It has been nine years since their debut album Break the Calm came out but Norway’s THEFALLS are back with their sophomore darling, Reflections///Void, due to be released on 22 September 2023. Brace yourself for this one because their’s is metal made supreme. Their recipe is a difficult one, though. Expect no straight lines. Surprises behind every corner. Beautifully chaotic while chaotically beautiful. If you do want to cook up something like THEFALLS, it would go something alone these lines: take a bunch of metal genres like mathcore, sludge and metalcore, add a sprinkle of tech death and a ..read more

It’s September. That means you are probably going back to school, you are back from your well-deserved holidays, the office is looming again, the daily school-rides start again. So, why not do all that while jamming the latest metal releases of September 2023! If you would like to have your release (album or EP) featured in this list, just send me a message!    Silent Skies | Dormant Release date: 1 September 2023 Genre: Atmospheric (ok, fine, not metal, but one of the best things I have listened to in years, straight from the mouth of Evergrey’s Tom Englund) Label: Napalm Records Co ..read more

The summer is almost at an end, so grab those rays of sun while you still can and feast your eyes and ears on these heartwarming metal releases of August 2023. If you would like to have your release (album or EP) featured in this list, just send me a message!    Orbit Culture | Descent Release date: 18 August 2023 Genre: Melodic Death Metal Label: Seek & Strike Country: Sweden      Induction | The Power Of Power [EP] Release date: 4 August 2023 Genre: Power Metal Label: Atomic Fire Records Country: Czech Republic       Deathklok | Dethal ..read more

Did you know that one of the most popular questions in Google on the topic of heavy metal is “is heavy metal music bad for kids?”. Clearly there is a lot of concern among parents that exposing their kids to the extremities of heavy metal music is going to ruin their bundle of joy forever and damage their future irreparably. After all (sarcasm ahead), surely heavy metal music is all about violence, aggression, sex, hatred, rebellion and, lest we forget, the almighty devil himself. You wouldn’t want to be responsible for screwing up your child, would you? Judging by the search results you get w ..read more

Despite it being festival season, the summer is chock full of great metal releases across all genres, from main stage allure to underground brutality. Discover the most electrifying and diverse heavy metal releases of July 2023. If you would like to have your release (album or EP) featured in this list, just send me a message!    Blackbraid | Blackbraid II Release date: 7 July 2023 Genre: Black Metal Label: Independent Country: USA       Feuerchwanz | Fegefeuer Release date: 7 July 2023 Genre: Folk Metal Label: Napalm Records Country: Germany     ..read more

From the darkest corners of doom to the blistering realms of thrash, the stars aligned in June 2023 and brought us a whole bunch of new metal releases to carry us through the summer. Discover all heavy metal releases of June 2023 below. If you would like to have your release (album or EP) featured in this list, just send me a message!   Stand-out metal releases in June 2023   Scar Symmetry | The Singularity (Phase II – Xenotaph) Release date: 9 June 2023 Genre: Melodic Death Metal Label: Nuclear Blast Country: Sweden       Mental Cruelty | Zwielicht Release da ..read more

2003…the year the US decided it was a good idea to invade Iraq; Dan Brown published the Da Vinci Code; Apple’s 3rd generation iPod loses the mechanical scroll wheel (yes, kids, that’s how we listened to music back then); and launched their iTunes store for the first time while they were at it; Britney Spears and Madonna kissed on stage; and Tesla, Android, LinkedIn and Skype were launched. 2003 was also a big year for me, as it would be for any teenager in the Netherlands turning sixteen that year: it meant I was officially allowed by law to drink my face off. Good times. Far more important ..read more

Last weekend I attended Rock Castle festival in Czech Republic. I was alone, so I had all the time to walk around and observe the metal community gathered together on the field. All of a sudden, somewhere half way the festival program, it struck me - we are one hell of an odd bunch of people. And it is fucking beautiful! Let me explain. Despite the fact that many societies around the world are evolving and becoming more open to fringe cultures like metal (among others), many metalheads still feel they either need to hide their “metalness” or at least tone it down in order to feel accepted, ke ..read more

Extreme metal…it would be an understatement to say that it is not everyone’s cup of tea. Even among die hard metal fans. Many, both inside and outside of the metal community, are easily put off by its brutality, barrage of sounds, lyrical content, brown notes and demonic vocals. More often than not, the first reaction when I show my favourite extreme metal artists to others is one of “This is not music. How can you listen to this?” And you know what?…that is a bloody good question. Why do people love extreme metal, indeed? Why do I get excited as a kid on Christmas morning when a band like Lo ..read more

Metal music has been around for decades and is by far one of the more diverse genres out there. Yet, for most of its existence, it has operated in the limelight, whether by choice or not. Time to shine some light on the genre we call our own and show why metal is worth celebrating. 1. Metal is one of the most diverse music genres out there Every genre has its variations and subgenres. Metal is not unique in that. However, I would gladly argue that very few genres have such a wide spectrum of styles and genres than metal. Every time someone tells me that metal surely all sounds the same, I hav ..read more