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Do I like metalcore? I’ve always struggled a bit with this question. That’s a terrible way to start a review of any variety, but it’s a question I’ve kept coming back to since discovering Tyraels Ascension, a metalcore group from the United States, and their sophomore full-length, Grave Seeker. Metalcore has so much energy to it, all mixed up with frustration, anger, sadness, joy—on paper, very much my cup of tea. So every once in a while, I’m happy to sit down, grab whatever -core the cool kids are talking about these days, and see what happens. Grave Seeker has all of the above qualities and more, so what happens when we put it all together?

Liveliness is what happens—you get a lively record. Grave Seeker shows Tyraels Ascension at excitable peaks, with bombastic energy flying at your face from minute one. “No End in Sight” gives you a good idea of what to expect quickly, with duelling guitars, raspy shouts backed with growls, and a ton of excess energy. “The Summoning” shows Tyraels Ascension riffing with sleekness in their souls, while “Darkened Soul” shows off a burlier, more in-your-face side to the band. Occasionally some clean singing pokes through (“No End in Sight,” “The Summoning”) and there’s the odd piano (“Tears,” “Bittersweet”), but for the most part the songs are brief (3-5 minutes), guitar-driven, riff-tastic constructions.

That’s the primary strength of Grave Seeker, really: guitarists Sean Searls and Kevin McNeil, supported by Adam Bodkin’s bass, are mighty forces for Tyraels Ascension. Their mournful leads make “Bittersweet” a song that lives up to its title and “Impossible Decisions” an adventure. By contrast, vocalist Alex Theesen has a tougher challenge; his style of rasping shouts confine him to a certain range of emotive performance that the duelling guitars help round out. In the aforementioned “Impossible Decisions,” for example, the guitars get the song off to a roaring start, fast-paced and very strong. Drummer Brandon Dorman sets a great pace, and everyone’s keeping up. When the chorus hits, Theesen shouts with all he’s got, but it feels like he wants to hit a more melodic feel than his style allows for. The guitars adopt a more mellow, melodeath-esque melody that gives the moment the added weight and catharsis to make it all work.

What’s interesting about Tyraels Ascension is that they feel, at times, like they’re reaching across that blurry line that separates metalcore and melodeath. Theesen’s style is unmistakably -core, and the vocals all but cement the subgenre by themselves. But take the vocals away—as happens in the comparatively epic “Tyraels Curse”¹—and the feel changes completely. Similarly, Gave Seeker features a handful of quiet, more emotional moments that Theesen’s approach is just too burly for (the interlude in “No End in Sight” is a perfect example; he can only really narrate-sing-growl these moments and it just doesn’t work, despite the beautiful guitar lead). This friction between multidimensional instrumentals that breathe ranges of emotion and a vocalist whose primary focus is power holds Grave Seeker back—though which way is preferable will, of course, be up to the individual listener.

Grave Seeker is an adventurous album with some really good songs, a host of impressive guitar work, and a recognizable concept that I’ve come to really enjoy. With that said, I do have some mixed feelings about the full fifty-three-minute experience. For my part, it sounds like Tyraels Ascension are still working towards exactly what their sound is. But Grave Seeker is confident, fun, and enjoyable enough that I’m looking forward to seeing what they’ll come up with next.

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Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Rotweiller Records
Websites: tyraelsascension.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/TyraelsAscension
Releases Worldwide: July 24th, 2026

The post Tyraels Ascension – Grave Seeker Review appeared first on Angry Metal Guy.

I had been listening to the new Cairiss album Wilderness for a long time before I found the impetus to write the review. Not writer’s block, but simply trying to absorb what has become one of the best releases I have heard in 2026.

Cairiss – Wilderness

Release Date: 31 July 2026

Words: Paul Hutchings

Although they have been together for 13 years, my understanding is that this is the debut album by the Hampshire outfit. Combining dual female vocals that bring both ethereal melancholy and raw Black Metal screams, the six tracks span a journey through suffering and pain.

This is something evident from the beginning and opening track Nervosa. It soars and sweeps through a myriad of emotions, riding the highs and lows with an intensity rarely discovered these days.

Complex passages switch from thunderous tremolo riffing through to almost folk, with all stops in between included. Written during a period of uncertainty due to an eating disorder, it describes the broken fragments of self, caught in a never-ending cycle of pain and torment on a frozen landscape. 

You can feel the pain throughout the songs. They are drenched in personal suffering and experience. The Guide is a song of immense stature. Heavy nods to the progressive elements of Opeth dominate without suffocating.

Moments of crushing intensity stand comfortably next to delicate passages of Shoegaze. It really is gargantuan in its performance and delivery. 

Integrate describes a toxic relationship and the co-dependency that comes with it. A short piece in comparison to the rest of the songs here, it features multiple vocals that are woven perfectly through the song. It leads into the fever of existential dread and fear in the song Disassociate.

Explosive aggressive passages once again combine in harmony with beautifully composed segments to create a crescendo of tumultuous emotion. There are moments of highs, despite the lyrical content that threads throughout the album’s six tracks. 

At times, it is almost too much. The passion and energy that surges through the finale on Disassociate, for example, is amongst the best passages of music I have heard for ages.

It simply takes your breath away as the combination of the two vocal styles battle above complex crafted movements. It is something you need time to absorb, but the payback for sticking with it is great.

As you explore the meaning behind the penultimate song, Retrace, which focuses on intensive trauma healing, the band’s combination of Shoegaze, Post-Metal and Black Metal rushes over you. It is this track where, for me, everything knits together in a crescendo of magnificent power.

It is impossible not to be almost overwhelmed by the soundscape that unfurls as the song sprawls over nearly nine minutes. 

Deeply personal, deeply emotional and deeply intense, the conclusion comes with hope in the title track. Pulling together the threads that run through the record, it’s almost a cleansing track that, if it were a film, would be the part where the sun breaks through the clouds. Hope delivered in a triumphant six-minute passage that follows the style of that which has gone before it. 

One can understand why this has taken a decade to create. It is truly magnificent on many levels, and touches on a rawness that no doubt needed time to heal before being cultivated into these songs.

It has taken time to explore, to consider and yes, to enjoy. Wilderness is certainly, an album that will remain on rotation for some time to come.

Cairiss release Wilderness on 31 July 2026. For more details, visit linktr.ee/cairiss.

The post Cairiss / Wilderness Is One Of 2026’s Most Powerful Albums first appeared on MetalTalk – Heavy Metal News, Reviews and Interviews.

Dead Meadow release an album of rarities and covers, Foundlings.

DC psychedelic rockers Dead Meadow came together in the nation’s capitol in 1998. Over the years they have released ten studio albums (most recently 2025’s Voyager to Voyager) and four live records. Their history is more than long enough to take a look back and sort through the archives a bit. The band for the music on Foundlings is Jason Simon (guitar, vocals, organ) and Steve Kille (bass), with Mark Laughlin on drums for tracks 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, and Stephen McCarty on drums for tracks 3 and 5, and organ on track 5.

This rarities collection has music from all over. The label gives us the details. “Featuring the core lineup of guitarist and vocalist Jason Simon and late bassist Steve Kille, with drum duties split between Mark Laughlin and Stephen McCarty, Foundlings compiles material recorded between 2002 and 2024. Highlights include a rendition of Powell St. John’s “Kingdom of Heaven” (from the Sonic Cathedral sessions), a take on The Beatles’ “Tomorrow Never Knows” (from The Nothing They Need sessions), and a version of Led Zeppelin’s “No Quarter” originally cut for a Cleopatra Records tribute, alongside originals drawn from the Voyager to Voyager album recording sessions, a EarthQuaker Devices session, and a Committee to Keep Music Evil session recorded with Anton Newcombe and Rob Campanella (The Brian Jonestown Massacre).”

All the tracks are fantastic on this album. Some are slower and more subdued, like “Everything’s Goin’ On.” Others bring the heat from the very beginning, as does “Nobody Home.” The songs are immersive and reflective, and it is wonderful for fans to get these gathered together in one place. You do not have to be a longtime fan of Dead Meadow to enjoy the album – in fact, Foundlings is a great place to start when working your way through their catalogue. Don’t miss out. Get yours while you can. Highly recommended.

Foundlings is out from Heavy Psych Sounds Records on July 31^st. Listen and buy at the links below.

Photos by Wayne Edwards from Mojave Experience Festival 2026.

Links.

Dead Meadow website, https://deadmeadow.com/

Bandcamp, https://heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/dead-meadow-foundlings

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/DeadMeadowOfficial/

Heavy Psych Sounds Records, https://heavypsychsounds.com/

© Wayne Edwards

Highly acclaimed South Carolina singer, songwriter, producer, multi-instrumentalist and visual artist Hannah Wicklund has released her brand new single ‘Red Gorilla’. It is the latest song to be taken from her forthcoming album ‘War On Women; Calling All Good Men‘, out August 28th via Strawberry Moon Records. The album is available to pre-order now here. ‘Red […]

The post Hannah Wicklund Releases Funky New Single ‘Red Gorilla’ appeared first on ROCKPOSER DOT COM.

Posted on July 29th 2026, 11:28am

It’s that time of year again where we talk to as many bands as we can who are raring to blow you away at Bloodstock! Overpower will be rocking the New Blood stage on the Sunday… Simple things first – where are you guys from? We are Bristol-based, but we’re scattered across the southwest nowadays … Continue reading Road To Bloodstock 2026 (and bonus brand new single / video): Overpower

One month prior the release of Pure Ecstasy album, US five-piece Beartooth present their next new track in preview titled “Eyes Closed”.
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Southern Californian blues rockers Robert Jon & The Wreck are pleased to announce that These Wicked Rivers will be their special guests on their October 2026 UK Tour. Tickets are available from alttickets, robertjonandthewreck.com, The Gig Cartel, and Gigantic.com. Dates include Cambridge Junction (Oct 2), Nottingham Rock City (Oct 3), Liverpool, O2 Academy 2 (Oct […]

The post Robert Jon & The Wreck Announce These Wicked Rivers As Special Guests On October UK Tour appeared first on ROCKPOSER DOT COM.

American heavy metal bands, Savage Master and [band id=8658, will join forces for tour over Europe. ‘A Light In The Dark Tour’ is scheduled for March, 2027.
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[Cover art by Clare McCarthy]

A brutal death metal album with a beautiful cover? Consider me intrigued by the contrast alone. 

Brutal death metal, despite its typical gory imagery, lyrics, and tone, has a peculiar charm. But it’s not just the gore, but rather its hypnotic nature. The guttural vocals, consistent high BPM, lowwww-tuned guitars, and chunky bass create something that I guess falls into the ASMR-like category of metal subgenres, at least in my opinion. It’s all just one giant deep voice. Think Morgan Freeman narrating a nature documentary on the most beautiful places to visit during a zombie apocalypse. 

And maybe this is a ridiculous example, considering the rawness of bands like Repudilation and Scattered Remnants. 

But brutal death metal has evolved significantly since the release of the iconic ‘90s records from the aforementioned bands. Exhibit A: listen to any New Standard Elite release. But I digress. While BDM continues to resonate most strongly with those of us who drag our knuckles, some folks are adding at least some IQ points to the tunes, respectfully. Look no further than Garry Brents, mastermind behind the proggy/technical brutal death metal project Sallow Moth, now out with a fresh release. 

First and foremost, I must say…Willowtip was the perfect label to drop the project’s new record Hydrophilous Brood. Garry certainly channels the spirit of the label’s early roster — bands like Defeated Sanity, Harakiri, and Kalibas. The latter of which I hear quite a bit in the vocal arrangements. See “Distended in Panglacial Advent,” for example. The song is also filled with dissonant arpeggios, malignant gurgles, and even some cosmic clean tones at the halfway point — very much in the vein of Long Island, New York’s Artificial Brain. And perhaps similar to Wormed or Mortal Decay, Sallow Moth follows a similar approach in throwing everything but the kitchen sink at the listener. Each riff within the songs, while similar, don’t necessarily circle back around. In their purest forms, they’re used really just once with slight variations — “Driftmoth Vivisector” follows that formula, most notably, to my ears. The beginning and end sound like cousins rather than siblings. In essence, they’re distinct enough to maintain their noticeable uniqueness. 

In terms of the progressiveness of Hydrophilous Brood, Brents sprinkles bits and pieces of Cynic’s Focus throughout, but most prominent on a track like “Biohybrid Virulence” which comprises super sick jazz chords and intricate dissonant death metal passages. Speaking of which, you’ll hear that and then some on the closer “Serene Aqueous Leech,” throwing in actual jazz bars bestowing a beautiful horn section. 

If you’re a fan of just straight gut-punching brutal death metal in the vein of Deeds of Flesh, you’ll enjoy the title track and “Nebulous Appendages of Vacillant Seafoam.” Like a maze, both tracks twist and turn between blastbeats and chaotic fret work. And another thing I’ll add here is that Garry’s addition of a live drummer (Allen Gingerich) rather than programming, without a doubt, boosted the record’s presence. Admittedly, I prefer live drummers, but objectively, this one is noticeably heavier and more natural than 2025’s Mossbane Lantern. And when you include the tranquil sounds of bubbling water — see “Arcane Benthic Umbilicus” — it just makes sense to give the album a more natural sound, right? That track slays, too, by the way. 

As a die-hard fan of brutal death metal, I would be doing you a disservice if I didn’t acknowledge the genre’s tendency to stagnate. It’s a challenge to distinguish between bands at times, for sure. However, I believe Sallow Moth does enough to distance itself from that cliché. Not only is it different than the year’s heavy hitters from Trichomoniasis, Ecchymosis, and all the other –osis bands, Hydrophilous Brood is just as good. Point blank, it’s a must listen, especially if you’re into the whole swamp-humanoid-moth-monster thing. 

All in all, Sallow Moth proves that sometimes being drawn to the flame of weirdness doesn’t always end in disaster, rather in one of the year’s best brutal death metal records. 

And, no, that isn’t a Metallica reference. 

The post Sallow Moth – Hydrophilous Brood Review appeared first on Last Rites.