The Best Gothic Metal Album - Metal Storm Awards 2024

Cemetery Skyline - Nordic Gothic

After hearing Mikael Stanne's rich clean vocals on various gothic-tinged Dark Tranquillity ballads over the years (not to mention Projector), it's not the biggest surprise to see him try his hand at a full-blown gothic rock album, but it's an impressive roster of musicians rounding out this new supergroup with him, including Insomnium/Omnium Gatherum guitarist Markus Vanhala and Santeri Kallio of Amorphis. Together, the pan-Nordic Cemetery Skyline bring '80s goth and synth rock into the modern and metallic age, assembling a tracklist of songs that are hugely catchy and also very bright in their melodies in spite of the underlying gloom. Hints of the members' other projects creep into the music (particularly Amorphis), but overall Nordic Gothic feels like a fresh endeavour for each of them, and a delightful one at that.

Counting Hours - The Wishing Tomb

Following in the footsteps of the countless renowned Finnish death-doom acts such as Swallow The Sun, Marianas Rest, and Shape Of Despair is the recent groundbreaking protégé Counting Hours. 4 years following their critically acclaimed debut The Will, they've now released this much-anticipated sophomore The Wishing Tomb. Is it a worthy follow-up? Yes, it sure as hell is. Released during the earliest stages of 2024 it held its own right through till the very end, proving to be one of the strongest death-doom releases of the year. Brimming with raw emotion and incredibly passionate performances, this album captures some of the most authentic and meaningful melancholic soundscapes of 2024 and is enough to cause havoc in the minds of even the most emotionally stable of listeners.

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Helevorn - Espectres

A look at Helevorn's discography suggests that the sun-drenched island of Mallorca experiences an unusually severe weather phenomenon roughly every five years. The only uncertainty is whether the band always locks itself away in the studio once the sky has already darkened and the cold wind hurls salty spray deep inland, or if dense ground fog merges with low-hanging, dark clouds into an impenetrable veil precisely because Helevorn is in the midst of recording yet another gothic doom opus brimming with deep emotions. Be that as it may, the Spanish band's fifth studio album is, as always, heavier than the strongest antidepressant—though instead of unpleasant side effects, it delivers the necessary spark of hope that transforms the potential downsides of excessive doom consumption into a mesmerizing blend of melancholy and drama. No doubt Thomas A.G. Jensen of Saturnus would agree; invited as a guest vocalist for Helevorn’s 25th anniversary, he lends his deeply haunting voice to the final track of Espectres, refining it with his unmistakable touch.

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My Dying Bride - A Mortal Binding

My Dying Bride have no real need for introduction; after all, we're talking about the UK's mighty pioneering gothic doom band that has one of the most remarkable and well-esteemed discographies in metal. Now they've once again unleashed to us A Mortal Binding of dark, majestic, melancholic gothic doom. Here you can expect some outstanding performances and masterful songwriting from these exceptional veterans, proving they've certainly not lost their touch in any way after all these years. The band's 15th album is not only one of the highlights in this year's remarkable gothic category, it also proves to be one of their best releases in the last 20 years, offering more than just a glimpse into the band's golden illustrious past.

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Neon Nightmare - Faded Dream

Neon Nightmare is Nate Garrett’s (Spirit Adrift) homage to Type O Negative; nothing more, nothing less. For those who have found it impossible to scratch their Type O itch following the death of Peter Steele, this is the album to listen to. The riffs, the vocals, the atmosphere, everything on this record is a tribute paid to one of the greatest gothic metal bands in history. Released on All Saints' Day, Faded Dream is gloomy, memorable, and addictive and it lurks in the shadows, like all good goth does.

The Foreshadowing - New Wave Order

The Foreshadowing make a return with their New Wave Order after an 8-year slumber, but has their lengthy absence affected them in any way? Well, of course it didn't. With this 5th full-length offering, the Italian gothic doom masters once again pull on listeners' heartstrings through mesmerizing guitar melodies, tear-jerking symphonies, haunting ambient passages, and an incredibly passionate standout vocal performance. New Wave Order further proves why The Foreshadowing have been held in such high regard throughout the gothic doom scene.

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The Vision Bleak - Weird Tales

Here the German gothic duo The Vision Bleak introduces 12 new hauntingly mysterious chapters of Weird Tales. Inspired by fantasy horror poetry and pulp fiction from the likes of H. P. Lovecraft, this 7th full-length release is, as you can guess, still well and truly a bleak offering from this band that conveniently names itself The Vision Bleak, and describes its own style as "horror metal". Expect a darkly atmospheric and creepily cinematic journey through the nightmare world of cosmic horror, brought vividly to life by a wide variety of masterfully crafted gothic instrumentation and exceptionally performed beauty-and-the-beast style vocals.

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Tribulation - Sub Rosa In Æternum

No Jonathan Hultén, no problem for Tribulation, who continue the trajectory that they've been following for the past four albums and remain very successful in the process. The band's death metal connections have almost been entirely severed, but when you're capable of pulling off gothic country or paying tribute to The Sisters Of Mercy as stylishly as the Swedes demonstrate here, any clamouring for those bygone days gets a lot quieter. Harsh vocals do remain in places, but Johannes Andersson takes a bold step in not only introducing, but making widespread use of his baritone clean singing voice, and it fits the tracks on Sub Rosa In Æternum like a glove, rendering the path forwards from this record for Tribulation even clearer.

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Unto Others - Never, Neverland

Unto Others have been the darlings of gothic metal since their initial outing as Idle Hands: the wrenchingly painful melodies, Gabe Franco's stunning baritone, the mixture of pop hooks and punishing punk-metal riffs. When they engage full-heavy mode, their riffs spit fire and Franco's howls will send a chill down your spine, but sometimes they like to let those chords linger into the dead silence and weep; the tonal variety Unto Others can employ while still epitomizing the sexiness of despondency is impressive. At heart, these guys are a punk band, and not even the kind of ghoulish post-punk that a lot of gothic metal bands take influence from (though that's certainly there) - their version of punk is more Misfits-y, and or just the simple darkness of late-career Ramones. But whatever lane it's in, Never, Neverland is your sure soundtrack for walking alone under a full moon on some lonesome autumn night.

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Vuur & Zijde - Boezem

Turns out you can have morose, despondent black metal that isn't DSBM. In fact, there's a lot about Vuur & Zijde that isn't familiar black metal. Or rather, there is a lot of familiar black metal, but in an unfamiliar context. Vuur & Zijde aren't even a black metal band, really. It's certainly there, but so is some echoing listlessness that might take you back to The Cranberries or The Smiths - and even more than desolate alt rock, what Boezem has in store is gothic rock of the post-punk variety. That classic sound of dismally reverberating riffs with soulful vocals meets some of that nice Dutch melodic blackgaze we've been seeing in recent years for a take on gothic metal that's fluid and musical even in spite of its extremities and its wistful nature.

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