Browsing Tag

heavy metal

Slanderus’ Cover of ‘Dream Warriors’ is A Melodic Maelstrom that Hits with No Mercy

Posted on 15 November 2024

With their latest single, Dream Warriors, the powerhouse Slanderus delivered an unrelenting tour de force that ensnares from the first post-punk-infused note. Channelling Echo and the Bunnymen atmospherics in the opening salvo, the Inland Empire quartet takes listeners down a dark path before unleashing a firestorm of overdriven guitars that shred with a no-mercy vigour. Each beat hits harder than the last, with rock harmonies tempering the relentless instrumental frenzy, dropping a melodic anchor amid the chaos.

With a clear reverence for 80s rock aesthetics, Slanderus nods to nostalgia in the DOKKEN cover of the single which featured on the Nightmare on Elm St 3 soundtrack while injecting contemporary volition into the classic riffs that rock fans have adored across the decades; the modernistic metal edge goes straight for the jugular.

With Jason J. Kennedy’s guitar solos capable of making your heart forget to beat, the electricity within Dream Warriors is enough to run a power grid. The synergy within the band is unstoppable, with JJ Gawrich on drums delivering melodic yet earth-shattering rhythms and bassist Mike Basquez bringing a heavy groove while Allen Alamillo’s lead vocals inject soul into a soaring pitch.

The award-winning outfit which has previously opened for Fear Factory is clearly only getting started in its bid to hold dominion over the alt-metal scene. Get behind them or get out of their way.

Dream Warriors was officially released on October 31st. Stream it on all major platforms via this link now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Unwelcome Soul embraced the shadow self in the abyss of the black metal hit, Time, Don’t Save Me

Posted on 30 July 2024

With the release of ‘Time, Don’t Save Me’, Unwelcome Soul—a one-man black metal behemoth from Tennessee—ushered in a devastatingly potent chapter of his debut album, ‘Dried Petals’.

The track initiates with a barrage of thrashy blast beats that lay the groundwork for a seismic uproar, providing a perfect stage for the vocals to manifest. The guttural proclamations that gnarl and echo across the tumultuously unhallowed ground of the track embody the track’s achingly articulated Nietzsche-esque underpinnings of despair and disillusion.

The lyrics scathe at the naive hope that time might heal or save, hitting raw nerves and exposing a darker acceptance that for some, damnation is a sweeter resolve than salvation.

Instrumentally, ‘Time, Don’t Save Me’ mirrors the lyrical descent into macabre fatalism, gaining relentless momentum with each passing beat until the track wraps the listener in a spectral, gothic atmosphere, reaching a climactic fervour in a melodic outro that mourns the forsaken.

Time, Don’t Save Me was officially released on July 5th; stream the single on YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Carniwhore crawled out of your nightmares to deliver their infernal alt-metal debut, Tyrannosaur

Posted on 24 June 2024

If you have noticed something sinister in the atmosphere lately, that may be due to Carniwhore, who crawled out of your deepest darkest nightmare to deliver their sense unsettling debut single, Tyrannosaur. Fans of Tallah, Hungry Lights, and Darko US, will instantly be drawn in by the Stoke on Trent-based powerhouse’s carnivalesque approach to tearing through the alt-metal scene with maximum volition.

Blazing through the footsteps of Marilyn Manson by using chugging riffs and eccentrically emulating his baleful charisma while bringing the brutalism of heavy metal and mainlining devil-may-care derangement ensured your ears have never been defiled in this way before.

After being recorded, produced, and mixed by Chris Dulson at Venombase Studios and Mastered by the industry heavyweight, Jens Bogren (Sepultura, Dragon Force Baby Metal, Dir En Grey) Tyrannosaur hit the airwaves on June 21.

Whatever Carniwhore has in the pipeline for their sophomore release, we have no doubt that it will be a fiendishly unholy triumph.

Stream the single on Spotify and keep up to date with the infernal outfit via Facebook.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Sunset Cobra replenished their venom for their latest feat of hard rock nihilism, I Remain

Posted on 26 December 2023

Sunset Cobra is back with even more hard rock venom than before with their latest single, I Remain. By contorting genres and influences into a ferociously unique high-octane ride through the landscape of rock and metal, the monolith easily sets itself apart in the contemporary music scene.

From the opening notes, I Remain grabs the listener with a relentless intensity. The band channels the spirit of Velvet Revolver, updating it with a serpentine electro-rock edge. The influence of Drowning Pool is evident in the rancorous energy that permeates the track, while the breakdowns echo the tightly controlled chaos reminiscent of Mushroomhead. Yet, amidst this sonic maelstrom, Sunset Cobra finds room for technical, frenetic riffs and fragments of sunset sleaze.

The dynamism is not just in its instrumentation but also in its lyrical depth. The song delves into the darker aspects of the human condition with nihilistic poetry that is as compelling as it is confronting. The lyrics hold no prisoners, expressing contempt with a rawness that is both brutal and beautifully articulated.

As listeners eagerly anticipate what Sunset Cobra will unleash next, I Remain is a testament to their potential. It’s a song that will not only resonate with fans of rock and metal but with anyone who appreciates music that pushes boundaries and defies expectations.

I Remain was released via Reclusive Audio Ltd on December 1st; stream the single on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Nu World Order exposed the secrets of ‘Area 51’ in the surrealism of their Alt-Metal debut

Posted on 13 November 2023

Who ordered an installation of thrash metal insanity? One has just arrived in the form of the debut single, Area 51, from the Brighton-based prodigal sons, Nu World Order, which forged in response to the surrealism of the modern age, where extra-terrestrial signs of life are in essence the new Schrodinger’s cat. Are they real or fake? We won’t know until we look inside Area 51, but it seems Nu World Order has the inside scoop.

With groove metal breakdowns following insurgencies of thrash and heavy metal in the progressive track, which also exhibits the dynamism in the vocals as they switch from soaring hair metal high notes to guttural laments, Nu World Order knew just how to keep listeners hooked into their orchestration of rhythmically tight subversion.

If riffs got bands to the top of the charts, Nu World Order would be overlooking everyone from a seat of supremacy; the outfit isn’t lacking in the lyrical ingenuity department either. We can’t wait to hear what is lingering in the pipeline.

Area 51 was released on November 3rd; stream it on Spotify or purchase the track by heading over to iTunes.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

LOOK ALIVE quaked the Calgary metalcore scene with the visceral vehemence in their single, Scum

Posted on 8 November 2023
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePZqf-mHKso

LOOK ALIVE ripped up the roots of hardcore and implanted them within their latest behemoth of a single, Scum, which is set to put them at the vanguard of the Calgary metalcore movement. Savage and intricately intelligent, the powerhouse efficaciously succeeded in its strive for a distinct sound that shatters the confines of hardcore.

From the first blisteringly tumultuous beats and savagely cataclysmic guitar licks, LOOK ALIVE drags you into their adrenalized-with-aggression realm; expect to collide with a universe drenched in wild hues and intricate layers and Jeremy Richardson’s raw, unmatched vocal prowess.

Before the scummy protagonists in your life lead you to a breakdown, embrace the cathartic vehemence in the gnarled breakdowns and put Scum in your sonic arsenal. Crafting every tune, visual, and concept off the back of their own visceral volition, LOOK ALIVE emerges as an outfit few should dare to rival.

The official video for Scum premiered on October 27; stream it on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Eville unleashed a champion heavyweight earworm with their ragefully incandescent brat metal hit, Leech

Posted on 4 October 2023
Eville

After driving drum n bass breakbeats through the prelude, the Brighton trio Eville underpinned their vengeantly furore-fuelled pop-hooked single, Leech, with industrial nu-metal volition to deliver one of the most vindicating hits of 2023.

So much more than your average brat metal Barbie, the lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist Eva Sheldrake became a fierce icon of the alt-metal scene with Leech. Hell hath no fury like a woman free from toxicity and vehemently determined to raise others to her own level of empowerment. With the instrumentals mainlining adrenaline into your rhythmic pulses, the track monolithically unravelled as the ultimate protest to subjugation via manipulation.

Fans of Slipknot, Powerman 5000, and In This Moment won’t fail to accommodate the infectious and ragefully incandescent single on their playlists. It almost seems a paradox to describe such an instrumentally heavy single as radio-ready, but there’s no disputing the mainstream appeal or quality of the production, which was ensured by Jamie Sellers at Run Wild Music, who has worked with everyone from Ed Sheeran to Elton John to Little Simz.

Eva Sheldrake of Eville Said: 

“Leech is very special to me; it’s an emotionally raw track through determination to make the lyrics real, no matter how uncomfortable that reality may be. 

I hope listeners take as much from it as I did by relating through experience with inner conflict and toxic situations that are hard to escape. As always, our producer, Jamie Sellers, brought our vision to life more viscerally than we could have imagined.”

Leech will officially release on October 20; pre-save the single on all major platforms via this link.

Keep up to date with the latest releases from Eville via Instagram and Facebook or join their legion of followers on TikTok.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

IMMORTALIZER unified a legion of metal fans with ‘We Were Born for Metal’, featuring Ralf Scheepers

Posted on 15 August 2023

The one-man metal powerhouse Dave D.R. has been storming through the Ontario rock and metal scene with his project, IMMORTALIZER, especially after the release of his debut LP, Born for Metal, produced by none other than Ralf Scheepers of Primal Fear fame.

The standout single, We Were Born for Metal, sees IMMORTALIZER wear their influences on their sleeve, but there was plenty of room for the originality engineered by their determination to bring something new to the metal genre. Giving Black Sabbath and Metallica fans a reason to turn away from their favourite records is no easy feat. By breeding something devilishly distinctive in the atmosphere of his seminal single, attention was soon piqued by the tune of fresh blood entering the territory.

The phenomenon that We Were Born for Metal became after its debut earlier this year goes to show how intrinsically linked identity and music are. Scenes are more than tribes; they’re lifeblood, and if anyone can mainline metal into your veins, it is IMMORTALIZER with their classic metal riffs and vocals that galvanise as they unify and defy expectation.

The official music video has garnered over 321k streams. Indulge in the furore by heading to YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Lyrical Poetry Heightens the Monolithic Heavy Metal Alchemy in Maximilian Wentz’s Single, Your Silhouette

Posted on 11 December 2022

Sweeter than honey sentimentalism sits side-by-side with melodic hooks, gigantic riffs, and theatrically monolithic breakdowns in Maximilian Wentz’s seminal single, Your Silhouette, which fuses the heart-in-throat feels of Shinedown and the progressively distinct furore of SOAD.

Just when you start to hear the reminiscences of The Calling’s Wherever You Will Go, post-hardcore motifs blaze through the soundscape to prove that when Maximilian Wentz pays homage to a visceral emotion, he goes all in to capture the extreme.

The independent singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and Berklee College student is one of the few artists in the heavy metal that is bold enough to fully commit to emotional expression with no pretence. We can’t wait to hear what the Massachusetts-hailing artist who has enriched the industry with his solo work and via his band 51st State has to offer next.

Listen to Your Silhouette on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Talk Is Cheap: Louisville hard rock band Wyld Ryde run the streets on powered-up new single ‘Gasoline Alley’

Posted on 30 November 2021

As they let us know that you need to be vigilant in this part of town as one erroneous move could have you in difficulty, Wyld Ryde light up our imagination and keep on emitting out high-velocity vocals and devastating guitar riffs that shall certainly wake you up on ‘Gasoline Alley‘.

Wyld Ryde is an explosive 4-piece Louisville, Kentucky-based indie hard rock/heavy metal band that seems to make the speakers bleed with their hardcore music creations.

”Members Chief-Lead Vocals & Guitar, Tommy Blitz-Lead Guitar & vocals, Mick Watkins-Bass Guitar & Vocals and Kidd Vicious-Drums are on a mission to dominate modern Rock music.” ~ Wyld Ryde

Wyld Ryde is absolutely breathtaking from start to finish as the ominous start of this video projects, as they swarm our ears with a thunderously-charged performance that reminds you of the greats from yesteryear.

‘Gasoline Alley‘ from the Louisville, Kentucky-based indie hard rock/heavy metal act Wyld Ryde, is the type of track that might send shivers running down your unprotected spine. They prove why they are one of the most respected outfits around at the moment and are on top form here – with an exceedingly-energetic track – ll about making sure that you know where your place is on these mean streets.

See this roaring new music video on YouTube and get a sense of what they are all about on their IG.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen