Swiss garage psych-punks The Jackets have been setting stages ablaze with their rock n’ roll energy and striking visuals for 18 years. This week they finally get to show us here in Australia what we’ve been missing out on – and they have a brand new vinyl collection to share with us too. Before they finished packing to fly out, we managed to chat with the amazing singer and vocalist Jackie Brutsche.
JACKIE BRUTSCHE: Good morning! It’s morning here.
LOUD!:It’s early evening here. It’s just after 6.30 here.
JB: You’re in the future!
L: Yes, we are a long, long way apart. But we’ll be much closer soon because you’ll be touring here soon for the first time! So what’s taken you so long?
JB: I don’t know! I don’t know… maybe it was – Yes, it was COVID. We were supposed to come in 2020, and it all got stopped.
L: Yeah everything got canned then for a while. It’s good that you’ve finally been able to make your way down here, at last. You must be pretty excited about having the opportunity to tour here finally?
JB: We are so super excited, totally. It’s a big highlight in our band lifetime, for sure. A year ago we were in Japan, so we were closer. And there we met a lot of Australian people and bands, and now it’s happening and we are super excited.
L: We’ve had plenty of time to get excited for you too, so that’s good.
JB: Yes that is good. It’s a great place for rock and roll, of course. A huge place for rock n roll!
L: Everyone says that, but Switzerland’s a great place too. There’s some amazing rock and roll bands to have come from there, so there must be some kind of kinship, there?
JB: Yes! It’s collecting. The world is coming together with rock and roll.
L: We’ve got to have something to bring us together. So apart from actually playing here – being here and playing is one thing, what else are you looking forward to about coming to Australia?
JB: Well we probably don’t have so much time to do more than that. See the country, the cities, the culture. Be back in summer! Just to see the other side of the world and travel, that’s what we love about touring. It’s not like travel as a tourist. You get to meet people and bands,and I really always find it fascinating how this music world connects and your family extends. We are very open and excited.
L: It’s coming up very soon. But also, you’re going to have new music as well. Tell us about that.
JB: It arrived yesterday [waves vinyl around] and we’re going to bring it. It was our idea to put… I mean we’ve existed for 18 years, we have six records, and we decided to put out ten key songs from our catalogue and add two new songs. So you get the best songs, and two new ones.
L: Two new songs seems natural to put them on there, but when you think about it, 18 years, six records – obviously there’s songs you know are favourites. But how do you go about choosing just ten songs? It must be like choosing your favourite children, or something.
JB: [laughs] That was very difficult, of course. And on vinyl you’re very limited. So we knew some songs had to be on there, but a lot of fans will definitely say ‘No, this song’ or ‘No, that song!’ But we wanted a good collection that works as a record as songs that we play, and songs that are on vinyls that are sold out and not re-pressed, so now they’re available on this record. It was very hard, yes, because even in the band… but it was more what the audience would like, I think, to be honest.
L: I guess in some ways it’s the audience who makes your decisions for you with something like that. Is in also the audience who decides what you play each night, as well?
JB: Oh no, we do what works for us! Because when it works well and we have fun playing, then everything else works well too. What we do with a show it that we have to have a good time and be excited. Everyone has to love to play the songs, so we have to be totally into the songs. So we have to decide what we’re into and what we feel like, and then the energy will go over. What we do is to have a good time and put this energy and have this moment with the audience. So it’s not about others or even about being liked. It’s about celebrating this moment, this chemistry.
L: How different is it for you as a performer to be in front of crowds who may not have seen you before?
JB: Well that happens a lot. I like that, actually. We play a lot of festivals, garage weekenders, and you meet people you’ve met many times. And then sometimes you play open airs where it’s all kinds of music and genres mixed together, and there’s a lot of people who’ve never heard a rock n’ roll concert. If they’re excited, and they come up later and say ‘Hey what was that! It was great!’ then I love that people have discovered something they haven’t encountered yet. But of course, it’s a new country, it’s very, very special for sure. And it’s great to be in a place where so many great bands have come from, plus the first time it’s even more exciting. And it’s super far away! We’ve never been on the other side of the world that far. It will give us even more energy and excitement.
Beyond Creation Return with New Single “Reverence”
Canadian technical death metal titans Beyond Creation rise from the ashes with their first new song in eight years.
Celebrating the 15th anniversary of their landmark debut The Aura on a Latin American tour, the Montréal four-piece—Independent Music and Lit Music Award winners and Canadian Grammy nominees—deliver a stunning reminder of why they’ve become a cornerstone of modern progressive death metal.
Metal Hammer hails the band’s comeback as “…a triumph for technical prowess, songwriting suss and passion,” and fans will find that description more than apt in “Reverence”.
A Phoenix Rising
From the outset, Beyond Creation carved their own path by blending brutal technicality with progressive curiosity and memorable melodies. Their new single continues that legacy.
Simon Girard, vocalist, guitarist, and lyricist, explains: “Our new single explores the fragile line between clarity and illusion, between introspection and insanity, where the search for meaning can either elevate us or consume us. But the truth is simple and powerful: the moment you stop comparing and start focusing on who you truly are and what you genuinely want to express, something beautiful happens. You create from a place of honesty. You grow with purpose.”
Watch the music video for “Reverence” on the
Exclusive Reverence merch is available via Loudtrax,and Beyond Creation’s full discography can be found on Season of Mist.
The Sound of True Metal
“Reverence” opens with uninhibited creativity, as Girard and guitarist Kevin Chartré trade riffs and ideas honed over 15 years together. But the track doesn’t shy from the crushing weight of expectation. Girard screams over chugging riffs: “Thrown into a sea of endless thoughts / A quiet war within my core.” The song’s tension mirrors the internal struggle that many musicians face in a world dominated by social media comparisons.
Girard elaborates: “The more we compare, the further we drift from our true selves and our authentic voice. We feel our ideas lack value, our techniques insufficient, and our identity flawed. But once we stop with the comparisons, we free ourselves to grow.”
Drummer Philippe Boucher guides the band through complex, maze-like rhythms, while bassist Hugo Doyon-Karout lifts the coda with mind-bending runs, elevating the track to a higher plane of technical brilliance.
A Visual Experience
Directed by Francois Bertrand and Girard himself, the Reverence video features actor Etienne Defresne and showcases a cinematic approach that mirrors the track’s themes of struggle, introspection, and ultimate triumph. Key visual credits include:
Director of Photography: Francois Bertrand
Editor & Visual Effects: Simon Girard
Key Grip: Raphaël Fortin
Makeup Artist: Elycia St. Amand
Praise for Beyond Creation
“…a go-to act for the tech-side of death metal for the better part of this decade” – Dead Rhetoric
“…there are still extremely few musicians that can sound like Beyond Creation” – Heavy Blog is Heavy
“…might just be the pinnacle of modern tech-death” – Angry Metal Guy
“The kind of technical death metal band that I can really get behind” – BangerTV
With “Reverence”, Beyond Creation prove they are not just returning—they are redefining the standard for technical death metal once again.
When British extreme metal legends CRADLE OF FILTH and American metal titans DEVILDRIVER, two of heavy music’s most iconic and ferocious bands – each with a stellar reputation for incredible live shows – joined forces for a North American tour in 2023 the results were predictably amazing and the synergy undeniable.
“a face-grinding heavy package that lived up to the hype and left fans ecstatic” Ghost Cult Magazine
“a triumphant collision of American and British heavy metal, leaving the audience drenched in adrenaline” South Florida Insider.
Now Australia will finally experience this much lauded team-up in July of this year as the two titans bring full headline sets packed with classics, to deliver a night of unrelenting intensity, theatrical horror, and crushing grooves.
Devil Driver
Cradle of Filth, led by the inimitable Dani Filth, continue to reign as the most influential and enduring name in extreme metal. Their reputation as a singular artistic force and as one of the most insanely entertaining live acts metal has ever produced remains unchallenged. Fresh off the success of their acclaimed 14th studio album The Screaming of the Valkyries, the band is ready to unleash their signature blend of blackened gothic metal, orchestral grandeur, and venomous lyricism on Australian fans who in turn rewarded the band with a fully sold-out tour on their last visit.
DevilDriver, spearheaded by the powerhouse Dez Fafara, bring their signature groove-laden modern metal assault. Known for their punishing riffs, ferocious energy, and anthemic songwriting, the band will deliver a career defining set from early crushers to recent heavy-hitters. DevilDriver have spent two decades forging a sound built on chaos and catharsis, with a brooding ritualistic intensity all delivered with the kind of conviction only a band at the top of their game can command.
Why Most Independent Artists Never Get Discovered on Spotify
You upload your track. You share it on Instagram. You tell your friends. And then… nothing. No Discover Weekly placement. No Release Radar bump. Just a steady flatline of streams from the same people who already knew you existed.
Sound familiar? You're not alone—and it's not because your music isn't good enough.
Most independent musicians struggle with Spotify growth because they don't understand how the platform actually decides who gets heard. They focus on streams when the algorithm is watching something else entirely. They release music without a strategy when timing is everything. And they chase playlists when the real prize is the algorithm itself.
The good news? The Spotify algorithm is a system. And like any system, once you understand how it works, you can work with it instead of against it.
In this guide, you'll learn exactly how Spotify's algorithm operates in 2026, what signals it prioritizes, how its key playlist features work, and most importantly, what you can do before, during, and after a release to give your music the best possible chance of being heard by new fans.
💡 Releasing music without a Spotify strategy is like throwing a party and not inviting anyone. The algorithm needs a reason to invite people for you.
What Is the Spotify Algorithm? (And Why It Changed)
The Spotify algorithm is an AI-driven recommendation system that personalizes the listening experience for over 675 million monthly active users. At its core, it uses a combination of collaborative filtering, natural language processing (NLP), and audio analysis to figure out what each listener wants to hear.
For artists, the algorithm is a gateway. When it works in your favor, it pushes your music to listeners who have never heard of you. When it doesn't, your track sits in the dark.
What Changed in 2025–2026
Here's the honest truth that a lot of music marketing content glosses over: the algorithm has gotten significantly more conservative over the past year.
Where it once rewarded novelty and discovery—surfacing new artists aggressively via Discover Weekly—it now prioritizes listener retention above almost everything else. Spotify has found that users return more often and stay longer when they hear familiar music. The result is that features like Autoplay and the AI DJ tend to recycle tracks a listener already knows, rather than introducing unsigned artists.
This doesn't mean algorithmic growth is dead. It means the bar for triggering it is higher. Engagement quality matters more than ever, and the artists who understand this are the ones pulling ahead.
The 3 Pillars: How Spotify Actually Evaluates Your Music
Spotify's recommendation engine is built on three foundational pillars. Understanding each one gives you a clearer picture of what to optimize for as an artist.
1. Collaborative Filtering
This is Spotify's way of connecting the dots between listeners. If User A and User B listen to many of the same artists, and User A discovers and saves your track, Spotify may recommend your music to User B.
This is why your existing audience matters so much. The more niche and engaged your fanbase is, the more accurately Spotify can find other listeners who match that taste profile. A small but highly engaged audience is far more valuable algorithmically than a large, passive one.
2. Natural Language Processing (NLP)
Spotify constantly scans blog posts, reviews, playlist titles, and editorial content across the web to understand how your music is being described. The language people use to talk about your sound–words like "melodic death metal," "progressive rock," or "post-hardcore" feeds directly into how Spotify categorizes and recommends your tracks.
This is why metadata matters. Your artist bio, track descriptions, and the language your fans use publicly all contribute to how the algorithm understands your music.
3. Audio Analysis
Spotify runs every track through its own audio analysis system, evaluating characteristics like tempo, key, energy, danceability, and acoustics. This helps it match your music to listeners whose taste history aligns with those sonic qualities.
The 5 Engagement Signals That Drive Algorithmic Growth
In 2026, the Spotify algorithm doesn't focus only on streams; it also measures behavior. Here are the five signals that matter most, ranked by impact:
Saves & Library Adds — The single strongest positive signal you can generate. When a listener saves your track to their library, Spotify treats it as a strong vote of confidence. A track with 1,000 streams and 200 saves will outperform one with 10,000 streams and 10 saves almost every time.
Repeat Plays — When someone listens to your song more than once, especially within the same session, it tells Spotify the track has high replay value. This compounds over time.
Completion Rate — How many listeners make it to the end of your song? A high skip rate in the first 10–30 seconds is a red flag that actively hurts your algorithmic reach. Your intro needs to earn attention immediately.
Personal Playlist Adds — When fans add your track to their own playlists, Spotify treats it as a long-term endorsement. This is one of the most overlooked signals independent artists can encourage.
Follower Growth — Every new Spotify follower means your next release automatically appears in their Release Radar. Building your follower count is one of the highest-leverage things you can do between releases.
💡 Ask fans to save your track and follow your profile—not just to stream it. A save has more algorithmic weight than ten passive plays.
The 4 Algorithmic Playlists Every Artist Needs to Understand
Spotify has four primary algorithm-driven playlists that can expose your music to new listeners. Each works differently—and each can be triggered under the right conditions.
Discover Weekly
Released every Monday, Discover Weekly delivers 30 personalized song recommendations to each user. It's been around since 2015 and remains one of the most coveted placements in the independent music world. Getting on someone's Discover Weekly means Spotify has matched your music to their taste profile with high confidence.
To trigger it, you need genuine engagement from a consistent listener base. Your music needs to be saved, replayed, and added to playlists by real fans whose listening behavior Spotify can cross-reference with others.
Release Radar
This playlist drops every Friday and surfaces new music from artists a listener already follows or has engaged with recently. It's the most directly controllable algorithmic playlist for artists, because building your Spotify follower count directly increases your Release Radar reach.
Pro tip: release music on Fridays to align with Release Radar's weekly update cycle. Submit your track for consideration in Spotify for Artists at least 7 days before your release date. The earlier the better.
Your Daily Mix
Daily Mix playlists blend a listener's favorite tracks with similar songs they haven't heard yet. Landing in a Daily Mix is a signal that Spotify's audio analysis has successfully matched your sound to a listener's taste profile. It's more passive to trigger but compounds powerfully over time as your catalog grows.
Radio & Autoplay
When someone starts an artist or song Radio on Spotify, the algorithm builds a queue of related tracks. In 2026, these features lean more heavily toward familiar artists, which makes them harder for new artists to crack. However, consistent engagement signals across your catalog can still earn you Radio placements. Especially if your sound closely matches an established artist your fans already listen to.
The 72-Hour Window: Your Most Critical Release Period
The first 72 hours after a release are the most important period in an album or single's algorithmic life. During this window, Spotify is testing your track—feeding it to a small initial audience and watching how they respond.
If that initial audience saves it, replays it, and adds it to playlists, Spotify interprets that as a strong quality signal and expands the pool of listeners it shows the track to. If listeners skip it or ignore it, the algorithm pulls back, and the track's organic reach will slow down.
How to Maximize Your Release Window: Step by Step
Submit for playlist consideration in Spotify for Artists at least 7-14 days before your release date. Fill out every field: pitch text, mood, genre, and instrumentation. This is your shot at editorial placement, which provides the strongest possible initial push.
Build pre-save momentum before release day. Every pre-save converts into an immediate library add and Release Radar placement the moment your track goes live—giving you instant engagement and a boost in the algorithm.
Mobilize your existing fans the moment the track drops. Send your email list, post on social media, and message your community. Getting your most engaged listeners to save and share the track in the first 24 hours seeds the algorithm with high-quality behavior.
Drive external traffic to Spotify. When fans arrive from TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube and actively engage with your track, Spotify recognizes that external platforms are sending loyal listeners, which is a powerful positive signal. This is not the same as paid ads. Organic traffic from content typically converts better.
Stay active post-release. Comment on shares, respond to fans, and keep promoting for at least two weeks. The algorithm rewards sustained engagement over time, not just a spike on day one.
💡 Think of your release like a campfire. Your job in the first 72 hours is to get the spark going. If early engagement is strong, the algorithm adds the fuel.
What NOT to Do: Algorithm Myths and Dangerous Shortcuts
There's no shortage of services promising to "boost your Spotify algorithm" for $20. Here's why that should terrify you.
Fake Streams and Bot Plays
Purchasing streams from bot services isn't just a waste of money; it actively poisons your algorithmic potential. Spotify's fraud detection has become increasingly sophisticated. Accounts that generate artificial plays are flagged, and the downstream effect is that your track's engagement metrics appear hollow. A high play count with near-zero saves and repeats tells the algorithm something is wrong, and your reach gets suppressed as a result.
Beyond the algorithmic harm, Spotify can and does remove tracks or ban artist profiles found to be using fraudulent promotion. It's not worth the risk.
Low-Quality Playlist Placements
Not all playlist placements are equal. Getting added to a playlist with 50,000 followers sounds great—until those followers are bots or disengaged accounts who immediately skip your track. A high skip rate from a playlist hurts more than it helps.
If you pursue third-party playlist placements, prioritize genre-relevant, engaged playlists over sheer follower counts. Quality of listener engagement always outranks the size of the audience.
Myths Worth Busting
Myth: You need thousands of followers to get on Discover Weekly. False. A few hundred highly engaged fans can trigger algorithmic placement if their behavior signals are strong.
Myth: Longer songs perform better. The algorithm doesn't reward length. It rewards completion rate and replay value. Often songs in the 2:30 to 4-minute range do the best.
Myth: Paid Spotify ads boost your organic algorithm ranking. They don't. Spotify keeps paid promotion completely separate from its organic recommendation system.
Myth: Releasing constantly is always better. Quality and consistency beat frequency. Releasing every 2-3 months with strong rollout strategies outperforms dumping tracks with no plan.
Your Spotify profile is a living part of how the algorithm understands and categorizes your music. These are the elements that directly impact your discoverability:
Artist Bio: Use clear, genre-specific language. If you're a melodic metalcore band, say that. The NLP system reads your bio and uses it to categorize your sound.
Canvas Videos: Short looping visuals added to your tracks keep listeners engaged longer and reduce skip rates—directly improving one of your most important engagement metrics.
Pinned Track: Pin your best-performing or most recently released track to the top of your profile to guide new visitors toward your strongest material.
Artist Pick: Use this to highlight a new release, an upcoming show, or a playlist. It personalizes the first impression for anyone who lands on your Spotify page.
Scrolling Lyrics: Lyrics enable a deeper emotional connection to your music, which increases repeat listens and the likelihood of playlist adds.
The Bottom Line: Work With the Algorithm, Not Against It
The Spotify algorithm in 2026 reflects the quality of your listener relationships. When real fans save your music, replay it, add it to playlists, and follow your profile, the algorithm sees a song worth recommending. When engagement is fake, hollow, or low, it pulls back.
Here's a quick summary of what moves the needle:
Prioritize saves and follows over passive stream counts
Hook listeners in the first 10–30 seconds. Skip rate is a killer
Submit for editorial playlist consideration at least 7–14 days early
Build a pre-save campaign before every release
Mobilize your real fans in the first 72 hours
Drive organic external traffic from social media and video content
Keep your Spotify for Artists profile optimized with bio, Canvas, and lyrics
Avoid fake streams, bot playlists, and any service that promises guaranteed plays
Artists who follow these methods consistently build the kind of algorithmic momentum that compounds over time.
💡 Your next release doesn't have to disappear into the void. Understand the system, execute with intention, and let your real fans fuel the algorithm on your behalf.
Next Step
Head to Spotify for Artists and audit your last release. Look at your save rate, completion rate, and where your streams are coming from. That data tells you exactly where to focus for your next rollout.
And if you haven't already, you can join the Musician Vault for more guides that help independent bands succeed in the music industry.
So many moments on this album made me go “WOO!” We first encountered the Vitoria Gasteiz, Spain screamo/post-hardcore band Vibora when they teamed up with Madrid-based Crossed on a stupendous 2022 split. They’ve now returned with a breathtaking sophomore full-length that hits like truckloads of dynamite strategically carving a masterpiece into a mountainside. Egin Ez…
Mister Flying V ist im Haus. So könnte man sicherlich titeln und es beschreibt aber sehr genau, was man an diesem Abend bekommt. Michael Schenker, der vermutlich nicht mal weiß, dass es andere Gitarrenformen, als die „V“ – von welchem Hersteller auch immer – gibt. Nach 18 exklusiven Jahren mit Dean Guitars wechselte Schenker 2023 wieder zurück zu den Wurzeln: Wie schon in den 70ern ist er jetzt wieder mit den originalen Gibson Flying V zu sehen und hören.
Bekanntlich zeichnet sich Schenker neben vielen anderen Titeln auch als Autor der Hymne Doctor Doctor gemeinsam mit Phil Mogg von UFO verantwortlich. Und wem es nicht reicht, einen der nachweislich besten Gitarristen live zu sehen, für den sollte schlussendlich die Rockhymne Grund genug sein ,sich die Tour anzuschauen.
Michael Schenker!
Mit dem Namen verbinde ich meine ersten Scheiben im Hardrock-Genre. Und nicht nur UFO, auch bei den Scorpions hinterließ er seine Genialität. Wer einmal Lovedrive, Another Piece of Meat oder Coast to Coast von den Scorpions in voller Länge gehört hat weiß, warum die Ozzy, Whitesnake, Aerosmith und sogar die Stones ihn als Gitarristen angefragt haben. Aufgrund seines Wunsches, ausschließlich seine eigene Musik zu spielen, lehnt er diese Angebote allerdings immer ab und stieg – bis auf wenige Ausnahmen – lediglich als Session-Musiker bei anderen Bands ein.
U.F.O.
Und genau hier kam vor 54 Jahren U.F.O. ins Spiel, bei denen sich Schenker zwischen 1972 und 1978 sein Brot verdiente und einige seiner bekanntesten Stücke schrieb. The German Wunderboy, wie er in der Szene genannt wurde, soll sowohl Edward Van Halen, als auch Zakk Wylde, den inzwischen verstorbenen Randy Rhodes oder auch Kirk Hammett von Metallica musikalisch beeinflusst haben.
Den ersten Teil der Tour durfte ich letzten Sommer in Wacken hören und fotografieren. Ein halbes Jahr später sollte ich erneut die Möglichkeit haben. Scorpions-Urgestein, UFO-Mitglied und Mister Flying V erneut vor das Objektiv zu bekommen. Diesmal nur nicht mit dem Tele auf der entfernten Festivalbühne, sondern eher intim und nah in der Großen Freiheit 36 an der Hamburger Reeperbahn.
Erstaunlich, dass der Hamburger Club nicht ausverkauft war. Drei Supportbands waren angekündigt, Michael on Top und das Paket für etwas weniger als 60 Euro war nun wirklich kein Grund auf gute Musik zu verzichten.
Die Supportbands des Abends waren Malvada. Die Female-Band, die ich aus Termingründen leider nicht sehen konnten, wurde gefolgt von meinem Highlight des Abends, der Band Rook Road und The Night Eternal. Letztere scheinen auch in Hamburg schon einen gewissen Bekanntheitsgrad und Fankreis zu haben, oder es lag einfach nur an der Musik. Ein wenig düster, aber lupenreiner Metal.
Zu Rock Road an anderer Stelle mehr. Ich fand die Jungs so klasse, dass ich sie für eine der nächsten Folgen zum Interview einladen möchte. Michael hatte ich leider so spät zu Interview angefragt, dass es zeitlich einfach nicht mehr passte. Schade, aber verständlich, dass er vor dem Gig nicht noch vor dem Rockcast-Micro sitzen wollte. Vielleicht klappt es zu einem anderen Zeitpunkt. Hatte ich doch kürzlich erst seinen Nachbarn und mit-Musiker Herman Rarebell von den Scorpions im Rockcast-Interview. Hier kannst du das Gespräch nochmals hören.
Michael kam um kurz vor 22 Uhr auf die Bühne und nach dem Led Zeppelin-Song „Immigrant Song“ als Intro hatte er folgende Setlist im Gepäck:
Natural Thing Only You Can Rock Me Hot ’n‘ Ready Doctor Doctor Mother Mary I’m a Loser This Kid’s Lights Out Love to Love Let It Roll Can You Roll Her Reasons Love Rock Bottom
Zugabe
Shoot Shoot Too Hot to Handle
Alles in allem zeigte Michael, dass er auch mit 71 Jahren noch lange nicht zum alten Eisen gehört. Ein gelungener Sonntagabend auf dem Hamburger Kiez. Mit kaltem Bier und viel Musik. Danke dafür!
We may not know much about Sun Dont Shine‘s debut album From Birth To Death other than its name and April 1 release date, but that isn’t stopping the supergroup formerly known as Eye Am from releasing a music video for their latest single “Power To Live.”
Originally released as a single last Wednesday, “Power To Live” still kicks ass, man. It’s the latest in a line of singles offered up by the doomy, sludgey group comprised of Crowbar frontman Kirk Windstein on guitar, former Crowbar bassist Todd Strange, and ex-Type O Negative members Kenny Hickey on lead vocals/guitar and Johnny Kelly on drums.
This new single “Power To Live” not only features Hickey behind the mic, but Windstein gets his voice in on the action as well. The result is a dynamic, explosive new piece of music that should get most people stoked for the eventual release of From Birth To Death via Corpse Paint Records.
As we learned last week, this new track was written by Hickey and Windstein and apparently came about from a “conversation around the single’s striking cover art, when Hickey remarked how shameful it is that, as human beings, we still haven’t evolved beyond killing one another.”
Even though we know of the album’s release date, we don’t know the full track listing, nor do we know how you can get yourself a preorder for the thing. Once that information is provided to us, I’ll make sure you guys are aware of what’s going on.
Houston’s Necrofier first came on my radar when they played the 2024 Decibel Magazine Tour with Hulder, Devil Master, and Worm. Sadly, I missed their opening set, but gladly, I caught a recording of it on YouTube.1 Their raucous, crowd-pleasing performance compelled me to check out their recordings. At 36 minutes, debut Prophecies of Eternal Darkness (2021) is a lean, mean barrage of melodic black metal, while Burning Shadows in the Southern Night (2023) ups the ante with 47 minutes of stronger, more polished material. Necrofier’s (lone?) star seems to be on the rise since Decibel 2024, as their third album arrives on the mighty Metal Blade Records. Also on the rise are the band’s ambitions; Transcend into Oblivion spreads three three-songs suites and an eponymous closing track across a hefty 59 minutes. Everything is bigger in Texas, sure, but bigger doesn’t always mean better (or good).
Perhaps due to their sweltering abode, Necrofier draws black metal sustenance from the shivering environs of Scandinavia. Dissection is certainly an immediate reference point, if they excised the excursions into folky melodeath. Necrofier’s preferred melodicism swirls as a maelstrom of mobile power chords by guitarists Bakka and Semir Özerkan, propelled by the dexterous drumming of Dobber Beverly.2 The influence of Watain also feels present, especially since Bakka’s rasp sounds quite a bit like E. And early Emperor reigns here as well, before they fully unbound Prometheus. Violins, synthesizers, and harpsichords are felt more than heard outright, balancing a sweet spot production-wise à la Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk. On the unfortunate side of the production is bassist Mat Valentine, who gets lost in the shuffle. Nevertheless, Transcend into Oblivion consistently delivers quality black metal that is melodic but dangerous.
Transcend into Oblivion progresses as three suites, each comprised of three songs. Together, they narrate a ‘Luciferian Night of the Dark Soul’: a spiritual awakening incites torment that ultimately engenders rebirth. Individually, they mostly play out as a collection of thematically-linked songs. “Fires of the Apocalypse, Light My Path” immediately kicks the door in (“Fires…I”) before kicking the door in again (“Fires…II”) and again—”Fires…III” is the strongest of the trio, but the listener begins wondering why these songs are presented as holistic units. The “Servants of Darkness, Guide My Way” trilogy comes closest to reaching suiteness. “Servants…I” starts with one of the album’s gnarliest trem riffs, “Servants…II” cools things down with an extended acoustic passage, and “Servants III” delightfully dips into doomy Middle-Eastern territory before black-metal blastoff. As for the “Horns of Destruction, Lift My Blade” triumvirate, it adds variety with d-beats, chunkier riffs, and a gong, but it feels like more of the same this deep into the album. There’s no real filler amongst the suites, but there aren’t any thrilling peaks either.
Keeping with their spiritualism, Necrofier nests numerology into Transcend into Oblivion, punctuating its three-song threesome with three instrumentals. For the most part, they effectively break up the black metal action. On the heels of the opening “Fires” suite, “Behold, the Birth of Ascension” conveys the onset of (re)birth pangs. Repurposing a melody from “Fires…III” with creepy bells and macabre piano, it cleverly inverts the typical function of an interlude, segueing out of a song rather than into one. More in the typical interlude camp is “Mystical Creation of Enlightenment.” Its Spanish-sounding acoustic plucks make for a soothing shift out of the savage “Servants” suite, while its ending modulation prefigures the ornery onset of the “Horns” suite. Oddly enough, it’s the eponymous instrumental that feels superfluous. “Toward the Necrofier” concludes the album with ominous space synths, incantatory spoken word, and tribal rhythms. “Horns…III,” however, ends with its own climax and a piano denouement, which makes the final instrumental feel like a coda to an album that doesn’t need more closure.
“Toward the Necrofier” does function as a serviceable springboard for a second spin of Transcend into Oblivion, an album which I ultimately recommend. It makes sense that Necrofier would cap off a work about rebirth with an eponymous song distilling the more unique elements of their sound. While Necrofier don’t fully realize their conceptual ambition, Transcend into Oblivion is sweet stuff regardless, demonstrating lots of promise for future outings. Black metal zealots of all stripes should strongly consider messing with these Texans.
Houston’s Necrofier first came on my radar when they played the 2024 Decibel Magazine Tour with Hulder, Devil Master, and Worm. Sadly, I missed their opening set, but gladly, I caught 