Nearly there with all the 2024 content, but where would we be without looking back at some of our favourite EP releases of the year? It was an awesome one of the format, and we covered so many, thinking we’d narrow it down to just 20!

Also, a quick honourable mention goes to The Castellows’ A Little Goes a Long Way. I loved this release and even gave it a stellar review, but didn’t really think seven tracks constituted an EP, and instead considered it an album. Then, it didn’t make our albums of the year cut, so I thought it only best to mention it here. Check it out if you like country!

20 – Renegade Angel: Jokesters

Starting off incredibly strong with this slab of awesome Finnish heavy metal, it’s hard to believe I’ve been rocking the title track for over eight months at this point. It channels Maiden in all the best ways, but also clearly takes inspiration of those who have come after, fitting perfectly into the 2000s NWOBHM-style revival. All three tracks are awesome and worth a listen on their own merit, and the couple of bonus tracks are fun too! We gave it a solid 8/10 in our review, and it was an easy pick for this list!

19 – Perfect Sky: Hunting Demons

This Austrian metallic hardcore band put out a blinder of an EP back at the end of May. It’s crushingly heavy for 18-minutes, and they even manage to squeeze in seven tracks in that time! From the likes of ‘Racial Abuse’ to ‘We’re Not the Same’ to ‘Crucidie’, there are plenty of both highlights and emotionally-charged topics. It’s an angry release, and it’s honestly awesome! It won’t be for everyone, but if you need something angry to listen to that makes you want to pit in your own living room, this is certainly for you! It got an 8.5/10 from us in our review, and I very much still stand by that now!

18 – Georgia Nevada: The Bright Side of the Dark

The debut EP of the rising UK country star is just as awesome now as when it dropped back in November. It has some hallmarks and sounds of the genre, but also shares a lot of DNA with the likes of southern rock, indie and even pop. It’s an easy 16-minute listen, and each of the five tracks are awesome! It’s easy to see why we gave her a whopping 9/10 in our review. If you are into any of the genres listed above, I’d definitely recommend checking this out! It’s a fun listen and she’s surly going to be a big name in the underground sooner rather than later!

17 – Unjoyful Play: Self-Titled

The debut EP from the Finnish death metal soloist Sami Lustig is pretty great. I gushed all over it plenty in my review, but it really is an interesting, unique blend of so many different styles of metal. It’s weird and quirky and heavy in all of the best ways. It’s certainly not for everyone, but there is a reason it got a 9/10 from me and why it made it onto this list. It certainly isn’t for everyone, but if you’re into some death metal, like I am, you’ll surely love this as much as I did!

16 – Persefone: Lingua Ignota: Part I

This is yet another masterclass of prog-death from the Andoran band. This is the second work I’ve checked out from them (after their 2022 album), and it’s the second one to blow me away. It’s technically brilliant; epic yet heavy in all the right places. Every track is a banger too, yet the whole thing has such an incredible flow that just begs it to be listened to in full. It’s another that got a very easy 9/10 from us, and it was a very obviously choice for this list! As I said in the review too, Part II can’t come soon enough, though we sadly have had no news yet!

15 – Night Thieves: Polarity

The third EP from the UK alt metal band is a phenomenal collection of four tracks, each one being as good as the last! From the catchy melodies to the heavy riffing and the on-point production, everything about this is awesome! I gave it a solid 8.5/10 in my review, but after listening to it plenty over the last year, I think it deserves even higher! They’re another band surly destined for massive things in the future, and have some amazing gigs already lined up for this year. Which is awesome, because I am desperate to hear all of this live!

14 – Emily Lockett – To Be Continued

So somehow, this EP still isn’t on streaming, meaning I had to bust out my CD player for a re-listen. It was just as good then as it was the first time I heard, it, though! She has been a rising star in the UK’s growing pop-country landscape for a few years now, and this EP really cements that rise in a major way. Every track is awesome, and while a little more pop than he previous efforts, it is still awesome! I gave it 8.5/10 in my review, but it easily could have been higher than that! If you are into country in any way, I can’t recommend checking this out enough!

13 – Madeline Merlo: ONE HOUSE DOWN (from the girl next door)

This is some early 2000s country at its very best, and I’ve loved it for the three months that it’s been out! It’s a little longer than most EPs, being six tracks and nearly 20-minutes. However, it goes by in a flash and every track is incredible, flowing together amazingly. It’s the perfect chilled-out country-pop release, and I’ve listened to it a lot since its release. It got an easy 9/10 from us and I very much stand by that over a quarter of a year later! It was another incredibly easy pick for this list!

12 – Valhalla Awaits: Perdition

The UK underground supergroup put out a blinder of an alt-metal release back in March. Much like a few on this list, it blends together a lot of styles, something even more impressive when it’s on such a short release. From a more thrashier Alter Bridge to all out Alice in Chains to huge, almost metalcore ballads, it’s an impressive, awesome range, and they nail it all! It’s 26-minutes of awesomeness groovy rock/metal, and I’d recommend it to anyone! It got a solid 9/10 from us, and it certainly deserving of this list!

11 – Redferrin: Old No. 7

One of the fastest rising stars in country-pop, and a lot of it is down to this EP released back in February. I loved it, then, and I think seeing it live really cemented this as an amazing release for me. It got 8.5/10 back then, but I think after so many listens it’s definitely higher now. It’s crazy too, as it isn’t typical my sort of country, but there is just something about Red that really draws me in. It’s seven awesome tracks, at least three being major hits not just now, but for years to come. If you’re into the lighter, more produced side of country music, check this out!

10 – Forelorn Hope: Valor, Pt. 1

Switching gears to some power-infused heavy metal, as a fan of heavy music it’s surely impossible to hate this release, right? This is an epic, absolutely incredible release, and a fantastic follow-up to their album half a decade before. That opening song is one of the best tracks released in 2024, and anyone who disagrees can fight me on that. However, all five tracks are amazing, and it makes for an amazing 20-minutes of traditional metal listen. It’s catchy, epic and every member of the band is insanely talented. It got a very easy 9/10 from me, and there was no way it wasn’t making it onto this list!

9 – Less Than Jake: Uncharted

Two ‘top releases of the year’ lists this year and both have a sneaky ska-punk entry on there, 2024 was a good year! Not only that but this was the first new release we got out of the legendary band in four years. The band haven’t lost even a single beat in that time, putting out a solid collection of seven tracks, a good few I’d put up there with some of their top songs overall! There really isn’t a bad track on the album, and I’ve listened to it so much since its release. It’s another that’s just an effortlessly fun, easy listen that I can’t recommend enough to fans of any genre of punk. It got a solid 9/10 from us, but honestly after a handful of listens it may deserve even more than that! It definitely deserves a spot on our list!

8 – Paradis: Self-Titled

This is 24-minutes of full frontal assault from heavy metalcore, and I love it! It’s certainly on the heavier end of the genre compared to the more melodic side, but it’s a fantastic collection of five amazing tracks! There really isn’t a bad song on the EP! And every single band member is insanely talented, from the riffing to the drumming to the harsh screams, low growls and great cleans. If you’re a fan of heavy at all, this is an absolutely must for you! It was another that got a very easy 9/10 from us, and it more than deserves its spot on this list!

7 – Van Winkle & The Spirits – Southern Song

This is a fantastic, chilled-out southern rock/country blues release; six songs that flow perfectly together and create an absolutely incredible atmosphere and mood. I may be bias as I absolutely love this sort of music, but it really is a good release in its own right, too! Plus, it has our good friend Kyle Daniel (present on our album list) so it gets even more bonus points! It was another release that got a solid 9/10 from us, but I’d honestly even put it at slightly higher after all these listens over the last four plus months. If you are into any of the genres listed above, I cannot recommend this EP enough!

6 – Drenched: Grey

This was a fantastic, really interesting EP released back in August. Combining elements of early 2000s post-nu-metal alt stuff, grunge, prog and even some metalcore riffs, it’s truly unique and special. It’s also and EP I’ve listened to a lot since it’s release, both as a whole and as separate tracks. And I think that’s where it’s magic lies; the individual tracks are incredibly strong while they also fit perfectly together as a collection. It’s 21-minutes of awesome, moody alt-rock/metal, and is absolutely phenomenal as a debut EP! There’s a reason this got top marks from us, and I can see the band having a very bright future ahead of them!

5 – Lost to Light: Conceal

Local metalcore newcomers released a banger of a debut EP back in August. Melodic, heavy and epic all at the perfect times throughout, it’s a really well-crafted work. It’s early-mid 2000s metalcore-style at its very best, and also with a modern edge in terms of writing and production. The dynamics between the duel vocals is awesome, be it cleans or brutal screams. All five tracks are awesome; from the crushing riffs to the amazing drumming, vocals and the odd brutal breakdown, it’s 20-minutes of sheer amazing metal. It’s easy to hear why it got a 9/10 from us upon release, and it may even deserve more than that now!

4 – Everette: Keys to Kentucky

Following up the Kings of the Dairy Queen Parking Lot duo was always going to be a tough task, but the duo (now soloist?) offered up an incredibly interesting six tracks back in July. They somehow evolve their sound into more a more Americana/roots style for a lot of this, while still maintaining their big, neotraditional country pop elements too. ‘Picnic Table’ is still one of my most played tracks of the year, while the rest of the release is also excellent. While not quite as instantly unforgettable as stuff from KotDQPL, the more I listen to more I’ve fallen in love, resulting in it easily making it this high on this list. It got a 9/10 from us, but it may even deserve higher than that!

3 – Ashen Reach: The Fear

The debut EP from the UK modern/alt metal band was a truly special release back in March. Since then I’ve listened to this so much, either as a whole or individual tracks! It’s heavy, melodic and epic in equal measure, and all five tracks are amazing! They feel wholly unique, especially in the scene they find themselves in, and play a very modern style! There’s a reason this got a whopping 9.5/10 from us. I can’t recommend this enough to those readers into a more melodic heavy sound, and it was very easy to put this this high on the list!

2 – Enquire Within: Elysium

The fact that this release has made it so high up on our list without being put up on Spotify is a real testament to the impact it’s had on me since I checked it out. I’ve listened to the two tracks from it that are on there pretty often, and have checked out the full thing once or twice by going back to the files I was sent over; a lot of effort to go through so it’s clearly worth it! It’s seven amazing tracks that flow so well together, stretching across metalcore, death metal and hardcore perfectly. It got top marks from us, and if you check it out it’s easy to hear why! It was a very easy choice for this high, and would have gotten the top spot if it wasn’t for a certain someone…

1 – Drake Milligan: Jukebox Songs

It had to be this one, right? If you’ve been paying attention to the site at all recently, there was no way this wasn’t getting the top spot. Somehow we didn’t review it when it was released, but it’s a very easy 10/10! It’s a collection of four of my favourite tracks released this year, in any genre, not just country music! Drake is a generational talent already, and this is more than enough to tide people over until his potentially upcoming next album. His songwriting is amazing, as is his voice, and his effortless charisma shines through on every track. It’s impossible not to love this, and I cannot recommend it enough to anyone reading this, regardless of what music you’re into! Amazing stuff, and well deserving of the top spot!