The Best Melodic Black Metal Album - Metal Storm Awards 2025

...And Oceans - The Regeneration Itinerary

Apparently what ...And Oceans had on their regeneration itinerary was to harden their symphonies yet further into black metal, shedding more frills to grow leaner and more efficient.  It's actually a little more of a recapitulation or a reiteration than a regeneration, because the band's approach is not drastically altered from their last several releases, but The Regeneration Itinerary does fall ever so slightly more distinctly into a less symphonic, more blackened register, the orchestration being not quite as dense - but even given that, there are layers and layers of melodies, still with some strings and keys, and the album has a vast, overwhelming sound.  The secret industrial undertone persists, too: these stirring melodies are regimented with the kind of clinical precision you often have to leave black metal for.  It's a great thing that ...And Oceans regenerated a few years ago, because they are currently sounding their best ever.

Argus Megere - Cerburea Apusului

Fans of black metal are no doubt familiar with Negură Bunget, and they might find a familiar voice on Cerburea Apusului as on Vîrstele Pămîntului. Having two members who were part of Negură Bunget but also a history that goes back three decades, Argus Megere's surprise comeback record after nine years finds them even keener on long songs and pristine sounds. Similarities to the aforementioned band do exist even more so now, but on Cerburea Apusului go for an even more post-rock-inspired sound in its scale and allure.

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Blackbraid - Blackbraid III

Blackbraid became one of black metal's rising stars with the acclaimed Blackbraid I in 2022, and the next year's Blackbraid II drove the hooks in deeper; Blackbraid III makes a killstreak as a third straight album of beautifully crafted black metal that tells tales of Sgah'gahsowah's Native American heritage.  Aching acoustic passages feel tactile and rugged, as if recorded right under the open sky, and the metal counterparts are furious and crisp, with a full, rich sound, absolutely cutting vocal delivery from Sgah'gahsowah, and a wealth of dramatic melodies.  The first and second albums made a big splash, and for good reason, but three albums in a row of this quality tell us that Blackbraid has potential for serious longevity as one of the vital bands in black metal right now.

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Blut Aus Nord - Ethereal Horizons

In their long, long discography (and side projects), Blut Aus Nord have turned to different facets of black metal, often in an atmospheric vein or blending it with industrial, and they've been quite adept at making trilogies. Having started two albums in a series, instead of closing the trilogy, they went for Ethereal Horizons, the one Blut Aus Nord album that makes the most sense to have "ethereal" in its name. That ethereal feeling is quite in line with how psychedelic the past few records have been, but Ethereal Horizons aims for the cosmos, with its '70s electronica-inspired synth melodies and its repeating, tremolo-picked, cosmic black metal-meets-blackgaze riffs.

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Cult Of Fire - The One, Who Is Made Of Smoke

If you're surprised to find a band with an aesthetic this kvltish and morbid in the "melodic" category, you'll find it equally surprising just how melodic The One, Who Is Made Of Smoke is. Of course it is still a mind-swirling, ritualistic black metal album, complete with chants and blast beats and songs that feel in line with the genre. But with its seven tracks (mostly) named after a single emotion, it's no surprise that a song titled "Joy" is full of some of the most strongly contrasting bliss. And the strong contrast between harsher black metal, an atmospheric ritualistic focus, and a hyper-melodic approach is the name of the game for this album.

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Drudkh - Гра тіней (Shadow Play)

Drudkh has been a most respected entity for the fans of atmospheric/pagan black metal. Although part of their output in the 2010s had fans scratching their heads and arguing, there is no doubt that the last couple of releases have seen Drudkh return with full force. One may theorize about the impact the war and invasion of Ukraine has had in the revitalization of Drudkh, but Shadow Play sees the band at its most furious, melancholic, and desperate. The galloping riffs push forward along with thundering drums to create a perfect marriage of harrowing riffs and inspiring folk passages. Equally majestic and hypnotizing, Shadow Play is proof that Drudkh are still masters of their craft.

Grima - Nightside

Grima have been a fixture of black metal's atmospheric side for years now, and although Nightside doesn't need to make any sweeping changes to the band's style, it does demonstrate a little more experience and a little more inspiration on the part of Grima, with the frigid, forested landscapes of their homeland and album covers coming to life more vividly than ever.  The prominent use of bayan (Russian accordion) adds color and musicality to an introspective black metal formula that already evokes nature like the best of them (meaning Agalloch).  If you like your black metal made of dark woods and dead branches, steeped in the melancholy of cold earth and old hearths, let Grima be your guide through the winter.

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Hexvessel - Nocturne

Hexvessel's Nocturne evolves from Polar Veil, as is evidenced, at first glance, by the former boasting a black-and-white, darker, and more mystical version of the latter’s cover artwork. It is an immersive, ambitious, and atmospheric album, blending haunting folk and psychedelic passages with intense black metal tremolos and clean vocals, creating a ritualistic experience that remains cohesive throughout its entire hour-long duration. Nocturne is unique and ghostly, sophisticated and dense, and arguably Hexvessel’s magnum opus.

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Labyrinthus Stellarum - Rift In Reality

Prophesying extreme music of the future for a third year running, Labyrinthus Stellarum freezes the cosmic seas with something even colder than space: black metal.  At its most conventional, Rift In Reality is an especially forceful rendition of a familiar sound, but it's the electronic elements that set this band apart and best support the extraterrestrial aesthetics.  Keyboard stings behind tremolo-picking and staccato bridges keep time with the fast-paced songs while cascades of soft synths and gentle warbling supply the greatest touches of atmosphere throughout the album.  Processed clean vocals alongside or between the shrieks go a ways in reasserting the futuristic setting as well, as does spacious production that lets the instruments reverberate into the vast emptiness of the ether.  These sound elements come together in grandiose melodic progressions that make Rift In Reality one of the coldest and most enveloping works of last year's black metal crop.

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Sunken - Lykke

After a 5-year absence, Denmark's Sunken return with another ocean of shimmering atmospheric black metal to sink into, one that is both painfully depressive yet glimmeringly beautiful. The waves of warm blackened tremolos that wash over listeners across substantial portions of the album trade off with surges of darker, more oppressive instrumentation, and the vocals, while typically shrieking in despair, occasionally plunge into rawer cries and howls more associated with DSBM. Lykke is truly beautiful, in spite of its (deliberately) uglier moments, and it embraces both the dark of the night and the glow of the dawn.