LUCY (Cooper B. Handy) is a prolific New England musician. He’s been releasing avant-pop music for over a decade but also contributes to the lo-fi rock duo Taxidermists with childhood pal Salvadore McNamara, the electro-pop project Safe Mind with Boy Harsher’s Gus Muller, and the dance project Club Casualties with producer Ghost. (He even had a studio space in the same building as Prewn’s Izzy Hagerup.) Yesterday, he announced a new album CITIZEN’S ARREST, out Oct. 9, with the new single “COURTSIDE.” It sounds like a toddler walking up a giant flight of inflatable stairs, slanted and playful and very wobbly.
Today, London, UK-via-Asheville, NC musician Bex Vines released “Misfortune,” her debut single under the moniker lifepath99. The song, which was produced by Liam Brand (Zach Bryan, Mount Kimbie), transforms a nightmare into alternative bliss.
Down is gearing up for its next chapter. The band’s fifth full-length, Volume V, arrives November 20 via Nuclear Blast Records, and the quintet has kicked things off with a new single, “Blood Oath.”
Thirty-plus years in, Down still runs on the same fuel: a set of friendships that trace back to childhood in New Orleans. That chemistry between Philip Anselmo, Pepper Keenan, Kirk Windstein, Jimmy Bower and Pat Bruders is exactly what’s kept the band’s sludgy, groove-heavy sound distinct from anything the members do on their own.
“We were all excited about this,” smiles Anselmo. “There was a sense of lightness in the air. Everyone’s attitude was positive. There was more focus than ever. It just felt fresh again. Each one of us was individually striving for something, and I believe we achieved what we wanted to achieve. The record is a journey. It’s classic Down, but it’s also unique.”
“Everybody played their asses off, wrote great riffs, and Philip is singing amazing,” adds Windstein. “There’s so much electricity when we get together. To me, it’s the same vibe as our debut NOLA, but we’ve got another 35 years of experience as songwriters.”
“The five of us are from the same era, grew up together, and accomplished a lot on our own,” Keenan observes: “We all sounded different, but we’re still from the same 20-block radius. As far as what makes Down special, we knew one another before any of us had done anything. There’s history.”
That history runs deep. All five crossed paths as teenagers playing in local New Orleans bands, then went their separate ways to build reputations elsewhere — Anselmo fronting Pantera, Keenan handling guitar and vocals in Corrosion of Conformity, Windstein leading Crowbar, Bower slinging riffs in Eyehategod.
Most of Volume V came together across two writing sessions at Anselmo‘s home studio, Nodferatu’s Lair — the same clubhouse setup the band has leaned on since Down II. The songs were built in the room together rather than assembled remotely, with the material taking shape throughout 2025. Keenan and Windstein tracked guitars side by side, which gives the record a live, unified punch.
Opener “The Myth” sets the tone early with a powerhouse vocal and pummeling rhythm work. “Merciful Fate” brings in King Diamond for a vocal duel against Anselmo, backed by solos clocking in around 120 bpm — Diamond‘s wife, Livia Zita, adds her own dark touches to the track as well. Closer “Twice-Told Tales” brings the record home on a heavier, more hypnotic note. “It’s a conglomerate of tight riffs and blues rock mixed with the diligence of classic metal,” Anselmo reveals. “It’s an important song to us. I could feel Ozzy Osbourne‘s influence on me in the strangest way.”
Lead single “Blood Oath” leans on a riff that’s as hard-hitting as it is hummable, building to a chorus built for shouting along. The New Orleans references are baked in from the start.
“Anybody who’s from New Orleans is going to get a kick out of the references to the city,” grins Anselmo. “Musically, it’s got a big hook. It’s a Down song, but it takes a turn.”
“You’ll know it’s Down right off the fucking bat”, adds Keenan. “It’s heavy in its attack.”
Volume V was produced by Eddie Mapp and Down, mixed by Dave Fortman, and mastered by Maor Appelbaum at Maor Appelbaum Mastering in California.
Down is currently on the road for its North American headlining run, with Helmet and Spirit in the Room in support.
Down‘s origin story goes back to a 1991 jam session that produced a three-song demo — a tape that eventually laid the groundwork for the platinum-selling NOLA in 1995. Metal Hammer called it a rock classic outright, and Stereogum credited it with defining how the rest of the world hears Deep South metal. Since then, the band has delivered Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow (2002), Down III: Over the Under (2007), and the two-part Down IV (2012, 2014), while sharing stages with Metallica, Heaven & Hell, Danzig and Melvins and playing festivals like Aftershock, Louder Than Life, Hellfest and Sick New World. Revolver has ranked the band among the greatest supergroups in hard rock and metal history.
Down is:
Philip Anselmo / Vocals Pepper Keenan / Guitars Jimmy Bower / Drums Kirk Windstein / Guitars Pat Bruders / Bass
ihr habt einige Fragen zum Thema Special Camping Gutscheine und hier sind noch einmal die wichtigsten Infos zu dem Thema:
Die Special-Camping-Produkte sind nicht ausverkauft, nur weil keine Gutscheine mehr verfügbar sind. Der reguläre Sale beginnt Ende des Jahres
Gutscheine gewähren ein Early-Bird-Vorkaufsrecht auf das jeweilige Produkt, sobald der Special-Camping-Sale startet.
Der Special-Campign-Sale Sale findet Ende des Jahres statt. Gutscheinbesitzer erhalten bereits eine Woche vor dem offiziellen Start Zugang.
Gutscheine gelten nur für die jeweilige Special Camping Area (z. B. Residenz Evil).
Der Gutscheinwert entspricht nicht dem Preis der Unterkunft oder Parzelle, sondern wird beim Kauf angerechnet.
Pro Unterkunft oder Parzelle muss mindestens ein passender Gutschein eingelöst werden. Mehrere Gutscheine derselben Art können zur Anzahlung eines Produkts verwendet werde
Solltet ihr weitere Fragen zu dem Thema haben, welche hier nicht beantwortet sind, schreibt bitte eine e-mail an ticketstore@wacken.com .
Earlier this year, the former Muncie Girls leader Lande Hekt released Lucky Now, her first solo album since her band broke up in 2023. It was lovely. Today, Hekt announces plans to follow that record with a new EP called Threadbare, and it seems likely that this record will be just as lovely, at least if we’re judging by its lead single.
Claire Cronin is the author of the 2020 book Blue Light Of The Screen, about her obsession with horror movies and supernatural imagery, and she’s also a singer-songwriter who makes uneasy folk music that’s inspired by doom metal and drone. It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Cronin, but she’s about to return with her new LP The Bruise, her follow-up to 2021’s Bloodless.
Wasted Wizards are back with ‘Wannabe Rockstar‘, the first single taken from their forthcoming EP ‘Wake Up Dead‘, and a song that finds the young Swedish band leaning into a rougher and more streetwise side of its hard rock sound. Stream ‘Wannabe Rockstar‘ – here The ingredients will feel familiar to anyone who has followed […]
Do you, like me, ever find yourself missing the sheer metallic perfection of the first few Mercyful Fate albums? Both Melissa and Don’t Break the Oath cast such a brilliantly macabre, occult atmosphere that they surely amplified the already palpable Satanic Panic of the mid-80s. Good things never last, but for a brief time, In Solitude managed to partially fill the dead spot in my heart that longed for more albums like those Fate classics, but all too soon they were gone too. Enter German metal crew The Night Eternal to fill the gap created by In Solitude, if not the yawning chasm left by Mercyful Fate. I discovered them on their 2023 sophomore release Fatale, and was quite impressed. Their sound was like an early, less Satanic Fate strained through a Goth rock filter, and it worked exceptionally well. Now, a few years later, we get the follow-up, Cold Velvet. The basic template is still in place, but this time they’ve gone deeper into the Goth rock doldrums and dulled their heavy metal edge in the process, approximating the Idle Hands / Untoothers material. It’s a bold strategy, Cotton. Let’s see if it pays off for ’em.
The Night Eternal’s strengths heard on gems like “In Tartus” from Fatale are still present on opener “Where This World Ends,” as frontman Ricardo Baum’s slick merger of King Diamond, To Die For’s Jarno Perätalo, and Amorphis’ Tomi Joutsen pays big dividends. The pure metal quotient of the backing music feels a touch softer than last time, even approaching Ghost-levels of hard and Goth rock, but the song works and hooks you in. As Cold Velvet plays out, the Goth vibe increases. “Eurydice (Don’t Look Back)” is a polished take on 80s Goth rock, and it has legs and memorability that demand replays. This could have sat on Mana by Idle Hands and fit right in if they added a few werewolf-y grunts and howls. “Caught in a Spell” is a very laid-back piece of Goth flair with an easy breezy charm, and after a few spins it cements itself into your nerve clusters. It even has a vague Wytch Hazel vibe that adds extra charisma points.
The best moments come when The Night Eternal put their foot on the accelerator and dial up the metal. “The Veins of Time” is a throwback to Fatale, hitting the sweet spot between metal and Goth. It’s a bit more urgent and edgy without forsaking the sadboi glumness, and there’s a Sisters of Mercy vibe under the surface. My personal favorite track is “Shape of Sorrow” as it’s the most jacked-up version of the band’s current formula. It’s hardly a face-melter, but it offers more intensity and less moping and feels considerably heavier than the rest of Cold Velvet. Unfortunately, a few tracks, while good, just don’t sizzle enough to excite the grey matter, and when teamed up with the album’s languid vibe, they drag the excitement factor down a few notches. “When the Last Candle Dies” is like a lost modern Ghost track, and it’s okay but not much more, and closer, “Dance on Crimson Ground,” is the longest here at 7 minutes, but it isn’t all that interesting. At 42-plus minutes, Cold Velvet isn’t a challenging listen, but it isn’t the most exciting one either. The Goth influences result in a muted, sometimes drab expanse, and though the writing overcomes the limited color scheme at times, the album merely glides but never soars.
As with past outings, Ricardo Baum is the star of The Night Show. He’s got a big vocal presence that’s hard to resist, and he’s the kind of frontman that elevates everything a band does. He can sound like a youthful King Diamond, but this time he seems much more determined to turn himself into the prototype for an 80s Goth rock hero. He regularly delivers slick vocal hooks and phrasing that add a cool factor to everything the band does. There’s an argument to be made that the music behind Baum is more anodyne than last time. Robert Richter and Heinrich Käseberg can be a potent guitar tandem as they demonstrated on the prior albums, injecting classic metal and NWoBHM influences into their playing. Here, however, they dial things back to more Goth-appropriate levels, sacrificing power for poise. That makes for a less dynamic listen with fewer big, brain-shaking metal moments. Talent abounds, but the material feels overly restrained and held in check, and that’s unfortunate.
The Night Eternal are a very good band capable of delivering solid music that spans several genres. On Cold Velvet, they deliver some high-quality moments, but these highs aren’t as lofty as last time, and they get tangled in a series of less animated moments that sink the album into a Gothy bog. Cold Velvet is plenty classy, but it isn’t bashy enough for its own good. This gives me the sadz in the wrong way. Still worth a listen.
San Jose, California deathgrind maniacs Deathgrave are back with their third album, Hell is Evil, and Decibel has an exclusive early stream of the new album for your listening pleasure. Formed more than a decade ago by veteran musician and engineer Greg Wilkinson (Autopsy, Brainoil, Earhammer Studio), Deathgrave have maintained a steady stream of releases and live activity.
On Hell is Evil, Deathgrave open themselves to outside influences, pulling more from thrash, death metal, punk, noise rock and even industrial than ever before. As a result, the 32-minute record is packed to the gills with action and you can get in on it by streaming below. The album is out officially tomorrow, August 21, on Tankcrimes (digital here). Keep reading for an interview with Wilkinson about the new album.
It’s been about three years since the last Deathgrave album. What’s changed in the time since?
Literally the world in not a totally awesome way. I’m getting distracted. In regards to Deathgrave, we were able to explore more musical boundaries and fully develop our sound. We started writing our previous album, It’s Only Midnight, when Clint [Baechle, drums] joined in 2018. A lot of songs were pretty old hat to us by the time the album came out. So, for Hell is Evil, we really all got to musically understand each other and lean into expanding our sound with a more solid focus. The album from front to back was freshly composed, new and exciting for us while creating it.
What musical ideas were you focused on with Hell is Evil? Some of these songs are very grindy, while others are definitely more punk in their songwriting. Was that a conscious choice?
We have always been a band that straddles multiple musical genres. To me, this aspect is no different than before except I focused on blending the styles and transitions to feel more seamless. Each song was written with a musical motif in mind so some songs lean more in one direction or another.
Does the album title relate to the lyrics throughout the record? The title track seems to focus on a fictional depiction of Hell, while “Born from Death” is about Georgia’s inhumane anti-abortion laws.
No, each song has its own theme and set of lyrics.
Chris Reifert is featured on “Hard to Swallow.” Did that collaboration come out of your tenure in Autopsy?
I mean, it made it easier to have him come down! The short story was Andre [Cornejo, vocals] wanted a rant during the section where Chris sings. He hit a block there while tracking. Andre and Fern [Alberts, bass] were talking in the kitchen while I was sifting through tracks and they mentioned how cool it would be to have Chris come down and do his thing. I wrote Chris and he was down at the studio within an hour or so. He even wrote his lyrics for that section after reading Andre’s lyrics and discussing what the song was about. Super fast and professional as always.
You also recorded/mixed/mastered Hell is Evil. Does that make it a more seamless experience for the band and allow you to work on songs until they’re where you want them?
In a way, yes. I wrote the basic skeleton of every song before anyone learned anything. Everyone wrote their parts and immediately tracked. This is how all of us work. Our recording process is almost like an ad-lib. We could have technically done this anywhere with this process but it was great just doing this ourselves on our own schedule. When it came to mixing and mastering, I didn’t want to overwork anything. Deathgrave is an untamed beast and needs to sound that way. Who better for the job than ourselves?
On a personal level, when I record my own music, I tend to grab the inspiration while it’s there. If a song or part isn’t working, I won’t beat it to death. It goes straight to the can or the holding cell for a potential revisit in the future. There were two parts on the record where I compositionally changed the sections while tracking because they weren’t working as I envisioned. We have to facility to do this and wasted the 20 minutes to redirect the parts. It happened in real time while Clint was tracking the drums.
In both instances, they served the song better. I believe if the song doesn’t bloom during the creation process, it may be best to let it die on the vine. If it is something magical, it will come back during another wave of inspiration, most likely. The important thing is to constantly create new ideas so losing some along the way is a huge part of the process. It is important to keep a fair amount of improvisation within the writing, layering, composition and recording. We are, in theory, trying to capture lighting in a bottle. If it takes a long period of time and labor to capture a song, it is no longer an encapsulation of inspiration. So doing this ourselves on our own schedule, in my studio, and on our own terms is definitely the smoothest way for us.
Do you, like me, ever find yourself missing the sheer metallic perfection of the first few Mercyful Fate albums? Both Melissa and Don’t Break the Oath cast such a brilliantly macabre, occult atmosphere that they surely amplified the already palpable Satanic Panic of the mid-80s. Good things never last, but for a brief time, In Solitude managed to partially fill the dead spot in my heart that longed for more albums like those Fate classics, but all too soon they were gone too. Enter German metal crew The Night Eternal to fill the gap created by In Solitude, if not the yawning chasm left by Mercyful Fate. I discovered them on their 2023 sophomore release Fatale, and was quite impressed. Their sound was like an early, less Satanic Fate strained through a Goth rock filter, and it worked exceptionally well. Now, a few years later, we get the follow-up, Cold Velvet. The basic template is still in place, but this time they’ve gone deeper into the Goth rock doldrums and dulled their heavy metal edge in the process, approximating the Idle Hands / Untoothers material. It’s a bold strategy, Cotton. Let’s see if it pays off for ’em.
