July 2024 Best Heavy Metal Albums

Here are our picks for July 2024’s best heavy metal albums:

1. Aeons – The Ghosts Of What We Knew (Sliptrick)

The third album from Aeons, The Ghosts Of What We Knew, is intricate yet melodic progressive metal in a modern vein, loaded with superb arrangements and killer musicianship. And don’t let the singer’s name (Skippy) throw you off: this guy can belt it out.

While The Ghosts Of What We Knew does have its flaws (“Blood” is an awkward addition, almost a power ballad) these are easily overlooked by the overall quality of the album. Aeons have given us more than an hour of killer tunes that sound as amazing as they are. It’s our pick for July’s best metal album.

2. Werewolves – Die For Us (Self)

Werewolves have not only maintained the destructive force of their music, but in their latest studio work they have taken it to a new level of awe, thrill, and devastation. Die For Us, the band’s fifth album, reaffirms their commitment to creating ferocious technical death metal.

Die For Us is ruthless and unrelenting. It is 35 minutes of organized and uncontrollable chaos, where the band’s technical precision, demonstrated through complex guitar riffs and intricate drum patterns, is evident in the midst of the relentless aggression. Sullen and fatal technical death metal, standing on the front line, hand in hand with all dark and wicked streaks of black metal, portrays a view of the sinister and hateful world in action with the human being drowned in the most wretched, inevitable vile fate. Die For Us is Werewolves’ best work to date and shows the trio in their most ideal conditions of songwriting and performance.

3. Octoploid – Beyond The Aeons (Reigning Phoenix)

Octoploid is the brainchild of one Olli-Pekka Laine, a member of Amorphis and Barren Earth, two bands that are renowned for excellent music. Beyond The Aeons is as odd and varied as its cover art. One might think this is a stoner album at first glance, but it is primarily a combination of death metal and ’70s prog, with some psychedelia thrown in for good measure.

Octoploid have put two years of effort into Beyond The Aeons and have produced an exciting album full of interesting songs that can quickly pivot from the aforementioned styles of death and prog seamlessly. While at times the mix of styles can seem odd, especially with the death vocals, it all works, making this an extremely strong debut and putting Octoploid on the map as a band to keep an eye on.

4. Obscene – Agony & Wounds (Nameless Grave)

Indianapolis-based death metal crew Obscene blast down the doors on their third album Agony & Wounds. Opening with “The Cloverland Panopticon” the band goes with a high-speed approach, taking no prisoners along the way. When arriving at “Watch Me When I Kill” they go for a more death thrash feeling, later tracks like “Noxious Expulsion” aren’t afraid of adding a bit of melodicism to their attack, helping to add some flair to a generally brutal and uncompromising package.

Obscene do a great job of playing to their collective strengths with riffs that explode on contact. Their shouted vocals help to send an energetic message across to the masses, all while adding in tiny bits of variety to make Agony & Wounds one of the most solid death metal albums of the year so far.

5. Piah Mater – Under The Shadow Of A Foreign Sun (Code666)

Piah Mater have picked up the torch of progressive death metal that Opeth ignited decades ago, though with Under The Shadow Of A Foreign Sun, the group has finally started to come into their own. Their last two albums were solid, if a little too Opeth-lite to stand out. With their third record, they begin to branch out with jazz and folk influences, as vocalist/guitarist Luiz Felipe Netto pushes his voice to new heights.

The string arrangements are bolstered by real musicians playing the violin, cello and viola parts, and Shining saxophonist Jørgen Munkeby makes the most of his guest spot on “Fallow Garden.” The biggest departure for the band is closer “Canícula,” a touching acoustic ballad sung in Portuguese with male/female vocal interplay. It does eventually erupt into a gripping, immense finale, though without losing its tuneful sensibilities. Piah Mater have become more than the distant cousin of a well-known group with Under The Shadow Of A Foreign Sun.

6. In Hearts Wake – Incarnation (UNFD)

In Hearts Wake are back and better than ever on Incarnation, their latest project. The Australian metalcore band delivers killer sounds through electric, fast instrumentals and rampant vocals, pulling you in from the very beginning with their addictive musicality. Their sound is reminiscent of Motionless In White and A Day To Remember. Metalcore fans will feel a familiar tug pulling them towards the band’s sound, but not just for its digestibility. Their sound is recognizable as distinctly metalcore, but there is a sort of otherness about In Hearts Wake that simply can’t be tamed.

This album is fierce. With a strong overall concept and phenomenal performances from the band’s recently reassembled lineup, it simply cannot be paused. Once you hit play, it’s here to stay. The drums are insistent and defiant, the lyrics both enthusiastic and dismal. Every facet of this album screams capability; In Hearts Wake are showing us exactly who they are, and it is glorious. They aren’t afraid to showcase their improvement since their last record, and the result is one epic journey through the process of incarnation.