“Big black shape with eyes of fire
Tellin’ people their desire
The Doom Charts are sittin’ there, they’re smilin’
Watches those flames get higher and higher”

~ probable misheard lyrics by Black Sabbath

It’s that time again, the Peroration post is here with 22 albums the Doom Charts crew couldn’t get enough of, and get a chance to shine regardless of rankings and votes! Dig in and find a new album or 20 to spin and fall in love with.

The following are professions of love and adoration by Doom Charts Contributors for albums they could not stop spinning. Each month, the Doom Charts critics submit their picks for the best new doom, sludge, metal, stoner, psychedelic and other sorts of heavy rock and metal albums. The results are compiled and tabulated into the chart which is published on the First Friday of the new month. However, sometimes a love is so great, but for whatever reason the album unfortunately did not make the published Doom Charts Edition or because there were so many contributors in love with that one album, that multiple blurbs were written, and only the one got published… Well, you can peruse that love here…

1968 – ROYAL BASTARDS
Stoner Rock
United Kingdom
No Profit Recordings

Beloved UK fuzz rockers 1968 are back with Royal Bastards, their first release with vocalist Andrew Valiant and undoubtedly their heaviest album to date. The foundation of dense stoner riffs that dance with hypnotic psychedelic interludes that bolstered the band’s sound is still very much in place. However, you’ll quickly hear that the ethereal reprieves on Royal Bastards are even more gossamer, and the heavy parts are even more crushing. What’s more, the vocals truly take this album soaring over the top, giving an incredibly versatile performance that ranges from gritty growls to heavy metal shrieks to soulful crooning and back again, breathing new life into 1968’s sound. Naturally, this results in a multi-dimensional and immersive listening experience sure to dazzle fans of both the rock and metal sides of the stoner music spectrum.
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

BLOODWOOD – DARK SIMULATOR
Post Metal, Alternative Rock
Perth, Australia
Moon Base Records

Dark Simulator, the debut full-length album from Australian ambient rock quartet BLOODWOOD, is filled with beautifully stark contrasts. Across the eight tracks, you’ll encounter cold and dense post metal lumbering through ghostly vapors, somber but peaceful interludes lapping at the shores of suffocating despair, dreamy psychedelic visions that lead to revelation and triumph, and resulting light as air moods that glide languidly through planes of blissful contentment. All of this is narrated by adaptable alternative rock vocals that are as soothingly wispy as they are powerful and steadfast. While it’s true that Dark Simulator begins in a very sorrowful place, it ultimately unveils a compelling and deeply personal journey that is fully won in the end.
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

THE BUDOS BAND – VII
Psychedelic soul, Afrofunk
New York, United States
Diamond West Records

In 2014 I stumbled onto BUDOS BAND’s album Burnt Offerings, it’s cover reminds that of an metal album and it sounds like something I imagine Black Sabbath would sound if they’d been a funk band. The band seems to take influences from old horror movies and their song titles could be those of a traditional heavy metal band.

To me the brass section is their lead vocalist, each one taking turns in the spotlight, fuzzy guitar is doing heavy lifting and everything is fattening the sound, sometimes to quite epic proportions.
~ Jukka ‘Shrike’ Kolehmainen (Psychotropic Caravan, Abhorrence, Shrike’s Playlists)

BUSHFIRE – SNAKES BITE TALES
Stoner Metal, Southern Rock, Blues
Darmstadt, Germany
Self-released

A big bold swaggering blend of stonerized doom, swampy southern metal and heavy blues that could easily be mistaken for something coming out of NOLA’s vibrant underground scene. Vocals are big, powerful and possess a wearied soulful grittiness while the grooves swing like a hanged man in a hurricane.
~ Frazer Jones (Desert Psychlist)

CRYSTAL METT – DIE TOTALE VEGANISIERUNG DES ABENDLANDES
Punk, Powerviolence, Stoner, Doom
Nürnberg, Germany
Self-released

CRYSTAL METT doesn’t aim for easy listening. Blast beats, stoner/doom/punk-style riffage and mostly spoken lyrics in German, packed in nine tracks with a total playing time of about ten minutes. The longest one clocks in at three minutes and has an undeniable doom vibe, but the others feel like real songs too, ear-splitting grooves and all. It makes Die totale Veganisierung des Abendlandes a true full length album, albeit a very short one. A must-listen for those with an open mind. Big plus: it won’t take much of your time, unless you are as smitten by it as I am and become an instant CRYSTAL METT addict.
~ Ronny Dijksterhuis (Stoner HiVe)

DHYANA – ARAHANT
Psychedelic doom, Drone, Instrumental
Louisiana, United States
Self-released

DHYANA is a one man project “dedicated to buddhist teachings and meditative practices”. They call the music meditative sludge and dharma doom, while I’d add psychedelic droney doom with kraut-like repetitive structures to the description. Their Shikantaza (2023) album is still in heavy rotation, but this new one looks to be another regular.

Not as slow as Bong, nor as heavy as Sunn0)), their sound is quite a blunt tool, but has more of the furry elements of stoner rock.
~ Jukka ‘Shrike’ Kolehmainen (Psychotropic Caravan, Abhorrence, Shrike’s Playlists)

EREBE – DUOLITHE
Genre bending, post-metal, prog
France
Silent Future Recordings

This release is packed with mind blowing progressions that totally captivate the ear. Had I settled for a random drop in, ten second preview scan, there is a possibility it may have been stopped and discarded. Yet, here we are discussing one of the most interesting and intriguing releases I’ve heard so far in 2025. Give this EP a complete listen. Without that, you have done yourself a disservice and misjudged the entire effort. It is an artistically driven masterwork delivered in a production that matches the bands attention to detail perfectly.
~ Bobby Rayfield (Monuments In Ruin, Inherent Records, Mystery Pick)

FUSSKALT – FACELESS MAN
Stoner Rock, Stoner Metal
Skanderborg, Denmark
Self-released

After the release of their last album Intercooler in 2018, life hit Danish stoner/desert rockers FUSSKALT a bit hard. Responsibilities, the pandemic, and the loss of their lead singer left the band “running on pilot light” until summer 2025, with the release of their EP Faceless Man. With new vocalist Niko taking the reins as frontman, the band delivers what sounds like the very essence of stoner/desert rock: gritty, barreling riffage, coarse but soaring vocals, energetic drumming, and stormy basslines abound. To top it all off, a soulful infusion is added to the mix by way of hypnotic psychedelic rock and vintage heavy rock. Faceless Man brings to mind greats such as Dozer and Greenleaf, but FUSSKALT has a special energy all their own that puts a sophisticated touch on the stoner/desert sound we know and love. 
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

INHALE – AT THE BOTTOM OF THE LAKE
Stoner Rock, Doom
Tomsk, Russia
Self-released

On At the Bottom of the Lake, INHALE offers up a strong representation of modern psych-drenched doom. This is a sound that emerges from murky depths and diffuses into misty, mind-bending vapors, only to reform again to trudge menacingly along the shores. The vocals, while they could have easily elected to be a sludge-metal growl, opt for an echoing, powerfully melodic approach. By blending the perfect balance of heavy and light into a spellbinding cocktail, INHALE’s sound is sure to appeal to doom and psych fans alike. 
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

LADYSHIP WARSHIP – LACRIMOSUS INTOLERANTEM
Heavy Psych, Stoner, Alternative, Rock
Detroit, Michigan, United States
Self-released

The Detroit band known as LADYSHIP WARSHIP are not held back by the lack of bottom end, in fact the songs are so catchy you may not even notice. The guitar and drums duo have a way of melding you into their psychedelia and upbeat alt-rock experience. The top-notch vocal harmonies flawlessly play off one another, adding layers that range from carefree to utterly haunting. Fans of The Black Angels, Spirit Mother, and Dwellers should find this one right up their alley. It’s one of my most played of the month, and you should check them out!
~ Jon McGough (Stoner Rock Army, Stoner HiVe, Outlaws Of The Sun)

LIGHTS OF VIMANA – NEOPOLIS
Doom Metal, Gothic Doom, Progressive
Italy / Belgium / United States
Dusktone

This trio has created an album that is unique and truly special. They take such adjectives like “atmospheric,” and “sprawling,” and push to levels that no one else has reached this year. The weight of doom metal meets free floating textures to create passages of mystique and mystery, both serene and harrowing. It’s progressive—not in a flashy way but because of its dynamic changes and willingness to not even have a box to step outside of in the first place.

Throughout the album, I was presented with a musical landscape that truly changes at the time ticks by. At times, I felt like I was preparing to journey off to another world. At other times, I felt quite claustrophobic. What I found the most interesting is how well the varying degrees of intensity (and not so intense) play off each other, each offering a glimpse into the other’s world. Some of the hardest moments were not even the meta aspects; likewise, some of the more cinematic approaches were brought by the tide of DOOM.
~ Justin Wittenmeier (DoomedForMetal)

LORQUIN’S ADMIRAL – LORQUIN’S ADMIRAL
Alternative Rock, Desert Rock
Santa Rosa, California
Argonauta Records

There are giants in the history of Stoner, Alternative, and Heavy Psych. And with members from Afghan Whigs, Hermano, Luna Sol, Orquesta del Desierto, Sons of Alpha Centauri, and Yawning Sons, a lot of them are in LORQUIN’S ADMIRAL. While there are bits and pieces from these legendary bands, LORQUIN’S ADMIRAL is very much its own thing. The bottom line: along with Slumbering Sun, this is the most successful supergroup I’ve heard since Shrinebuilder. Everything works to perfection, but it’s the vocals that catapult this to #1 for me this month.
~ Scott Spiers (CleanAndSoberStoner, Monster Riff)

You’ve probably heard the buzz about LORQUIN’S ADMIRAL, a supergroup composed of current and former members of Afghan Whigs, the Fizz Fuzz, Hermano, Luna Sol, Orquesta del Desierto, Sons of Alpha Centauri, and Yawning Sons. If you guessed that the sound emanating from this group of seasoned musicians would be filled with soaring desert tones, you’d be 100% correct, but there are a few surprises in store on LORQUIN’S ADMIRAL’s debut album. There are plenty of nods to stoner rock, some bluesy moments, and a whisper of retro rock, but this album rests on a foundation of gunge and alternative rock, alternating between dark and gritty and soothing, soulful moods. Best of all, the unique vocal contributions of husband-and-wife duo Dandy and Dawn Brown, who rotate lead vocal duties, naturally results in a wealth of added variety. This is the perfect album for summer, allowing you to rock out while simultaneously soothing your soul. 
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

MAD CHICKEN – AB OVO
Grunge, Sludge
Arcos, Brazil
Limestone Records

MAD CHICKEN is a grungy stoner quintet from Brazil who piqued the interest of the heavy underground with their new EP Ab Ovo, not just for its clever play on the Mad Season Above album cover, but for its unique additions to a familiar sound. Perhaps unsurprisingly, MAD CHICKEN utilizes a strong foundation of grunge and alternative rock across Ab Ovo’s five tracks, evoking strong Alice In Chains and Soundgarden vibes in particular. However, the band also has a knack for surprising their listener with both dense and sludgy and wispy psychedelic interludes while incorporating nods to their home country through the incorporation of tropical percussion and soothing respites amid the heaviness. In spite of its brevity, Ab Ovo is one of the most well-rounded releases I’ve had the pleasure of hearing this year, spurring an insatiable craving for more of this sound that’s the perfect balance of heavy and soothing. 
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

MCKENZIE HILLS – ICE CROSSING
Funeral Doom, Death Doom
Sevastopol, Russia
Electric Desert Records

MCKENZIE HILLS is a difficult band to genre-tag. There are clear influences from the Peaceville three across the entirety of the album, but for every little thing that reminds me of them, I hear Bell Witch’s touch in equal measure. The end result is one of the more unique and original projects I’ve had the pleasure to experience in 2025, and one I won’t soon forget. Add in the dual-bassists for an extra dose of the low and slow, slight stoner elements to keep things groovy where the wiggle is needed, and the kind of unique approach to heavy music that can only come from a culturally isolated part of the world like Russia – it adds up to one of the most original experiences in all of doom in 2025.
~ Jacob ‘Reverend Fuzzcut’ Baker (CleanAndSoberStoner, Monster Riff)

THE MEDEA PROJECT – KHARON
Doom metal, Gothic metal, Sludge metal
Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England
Self-released

I was certainly eager to make up for lost time and dive into Kharon, the duo’s second full-length album.  It was worth the five year wait—this album is fantastic!  The sound is rooted in doom but death, black, sludge, and even some folk elements are used in combination–it’s an eclectic sound with its own signature atmosphere.  Their press release calls them “Dark Primal Gothic Doom.”  I’d say that is pretty damn accurate.  

The production is impressive—it has a raw DIY feel to it but still manages to sound professional.  The mix is on point as well, all the varying elements of the band can be heard with ease.  Nothing buried, nothing lost. 

There is a ritualistic, tribal feel to the songs—and it makes the music sound all the more potent and savage.  Much of that atmosphere is generated by the drumming of Pauline—she is really absolutely fantastic at having a strong presence while also playing in an atmospheric way.  And through all that she still holds up the band’s strong foundation.   Guitarist/vocalist Brett laces each song with a lot of kick ass riffs but can just as easily switch moods/styles when the song calls for it.  His death vocals are immense—still some of the best around.  His cleans are unique and fit the band’s sound perfectly as well.
~ Justin Wittenmeier (DoomedForMetal)

There is a ritualistic, tribal feel to the songs—and it makes the music sound all the more potent and savage.  Much of that atmosphere is generated by the drumming of Pauline—she is really absolutely fantastic at having a strong presence while also playing in an atmospheric way.  And through all that she still holds up the band’s strong foundation.   Guitarist/vocalist Brett laces each song with a lot of kick ass riffs but can just as easily switch moods/styles when the song calls for it.  His death vocals are immense—still some of the best around.  His cleans are unique and fit the band’s sound perfectly as well.
~ Justin Wittenmeier (DoomedForMetal)

OBSIDIAN SCAPES – DEATH CHANTS ECHO FROM APHOTIC VOID
Doom Metal
Zwickau, Saxony, Germany
Darkness Shall Rise Productions

THIS IS DOOM. The bass slaps like Molten lava striking the ground.  The guitars have a tone that sits somewhere between struggling to breathe and the final height of awareness that signifies one’s resignation to a resting death. The drums are the steady beat of an incantation that preludes an apocalypse. The vocals? Priest from a darkened void that cast bleakness in waves.

Death Chants Echo From Aphotic Void, embraces its title and then some. It balances an extreme form of doom with a morose, twisted version of traditional doom. It exists within this world, yet firmly a part of both without letting either side take over. 

The production is perfect: loud and hellish but rough like sandpaper. The depravity sinks like a corpse but rises full of rot. It’s not a happy listen but neither is one borne out of pity. This an emotional, real experience that brings doom metal out in a powerfully Perverse way.
~ Justin Wittenmeier (DoomedForMetal)

ORGANIC DESTRUCTION – PROPHETS OF CTHULHU
Stoner, Psych
Hachenburg, Germany
Organic Destruction Records

Fuzzy stoner rock with some cool, almost Peter Steele type vocals, is what the second record from Hachenburg, Germany’s ORGANIC DESTRUCTION, Prophets of Cthulhu, is all about. There is a bit of some heavy blues and psych going on too within the eight tracks on the record, creating a very solid heavy and fuzzy record for your enjoyment. Cool riffs, excellent fuzzy guitar work, and an unavoidable comparison to Type O Negative, which is just fine by me. 
~ Rich Piva (Musipedia of Metal, FuzzDoomRip, Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour)

PERCOSSA FOSSILE – MAGNITUDO
Heavy Psych, Prog rock, Stoner rock
Padua, Italy
Go Down Records

Writing a short blurb about Magnitudo by PERCOSSA FOSSILE is extremely difficult because the band doesn’t fit into any box. The structure of the songs is progressive and the DIY spirit reigns – what else? Stylistically, the band is fearless and plays with the porosity of genres without any taboos. The overall impression is one of fresh, accessible, and creative rock. PERCOSSA FOSSILE’s music is certainly surprising but never confusing. The band’s very personal style is fueled by great creativity and magnified by the obvious mastery of the musicians. For sure, this debut full length album already announces a great band! Don’t miss it!
~ Thierry “Pumpkin-T“ François (Metal Intégral)

RIFFCHILD – SUN WILL FOLLOW
Stoner Doom, Stoner Metal, Heavy Psych
Rimouski, Québec
Self-released

Clean echoey vocals soaring over a mix of strident and lurching grooves that are drenched in enough fuzz and distortion to cause an international shortage of the stuff! This four track release hits so hard, is so loud and leaves such an impression that you’ll still be hearing its monstrous riffs resounding in your ears long after you have turned off your preferred mode of listening.
~ Frazer Jones (Desert Psychlist)

TAKAAT – IS NOISE, VOL. 1
Heavy Psych, West-African Blues
Niger, Nigeria, UK
Purplish Records

This is a side project from three members of Mdou Moctar’s band. A very raw, very fuzzy, yet danceable mix of heavy psych and traditional West-African blues. If this doesn’t get you moving uncontrollably in a hazy trance, nothing will.
~ Ronny Dijksterhuis (Stoner HiVe)

VANDHALI – AFTER EVIL
Doom metal, Heavy Metal
Denver, Colorado, USA
Self-released

After Evil is the second chapter of The Trilogy Of Evil that VANDHALI will release in 2025… 6+6+6 tracks unleashed on March 6, June 6 and (probably) December 6. That makes sense- ha-ha! Most seriously, the band knows how to resurrect the ancient demons of proto-metal, early doom and heavy metal from the 70s and 80s. What a gem of an album! I love the spontaneous mix that builds a bridge between the fundamental elements of the music and the listener. I dig the psychedelic touches, the heavy riffs, the gloomy lyrics, the epic melodies. That part 2 hooked me from A to Z and I really look forward for the third one.
~ Thierry “Pumpkin-T“ François (Metal Intégral)

VANDHALI specializes in creating heavy music centered around equally heavy concepts. This Denver-based group harnesses the sinister heft of doom, the commanding power of heavy metal, and notes of trippy psychedelia to relay their dark tales through vocals that alternate between sung and spoken word. Their new EP After Evil delves into the brutal aftermath of  an evil reign, “revealing a world ruled by fear, torment, and corrupted judgement”. Throughout the EP, you’ll be entranced by VANDHALI’s proto doom tones as well as their immersive storytelling, resulting in a multi-faceted and deliciously dark listening experience. 
~ Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground)

Special thanks to the ongoing contributors to the monthly Doom Chart.  You folks help give voice to the heavy underground:

Adam Walsh (Earmunchies); Andy Kovalcik (Bandcamp-NYP-Hard&Heavy); Ben Bellum (The Greatest Thing You’ve Never Heard); Billy Goate (Doomed & Stoned); Bob “Mr. Weird Beard” Baker (More Fuzz Podcast); Bobby Rayfield (Monuments In Ruin, Inherent Records, Mystery Pick); Brandon Collins (Morbid And Miserable Records); Bucky Brown (The Ripple Effect); Chris Beck (Doom Tomb Podcast); Chris Tighe (The Mighty Decibel); Damien Regnauld (Stoner Freaks Anthology); Edouard Dubuisson (Les chroniques d’Eddy, MetalUniverse); ‘The General’ (Stoner Rock Army); Frazer Jones (Desert Psychlist); Graur Zaur (Crypt Guard); Günther “Doktor420” (Stoner HiVe); Ioannis Valiakos (Desert Vulture); Jacob ‘Reverend Fuzzcut’ Baker (CleanAndSoberStoner, Monster Riff); Jamie Laszlo (Sea of Tranquility, The Contrarians); JC Cansdale-Cook (The MotorFuzzin’ Ibex); Jim Thompson (Heavy in the Hills); JJ Koczan (The Obelisk); John Gist, (Vegas Rock Revolution / The Doomed & Stoned Show); Jon Cosky (Gravitoyd Heavy Music); Jon McGough (Stoner Rock Army, Stoner HiVe, Outlaws Of The Sun); Jonny Pirie (Hour of the Riff); Joop Konraad (Stoner HiVe); Jukka ‘Shrike’ Kolehmainen (Psychotropic Caravan, Abhorrence, Shrike’s Playlists); Justin Wittenmeier (DoomedForMetal); Kyle SB (Good Boy PR, Stoner HiVe); Lee Edwards (The Sleeping Shaman); Marc-Eric Gagnon (Stonefly Effects); Mel Lie (Sunday’s Heavy Tunes); Mitch Kline (DoomyRiffs.com); Remi VL (Remi Post Too Many Links); Rich Piva (Musipedia of Metal, FuzzDoomRip, Rich & Turbo’s Heavy Half Hour); Roberto Fuentes (Red House Store); Roberto Lucas (Denpa Fuzz); Rod Reinhardt (Captain Beyond Zen); Ronny Dijksterhuis (Stoner HiVe); Ryan Foster (Slightly Fuzzed); S Patrick Brooks (The Heavy Underground Farm Report, Outlaws of the Sun); Scott Spiers (CleanAndSoberStoner, Monster Riff); Stephanie Zalta (DoomCakes, Screaming From The Heavy Underground); Steve Howe (Outlaws of the Sun); Stevie Reek (Howls from The Hollows, Doomed & Stoned, Stoner HiVe); Thierry “Pumpkin-T“ François (Metal Intégral); Tony Maim (Black Insect Laughter, Stoner HiVe); Tom Schmahl (Rock Circuz).

Feel free to send in your albums to stonerdoomcharts@gmail.com where they’ll be delegated to the crew above to determine their thoughts and gather the votes at the end of the month. Leave us comments below and let us know what you think about the Charts.