Dirty Dozen 2025 Editors’ Choices

Another year ended with a plethora of releases to flood the stores and become an object of desire for every fan of extreme sound. We hope that most of them are reviewed in our magazine. Read our editors’ personal lists and Metal Invader’s Top 12 Album List, as a result of the scoring system we use and we explain below.

In each list the first place gets 17 (12 +5 bonus) points, the second 11, the third 10 and so on, while any recurrence in any list gets 5 extra bonus points.

1. Coroner – Dissonance Theory 153
2. Havukruunu – Tavastland 91
3. Black Sword Thunder Attack – S/t 76
4. Century – Sign Of The Storm 73
5. Testament – Para Bellum 69
6. Paradise Lost – Ascension 58
7. Lamp Of Murmuur – The Dreaming Prince in Ecstasy 58
8. Tower – Let There Be Dark 50
9. Pagan Altar – Never Quite Dead 45
10. Wings Of Steel – Winds Of Time 40
11. Ambush – Evil in All Dimensions 40
12. Hooded Menace – Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration 39

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13. Helloween – Giants & Monsters 38
14. Nightfall – Children of Eve 37
15. One Of Nine – Dawn of the Iron Shadow 34
16. Violator – Unholy Retribution 32
17. Sodom – The Arsonist 30
18. Midnight – Steel, Rust and Disgust 28
19. Venator – Psychodrome 25
20. Wytch Hazel – V: Lamentations 25

-. Sacrifice – Volume 6 25

Andreas Stasinopoulos 

1. Sopor Aeternus – The Dead Have come
2. Havukruunu – Tavastland
3. Imha Tarikat – Confessing Darkness
4. In The Woods – Otra
5. Saor – Amidst The Ruins
6. Clouds – Desprins
7. Melpomene – A Body is a Suggestion
8. Coroner – Dissonance Theory
9. Ancst – Dominion
10. Igorrr – Amen
11. Testament – Para Bellum
12. Amorphis – Borderland

Nikos “Giak” Nakos

1. Coroner – Dissonance Theory
2. Havukruunu – tavastland
3. Pissgrave – malignant Wothlessness
4. Catharsis – Hope Against Hope
5. Warfield – With The Old Breed
6. Lik – Necro
7. Typhus – Fate Weaver
8. Century – Sign Of The Storm
9. Black Sword Thunder Attack – S/T
10. Dead Heat – Process Of Elimination
11. Sacrifice – Volume Six
12. Dephosphorus – Planetoktonos

Giorgos Tsekas

1. Hooded Menace – Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration
2. Species – Changelings
3. One of Nine – Dawn of the Iron Shadow
4. Paradise Lost – Ascension
5. Sodom – The Arsonist
6. Cold Steel – Discipline & Punish
7. Tower – Let There Be Dark
8. Aquilla – Sentinels Of New Dawn
9. Venator – Psychodrome
10. Outlaw – Opus Mortis
11. Century – Sign Of The Storm
12. Starlight Ritual – Rogue Angels

Savvas Kofidis

1. Testament – Parabellum
2. Arch Enemy – Bloody dynasty
3. One Of Nine – Dawn of the iron shadow
4. Nailed To Obscurity – Generation of the void
5. Dimension Of The Abandoned – Dimension of the abandoned
6. In The Woods – Otra
7. Saor – Amidst the ruins
8. Faust – Crypts of eternity
9. Epica – Aspiral
10. Jord – Emellan traden
11. Ambush – Evil in all dimensions
12. Fer De Lance – Fires on the mountainside

 Pinelopi Tritou

1. Coroner – Dissonance theory
2. Messa – The spin
3. Paradise Lost – Ascension
4. Void – Forbidden morals
5. Darklon- Mind Reaper
6. Pagan Altar – Never Quite Dead
7. Ambush – Evil in All Dimensions
8. Black Sword Thunder Attack – Black Sword Thunder Attack
9. Lucifer’s Child – The Illuminant
10. Wytch Hazel – V: Lamentations
11. Century – Sign of the Storm
12. Helloween – Giants & Monsters

 Nestoras Papakostas

1. Lamp of Murmuur – The Dreaming Prince in Ecstasy
2. Pagan Altar – Never Quite Dead
3. Ambush – Evil in All Dimensions
4. Igorrr – Amen
5. Black Sword Thunder Attack – Black Sword Thunder Attack
6. Lucifer’s Child – The Illuminant
7. Wytch Hazel – V: Lamentations
8. Nite – Cult of the Serpent Sun
9. Scars on Broadway – Addicted to the Violence
10. Century – Sign of the Storm
11. Helloween – Giants & Monsters
12. Havukruunu – Tavastland

 Konstantinos Analytis

1. Midnight – Steel, Rust and Disgust
2. Vigilhunter – Vigilhunter
3. Violator – Unholy Retribution
4. Ultra Raptor – Fossilized
5. Venator – Psychodrome
6. Grave Infestation – Carnage Gathers
7. Disfuneral – In Horror, Reborn
8. Havukruunu – Tavasaland
9. Sijjin – Helljjin Combat
10. Zeicrydeus – La Grande Heresie
11. Lik – Necro
12. Alienator – Meat Locker

 Nikos Tsiolis

1. Coroner – Dissonance Theory
2. Blut aus Nord – Ethereal Horizons
3. Havukruunu – Tavastland
4. Hooded menace – Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration
5. Lamp Of Murmuur – The Dreaming Prince in Ecstasy
6. Phrenelith – Ashen Womb
7. Black Sword Thunder Attack – Black Sword Thunder Attack
8. Century – Sign of the Storm
9. Necromantic Worship – Necromantic Worship
10. Warmoon Lord – Sacrosanct Demonopathy
11. Order of the Ebon Hand – XI: Justice
12. Tower – Let There Be Dark

 George Kallinis

1. Ozzy – Blizzard of Ozz
2. Paradise Lost – Ascension
3. Amorphis – Borderland
4. Vintersorg – Vattenkrafternas Spel
5. Ereb Altor – Halsinngemorker
6. Testament – Para Bellum
7. Wytch Hazel – V: Lamentations
8. Angelo Perlepe’s Mystery – Spelled by Fire
9. Flames – Frequency of Illusion
10. Medieval Demon – All powers of Darkness
11. Nightfall – Children of Eve
12. Naxatras – V

 Konstantinos Kondis

1. Coroner – Dissonance Theory
2. The Haunted- Songs of Last Resort
3. Violator – Unholy Retribution
4. Sacrifice- Volume Six
5. Nightfall- Children of Eve
6. Nite – Cult of the Serpent Sun
7. Teaser Sweet – Night Stalker
8. Paradox – Mysterium
9. Nightstalker- Return from the Point of Νο Return
10. Wings of steel- Winds of Time
11. Century- Sign of the Storm
12.Rage – A New World Rising

 Antzik Hammer Pallas

1.Hydra Vein – Perpetual Violence Machine
2.Steven Wilson – The Overview
3.Coroner – Dissonance Theory
4.Hellshock – XXV
5.Century – Sign of the Storm
6.Messa – The Spin
7.Home Front – Watch it Die
8.DEEP x CUT -How to be Normal
9.Pelican – Flickering Resonance
10.Rwake – The Return of Magic
11.Wanted – Cutting Edge
12.Treat – The Wild Card

Crystal Latsara

1. Nightfall – Children of Eve
2. Social Order – Miss You
3. Lordi – Limited Deadition
4. Black Sword Thunder Attack -Black Sword Thunder Attack
5. Nightstalker – Return from the Point of No Return
6. Ashen Decay – Over You/Suffocate
7. Cradle of Filth – The Screaming of the Valkyries
8. Testament – Para Bellum
9. This I Owe – Alchemists
10. Abigail Williams – A Void Within Existence
11. Seven Sisters – Shaow of a Fallen Star pt 2
12. Typhus – Fate Weaver

 Yiannis Kakavas

1. Pagan Altar – Never Quite Dead
2. Wings Of Steel – Winds Of Time
3. Dragon Skull – Chaos Fire Vengeance
4. Vigilhunter – Vigilhunter
5. Tower – Let There Be Dark
6. Mausoleum Gate – Space Rituals and Magick
7. Black Sword Thunder Attack – Black Sword Thunder Attack
8. Eluveitie – Ànv
9. Exxecutor – Into Hellish Domains
10. Venator – Psychodrome
11. Ültra Raptör – Fossilized
12. Coroner – Dissonance Theory

 Top 3 E.P/Mini-LP

1. Palantyr – The Ascent & The Hunger

(Essentially contains The Ascent EP of 2023 which was released under the name Destrukt, plus 2 new songs and one cover)

2. Myth Carver – Twist Of Fate
3. Crypt Sermon – Saturnian Appendices

Yiannis Kofidis

1. Dream Theater – Parasomnia
2. Testament – para bellum
3. Silversoul – the core
4. Helloween – giants & monster
5. Transcendence – Nothing etched in stone pt1
6. Anguish Project – Whats believing
7. Ellefson/Sotto – Unbreakable
8. Wings Of Steel – Winds of time
9. Phantom Spell – Heathen & hearth
10. A&Z – a2z
11. Crowne – Wonderland
12. Volbeat – God of angels trust

Evangelos Charis

1. Sodom – The Arsonist
2. Helloween – Giants and Masters
3. WANTED – Cutting Edge
4. Coroner – Dissonance Theory
5. Aquilla – Sentinels Of New Dawn
6. Ambush – Evil in All Dimensions
7. Wings Of Steel – Winds Of Time
8. Tower – Let There Be Dark
9. Sacrifice – Volume Six
10. Helstar – The Devil’s Masquerade
11. Gruesome – Silent Echoes
12. Graceless – Icons of Ruin

Lilliana Tseka

1. Havukruunu – Tavastland
2. Century – Sign Of The Storm
3. Tower – Let There Be Dark
4. Coroner – Dissonance Theory
5. Black Sword Thunder Attack – S/T
6. Lamp Of Murmuur – The Dreaming Prince in Ecstasy
7. Midnight – Steel, Rust and Disgust
8. Lik – Necro
9. Dephosphorus – Planetoktonos
10. Hooded Menace – Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration
11. Violator – Unholy Retribution
12. Nite – Cult of the Serpent Sun

 Giorgos Triantafyllidis

1. Landmvrks – The Darkest Place i’ve ever been
2. Architects – The Sky, The Earth & All Between
3. The Halo Effect – March Of The Unheart
4. Deafheaven – Lonely People with power
5. Orbit Culture – Death Above Life
6. Bleed From Within
7. Havukruunu – Tavastland
8. Harakiri For The Sky – Scorched Earth
9. Stick To Your Guns – Keep Planting Flowers
10. Deftones – Private Music
11. Testament – Para Bellum
12. Paradise Lost – Ascension

 Skylimit

1. Dragon Skull – Chaos Fire Vengeance
2. Lamp of Murmuur – The Dreaming Prince in Ecstasy
3. Ghost – Skeletá
4. Phantom Spell – Heather & Hearth
5. Deafheaven – Lonely People With Power
6. Paradise Lost – Ascension
7. Coroner – Dissonance Theory
8. Dream Theater – Parasomnia
9. One of Nine – Dawn of the Iron Shadow
10. Cryptopsy – An Insatiable Violence
11. Whitechapel – Hymns in Dissonance
12. Igorrr – Amen