Diaries of Doom

This year didn't really go to plan, did it? I'm sure we're all relieved to see 2020 finally on its way out - who's taking bets for 2021? Zombie apocalypse, anyone? Regardless, there's been some absolutely stellar new releases all year round. The Diaries of Doom writers team have gotten their heads together and picked out 40 of their favourites from 2020 - in alphabetical order, to avoid lengthy, meandering arguments. Find something here that you previously missed. As you'd expect, there's a lot of sludge, doom and stoner here. But we've also got everything else, from Pearl Jam to grindcore. Here's our essential 40 releases of 2020. Anaal Nathrakh - Endarkenment (blackened death) Battalions - Pure Humber Sludge (sludge) Beggar - Compelled to Repeat (sludge) Cillian Breathnach - Lothric (drone/dark ambient) Fæðm by Cillian Breathnach Corrupt Moral Altar - Patiently Waiting for Wonderful Things (death/grindcore) Deftones - Ohms (alternative metal) ...

I wasn't too familiar with Thrashsquatch until earlier this year, when an Instagram account plugging the UK thrash scene brought them up. Wasn't going to forget a name like that, was I?  As you can probably tell, they don't take themselves too seriously, but do play a blistering, unpretentious, fist-pumping take on thrash metal, with elements of hardcore punk and wider heavy metal scattered into their sound.  Thrashsquatch's second EP comes a little over three years since their self-titled debut release.  'Return of the Living Shred' picks up from where the Chesterfield quintet left off last time, with a sound that doesn't reinvent the wheel but certainly comes across as more refined and unified than on their last outing. The groovy 'Human Compost' opens the EP at a relatively medium tempo. It's made for live shows and you can see the sweaty moshpits, masses of windmilling hair and lyrics being shouted back in your minds eye above the dissonant m...

Milton Keynes/Northampton rockers Torus have made the most of a dreadful year, releasing a series of singles and building up an active social media presence. To round proceedings off for 2020, they've released 'High Rope', a bouncy number that simply screams out to be played to a crowd in a sweaty pub - or ultimately, perhaps somewhere bigger.  An intro with fuzzed-out bass and a lively rhythm - complete with cowbell - sees the song drop into an energetic verse that gets the head nodding immediately. Alfie's vocal range allows him to both sing in a grungy baritone as well as a Muse-esque falsetto, often within the same line. The half-time feel in the subsequent bridge section shows their influence from the stoner/doom sphere - obvious if you've been following them for a while. Torus blend in several elements, from subtle vocal harmonies to a tasteful, bluesy solo midway through. It's solid evidence of the thought and detail going into their compositions. The sec...

As the weather over here gets even colder and the notes of Wham! 's 'Last Christmas' slowly fade into the foreground from the horizon, we can at least take solace in the fact that 2020 is almost over. In the penultimate top picks of this year, we have an EP, an album and a compilation. Variety is the spice of life, as they say. Of the two non-compilations, both bands have members who are better known for playing - or at least touring - in better-known bands. Can you name them? Corrupt Moral Altar - Patiently Waiting for Wonderful Things (sludge/grindcore) - APF Records Intense, ugly, nasty grind from Liverpool, we've spent most of the year patiently waiting for this outrageously heavy EP. When they play fast, it's dizzying and brutal, and when they play at mid tempos, your face contorts. The contrast between both makes each disparate element even more effective - although there's plenty of good music out there that does one or the other, CMA use both devastating...

With 'Isle 43', Disraeli's Whip see the year out on another strong point with more glorious riff worship and catchy hooks. Active since 2014, they spent several years as 'The Ominous' before rebranding a few months ago and unleashing the 'Killdozer' single and a new, fresh sound. As their fourth single of this cursed year - before which they released the 'Once Bitten' full-length in 2017 - the Liverpudlian quartet have stayed active despite, you know, everything going on at the moment. Without a doubt, that's no mean feat. The song opens with a swaggering alt-metal riff, dripping with a fuzzed out attitude that shows their stoner and sludge metal leanings. It's constant throughout most of the song, but is strong enough to carry the tune and gain the desired effect. Meanwhile, Kieran's gruff, throat-shredding vocals roar over the verses and belt out a catchy chorus that has you singing along by the time its second repetition comes around. ...