2021 Metal & Hard Rock Albums

The eighth studio album, a double record of fifteen songs. Its lead single "Pushing the Tides" was nominated for Best Metal Performance at the 64th Grammy Awards.

The second avex album — twelve songs, followed three weeks later by a European edition on Setsuzoku Records.

An eighth album that digs into werewolf legend country by country, with Jens Bogren and Joost van den Broek widening the band's sound another step.

TRiDENT’s first full album after the name change, establishing the trio’s restart, future-facing outlook and physical intensity across twelve tracks.

A three-track EP that imagines emerging above ground through forward motion, the clarity after rain and a quieter moment of reflection.

A three-track EP that turns confinement and survival into low-end weight, urgent speed and a determined wake-up call.

A five-track re-recording EP that rebuilds songs from the band’s earlier era as future-facing music for the three-member TRiDENT lineup.

The first full album turns miso soup, dating apps, sweets and obsessive everyday life into a reform manifesto powered by metalcore and electronic color.

An album that sharpens both aggression and melody, presenting BAND-MAID’s musicianship on a world-class hard-rock scale.

NEMOPHILA’s debut album, rebuilding its early independent songs into a worldwide statement of the band’s “hellishly heavy, otherwise fluffy” sound.

An international early compilation collecting NEMOPHILA’s three independent singles plus an English version of “DISSENSION.”

Too Mean to Die reaffirms the muscular, traditional heavy-metal language ACCEPT have defended for decades, now delivered with contemporary weight.

After a major shift in its vocal setup, Atreyu move toward more open melodies and larger choruses on Baptize.

Dark Connection pushes Beast in Black’s power-metal drive into a neon-lit, cyberpunk world shaped by eighties synth-pop.

Black Label Society’s eleventh album is packed with Zakk Wylde’s thick, sustaining riffs, blues-rooted phrasing and low-slung groove.

Hellbound strips Buckcherry’s straight-ahead hard rock down to its most immediate form.

Street Lethal rebuilds Crazy Lixx’s love of eighties hard rock and glam metal with modern punch and a cinematic sense of motion.

Crowne’s debut presents Scandinavian melodic-rock polish in a remarkably clear and accessible form.

Turning to Crime is Deep Purple’s first studio album built entirely from songs written by others.

The Puzzle / Snuggles is a useful way to hear DEVIN TOWNSEND from a different angle within the 2021 catalogue.

Dream Theater’s fifteenth studio album gathers complex rhythm, precision unison work and melodic vocals into long-form progressive-metal architecture.

Wired sharpens Eclipse’s modern melodic-rock momentum with very little wasted space.

Omega expands Epica’s symphonic-metal scale to a grand, carefully controlled level.

On its first studio album of mostly original material in roughly a decade, Evanescence keep their gothic shadow while moving toward a more direct, contemporary rock sound

Returning to the studio after a long gap, Exodus deliver an extended blast of uncompromising thrash metal.

Winterbane develops Frozen Crown’s strengths—speed, twin-guitar melody and clear vocals—into a more three-dimensional third album.

Union Gives Strength gathers Galneryus’s long-developed strengths—dramatic melody, complex movement and virtuosic playing—into a record with a strong sense of collective

Fortitude retains Gojira’s low-end groove, machine-like riffs and massive rhythmic force while allowing more melody and openness into the frame.

Centered on Steve Overland’s rich, expressive voice, Groundbreaker’s second album delivers smooth, high-quality melodic rock.

Heart, Mind and Soul tightly connects Hardline’s thick guitar riffs with soaring vocal melody.

Recorded in the Pumpkins United lineup with Kai Hansen and Michael Kiske alongside Andi Deris, this self-titled album is a major meeting point in Helloween’s history.

Senjutsu pushes Iron Maiden’s large-scale instincts further, layering riffs, melody, key changes and quiet space across extended songs.

Labyrinth’s ninth album places its trademark melancholy melody and bright Italian power-metal guitar work inside more varied arrangements.

Above the Beyond carefully balances Leverage’s transparent Scandinavian melodic-metal character with thick hard-rock riffing.

Wolfgang Van Halen handles vocals, guitar, bass and drums on this debut, establishing a musical identity of his own.

Made with a varied group of guest vocalists, Immortal feels like a celebration of Michael Schenker’s long career.

Nestor’s debut openly celebrates eighties melodic rock, but it carries more warmth than a simple revival exercise.

Named after the phrase “And The Band Played On,” ATBPO reasserts Night Ranger’s arena-rock momentum and the strength of its seasoned ensemble.

Werewolves of Portland again shows Paul Gilbert using the guitar not merely as a vehicle for speed, but as a singing voice.

Resurrection Day puts Rage’s twin-guitar lineup at the front, intensifying the mix of heavy riffs, speed and melodic guitar interplay.

Glory for Salvation expands the central pleasures of symphonic power metal on Rhapsody of Fire’s thirteenth album.

Built around Paul Shortino, Amir Derakh and Matt Thorne, Rough Cutt 3 arrives after a long gap with a sound that keeps traces of eighties L.A.

Lockdown 2020 is best heard not simply as a covers-related entry, but as a record that shows how SAMMY HAGAR translates outside material into its own

With Ronnie Romero as its new vocalist, Sunstorm move toward firmer, more powerful melodic metal while retaining the smoother AOR character of earlier work.

21st Century Love Songs gathers the Wildhearts’ punk impulse, hard-rock weight and power-pop melodic gift into one restless body of work.

Trivium’s tenth album integrates thrash sharpness, metalcore aggression and progressive structure at high density.

Across a large sixteen-song running order, U.D.O. deliver traditional German heavy metal straight on.

W.E.T.’s fourth album brings the strengths of Jeff Scott Soto, Erik Martensson and Robert Säll into one focused band sound.

Parabellum expands Yngwie Malmsteen’s neoclassical-metal language into an even denser guitar orchestra.