– March 27th, 2026 –

Metal, Melody and Mortality on This Incisive Cut from Forthcoming Album “Wretched Heart”

New single out March 27th, 2026 | Album released May 1st, 2026

Photo by: Caitlin Delaplace

More than half a century into its life, what exactly is heavy metal? Is it a kind of belief system? Is it something to be observed as a relic, or an exhibit in a museum? Or is it, to paraphrase Christopher Lee’s Due de Richeleau in The Devil Rides Out “A living force, which can strike at any moment of the night“? For Vancouver’s SPELL, that question has never been more vital.

The latest single, “Take My Life“, offers one of the most revealing entry points into their new chapter. Released on March 27th, 2026, the track stands as perhaps the starkest embodiment of the album’s central tension – where classic heavy metal confidence collides with profound existential weight. Driven by a swaggering, mid-paced pulse and steeped in the spirit of vintage ’80s metal, the song delivers a chorus built for raised fists and midnight exorcisms alike. Yet beneath its strut lies something far more disquieting. As vocalist and bassist Cam Mesmer explains, “‘Take My Life’ is about an intimate encounter with death, and the power dynamics at play. Where I’ve had to make a decisive move, and been fearful, but others have given me confidence.”

This is a track that captures SPELL at their most direct, dynamic and disarmingly honest. As both a standalone statement and a key moment within Wretched Heart, it signals a band not only at the height of their powers but actively redefining what those powers can be. Stream a music video for “Take My Life“, directed by James Barry and Sean Edwards for Ramble Films, at this location.

Take My Life is released March 27th, 2026. WATCH THE MUSIC VIDEO HERE!

Vancouver based hypnotic heavy metal outfit Spell, will release its new LP, ‘Wretched Heart‘, on May 1 via Bad Omen Records. A shadow-drenched journey through desperation, passion and defiance, ‘Wretched Heart‘ sees Spell transform heavy metal into something urgent and human – gothic, cinematic and hypnotic. Not only Spell‘s strongest record to date but also a thunderous celebration of eccentricity which stalks its nocturnal realm with both savage finesse and beguiling charm. ‘Wretched Heart‘ is the follow-up to Spell‘s 2022 LP, ‘Tragic Magic‘, an album hailed as a celebration of “the mystique and darkness within hard rock and heavy metal“.

Pre-order/stream Wretched Heart HERE.

Available on CD, Single LP (spined LP with insert) in Solid Purple, Transparent Red & Blue Marbled, and Red & Black Smoke, and digitally.

‘Wretched Heart‘, in all its gory glory, embodies a very vital paradox – a record made by true believers who yearn for catharsis beyond. The oxymoron of anthems forged from steel, yet with a very human heart. Even the most cynical bystander will likely struggle not to be bewitched.

Track listing:
01.) Dark Inertia
02.) Lilac (stream VIDEO)
03.) Take My Life (stream VIDEO)
04.) Unquiet Graces
05.) Oubliette
06.) Iron Teeth
07.) Exquisite Corpse
08.) Savage Scourge
09.) In Duress
10.) Wretched Heart

Spell is Cam Mesmer (vocals, bass, rhythm guitar, synthesizers), Al Lester, (vocals, lead guitar, rhythm guitar, drums), Jeff Black (lead guitar, backing vocals), and Gabriel Tenebrae, (lead guitar, synthesizers). Follow Spell on Facebook and Instagram.

“Tipping their caps to a range of classic hard rock influences like Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Blue Oyster Cult, Rush and even old-school Mercyful Fate, Spell captures a dreary, overcast and lo-fi vibe” – Exclaim!

“If this band was a van, they would be the raddest, most pimped out airbrushed 70′s van with plush interior and a BOOMING system. SPELL is a perfect name for them, because their songs are jamming heavy metal magic.” – Cvlt Nation

“If you like your throwback metal loaded with 70s occult magic, this may cast a spell over you.” – Angry Metal Guy

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Greetings, Decibel readers!

It’s a great week for fans of death and thrash metal, especially if you’re looking for bands who carry on the spirit of the 1980s while still screaming with their own voice.

Enjoy!

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Aggressive Perfector – Come Creeping Fiends

Well, it’s hard to go wrong with a name like that. This is the British outfit’s second album on Dying Victims Productions, a match custom-made in hell. A thrilling blend of Mercyful Fate, Venom, Exciter, and other flavors of 1980s extremity. There’s a subtle hint of early-80s street punk in there as well, if you listen close enough.

Stream: Apple Music

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Bekor Qilish – Consecrated Abysses Of Dread

Mind-blasting avant-garde mastery. When it comes to experimental and off-kilter death metal, Andrea Bruzzone is the man to trust. Think of Esoctrilihum but with the sonic insanity curve bent more toward Cynic, Nocturnus and latter-era Death.

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Foetorem – Incongruous Forms Of Evergrowing Rot

Meanwhile, if you just want some unrelenting, cavernous darkness — the debut album from Denmark’s Foetorem embodies all manner of devouring death. Themes of festering decay clash with thought-provoking, introspective music sections that contrast the standard blasts of fury. Gore that makes you think.

Stream: Apple Music

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Hellripper – Coronach

Hellripper is more than just another blackened-speed metal band. Over the course of the last decade, James McBain has established his unholy music machine as one of the most compelling and exciting names in modern metal. On Coronach, James ups the ante ever further with more interesting riff-work, more challenging compositions, and more reasons to hail eternal darkness!

Stream: Apple Music

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Intoxicated – The Dome

Floridian thrashy death metal courtesy of the always reliably Redefining Darkness Records. This is the band’s third album, and a followup to 2022’s Watch You Burn.

Stream: Apple Music

The post Five For Friday: March 27, 2026 appeared first on Decibel Magazine.

Metalcore outfit August Burns Red announced the impending release of their newly announced album Season Of Surrender, coming out on June 5. It’s the band’s first full-length release since returning to Fearless Records last month.

Boasting 11 brand new tracks, the album also includes the previously released song “Behemoth”. Today’s announcement brought a second track to light — “The Nameless”. That particular track you can check out below.

Bassist Dustin Davidson spoke about the new track, calling it a “hard-hitting, heavy bruiser that doesn’t let up for one moment.”

“[‘The Nameless’] combines classic ABR elements with dark moody technical rhythms, and fast paced vocals to keep the intensity up for the full three minutes of the track. To me it showcases our roots of where we’ve come from, and the future path of where we’re heading.”

While Davidson addressed the song’s vibes, vocalist Jake Luhrs explained the lyrical content found within the track and what it means.

“Lyrically, ‘The Nameless’ is a song about not wasting your life away for the sake of acceptance and comfortability. Sometimes it takes detaching from what you’ve been told, or from the beliefs you are no longer aligned with, in order to face your own weaknesses. In doing so you can break free to live a life you are proud of.”

Season Of Surrender will be released on June 5 via Fearless Records, but you can preorder your copy today.

Later this year, August Burns Red will head out on tour with The Amity Affliction, Boundaries, and Heavensgate. You can check out the full list of tour dates below and get your tickets today.

SEASON OF SURRENDER TRACK LISTING:

“Legions” [Feat. Mike Hranica]
“The Nameless”
“Behemoth”
“Den of Thieves”
“Sonic Salvation” [Feat. Jamie Hails]
“Cerebral Malfunction” [Feat. Make Them Suffer]
“Tear of the Clouds”
“Whispers Like Splinters”
“S.O.S.”
“New Horizons”
“Forged by Failure”

AUGUST BURNS RED + THE AMITY AFFLICTION ON TOUR:
WITH BOUNDARIES + HEAVENSGATE:
4/10 — Worcester, MA — The Palladium*
4/11 — New Haven, CT — College Street Music Hall*
4/12 — Pittsburgh, PA — Stage AE
4/14 — Charlotte, NC — The Fillmore
4/15 — Atlanta, GA — Tabernacle
4/16 — Orlando, FL — House of Blues
4/18 — New Orleans, LA — The Fillmore
4/19 — Dallas, TX — The Bomb Factory
4/21 — Houston, TX — House of Blues
4/22 — San Antonio, TX — Vibes Event Center (Outdoors)
4/24 — Phoenix, AZ — The Marquee
4/25 — San Diego, CA — Soma
4/26 — Anaheim, CA — House of Blues
4/28 — Sacramento, CA — Channel 24
4/29 — Garden City, ID — Revolution Concert House
5/1 — Salt Lake City, UT — The Union Event Center
5/2 — Denver, CO — The Fillmore
5/3 — Omaha, NE — The Astro Theater
5/5 — Minneapolis, MN — The Fillmore
5/6 — Milwaukee, WI — The Rave
5/8 — Chicago, IL — Riviera Theatre
5/9 — Royal Oak, MI — Royal Oak Music Theatre
5/10 — Toronto, ON — History
5/12 — Montreal, QC — Mtelus
5/13 — Brooklyn, NY — Brooklyn Paramount
5/15 — Baltimore, MD — Nevermore Hall
5/16 — Columbus, OH — Sonic Temple**
5/17 — Philadelphia, PA — The Fillmore
*With Dreamwake, no Heavensgate
**Festival Date (ABR + TAA Only)

The post August Burns Red Announce New Album ‘Season of Surrender’, “The Nameless’ Streaming Now appeared first on MetalSucks.

Fantasy metal project Giotopia released the stunning new single ‘Cursed Blessing‘. The song features Ronnie Romero (Rainbow, The Ferrymen, Michael Schenker Group). For this brand new song version, a lyric video was also created. The song is the first sign of a new album that’s in the making. When the new album shall be released and […]

The post Giotopia Releases New Single ‘Cursed Blessing’ Feat. Ronnie Romero appeared first on ROCKPOSER DOT COM!.

Veteran singer-songwriter Ashley Monroe has had a long, checkered run in the Nashville country music business. She’s had a lot of success, partly as one third of Miranda Lambert’s great side project Pistol Annies, but she’s also bounced around from label to label, making her own deep and heartfelt music while singing backup on records…

The post Ashley Monroe Releases Surprise New Concept Album <em>Dear Nashville</em> appeared first on Stereogum.

by Dave Campbell

The world of progressive rock is riddled with concept albums, from the classic influential albums to ones made from relatively unknown artists, but few have approached the concept album in the way The Dear Hunter has over its 20-year career. The “Act series” which began with 2006’s Act I: The Lake South, the River North, and culminated in the masterpiece albums Act IV: Rebirth in Reprise and Act V: Hymns with the Devil in Confessional, the band, led by Casey Crescenzo, told a wild story over 5 albums using any genre at their disposal incorporating pop, Jazz, Vaudeville, Disco, Metal and more. How can you top that?

In 2021, Casey started to develop the story of The Indigo Child, a character in a dystopian future. This began with The Indigo Child EP in 2021, followed by the brilliant album Antimai in 2022, a concept album centered on building the Indigo Child universe, with each song telling the story of a dystopian city-state divided into eight concentric rings. Each ring was a song exploring the extreme wealth disparity, authoritarian rule, and environmental collapse. Musically, the album was another diverse outing with the band exploring new territory once more. Now comes the sequel, Sunya. This album finds a character from Antimai leaving the city and heading into the wastelands and telling of their journey. Continuing the sonic universe they first unveiled on Antimai, Sunya finds the band leaning into synth textures and tightly wound grooves, drawing as heavily from jazz and funk as from progressive rock.

A fitting opening, “The Wasteland” is where the story begins. The song has some fanfare in tow, starting with almost a big band sound. Although much of the song has a positive tone, there are also some shadows here and there. “Welcome to the Wasteland,” he says, with a big smile and a convincing voice. What is there? Nothing. It reminds me of a service counter in the 1950’s…people are nice and accommodating, but there is nothing that they can offer you. The juxtaposition between the warm music and the message is quite striking. The signature vocal harmonies are ever-present as are all the musical layers. You can tell there will be a lot to uncover here with further listens.

“Marauders” is the album’s rocker, a track that has more spunk and more energy, and the melody is easy to follow. It’s fast-moving, funky, and fun, and some might even call it aggressive at times. The tone of his voice moves to firmer as it passes, as if he is trying to shout at you something important. Much of the signature sound of the band comes from the vocal harmonies, and they are strong in this song. There are also some playful moments, once again contrasting with the title of the song. Meanwhile, “The Bazaareteria” takes a different style again, this time with some funk and R&B, which is musically opposite of the lyrics, which depict a place where everything feels transactional, temporary, and ultimately hollow.

The album takes a shift with a 3-part suite titled “The Glass Desert”. “Part 1-Giants” is the centerpiece of the album. It again has a light, jazzy groove to it with an uplifting vibe. The second half of the song enters into 60s big band territory with horns and harmony vocals. “Part 2-Cliffs and Stormlands” sounds the most like something you might hear on the Act albums. It starts off simply with some atmospheric sounds and Casey’s voice before entering into a dancey groove like something you might find on a Bruno Mars album. “Deep is the abyss that is beneath me” he muses, and “I’m in a freefall, long enough to wonder if I reach the ground at all.” There are also more positive messages, like “if you believe in something, it better be yourself, power can rise in panic, as long as you can rise to where you fell.”

“Part 3-The Plains,” concludes the suite in glorious fashion. It has a feel of an ELO song with a wall of acoustic guitars and gorgeous melodies. The ending part of the song, where he sings “Shadows in moonlight, And whispers on the wing” is one of the best moments on the album and a truly emotional piece of music.

The title track closes out the album and is another highlight. It opens with a steady electronic pulse, and it’s like the flowers that were dormant in winter have finally begun to spring. The vocals are tender, and the message positive, and trumpet and saxophone notes accompany the sound. Like the last embers of a dying fire, it fades to completion with a cool complexity. This is also where our character gets to their final destination, only to find ruins.” This destination’s right, Your tunnel’s given way to light, But still, you’re devastated by, The sights of all you had imagined.”

The paradox on the album is dealing with the difficult and/or negative subject matter of some of the lyrics while enjoying the nice top-down ride on a sunny day that can best sum up the music. After listening to the album a few times, the picture becomes clear. The title, which translates to “nothing,” is all the doubts, fears, and insecurities we all have to face each and every day. Some people even get forever lost in them. The message of the album is that you may not find answers out there for your troubles, but there is meaning in the process of the search.

Sunya is a wondrous achievement by a band that refuses to be defined by one style or album, but rather explores any arena in order to tell a story in the most creative way possible. Where will the story go from here? We don’t know, but after this album, the anticipation will only grow. Like their last release, Sunya will no doubt end up as one of the year’s best albums.

Purchase Link: https://vyd.co/Sunya

SUNYA tracklisting:
The Wasteland – 7:16
Marauders – 3:26
The Bazaareteria 5:01
The Glass Desert I – Giants 5:18
The Glass Desert II – Cliffs and Stormlands 7:27
The Glass Desert III – The Plains 5:42
Sunya – 8:03

Casey Crescenzo – Vocals, Guitars, Organ, Bass
Nick Crescenzo – Drums, Percussion, Backing Vocals
Maxwell Tousseau – Guitars, Keyboards, Percussion, Backing Vocals
Robert Parr – Guitars, Keyboards, Backing Vocals
Nick Sollecito – Bass
Aiden Earley – Keyboards

The post The Dear Hunter – Sunya (Album Review) appeared first on The Prog Report.

(written by Islander) Today we have a reminder for you — and, as you’ll see and hear, it’s not a subtle nudge or a polite whisper. The reminder is that the epic black metal band Saille (originally formed in Belgium but now a fully Netherlands-based group) released their sixth album Forebode last month through Non […]

The post AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: SAILLE — “CYCLE OF CYNICISM” appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING.

Good Day Noir Family,
The title track of Sometimes, the new EP by Spyderhuff, bursts forward with bright, confident energy. The rhythm feels urgent, driven by a solid snare that cracks with satisfying punch.

SOMETIMES is Spyderhuff’s EP Out Now

  There’s a clear blend of influences here. You can sense a touch of The Rolling Stones in the swagger, while hints of U2 surface in the expansive drive of the arrangement.

However, Spyderhuff never sounds derivative. They channel those classic rock spirits and reshape them with their own personality.

The vocal delivery adds another layer of character. A subtle double effect gives the voice a slightly vintage tone, which connects the listener to the golden era of classic rock. At the same time, the performance remains fresh and inspired. The track balances nostalgia and immediacy without leaning too heavily on either side.

Then comes “RHA-WHO-DUM,” and the atmosphere shifts. This track feels kaleidoscopic, playful, and rhythmically inventive. The band experiments with phrasing and sonic textures, yet they never lose their irreverent rock attitude. There’s a sense of freedom in the way they approach structure. The song twists and turns, but the groove keeps it grounded.

“Don’t Do It” stands out as a highlight. The main riff carries a trace of ZZ Top grit, thick and confident. The bassline moves with a sly, almost mischievous tone, locking tightly with the drums. The interplay between bass and percussion creates a strong foundation. On top of that, the guitar solo injects extra fire, pushing the track into a higher gear without overindulging.

“Saddle Up” introduces a harmonica that brings a distinct Americana twist. The mood shifts toward a 1960s rock vibe blended with country flavor. The song feels like a small-town celebration somewhere in the American heartland. It invites movement. It invites smiles.

Sometimes is an EP filled with energy, humor, and genuine rock spirit. Spyderhuff shows versatility while staying true to their roots. The result is a fun and vibrant collection that deserves attention.

SOMETIMES is Spyderhuff’s EP Out Now!

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Vibrant!

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With deep Detroit roots, Spyderhuff loves to bend and shape musical genres like bending and shaping metal in Motown. Most of the members grew up together in the Detroit area as friends and musicians in the late 60s and early 70s, playing in bands from jazz-fusion to hard rock.

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Find Spyderhuff Here:

Spotify
Facebook
Instagram

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The post SOMETIMES is Spyderhuff’s EP Out Now appeared first on Edgar Allan Poets – Noir Rock Band.

There was a time when Guns N’ Roses getting back together felt about as likely as a quiet night out turning into a good decision.

The post Guns N’ Roses Keyboardist Leaves Tour for ‘Personal Reasons’ appeared first on Audio Ink Radio.

Dimmu Borgir make a long-awaited return, Frozen Soul team up with Machine Head and a former Ghost guitarist launches his ‘cartoon metal’ band: these are Metal Hammer’s tracks of the week