Rolling Stone has officially dropped its roundup of the year in heavy music, unveiling “The 15 Best Metal Albums of 2025.” Slimmed down from previous years’ longer lists, this year’s selection offers a sharper, more curated snapshot of the genre—from boundary-pushing black metal to radio-ready hard rock.
At the top of the list are DEFTONES, who claimed the number one spot with their tenth studio album, private music. The Sacramento alternative metal legends were among the few heavy acts to break into mainstream critical attention this year. Alongside melodic hardcore group TURNSTILE—whose NEVER ENOUGH appeared at #31—DEFTONES were the only metal act to appear on Rolling Stone’s broader 100 Best Albums of 2025 list, landing at #76.
The list balances major returns with rising underground stars. DREAM THEATER made a strong showing with their progressive metal release Parasomnia, while Swedish occult rockers GHOST secured a top-three spot with Skeletá. Rolling Stone also recognized the more extreme corners of the genre, from the “ecstatic black metal” of AGRICULTURE to the punishing sludge of PRIMITIVE MAN.
Here’s the full rundown of Rolling Stone’s 15 Best Metal Albums of 2025:
- Deftones – private music
- Agriculture – The Spiritual Sound
- Ghost – Skeletá
- Dream Theater – Parasomnia
- Primitive Man – Observance
- Halestorm – Everest
- Blut Aus Nord – Ethereal Horizons
- Deadguy – Near-Death Travel Services
- Whitechapel – Hymns In Dissonance
- Rwake – The Return Of Magick
- Castle Rat – The Beastiary
- Chepang – Jhyappa
- Runemagick – Cycle Of The Dying Sun (Dawn Of Ashen Remains)
- Deafheaven – Lonely People With Power
- Coroner – Dissonance Theory
Reeder, the visionary behind Metal Addicts, has transformed his lifelong passion for metal into a thriving online community for metal aficionados. As a fervent devotee of black metal, Reeder is captivated by its dark, atmospheric, and often unorthodox soundscapes.