Our LISTMANIA 2017 series isn’t over yet, though it will be soon. I have five more lists to publish for sure, and I hope a sixth one I’m eager to see will arrive soon, but we should be finished during this coming week. And I’ll also begin rolling out my list of 2017’s Most Infectious Extreme Metal Songs next week as well.
But having said that, we’re also looking ahead to what 2018 will bring us… and of course a huge flood of additional releases is headed our way. We’ve been in the midst of a metal Renaissance for years now, and it shows no sign of ending.
I spent hours over the last two days assembling a list of 2018 releases (by band name) that I’m interested in, or that I think our readers would be interested in. I scrolled through our overstuffed e-mail in-box, visited label Facebook pages, conducted internet searches, and canvassed a few members of our own staff. And the result of that effort is a list of 112 albums, EPs, and splits. And almost all of them are expected to be released in just the first quarter of the year!
Still, the following list isn’t comprehensive by any means. No doubt, I’ve forgotten or overlooked a lot of things, and I intentionally didn’t include reissues. I also didn’t include releases by bands I knew nothing about; although there are some releases on the list by bands whose music I haven’t heard before, I had at least read enough about them to become intrigued.
So here’s the list — BUT, I also want to invite YOU to leave Comments identifying releases that you’re interested in, especially if you don’t see the names on my list. So please do that!
Abraham
Abstracter
Aeviterne
Agrimonia
Alterbeast
Amnutseba
Ancst
Antichrist
Archaic Tomb
Arkona
Ataraxy
Atomwinter
At the Gates
Axioma
Balmog
Baptists
Baring Teeth
Barren Earth
Bhavachakra
Bhleg
Blood Chalice
Byyrth
Caecus / Devouring Star collaborative split
Colosso
Convocation
Corrosion of Conformity
Crematory
Crucifyre
Crurifragium / Abysmal Lord split
Dark Buddha Rising
Daylight Dies
Deiquisitor
Deströyer 666
Dragged Into Sunlight
Draugr
Druid Lord
Ekstrophë (compilation by Devouring Star, Flagellant, Arfsynd, Ibex Angel Order, Dødsengel, Chalice of Blood)
Fractal Gates
Genocide Pact
Ghostbound
Gnaw Their Tongues
Hamferð
Harakiri For the Sky
Haunter
Hooded Menace
Howling Sycamore
Hypno5e
Ilsa
Imperial Triumphant
Infernal Coil
Ingested
Inhibitions
Inquisitor
In Vain
Iskald
Jungle Rot
Karmacipher
Khôrada
Kingdom
Lago
L’Homme Absurde
Loudness
Mammoth Grinder
Mare Cognitum
Mystagos
Necrophobic
Necros Christos
Neter
Nòtt
Ocean of Grief
Oceans of Slumber
Of Feather and Bone
Onirism
Orga
Orphaned Land
Our Place of Worship is Silence
Panopticon
Panphage
Perpetratör
Pestilence
Portal
Project Omega
Replicant
Rex Demonus
Rust
Scaphism
Skeletal Remains
Sixes
Slow
Solstice
Spectral Lore / Jute Gyte Split
Spite
Stillborn
Summon
Sunken
Taphos
The Atlas Moth
The Crown
Tribulation
Ulvesang
Valgrind
Vargrav
Vaultwraith
Verheerer
Vessel of Iniquity
Vilkacis
Visigoth
Voices
Voivod
Whipstriker
Xael
Yhdarl
Really looking forward now to Necros Christos and Portal. Thanks for the heads up!
Can’t believe you missed Drawn & Quartered and Nucleus – at least one classic there to be sure!
DAMN! Did not know about those.
Augury are set to release a new album. Looking forward to that. And ritual aura!
Hallelujah!
Obed Marsh
Pillorian
Machine Head
And maybe Alda, Uada, Behemoth ?
Wasn’t aware of new Obed Marsh or Pillorian… those will be welcome. Would also be great to see new Alda, Uada, and Behemoth if any of those come to pass this year.
Are you talking about Antichrist, the Swedish thrash band?
That came out in June of 2017
..and Blood Chalice came out in November
Byyrth was February
Here’s what the press release says:
“Today, Iron Bonehead Productions sets March 9th, 2018 as the international release date for Byyrth’s highly anticipated second album, Echoes From the Seven Caves of Blood, on CD and vinyl LP formats.
“Following on from their cult debut album, Saviors of Armageddon – which Iron Bonehead released on vinyl during the summer of 2017 – here on Echoes From the Seven Caves of Blood do Byyrth strike a new face for vampiric black metal.”
Oh so they’re doing a new album right behind “Saviors of Armageddon”….that’s awesome!
I missed that and was relying on a December promo from Helter Skelter and Regain which identified February 17 as the release date for “Sepulchral Chants of Self-Destruction”.
The only reason I knew that one was because it nearly made my end of the year list, so I knew it had just come not too long ago
No, this Antichrist is a Peruvian band. Their debut album Pax Moriendi is set for release by Iron Bonehead on March 8, 2018.
Ah, I was really hoping you were going to say it was the Canadian war metal band
Be honest: you hoped I was talking about the Biblical Antichrist. 🙂
He’s an old family friend 🙂
Don´t forget:
7H-Target — Napalm Death — Lychgate — Abominable Putridity — Voidspawn — Lividity — Pig Destroyer — Mass Infection (with Giulio Galati (Hideous Divinity) on drums 🙂
Potential Releases from: Disgorge — Monstrosity — Behemoth — Primordial — Deeds Of Flesh.
Cheers to everyone!
Thanks for those additions!
New Amorphis, Kataklysm, Varathron, Vallendusk, Monolithe, Dread Sovereign. \m/
Dimmu!
Shylmagoghnar! Stopping now! Great work Bro!
Don’t drop the ball on Dagon (an article on NCS years ago made me a fan!) – the Kickstarter covered a few months ago was successful, and the new album drops at the end of January.
Completely forgot about that one — thanks for the reminder.
Looks like I’m sticking with my local scene this year strictly… Only Panopticon on that whole list…
I’m leading my next post with the few details that have been disclosed about the new Panopticon… a double-album… damned exciting.
So far I’m hearing rumblings of new:
Sulphur Aeon
Sonne Adam
Innumerable Forms
Vomitor
Negative Plane
Mgla
Sacriphyx
Going to have to see if any of those actually get released
Really pumped to hear that Taphos full length!
HELL! It would be outstanding if all those bands gave us something new this year.
Hell yeah! I am definitely ready for a new Sulphur Aeon release!
I cannot wait for new Sacriphyx and Neg Plane. Shit.
Rumblings of a new Sacriphyx? Where and when?!
Misery Index has to be this year right?
At The Gates will likely be later this year too, since they’ve been providing studio updates and just said they’re done there.
I sure as hell hope you’re right about Misery Index….
I remember seeing Dan Swanö posting that he was working on the mix for the new Misery Index album a while back on the Unisound AB Facebook page so it’ll probably come out this year.
I’m hoping Coroner release a new album this year, I know they’ve been composing new material although I have no idea when they plan to enter the studio. As mentioned in other comments Napalm Death will probably drop something next year, as are Hypocrisy and Nile judging by their recent Facebook activity.
Naglfar is writing new stuff too, they’ve posted a couple of videos on their Facebook page from the studio. I’m hopeful 2018 will also finally see the release of that follow up to Slaughtersun (Crowning of the Triarchy) that Dawn have been working on for the past two decades or so.
Wiegedood signed to Century Media a few months ago and according to the press release they’re in the studio writing the third part of the De Doden Hebben het Goed trilogy which apparently has a Spring 2018 release date although I’m guessing it might be pushed back a couple of months.
Omnium Gatherum and Kalmah are both releasing albums this year as well. There’s going to be a new Vallendusk album out as well, they recently premiered a new song called Coronation a week or so ago which you might want to include in a future Shades of Black roundup.
There are a lot of other bands with stuff in the works that I’m forgetting,
Should clarify that the Napalm Death, Hypocrisy, and Nile albums are all coming out in 2018 most likely, apparently my brain still thinks it’s 2017.
Amorphis are in the studio finishing up the recordings for the follow up to Under The Red Cloud. I believe Andy Marshall is also starting to demo stuff for a new Saor album too.
All of these are great additions. Thanks.
I also just remembered that Sojourner have a new album coming out, it’s being mixed and mastered by Øystein G. Brun from Borknagar. I don’t think you covered them back when they released Empires of Ash in 2016 (which was one of my favourite releases of that year) so I hope you might cover their new material.
We did fail to write anything about Empires of Ash… and won’t make that mistake with Sojourner again. 🙂
There’s also a new My Dying Bride album coming this year, I just remembered they Aaron Stainthorpe mentioned it in a post he made a few months ago. Obscura should also have a new album out, And apparently according to a recent issue of Decibel Magazine, Ihsahn, Gatecreeper, and Obscura are all working on new material (in the case of Obscura they were in the studio with V Santura from October to December 2017 (from a photo they posted from the same Decibel issue on Facebook), so I’m assuming the follow up to Akroasis is definitely coming out in 2018.
Horrendous is also releasing a new album this year according to Decibel.
Also aren’t Virvum lining up for late 2018 since they signed?
Yes, good call. There’s a post on their FB page from last August that includes these words: “Meanwhile, we have started working on new material which Season of Mist will unleash upon you once finished. Stay tuned, because that could be rather sooner than later!”
Pictura Poesis is going to release a new EP this year! Symphonic Deathmetal, Female-fronted (brutal vocals)
New albums from the following to be added:
Summoning
Watain
Shining
Varathron
Thx.
Technically all of those except Varathron came out on Friday
Right — I didn’t include albums that came out before I posted the list. I think I may have omitted some i knew about that were coming out early next week as well. But a new Varathron is definitely worth including.
So it feels like “Fast” Eddie may have been a misnomer.
ZING
Let’s see, Abysmal Dawn are recording right now. Plus new Thou. Mutilation Rites. New Fluisteraars or Nechochwen perhaps? Lots more I’m sure.
Aegaeon
Alkaloid
Anachronism
Barús
Cognizance (might be a full album this time?)
Concealment (they’re doing a split with starkweather and also are working on a full length)
Soreption
Ur Draugr
Wow. A very nice list all by itself… and I feel like an idiot failing to include that starkweather/Concealment split, which I knew about.
Scorched
Mortiferum
Fetid
Human Serpent
Damn, I now remember I knew that something new would be coming from Scorched. Didn’t know about new Fetid or Human Serpent. But I think the Mortiferum is a reissue, which is why I didn’t include it.
Evoken?
Oh shit, I hope so!
Grave Upheaval’s second album is dropping sometime around March/April confirmed by NWN.
Nice to see Mystagos made the list! I personally can’t wait for the Balmog and Hooded Menace stuff.
I managed to overlook three promising forthcoming releases by Transcending Obscurity: Towards Atlantis Lights, Arkheth, and Et Moriemur.
I’m no good at mapping forthcoming stuff, but there’s a lot of exciting stuff on the horizon.
Here’s a few additions that I know of:
Abigor – Höllenzwang (Chronicles of Perdition)
Borgne – ∞
Mare – The Ebony Tower
Mephorash – The Third Woe
(Also, Infestum’s new Les Rites De Passage, but it’s been released already.)
All worthy additions. I would have certainly included the new Abigor album, except for the fact that as a result of leaks on pirate sites, Avantgarde Music was compelled to release the album digitally on January 3, before I published this post… and so it was no longer “forthcoming” in a strict sense, despite the fact that the physical releases are not yet available.
Portal is definitely my most anticipated from this list 🙂