Wolf Hoffmann has been a member of Accept for 50 years, from the band’s early days in Germany to the present. Along the way, Accept […]
The post ACCEPT – Wolf Hoffmann on 50 Years of Accept and the Future: “I Never Thought I’d Be in This Business This Long” appeared first on Metal-Rules.com.
Caught in your head
Feel it again
What you need now
Hope often starts out as a shift in perspective before transforming into something as steady as the stars in the night sky. A person lifts their gaze, allows beauty to feel credible once more, and perceives the future as regaining some of its richness. Music can support this process by creating space for personal experience, presenting an image whose significance shifts depending on who observes it. In this way, light signifies the moment when the world reopens to interpretation, bearing the past while broadening possibilities ahead.
That openness runs through “Diamond Rain,” the new single from Los Angeles dark dream-pop duo Magic Wands. Released on August 14th through Metropolis Records, the song finds vocalists and guitarists Dexy and Chris Valentine considering what might appear once a difficult passage in time finally begins to loosen its hold.
“The song doesn’t have one fixed meaning. To us, it’s about moving toward the light, finding beauty after darkness and allowing people to discover their own meaning within it.”
“Diamond Rain” glows with starfire, carried by a deep, chorus-laden bassline with the imposing scale of 4AD’s post-punk catalog. A crisp drum-machine snare gives the song its dance-floor pull, while sustained guitar hangs overhead in sheets of cold light, breaking into bright points around Dexy’s gauzed lead vocal. The arrangement is dense without becoming airless, and each return to the title phrase seems to lift the music another degree. It ranks among Magic Wands’ most immediate and accomplished songs; six albums into their career, the Valentines plainly still have more than a few tricks up their sleeves.
The lyrics start within the mind, where emotions cycle and longing is hard to specify, then shift outward with images of the sun, pale water, lost letters, and departure. “Save it all, for the diamond rain,” Dexy sings. The title presents a compelling contradiction by linking the fury of a storm with the beauty and refraction of a jewel. Its rain can harm, cleanse, hide, or shine light, and the recurring refrain offers a surface for listeners to project their own memories.
Magic Wands make that ambiguity visible in the accompanying homemade video “using old cameras, lights and mirrors to create textures and effects that give it a dreamlike feeling.” Extreme close-ups of eyes and mouths overlap with guitars, hands, and ghosted profiles; monochrome images suddenly bloom into acid green, electric blue, and molten red. Bright flecks scatter across the frame like snow caught in headlights as mirrored exposures divide faces into doubles. Elsewhere, horizontal interference and bold blocks of lyric text fill the screen, becoming part of the moving collage. The practical imperfections give the clip its tactile charge, as though vision were returning in fragments of glare, color, and reflection.
Watch the video for “Diamond Rain” below:
Magic Wands formed in Nashville in 2008 after Chris Valentine discovered Dexy’s song “Teenage Love” online. While they were still living on opposite sides of the country, Chris sent Dexy an actual magic wand through the mail; the gift eventually gave the duo their name. Dexy relocated from Los Angeles to Nashville, and their exchange of songs developed into the Magic Love & Dreams EP in 2009. The xx subsequently remixed their track “Warrior,” while the 2012 debut album Aloha Moon brought the pair to a wider audience and preceded a tour supporting The Jesus and Mary Chain.
After settling in Los Angeles, Magic Wands continued with Jupiter (2016), Abrakadabra (2018), Illuminate (2020), Switch (2023), and Cascades (2025). Across those records, Dexy and Chris have shifted between live rhythm sections, drum machines, distorted guitars, and droning synthesizers while retaining the intimate vocal interplay at the center of the band.
Their 2026 output has already included the Wishing Well and Remixes EPs, along with their reworking of Peter Murphy’s “Swoon.” “Diamond Rain” now opens the way to a still-untitled Magic Wands album expected in early 2027.
“Diamond Rain” is out now via Metropolis Records. Listen to the single on streaming platforms here, and order it here.
Follow Magic Wands:
The post “Callin’ Back Your Dream” — Magic Wands Shimmer in Video for “Diamond Rain” appeared first on Post-Punk.com.
Bristol Extreme Fest returns on 29 August 2026 at Bristol’s Trinity Centre, headlined by Black Metal legends Rotting Christ. The near-sold-out festival features a full day of Black, Death, Slam and Grind Metal across two stages
Back in April 2017, the cream of Extreme Metal gathered in Bristol at the iconic Bierkeller for two days at the inaugural Bristol Deathfest. Bands over that weekend included Immolation, Vader, Hour Of Penance and Defeated Sanity. Sadly, the venue closed before another chapter of the festival could be scheduled.
Whilst the promoters hunted for another venue, the Pandemic ravaged the live music scene, and it was feared that the one event would be the unsatisfactory legacy of what could have become a bit of a beast.
2026 sees the rebirth of the festival with a line-up that should fill the needs of anyone who has the Extreme itch to scratch. Set in the gloriously gothic Trinity Centre in Bristol, the festival is already close to a sellout.
Huge kudos to the promoters, End Of The World Promotions, who have been tireless in their efforts to bring this event to fruition.
MetalTalk will be present at this event, bringing coverage of the full day, which stretches across two stages. Headlined by Black Metal royalty Rotting Christ, the undercard sees a mix of Black Metal, Slam, Death and even a little Grind.
“We’re honoured to host our Greek brothers from Rotting Christ, after their last gig in Bristol 22 years ago.” Jason Varlamos, Director of Bristol Extreme Fest and End Of The World Promotions, said. “The Metal scene is really strong in Bristol, but is currently lacking an Extreme Metal festival. We hope to fill this gap and put Bristol back on the map.”
Victoria Bussey, Director of Bristol Extreme Fest and End Of The World Promotions, is equally enthusiastic. “As huge fans of Rotting Christ, it’s exciting to bring them over to the UK and enhance the Bristol Extreme Metal offering to the city.
“We’ve set up Bristol Extreme Fest to help diversify line-ups, offering opportunities to both local and international acts.”
Food traders, a Metal Market and loads to do make this event a huge one for those in the region. The few remaining tickets can be purchased here.
Irish sensations Fontaines D.C. have announced details of their fifth album, Dopamine Chamber. The follow-up to 2024’s Romance, it’ll arrive via XL Recordings on October 24.
“The album itself is a dopamine chamber,” says frontman Grian Chatten. “You step inside, and we test these different mind- or mood-altering pieces of music on you.
“I think Romance was maybe 60 per cent human and 40 per cent corrupted by automation, and a loss of feeling. This one feels more like 60 per cent corrupted – the mask is wearing the face a little more.
“I felt it would be more powerful to leave the hope out and reflect the ugliness honestly. This one needed to feel more like a catastrophic warning.
“There’s a poignant sense of us being on the brink of some other kind of form of humanity, or non-humanity.”
“Our albums have always questioned a sense of place,” adds bassist Conor Deegan. “First Dublin, then being away from Dublin, and then trying to find the romance elsewhere. On this record, the question became: where do you escape to?
The band have also released the first single from the album, the atmospheric Marianne. A video, directed by Dave Marsh, who’s previously worked with the likes of Doja Cat, Snoop Dogg, Coldplay, Drake and Ed Sheeran, is on the way.
Fontaines D.C. have several shows lined up in Europe and the US, including the UK’s Reading and Leeds festivals. Full dates below.
Aug 18: Lausanne Les Docks, Switzerland
Aug 20: Sankt Polten FM4 Frequency, Austria
Aug 28: Reading Festival, UK
Aug 29: Leeds Festival, UK
Aug 30: Stradbally Hall Electric Picnic, Ireland
Sep 18: Atlanta Shaky Knees, GA
Sep 20: Asbury Park Sea.Hear.Now, NJ
Sep 27: Dana Point Ohana Festival, CA
Test Card Girl brings a sleek, emotionally charged synth-pop feel to I Feel the Love on You, blending euphoric electronic textures with the tension of a troubled love story. The track carries a distinctly retro electronic character, with driving synths and melodic songwriting creating a sense of movement that recalls the darker romantic side of classic new wave and synth-pop. As part of the forthcoming Songs from Films that Don’t Exist, the song feels cinematic by design, imagined as a scene from a film that was never made. Test Card Girl is the solo project of Manchester singer-songwriter Catherine Burgis, whose background in comedy and songwriting adds an unconventional edge to her musical identity. I Feel the Love on You balances nostalgic electronic influences with intimate storytelling and an uplifting, atmospheric quality.
Connect:
As their efforts to save The Black Wreath pass the $400K mark, Blacken Open Air has announced a special series of shows to be held simaltaneously on the day the fund raiser concludes.
There will be six shows across Australia on September 12, with 33 bands including Psycroptic, Witch Skull, Freedom of Fear, Southeast Desert Metal and Crypt Crawler, plus a secret Brisbane headliner to be revealed next week.
Mo’s Desert Clubhouse, Metro Social (Sydney), the Ed Castle, Singing Bird Studios and Lynott’s Lounge will be hosting the events along with The Black Wreath in Alice Springs, to celebrate the collective’s efforts to save the venue. Tickets to the shows can be bought at the pledge page. Check the graphic below for the full list of acts appearing.
Trondheim garage rockers Short Skirts fuse raw punk energy, surf riffs, and Scandi rock attitude into a high-octane live show. Since breaking out in 2013 with their NRK-backed single “Kids,” the band has released two acclaimed albums, Family Values (2015) and Flower Junkies (2018). Now featuring original guitarist Per Ellekjær Kjesbu on lead vocals, they continue to deliver the fierce, genre-blending sound that made them a Norwegian rock favourite.
This is their new single, called Raw Food. I love the energy, the punk attitude (great guitars and very cool riffs) and the solid and powerful rhythm section (love the middle section). The vocals are no frills and the chorus is simple and catchy. A short and energetic one, old school and with a great finale, also. Give it a go by clicking on the Spotify player below and follow Short Skirts on social media as well if you like what you hear.
https://instagram.com/shortskirtsband