2022 Metal & Hard Rock Albums

CoreLeoni's first album of original material, and the first with Eugent Bushpepa singing.

A four-track EP: two new songs and two re-recordings from the 1980 debut Wild Cat.

Their first album for Century Media and their first number one in Finland, built around "Dark Side", the song they took to Eurovision. Japan received it as their debut release there, retitled Sick & Dangerous.

The band's first album for Atomic Fire Records, made by the four-piece of Mat Sinner, Tom Naumann, Alex Scholpp and Markus Kullmann, and mixed by Jacob Hansen.

2022年発表のスタジオ作。

The third and last of the avex albums, carried into a SUMMER SONIC 2022 appearance; guitarist MOE joined after it.

A seventh album that breaks five years of silence, rebuilt around new singer Victor Emeka — with three former members guesting on "Tribal Mark".

A pre-album single that turns the decision to confront fear into sharp riffs, forceful rhythm and a large melodic chorus.

Lonesome_Blue’s debut EP joins voice-actor expression and professional rock musicianship through metal, progressive detail and pop melody.

A pre-debut single featuring Ayasa, expanding Lonesome_Blue’s sound through psychedelic color, violin and progressive movement.

Lonesome_Blue’s first pre-debut single, joining ominous tension, heavy rhythm and a large melody to announce the band’s arrival.

A five-track EP centered on “CRY OUT,” moving between heavy confrontation, playful tension and a more lyrical sense of connection.

The second re-recording EP, rebuilding earlier material through TRiDENT’s current trio sound across five songs of impulse, resistance, utopia and renewal.

A 2022 EP that lives up to its title, unleashing the band’s technical rock energy through compact, immediate songs.

HAGANE’s first full-length album, expanding the band’s twin-guitar sparkle, speed, heavy riffs and dramatic storytelling.

A second album capturing NEMOPHILA’s international momentum through heavy riffs, wide melodies and an unrestricted mixture.

After a long absence, Altaria return with Wisdom, a record that presents bright Scandinavian melodic-metal lines alongside approachable hard-rock warmth.

Halo is a refined fusion of the death-metal weight, folk-derived melody and progressive arrangement that Amorphis have developed over decades.

Deceivers sharpens Arch Enemy’s melodic-death-metal design with exceptional precision.

Tobias Sammet assembles a varied cast of singers and builds theatrical storytelling and oversized melody as a sequence of connected scenes.

With new vocalist Gabriel Keyes, Crashdïet restart their rough-edged glam-metal machine without losing its identity.

Diamond Star Halos expands Def Leppard’s trademark blend of stacked harmonies, bright guitars and pop momentum into a broader palette.

Lightwork retains Devin Townsend’s talent for enormous walls of sound while giving them more air and calm than some of his recent work.

As its title suggests, Divisive addresses distrust and division while returning to Disturbed’s direct heaviness and large-scale melody.

Centered on Herman Frank, Dreamtide’s return revisits the strengths of melodic hard rock with care and restraint.

Final Advent finds Sweden’s Dynazty linking heavy riffs, polished electronic textures and arena-sized choruses with impressive density.

Shangri-La finds Edenbridge building a fantasy world around Sabine Edelsbacher’s clear voice and Lanvall’s grand arrangements.

Closer to the Edge places Harry Hess’s warm yet focused voice at the center of polished melodic rock.

AfterLife draws on Five Finger Death Punch’s direct strengths: hard riffs, marching rhythms and Ivan Moody’s raw vocal presence.

FM’s thirteenth album refines the band’s urbane melodic-rock identity with relaxed performances and carefully shaped harmonies.

After a long gap, Giant return around David Huff and Mike Brignardello, with Kent Hilli’s voice helping restate the appeal of their melodic hard rock.

Fronted by the soaring voice of Kristian Fyhr, Ginevra’s debut delivers Scandinavian melodic-rock clarity in a modern sound.

With Kenny Leckremo back in the band, H.E.A.T reclaim the speed, melody and positive energy that shaped their early identity.

Abrakadabra blends Hardcore Superstar’s glam-metal flash with punkish roughness.

Second Skin centers on Nathan James’s commanding voice and polishes classic hard-rock craft in a contemporary way.

Complicated centers on Jeff Scott Soto’s wide expressive range, linking hard-rock power with AOR smoothness.

Freedom by JOURNEY: track list, Spotify player, music videos and English liner notes on METAL BOOST.

Requiem concentrates Korn’s uneasy grooves, down-tuned weight and Jonathan Davis’s wounded-sounding voice into a brief, dense runtime.