Tomi Swick finds quiet beauty in resilience on Dandelion, a heartfelt blend of folk, Americana, and roots rock built around vivid storytelling and warm, organic instrumentation. Inspired by the image of a lone flower thriving in an unlikely place, the song transforms a simple observation into a moving reflection on perseverance and hope. Swick’s expressive vocals carry genuine warmth, while the understated arrangement allows the melody and lyrical imagery to shine naturally. Honest, uplifting, and elegantly crafted, Dandelion is a timeless reminder that strength often flourishes in the most unexpected places.
Blues Rock Review will once again be on hand to provide coverage of Playing With Fire, returning for its third consecutive year covering the annual concert series in Omaha, Nebraska.
This year’s event once again showcases an international lineup of acclaimed blues, blues rock and roots artists from across Europe and North America, while continuing one of the festival’s defining traditions: every concert is completely free to attend.
The three-night series takes place August 13-15 at Slowdown, located at 729 N. 14th St. in Omaha. Admission is free and open to the public until capacity is reached, with seating available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Among the headliners is Scottish blues rock favorite King King, making its third consecutive appearance at Playing With Fire after becoming a fan favorite during previous visits to Omaha. The internationally diverse lineup also includes artists from Austria, Canada, France, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The festivities begin even before the opening night with a free pre-party on Wednesday, August 12, in the lobby of the host hotel, the Moxy Omaha Downtown. The evening kicks off at 7:00 p.m. with Little Joe McCarthy, followed by Jared William at 8:00 p.m., before Jeni Grouws and Andrew Bailie close out the night.
Atlanta progressive metallers Mastodon will release their long-awaited ninth studio album, Marrow Deep, on Aug. 28 via Loma Vista Recordings. The album’s new single, “Snakes For Dinner,” features a guest vocal appearance by Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme. The collaboration marks Homme’s first appearance on a Mastodon recording since his contribution to “Colony Of Birchmen” on 2006’s Blood Mountain. Check out the music video below.
Five years on from the expansive Hushed And Grim, Marrow Deep documents founding members Brann Dailor, Troy Sanders and Bill Kelliher emerging from years of personal upheaval with a renewed sense of purpose. Inspired by the Three Fates of Greek mythology and the fragile threads connecting life, loss, and destiny, the album channels the intense personal experiences of the intervening years into some of the most expansive, adventurous, and emotionally resonant music of the band’s career.
It marks Mastodon’s first full-length to feature guitarist Nick Johnston alongside significant contributions from keyboardist João Nogueira. Marrow Deep was co-produced by Mastodon at the band’s own West End Sound in Atlanta with Patrik Berger (Lana Del Rey, Charli XCX) and Kurt Ballou (High on Fire, Converge), mixed by Andrew Scheps (Adele, Black Sabbath, Metallica), and includes a roster of additional guests to be announced.
Sanders said of the band’s energy heading into the record: “Bill, Brann and I are thrilled that we still have the opportunity to do this, and we’ve got other members who are just over the moon to be in the band with us. That’s a magical feeling that makes us keep wanting to go to band practice. It’s reminiscent of the very beginning of our band, where all members are hungry, we’re united, and excited to get to work. And we’re thrilled to have the opportunity to do this record.”
“Snakes For Dinner” follows last month’s single “Your Ghost Again,” which ranked No. 2 in a Revolver reader’s poll of best songs of 2026 so far, and arrives in the wake of last week’s short film “The Mastodon In The Room,” an intimate document of the trio processing the unresolved grief surrounding the loss of founding guitarist Brent Hinds.
On “Your Ghost Again,” Dailor said: “‘Your Ghost Again’ is about when you lose somebody that’s close to you that you existed with for most of your life. When we were in the studio recording, I kept seeing Brent. I’d see him on my right holding the guitar because that’s where he’d usually be. It’s the same with my mom: I keep seeing her. I was just singing about what I was seeing, and I was seeing ghosts.”
Dailor continued: “[‘Your Ghost Again’ is] about being in those familiar places you used to be with people, which for us is in the studio. I just kept seeing [Brent] out of the corner of my eye, where he would normally be with his guitar. It’s about that: your mind plays tricks on you, especially so soon after someone dies and you’re in the places where they always were. You just see them.”
“My portion of the song, lyrically, is all about Brent, and for Brent,” added Sanders. “The bridge lyrics are two lines of pure gratitude towards Brent. It’s all the gifts from you, now you can take them back where you must go, meaning you came into my life, you exposed me to things that blew my mind, together we conquered thousands of stages around the world, had magical moments that we can never repeat again, but all the beauty that you brought it still remains, always will, and it’s just a line of gratitude because that’s important that we include Brent.”
Kelliher commented: “We wanted to pick a song that sounds like Mastodon, and that has all the things in there, because it’s the first impression of what people are gonna hear. It speaks about things that have just happened and people passing; I could go deep, but I don’t want to because a lot of that s**t’s personal.”
Regarding Marrow Deep as a whole, Dailor said: “Hopefully this album helps everybody. Hopefully they can find some piece of it that speaks to them about it. I know Brent’s not there and it’s weird and it’s hard, and some people might be like, ‘Well I don’t wanna listen to it because Brent’s not there and I’m hurting about that’, but we are too. Big time.”
“It means a lot to me, and I hope that’s able to translate to our fans and people who are grieving, too,” Brann continued. “I understand that, because we never really addressed it. We just couldn’t. And to the fans I’m just sorry that I wasn’t able to be more for them when that happened, because I couldn’t. For myself, I’m still unpacking it.”
Mastodon will celebrate the release of Marrow Deep with “The Poisonous Weapons Tour,” a nationwide run of dates with support from Deafheaven and Alcest, kicking off Sept. 16 in Orlando and closing out Oct. 24 at Sick New World Dallas. The announcement follows Marrow Deep’s preceding single “Your Ghost Again,” co-produced by Berger and Ballou, as the first preview of the album. Hinds departed Mastodon in March 2025 and passed away in a motorcycle accident five months later. Johnston, who has six solo records and has worked with Polyphia, Guthrie Govan and Periphery, stepped in for the band’s spring 2025 tour and will appear on the new album. Mastodon has placed nine albums on the Billboard 200, earned six Grammy Award nominations, and won Best Metal Performance for “Sultan’s Curse” in 2018.
Beautiful Dudes deliver a timeless slice of indie rock with Cherries, effortlessly blending jangly guitars, dreamy psychedelia, and irresistible melodic hooks. The song moves with an understated confidence, shifting from intimate passages to expansive, feedback-soaked crescendos without losing its emotional focus. Warm vocals anchor the track, while the band’s tight musicianship and organic chemistry create a rich, immersive atmosphere. Balancing classic songwriting with hazy, modern textures, Cherries is both immediately accessible and deeply rewarding, reaffirming Beautiful Dudes’ talent for crafting memorable guitar-driven songs with lasting emotional resonance.
DevilDriver's Dez Fafara reveals a suggestion given to the band has influenced why he feels that 'Strike and Kill' is one of the band's strongest records to date. Continue reading…
Mastodon have officially announced “Marrow Deep,” their ninth studio album and the band’s first full-length since the death of founding guitarist and vocalist Brent Hinds. The GRAMMY-winning progressive metal band confirmed the album will arrive August 28 via Loma Vista Recordings, alongside a video for new single “Snakes For Dinner” featuring a surprise guest appearance from Queens Of The Stone Age’s Josh Homme — his first Mastodon collaboration in nearly 20 years.
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Scott Penfold gives his honest take on today’s episode: how Mastodon chose to handle Brent’s memory with an actual 35-minute documentary instead of a sanitized press release — and why that’s exactly the move a 25-year band with nothing left to prove should make. Download the free Loaded Radio App on Apple iOS and Google Play to stream it live.
A New Chapter, Built On Real Grief
The road to “Marrow Deep” has been genuinely difficult. Hinds and Mastodon parted ways on March 7, 2025, ending a 25-year run together, and the split was not the clean, amicable break the band’s initial statement suggested — Hinds later criticized his former bandmates publicly on social media, and the fallout played out in public for months. Then, on August 20, 2025, five months after the split, Hinds was killed in a motorcycle accident in Atlanta at age 51, when a driver failed to yield while turning and collided with his motorcycle.
Rather than paper over that complicated history, Mastodon addressed it directly last week with “The Mastodon In The Room,” a 35-minute documentary in which the surviving members — Brann Dailor, Troy Sanders, and Bill Kelliher — spoke candidly about their quarter-century with Hinds for the first time since his passing. “We’ve all seen the clips, headlines, and speculations, but we haven’t told our story in our own words,” the band said. The grief in that statement is plain: “No more hugs, no more high fives, no more disagreements, no more making up.” Loaded Radio covered that documentary in full here, and it’s worth watching before diving into the new album — it changes how the music hits.
“Marrow Deep” is a 12-song record, and it marks real lineup evolution as much as loss: it’s the first Mastodon full-length to feature guitarist Nick Johnston and keyboardist João Nogueira as full-time members, following Johnston’s work filling in for Hinds on tour. The album was produced by Mastodon alongside Patrik Berger and Converge’s Kurt Ballou, and mixed by Andrew Scheps — a serious production pedigree for a band that’s never made an album lightly. Thematically, the record draws on the Three Fates of Greek mythology, and the fragile threads connecting life, loss, and destiny — a concept that tracks given everything the band has been through since their last album, 2021’s “Hushed And Grim.”
“Marrow Deep” track listing:
01 – “Barbarians Blood“ 02 – “Poisonous Weapons“ 03 – “Your Ghost Again“ 04 – “Snakes For Dinner“ 05 – “Out Like A Lamb“ 06 – “In The Ruins“ 07 – “They’re Coming For You“ 08 – “Golden Spires“ 09 – “Moth And Bone“ 10 – “A Vampire’s Demeanor“ 11 – “The Vanishing“ 12 – “The Three Fates“
Josh Homme Returns — 20 Years Later
The new single isn’t the album’s first taste — that was “Your Ghost Again,” released in early June and already a setlist staple on the band’s most recent European run. “Snakes For Dinner” is the bigger surprise: it marks Josh Homme’s first Mastodon studio appearance since he guested on “Colony Of Birchmen” from 2006’s “Blood Mountain.” Nearly two decades is a long time to sit out a collaboration, and the fact that Homme’s return comes on the album defined by this specific loss says something about how the band sees this moment — not as a quiet rebuild, but as an event worth calling in old friends for.
The Road Here Wasn’t Smooth
It’s fair to say this album almost didn’t happen the way it has. Loaded Radio tracked the band’s confirmation back in May that the record was finished, written and recorded through what drummer Brann Dailor has openly described as one of the hardest stretches of his life. And Bill Kelliher’s tribute to Hinds called him “a wild man not to be tamed” — a phrase that captures both why he was irreplaceable and why the split happened in the first place. Mastodon isn’t pretending any of that away. “It’s been quite the journey making this album,” the band said in their announcement, “and we are very happy with how it came out.”
Mastodon will support “Marrow Deep” on the headlining Poisonous Weapons Tour this fall, with blackgaze outfit Deafheaven as direct support and post-black metal act Alcest opening. Pre-orders are live now.
Mastodon announced “Marrow Deep,” their ninth studio album, out August 28 via Loma Vista Recordings
It’s the band’s first album since Brent Hinds’ death on August 20, 2025, and their split from him in March 2025
New single “Snakes For Dinner” features Josh Homme’s first Mastodon appearance since 2006’s “Colony Of Birchmen”
The album is the first full-length with guitarist Nick Johnston and keyboardist João Nogueira as full-time members
It follows the band’s 35-minute documentary “The Mastodon In The Room,” addressing their history with Hinds directly
Mastodon headline the Poisonous Weapons Tour this fall with Deafheaven and Alcest
FAQ
When does Mastodon’s new album come out?
“Marrow Deep,” Mastodon’s ninth studio album, releases August 28, 2026, via Loma Vista Recordings.
Is this Mastodon’s first album without Brent Hinds?
Yes. Hinds parted ways with the band in March 2025 and died in a motorcycle accident that August; “Marrow Deep” is the first Mastodon full-length made without him.
Does Josh Homme appear on the new Mastodon album?
Yes. Homme guests on the single “Snakes For Dinner,” his first Mastodon collaboration since “Colony Of Birchmen” from 2006’s “Blood Mountain.”
Who is in Mastodon’s lineup now?
Founding members Brann Dailor, Troy Sanders, and Bill Kelliher continue on, joined by guitarist Nick Johnston and keyboardist João Nogueira as full-time members for the first time on “Marrow Deep.”
Is Mastodon touring behind the new album?
Yes. Mastodon headline the Poisonous Weapons Tour this fall, with Deafheaven as direct support and Alcest opening.
Brent Hinds helped build this band’s sound for 25 years — how do you think “Marrow Deep” honors that without him? Let us know in the comments. Follow Loaded Radio for daily rock and metal news.
As Bloodstock gets closer, we delve deep into the line up to find out more about some of the bands playing the New Blood and EMP stages at this years event.
Today we chat with Vanitas
Please introduce yourselves.
Hey! We’re Vanitas and we make cinematic djent! We are: Vocals – Jade Guitar – Mitch Guitar – Elijah Drums – Jackson Bass – Jon
How would you describe your sound?
Imagine Progressive Metal in the style of Periphery, Devin Townsend or Dream Theater combined with epic boss battle symphonies from games like Dark Souls or Final Fantasy (Thanks Nobuo), combine that with lyrics and stories of hope and overcoming life’s hurdles and you get Vanitas!
How did you land your spot on the Bloodstock bill?
We’ve played our fair share of Metal to the Masses in Birmingham, making it to the final twice but never quite winning. Playing Bloodstock Festival has always been one of those bucket list dreams for us, but after not making it through our M2TM final in 2024 we sort of made peace with the fact it might take us a bit longer to get to Bloodstock than we hoped, so you can imagine our surprise when Mr. Simon Hall dropped us an email one day asking us to play the EMP stage!
What does playing at Bloodstock mean to you?
As mentioned above, it’s a bucket list moment for us and many other bands. We know this is an insane opportunity for a band like us and we want to make the most of it! But more importantly, being a female-fronted band, and being our nerdy neurodivergent selves can sometimes make us stick out a bit on your typical festival line-up, so we wanna show others like us that you can reach your dreams! And build our own little community of metalhead nerds in the process
For people who’ve never seen you live, what can they expect at Bloodstock?
You can expect a journey of emotions, lots of widdly riffs, moments you can mosh, cry, laugh, sing and everything in between- a space where you can let loose be yourself and really drink in the whole experience! We have a playlist on spotify of our Bloodstock set so you can get to know us beforehand: Vanitas Bloodstock Playlist
What day are you performing?
Friday 7th August on the EMP stage!
What other bands are you looking forward to watching at Bloodstock this year?
We’re so hyped to see our fellow brummie-boys in Atarka who won this year’s metal to the masses, also can’t wait to see Seething Akira who we played with back in 2023 supporting Galactic Empire. Sellsword and Leprous are also particular faves we’re looking forward to- so many great bands on this year’s lineup.
Playing the EMP Stage is just the first steppingstone in a bands journey. What’s next in your plans for world domination?
Once you get to know Vanitas, you’ll find out that more is more with us, we take a very maximalist approach to not only our music and production but our visuals and world building too, behind the scenes we’re planning our biggest release yet and if Bloodstock likes us enough maybe we’ll be invited back in a future year when it releases to show you all live too!
Are you camping with the fans? Which campsite are you heading for?
We will be indulging in the artist camp this time around, as it’s not something we’ve ever had the chance to do before so we wanna see what it’s all about! With that said though, we will be also spending a significant amount of time partying in Midgard and have some special meet-ups with our fans and a street team planned! To be a part of it feel free to join our discord server where we’ll be keeping you updated with all our plans!
You’ve gotta keep hydrated at Bloodstock, what is your drink of choice for the weekend?
Before we play: water all the way, maybe some Holy energy drink too- we are playing/singing prog metal after all so we gotta be sharp to deliver our best performance yet! After our set though? We’ll be in full party mode, I’ll probably have a peruse of the various Ciders too!
Among Legends kickstart ‘pop punk summer’ with 12 new songs from their new record “Lose My Grip” that are sure to get you into the moshing mood. With their sophomore release, there is a new confidence that was not as present as before, as they take a stronger embrace on their punk roots with more hardcore beats and messier vocals.
The Ontario punk trio keeps classic pop punk relevant with “Lose My Grip” as it highlights rhythms that were made prominent to the genre back in the late 80s. Despite going from a 5-piece to 3-piece since their debut album in 2022, Among Legends take inspiration from heavier melodic bands like Bad Religion, most noticeable with their choruses (such as their song ‘Open Wide’).
Right from the opening track ‘H-A-C-K’, there is a very apparent change in approach to their music, both with attitude and sound. One element that has remained the same is their lyricism and political themes.
The band has always been a political band that had stood out for their call-to-action lyrics. ‘Sound the Alarm’ is another track that presents this best, along with sick breakdowns that were not as frequent in their previous album. They make it clear that they are a band for the working class and the minority, opting to take a stance that is pro-resistant.
Other favorite songs for me include “Go On”, “Back Again”, and “Floating Here For You”.
Overall, this album is fast-moving, packing a lot of anger in under 30 minutes like any true hardcore album. This is definitely a listen for those getting ready to have their voices heard on the street, even in 100-degree weather.
‘Lose My Grip’ by Among Legends is available on July 10 on Bandcamp.
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