Formed in 1996, Season of Mist is one of metal’s leading record labels. In the start the label only focused on more extreme genres such as black and death metal, but has since expanded to include all forms of metal as well as none metal genres such as punk and goth rock. To this day, they put out some of the best albums the underground has known. Here in no order are their best releases from 2015.
Benighted – Brutalive the Sick
Made as a late celebration of the band’s 15th anniversary, Brutalive the Sick is a sick live album. This CD/DVD combo really shows off the strength of these French deathgrind great’s live performances as they play the Sylak Festival in their home country. This is without a doubt the best way to experience the band.
Rotting Christ – Lucifer over Athens
Speaking of awesome live albums, Greek black metal veterans Rotting Christ have also given fans a take home taste of their live sound. Lucifer Over Athens is a live double album that also celebrates the band’s entire career. With songs ranging from their early demos to some of their most recent stuff, this release works as both a good live album and a best of album.
Weedeater – Golliathan
Coming from the swamps of South Carolina comes a new release from stoner metal blazers Weedeater. This album has many of the same elements of all Weedeater releases including short simple songs, use of non-metal instruments such as banjo and organ and lots of fuzz, however it is done in a way that gives this album its own identity. Like the last two albums this one is produced by Steve Albini which is always a plus.
Drudkh – A Furrow Short Cut
Back in 2010 these Ukrainian nationalists released a post-rock album called Handful of Stars. In 2012 the band returned to its atmospheric black metal roots with Ethereal Turn the Wheel and continues down this path with A Furrow Short Cut. Like most bands in this sect of black metal, this album is good at bringing on a variety of emotions. This record is beautiful and sad when it needs to be, but is also not afraid to punch you in the face with heaviness when it wants to. A great album for driving or working on artwork.
https://youtu.be/_oJtqEM9hCQ
Kylesa – Exhausting Fire
Savannah Georgia is known as America’s most haunted city as well as one of it’s most creative and Kylesa’s new release really helps show this. Mixing in the atmosphere of their later sound with the aggressiveness of their older sound, Exhausting Fire is a melodic,sludgy, trip at the brain. Definitely one of the best sludge metal albums of the 2010’s.
Hate Eternal – Infernus
After their legendary third album I Monarch, Hate Eternal seemed to have lost their touch. On their latest album Infernus, the band came back strong. This album’s crispy sound, atmosphere and great musicianship make this a must hear for any death metal fan.
https://youtu.be/S7254AECfWk
Revenge – Total.Behold.Rejection
Canada’s savage black/death metal machine is back with another serving of chaos! Like all releases from Revenge, this album punches you in the face with its heaviness. The production is very raw but done to a degree where you can still make out the songs.; this album is minimalist metal at its finest and rivals the band’s early work.
https://youtu.be/QO1JZ0qTSuE
Shining – IX Everyone, Everything, Everywhere Ends
From the mind of madman Niklas Kvarforth comes the bands most melodic and progressive release to date. The album focuses on epic and slow song structures which bring on a mix of emotions. This is also the band’s more versatile effort to date mixing in elements of industrial, folk and other genres and shows that Niklas is still at his creative peak this late in his career.