And so we kick off 2026, which is typically sluggish, with the Month’s Records posts already running quite late. We have no excuse beyond institutional malaise, dysfunction and sluggishness. We’ll try to do better, but there are no guarantees in life or in blogging. Let’s get started and dive into January before it becomes a distant memory, shall we?
Of the Big Three of German thrash, Kreator had the strangest evolution and the most consistently good output. While 2022’s Hate Über Alles was a slight disappointment, those wretched krauts came back strong with Krushers of the World [out January 16, 2026, via Nuclear Blast Records, buy it on Bandcamp!]. Taking into account everything they’ve done right over all these decades, Kreator added gothic, traditional and power metal elements to the mix to land on a sound that is both old and new.
The thrash is loud and heavy, and the gothic vibrations from Endorama work well, giving the album a dark mood. What truly stands out is the songwriting. Krushers is packed with compelling metal anthems with plenty of bite and power, and Millie and the crew sound young and mean. I’ve loved these guys since I was a dumb teenager, and Krushers reminds me exactly why while I bang my ass until it turns to dust. As I summed up in my review (in which I may have undersold the album), “The Kreator sound is still there after all these years, even if it’s occasionally enriched with lighter moments.”
Second place:
Hällas // Panorama [January 30, 2026 | Äventyr Records | Bandcamp ] — The Swedish retro psychedelic prog rockers Hällas returned to the spotlight with Panorama, and lovers of older sounds and elegant music had their attention grabbed. If you crave Uriah Heap channeled through NWoBHM, Hällas have the goods for you, and on Panorama, they unleash a torrent of old-fashioned, richly textured prog-rock goodness. The elegant guitar notes reflect the excesses of the keys, and all of it wrapped in a rich, ’70s-centered production that sounds like a gateway to the past. Panorama is a majestic tapestry of a talented band’s ambition, and as Creeping Ivy gushed, “It’s only January, but these Swedes may have already released the neo-proto-metal album of 2026 (and a candidate for the top of your list, honestly).”
Invictus // Nocturnal Vision s [January 26, 2026 | Me Saco Un Ojo Records | Bandcamp ] — Combining various shades of old-school death metal brutality with a slightly modern sheen, Invictus set out to overwhelm you from the first notes of Nocturnal Visions to the end. They don’t do anything new in the classic sense, they simply combine genre tropes in such a way that they sound fresh and savage. The riffs satisfy the hunger for rough abuse, and the hellish, subterranean vocals rumble and croak in horrifying ways. The writing is glossy and delivers the goods, and everything is as it should be on a stunning death metal record. A very impressed Kenstrosity was heard exclaiming: “Nocturnal Visions is, simply, a stunning monument to old-school death, shaped for the modern era.” Get InvictedER.
