Browsing Tag

UK Metal

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

Settle into an ancient empire with Aklash’s cabalistic black metal single, Babylon

Posted on 8 May 2024

Few true black metal fans will need an introduction to Aklash after their 14-year European reign, yet their expansively styled baroque single, Babylon, prised from their LP, Reincarnation, carries cabalistic cross-over appeal through folk metal finesses and progged-up grooves that ensure that this juggernaut of a single brings plenty more than brutality.

The evocation of tribally kinetic rhythms within the frenetically cultivated progressions fused with the larger-than-material-reality vocal performance puts Aklash on the same convivial level as Nekrogoblikon and Turisas. Instead of merely witnessing the intensity, the immensity of the release uses your soul as a crawlspace, ensuring that passive appreciation is implausible as you attempt to keep pace with the accelerated instrumentals.

If Babylon sets the standard for the rest of the Reincarnation LP, which signifies a rebirth of the band that has thrown black metal traditionalism to the wayside to fully lean into the virtuosity of each member, it’s safe to assume that Aklash won’t just be touring with black metal royalty in the future, they’ll have the most gilded seat at the throne.

Stream the official music video for Babylon which premiered on May 2nd on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Post-hardcore went pop in Cosmic Ninja’s latest earworm Stone Cold

Posted on 28 February 2024

Cosmic Ninja’s latest hit, Stone Cold, from the Filth EP, is a Tour De Force of infectiously ensnaring volition and a striking example of genre fusion done right. This track is a scintillatingly assaultive blend of post-hardcore’s raw energy and the catchy, rhythm-driven essence of pop.

The track is a masterclass in electronically augmented dynamic progression, seamlessly shifting from intense breakdowns to infectious hooks. Collaborating with John Mitchell, known for his work with Enter Shikari and Architects, was a stroke of genius. His expertise has helped shape Stone Cold into an earworm that’s impossible to ignore. The track is meticulously crafted, with each element – from the angst-driven raps to the soaring choruses – contributing to its overall potency.

Cosmic Ninja’s songwriting prowess is evident throughout Stone Cold, which unfolds an embodiment of the band’s disregard for genre constraints and their punk ethos. The lyrics are charged with political and social commentary, making the song not just an auditory experience but a thought-provoking protest.

The Filth EP is now available to stream in full on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Little Villains – Café De Stam: The Ultimate Hard Rock Antidote to the Ennui of Our Times

Posted on 8 February 2024
Café De Stam by Little Villains

The transatlantic hard-rock heavy-hitters Little Villains are priming themselves for the unleashing of their fifth studio LP, Café De Stam. Get a taste of the vintage-wrapped rancour to come by adrenalizing yourself with the recently released title single.

By melding classic rock rhythmics with the frenetic mayhem of metal, the title single will go down a storm with Motorhead and Venom fans. Little Villains ensured none of the high-octane energy from their rock n roll to the core performance was lost in the raw production of the infectiously razor-sharp hit, which proves how tight the fourpiece’s sound has become since their debut.

The anthem of defiance brought to life with an infectious sense of devil may care rebellion, goes beyond paying an ode to the pioneers; it is the ultimate aural antidote to the ennui of our modern times.

Stream and purchase the title single, Café De Stam, which was officially released on January 25, on Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Shrapnel unleashed the meta(l)morphosis of the year with their latest single, In Gravity ft Scott Kennedy

Posted on 8 December 2023

In collaboration with Scott Kennedy (Bleed from Within), the eclectically inspired metal monoliths Shrapnel unleashed the meta(l)morphosis of the year with their latest single, In Gravity.

All the precision, power and prowess that catapulted Shrapnel to acclaim is ensnaringly evident in the fervently cathartic juggernaut, which sonically and thematically moved with the times to acknowledge the pain, tragedy, and isolation collectively endured in recent years and to place the powerhouse at the pinnacle of modern metal.

After breaking through the chains of expectation and obligation to confine themselves to assimilating thrash antiquities, In Gravity is an adrenalized statement of intent. There’s no understating the riled euphoric energy which insurgently courses through the veins of the anthem for optimism where demons are exercised, and the past is forsaken for the present.

Between the exhilarating earworm propensities in the melodically cataclysmic choruses, the brutality of the breakdowns, the relentless dynamism of the guitars, and the flawless production by Jens Bogren (Sepultura, Kreator, Devin Townsend), the new maturity of Shrapnel is priming them to become the orchestrators of the album of the year in 2024.

In Gravity was released on December 7. Add it to your metal playlists on Spotify or stream the official music video on YouTube.

Follow Shrapnel on Facebook and Instagram.

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

Embrace Little Villains in all of their Machiavellian metal glory in their latest single, Spitfire

Posted on 6 October 2022

War, what is it good for? Influencing pit-worthy hard rock hits such as Spitfire from the UK’s loudest and heaviest outfit, Little Villains. Their Machiavellian nature is exhibited in all of its frenetic glory in the instrumentally Motorhead-Esque release, taken from their fourth studio album, BATTLE OF BRITAIN.

Spitfire is a rarity in its ability to offer the classic raw rock n roll production while enticing you with the fresh innovation exhibited by each member of the powerhouse. Even the staunchest hard rock fans won’t be able to eye roll to having heard this all before with the catchy cataclysmic furore in Spitfire, which compels you to catch it live. Luckily, Little Villains are touring their 10-track album through late 2022 and early 2023 – you won’t want to miss it.

The official music video for Spitfire premiered on September 16th; check it out on Youtube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

 

UK solo artist, Unwanted Guest, shed light on our shackles in his retro-modernist metal single, Constructive Ambiguity

Posted on 17 August 2022

After the 2020 pandemic put the brakes on the UK metal band Seventh Son, the guitarist Dave Fox animated his retro-modernist metal brainchild, Unwanted Guest.

His latest single, Constructive Ambiguity, is one that every disenchanted metal or grunge fanatic should hear. With a cheeky nod to John Carpenter’s, They Live in the visuals with some stunning scenes of UK brutalist architecture to compliment the lyrics that don’t evade the reality of every working-class millennial, it’s a vindicating timely single which invites you to vent into the blend of the 90s Seattle sound with the signatures of UK metal. When the lyrical context is as sublime as the talent, you know you’re on to a winner – stay tuned with this one.

Watch the official music video for Constructive Ambiguity, which premiered on July 26th here.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Felicia became the ultimate nu-metal domme by subjugating Boris Johnson in her latest music video, Revolution Business

Posted on 20 July 2022

Even though Boris Johnson does a pretty good job of humiliating himself (and the rest of us while he’s shambolically at it), it was still beyond cathartic to see Felicia sonically flaying him in her latest seductively rebellious nu metal music video, Revolution Business.

It deserves to go just as viral as the video shot by a bewilderedly unsuspecting passer-by when they stumbled on the scene of Felicia dominating Boris Johnson in the market town of Grantham.

The video, (available to view here) has now garnered over 380,000 streams on Facebook, but what is infinitely less measurable is the true impact of the video, which provided a brief reprieve from the existential weight imposed by the futility of faith in our democracy.

How many iterations of “we need a revolution” have you heard recently? Well, now we have the start of one, and Bradford’s most creative antagonist inarguably became one of the most iconic contemporary mononym-toting artists in the process.

The pop-bitten track that instrumentally highjacks your rhythmic pulses through the juggernaut of a cadence keeps on giving. From her originated demurely rapped mischievousness to the screamo lyrical hook “fuck the music business, this is revolution business”, which made her the ultimate metal domme, it is frenetic socialist perfection. My Ruin will never hit the same again.

Fund the revolution by purchasing the track on Bandcamp or check out the official music video via YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

GLYTSH took control of the UK metal scene with their dark vehement aesthetic in Hard(core) Memory

Posted on 1 June 2022

After boldly covering NIN’s most seductive single for their debut and creating a triumphant hit out of it by unveiling the demure holes that were left unfilled, the London-based metal-inclined duo, GLYTSH, have released their sophomore single, Hard(core) Memory.

Hard(core) Memory is Reznor served with Peaches (hold the cream) paired with the fierce provocative metal aesthetic of In This Moment. Reminiscences aside, their projection of autonomy through infectiously unfuckwithable attitude is nothing short of hypnotic around the bite of the industrial beats, scuzzy grungy drums and feral guitars. It stays on the right side of lascivious, while teasingly toeing the line, unapologetically proving that assertive feminine energy has never been about getting dicks hard.

Considering that Hard(core) vindicated me more than Bikini Kill’s I Like Fucking, it’s safe to say the French vocalist, Jennifer Diehl and Swiss guitarist, Claire Genoud, are a fair way along in their mission in reminding us that the Riot Grrrl ethos didn’t end with the dawn of the new millennium.

The official video for Hard(core) Memory premiered on June 1st. Check it out via YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast