Top 10 Albums of 2024

As a fan of rock music, I’ve always heard the narrative that “there’s no good new music anymore,” and it never fails to make me roll my eyes. I can’t speak on other genres, but in my area of expertise of rock and metal, there’s never been a shortage of solid new releases each year, whether they’re follow-ups from already established acts or contributions from complete newcomers. When you take the complete oversaturation of the modern music market in general into consideration, along with just how sonically diverse the rock genre is, it’s completely ignorant, lazy, and just objectively wrong to surmise that there aren’t any artists today making music that’s worth the time and attention of the masses.

All of that being said, 2024 has been one of the best years for rock and metal music in a very long time. In the short time I’ve been writing these end-of-year lists, this has undoubtedly been the most difficult year to come up with a list because of how great of a year for music it’s been. Between the full-length studio returns of legends like Alkaline Trio, Bring Me the Horizon, and Green Day, anticipated follow-ups from contemporary acts like Rain City Drive and Bilmuri, and the debuts of impressive prospects like Heartbent and I Am Mook, it was an incredibly difficult decision to narrow things down, but that should just go to show how highly I think of the ten records on this list. While the ranking may fluctuate here and there, as always, these are currently my top 10 albums of 2024:

10. Blue Öyster Cult – Ghost Stories (April 12)

This may not count in some people’s eyes given the fact that the songs on this album aren’t necessarily “new,” but they’re previously unreleased and with it being the swansong of my all-time favorite band, it just wouldn’t feel right for me to not include Blue Öyster Cult’s final studio album, Ghost Stories. Consisting of recordings from 1978-1983 (aside from the cover of The Beatles’ “If I Fell,” recorded in 2016), this album is the first release featuring the band’s original lineup since 1981’s Fire of Unknown Origin. Guitarist Richie Castellano and manager Steve Schenck were able to digitally de-mix and re-mix the original recordings, produced by audio engineer George Geranios, and turned the decades-old demos into the finished product we have with this album. For sections that weren’t completely preserved on the analog tapes, founding members Joe and Albert Bouchard contributed some vocal and instrumental adjustments, and it’s great to hear their stamps on new(ish) BÖC material once again. If this is it, the legendary group chose an interesting and fitting way to end their recording career, but fingers are crossed that the symbol will remain on the road.

Standout Tracks: “Gun,” “The Only Thing,” “If I Fell”

To read my first-impression thoughts on Ghost Stories, click here.

To buy/stream the album, click here.

9. Chained Saint – Blindside (August 23)

One of the most impressive debuts of 2024 came from Chained Saint from south Florida — having a throwback thrash metal sound, what’s more impressive than the quality of this release is the age of the musicians themselves. With this record made while they were all still in high school, the level of musicianship is absolutely outstanding. They also sonically set themselves apart from others by recording on tape, further leaning into the throwback sound while adding some modern musical touches here and there. From thrash to punk to prog-rock, it’s easy to hear the wealth of influences that this young band has, and they’ve already shown with this release that the future is wildly bright for them.

Standout Tracks: “Neanderthal,” “Demon Inside,” “Dark Side of the Cross”

8. Sebastian Bach – Child Within the Man (May 10)

Sebastian Bach’s fourth solo studio album has been a long time coming, and it proved to be worth the wait from the moment the lead single, “What Do I Got To Lose?” was released in late 2023. With the full album having dropped the following spring in the midst of Bach celebrating the 35th anniversary of Skid Row’s self-titled album, Bach proved that he still has the same energy for making hard-hitting straightforward rock music that he had back in the early days of his career. This is without a doubt Bach’s strongest solo release, in terms of both songwriting and production, and it also stacks up nicely with the best of Skid Row’s material. The guest musician appearances from the greats like John 5 and Orianthi are phenomenal additions as well. Having been a full decade since his prior solo record, 2014’s Give ‘Em Hell, Bach returned with a vengeance with The Child Within the Man, and it’s very fitting to have the release of a record as strong as this coincide with the milestone 35th anniversary of his very first studio effort.

Standout Tracks: “Everybody Bleeds,” “Vendetta,” “About to Break”

To read my first-impression thoughts on Child Within the Man, click here.

To buy/stream the album, click here.

7. Stand Atlantic – WAS HERE (August 23)

Stand Atlantic has undoubtedly been one of the most captivating bands to keep an eye on in recent years — with such a broad array of musical influences, from Parkway Drive to Billie Eilish, the Australian alternative quartet has never made the same album twice, making for a collective sound that’s as eclectic as their inspirations. With each release, it’s fun to hear the band become more comfortable as songwriters and musicians while still pushing themselves to expand their creative horizons, and their latest album, Was Here, is a perfect example of them doing just that. No two songs sound alike on this album, and it truly is a fun ride from start to finish. Collaborating with the likes of PVRIS, Sueco, and Polaris should be enough of an indication of the musical diversity that can be heard throughout the record, but it all still sounds very much like the Aussie group we’ve come to know and love over the years, complete with their signature catchiness and relatability. It’s awesome to hear them have so much fun with experimenting with their sound, and that energy is beyond palpable while listening through the album.

Standout Tracks: “FRENEMIES,” “NOSE BLEED,” “CRIMINAL”

6. Fame on Fire – The Death Card (September 6)

Fame on Fire is one of those bands that constantly keeps themselves busy with doing both covers and original music on a pretty consistent basis — their sophomore album, 2022’s Welcome to the Chaos, was one of my favorites of that year, so to say I was anxious to see what they’d do on the next release would be an understatement. Needless to say, I wasn’t at all disappointed with the direction of their latest album, The Death Card — as the title may suggest, each song explores the meanings of different cards of the Tarot deck. The band has always had introspective lyrics and themes of exploring one’s internal thoughts and emotions on previous releases, but having the template of the Tarot to guide the direction of this album from a conceptual standpoint makes for a very cohesive collection of material from front to back. Much like on Welcome to the Chaos, it feels like they buried the lede in the sense that the later half of the record contains some of my favorite tracks, but the whole album is solid, from the singles to the deep cuts.

Standout Tracks: “Spiral (Justice),” “Unalive (10 of Swords),” “Closure (The World)”

5. Linkin Park – From Zero (November 15)

After the tragic passing of frontman Chester Bennington in July 2017, the future of Linkin Park was extremely uncertain, with many fans unsure if the band would ever return in any capacity — as one of the greatest (in my opinion, THE greatest) vocalists of all time, Bennington’s absence left huge shoes to fill for anyone who would inevitably end up in his role in the band. That being said, the band found a way to reinvent themselves with the addition of Dead Sara vocalist Emily Armstrong, along with new drummer Colin Brittain. The reunion was met with understandably mixed emotions, with some fans not sure how to feel about the band continuing without Bennington (myself included), and others just happy to have the band back at all. On this album, Armstrong has proven herself on this album to be an extremely fitting person to take over vocal duties in this new era of Linkin Park, with her range and technique similar enough to Bennington’s without being an outright imitation. The record calls back to many different areas of the band’s career, whether that’s intentional or not — whether it’s the familiarity in vocal cadences between lead single “The Emptiness Machine” and The Hunting Party’s “Final Masquerade,” along with “Heavy is the Crown” and Shinoda’s solo single “Already Over,” or the musical similarities to new songs like “Two Faced” with LP classics like “One Step Closer” and “Figure.09,” there’s a clear nod to the past while looking ahead to the future that can be felt while listening to this album. That self-referentiality is also noted in the title of the album, given that the band started out under the name Xero before ultimately changing their name to Linkin Park. The new musical direction is true to the band’s DNA of always changing things up and keeping things fresh, and with their status as one of the most important and influential bands of all time, it’s a great feeling as a fan to have the band back and to see them happy to be continuing to do what they love together once again.

Standout Tracks: “Cut the Bridge,” “Casualty,” “Good Things Go”

4. A Killer’s Confession – Victim 1 (September 13)

I’m not a violent person, but I think we can all agree that child predators and the like deserve the most abominable repercussions, including but not limited to death. A Killer’s Confession proudly flies that flag in their music and merchandising (with many items featuring their signature catchphrase “save a kid, kill a pedophile”), and the band’s latest album, Victim 1, explores just that — it’s an exploration of the mind of a man who takes it upon himself to murder these disgusting sub-human individuals, along the lines of the protagonist of the Dexter TV series, and his internal conflict between his actions and his morals. It offers an interesting perspective in the sense of discussing the guilt and negative emotions that one may feel from getting justice for those who can’t defend themselves, and eventually feeling like a victim in the process of that introspection. From a musical standpoint, this is the band’s strongest release to date, with frontman Waylon Reavis’ vocals at an all-time high from beginning to end. As the beginning of what will be an album trilogy, this first installment sets the bar very high, and it’s exciting to think of what’s to come from the next two releases.

Standout Tracks: “Martyr,” “Kill or Be Killed,” “Filth”

3. Sum 41 – Heaven :x: Hell (March 29)

Musical farewells are always bittersweet, but it's nice to be able to see a band ride off into the sunset while they're still performing and releasing new music at a high level. Sum 41's swansong record had been in the works for many years before its release, and it absolutely lived up to the hype and then some. At 20 tracks, with the first half showcasing a return to their pop-punk roots and the later half staying in line with the heavier “Sumtallica” sound that they'd utilized in the later stages of their career, this is an album that's as catchy as it is aggressive. It truly feels like a celebration of the band's career from a sonic perspective, and it stands out as one of the best releases in the band's entire catalog. There's something for fans of every era of the band's discography on this album, and it's one of the best sendoffs a band could ever hope for.

Standout Tracks: “Time Won’t Wait,” “Not Quite Myself,” “Bad Mistake,” “Stranger In These Times,” “How The End Begins”

To read my first-impression thoughts on Heaven :x: Hell, click here.

To buy/stream the album, click here.

2. The Funeral Portrait – Greetings From Suffocate City (September 13)

Not every band has the luxury of having two debut albums, but that's exactly what happened with The Funeral Portrait. With eight years between the release of their debut record, 2016's A Moment of Silence, and their sophomore effort, Greetings From Suffocate City, the band is an entirely different unit today, complete with a brand new lineup (the only consistent member is frontman Lee Jennings) and a new sound — while their first album had a heavy post-hardcore tone to it, their latest release leaned more into the emo-ish alternative rock of the early 2000s, popularized by groups like My Chemical Romance and The Used. For an up-and-coming band, this album sounds like it's tailor-made for huge venues and large crowds, and it's such a focused release that there's absolutely no fat to trim — while it gets hard to compare songs because no two tracks sound alike, the sheer quality and impact of each song is immeasurable. It's not an exaggeration when I say there are absolutely zero skips on this album, and they really set the bar astronomically high for themselves with the release of this album. It's safe to assume it won't be another near-decade until the release of their next album, so it's going to be very exciting to see how the band will be able to capitalize on the successful year they've had and ride that wave into their next release.

Standout Tracks: “Doom and Gloom,” “Chernobyl,” “Alien”

To read my first-impression thoughts on Greetings From Suffocate City, click here.

To buy/stream the album, click here.

1. Marilyn Manson – One Assassination Under God: Chapter 1 (November 22)

To the surprise of absolutely no one, Marilyn Manson's return to music was one of my most anticipated events of 2024 — after four years away from the public eye in the midst of a vitriolic smear campaign against him, there were several questions in regards to the Antichrist Superstar's eventual resurrection. For his first studio effort since his absence, Manson revisited the iconography of his 2000 masterpiece Holy Wood: In the Shadow of the Valley of Death, which was also made at a time in which his back was against the wall and he had something to prove. As a response to the events in his life over the past four years, Manson released the first chapter of his One Assassination Under God saga — there are sonic and aesthetic nods to his Triptych albums trilogy are all over this record, along with musical similarities from other album eras of his, but this record is still very much its own entity that stands as one of the strongest in his discography. Sobriety and vocal training worked wonders for Manson's voice on this release as well, because he sounds more energized and invigorated than we've heard on the handful of albums that came before it.

Tyler Bates and Gil Sharone round out the musical side of the release, with both of their contributions matching the renewed strength of Manson's vocal and lyrical performance. While it's obviously hard not to smile while listening to the heavy response tracks like “Nod If You Understand” and “Raise the Red Flag,” I'd argue that it's the more mid-tempo, contemplative, and broodingly introspective selections like the title track, “As Sick As The Secrets Within,” and “Death Is Not A Costume” that really make this album shine — along with commenting on the state of the media and society as a whole in the wake of the failed cancellation attempt on him, he also pulls no punches in discussing his path to sobriety and exploring the concepts of how he wants to be remembered and what he wants his legacy to be. Of course, he writes in such a way that allows for multiple areas of interpretation, so the layers are abundant on this album, just from a lyrical perspective.

Truth be told, the top spot on this list was tied between Manson and The Funeral Portrait, but what put One Assassination Under God — Chapter One over the edge for me is the timing of this release and the statement it made — at a time where everyone outside of his fanbase was counting him out and many were uncertain if he could recapture the musical prowess of his earlier catalog, or even release any music in any capacity again, he not only proved the detractors wrong, but he made them look foolish for doubting him. To sum things up, Manson’s comeback was even better than expected, and the greatness of this album undoubtedly leaves fans in suspense for the upcoming second chapter.

Standout Tracks: “One Assassination Under God,” “Nod If You Understand,” “Death Is Not A Costume”

To read my first-impression thoughts on One Assassination Under God — Chapter 1, click here.

To buy/stream the album, click here.

As stated previously, 2024 was a stellar year for new releases, and it’ll be interesting to see if 2025 will be able to top just how great this past year was. If you somehow haven’t listened to these albums yet, I highly recommend doing so, and feel free to comment your favorite 2023 releases as well!

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