This year wasn’t a big one for me in terms of music, for a number of reasons. Most of them had to do with the fact that, after I lost my job, I pretty much stopped buying new music for a little while. On top of that, I spent a lot of time traveling, and – let’s face facts – feeling pretty miserable when I was in the old country. As a result, I spent most of the year listening to “classic” stuff, rather than new music.
Nonetheless, there were some excellent new albums released this year in heavy metal, and I did manage to listen to a couple. I’ve presented here my picks for the best albums that I grabbed in 2018.
Once again, a list of all of the albums that I listened to and rated during the year will be posted separately tomorrow.
1. DYNAZTY – Firesign
This was definitely the biggest surprise of the year. I did not expect a Swedish power metal band, led by the new “clean vocals” singer for AMARANTHE, to release perhaps the most powerful and enjoyable and catchy record that I had listened to in 2018. I’d expect that from POWERWOLF, sure – but then, I love those guys. This band, on the other hand, is completely new to me. And yet, they are excellent. The album is full of catchy hooks, great melodies, superb instrumental work, and a terrific vocal performance from Nils Mollen. Definitely my favourite album of this year.
Killer Kuts: “In the Arms of a Devil”, “Ascension”, “Firesign”, “Follow Me”, “Starfall” – pretty much the whole album, if we’re honest.
2. BRAINSTORM – Midnight Ghost
Now here is one band that has definitely been a bit up-and-down in terms of its albums. I listened to Liquid Monster and Firesoul a lot back when I bought them, a couple of years ago… and then sort of gave up on them, especially the latter, mostly because I thought they were weighed down with one too many drab tracks. The thing is, though, that I was not really being fair to BRAINSTORM. I realised that pretty quickly after I bought this album, downloaded it, and gave it a thorough listen. It was so good, and so heavy, and so consistent, that I went back over their previous material and immediately saw that, actually, the problem with BRAINSTORM is not that they have inconsistent albums. It is that they have consistently excellent but not brilliant albums. This one is no exception to that rule – every single song is at minimum very solid, though not necessarily jaw-dropping, in terms of talent, songwriting, skill, and execution. But this is nonetheless a truly solid release with plenty of great moments, packed full of the “wall of sound” technique that makes BRAINSTORM something of a unique voice.
Killer Kuts: Pretty much the whole album, but if I had to pick just three, they would be, “Revealing the Darkness”, “Ravenous Minds”, and “Divine Inner Ghost”.
3. POWERWOLF – The Sacrament of Sin
Now this one should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone. I had been talking about the new POWERWOLF album for months before it finally dropped. And, I am pleased to report that, for the most part, it lived up to my expectations. While this is not quite “all killer no filler”, it is still easily the best album of theirs since the almighty Preachers of the Night, and that was honestly about as good as operatic power metal gets. This album is packed with great songs, but a few standouts make it a really great release that I quite enjoy listening to on loop.
Killer Kuts: “Fire and Forgive”, “Incense & Iron”, “Demons are a Girl’s Best Friend”, “Killers with the Cross”, “Fist By Fist (Sacralize or Strike)”, and of course the absolute highlight of the entire album, possibly the very best POWERWOLF track of all time, “Stossgebet”.
4. SINBREED – IV
The fourth album from Christian (yes, really) power metal stalwarts SINBREED, originally formed as a sort of side project of BLIND GUARDIAN drummer and guitarist Frederik Ehmke and Marcus Siepen, respectively, along with a bunch of other very talented European musicians, was something of a surprise to me. Actually, it was several surprises wrapped up in one package. It was the first SINBREED album that I had ever heard without the excellent gritty yet powerful vocals of Herbie Langhans, whose highly distinctive voice ranks right up there with that of Andi Deris of elder power metal statesmen HELLOWEEN. It turns out that Langhans left the band because his schedule simply could not accommodate their touring and recording requirements, since SINBREED is now a full-time band instead of just a side project. And that led to the second surprise, which was that Nick Holleman, the new vocalist, actually isn’t too bad. He isn’t anywhere near as good as Langhans was, of course, and his voice simply cannot give out the same raw power and grittiness, but he does have a hell of a range. Overall, the songwriting on this album is more of a straightforward power metal type than the previous effort, Master Creator, and the Christian symbolism that made the debut album so good are somewhat in abeyance. But even so, this is a solid effort.
Killer Kuts: “First Under the Sun”, “Wasted Trust”, “Pale-Hearted”, “Final Call”, “Through the Fire”
5. KOBRA AND THE LOTUS – Prevail II

This is the second (and, as far as I know, final) part of the “Prevail” sessions that in 2017 produced what I thought was definitely the best KATL album ever. Prevail I was a really solid album with plenty of great metal moments, but the standout for me was and is “Specimen X (Mortal Chamber)”. This album is maybe not quite as good. It has its good moments, no doubt, but it isn’t as even in quality as its predecessor. Nonetheless, it has quite a few excellent songs that continue in the KATL tradition of excellent musicianship and vocal performances, backed up by solid songwriting. These guys are, in my opinion, one of the more distinctive female-fronted metal bands out there, and this album certainly solidifies that reputation.
Killer Kuts: “Let Me Love You”, “My Immortal”, “Velvet Roses”, “The Chain”
HONOURABLE MENTION: KERRY LIVGREN, A.D. – Time Line
I was introduced to Kerry Livgren’s solo work, outside of KANSAS, by one of my readers – for which I am most grateful, by the way, if any of the rest of you have musical suggestions to pass along that you think are in line with my tastes, I will certainly at least give them a respectful listen. I listened to “Welcome to the War” and was immediately hooked; it was a truly superb track and was not in the least bit wishy-washy, the way that so much Christian devotional music is these days. I followed up by purchasing and downloading the full album, and was pleasantly surprised to discover that Kerry Livgren’s skills as a composer, songwriter, and band leader had not diminished in the slightest when he left KANSAS, and that he had created a truly superb work of musical art that is at once melodic, powerful, and enjoyable to listen to – even if you are not a Christian. Definitely a classic album, and definitely worth listening to many times.
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You should check out Alien Weaponry. Pretty recent and very young metal band from New Zealand. Saw them open for Ministry a few weeks ago and they were stunning. Lots of videos available on you tube