Megadeth: Dystopia review – a fired-up and furious return to form After the disappointment of their 2012 album, Megadeth’s latest is a return to their angry, thrashy best
Sunn O))): Kannon review – back to their drone metal roots Play it loud enough and the Seattle-based duo’s latest album offers thrills with the disorientation
Sunn O))): Kannon review – daunting but oddly relaxing drone-metal The titans of abstract metal return with a new exercise in heavy meditation
Baroness: Purple review – metallers lunge for mainstream glory Back in force after their 2012 bus crash, the Georgians return with more giant hooks and elegant guitar interplay than ever
Slayer review – vital, vicious and loud With a reconfigured lineup and renewed commitment to the infernal cause, the LA metallers reclaimed their crown as the masters of darkness
Autopsy: Skull Grinder review – death metal veterans sounding more depraved than ever With almost 30 years of breakneck extremity under their belts, Autopsy sound as gruesomely great as ever on their latest EP
Judas Priest review – a fans-only affair picks up in the final act They’re on their eighth drummer, the inventor of hair metal is now bald, and despite a massive farewell tour, the Priest keep rocking
Fuzz: II review – mountainous second album from Ty Segall’s Sabbathian supergroup A bigger sound, proggier riffs and more of pretty much everything make Fuzz’s second album feel truly huge
Deafheaven: New Bermuda review – cinematic mainstream-friendly metal Those who like the loud bits of Mogwai and the more melodic moments of Dillinger Escape Plan will have found the metal band for them.
Trivium: Silence in the Snow review – metal contenders take a step forward The sense of indecision that hung over Trivium’s previous albums is replaced by focused, refined, heavy-metal power on their latest
Bring Me the Horizon: That’s the Spirit review – nu-metal reanimators Sheffield’s Bring Me the Horizon seem to be on a mission to revive the corpse of nu-metal, and it might just work
Slayer: Repentless review – thrash masters still stupidly exciting Despite deaths and departures, Slayer’s evil powers remain undimmed on this whiplash-inducing new set
Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats: The Night Creeper review – taut and dynamic The Cambridge stoner/doom-psych quartet do nothing new, but they won’t disappoint fans, either
Five Finger Death Punch: Got Your Six – focused and ferocious Five Finger Death Punch’s gruff charm is irresistible and their secret weapon is the vein-popping roar of singer Ivan Moody
Iron Maiden: The Book of Souls – raw and punchy Confounding some fans, Iron Maiden refuse to coast on their old hits, and have made another knotty, impressive album