THE TOP 10 ALBUMS OF THE MONTH should be self-explanatory, an ordered ranking of ten albums that’d resonated most throughout this month. If you’re new to the site, the tendency is heavy and/or surreal music. Choices are selected based on temporal immersion, personal connection, impressive style, point of view, aesthetics and with consideration for the lasting value of each selection. All choices are ultimately personal and come without consideration for populism, nepotism, cronyism, or any outside factors including perceived “relevance”. Writing about music is a passion I afford as much time as is manageable and I am grateful to have so much to choose from. Thank you.

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I. This month on MystificationZine.com was generally split between longform reviews for some of the year’s best death metal as well as short reviews for a year’s worth of black metal per the N.B.B.M.N. feature, which I still enjoy despite some of the salt it generates. It has easily been one of the best months of the year and a lot of it arrived at the end of the month. Don’t miss albums from Degraved and Glorious Depravity, both were worthy of this list but I didn’t want the whole deal to be pure death metal. — If you would like a 2025 release considered for review please send it in: grizzlybutts@hotmail.com before December 5th if possible but at the moment the only unreleased album I’ve not heard yet is Martröð‘s.

II. Consider following on YouTube. The channel will be active again starting in December where I’ll get caught up on Best of the Month features I’ve missed as well as the Top Albums of the Year. 2026 won’t return to the pace I’d built from 2022-2025 in terms of video reviews but I will keep up with a more reasonable schedule to allow time for video editing and some new ideas here and there.

III. December will feature seven longform reviews, seven “Albums you missed” sub-genre lists, a best of the year list for Video games, a Best Albums of the Year list with at least 50 items, and the usual EOTY recap alongside some suggestions of what I’ll be up to next year. Follow on social media if you’d like more details as I will post the schedule for the rest of the month around December 5th.

IV. As always I’d like to express my gratitude for the bands, labels and PR firms who choose to work with me. Thank you.

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BEZDAN are a good time for the classic thrash-addicted brain, particularly if you were raised on early Slayer, Death and the more rotten underground aspect of black/thrash metal. This inspired debut reflects a band who’ve always been fairly secure in their gig’s core idea and now they’ve manage a set of songs which’re almost definitely worth hearing live per their combination of 80’s extremism. The riffs carry the weight of ‘Upon the Altar‘ but don’t rely on the first impression, the quick 3 minute burners that open the album are their own thrill but when these folks dig closer to the five minute mark mid-album their sound fleshes out in a brilliant way.

“Depicted as soldiers of the abyss, devils in their own realm, Croatian blackened death thrashing quartet BEZDAN unsheathe their long-in-development debut full-length album by raising power directly from Hell, fist first. That is to say that ‘Upon the Altar‘ brings blasphemic darkness via the spiritus of late 80’s extreme thrash wherein the lines between black and death metal blur into sinister aggression via the riff. Naturally the experience served is riddled with ‘old school’ grit and menacing action which is intently focused on its kill for the majority of its ~34 minute ride, manifesting a well above-average debut which is righteously imperfect in its inspired scrape through.“

>> FULL REVIEW <<

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In my endless quest for truly resonant and remarkably stated melodic black metal ILDARUNI represent a strong musical evolution as well as a high-brained conceptual feat and especially as they present a superior second LP driven into the moderne but classicist edge of the sub-genre headspace. Of mystery cults and dramatic riff-driven command consider this album on par with Outlaw‘s most recent work, infusing keyboards and loftier soaring atmospheric/melodic arcs throughout, while also bringing its own epic flair which extends into both Swedish and Greek black metal interest. This one has been a real joy to return to for my own taste.

“Born from stone and channeled hand-to-hand by divine bloodlet the spiritus of Mitra lives on within admirably inquisitive, studied archaeo-spiritual minds no longer confined to caverns of secretive doctrine as Yerevan, Armenia-based black metal quartet ILDARUNI muse upon their own channeling of ancient mysterion per this inspired sophomore full-length album. Though some occasional strand of folken trait persists in their muscle memory the band’s expression via ‘Divinum Sanguinem‘ loosens into increasingly grand atmospheric climes as harried rushes of melodic black metal device bolster a high-detailed yet freely flowing feature. In the process of stylistic metamorphosis and refinement these folks’ve managed to suit their subject in an above-average way while delivering a largely memorable experience.“

>> FULL REVIEW <<

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Cavernous, blackened, groove-heavy, abstracted, and even feasibly moderne in temperament on some level this second LP from death metal troupe THE OMINOUS CIRCLE is an especially fine work which wrangles “dissonant” death metal ideas into its own compacted form. While they’ve retaining the classic death metal shape of their past to some degree the success of this album is found in their distortion of the musical language available where brutality, wrath and doom coalesce into a uniquely refined mutant. It was interesting to initially sort of hate their main rhythm guitar tone and its bulbous use yet I’d found myself lost in the waves of this record after just a few listens.

“Distributed by the sparking plasma of unspoken entity all disciples are simultaneously endowed with the gift of foreign speech as the unholy spirit-granted utterances of Porto, Portugal-based blackened death metal quintet THE OMINOUS CIRCLE access the diabolic on this doubly intense sophomore full-length album. Rather than rewiring their entire modus ~eight years beyond their last statement ‘Cloven Tongues of Fire‘ builds upon that foundation directly, catering to doom and malice with fresh conviction, an overall refinement of ‘ready culling serpent’s speech. Through these acts they’ve done well to represent blackened death metal in a familiar but not-so typical voice, leaning into vexing corridors of gloom while still spewing lava from every orifice.“

>> FULL REVIEW <<

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By wheeling through myriad, seeming randomly generated rants within longform pieces YELLOW EYES make a case for dissonance, beauty, and their own form of melodious dissociation rooted in post-metallic melodrama and I don’t know if they’ve gotten it exactly -this- right in the past. While I’m lost for themes and don’t find much sense afforded the majority of their arrangements I did find the push-and-pull of their work extremely effective as an immersive full listen during my time with ‘Confusion Gate‘. The way they’ve bent extreme post-metal surrealism into their own profoundly reeling action begins to resemble its own world most fully within.

“Casting visions of gods-embattled hallucinatory terrain upon the listener New York, New York-based post-black metal quartet YELLOW EYES return to depict woe-bringing hexation and celestially flung torpor via this biggest yet undertaking and seventh full-length album. Once again dancing three steps to the right and one hard pivot to the left ad infinitum their work on ‘Confusion Gate‘ deals in higher volumetric gusts of their uncertain signature where beauteous upsurge and ached-apart disassembly create a unique landscape given to melancholic surrealism. Their knack for side-swiping any too-typified stance with interruptive, variously melodious and/or dissociative breakthrough lives on, or, thrives beyond most past work in this case as they’ve given themselves enough room to stretch and seizure as needed.“

>> FULL REVIEW <<

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The reprisal of Chilean death metal band DEATH YELL has thus far granted a fine balance between the fire that’d brought them to life back in the mid-to-late 80’s and certain points of refinement which speak less to gimmickry and more to the timeless rugged soul of the South American underground. That is to say that this is an authentic feeling record from folks who’ve never forgotten what was cool as shit about extreme metal as it became a world spanning phenomenon. Otherwise there is a satisfyingly raw wrath to ‘Demons of Lust‘ which still hits even when keyboards and slick drumming arrive to conquer their rougher edges.

“Returned from the depths as creatures of vengeful darkness Santiago, Chile-based black/death metal quintet DEATH YELL are arisen once more through pandemonic rites to reign with terror as their nigh four decade long history arrives upon an admirable sophomore full-length album. ‘Demons of Lust‘ does not attempt recreate the conditions of the late 80’s that’d birthed their craft so much as it recognizes the timeless furor and erratic function that’d made South American extreme metal such a storied and influential force in their heyday. As such we get an update to their maniac signature which still bears the thrilling daemonic spiritus of the old ways without the too-common feeling of “half right” takes on ancient forms, perturbed by modernity or cleansed of any essential grit.“

>> FULL REVIEW <<

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Distinct voice, plenty of madcap riffs, and a sort of 80’s power metal twinge to their action all add up to a stellar debut from FATE’S HAND. I’d expected it would be fine work but they’ve outdone themselves in both the render and songcraft where their sound, personage, riffs and al that count quite a bit but the catchier but not weak strike through becomes infectious within a matter of minutes. While so many modern heavy metal bands looking backwards in time to auld greatness appear to struggle with consistency and their own development of a personalized knack year over year folks like this seem to work on another level.

“Sounding the great horn, ensorceling their spell of death upon iron, and calling down the devourer’s jaw Brisbane, Australia-based epic heavy metal duo FATE’S HAND engrave the earth with well-tempered blades on this inspired debut full-length album. With strong personage carried up front and additional melodic acumen presented throughout ‘Steel, Fire & Ice‘ strikes a chord most resonant with 80’s epic heavy/power metal interest while bringing well above-average riffcraft to the fray. Although this is a debut the end result is all-pro, not only in terms of render and performance but with a clear identity forged and worthy, memorable songs in hand.“

>> FULL REVIEW <<

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The way I would act as a fan in a record store versus what I’d write in a review cannot necessarily always be the same thing and I think this latest PHOBOCOSM record is a good example: In person I’d just say, “hey idiot Immolation is one of the best bands of all time and these folks take that [voluminous irreligious atmospheric mechanism] to their own [outsized and impossibly dark] extreme.” That’d maybe sound reductive but really the appeal of picking up ‘Gateway‘ is obvious once you’re in it. Getting completely lost in the abysm they conjure, despite how familiar it might be, is one of my favorite experiences of 2025; In a sense this record is leftovers, olde and new compositions recorded during sessions for ‘Foreordained‘ back in 2023 or so, yet it doesn’t feel like it after more than a few dozen spins through. Brilliant band and I am beyond curious to see what they do next as they move beyond their original trilogy concept and this addendum.

“Along their enduring path toward acceptance of death as foregone Montréal, Quebec-based death metal quartet PHOBOCOSM take prolonged detour in examination of mankind’s most historic delusion of life everlasting, or, in Christocentric terms “eternal life” and how its promise and pursuit has distorted the human condition towards cruel acts en masse. This diabolic fourth full-length album serves as both addendum and showcase of consistency of vision within their career-spanning dementia as ‘Gateway‘ carries trait and timbre from their third record atop unused compositions dating back to their beginnings, building vital entrant from both old and new assertions.“

>> FULL REVIEW <<

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Thus far each VOIDCEREMONY record seems to pull from a strata of structural inspiration meant to invoke a certain mood or transformative experience and in the case of ‘Abditum‘ everything from JRPG music to Atheist and boomer shred records seem to inform their raw yet technically proficient and impressive progressive death metal surrealism. The bass doesn’t have as much stink on it and the album is almost torturously short but overall I’d found this one nearly on par with the high bar set by their debut and even more impressive than their second LP. I was kind of afraid they would get lost in the shred sauce but this record really does need a couple months of familiarity to soak up its intensity and meta-level rhythmic abstraction.

“Intending to document their skull-first journey in access of the corrupted Seelengrund as locus Ramon, California-based progressive death metal quartet VOIDCEREMONY return for an altogether refined and ever-searching third full-length album. Leveraging shoulder-to-shoulder density within increasing brevity ‘Abditum‘ may very well take some time to bloom in brain as its myriad call for dilation and constriction of extra-scalar forms is a thrill but an abruptly demanding event all the same. Here they’ve righted their ship in some sense, taken command of its wandering soul at any rate, accessing both classicist handling and freshly inventive interplay which’ll take keener-eared musos some time to sort in mind while still bossing their own channel of warped shred.“

>> FULL REVIEW <<

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There are no guarantees when musicians who’re well known, both underground and above, decide to form side projects and this has been an even more brutal truth since the pandemic convinced a lot of folks to dump garbage collabs on the regular to stay afloat… but in this case there couldn’t have been a more unholy suggestion to get folks known for Morbid Angel, Origin and Angelcorpse into the same headspace and attack it with some serious effort. As a ridiculous fan of their collective work you know, their EP was rad but I didn’t know if an LP would be a serious threat. As it turns out ‘The Conquering Darkness‘ is easily one of the best records released this year. If you were blindsided by the fury available here make sure you check out the new Chaos Inception record too if you missed it.

“In an act of cruelest havoc upon the firmament above a strike of vengeful annihilation rains down unto fiery cataclysm below as Florida-based death metal trio MALEFIC THRONE dominate the skies with an imposing, fire-breathing debut full-length album. Though it comes calling from the light-flooded mouth of the shining one ‘The Conquering Darkness‘ is yet unreasonably physical in achieving its spectacularly ruthless style, a timeless form of death metal accelerated to peak impact and riff-count while calling down unreal blasphemy. While I’ll pay no mind to the bunk-ass idea of a “supergroup” mattering beyond material… in this case both the familiarity between and infamy of the folks involved in this work weigh heavily upon the sublimity of its outcome, achieving one of the most wrathful releases of the year by way of seeming effortless mastery.“

>> FULL REVIEW <<

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Entering the realm which ‘The Womb of the World‘ illustrates is both harrowing and awe-inspiring at once wherein the threat of flesh’s rend unto death is not the full fear of it… but rather the soul begins to siphon into an anxietous state of woe in the midst of their action, this erosion would be terrifying enough as avant-purposed death metal yet the grandiose reach of Qrixkuor‘s vision leaves any terra firmae out of reach. Where there is no “safety” and such an appreciable level of cinema attached the collapse into damnation witnessed here begins to feel real, witnessed and built from sublimely detailed craft. It thoroughly stands apart from most anything else released this year.

“From within the rotted cavern of stillborn creation, an encapsulation of the death of all unto horrified dissolution, a new nightmare rings echoic in its dance upon scene by the hands of London, England-based blackened death metal duo QRIXKUOR who’d relight their terminal orchestra for this exceptional sophomore full-length album. As the cervix begins to falter and the corpse-caverne builds its pressure ‘The Womb of the World‘ depicts the lurching downpour of nauseous disarray felt through the gut ’til the spine, a wrenching grip upon the cord pinging every corner of consciousness with terror and dysfunction. The surrealistic malaise afforded the listener now speaks a more sophisticate language as a dark and cinematic bent is deeper integrated within its full-featured chamber, generating a font where the dramatic wailing of disembodied souls accentuates what is yet essentially atmospheric death metal in arrange. No other album released this year better captures the steering of the wheel into downturn, the birth of the death of all, as this… at least nothing as effectively inhuman.“

>> FULL REVIEW <<

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