The Guardians - 2024 Roundup
As is tradition, every December is crunch time for those of us who care about year end lists. So, let's see what you got this year as 2024 has been stellar for me.
- Crypt Sermon - The Stygian Rose
- Ihsahn - Ihsahn
- Savage Oath - Divine Battle
- Writhen Hilt - Ancient Sword Cult
- Judas Priest - Invincible Shield
- Galneryus - The Stars Will Light The Way
- Traveler - Prequel to Madness
- Seven Spires - A Fortress Called Home
- Saxon - Hell, Fire and Damnation
- Lovesbites - Lovebites EP II
- Fellowship - The Skies Above Eternity
- New Horizon - Conquerors
- Powerwolf - Wake Up the Wicked
- Riot V - Mean Streets
Even though I'm probably one of The Guardians' "guys" to most, I'm pretty critical of the clan in general because I find that it has some of the most...slop in the modern Metal world. There are so many Guardians albums, especially Power Metal ones, that get released each year that are just so middling and forgettable that I find myself checking out less and less each year. This year was no exception, as the quality drops off heavily after Traveler's Prequel to Madness. There are many more that I haven't listed just because it's not really worth it.
Crypt Sermon's The Stygian Rose is still the clear highlight as that album hasn't lost its shine for me all year. The Ihsahn self-titled has held up rather well for me with it being a very unique take on Symphonic Metal that only Ihsahn is really capable of. Despite having some issues with the vocals I can't deny that Savage Oath is another hit in the US Power Metal resurgence recently, and I was very pleasantly surprised with Writhen Hilt's classic throwback to a more epic Heavy Metal sound. Judas Priest are still kicking and as much as I want to say Invincible Shield has a bit too many flaws, I think the tracklisting overall is great and I couldn't have asked for more of them at this point in their career. Galneryus still continues to do what they do and while I still have issues with Japanese-style Power Metal, there's some great moments in their new one for sure. The rest are just notable albums from notable bands that were just...fine. Okay even.