Category: news

3^rd Wave Ska legends Goldfinger return with their 9^th album, NINE LIVES, where they take a chance at experimenting with their music for a record that ultimately can’t be labeled as a single genre. It’s got pop punk, skate punk, ska punk, and even hip hop!  Each song is able to stick out on its own, despite sharing common lyrics of reminiscing and heartbreak (and all caps). Some listeners might not like the clean production of their newer work, but I argue that this is the sound the band wish they had when they first came out. The songs here may not have the same ska-driven sound of “Superman”, nor the political angst of “Get Up”, but what they do have are resonating lyrics and great vocals that don’t let you sit still for a second.    

Opening is their single “CHASING AMY”, followed by the first of many collabs, “FREAKING OUT A BIT”, which features Mark Hoppus. Lyrics like “I’m not right, but I’m getting better” are resonating for those who wake up already filled with anxiety.  The first ska song of the record comes next, “LAST ONE STANDING”, featuring Pennywise’s Jim Landberg. This and other ska songs (“DERELICT”; “LOSER”) lean towards that New Tone sound that uses less horns and bolder lyrics.    

While the first 6 songs are indeed standouts and worth the listen, it’s the second half of songs that stood out to me much more. “UNTOUCHABLE” is the most experimental song on the record, featuring iann dior, a multi-platinum rapper who fits well with John Feldmann’s lyricism. 

“THE PUNISHER”, as of writing this, is my favorite song off the album: John’s vocal talents are highlighted brightly here, the chorus part is super catchy, El Hefe from NOFX adds a sick guitar solo.  Plus, I’m never opposed to a banjo being included.

The closing song is “COLLEGE”, and it stands out because 1. It’s the only song that all acoustic and 2. The lyrics on this one don’t involve romance nor thoughts on the past, but rather it’s a look in to the future.  If John has a son, then I’d imagine this is dedicated to him.  

Overall, Goldfinger’s approach on music has evolved since they broke out 30 years ago, and they’re not afraid to call on assistance from other established artists as I’m sure they will continue to experiment their sound. If you just went through a breakup, but don’t want to listen to anything slow, then this album might be it for you. Otherwise, it’s still a fun listen. The only real complaint I have is that there’s not enough ska!

EDOMA is a Black/Death Metal band blending raw aggression with atmospheric melodies. Formed in 2017, the band has released two full-length albums, Immemorial Existence (2020) and Buried by Permafrost (2023), as well as the EP Shades of Cold Despair (2024). Their music combines chilling riffs, intense drumming, and haunting atmospheres, creating an immersive experience for […]

GLDN is a Brooklyn-based industrial machine initiated by architect Nicholas Golden. On February 6, 2026, the project underwent a hard reboot with the new single, Vessel. Abandoning the organic grit of the First Blood era, this track establishes a cold, clinical architecture. It is an industrial-metal indictment of the Trauma Economy—merging the mechanical dissonance of […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Interceptor Unleashes Savage New Track “Blood On The Kudzu” Featuring Brandon Barker
Streaming everywhere: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/interceptor/blood-on-the-kudzu
Charleston, South Carolina — Rising from the smoldering underground of US black/speed/heavy metal, Interceptor returns with their latest destructive assault, “Blood On The Kudzu,” released January 30th, 2026 . This single marks the band’s first release featuring the ferocious guitar work of Brandon Barker (Crazy Mad Ride, Rails to Roads), adding even more venom to their already blistering sound.
Since their formation in 2022, Interceptor has been tearing through the metal scene with unrelenting fury, culminating in their critically acclaimed debut album, Tales of Mayhem . Known for their raw, first-wave black metal energy fused with NWOBHM-inspired riffing, savage punk undertones, and a pure Venom-worshipping spirit, the band has established themselves as true torchbearers of extreme metal.
“Blood On The Kudzu” continues Interceptor’s mission to channel chaos and aggression into every riff, drum blast, and guttural scream. Fans can expect the same relentless intensity, but now with Brandon Barker’s signature shredding adding fresh fire to the sonic onslaught. The track is a testament to the band’s evolution while staying true to the barbaric spirit that has defined their rise.
Whether you’re a die-hard first-wave black metal devotee, a fan of NWOBHM’s gritty glory, or just hungry for music that hits like a sledgehammer, Interceptor delivers again with uncompromising ferocity.
Listen to “Blood On The Kudzu” now and witness the next chapter of chaos from Interceptor.
For press, interviews, and booking inquiries, contact: zach@metaldevastationradio.com

Connect with the band: 
https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/interceptor/blood-on-the-kudzu
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558678774418
https://www.instagram.com/interceptorbandofficial/
Contact: officialinterceptor@gmail.com

I’m thrilled to share that, after several years of hard work, my first book has been published with Oxford University Press!

The full text was released today, and can be read online for free through Oxford Academic: https://academic.oup.com/book/62310

The book is also available for pre-order in paperback, hardback, or E-book editions, which will be released in April 2026.

A million thanks to my acquisition editor, Norm Hirschy, who guided me through the book proposal process back in 2023, and then offered to include my book in an open-access initiative.

Long-time readers of my work will recognize parts of Chapters 5, 8, 9, and 10, but they have all been updated and expanded with new material and ideas to match this book’s broader context and arguments about heaviness as a participatory experience, its origins within the blues, and how it shaped the emergence and evolution of metal.

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Here’s a brief preview of what’s in the book:

Heaviness in Metal Music

Heaviness in metal music is not just a timbre or quality of sound—it’s an experience of impact that listeners help create. This book combines methodologies from musicology, music theory, cognitive science, and performance studies to define heaviness as a cross-sensory experience and aesthetic practice. Heaviness is shaped by what we do when we listen, how we think about metal music, and how we relate to the people who make and listen to it.

By studying the origins of heaviness, this book overturns common myths about metal’s history. Heaviness and the musical practices associated with it emerged from 1960s White audiences’ encounters with Black American music styles, especially the blues. Despite metal’s historical narrative of “leaving the blues behind,” many aspects of the genre perpetuate legacies of blues’s musical style and highly racialized reception—including headbanging, and metal’s ideologies and aesthetics of oppositional authenticity, loudness, heaviness, and extremity.

Musicians and listeners navigate their own way through this landscape of legacies, re-enacting the genre’s ideologies and musical structures through their own headbanging and moshing. When musicians use the most common drum patterns and song forms in metal, they perpetuate the genre’s norms and practices, but they also provide a framework for the creation and distinction of new metal styles and experiences. This book concludes with the argument that longstanding restrictions about who and what count as metal have recently begun to loosen, expanding the scope of what heaviness can mean, and to whom.

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Table of Contents

PART I. WHAT IS HEAVINESS?

Introduction

1. Experiencing Heavy Timbres Through Metaphors: Buzzsaw Tone

2. Power Chords and the Basic Illusion of Heaviness: Hearing Something More Powerful Than Reality

3. Rock Is Dead, But Metal Will Live Forever: The Paradoxes of Metal’s Progressionism

PART II. WHERE DID HEAVINESS COME FROM?

4. Leaving the Blues Behind: The Racialized Origins of Metal and Its Progression Toward Heaviness

5. Headbanging as a Legacy of Black Dance

6. Angels and Demons: Hearing Gender and Heaviness in Metal’s Fantastical Vocals

PART III. HOW IS HEAVINESS CREATED AND WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE?

7. How Metallica Created Extreme Metal: Active Listening, Connoisseurship, and Cover Songs

8. Headbanging to Drum Patterns to Create Heaviness

9. How Song Forms Create Ritual Spaces for Experiencing Heaviness

10. Feeling Different Heavinesses in Different Song Forms and Subgenres

Epilogue: The Promise of Post-Extreme Metal

about the new ‘We Mean It, Man’ album and how their combination of gypsy folk, hardcore, punk, techno and all the rebel musics makes a 21st century future folk riot and also the state of the USA

The post Eugene Hütz (Gogol Bordello) : The John Robb interview appeared first on Louder Than War.

Words by: Belinda Quick Photos by: Sam Phillips ‘All the best performers bring to their role something more… That’s why it persists’ – Stephen Sondheim, American Songwriter: The Craft of Music In regards to the performing arts, a form and medium reign supreme – the classics performed on a grand stage; Shakespearean tragedies brought to […]

Crystal Wall Promotions proudly presents Progressive Power Alliance, a night of elite Australian progressive metal at The Bergy Bandroom, Melbourne, on Saturday, February 28. Headlining the night are Teramaze, long standing pioneers of the Australian progressive metal scene, known for their genre defying blend of technical precision, melody, and emotionally driven songwriting.With a discography that […]

It’s probably a little late to be talking about New Year’s resolutions. But if I had some, one of them would be to write about more bands from “my area” — which I would loosely define as anything in between the Delaware and Susquehanna Rivers (even though I’m technically a few miles west of that). On that note, The Falling Out are an awesome band from Philadelphia, and their new album Don’t is one of the most original and interesting things I’ve heard in a while. It comes to us from the ever-reliable Dummest Records, who also proudly rep the City of Brotherly Love. 

I usually don’t write “in memoriam” posts for bands, so I won’t quite do that for the The Cheap Cassettes in the wake of their recently announced disbandment. I believe what I’ve written about this band over the years more than suffices for a proper tribute. I’m not in the mood for any sad shit. But given that I was with this band from the beginning, I ought to be there at the end as well. As a public service to anyone who might still be unfamiliar with this band’s catalog, I now present to you my top ten all-time favorite Cheap Cassettes songs. This was very difficult to pick just ten tracks from a catalog that included three full-length albums and three 7″ records. Damn it, Charles — why do you have to be so brilliant? But I think if you look at what this band put out over the course of the years 2011–24, you could argue, without hyperbole, that this was one of the five or ten best power pop groups of the past two decades. What a body of work! Someday, books will be written about this band (probably by me — ha ha!). And people will eventually pound the table for an overpriced reunion tour. I’m not saying that what lies below is the band’s definitive “greatest hits.” These are just my personal favorite tracks. But a lot of bands would wish to have a best-of collection as good as this. If you believe, as I do, in power pop as one of the purest forms of rock ‘n’ roll, The Cheap Cassettes are a band you need to know about, even in retrospect. Alright, let’s go!