The House Of Metalcore is bigger, broader and more musically diverse than ever, and 2025 has been absolutely stacked with great releases either compellingly reaffirming the genre's core DNA or pushing it forwards into exciting new realms. From beloved veterans of the scene like Killswitch Engage to rising stars like The Callous Daoboys and Sleep Theory, metalcore has rarely looked and sounded in ruder health. Here, then, are the 10 best metalcore albums from the last twelve months.
Bleed From Within – Zenith (Nuclear Blast)
It feels weird calling Zenith a ‘balancing act’, considering that for most of its run-time it sounded like it wanted to tear your teeth out. However, on their seventh and best album, Bleed From Within nailed the mix of savagery and precision needed for top-notch metalcore. Such songs as God Complex, Known By No Name and Hands Of Sin boasted choruses as catchy as cholera, without taking their foot off of the gas pedal whatsoever. Meanwhile, a guest spot from Mastodon’s Brann Dailor on Immortal Desire and the quasi-operatic scope of Edge Of Infinity declared that this was a band ready for heavy music’s highest rungs. Given they played their biggest-ever headline shows this year, they seem set to get there. Matt Mills
Bleeding Through - Nine (Sharptone)
Given their long-standing tendency towards extreme metal, it was only a matter of time until Bleeding Through blurred the lines between metalcore and deathcore to make them almost non-existent. That's where we find ourselves with Nine, the O.C. bruisers coming out swinging with the kind of grandiose, explosive tune in Gallows that you'd expect more of a Lorna Shore or Fit For An Autopsy. Nostalgia might be big business, but BT aren't going back to their 00s sound: this is more like Anaal Nathrakh does metalcore (just listen to the "Fuck with us and find out" hook on Our Brand Is Chaos and try not to think of Forward!), an impressively unstoppable assault on the senses that somehow still feels anthemic. Rich Hobson
The Callous Daoboys – I Don’t Want To See You In Heaven (MNRK)
Collection Of Forgotten Dreams, the spoken-word opening of I Don’t Want To See You In Heaven, had a narrator welcome the listener to ‘the museum of failure’. Ironically, with their third album, The Callous Daoboys proved that they’d have no business in such a place. Once untameable mathcore merchants, the Atlanta band refined their songcraft here, offering accessible, melodic deliciousness with Lemon as well as the focussed Dillinger Escape Plan ferocity of Idiot Temptation Force. It was all as irreverent as what we got before, but now that the moods were lasting for more than 30 seconds at a time, there was a welcome maturity amidst the giddy fun. Open ‘the museum of excellence’ and put this in the first exhibit. Matt Mills
Employed To Serve – Fallen Star (Spinefarm)
One of the UK's most consistently excellent metal bands reached a new apex this year, expanding their sound without sacrificing an inch of the heaviness and urgency that put them on the map in the first place. Chucking in everything from bruising hardcore to anthemic heavy metal to twinkly goth rock to shimmering post-black metal, Employed To Serve also produced an all-time metalcore anthem in Atonement, featuring a star cameo from Lorna Shore's Will Ramos. Turns out he can carry a tune as well as he can scream his nuts off. Merlin Alderslade
Joliette – Pérdidas Variables (self-released)
Pérdidas Variables was the first album in six years from Mexican post-hardcore mavericks Joliette, but boy was it worth the wait. Across 39 minutes, they shoved punk, metal, screamo and progressive music into a Hadron collider then pulled the very best out of the results. Although the songs all had Spanish lyrics, the desperation they expressed was a universal language, and the four-piece were just as fluent in cathartic freakouts, as well. The way each track segued into the next made this an emotional, immersive experience – so much so that the fact this band are still in the underground feels insulting. Matt Mills
Killswitch Engage – This Consequence (Metal Blade)
Six years after their last studio album, metalcore's end-of-level bosses returned to the fray with one of their rawest, most emotionally-charged albums ever. A grittier than usual production job from Adam D gave This Consequence a guttural edge that felt like a throwback to their earliest days, while a particularly full-hearted showing from Jesse Leach made him the unquestionable Man Of The Match. Singles Aftermath, I Believe and I Believe already sounded like old favourites when they were debuted on tour, marking Killswitch's ninth album as another tick in the W column. Merlin Alderslade
Malevolence – Where Only The Truth Is Spoken (Nuclear Blast)
One of British metalcore's most no-nonsense bringers of ruckus, Sheffield's Malevolence finally have the momentum that many in the scene thought had eluded them for good. It's what makes Where Only The Truth Is Spoken such a satisfying listen: no gimmicks, no kitchen sink experimentation, just massive riffs, breakdowns that'll churn your insides and grooves that'll make your legs go all wobbly. Brawling somewhere in the middle of the Venn diagram that unites Pantera, Hatebreed and Crowbar, ragers like If It's All The Same To You reaffirmed the fact that Malev continue to operate in a class all of their own. Merlin Alderslade
Sleep Theory – Afterglow (Epitaph)
Undoubtedly on the more polished end of the metalcore spectrum, the hype around Sleep Theory's debut album nonetheless confirmed them as one of the major breakout bands of 2025. Packing enough earworms to start a wriggly little commune, Aftergow merged post-hardcore, nu metal, edm and r'n'b to produce an LP stacked with insta-anthems that already feel worthy of arenas. The choruses to bangers like Fallout, Static and Stuck In My Head will get...well...stuck in your head for days. This band are going to be big news. Merlin Alderslade
Spiritbox – Tsunami Sea (Rise)
How do you follow up one of the most lauded debut albums in modern metal? You go bigger, bolder and louder. Tsunami Sea saw Spiritbox build out their expansive metalcore with lashings of Gojira-indebted groove, Architects crunch and Bring Me The Horizon-styled genre-dabbling, resulting in a record that's as diverse as it is relentlessly electric. From the outrageously heavy riff detonation of Soft Spine to the dreamy, irresistible Ride The Wave, Spiritbox crafted an LP that confirmed their status as one of the scene's very finest, sweeping away everything in their wake. Merlin Alderslade
Trudger – Void Quest (Floodlit)
Ever wondered what it would be like if Mastodon, Napalm Death and your favourite hardcore band had an orgy? Well, it would probably be like Trudger. With a lineup that includes former members of progressive metal up-and-comers Dvne, the four-piece returned after more than a decade away with the criminally overlooked Void Quest. It dished out barrel-chested riffs with the same speed and efficiency that Muhammed Ali dished out punches, to the point that highlighting standout songs is pointless. From instant opener Merciless Sabre to grooving finale Bile Elixir, each entry had at least one slobber-knocker guitar part able to leave anybody down for the count. Hopefully it won’t take another 11 years for the follow-up to come out, because this shit was too good. Matt Mills
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