The Top 5 best black metal albums of 2020
Black metal was even more headspinningly brilliant than ever in 2020, and here are five albums that prove it
Metal Hammer Features
Latest Updates
Every Morbid Angel album ranked from worst to best
Malevolent death metal visionaries Morbid Angel’s back catalogue arranged in order of greatness
These are Kirk Hammett’s favourite Kirk Hammett guitar solos
Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett reveals the three solos he’s proudest of playing
Rotting Christ co-founder returns to raise Hell with Yoth Iria
Exclusive Watch the infernally uplifting lyric video for Yoth Iria's self-titled track from their forthcoming As The Flame Withers debut
Killer Be Killed’s Max Cavalera: “The Pope should listen to our new album”
We got metal all-stars Killer Be Killed to do our job for us and interview each other. Cue tales of bus crashes, bar brawls and bacon binges
Twin Temple are the Satanic doo-wop duo metal fans have embraced
“We are using Satanism as a way to tear down the old guard,” say husband and wife duo Alexandra and Zachary James
Metallica: “We’re taking this time to create and try new things”
S&M2? Epic livestreams? Writing new material? Metallica made 2020 a little bit more bearable
The inside story of the return of AC/DC: how Angus Young and Brian Johnson Powered Up
They’d lost Malcolm. Brian was out. Axl was in. Phil was in trouble with the law. Then Cliff retired. it looked like AC/DC‘s high voltage had been unplugged for good... but then something sparked
The 10 best albums of 2020 you haven't heard
Heavy music's underground scenes have been crawling with essential releases this year – but many of them haven't had the listeners they deserve. Here, 10 overlooked albums that require your attention
Mr Bungle’s Mike Patton: “We wanted this to be the most f**ked-up reunion ever”
How art-metal pranksters Mr Bungle pulled off the year’s most unexpected comeback, with a little help from Scott Ian and Dave Lombardo
Ghostemane: 10 albums that changed my life
NIN, Darkthrone and Dr Dre – this is the soundtrack to trap-metal star Ghostemane’s life
The 10 best livestreams of the year
In 2020, bands had to find new ways to keep themselves (and their fans) entertained. Enter: the livestream. Here, the 10 best we tuned into this year
Spiritbox: the post-metalcore trio set to own 2021
Genre-fluid Canadians Spiritbox are channelling all sorts of horror into their ever-evolving sound
The 10 most metal Christmas songs ever
Just because it's Christmas doesn't mean you can't crank out the metal!
Ghost: the fiendishly diabolical story behind Opus Eponymous
How ambition, desperation and personal tragedy turned Satanic provocateurs Ghost into the most unexpected success story of the last decade
The Top 10 best death metal albums of 2020
The finest slabs of deathly extremity released in 2020
Every Nightwish album ranked from worst to best
An epic journey through the back catalogue of the world’s greatest symphonic metal band, Nightwish
10 new bands you need to watch out for in 2021
From Spiritbox and Wargasm to Pupil Slicer and Mercury Circle, these are the heavy bands who will carry metal and rock forwards in 2021
This is the only hurdy gurdy cover of System Of A Down’s Toxicity you need to hear today
… and it’s as brilliant as you’d imagine
