Category: news

October 2, 2026 will see the release of Hippotraktor‘s third studio record entitled Annihilist. The successor to 2024’s Stasis is comprised of 7 new songs. Check out also the previously released first single called “A Different Now”.
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ActTanGent has always been a welcome home for the weird and wonderful, showcasing an array of the more experimental and genre-bending subsets of prog, metal and rock. This year’s line-up is, frankly, a bit ridiculous. Clash-finders will be working overtime, with many likely dashing the fortuitously short distances between tents to catch a bit of everything. If you managed to bag a ticket before they all sold out but haven’t quite maxed out your schedule yet, then keep reading to discover who we’re going to do our best to catch.

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Wednesday

If you’ve set up your camp and grabbed a bite of lunch, then head over to the Yohkai tent to catch Brighton quartet Chalk Hands. With elements of math-rock, screamo and post-hardcore, they’re a great example of the brilliant mishmash of intensity, subtlety and musicality that exemplifies the festival as a whole.

It’s likely that virtually everyone on site on Wednesday will gather to witness Svalbard’s last ever festival performance. Firm favourites in the underground metal scene for more than a decade, they announced in May last year that 2026 would be their final year as a band. Svalbard are known for bringing passion and emotion to their own brand of atmospheric post-rock tinged metal. With their hometown of Bristol just down the road, this farewell set is sure to be an emotional one.

It’s worth heading straight over to the PX3 stage for Brazilian folk prog metal outfit Papangu. Mixing guitars, bass, drums, vocals, flute, keys, synth and potentially even a rubber chicken, they’re a mesmerising fusion of psych rock, prog, jazz and metal with a distinctly South American flare. You’ll never quite know what’s coming next with this band but it’s sure to be entertaining.

Back at the Yohkai stage are Cardiacs; one of the most talked about additions to the ArcTanGent lineup this year. Joined by Mike Vennart (Oceanzise, Empire State Bastard, Biffy Clyro) after the death of founding vocalist Tim Smith, the band have a developed a cult following from fans young and old. They will likely focus mainly on material from 2025’s album ‘LSD’, but with a catalogue dating back to the eighties, their set is sure to be packed full of avant-garde punk and eccentric prog rock.

Thursday

ActTanGent is the kind of festival where it’s always worth dragging yourself out of your tent to catch the earlier bands. If you’re feeling fresh on Thursday morning, then get yourself down to the main stage where IAN are opening. Don’t let the cello fool you into a false sense of security though, the dulcet strings morph into huge riffs and crashing symbols. Get down the front and breathe it all in. If you didn’t quite make it to the Arena first thing, then head to Terminals on the Bixler Stage. The Birmingham trio will wake you up with gloriously heavy, growling basslines and melodic, soaring vocals.

For a brutal lunchtime assault on the ears, head to the PX3 Stage, where Dublin trio Bucket will no doubt be mixing electronic beats over distorted screams and turning everything up to eleven. Ronker will also be doing their best to blast the roof off the Yohkai stage straight afterwards. The Belgian noise rockers always bring ferocious energy to their live shows, their fast-paced rhythmic charge and guttural screams riling up the crowd. If far less aggressive American pop-punk is more your thing, be sure to catch Michael Cera Palin on the Bixler stage a bit later in the afternoon. The subject matter of their songs can be heavy, but their sound is at the much lighter end of the spectrum, with warm guitar tones and upbeat rhythms. As the sun sets, head over to Yohkai for Manchester jazz punk quartet Maruja. Expect to be kept on your toes with tempo changes galore, and fervent vocals that make way for saxophone sections that move from frenetic to poignant and back again in a heartbeat.

Friday

If you’re an early bird who wakes up and chooses violence, you might enjoy being screamed at by Worn Out on PX3 to get Friday started with a bang. For something far more gentle, head over to Bixler and let the dreamy shoegaze melodies of Wildernesses carry you into the day. Once you’ve had your post-rock fix from the likes of Civil Service and Barrens, you must catch the final ever appearance of Heck on the Yohkai stage. For a band with only one album, who broke up in 2017 and reappeared briefly in 2022 for a couple of shows, their fanbase is as dedicated and devoted as they come. They’ve promised that this ArcTanGent appearance really will be their last, so prepare for them to go out all guns blazing in a raucous, ridiculous farewell.

If you’ve got any energy straight afterwards, take a wander over to the main stage for another band who have returned from hiatus; Arcane Roots. Much less erratic than Heck, and fresh from two sets at sister festival 2000 Trees, expect a tight performance packed with powerful, emotive vocals and raging riffs. Later on in the evening, head back to PX3 for the doomy, grungy, punky sounds of Manchester quartet Witch Fever. Think heavy basslines, driving beats and pure fury.

Saturday

If you make it into the arena before noon on the final day, then check out the mildly unnerving but highly infectious Erotic Secrets of Pompeii on the Bixler stage. Self-described as “apocalyptic lounge music”, the local band are a melting pot of theatrics, experimental rock and a touch of the bizarre. For your wistful but simultaneously heavy post-rock needs, Din of Celestial Birds will take you on a sonic journey over on the Yohkai stage. Following yesterday’s theme of bands making a comeback, Oathbreaker return to the UK after nearly ten years and are sure to captivate the main stage crowd with their crushing blend of blackened post-metal.

If you need some light relief after the emotional onslaught that’s inevitable from an Oathbreaker set, head over to Yohkai for the ever-charismatic Jamie Lenman. There will likely be plenty of chat in between songs, which themselves may well jump between genres from alt rock to folk, with influences from heavier rock, jazz and emo. For a contrast to so much wordiness, Danish instrumentalists Town Portal return to ArcTanGent on the PX3 stage with polyrhythms and big math-rock riffs aplenty. After you’ve finished watching Cult of Luna & Julie Christmas perform ‘Mariner’ in full, you should make sure you’ve got your headphones ready for Battlesnake on the silent disco. A delightfully silly way to finish a delightfully varied few days of music. Trust us.

“Unto The Anvil Of War”, the first advance single from Tombstalker‘s forthcoming LP release Chaos Monolith, has premiered online. The new music output from US death thrashers will land in stores on September 25th, 2026 through Shadow Kingdom Records.
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To promote their upcoming third studio album Atropa, Switzerland’s E-L-R proudly announce a string of European tour dates with support from Abraham and Iskandr on select dates. E-L-R also present the first advance single, “Archeress”.
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Bournemouth hard rockers Black Water Redemption have released their heartfelt new single, “Walk Beside You”, taken from their upcoming self-titled debut album arriving on 2nd October 2026. Following on from their previous track “Ride Or Die”, the single offers a deeper glimpse into the emotional range and power of the forthcoming record. Downloadn and stream … Continue reading Black Water Redemption release new single “Walk Beside You” ahead of debut album

British thrashers Struck A Nerve have debuted a Nathan Sadd-directed music video for “Execution Protocol”, the title-track off their newly released EP on Listenable Records.
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Northeastern Pennsylvania artist Robin Ross presents the single’Blood Lines‘, introducing vocalist Carmine Gontz. A reflective yet expansive rock anthem, ‘Blood Lines‘ weaves melodic guitar work, rich harmonies, and a timeless message about family, connection, and the enduring ties that shape generations. Written and performed by Robin Ross with Jack’s Maze,’Blood Lines‘ is powered by Bill Snyder on guitar, Scott Cowan on melodic guitar, Frank […]

The post Pennsylvania Rockers Robin Ross & Carmine Gontz Team Up On Haunting ‘Blood Lines’ appeared first on ROCKPOSER DOT COM.

Later this month, on August 28th, Italy’s heavy/power metal ensemble Ibridoma will put out their seventh full-length instalment dubbed Sangue Innocente. You can also check out the first single of the same name featuring Giacomo Voli of Rhapsody Of Fire. The accompanying video clip was directed by Alessandro Moglie.
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Waterparks have shared a video that was never meant to see the light of day for the opening track of their new album ‘JINX’, and that is a lot going on.

The clip is for ‘TELL ME WHY’, a wild old track that features appearances from Mark Hoppus, Dillon Franic, Danny Elfman and Eric Nally and tells the story of what happens when Awsten Knight dies and has to face both the Devil and God and repent for what he has done; the video matches the chaos perfectly.

With puppets.

The video was never likely to see the light of day if those four artists didn’t agree to be a part of it. But because they are, we get to share in this very particular creative choice.

Awsten had this to say about it all:

The “Tell Me Why” video is detrimental to the song. Without it, there would be no features. I will explain. The song itself is a borderline miracle, but most people didn’t understand what they were listening to at all until they came back, I explained myself, and they’d listen again and their heads would explode. Everyone told me it was such a masterpiece, but that they were just confused by the story when it was only my voice singing all the parts, and that a visual component would help. So I spent $400 on puppets and shot this “music video” in my apartment with my sister and her boyfriend on an iPhone. We did this just to try and secure the guest vocal features, with no real intention of it ever seeing the light of day. However, everyone who has seen the video loves it, and the label is adamant that we put it out. So I hope you enjoy. Hopefully it makes you want to sing on our song like it did for everybody else involved.Thank you so much. Someone please show this to Donald Glover. Thank you!”

Oh, and you see that Red Guitar patch? Yeah, that’s one of ours. You can grab it from right here.

You can pick up an exclusive vinyl variant of ‘JINX’, with a hand-signed art card, right now from SHOP.ROCKSOUND.TV

The post WATCH: Waterparks’ Chaotic Puppet-Based Video For ‘TELL ME WHY’ appeared first on Rock Sound.

Experimental black/death metal Veilburner duo has unleashed “Of Godslave And Blood Mortar”, the third single off their forthcoming long player All That Glimmers Is Gloam.
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