The 17 Heaviest Breakdowns in Metal: 2024

As we move into 2025, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on the most unhinged, brutal, and heavy breakdowns of 2024. Enjoy!

Comment at the bottom of the page what your favorite breakdown of 2024 was!

17: Mirar - Cauchemar

Mirar is known for their brutally-technical guitar driven songs that implement baroque-classical elements mixed with thall (a.k.a one of the most extreme metal subgenres). "Cauchemar" is one of the most soul-crushingly heavy tracks from Mirar to date and after an onslaught of atmospheric guitar riffs, the track fades out with gentle ambient piano melodies.

16: Unprocessed - "Dark, Silent, and Complete"

Unprocessed is another highly-unique band that made an unorthodox yet incredibly heavy breakdown with "Dark, Silent, and Complete". Often using acoustic or "clean" guitar tones and progressive instrumentals, Unprocessed kept their acoustic guitar tone while drop-tuning it alongside screaming to create a non-traditionally heavy sound that will have you banging your head.

15: Left to Suffer ft. Paleface Swiss - Lost In The Dark

Metalcore act Left to Suffer teamed up with Paleface Swiss vocalist Zelli in February to drop one of the hardest tracks of the year. The song's outro breakdown features drawn-out screams, bending guitar notes, dissonance, and overall extreme metal brutality before fading out with a scream.

14: Crown Magnetar - Decapitation Ritual

With "Decapitation Ritual" Crown Magnetar showcases their old-school deathcore sound; its straightforward, impossibly heavy, and filled with slamming riffs and grooving drums. If you're a fan of classic deathcore, Crown Magnetar will scratch that itch and more.

13: Bleed From Within - In Place of Your Halo

Beloved for their technical/progressive metalcore sound, Bleed From Within showcased influences from their home country of Scotland when they busted out the bagpipes for the final minute of "In Place of Your Halo". Layered behind a crushing breakdown, a powerful bag pipe melody creates a unique and memorable outro to the track.

12: Bodysnatcher - Murder 8

Hardcore giants, Bodysnatcher are well-known in the extreme metal scene for their slamming riffs, and wildly-active live crowds. "Murder 8" drops into its final breakdown with the one-liner "Fentanyl Made Me An Only Child" showing a vulnerable side to the band meanwhile an onslaught of instrumental destruction follows.

11: Signs of the Swarm - IWONTLETYOUDIE

Recognized for obscenely over-the-top breakdowns and some of the craziest animal noises in metal, Signs of the Swarm's single "IWONTLETYOUDIE" is what you'd expect from the band–explosive chugging, screeching pick scrapes, brutal vocals, and gentle melodic elements.

10: Distant ft. Within Destruction - Exofilth 2.0

An alternate version of Distant's original "Exofilth", "Exofilth 2.0" features Within Destruction for all the down-tempo deathcore fun you could ask for. The song's end breakdown features whistle-screams, electronic dance influences, and destructive guitar riffs.

9: Allt - Remnant

Allt is arguably one of the biggest breakthrough bands of the year and they've massively blown up in popularity recently. The breakdown in "Remnant" reminds us of a Humanity's Last Breath style drop with bending progressive drop-tuned guitars and ambient soundscapes. Filled with haunting instrumentals, groovy drums, and mixed clean/screaming vocals, "Remnant" is an attractive showcase of what Allt has to offer.

8: Kublai Khan - "Supreme Ruler"

This entire song is a breakdown. "Supreme Ruler" is a beautifully intense exhibition of why Kublai Khan TX is one of the biggest names in hardcore right now. Less than 1-minute of raw vocals, explosive instrumentals, powerful drops, and grooving riffs will leave you reaching for the replay button.

7: thrown - "nights"

With their distinct metalcore/hardcore sound that often introduces elements of trap, phonk, and hip-hop, thrown has taken the metal scene by storm over the last few years. "nights" launches into one of the band's harshest breakdowns yet with rapid chugs, dissonance, and booming vocals that create a crushingly-heavy sound.

Read The Story of thrown here.

6: Darko US - "Blood Host"

Formed by vocalist of Tom Barber (of Chelsea Grin and previously of Lorna Shore) and multi-instrumentalist Josh Miller (formerly of Emmure), Darko US is basically a metal super-duo. Darko has been taking an increasingly experimental and extreme sound and "Blood Host" takes things further with equally hectic and atmospheric breakdowns that feature screeching, bouncing arpeggios, and overall dramatic sounds.

5: Whitechapel - "A Visceral Retch"

Long-time deathcore legends Whitechapel are back and ready to serve up a 4-minute plate of brutality. In nostalgic old-school fashion, Whitechapel blasts into one of the best breakdowns of the year–making a return that's heavier-than-ever for the band.

4: The Browning ft. Nik Nocturnal - "Misery.exe"

Rave metal act The Browning joined forces with Twitch streamer/musician Nik Nocturnal on "Misery.exe". Known for their unique blend of dance music and deathcore, "Misery.exe" is one of the biggest breakdowns of the band's entire career and is an earth-shatteringly heavy series of breakdowns.

Read our interview with The Browning here.

3: Disembodied Tyrant ft. Synestia - "Death Empress"

One of the 4 split EP tracks from Disembodied Tyrant and Synestia "Death Empress" caught everyone by surprise when it was released earlier this year. The song's impossibly fast double bass drumming, dark choirs, dramatic silences, and inhuman vocals made it go viral and solidified Disembodied Tyrant's place as one of the biggest breakthrough bands of the year.

2: Ice Nine Kills - "A Work Of Art"

Ice Nine Kills is no stranger to breakdowns and often features some pretty wild horror-themed breakdowns, but "A Work Of Art" took this to a whole new level. Based on the horror film Terrifier 3, the song's breakdown features clown horns, detuned pianos, slide whistles, and overall chaos–making it stand out as a truly unique breakdown.

1: Knocked Loose ft. Poppy - "Suffocate"

Knocked Loose is becoming one of the most recognized names in all of metal period. After an insane year that brought a Grammy nomination for "Best Metal Performance" as well as their live set on Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show, it's no surprise to see the band topping today's list.

"Suffocate" originally went viral when it was released for the song's creative breakdown that mixed a reggaeton beat with Knocked Loose's signature hardcore style. Featuring vocalist Poppy, "Suffocate" turned out quickly to be an incredibly successful single release that led up to their critically acclaimed full-length album "You Won't Go Before You're Supposed To" which was released in May.

Read The Story of Knocked Loose here.

Want to hear more awesome breakdowns? Check out our Heaviest Breakdowns Spotify Playlist!

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