“I was an unwilling participant, attacked and clothing removed at the direction of a band I paid to see…”
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Symphonic metal artist Talia Hoit has released a new single and accompanying music video for “All You Want.” The track blends cinematic orchestration with heavy metal instrumentation, exploring the thematic realization of trying to meet someone else’s impossible expectations while losing one’s own identity.
Building her songwriting on a core foundation of piano and voice, Hoit translates highly personal reflections into expansive symphonic metal arrangements. Her background in crafting confessional material allows her to explore vulnerable subjects like identity, grief, and emotional survival, framing these concepts against massive orchestral backdrops and heavy guitars.
“All You Want” serves as the first preview of the artist’s upcoming second full-length album, When The Skies Fall. The ten-track record is scheduled for release later this summer on August 28 via SAOL.
The post Talia Hoit Releases “All You Want” Single and Music Video first appeared on FemMetal – Goddesses of Metal.
Alternative metal duo ESOTERIK has released a new single titled “Cycles.” The track marks a significant stylistic evolution for the group, moving away from their traditional industrial roots to embrace a heavier, nu-metal and grunge-inspired direction. While incorporating heavy guitars and raw vocal deliveries, the song maintains the accessible hooks that have defined the band’s catalog.
Formed in 2013 by Allison Eckfeldt and Brady Bledsoe, the US-based duo has spent over a decade building a dedicated following in the alternative scene. ESOTERIK has established a strong international live presence, touring extensively across the United States and Europe alongside acts like Combichrist, Priest, and Grendel. Their recent material has also seen chart success, with their 2024 track “Trickster” reaching the Top 10 on the Deutsche Alternative Charts.
“Cycles” serves as the first preview of the band’s forthcoming full-length album, Nü Skin. The upcoming record leans heavily into nostalgic 1990s metal influences, signaling a full transition into their new sonic territory. The band plans to release several more singles leading up to the arrival of the new album.
The post ESOTERIK Releases “Cycles” Single Ahead of New Album ‘Nü Skin’ first appeared on FemMetal – Goddesses of Metal.
Detroit hard rock quintet Eva Under Fire has released a lyric video for their new song, “THE WORDS YOU SAY.” The mid-tempo, emotionally charged track deals with the complexities of toxic relationships, where words are twisted and reality becomes distorted.
Fronted by vocalist, songwriter, and licensed therapist Amanda Lyberg, the band blends emotional insight with heavy, hard rock songwriting. Eva Under Fire uses their music as a form of therapy, aiming to turn scars and demons into anthems of inner strength that connect deeply with their listeners.
“THE WORDS YOU SAY” serves as the latest preview of the band’s upcoming sophomore album, VILLAINOUS, which is scheduled to drop on July 10 via Better Noise Music. The new record follows their 2022 debut, Love, Drugs & Misery, and the band will be supporting the release with a summer-long tour alongside Five Finger Death Punch kicking off this July.
The post Eva Under Fire Shares Lyric Video for New Song “THE WORDS YOU SAY” first appeared on FemMetal – Goddesses of Metal.
American rock band Evanescence has released their sixth studio album, Sanctuary, via BMG and Columbia Records. The 12-track record serves as an emotional and heavy return for the group, channeling frustration and hope through their signature cinematic sound. The release includes the anthemic lead single “Who Will You Follow,” alongside “Afterlife,” which previously served as a soundtrack feature for the Netflix animated series Devil May Cry.
Led by frontwoman Amy Lee, Evanescence has spent over two decades defining their unique blend of hard rock, gothic atmospheres, and soaring vocal melodies. Sanctuary marks the group’s first full-length studio release to feature bassist Emma Anzai, who joins the lineup as they continue to evolve their theatrical sound. The band built the new record with the intention of creating a space for listeners to find comfort and connection through music.
To support the new album, Evanescence is preparing to embark on an extensive headlining world tour. The trek begins on June 11 in West Palm Beach, Florida, and will feature support from acts including Spiritbox and Poppy. The tour is currently scheduled to hit arenas across North America, the UK, Europe, Japan, and Australia, with additional dates planned into 2027.
The post Evanescence Sixth Studio Album ‘Sanctuary’ is out now first appeared on FemMetal – Goddesses of Metal.
International music project Lunar Paths, formed by Diane Dubois and Kevin Hunter, will release its new single, Bloom, on May 30. The track marks the duo’s first standalone release of 2026 and will be available across major digital platforms, with an accompanying music video scheduled for release later this summer.
After several months of relatively quiet activity, the band revealed that recent challenges, including health issues, technical problems with recording equipment, and personal circumstances, temporarily slowed their creative output. Despite these setbacks, Lunar Paths have continued working on new material, with additional collaborations and releases already in development.
According to the band, Bloom began life as a heavily industrial composition before gradually evolving into something more atmospheric and evocative. The finished track incorporates Latin influences and embraces an aesthetic the duo describe as “desert gothic.”
Lyrically, the song draws inspiration from the rare blooming cycle of a nocturnal cactus whose flowers appear only under exceptional circumstances, sometimes after decades of waiting. This imagery serves as a metaphor for obsession, longing, and the pursuit of something so beautiful and elusive that it risks consuming those who seek it.
Formed in 2021 after reconnecting through social media, Lunar Paths brings together two veterans of the original gothic scene. Diane Dubois, known for her work with Skeletal Family and Cold Dance, and Kevin Hunter renewed their musical partnership decades after sharing stages during the post-punk and gothic movement of the 1980s. Despite being separated by thousands of miles, the pair have built Lunar Paths entirely through remote collaboration.
Since their earliest releases, Lunar Paths have developed a distinctive sound that blends goth rock, post-punk, darkwave, and contemporary electronic elements while refusing to be confined to a single genre. This spirit of experimentation has become one of the project’s defining characteristics and is once again evident in Bloom.
The post Lunar Paths Announce New Single “Bloom”, Inspired by Ephemeral Beauty and Desert Gothic Imagery first appeared on FemMetal – Goddesses of Metal.
BEHRU‘s Pluto is a captivating melodic techno journey that balances cinematic atmosphere with dancefloor momentum. Driven by emotive synth work, evolving textures, and a carefully crafted sense of tension and release, the track unfolds with patience and purpose, drawing listeners deeper into its immersive sonic world. Blending elements of progressive house and modern melodic techno, Pluto delivers both emotional resonance and rhythmic energy, making it equally suited for reflective listening and late-night club settings.
Elegant, expansive, and expertly produced, it showcases BEHRU’s talent for creating electronic music that connects on both a physical and emotional level.
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The Constellations‘ Stay Strange is a vibrant anthem for outsiders, dreamers, and anyone determined to preserve their individuality in an increasingly uniform world. Blending infectious energy with thoughtful songwriting, the track celebrates authenticity, curiosity, and the courage to walk a different path. Its uplifting spirit and memorable hooks are matched by a message that feels both timely and timeless, encouraging listeners to embrace what makes them unique rather than conform to expectations. Equal parts reflective and empowering, Stay Strange stands as a bold reminder that originality is something worth protecting.
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Los Angeles (CA) – Trad-Metallers ORGA MECHA have released, “Cries of Redemption,” the second single from forthcoming full-length debut album, Humanity.exe! The track features none other than Slough Feg’s Mike Scalzi!
The official video for “Cries of Redemption” is available at: youtu.be/01IHED8o0vg
Listen to the song on Bandcamp and Spotify!
ORGA MECHA is a Southern California band that melds traditional heavy metal with electronic textures and futuristic, sci-fi driven themes!
The music of ORGA MECHA weaves 1980s sounds in the vein of Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and Dio, with synths, glitchy vocal effects and electronic drums heard among artists such as Dance With the Dead and Muse. Thematically, the group focuses on classic science fiction, societal decay and heavy metal unity.
ORGA MECHA is composed of Melissa Pinion (vocals/keyboards & also of STYGIAN CROWN), Raoul Rañoa (lead guitar), Rob D (bass), and Richie “Captain Black” Brooks (drums & also of NINTH CIRCLE).
Named in homage to the 2001 Stephen Spielberg classic “Artificial Intelligence,” ORGA MECHA‘s robust debut full-length album aims to reach both longtime classic fans, as well as metalheads looking to explore unchartered terrain.
“It’s all about classic metal, sci-fi and keytars. We’re excited to finally unleash this project and our music!” – Orga Mecha
Humanity.exe will be released June 26 on digital and CD (U.S. only) formats.
Pre-Order/Pre-Save Humanity.exe:
orgamecha.bandcamp.com/album/humanity-exe
distrokid.com/hyperfollow/orgamecha/humanityexe
FFO: Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Dio, Dance With the Dead
Track Listing:
1. Rise
2. Into the Fray
3. Idols and Gods [Video]
4. May We Never Die
5. Swords Held High
6. Steel Mandible Swarm
7. The Pestilent Age
8. Lathe of Heaven
9. Let this be Your Final Battlefield
10. Cries of Redemption (feat. Mike Scalzi) [Video]
All Music Written & Arranged By: Pinion, Rañoa, Rob D and Captain Black. All Lyrics By: Pinion.
Drums Recorded By: John Haddad @ Trench Studio in Corona, CA, Oct. 2025
All Guitars and Bass Guitars Recorded By: Raoul Rañoa @ Rullian Studio, Redlands, Calif., November 2025.
All Lead & Backing Vocals Recorded By: Melissa Pinion @ Black Door Studio in Highland, Calif. November 2025.
Guest Vocals by Mike Scalzi (SLOUGH FEG) and guest voice acting by Chris Reifert (AUTOPSY) recorded by Tom Gears @ Subterranean Studio Oakland, Calif., December 2025.
Mixing By: Raoul Rañoa, Rullian Studio, Redlands, Calif., Tucker Thomasson, Megadungeon Recording, Bloomfield, Ind., Corwin Deckard, Bloomington, Ind. and Brendin Ross @ Black Death Studio, Los Angeles, Calif.
Mastering: Charles Elliott @ Tastemaker Audio in Los Angeles, CA, March 2026.
facebook.com/orgamechaofficial
youtube.com/@OrgaMechaOfficial
Source: ClawHammer PR
Legendary rock drummer Carmine Appice has doubled down on his long-standing claim that Metallica was the first true heavy metal band, in a new interview with Poland’s MetalSide.
Appice said (transcribed by Blabbermouth): “I consider heavy metal starting with Metallica. Before all that, it was hard rock. The crunchy guitars, the buzztone guitar, and the double bass following the guitar, that’s what started heavy metal. Everything else before that — Mötley Crüe and Van Halen, Blue Murder — everything’s hard rock. Heavy hard rock. But metal comes from the guitar for me.”
Appice first publicly made the claim in a 2020 interview with Pete Pardo of Sea of Tranquility, in the context of how grunge devastated hard rock’s commercial standing in the early ’90s. “Those days, nobody would touch us, because we were all dinosaurs,” he said at the time. “All the NIRVANAs and stuff — grunge was in, [and] nobody wanted to touch us, all the bands. Ted Nugent, DIO… I was playing with Edgar Winter in ’91, ’92, while doing Mother’s Army, and I was playing clubs with Edgar Winter — like 500-seat clubs. Dio was playing the same clubs with my brother [Vinny Appice on drums]. Everybody was [experiencing a drop in popularity]. Black Sabbath wasn’t happening. Ozzy [Osbourne] really wasn’t happening. Nobody was happening except Nirvana and Stone Temple Pilots, Pearl Jam, and all those guys.”
When asked to reconcile Metallica’s resilience through that same era, Appice drew a hard distinction: “Metallica was not like all these other bands. Metallica, I consider the band that really created what you’d call heavy metal. All these other bands — Mötley Crüe, Blue Murder… It’s hard rock — that’s not heavy metal. That Metallica sound, that sounds like scratching guitars, that, to me, is what heavy metal is, which turned into death metal and speed metal, and every other metal. But Ozzy’s first album was hard rock. Mötley Crüe was hard rock. Whitesnake — it’s hard rock. King Kobra was hard rock. It was all hard rock. Blue Murder, they detuned a little bit, and it was heavy, but it wasn’t what I consider heavy metal. Heavy metal was that really scratchy guitar sound.”
Appice is the original drummer of Vanilla Fudge, with whom he still records and performs today, and is a founding member of Cactus and Beck, Bogert & Appice. He has also held stints in the bands of Ozzy Osbourne and Rod Stewart, co-writing the latter’s No. 1 hit “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?” Rolling Stone ranked him the 28th greatest drummer of all time. His autobiography, “Stick It!: My Life of Sex, Drums, and Rock ‘N’ Roll”, was published in May 2016 by Chicago Review Press.
The post CARMINE APPICE Says METALLICA Was The First True Heavy Metal Band: “Before All That, It Was Hard Rock” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.