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Weekly Rundown March 20 – 2026
Reviews of metal albums released March 14 – March 20
This week had a lot on its mind, with bands big and small, young and old and styles ranging from the deeply melodic to the intentionally ugly.
Chalice Of Suffering – The Raven Cries One Last Time
Genre: Doom metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Review: A funeral doom project that seeks to immerse you in lamenting melody, funeral bagpipes and all. The clean, instrumental sections work quite well, but the heaviness has no real… heaviness. Making the slooow buildups amount to not all that much.
Cultist – Spiritual Atrophy
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Death metal does well being rough around the edges, as long as it it’s still competently performed and packs a punch. All of this checks out on Cultist’s second full-length. The production is kinda fuzzy and the vocals are buried in the mix, but there’s thunder in the low end, and a hunger to the riffs. Unfortunately, the songwriting is a bit all over the place, as they experiment with groove, dissonance, caveman barbarism, black metal evil, and more.
Crouch – Breaking The Catatonic State
Genre: Experimental sludge metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Stark, hard-hitting sludge metal drawing from both hardcore and doom, and refusing to stick to any one rhythm approach for more than a few moments at a time. It’s dissonant, combative and unpredictable, which at its best feels intellectually stimulating, and at its worst quite tiresome.
Dawn Of Ashes – Anatomy Of Suffering
Genre: Electronic/industrial/black metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Smear on your corpse paint but switch out your bullet belt with a bandolier of colorful vial shots. It’s time to rave for Satan. Dawn of Ashes is a Los Angeles-based industrial black metal band that’s completely embraced EDM/EBM on this, their 12th (!) full-length release. The synths are spooky, the beats are steady and the vibes are hypnotic. Not my jam, but I’d take this over pretty much any generic dancefloor music.
Decipher – Thelema
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Decipher are a Greek band playing a death-leaning, riff-driven variant of black metal with modest hints at melody, although nothing like the epic stuff you’d expect from fellow countrymen Rotting Christ, and certainly not Septicflesh. This is focused, bitter-sounding and actually a bit understated, although it’s not the type o thing that gets lost in a hazy forest lake of misery. I don’t quite find enough on it that really catches my attention, but all the right elements are in place, and performed without fault for that proper unholy feeling.
Highlight: “Return to Naught”
Dragsholm – The Bloodlines Of Bram
Genre: Black/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Although not demonstrating the very tightest of performances, this is growling, gutsy black metal with just enough epic-toned melody to call it entertaining, and more than enough crunchy death metal riffing to invite some serious headbanging.
Egregore – It Echoes In The Wild
Genre: Black/death metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This one has a bit of that Veilburner madness to it, and I’m all here for it. While it sounds plenty demonic and enveloped in clouds of witch cauldron fumes, instead of diving for the abyss, this aims to captivate you with a seductive, complex dance of shifting rhythm patterns, charging riffs and heavy metal gallops and dive bombs that would be right at home on a blackened thrash or speed album. It channels a lot of that Venom-esque, rough-around-the-edges, “just go for it” kind of sensory overwhelming aggression that doesn’t need a lot of fancy production wizardry or dazzling technicality, but is rooted in classic techniques. Another thing that I love about it is that it just doesn’t tire. Apart from on the epic closing track, there’s very little, if anything in the way of atmospheric breaks or “restful” sections. It constantly moves forward, eager to shock, corrupt and amaze, and is filled to the brim with highlights.
Highlight: “Voice on The West Wind” and “Servants of the Second Death”
Empire Of Disease – While Everything Collapses
Genre: Melodic death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Review: If you’re into old school melodeath riffs, then this one is plain enjoyable from start to finish. That’s not to say that it’s without weaknesses – the vocals are a bit lacking in range and force, it’s certainly not rewriting any books in terms of originality, and they’re mixing modern and classic elements seemingly as the mood takes them. But the spirit of it is a real headbanger, and that I admire.
Evermore – Mournbraid
Genre: Power metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: No, not Nevermore. While this is on the slightly darker side for power metal, it’s still certainly not short on soaring vocals and epic choruses. It tries to add a shade of solemnity, but it’s mostly a veneer that’s easily broken through with thrashy riffs and vibrant solos.
Exodus – Goliath
Genre: Thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: You know what time it is when Exodus enters the fray. Time to windmill-headbang your neck into a rubik’s cube-level puzzle for your chiropractor to solve while getting spitefully shouted at and pulled into the flames of damnation. That being said, if you were hoping for a ferocious, pedal-to-the-metal death race kind of thrash album, you might find your enthusiasm waning fairly quickly, as this is a distinctly mid-paced kind of affair. Suits me just fine, as the menace factor is palpable. This is not an experimental sort of Exodus record, as it sounds like they had a very good idea of what this should sound like, and so it feels confident and coherent. But not all of it is as memorable, and the 54-minute + runtime feels unnecessary. It’s a great riffing time with an awesome vocal performance, that’s a bit short on surprises.
Highlights: “3111” and “Promise You This”
Gaerea – Loss
Genre: Blackened metalcore
Subjective rating: 2/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Generally, I try to keep personal expectations from influencing my rating of a new album as much as possible, but with a track record like that of Gaerea, it’s hard to stay neutral. I completely adored their last two albums in particular. That adoration ruptures violently with “Loss”, as if the great eye on the cover of 2024’s “Coma” were to burst in a cascade of blood and gelatinous tissue. I don’t pay much attention to the lore or goings on of bands in between releases, or the singles they release leading up to a new album, as I want my reaction to be as raw as possible. So the stylistic shift I was presented with on “Loss” came as a miserable shock to me. What it makes me realize is that Gaerea was balancing on top of a precipice two years ago. A precipice they have now plummeted from the other side of. They have all but left the realm of black metal behind as if it was a relic, and embraced slick, emotional, symphonically majestic and at times even pop-oriented metalcore. And so, rating this as a darkly cinematic metalcore album, it’s solid in most ways. It sounds rich, melodically expansive, if a tad generic, and with a buttery smooth production, managing big highs and lows of intensity effortlessly, with obvious vocal and instrumental talent to back it up. But not quite enough hard-hitting aggression or awe-inspiring technicality to counter the towering mass of soft sentimentality – a balance that many now-peers in the sphere of metalcore and melodic deathcore really excel at achieving. As someone struggling not to look backwards, this to me feels like a sappy, trend-chasing dismissal of the actual tonal depth, complexity and heaviness of the past. Quite possibly my DOTY (disappointment of the year).
Highlight: “Hellbound”
Graufar – Via Necropolis
Genre: Melodic black/death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Mixing piercing vocals with classic tremolo, beastly death metal riffs and gloomy melodies, this feels like an old school melodeath album that died and resurrected as an undead in a long-forgotten necropolis. It worships at both the altar of primitive chugs and that of atmospherically backed grandeur, taking you on a tour of most of the elements that makes melodic black metal great. It’s not complex or what I’d call impressively layered, but it’s got the same consistent instrumental focus and sinister vibes all the way throughout, making it easy to like and very hard to get tired of.
Highlights: “Blizzard and Blaze”
Gutvoid – Liminal Shrines
Genre: Progressive death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This is old school death metal lured out of its cave with treats and led gloriously astray on a brain-spinning excursion through an unpredictably morphing landscape. It’s not quite as weird as I probably make it sound, but it’s certainly not straightforward. The gurgling, coarse brutality is constant, as is the rolling heaviness and the tone of utter menace, but it travels on progressive rhythms and picks up echoes of ancient atmosphere and deviously slithering melody. It’s not at all unnecessarily dissonant or chaotic, it feels patient and deliberate, but rarely fails to surprise with its numerous twists and turns.
Highlights: “Lead Me Beyond the Sleeping I” and “Spell Reliquary”
Hanging Garden – Isle Of Bliss
Genre: Melodic doom/death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Now in their 9th full-length, Hanging Garden aren’t anything near newcomers to the scene of Finnish melodic doom/death, but the fame of such similar-sounding peers as Insomnium, Swallow the Sun and Amorphis has so far eluded them. And while I highly doubt that “Isle Of Bliss” will be the album to break them into the mainstream, it certainly makes a strong argument for giving this 7-strong collection of solemn doomsayers the credit that they’re due. While not without force or scope, this is the kind of atmospheric extreme doom that you let carry you away into wispy lands of lamenting over what could have been, not the kind that ushers you to bellow your lungs out from a majestic mountaintop. It’s thickly layered in instrumental beauty, with some meaty riffs and varied vocal styles, and while a bit monotonous for short stretches, it’s far less ponderous than a lot of other contemporary doom projects.
Highlights: “Isle of Bliss” and “To Outlive the Nine Ravens”
Hautajaisyö – Surun paino
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: It would take some pretty shoddy craftsmanship for me not to have a good time with crunchy, old-school-style Scandinavian death metal, and Finnish band Hautajaisyö are in absolutely no danger of incurring my displeasure. Thrashy riffing, monstrous vocals and a relentlessly dark and threatening demeanor all work very well for them. The songwriting could definitely be stronger, with some slightly halting rhythm transitions and jumbled buildups, but the essence of it is pure menace.
Highlight: “Maan Nielemä”
Iron Firmament – In the Land of Pre-Human Kings
Genre: Atmospheric/raw black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This is an album that, unless you are already familiar with Iron Firmament’s earlier work, will likely surprise you with its depth. What immediately strikes you is that this is raw black metal, so unless that is very specifically your jam, it will take a little time getting used to the speakers-muffled-by-a-thick-duvet sound quality. The album cover very aptly points to the thematic nature of epic dark fantasy, and hints to the fact that you’ll be invited to lose yourself in wanderings under the shadows of ancient ruins and among the debris of recent battlefields. I actually found myself caught off guard a couple of times at just how well the atmosphere is integrated with the cold, blasting bitterness, and found my appreciation growing steadily every minute that I spent with it.
Highlights: “Atlantis in Permafrost” and “The Coast of Worlds”
Karmian – Horror Vacui
Genre: Melodic death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: An Italian melodic death metal band that pull strongly from that early Amon Amarth “marching of the horde”-sound, but also from classic death metal acts like Cannibal Corpse. In the end though, they transform this foundation with a mindset for modern, technical playfulness and a great love for groove. There are some real bangers on here, which are unfortunately offset by a few clear stumbles.
Necrogore – Ectoplasmic Rape Phenomena
Genre: Black/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: The debut full-length of this Italian band, thrusting you face first into a mound of steaming gore and laughing as you gag. This is filthy, massively crusty old-school-brutal death metal without a shred of pity or remorse. It’s coarse, fairly chaotic and ugly, with little in terms of groove or steady rhythms to hold on to.
Papa Necrose – Anthropomorphy Execution
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: This hitherto unknown to me Brazilian death metal band reminds me a lot of Ripped To Shreds on this, their fourth full length, and in my book that’s a promising starting point to say the least. Extremely riff-happy, raw-throated and gleefully malevolent towards religion and the catholic church in particular, with a playful attitude to serving up a variety of engaging rhythm approaches, it’s making all the right arguments to turn to the dark side. Also packed with tasty solos and a splash of that Sepultura/Soulfly tribal vibe, the only real thing holding it back is a tendency to unnecessarily stretch out certain song sections, maybe intended as contrasting breaks in the ferocity. The result is perhaps not the best flow out there, but it keeps grabbing your attention and stays energetic and inventive to the very end.
Highlights: “Hammered in the Mind” and “Cathedral of Death”.
The Silver – Looking Glass Hymnal Blue
Genre: Progressive black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Sporting obvious talent from Horrendous and Crypt Sermon, and very little in terms of stylistic influence from those bands, The Silver is a sort-of-supergroup that plays progressive, atmospheric and slightly avant-garde melodic black metal, and it’s a hoot of a time. That being said, the tone is mostly on the cold and sorrow-tinged side, so it doesn’t come off as whacky or whimsical in any way, but it’s also far too agile and technically interesting to get you properly immersed in any sort of pool of misery. Mixing clean and harsh vocals and instruments into a complex, vital drama cast in blue moonlight, it’s a strong statement of creativity and versatility that has great potential for even further exploration.
Highlight: “Tendrils”
Via Doloris – Guerre et Paix
Genre: Atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: What the realm of atmospheric black metal can’t claim to have in abundance is strong individual band personality. But, being the solo project of guitarist Gildas le Pape, you can very quickly hear the foundations of a strong melodic signature in the guitar work in particular, and it goes a long way by itself. Helped by a great production and avoidance of the biggest and most tired tropes of the subgenre, this is a beautifully flowing and subtly distinct piece of black metal that balances fluid melody with nocturnal ire.
Highlight: “Un Franc Soleil”
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band, or need to give an album another shot, why not pop a comment down below?
albums, black metal, death metal, Decipher, Egregore, Exodus, gaerea, Graufar, grindcore, groove metal, Gutvoid, Hanging Garden, Hautajaisyö, Iron Firmament, metal, metal albums out this week, new metal releases, new releases, Papa Necrose, progressive metal, review, The Silver, thrash metal, Via Doloris -
Weekly Rundown March 13 – 2026
Reviews of metal albums released March 07 – March 13
Does Friday the 13th spell disaster for the weekly releases? Come on in and find out for yourself.
Blood RED Delusion – Bloodlust Awakening
Genre: Melodic death/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Review: Those who are into Finnish melodic extreme metal will know what I mean when I say that this album feels like Mors Principium Est mixed with “Blooddrunk” era Children of Bodom, and added a pinch of Cavalera Conspiracy aggressive thrash riffing. At its best it delivers all you could hope for from that combo, but it’s also marred by a fair share of missteps, among them some pretty weak melodic choruses.
Bound In Fear – A Mind Too Sick To Heal
Genre: Deathcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Stupidly heavy deathcore that’s completely knotted up in breakdowns, like it’s suffering from cramp-inducing seizures. There’s a bit more to it than that though, as you get slight detours into passages of unease, both on interludes and bits of calm on otherwise starkly violent tracks. You get big contrasts, not much in the way of melody, and enough punishment to leave you well and tenderized.
Fabienne Erni – Starveil
Genre: Progressive symphonic metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Fabienne takes the trappings of folk metal with her from Eluveitie and uses it to dress up her own take on mildly progressive symphonic metal. This is far more melodic than that other project, cleaner and more pop-oriented, but certainly not soulless. Where others might be happy to coast along on generic beats and de-prioritize instrumental performances in favor of massive, self-aggrandizing vocal choruses, this feels like silky, gently epic storytelling for those who don’t favor the bite of extreme metal’s aggression. It’s a bit much of the same towards the end of the album, but works very well for its intended purpose.
Highlight: “Stone by Stone”
Fallath – Nälkäiset aaveet
Genre: Black metal/punk
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Like an overstimulated dog, Fallath bites down on black metal like it was an old ball and shakes it to shreds. You’re presented with both maniacal drum assaults and more primitive, marching rhythms, added some garage rock melody and groove. They don’t quite manage to land enough memorable moments for most of the tracks to really stay with you, but overall there’s enough there for an enjoyable listen and making a mark in the punky black metal niche.
Gluttony – Eulogy To Blasphemy
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Perhaps fitting considering the name, this sounds less like Entombed and more like the monstrous offspring that ate Entombed. Utterly ravenous for sinew-ripping, cartilage-crunching riffs, this flesh chomper sets off on a mid-paced rampage and just doesn’t stop, leaving a trail of steaming human paste in its wake. There’s no finesse, no real innovation, but also no slacking. No riff is overused, no one rhythm approach goes on for too long. It delivers massive grooves and plenty of tongue-in-cheek, grisly horror. It knows exactly what the fans are hungry for and delivers in bloody excess.
Highlight: “Hung From Entrails”
Lamb Of God – Into Oblivion
Genre: Groove metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: So, after 27 years LOG has finally ditched Papyrus and got themselves a shiny new logo. Thoughts on graphic design aside, does it also come with a brand new sound? Not quite, this is still unmistakably Lamb of God, but for those that feel like they’ve been a bit on autopilot for the last few releases, this does offer a slightly different approach. It’s leaner, more dynamic and willing to reach out beyond the signature groove-riff core that has defined and anchored them for most of their career. Does it work out for the best? Yes and no, depending quite a bit on individual taste. Because there’s more variation, it’s easier to pick out single tracks based on characteristics, and for me there’s a clear divide between the stuff that sounds energetic, well-flowing and/or conceptually inspired, and the stuff that either feels hollow or like them imitating bands that they themselves have inspired. In the end, this is an interesting spark in their discography, nothing crazy but kind of revitalized, with some massive highlights outweighing the stuff that I personally think the album would have been better without.
Highlights: “Parasocial Christ” and “Sepsis”
Mammon’s Throne – My Body To The Worms
Genre: Doom/sludge/death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: If you’re into the kind of non-abyssal, horror-infused and melodically touched death doom that the likes of Hooded Menace have been putting out recently, then this is indeed for you. Pulling from old school doom, sludge and black metal as much as death, it sounds stylistically confident without landing in a precise subgenre. It goes big on vibes, taking its time crafting curses and raising the dead from their graves one by one, but also doesn’t shy from mobilizing the whole undead horde and going on the attack every now and then.
Highlight: “Senseless Death”
Monstrosity – Screams From Beneath The Surface
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: There’s life yet in this old beast. Eight years after their last release, old school Florida death metallers Monstrosity are back to cause more mayhem. On it they mix in a bit of melodeath battle readiness with thrashy, technically tight riff- and rhythm work, dry vocals and a sprinkling of guitar solos, then soak everything in that unmistakable, classically morbid tone. Sometimes it really surges ahead, sometimes it drags, and not always on purpose. If you’re unfamiliar with the band, once you “get” their sound, you’re not really in for any surprises. It doesn’t flow beautifully, but has loads of that caveman bloodlust, and the technical chops to expertly dissect you once you’ve been clubbed in the head.
Highlight: “The Colossal Rage”
No/Más – No Peace
Genre: Grind/hardcore/death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: If you like your grindcore massively stompy, stark and prone to outbursts of axe grinding, lethal death metal riffage, then this stuff might as well have been tailor made for you. A strong adherence to hardcore rhythms has the band jump-jogging their way through this whole thing, only occasionally skipping into flailing fits of Napalm Death-like violence. It feels raw, thoroughly hostile and with exhausting live performances in mind. Those that prefer speed and all out ferocity coupled with massive grooves in their deathgrind might feel that this one comes up a bit short. but it will still thoroughly scratch that itch.
Highlight: “Choke Point”
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band, or need to give an album another shot, why not pop a comment down below?
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Weekly Rundown March 06 – 2026
Reviews of metal albums released February 28 – March 06
To hell with navel-gazing doom and gloom, most of the release highlights this week are out to make triumphant noise and cause a bit of a stir.
Axe Dragger – Axe Dragger
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: On their self-titled debut, Axe Dragger combine mid-tempo, rugged-melodic heavy metal with hard rock cool and a bit of thrash riff-edge. This is a band that’s not lacking in character, offering plenty of tracks with strong individual personalities and an impressively versatile vocal performance. It’s not what I’d call silly, but it’s definitely feelgood in the sense that it invites you in to partake in a very specific kind of mood, radiating rock ‘n’ roll groove, pleasant melodies and antihero charm. Far from over the top, it actually feels a tad too laid back, lacking a bit of punch and urgency. Looking forward to more, perhaps with a slightly heavier foot on the gas pedal.
Highlight: “Give You the Rope”
Cogadh – Kingmaker
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: A stripped back but not at all terribly produced black metal album out of Canada, with a hardcore spirit that’s particularly noticeable in the vocal approach. It hits like good garage rock, but also has a good deal of depth when it counts.
Desert Storm – Buried Under The Weight Of Reason
Genre: Stoner/sludge metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Give heaviness a purpose, and suddenly it becomes a very versatile tool. England’s Desert Storm employ heaviness in mountainous heaps, well matched with rusty sludge vocals and tons of mid- to low-tempo groove. But these aren’t the sole features of their sonic landscape. Rather they are masses of rocky cliffs towering out of the ocean, for the waves to break on when the storm fronts hit. And the album offers up a wide range of weather patterns – from the tranquil to the tempestuous. In the end, it falls just short of feeling like a unified conceptual statement, but it’s still an awesomely heavy-hitting, engagingly dynamic experience that takes just as much time as it needs to kick ass and push enough buttons to leave a multi-layered impression.
Highlights: “Law Unto Myself” and “Woodsman”
Lost Society – Hell Is A State Of Mind
Genre: Heavy/nu metal/metalcore
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Review: Finnish firecrackers Lost Society are back with more high-energy, symphonically boosted, catchy modern heavy metal crossed with Avenged Sevenfold/Bullet For My Valentine-style metalcore and groove-forward nu metal. Apart from a couple of highlights the material on here is mostly fairly predictable or suffering from an imbalance of weakly written parts sucking the momentum out of the fun ones.
Mega Colossus – Watch Out!
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Aside from the vocal style and kind of happy-go-lucky rhythms reminding me a whole lot of Weird Al, which makes it hard to shake the feeling of it being a parody, this is a kind of heavy metal album that mixes an adventurous tone and theme with very down to earth instrumentation and ironic lyrical and conceptual approach. There’s a decent amount of shredding, but nothing crazy, and the band seem more interested in crafting clever, well-flowing song structures, memorable choruses and restrained-yet-effective melody lines. It’s clean and stripped of unnecessary fluff, although perhaps feeling a bit too under control and reigned in.
Highlight: “Battlefront”
Miserere Luminis – Sidera
Genre: Atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Like potent raw ingredients tapped directly from their natural sources, melodic beauty and hostile bitterness are joined with little restraint on Canadian band Miserere Luminis’ third full-length. The two sides clash as much as they mix and weave together in complex patterns. It sounds like a struggle for much of the duration, but not a chaotic or disturbing one. More like the organic conflict that goes into eventually finding equilibrium and achieving harmony in environments undergoing radical change. The dynamism and emotional depth on this album is truly profound, making it a must-listen for those in tune with this kind of harsh/atmospheric mix.
Highlight: “De cris & de cendres” and “Dans la voie de nos lumières”
Qwälen – Veri virtaa edelleen
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Finnish black metal that can’t quite seem to make up its mind about whether it wants to be fast and rowdy, massive and oppressive or sinister and atmospheric. It tries all of the above, and sometimes all of it together, with somewhat mixed results. Each of the individual approaches work for them, particularly the more primitive and punk-inspired one, and it’s not really a confused sounding album, but it would likely be stronger walking down a single path at a time.
Temple Of Void – The Crawl
Genre: Melodic death/doom metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Here we’ve got another one of those bands playing the dangerous game of messing around with the formula that got them established. To be fair, 2022’s “Summoning the Slayer” was no straightforward death doom record either, but “The Crawl” sees Detroit’s Temple of Void not just loosening the stylistic belt a couple of notches but opening it all the way up in order to loop on a whole host of new and exciting accessories. What should be said is that in terms of riff- and vocal style, this is pretty much as classic death doom as it gets, and the guys keep laying into you hard and heavy all throughout the album. But it moves at distinctly different paces and mixes in various tones of melodies according to how the mood seems to strike it, taking on melodeath, goth, hard rock, epic doom, classic heavy metal, and other traits that liven up proceedings no end. It feels perhaps a bit under-planned and open-ended, leaving less of a solid statement and more of a collection of entertaining heaviness. But when it sounds as good as this, that’s more than fine with me.
Highlights: “Poison Icon” and “The Crawl”
Triumpher – Piercing the Heart of the World
Genre: Heavy/power metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: This is metal that forcibly marches you straight to the battlefield, spear in hand, by way of pure inspiration and rhythmic stimulation. Triumpher mixes the glorious, epic nature of power metal with the dark majesty of melodic black metal as fuel for its classic, gutsy heavy metal cavalry charge. On a casual listen it’ll probably sound like any run-of-the-mill bombastic, Manowar-esque thing, but invest just a bit of attention and you’ll start to pick up on the nuances and distinct characteristics that give it a strong personality. I had pretty much every track grow on me on the second listen, and even though I don’t find it as rousing or catchy as some of its peers, it’s full of conviction and not quite like anything else.
Highlight: “Destroyer”
Vreid – The Skies Turn Black
Genre: Melodic black metal/black ‘n’ roll
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Not unlike the Temple of Void album also releasing this week, this is not the place to go for faithful adherence to classic genre conventions. While the old school black metal roots are very much intact and lovingly maintained, this boldly stretches even Vreid’s black ‘n’ roll-interpretation of the style past previous boundaries. The riff and snarl are both very much alive and furiously kicking, supported by frosty melodic bits, and are contrasted by clean, electronic and acoustic parts that feel like detours sparked by curiosity, into pockets of related musical realms. This stylistic fluidity works quite well for the most part, adding an element of unpredictability that breaks up the sometimes overly straightforward rock riffs and rhythms. A rich and varied listening experience for those who can tolerate a bit of fun and games mixed in with their nihilism.
Highlights: “From These Woods” and “A Second Death”
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band, or need to give an album another shot, why not pop a comment down below?
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Weekly rundown February 27 – 2026
Reviews of metal albums released February 21 – February 27
Finishing off February with a truckload of weirdness, both the kind that will cheer you up and the one that’s a bit looking to mess with your sanity.
Blackwater Drowning – Obscure Sorrows
Genre: Melodic/symphonic death metal/metalcore
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Review: Here’s a modern melodeath band that employs pretty much every trick in the book. Metalcore rhythms, symphonic grandeur, progressive drum tricks, dissonant aggression, power metal melody… the list goes on. It’s not exactly messy, but feels very half cooked an indecisive, with so-so clean vocals and a distinct lack of groove to compensate.
Cemetery Reign – Confined To Time
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Black metal gets more than its fair share of punk crossover, but it also quite suits the mustier branch of death metal quite well, as evidenced by New Mexico band Cemetery Reign’s debut full-length. If someone decided to build a mausoleum in a dark, filthy back alley, and its occupants subsequently got possessed by flesh eating spirits, then this is probably the sound that would emanate. There’s a dark, doomsday-hailing tone to it, but the upbeat tempos and chasing riffs provide enough of a pull for it not to sag into death doom. There are a handful of highlights that make me wish there were more of them, but nothing’s really boring or weak either.
Highlight: “Spiral Eyes”
Cryptic Shift – Overspace & Supertime
Genre: Progressive death/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5Review: Get ready to leave the mundanity of earth so far behind that you’ll struggle to recollect what it’s like living here. Cryptic Shift speed boldly into the pure chaos of the still-forming cosmos and do their best to interpret through means of technical death- and thrash metal music what it feels like to be subjected to the forces and impressions they’re experiencing there. This is truly progressive music, as they enthusiastically tear apart formulas and employ the tools of the core subgenres to define feelings and sensations, as well as the journey itself into this realm of rule-unbound wonder. Far from whacky for whacky’s sake, and refraining from the extremes of dissonant hostility, you get massive, controlled shifts in intensity, completely eschewing traditional structures but allowing for a progression that’s not totally overwhelming, and continues to pull new tricks out of its space suit pockets until the very end. Takes a while to get into, but so very well worth sticking with.
Highlights: “Overspace & Supertime” and “Stratocumulus Evergaol”
Ennui – Qroba
Genre: Doom metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Despite the name, funeral doom shouldn’t all have to be hopelessly bleak and slower than wind erosion of a rock. Georgian band Ennui allow for a generous portion of majesty on their fifth full-length, and it’s quite captivating. It builds, not just in intensity, but in melodic gravity, and feels like witnessing a slowly morphing series of dramatic weather phenomena. It has that Finnish natural connection and two-sided melancholy that can feel both crushing and comforting. Take care you don’t sink too deep into this one, or you might never resurface.
Highlight: “Becoming Void” and “Decima”
Mek Na Ver – Noctivaga
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Italian, frigid black metal that sounds raw in the sense that it’s stripped back in terms of elements, and not intentionally ruined in the production. It employs a mix of straightforward, snarling aggression with ice water drips of symphonic melody, without adding a shred of bombast. It has a gentle side, but this feels more like representing the frail vestiges of life that are about to succumb in the merciless embrace of winter.
Necrofier – Transcend Into Oblivion
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: I first caught wind of Texan band Necrofier with the release of their 2023 album “Burning Shadows in the Southern Night”. I particularly enjoyed the unapologetic worship of darkness and evil, and thought they succeeded in following in the footsteps of the Norwegian greats while adding plenty of their own character to it. On “Thranscend Into Oblivion” they’ve gone conceptual on our asses, with three three-part suites and some long interludes to boot. It’s big, but unfortunately doesn’t sound very big, and it’s long, without fully justifying it. It’s an interesting journey overall with lots of elements and a consistent tone and feel, but just too few highlights to keep it fully interesting.
Highlight: “Servants of Darkness, Guide My Way I”
Necrosexual – Road To Rubble
Genre: Black/heavy metal/punk
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Sleazily alluring, chain-whipping and as scruffy as a cat that’s been through a sandstorm. Take one look at the album cover and you know more or less exactly what you’re getting. This is blackened punk injected with a decent dose of heavy- and thrash metal riffs, strutting with attitude and demanding your attention. This album is all fun, with clownery meeting highly competent musicianship. The main thing I’m missing is more speed, particularly in the second half, as the thing feels like it comes in for landing at least a couple of tracks before it’s actually finished.
Highlight: “The Brimstone Brothel”
Ruoska – Kade
Genre: Industrial metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: For those unfamiliar (like I was), Ruoska is a Finnish industrial metal band that was mostly active in the early 2000s, and are now releasing their sixth full-length after a whopping 18-year break. This is cybergoth meets Rammstein in a big way, with massive beats and marching riffs meeting techno melody and a goofy sci-fi theme. It’s definitely one to headbang to, and not something you hear very often, offering plenty of fun but not taking the concept nearly as far as I feel like there’s potential for.
Highlight: “Kettingit”
Slagmaur – Hulders Ritual
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: This sounds like the classic Norwegian black metal formula collapsed in on itself, and this is what can be heard if you put your ears to the ruins. I don’t know if it takes being Norwegian to realize it, but this stuff is about as serious as making letter pasta soup with only triplets of “6”s glued together. The guitars and drums are comically crushed in the production, and the concept is at least 90% vibes. For what it is, then, it’s pretty damn cool. Primitive riffs and rhythms accompany repetitive, almost droning tremolo melodies and perfectly coarse vocals. For me it’s too much of the same on repeat, but if you find that you’re into the idea, then you’ll likely love it.
Highlight: “Hexen Herjer”
Unverkalt – Héréditaire
Genre: Atmospheric sludge/black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Joining beauty and ugliness, particularly in the blast-beating world of black metal, takes a particular kind of affinity, and this is something Greek band Unverkalt evidently possess. This album feels in many ways like an intricately written lament, that allows in more emotions than just sorrow. There’s consolation, anger, persuasion and begging. Sometimes it feels like being commanded, and sometimes it feels like they’re reaching out for support. The use of traditional instruments and a wide variety of vocal and rhythm techniques makes for a bleakly rich listening experience that goes nowhere good, but also refrains from diving headlong into misery.
Highlights: Penumbrian Lament” and “Die Auslöschung”
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band, or need to give an album another shot, why not pop a comment down below?
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Weekly rundown February 20 – 2026
Reviews of metal albums released February 14 – February 20
This week offers plenty for both the thinker and the doer, with both devil may care bravado and carefully considered, devil-in-the-details craftmanship.
Abstracted – Hiraeth
Genre: Progressive extreme/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Someone left the prog tap running while they went out shopping on this one. Apart from during some mellow buildups and choruses, your mind is hardly allowed a moment’s rest, as the riff and rhythm style, while tightly performed, seems almost petulantly unwilling to stick to any sort of cohesive pattern. If that’s how you like your prog, then great, this will likely tickle your brain in all the right ways. It’s a mix of death metal brutality and metalcore-ish emotion-tinged melody, with the clean vocals sounding a bit overstrained in parts.
Aeon Gods – Reborn To Light
Genre: Power metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: The sound of divine majesty, at least the fairly benevolent parts. This is polished, symphonic power metal that can get nice and riffy now and then, well performed, and otherwise reasonably sparkly-epic, and perhaps a tad too self-serious.
Atlas – Sunder
Genre: Melodic extreme metal/metalcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Mighty Finnish metalcore mixed with modern, melodic extreme metal, moody to a near-gothic point and contrasting crashing highs of soaring aggression with melancholic-yet-pleasant calm. It’s beautifully produced, and exudes good energy, but the two extremes do sap some of the energy out of each other, and it’s overall a tad predictable.
Bizarrekult – Alt Som Finnes
Genre: Atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Emotional, philosophical, sad-yet-hopeful black metal, steeped in melancholy melody and mastering the switches between classic, raspy harshness and vulnerable cleans. It’s the type of release that will have a bunch of reviewers and commenters going on about how it absolutely crippled them emotionally. And for those so inclined/prone, I can see this being quite impactful. It’s even-tempered, not particularly varied, but consistently well thought out.
Highlight: “Avmakt”
Coscradh – Carving The Causeway To The Otherworld
Genre: Black/death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: This stuff sounds a bit like if the guys in Mayhem all got possessed by actual demons while in the recording studio. It’s very clearly evil as all hell, and just unhinged enough that you know they don’t want you to feel comfortable while listening to it. Vocals and riffs are drowned in the mix, the drums and bass are absolutely frantic, and the solos are ugly. It’s very much on the cusp of war metal, although not quite as punishing as the real heavyweights of that subgenre. Conceptually and in terms of how it feels it absolutely nails the objective of being an actual unnerving blackened death album, and it might have had even more of an impact if it didn’t sound like it’s about to shake itself apart half the time.
Highlight: “Adhradh Dé Ghoac”
Daidalos – Dante
Genre: Symphonic black metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: A Divine Comedy-themed spiral into the pits of hell, in expectedly bombastic fashion. It’s a dark, grand, well performed variant of symphonic black metal, that perhaps pulls a bit too much from power metal for its own good. It sounds good and has no massive faults, but also gets fairly simple and predictable in parts.
Domhain – In Perfect Stillness
Genre: Atmospheric black metal/shoegaze
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This album feels like it’s exploring and expanding upon a hidden world of gloom that can only be found at dusk. It has a stone-faced black metal core, and does put out a decent amount of aggression, but first and foremost it’s a flowing, meditative experience that pulls you into a tastefully dramatic soundscape and envelops you in folk-like melody and restrainedly progressive buildups and rhythm shifts. At its best it’s highly immersive, but I do find that it drags a bit at times. In total though, I find myself wanting more at the end of the roughly 35 minute runtime, and am looking forward to the continuation of this highly promising debut.
Highlights: “Talamh Lom” and “My Tomb Beneath The Tide”
Exhumed – Red Asphalt
Genre: Death metal/grindcore
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5Review: A gory death metal album about road accidents should carry some considerable speed, and Exhumed’s latest certainly does. Their fun-loving yet brutal brand of guts-wading, fairly shreddy old school morbidity does particularly well paired up with the impatience of grindcore. A lot of this is like getting Carcass with an axe and meat hammer instead of the array of scalpels, and it works perfectly for the high-tempo style they’re running with on “Red Asphalt”. The production is crisp and full, without an ounce of unnecessary fluff, and an improvement on 2022’s “To the Dead”, although that one did suit the more murky sound. This album just pulls, and pulls and pulls, showcasing an awe-inspiring range of vocal delivery, tempo control, groove, tonal nastiness and flirting with melody.
Highlights: “Shovelhead” and “Symphorophilia”
Incandescence – Hors Temps
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: On the border of turning atmospheric, Canada’s Incandescence keep up the misanthropic pressure all the way throughout their fifth full-length, and still scores high on immersion. It’s a solemn, subtly layered kind of sound that minutely changes character through minor tweaks in tone and tempo, sounding sincere and well-planted in their thematic realm. It sounds nothing like its Scandinavian counterparts, yet the differences are far from forced. It’s a steady march into darkness, with a gale made up of last breaths meeting you head on. Parts of it feel somewhat like death doom, but it doesn’t linger in any one direction for too long.
Highlights: “L’Enfer existe” and “Marasma”
Lead Injector – Witching Attack
Genre: Black/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: This is all about groovy, simple blackened fun. With a direct, sharp and thin sound, this sets off on a gleeful joyride across the graveyard, tossing around solos and knocking over tombstones with a thrashing baseball bat. It delivers no real surprises, and no massive highlights, but is a good bit of fun.
Nazghor – A World Ablaze
Genre: Melodic black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Straight-to-the-point, crunchy-riff black metal that soars on bone-chilling winds of tremolo melody and straightforward rhythms and blast beats. To those who have heard a good deal of this kind of stuff, a fair bit of it will feel like re-used old tricks, but it’s effective and suits the style that they’re going for. It’s darkly epic and melancholy, as you’d hope for, and contrasts it with crisp aggression,
Highlight: “Bathe in Ashes”
Serpent Gates – The Veil Of Darkness
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Finnish, mildly gothic heavy metal with plenty of groove and mid-tempo shred. The Bruce Dickinson-reminiscent vocals are a highlight, and they’ve got their style nailed down nice and confidently. Apart from the highlights, of which there are several, there are a few fairly unremarkable tracks that don’t add much but a few cool riffs and solos, but the overall delivery is on point and entertaining.
Highlight: “Down The Cross”
Stam1na – Apnea
Genre: Progressive metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Finnish Stam1na is just one of those bands that have somehow flown screaming past my radar in a moment of inattention. Actually, they’ve managed to do so 10 times, because this is in fact their 11th full-length album. Not being familiar with their discography, I’ll focus on what’s in front of me, which is thrashy prog metal, and the impressive part is that it sounds as experimental and whacky as you’d expect from a band that’s only just getting started. There are big contrasts in intensity – everything from rabid shredding and demonic snarls to soothing dips into pools of warm melodic bliss. And it all feels, somehow, both expertly controlled and organic, like they just came up with it on the fly, only nailing the cohesion thanks to massive talent and rock solid experience. Consider my attention well and fully captured.
Highlights: “Golem” and “Satiiri”
Sylosis – The New Flesh
Genre: Melodic/technical death/groove metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: I’ve been a Sylosis fan for some time, and this is probably the least like themselves I’ve ever hear them. Blistering technicality has always been at the forefront of what they do, tempered by a great melodic sense and a healthy portion of groove. These two aspect of their style have been given much stronger reign on this, their 7th full-length, and it’s, at least to me, leaning further towards metal- and deathcore than previously. Normally I would find this worrying, but so much of the thrashing signature style of the band is prominently intact that this feels more like flexing the borders of their expression. I’m not a fan of the ballad (!) that sort of just shows up on here, but other than this you’ll be swimming in infectious aggression delivered with commanding vocals and mind-blowingly tight instrumental performance.
Highlight: “The New Flesh” and “Spared From The Guillotine”
Zepter – Zepter
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Retro metal out of Austria, that hit perfectly on vibes and deliver plenty of gobble-up riffs. Melodically, it’s a bit more sketchy, and the vocal performance is really not for me. But if you just want to be transported back to the late 70s/early 80s, riding on a wave of enthusiasm, then dive right in.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band, or need to give an album another shot, why not pop a comment down below?
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Weekly rundown February 13 – 2026
Reviews of metal albums released February 07 – February 13
Considering the date, horror, gloom and dark fantasy all accompany an appropriately high number of this week’s releases.
Ashbringer – Subglacial
Genre: Atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Minnesotan sad, sad atmo-black metal band Ashbringer are unloading another collection of melodically devastating, depressive bitterness, this time eschewing clean vocals and going hard on the aggression as a contrast to the serenely flowing atmosphere. There’s plenty to get lost in, and the balance of intensity works very well. Too bad I, personally, can’t get past the (probably intentionally) awful production.
Highlight: “Subglacial”
Converge – Love Is Not Enough
Genre: Metallic hardcore/mathcore
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Veteran bands wondering how to sound vital 30 years into their career should take notes from Converge. The energy level on “Love Is Not Enough” is fully on par with more fresh-faced peers, and while the album doesn’t set out to establish any new stylistic paths or show the band from any revelatory new angles, it’s an impressively well-balanced mix of menacing grooves and in-your-face harshness. That being said, I wouldn’t say that it excels at neither mosh-friendliness nor math-y complexity, and leaves a few gaps where it seems slightly unwilling to fully commit to either. Still, a very solid release.
Highlights: “Force Meets Presence” and “Bad Faith”
Eye Of Purgatory – Darkborne
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Soon it’ll be more helpful pointing out the Swedish OSDM bands that don’t have Rogga Johansson contributing than doing the whole “Rogga… again?!”-acting-surprised-at-his-inhuman-productivity-thing. Here he’s working with a couple of Americans to make some appropriately spooky stuff for Friday the 13th. It’s riff-driven, fairly high tempo death metal stuffed with horror-movie synth, both as atmosphere and driving melody, and propelled by some distinctly light-footed drum work. It’s nothing hugely out of the ordinary, but is just the right degree of flippant and retro-oriented to allow for a whole heap of fun. Could’ve needed some more punch in the low end, but it’s not a glaring deficiency.
Highlights: “The Slithering” and “Formless Figures Dance”
Fossilization – Advent Of Wounds
Genre: Death/doom metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: If I was to describe the effect of this album in one word, it would be “imposing”. This is slow-moving, abyssal-toned death metal whose rumbling presence seems to destabilize your spine to have you slither across the floor in supplication. It’s plenty ominous and consistently dark and oppressive, although not overly unsettling. The band would seemingly rather have you filled with awe than outright unease. The progression feels controlled and gradual, although certainly not missing heft or brutality. The production is excellent, and the only real things I find myself missing is bigger contrasts in mood and intensity.
Highlights: “Servo” and “Cremation of a Seraph”
Frostmorner – Orbital Kaos
Genre: Death/black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Space-horror blackened death metal with modern, chunky chugs, a bit of prog otherness, and very sparse, spooky vocal work mostly half-lost in the atmosphere. It’s interesting enough as a concept, with a cool meld of sinister riffing and spacey synth, but ends up lacking in impactful songwriting.
Frozen Ocean – Askdrömmar
Genre: Atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Moody-melodied, Swedish atmo-black metal that adds some spacey electronica elements for a sense of otherworldliness to its otherwise fairly grounded approach of straightforward rhythms and classic, snarly harshness. Well crafted and fairly distinct, but feeling a bit repetitive.
Greyhawk – Warriors Of Greyhawk
Genre: Power/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Adventure time! This is the kind of album that instantly triggers that childish, starry-eyed, stick-fencing dreamer in you. Greyhawk returns with a new vocalist on their third full-length, and certainly doesn’t come out lacking in that department. Be it fist-pumping battle charges or clifftop serenades to the heavens, the energy of the moment is perfectly matched by the vocals. The playing is tightly performed, vibrant, solo loving and suitably epic, grounded by 80s heavy metal riffs the likes of Accept. It’s obviously not meant to be serious, but is so competently performed, varied and highly enjoyable that it sort of demands your attention. The album starts off very strong, and even though it doesn’t quite keep that up for the entirety of the perhaps over-long runtime, I’d say there are no noteworthy missteps on here.
Highlights: “Ascension” and “Warriors of Greyhawk”
Overtoun – Death Drive Anthropology
Genre: Experimental death/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This thing is not quite like anything I’ve ever heard before, and that in itself is pretty exciting. The fact that they’re using death and thrash as the base ingredients for their bold, style-melding experimentation is a further endearing factor in my book, and the choice of stretching conventionality pretty far, but not all the way to the breaking point, has resulted in an album that, although a bit uneven, will catch you off guard more than a few times, while also allow you to enjoy yourself. You get a punk-y disdain for rules, with a jazz-y, prog-y attitude to rhythm-, melodic- and mood shifts, adding a thrash- and hardcore-derived love for crisp beats and riffs and a splash of death metal savagery on top of that. In between are traces of black metal, and an overall strong influx of traditional Latin American music. The album flow does suffer a bit from all this stylistic wriggling, but there’s also clearly some strong ideas behind it all, with each track serving a different purpose. Takes a bit to get used to, but in the end I find myself loving it exactly because it’s a bit of a hodgepodge.
Highlights: “Death Drive Anthropology” and “Dur Khrod”
Ponte Del Diavolo – De Venom Natura
Genre: Doom/black metal/punk
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This Italian band quickly won me over with their debut album “Fire Blades From The Tomb”. It took the slightly tongue-in-cheek occultism of early Ghost and took it to a gloomy, forbidden place, infusing it with black metal chilliness, but keeping the classic doom pace and relative accessibility. On their sophomore release, Ponte Del Diavolo have refined their sound, cleaned up their production and boosted the punk tendencies that were also present on the debut. The downside is that it simply doesn’t sound as mystical or shady as before, but on the plus side it’s got a wider range and stronger sonic impact, with most of the occult vibe still intact, now with a slightly more gothic flavor. The first two thirds of the album are really strong, then it feels like they ran a bit low on new tricks towards the end. Still, this is a band that still very much understands what makes them unique, and probably trying to nudge themselves ever so slightly closer to the spotlight without fully abandoning the shadows.
Highlights: “Lunga vita alla necrosi” and “Il veleno della Natura”
Slaughterday – Dread Emperor
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Slaughterday is a German, mystical horror-leaning death metal band that’s been going for a little while now, and are now on their fifth full-length. They deliver a meaty, ominous sound with good crunch to the riffs, and some eager solo work. It’s nothing unique, but solid stuff with a generous handful of standout moments that is sure to please fans of both traditional and more melodic death metal, bringing to mind Vader if you were to take the thrash out of their style. The album is a bit short on grooves for my taste, but delivers big on menace, energy and coherence.
Highlight: “Dethroned”
Sundecay – The Blood Lives Again
Genre: Doom metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Canadian band Sundecay know how to move around in the classic doom space in a way that brings in elements that highlight their strengths, forging a sound of their own, without breaking out of the genre confines and becoming a hybrid. This is slow, solemn stuff with a dark tone, but with flavors of prog, psychedelia, sludge, stoner and a touch of alternative. There’s measured melody with a certain epic flavor, which builds the scope without taking off and leaving the earth behind. There are a few slightly stagnant sections throughout, but also sort of not more than you’d expect for something moving at this pace. It offers both engaging riffs and drifts into soulful calm, making for a highly impressive, style-confident debut full-length.
Highlights: “Here Comes the Wizard” and “The Tyranny Rushes In”
Worm – Necropalace
Genre: Black/doom/death metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5Review: For most underground extreme metal bands, attempting to retain that charming murkiness and edge of experimentation, that “new to all this” wonderment and eagerness of stretching the foundational form of expression, doesn’t easily go hand in hand with maturing. In fact, it can probably seem contradictory. Not so for Worm. With “Foreverglade” and the EP “Bluenothing” raising expectations stratosphere-high, the solution seems to have been to start in the place they left off and stake out a fresh, but strongly related new course, that’s very much in the musical and thematic wheelhouse. And that course is symphonic, strongly gothic-tinged black metal, overarching, but far from completely overpowering the death doom that dominated before. There’s no subtlety about it. It’s as darkly epic as it’s damn near possible to imagine, while still hostile and just the right level of nerdy, with massive fun factor coming from the insanely strong melody and solo work. And it’s still heavy, ominous, expansive and moderately unpredictable. It would seem we’re in safe hands.
Highlight: “Witchmoon: The Infernal Masquerade” and “Necropalace”
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band, or need to give an album another shot, why not pop a comment down below?
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Weekly rundown February 06 – 2026
Reviews of metal albums released January 31 – February 06
We’ve another week that’s on the verge of being overrun with violence and misery, but a few rays of riffy mood-boosters manage to balance it out.
Agenbite Misery – Remorse Of Conscience
Genre: Experimental black/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: This feels a bit like wandering into a mentally disturbed person’s dream. At times you’re just floating along, observing vaguely defined proceedings, and at times the subconscious takes notice of you and either sends out warnings in bursts of harshness or gives chase with hysterical anger. In the end, I find that too few of the slow buildups have a satisfying peak, and often deflate before realizing their full potential. But if you’re looking for a darkly offbeat dive into maddening, blackened death doom that both soothes and bites hard, then it will deliver.
Highlight: “Circe”
Ensanguinate – Death Saturnalia
Genre: Death/black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: This Slovenian band dropped a solid, hard hitting debut of a blackened death metal album back in 2022, and I liked it quite a bit. It wasn’t what you’d call genre bending, but delivered strongly on conviction and forcefulness. On this follow-up they’ve partially set the death metal chugs aside in favor of loading on black metal venom. It sounds sharper, more sinister, eschewing low end heft and riff crunch for reverb and cutting tremolo. It’s a welcome style exploration for the band instead of simply making more of the same, although, at least to me, not with quite as consistent a result this time around. It pulls a bit from speed metal and gothic as well, and doesn’t seem to quite make up its mind about being an atmosphere-leaning, oppressive fiend or a rowdy, unholy rebel, not ending up as super convincing as either. Still, they do a lot of things right, and those caring a bit less about album consistency will likely find a good deal to like.
Highlight: “Gloaming” and “Angel of a Thousand Poisons”
Epinikion – The Force Of Nature
Genre: Symphonic metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Dutch symphonic metal with a touch of melodeath-like folk flavor and heaviness. It doesn’t go overboard with neither the instrumental nor the vocal bombast, and doesn’t try to build a tower cake of layers in the production. It won’t blow your mind in terms of songwriting, but delivers both in terms of epic impact and dynamic melodic work, with solid performances and a good deal of pleasing riffs and solos to go with it.
Full House Brew Crew – Glasgow Grin
Genre: Groove metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: This deathcore-flirting heavy groove band is all about the beats. Harsh chugs and punishing rhythms are front and center, with actual groove taking more of a back seat role, although it’s certainly not missing altogether. It’s fairly nimble, aggressive and pretty catchy, but feels fairly hollow.
In Aeternum – …Of Death And Fire
Genre: Death/black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: How about a blackened death metal sound that lets in a slight breeze of melodeath, but without most of the actual melody? In Aeternum is a Swedish band here releasing their debut full-length of highly aggressive, fairly stark, snarly and unholy-sounding death metal, built on classic riff styles and with a good deal of wailing solo work. It exudes menacing energy, but also has a slightly off-putting fascination with dissonance, breaking off ripping riff lines with plunges into disharmony, killing the groove and messing up the flow. If you’re into this kind of intentional ugliness, then no harm no foul. But if you want to get some headbanging done, then you might find it slightly disturbing.
Highlight: “Bow To None”
Induction – Love Kills!
Genre: Power metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Extremely well-produced, 80’s leaning power metal blending superb vocals with smooth, full instrumentation for a massive dose of epic fun. There’s hardly a shred of originality to be found, and the lyrics are inane, but the synth work in particular is sublime and it scores high on style and consistency.
Karnivool – In Verses
Genre: Progressive metal/rock
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Bursting with engaging, frail yet warmly supportive melody, carried on smooth, expertly controlled waves of winding rhythms, cushioning bass and impactful riffs, Karnivool returns with their first album in thirteen years. To those expecting soft melancholy first and intricate prog instrumentation and/or heaviness second, this should prove immensely rewarding. Personally I was hoping for a better balance between beauty and force, but much of the energy is burned off with the first three tracks, never really to return. Apart from this, it’s a sublime listening experience from start to finish.
Highlights: “Drone” and “Ghost”
Lomor – Sabouk Rouge
Genre: Thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Hailing from the French-owned island of Reunion, the remoteness of their origins doesn’t seem to have affected Lomor’s brand of thrash metal in any noteworthy way. This is all about the riffs, with a side of tastily rusty vocals. As tasty as the shredding might be, the spaces in between are lacking in substance, and the flow is impeded by less-than-smooth rhythm transitions. The anger and attitude is there though.
Mayhem – Liturgy Of Death
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This sounds like the distinctly un-theatrical theatre of death and disgust. Mayhem bring a surprising amount of drama on their seventh full-length, with accompanying sense of depth and scale. But unlike many other contemporaries that take black metal in a more expansive direction, they don’t for a second cross into caricature, nor do they really branch off from the trunk of the subgenre. You get influxes of frigid melody, symphonic grandeur and occult atmosphere, with bursts of fury approaching blackened death metal, but this is much less experimentation or any sort of departure from the core sound than it is expressing the same idea armed with a meticulously outfitted toolkit. It feels refined, which might not be in line with the band’s origins, but nor does it in any way feel blunted or overly polished. This is evil first and foremost, and convincingly so.
Highlights: “Weep for Nothing” and “Propitious Death”
Mors Verum – Canvas
Genre: Progressive death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Whether you want to call this a long EP or a short album, it offers more than enough twists and turns to leave a lasting impact. There is no straight path for the kind of death metal that Mors Verum plays. It scurries, pauses, charges and thrashes around in place and interestingly plays around, to great success, with both dissonance and melody. There is beauty, ugliness and engaging brutality in equal measure. It will poke at your brain with chaotic rhythms and instrumental wails just long enough to approach it being unbearable, and then quickly change it up for either controlled riffing or contemplative, sometimes almost meditative offshoots of relative calm. It doesn’t always feel fully purposeful, but showcases both excellent instrumental control and creativity.
Highlights: “Canvas” and “Your Apocalypse”
Night Of The Vampire – The Enchanting Winds Of The Dreamweaving Masquerade
Genre: Black/heavy metal/synthwave
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Black metal fans in particular seem to love niche stuff, and this is certainly that. The really cool part is when this kind of weirdness actually makes sense, in that the blending of elements is complementary, resulting in not only a unique sound but one that both matches the thematic concept and is engaging, entertaining, or at least transportive as a musical experience. In this, Night of the Vampire’s mix of black metal vocals, catchy hard rock/heavy metal biker bar riffs and gothic synth melodies and atmosphere works very well. Once your brain adjusts and you’re able to take it for what it is, all of it makes complete sense. I will say that there are parts and moods that feel repeated and stretched out unnecessarily, but I nonetheless applaud the investment into this very peculiar style.
Highlights: “Chasing Shadows in an Ocean of Time” and “Mother Moon of the Astral Dawn”
Paganizer – As Mankind Rots
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: It’s a new year and the Rogga Johansson train keeps chugging on. At this point in the rotation it’s time for old school Swedish, quasi-melodic death metal project Paganizer to deliver, and for already established fans of this kind of sound, meaning specifically those that can’t get enough of it, the Swedes do, indeed, deliver. It’s tight, crusty, well-produced and with just the right kind of death ‘n’ roll attitude. But other than being more corpse-garnished food for the ever-hungering morbid masses, I don’t know that there’s much purpose to this album. It sounds more or less exactly like dozens of its ilk, isn’t stupidly fun or exciting, and has a few less-than-impressive performances. I like it because it sounds more exactly the way I would hope it to, but objectively that’s not a massive feat to be rewarded.
Highlight: “Eon of Obscenity”
Phendrana – Cathexis
Genre: Progressive/atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: A four-track album with increasing runtimes, this is not for those seeking instant gratification, at least not in the black metal department. There’s a lot of folk-like, moody melody to before and in between, but luckily it’s a treat to listen to – serene and moving. When the harshness kicks in it’s direct and in line with the feel that’s been built up, although I’d say that the more dissonant prog twists and turns it gets into is unnecessarily off-putting. It gets into its stride about halfway through the album, which might be too late for some, but the following blend of anger and melancholy is one to be savored.
Highlight: “Sentience”
Sleeping Giant – The Beauty Of Obliteration
Genre: Stoner/sludge metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: A growling, fun-loving stoner doom project out of Iceland that’s much more forward-leaning into catchy grooves and driving rhythms than the bent-over, smoking orc on the album cover might lead you to expect. Every track on this fairly short album is entertaining in its own right, with approaches varying between slightly dragging stomps up to full on thrash gallops. There’s a bit of repetition to be found, and it’s not what I’d call inventive, but it’s a real good time with a punchy low end and great energy.
Highlight: “Slay the King of Hell”
Tailgunner – Midnight Blitz
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: So it only took the two and a half years leading up to their second album for Tailgunner to grow their sound big, mostly ditching their slightly scruffy NWONHM charm behind to soar beyond the turbulent storm clouds into the blue skies and start dropping ballads like big squishy bombs of cheese. Oh-oh, sounds like the start of a scathing review, right? Well, although I do feel like a good bit of character and fitting roughness has been lost, and even though a lot of these new tracks seem to insist that they should be sad for some reason, this is, at the end of the day, still very fun and entertaining heavy metal with lots of cool riffs and solos, power metal bombast and thrash efficiency. Job done, right? Yes and no. It takes a bit more absent-mindedness now to ignore the silly lyrics, but it’s definitely more varied, and delivers in terms of performances and theme.
Highlight: “Blood Sacrifice”
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band, or need to give an album another shot, why not pop a comment down below?
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Weekly rundown January 30 – 2026
Reviews of metal albums released January 24 – January 30
Black, death and doom metal deliver the goods this week, taking various forms to welcome in a wide range of preferences.
Banisher – Metamorphosis
Genre: Technical/progressive death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Semi-modern, speed- and groove-minded tech death out of Poland is what we’ve got here. It’s not trying to break any records in terms of brutality, heaviness or agility, instead going for an, at times, almost hard rock-reminiscent kind of light-footedness and a prog-like interest in structure and rhythm. Every now and then this results in something actually quite arresting, but it’s not quite consistently entertaining or interesting enough to leave a lating mark.
Circular Ruin – A Sermon In Tongues
Genre: Progressive black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Don’t expect anything deeply conceptual, but Swedish band Circular Ruin also don’t play strictly by the black metal rules on their debut full-length. Buddy-subgenres death, gothic and speed all come on temporary visits, with others stopping by as well. Parts of it bring a non-melodic and chilly Tribulation to mind. Overall there’s a slight over-reliance on tonal and technical tropes, and I don’t think that quite enough of the distance towards a true genre blend is travelled in order to achieve notable distinction. But it’s well performed and consistent in style, laying a strong foundation for further expansion of their sound.
Highlight: “The Altering Altar”
Invictus (JPN) – Nocturnal Visions
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: If you want to liven up classic, lurching, groaning, graveyard-grinding death metal without losing that feeling of merciless dread, then I can think of few better ingredients than thrash. Japanese band Invictus have added just the right amount to avoid speeding off and leaving the ominous-toned malevolence behind, while supplying murderous riff candy in spades. It’s a hungry beast that lures you in with nod-along grooves, then strikes from below and churns up the ground around you in bedrock-crushing jaws. It’s not exactly what I’d call a fun album, but it does appeal to that primitive appreciation for raw, chugging wickedness. Not hugely varied, but solid from start to finish.
Highlights: “Lucid Dream Trauma” and “Frozen Tomb”
Kosuke Hashida – Moment Of Silence
Genre: Grindcore/death/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Here’s a band that will not wait for you one single second. They rip away on their unstoppable killing spree from the very first second, and pull you – joints dislocating and feet flapping in the slipstream – along for the indiscriminate carnage. Kosuke Hashida is a deathgrind project out of Tokyo further supercharged with thrash and speed metal, resulting in a runtime of roughly 20 minutes spread out over 14 blistering tracks. I was fully onboard for last year’s “Outrage”, and on “Moment Of Silence” they’ve achieved a crisper production and tighter performances overall, with about the same balance of all-out rampage and high-tempo riff grooves. With the last one they narrowly escaped the feeling of repetition, managing a moderate variation in tempo and ferocity, but this time around I’d say they’ve tipped the scale, making for a few noticeably interchangeable sections throughout. That being said, the savagery has been upped considerably, which I hardly thought was possible, and the delivery is absolutely on point, meaning I can’t help but have a great fucking time from tip to tail.
Highlights: “Left in Pieces” and “Tokyo Calling”
Lone Wanderer – Exequiae
Genre: Doom metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: If nothing else will do but a solid overdose of gothic, funeral-procession grimness, then this is exactly the kind of stuff the doctor is likely to order. For a 1hr 12min+ album this flows surprisingly well, at least through the first two songs, and then it seems to lose its bearings slightly in the mist, and slows into even more of a lurch. Beautifully tragic melodies describe the ponderous journey all along, although some of the momentum bleeds off along the way. You’re accompanied by groan-growly vocals and lamenting riffs that are tastefully well defined through the production. A bit overindulgent, but well layered and quite absorbing.
Highlight: “Existence Nullified”
Malignant Aura – Where All Of Worth Comes To Wither
Genre: Death/doom metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Australia’s Malignant Aura know how to effectively employ ugliness in their death doom, and they hit the sweet spot balancing between the pitfalls of messy ear torture and disturbing theatricality on this their second full-length. This isn’t the kind of stuff that gets lost in winding tunnel systems for minutes on end, only occasionally rearing its head to let out a ragged roar from decomposing vocal chords. This thing thunders along with purpose, crashing through barriers and only occasionally slowing to chew the prey and random debris it’s scooped up in its monstrous maw. It’s got strong momentum, but enough patience to creep you out from time to time with stalking crawls and unnerving, wet gurgling. It might be a bit too preoccupied with mood and style to go anywhere revelatory, but it’s a savage beast of several talents that successfully expands beyond narrow genre confines to deliver both pulse-raising brutality as well as subterranean discomfort.
Highlight: “An Abhorrent Path to Providence” and “Beneath a Crown of Anguish”
Møl – Dreamcrush
Genre: Progressive black/alternative metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Call it blackgaze, call it blackened alt rock, call it progressive post-black metal, the fact that it’s not a simple task to label is absolutely part of the appeal. You’ve got snarling aggression and crackling, bitter riffs dancing rather than playing tug-of-war with indie- and garage rock rhythms and harmonious, clean, alt-tinged vocals, and heartening, vibrant electronica-boosted melodies swirling around moments of feet-shuffling bleakness. Those hoping for an equal balance of nihilistic heaviness and uplifting balminess might find themselves overstuffed with the latter, especially in the middle section of the album, but adjusting your expectations you’ll likely be able to to appreciate just how well these two extremes are woven together.
Highlights: “Young” and “Garland”
Orgg – Indomita
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: An Italian semi-melodic black metal band here releasing their third full-length, blending war-themed, lamenting solemnness with classic, hoarse-snarling, tremolo-fronted aggression. They’ve got some odd quirks in terms of rhythm transitions here and there, and not the best flow, but a cohesive temperament and convincing mood.
Sanctvs – De l’Abîme au Plérôme
Genre: Atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: This is the kind of sound you’d expect to herald the end of the world. It’s monumental without being too dense, and balances harsh clamor with bittersweet, sweeping shards of melody. The mood is fairly uniform throughout, but the feeling of scope and directness varies with the changing current of intensity. There are epic, truly arresting parts as there are sections of fairly typical blastbeats and tremolo, but it’s all performed very well regardless of perceived originality.
Highlight: “Rex Hominum”
Shine – Wrathcult
Genre: Black/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: A riff-focused blackened death project out of Poland that foregoes thematic depth for directness and energy-rich musicality, with elements of heavy- and thrash metal in the riff- and rhythm style. It sort of lands in between a lot of different chairs – not quite catchy enough to be super fun and not dark or brutal enough to deliver any sort of gut-punch. But with a clearer sense of direction I see this going promising places.
Skulld – Abyss Calls To Abyss
Genre: Death/thrash metal/hardcore
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: It’s not often I go from track to track to track on an album wondering when the hell it’s gonna stop being unapologetically badass, only to find that it simply doesn’t. At least until the album actually ends. This is Italian band Skulld’s sophomore full-length, and it took me completely by surprise. The tone, mentality and beefiness is all death metal, but it’s mostly played like metallic hardcore and thrash at mid- to high tempos, alternating crunchy grooves with reckless stampedes and threatening tribal beats. The vocals roar, snarl and shout, and while it’s always aggressive, the mood shifts between in-your-face intimidation to ominous prowling to playful spite to bloodthirsty chases. It’s not super tightly performed, it’s not impeccably put together, but good goddamn hell it still slaps like a nuclear-powered revolving door.
Highlights: “Le Diable and the Snake” and “Mother Death”
Stabbing – Eon Of Obscenity
Genre: Brutal death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This isn’t the place to come to for “with the program”-reviews of brutal death metal, as much of the appeal of the hallmark tropes of the subgenre is mostly lost on me. The mechanical, clicky rhythms, the percussive riffs, the monotone vocal approach – it all becomes a bit too predictable for me, and I’m faced with all of these elements on this latest album by Texas band Stabbing. That being said, this delivers on many other fronts as well. The unnerving tech-ticks, the beastly guitar tone, the clear interest in delivering chugging punishment in a whole host of different forms and tempos. It feels massive, with obvious involvement from the people behind it, with enough highlights to keep even my interest throughout.
Highlights: “Eon of Obscenity” and “Inhuman Torture Chamber”
Tarlung – Axis Mundi
Genre: Doom/stoner/sludge metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: Fuzz-crunchy, moderately muted, groovy, coarse-vocal goodness all the way. Austrian band Tarlund sounds like one of those stoner-doom bands that’s out on a steadily marching journey. “Axis Mundi” presents a back-to-basics, deliberate, unadorned kind of sound that lays bare a few imperfections, and boosts charm as a consequence. It’s not an altogether tame kind of experience, as dreamy, slow-flowing melodic and clean parts are contrasted by rumbling storm fronts of crashing heaviness. It never gets out of hand, but secures a sense of slight unpredictability and adventure that involves both revelation, relaxation, whimsy and danger.
Highlights: “Axis Mundi” and “The Valley of Nowhere”
Urne – Setting Fire To The Sky
Genre: Metalcore/sludge metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: I was quite favorably inclined towards Urne’s last album, 2023’s “A Feast On Sorrow”, with its characteristic blend of snarling sludge, acrobatic thrash and groovy metalcore, with a good bit of stark emotion thrown in there as well. Surprisingly, most of these qualities are missing on “Setting Fire To The Sky”. It’s now far friendlier, warmer, simpler. The rhythms are straightforward, the aggression has been dulled down and it’s much more uniform in style. It still carries emotion, but it’s softer, less urgent. Elements of Mastodon and Gojira have entered the formula. It sounds bigger, chunkier, better defined. And it’s far from bad. But it’s also far from daring.
Highlight: “Setting Fire To The Sky”
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band, or need to give an album another shot, why not pop a comment down below?
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Weekly rundown January 23 – 2026
Reviews of metal albums released January 17 – January 23
A week dominated by thrash and metalcore, where we say goodbye to one of the titans of the metal world and are reassured by the talent of the still up-and-coming.
Asaru – V.O.I.D.
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Here we have some German black metal that, for once, isn’t atmospheric. In fact, most of this is right-to-the-point, aggressive and fiercely riffing unholiness knocking on the door of thrash, and even stealing a few glances at groove and melodeath. But these are mostly surface-level, instrumental influences. Mood-wise, it’s mean and bleak, also prone to slowing down into sections of melodic moroseness. Aside from some questionably produced clean vocals and a few awkward transitions and riff lines, the main thing holding this album back is not the technicality, energy output or stylistic choices, but the simple lack of ear-catchiness. It sounds really good for 10-15 minutes, and then the freshness wanes off a bit.
Barbarian – Reek Of God
Genre: Speed/black metal/punk
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Barbarian are a proudly blasphemous blackened speed outfit from Italy playing a distinctly rough-edged and punk-ed up variation of the subgenre. This isn’t the classic thin-sounding gallop-guitar race to the finish with some bright screeches along the way. It’s coarse, disorganized, and asking for a fight. Dry growls accompany brawling drum work and guitars that feel like a dog alternating between flying at the throat of everyone it sees and furiously tugging chunks off a single unfortunate. A lot of it is endearing, while some of it feels, at least to me, a bit sloppy. Look past the childish spoken-word album intro warning believers (who for some reason put on an album called “Reek of God”) of the offensive contents, and have some fun with this one.
Highlight: “Eighth Sacrament”
Cadavrul – Necrotic Savagery
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Chunky death metal out of Romania that’s the sonic equivalent of a highly genre-conscious zombie splatter film. Lively drum work propels chompy, grinding riffs into a proper meatgrinder of a pit-inducing frenzy, mostly favoring guitar solos over breakdowns. It’s a good deal of morbid fun, but lacks the urgency of a band like Werewolves, getting a bit too laid back at times and revealing a slightly lower affinity for slow-going death doom style chugging.
Crystal Lake – The Weight Of Sound
Genre: Metalcore
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: The seventh full-length from Japanese metalcore outfit Crystal Lake, with their previous one being 2020’s “The Voyages”. And with the aptly titled “The Weight of Sound” they’re returning with a bang. This is a technical onslaught of modern aggression closing in on deathcore heaviness and loading on the intensity, at least in the first quarter of the album. But just at the point where it starts getting a tad tiresome, they change things up and add in more clean sections and rhythm variations, without messing up the momentum. They manage to calm things down without completely exposing any sort of mushy, overly vulnerable underbelly to their sound, laying on emotion without diluting the urgency that they set out with. There are instances of over-simplified choruses and technical tropes, but nothing offensive, and overall they manage a superb balance between groove, peppy beats, vibrant melodies and riff-driven punishment.
Highlights: “Crossing Nails” and “The Weight of Sound”
Deathraiser – Forged In Hatred
Genre: Thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Back with their sophomore album after a mere 15 years, Brazilian band Deathraiser clearly aim to build on their foundation of furious, balls-to-the-wall thrash metal, leaving you with backswept hair (and/or beard) in the aftermath of this gale of aggression. That being said, this feels a tad more reigned in than 2011’s “Violent Aggression”, opting for a pinch more mid-tempo grooves and prioritizing ordered instrumental interplay and low-end heft over all out relentlessness. That said, it’s still plenty intense and focused, and aided by a far superior production it delivers its ravenous riffs, screaming solos and charging beats in satisfyingly impactful fashion. Not a revelation, but a stripped down hellion of a genre-true banger.
Highlight: “Everything Dies”
Furi Helium – No Altar Stands Eternal
Genre: Thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: Spanish thrash tends to be a great heap of fun for fans of both the modern and old school iterations of the subgenre. Enthusiasm is almost always the key, and while this album doesn’t quite offer the same no-holds-barred riot that bands like Crisix put out, it’s still very much a feisty little miscreant exuding up-yours energy, just more prone to controlled, catchy groove and more strongly attempting memorable choruses and melody lines. It works to a degree, but also leaves pockets of somewhat repetitive and interchangeable riff lines. But they break it up with great bass acrobatics and cheeky gallops, and match the instrumental attitude with Alexi Laiho-like snarling vocals.
Highlight: “Fall in Disgrace”
Karloff – Revered By Death
Genre: Black/sludge metal/punk
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Blackened punk is one of those subgenres that I feel get away with being quite understated, both in terms of production, instrumental complexity and even the level of perceived involvement in the performances, with little heed paid to overall refinement. Mood and attitude is more important. Karloff have both those things nailed down, and add on to it with sludgy coarseness and low-end heft. They don’t stick to one type of approach, but transition between rowdy riff romps and black-hooded, slow-burn bitterness, with a genuinely creepy and engrossing instrumental interlude with “On Weathered Altar” being one of the highlights of the experience. Not all of it leaves as much of a mark, but for those enjoying black ‘n’ roll-esque irreverence with strong personality and an actual bit of depth, this should hit the mark pretty well dead on.
Highlights: “Pessimistic Soaring” and “Regicide”
Megadeth – Megadeth
Genre: Thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This is it, then. The last hurrah of the Dave Mustaine-fronted thrash legends. And in the best possible way, this self-titled, 17th album feels like a joining of present and path. With both their last two releases, I’ve been of the opinion that they’ve managed to encapsulate the very essence of metal music, and present it in a way that would both be the perfect introduction to those that have yet to “get” the more traditional, non-extreme subgenres, and providing inspiration to those that wish to see the classic bay-area style live on without simply reproducing the sound of the 80s. That continues on “Megadeth”, blending mature technical showmanship and glint-in-the-eye aggression with songwriting that considers theme and stylistic legacy as much as entertainment factor. There are very clear nods in select vocal attitudes, solos and melody lines to past glories, and for me at least this invokes a strong sense of nostalgia without reducing the whole thing into a retrospective, even with the “Ride The Lightning” cover at the end. Overall there are a few too many mid-tempo tracks for my liking, and the energy seems to dissipate a bit towards the end, so if you hoped they might end on a massive bang, you might be slightly disappointed. But you also get a great mix of hard-hitting and massively catchy riffage, brilliant solos and a good deal of light-hearted punk vibes balancing out more solemn atmosphere. It’s a great band calling it quits while they’re still an absolute highlight of their genre, and this feels like a fitting, if not resounding final statement.
Highlights: “Made To Kill” and “Tipping Point”
Meteora – Darkest Light
Genre: Symphonic metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Hungarian symphonic metal band Meteora combine mighty storm fronts of symphonic bombast with Finnish-style melodic aggression, adding thrashy riffs and harsh vocals to the usual semi-operatic ones. While there are elements of folk, they are not particularly pronounced compared to the moderate neoclassical influences and modern heavy metal and hard rock riffs and rhythms. It’s a heavyweight of an album at over 63 minutes runtime, and could have used a bit of trimming, but compared to many of its peers it’s refreshingly varied and unpredictable, offering a decent range of moods and good range of intensity, although with a few slightly iffy performances and vocal/instrumental harmonies.
Highlight: “Rebirth”
Sad Whisperings – The Hermit
Genre: Melodic death/doom metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: A meeting of groove-forward, semi-melodic death thrash and moody doom to mostly quite enjoyable effect. They employ a full low end, giving it mass and gravitas, and allowing the riffs to hit hard without taking any sort of overly aggressive or brutal approach. But the almost gothic-melodic, solemn slow sections sap energy as much as the up-tempo parts break with the sense of occasion, almost as if they’re not confident in any single approach being enough to win an audience over.
Textures – Genotype
Genre: Progressive metal/metalcore
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This album effectively introduced me to Dutch band Textures, of which I’ve been completely oblivious up to this point. They describe themselves as a melodic, metalcore-based take on djent-styled extreme prog, and while I can agree that this is accurate as a rough framework for what they do, it’s also not enough to give a helpful impression of what’s in store for you on “Genotype”. Yes, they work themselves up to some semi-dissonant chugs, and the general vocal and riff style definitely fit loosely into a modern metalcore setup. But the technical fluidity and maturity in terms of songwriting and layering of elements is such that you quickly forget about genre conventions. Powerful vocals lead on across a deeply dynamic soundscape that takes you all the way from electronic rock to technical death metal in terms of intensity. It’s mainly melodic and effortlessly catchy, with gorgeous details to be found both in foreground and background. Perhaps not quite as daring as their talents could allow them to be, it’s still a forceful return after a 10-year release gap, offering something both accessible enough for the uninitiated and sufficiently complex for more seasoned prog aficionados.
Highlights: “Closer To The Unknown” and “At The Edge Of Winter”
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band, or need to give an album another shot, why not pop a comment down below?
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Weekly rundown January 16 – 2026
Reviews of metal albums released January 10 – January 16
This week’s releases don’t hold back in the slightest, pouring on aggression, bombast or atmospheric mood, leaving no question about their intended style.
Carrion VAEl – Slay Utterly
Genre: Technical/melodic death metal/deathcore
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: As interpretations of sonic carnage go, this is an extravagant one. Very much in the vein of bands like Summoning the Lich, Carrion Vael play distinctly technical and symphonic-leaning modern melodeath with vocal and rhythmic styles that will appeal just as much, if not more, to fans of melodic deathcore. They employ a massive, relentless sound that seeks to stampede all over you repeatedly, but there are also thematic intros of contrasting musical styles employing acoustic instruments and clean vocals, allowing you to reset before the next onslaught. While not exactly boundary-pushing, the album is loaded with bangers, performed with awesome precision, strong melodic aptitude and a clear desire to build on the formula and mix related styles.
Highlight: “Bisection 47” and “Truth Or Consequences”
Death Cult – Death Cult
Genre: Sludge metal/hardcore
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: A howling, barely controlled tumble down a pit of existential despair, where you’re repeatedly stomped on by massive manifestations of humanity’s collective woes. This is the debut full-length of French sludgecore band Death Cult, and it seems they’ve unleashed enough pent up anger to sustain a good handful of albums, all in one go. It’s dark, coarse, with massive, chugging riffs and a tone so heavy it sounds like it would crack apart a concrete floor. A few sections get slightly repetitive, and the slower sections drag a bit, but they also build pressure, raising expectations for the next release of crushing fury.
Highlight: “Feeling Of Death”
Edenbridge – Set The Dark On Fire
Genre: Symphonic metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: This newest album by Austrian Symphonic metal band Edenbridge is like being whisked along on a slightly detached adventure, overlooking fantastically impactful events from a vantage points up in the clouds. At its best it feels both rousing and emotionally invested, but there are also a few too many parts with clunky melodic transitions, well-worn lyrical concepts and utterly unengaging rhythms. There are ups and downs, enough to please fans, but not to convince the average listener.
Hyperion – Cybergenesis
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: A dose of classic heavy metal coming at your from Italy, reminding me of Saxon first and foremost. If you’re just looking for that shreddy, no-nonsense hit of uncomplicated nostalgia, this will do the trick. The first part of the album is lively and fairly vital, but unfortunately it doesn’t last, and they seem to turn on the cruise control from about the fourth track and out. Nothing actively bad, but fairly unremarkable.
Kreator – Krushers Of The World
Genre: Thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Your take on this album is going to depend greatly on what kind of Kreator you want to come leaping out of the speakers at you. If you just want thrash, thrash and more thrash, at the very least you need to skip past the first four tracks, because judging by the first half of the album you’d think that they’ve fully converted into a modern melodeath band, very much reminiscent of Arch Enemy. And all throughout “Krushers Of The World” you get strong influxes of heavy- and even power metal, pushing melody to the forefront, prioritizing catchy, straightforward rhythms and insisting on nod-along, anthemic choruses. Worry not, there are plenty of ripping riffs in store, but if that’s mainly what you’re hoping for, then you’re likely going to be left with too little for it to be worth your time. However, if you like the band playing around with their sound and providing an easy-to-like sense of occasion with unmistakable Kreator character, then this album is very much for you.
Highlight: “Deathscream”
Marianas Rest – The Bereaved
Genre: Atmospheric doom/death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Review: Bring on the grey weather feels. Marianas Rest is organizing a depressive-meditative retreat to the remote Finnish wilderness, having you trek along misty lakes, rocky mountainsides and whispering forests. Their style is folk-infused and expansively atmospheric melodeath played as doom. The song runtimes aren’t actually all that long, but they feel like they go on forever, and that’s mostly meant as a compliment. This is an escape, after all, sampling tragedy and melancholy as a way of opening up repressed pockets of your psyche. Overall, it is a tad monotone, but the balance of immersive melody, satisfying riffs, bitter aggression and rewarding buildups is exactly how you want it for this kind of style. If you have the patience for the sedate pace and don’t expect massive contrasts, I highly recommend letting this album carry you off into the muted expanse.
Highlights: “Rat in the Wall” and “Diamonds in the Rough”
Ov Sulfur – Endless
Genre: Symphonic/blackened deathcore
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Review: At its best this is a cathedral-sized gargoyle come to demonic life and laying waste to anything remotely pious in its immediate surroundings. Striding forth on massive roars and thundering riffs, with bitter-tinged melodies blaring into the black skies. But it also dips all the way into creed-level acoustic ballad territory to deliver some ear-wrenchingly on-the nose emotion, which breaks completely with the superficially unholy theme. And for large sections it’s so compulsively breakdown-prone that the progression grinds to a complete halt. For fans of the style it delivers more than enough oomph to get wild to, but it will most likely repel everyone else.
Total Annihilation – Mountains of Madness
Genre: Thrash/death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Review: This is the perfect sound to accompany an album cover adorned by carnivorous mountaintops and a good ‘ol pile of skulls. From the very first few seconds you’re in no doubt that you’re in for an absolute ripper of a rough-edged thrash record adorning itself unabashedly with the morbid trappings of old school death metal. No distractions, no unwarranted experimentation, just a snarling, chasing-the-scent killing spree of racing drums and frantically clawing riffs. It’s a great mix of grooves and wildly thrashing gallops, constantly switching techniques to keep it interesting and going from menacing, mid-tempo pacing to maniacal whirlwind strikes. If the Kreator album dropping this week wasn’t to your taste, I highly recommend giving this a shot.
Highlights: “The Art Of Torture” and “Chokehold”
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band, or need to give an album another shot, why not pop a comment down below?
The Metal Dispatch 