pounding rhythms. Uranium holds nothing back and really begins the album with a merciless assault of sonic terror, thus grabbing your attention as the music radioactively seems to evolve into even darker sounding directions. On the second track, “Pure Nuclear Death,” you find yourself speechless hearing the crackling sounds burst out of the speakers while these sound clips discuss the grim realities of what will happen if we experience nuclear armageddon. 

    For me the album is going to be one those releases that you either find extremely fascinating, or one which will end up leaving you completely terrified and not wanting to leave your house for a week. The music is very abrasive sounding as the album progresses with song's such as “Casual Violence” and “Fortified Mass Fungus.” In terms of the explosive chaotic compositions, they only become more overwhelming as you try to make sense of the bleak reality which will befall humanity if we continue to march off the cliff and into a hopeless oblivion. The vocal parts on this album actually impressed me the most, as the vocals really compliment the doom like atmospheres that give off a very cinematic like aura at times. I really enjoyed the last song, “Black Knight Satellite,” as the Godflesh-like approach with its agonizing industrial elements aggressively shreds away at your sanity. You almost cannot imagine what you are hearing is human as the music transforms into this cataclysmic electronic onslaught. 

    Overall, Uranium’s “Pure Nuclear Death,” is a horrifying extreme warning to all of us regarding nuclear war and the impacts it will have on our world should our world leaders decide to the press buttons. I think Uranium’s unfathomable extreme creativity throughout this release was on full display. Even if you are not a fan of this type of music I believe that the attention to detail as well as the strong production made the album’s theme undeniable potent. Extreme music has always been at the forefront when it comes to calling out these topics that people tend to ignore, which is why labels like Sentient Ruin and artists like Uranium continue to gain massive support from the underground extreme music community. Highly worth checking out if you are into punishing extreme music with a very profound message! 

Check out the song "Pure Nuclear Death" :

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/album/pure-nuclear-death

 

Uranium "An Exacting Punishment"

    After another strong year of extreme and punishing releases, Sentient Ruin Laboratories looks to start 2023 off with an unspeakably devastating debut full-length release conjured up from the insidious one-man blackened industrial act known as, Uranium. “An Exacting Punishment,” is a five-track exploration into a nightmare like post-apocalyptic world where all of humanity has perished under a sinister blanket of suffocating radiation. 

    Uranium is a truly unique act that caught my attention right away and definitely fits within the Sentient Ruin roster. I think what makes this album standout is the profound ambient sounds which do not follow any sort of rules, or common musical patterns. The harsh unpredictable soundscapes keep you listening with great interest, while pulling you further into the desolate sounding void. I can pick up a variety of influences ranging from black metal to industrial, but I think the artist behind Uranium is able to really make this album convey a distinct overall sound, which also greatly strengthens the album's conceptual presentation. 

    The opening composition, “Trinity,” is a really warped sounding piece of music that comes across as almost sadistically hypnotic. As the massive amounts of distortion twist and turn like a serpent slithering over an endless field of bones, the vocals provide an utterly horrifying touch to the already sinister atmosphere. On the second track, “Prison of Flesh,” you can really hear the nerve pounding industrial elements which create a brutal sounding climate of pestilent entropy. Track number three, “Gnawing at the Bones,” is a bit of a departure from the more grueling distorted assault upon the ears which was heavily emphasized on the previous tracks. The song conveys a very eerie and bone chilling atmosphere where the sounds leave you speechless as if you are witnessing some unfathomable evil scenario unfold before your eyes. 

    The final two tracks on the album continue to push that extreme experimental mentality that Uranium seems to utilize with such profound ferocious force. “An Exacting Punishment,” is not only the longest track off of the album, but I also believe that the song is the most dynamic arrangement on the album. At first the music flows and establishes this very mesmerizing structure that somehow morphs into a cataclysmic industrial bludgeoning. On the final song, “No Light,” the drum sounds violently explode across the landscape as the end draws near and the music starts to reach that hopeless oblivion. I thought the climatic conclusion to this album was very well thought out, especially when looking back at how the entire album was arranged. 

    If you are a fan of unorthodox extreme music that combines the deafening nature of industrial metal with the raw savage nature of black metal, then you should definitely check out Uranium’s, “An Exacting Punishment.” This album is extremely well produced and the creativity that went into each track is not to be ignored. Even though Uranium does not show off any technical talent, I personally find that the ability to bring together a plethora of haunting sounds to tell a vivid and surreal sounding tale to be more impressive than some dude randomly shredding for 40 minutes. Once you starting listening to Uranium I can guarantee that you will find it hard to turn away from the utter insanity and malevolent sounding hallucinogenic terror that enters your ears and alters your mind. An album that is truly worth checking out!  

Check out the song "Prison of Flesh" : 

Sentient Ruin Bandcamp:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/album/an-exacting-punishment

Sentient Ruin Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/SentientRuin/