Sleep Token‘s 2023 breakthrough record Take Me Back To Edenhas been officially certified Platinum in the US by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association Of America).
Released on May 19 2023 via Spinefarm Records, …Eden was the record that turned Sleep Token from a cult sensation into an internationally renowned phenomenon. A steady flow of singles released from January that year – incThe Summoningluding the viral hit The Summoning, which earned its own Platinum Certification in April this year – saw the band’s monthly listeners on Spotify balloon from less than 300,000 monthly listeners in January that year to over 1.5 million just a month later.
In turn, Eden… was named the most streamed metal record of 2023 by Spotify, beating huge releases like Metallica’s 72 Seasons.Although the Platinum certification has traditionally been awarded for over one million physical sales, the fact Eden now sits at over 2 billion streams has seen the RIAA award it Platinum status, making it also the first album in Spinefarm Records history to earn the status.
On release, Take Me Back To Eden peaked at number three on the UK charts and reached number 16 on the Billboard 200. That year, the band undertook massive international tours that culminated with their first headline arena appearance at London’s Wembley Arena in December, which sold out in under ten minutes.
Since then, the band have continued to go from strength to strength. They have undertaken numerous sold-out arena tours across the UK, US and Europe, and headlined the UK’s Download Festival in 2025.
The band switched labels from Spinefarm to RCA for the release of their next album, 2025’s Even In Arcadia. That album achieved even greater chart success, becoming their first album to hit number one in the UK and US album charts. Arcadia… was awarded Gold Certification on January 26, 2026.
Fantasy and heavy music share many core themes, including war, prophecy, supernatural power, ruined kingdoms, heroic quests, and cosmic conflict.
Rock and metal bands have used fantasy literature in several ways.
Some adapt full stories, while others borrow characters, locations, terminology, or mythology.
Band names, album concepts, artwork, lyrics, and musical atmosphere can all show literary influence.
1. Blind Guardian and J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth
Blind Guardian has built much of its identity around fantasy literature, especially Tolkien’s mythology.
Nightfall in Middle-Earth adapts major events in The Silmarillion.
Songs such as “Nightfall” and “Mirror Mirror” focus on grief, exile, pride, war, and betrayal. Short narrated passages connect the tracks and help organize the story.
Layered vocals, large choruses, and dramatic arrangements give the album the scale of an epic narrative.
Blind Guardian treats Tolkien’s work as source material for a full concept album rather than using isolated references.
“The Bard’s Song: In the Forest” is not tied to one Tolkien episode, but its wandering storyteller and communal tone fit the band’s broader fantasy identity.
Interest in Tolkien-inspired music can also lead listeners toward other fantasy stories available through a fiction reading site.
2. Led Zeppelin and Tolkien References in Early Hard Rock
Jimmy Page often used a double-neck guitar to perform “Stairway to Heaven” live.
Led Zeppelin brought Tolkien references into mainstream hard rock during the genre’s early years.
Several songs contain identifiable links to Middle-earth:
“Ramble On” names Mordor and Gollum while describing loss and travel.
“Misty Mountain Hop” borrows the name of Tolkien’s mountain range for a modern story.
“The Battle of Evermore” uses dark riders, approaching armies, and heroic resistance.
“The Battle of Evermore” comes closest to epic fantasy. Its acoustic arrangement and contrasting vocals create the feel of an old battle song.
Led Zeppelin did not adapt Tolkien through full concept albums. Instead, the band placed Middle-earth references inside blues, folk, and hard rock songs.
Such a loose approach helped make fantasy literature a credible subject in popular rock.
3. Summoning and Middle-earth Through Atmospheric Black Metal
Summoning draws heavily on The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, and other parts of Tolkien’s mythology.
Album titles such as Minas Morgul, Dol Guldur, and Stronghold refer to fortresses, dark territories, and war. “Land of the Dead” continues the band’s focus on ancient places and lost history.
Summoning rarely retells one story in a direct sequence. Its main achievement is atmosphere. Sound, pacing, and repetition make listeners feel as though they are inside Tolkien’s world.
4. Cirith Ungol and Sword-and-Sorcery Darkness
Cirith Ungol took its name from the mountain pass featured in Tolkien’s Middle-earth.
Cirith Ungol took its name from the mountain pass near Mordor where Frodo and Sam encounter Shelob.
Michael Moorcock’s Elric stories also shaped the band’s identity. Albums such as Frost and Fire and King of the Dead use sword-and-sorcery imagery connected to doomed heroes, magical weapons, and apocalyptic conflict.
Visual identity reinforced those literary ties through several recurring elements:
Michael Whelan paintings connected to Moorcock’s fiction appeared on album covers.
Pale warriors and enchanted weapons replaced conventional rock photography.
Apocalyptic skies and monstrous enemies matched the music’s fatalistic tone.
Cirith Ungol combines classic heavy metal with darker elements that later became common in doom and extreme metal. Tolkien supplied the name, while Moorcock supplied much of the band’s fatalistic imagery.
5. Blue Öyster Cult and Michael Moorcock’s Black Sword
Michael Moorcock helped write “Black Blade,” a song inspired by Elric and the soul-consuming sword Stormbringer.
Elric is a physically weak emperor who depends on magical forces for strength. His sword, Stormbringer, consumes souls and often harms the people closest to him.
Several details make Stormbringer more than a standard fantasy weapon:
It possesses its own hunger and will.
It gives Elric strength while increasing his dependence.
It kills enemies and allies without respecting human loyalty.
It turns every victory into another stage of Elric’s decline.
“Black Blade” presents the weapon as a controlling and almost sentient force. Elric carries it, but the sword appears to direct his actions.
Moorcock contributed lyrics to the song, making it a direct collaboration between a fantasy author and a rock band.
Included on Cultösaurus Erectus, “Black Blade” condenses Elric’s dependence, violence, and moral conflict into a single hard rock track.
6. Hawkwind and Moorcock’s Multiverse
Hawkwind, one of the classic rock bands at the time, had a long creative relationship with Michael Moorcock. He performed with the band, contributed spoken passages, and worked on projects connected to his fiction.
Moorcock’s Eternal Champion stories follow recurring heroic figures across different worlds and identities. Magic, advanced technology, collapsing civilizations, and cosmic conflict often exist in the same setting.
Hawkwind translated those ideas through several musical methods:
Synthesizers create unstable and unfamiliar environments.
Repetitive rhythms suggest continuous travel across space and time.
Spoken narration introduces characters and philosophical ideas.
Extended compositions allow scenes to shift without standard song structures.
Warrior on the Edge of Time draws heavily on Eternal Champion concepts. “The Black Corridor” also connects the band to Moorcock’s fiction.
Blue Öyster Cult focused on Elric and Stormbringer in one major song. Hawkwind used Moorcock’s wider mythology across performances, recordings, and spoken-word collaborations.
7. Eternal Champion and the Recurring Hero
Eternal Champion takes its name from Michael Moorcock’s cycle of recurring warriors across different worlds.
Eternal Champion takes its name from Moorcock’s cycle of recurring warriors.
Across the novels, different champions appear in separate worlds and identities while taking part in a larger struggle involving cosmic balance.
Albums such as The Armor of Ire and Ravening Iron use traditional heavy-metal riffs, martial rhythms, heroic vocals, and sword-and-sorcery imagery.
Rather than adapting one novel, the band adopts Moorcock’s mythology as a full identity. Its name, lyrics, artwork, and musical style all center on warriors, fate, battle, and duty.
Eternal Champion also shows that Moorcock’s influence continues in modern metal.
8. Caladan Brood and Malazan Book of the Fallen
Caladan Brood takes its name from a major character in Steven Erikson’s Malazan Book of the Fallen.
Erikson’s series includes military campaigns, gods, ancient species, empires, fallen civilizations, and complex magical systems.
Several parts of Echoes of Battle connect directly to that fictional setting:
“City of Azure Fire” refers to Darujhistan, one of the series’ major cities.
“Book of the Fallen” adopts the title and tragic focus of Erikson’s series.
Long compositions match a story told across continents and historical periods.
Choral passages add the feeling of mourning, ritual, and collective memory.
Extended compositions allow melodies and themes to develop slowly. Harsh vocals express violence and loss, while clean choral sections add grief and ceremony.
Caladan Brood focuses not only on war, but also on exhaustion, loyalty, sacrifice, and moral uncertainty. Its music shows how modern epic fantasy can support detailed metal interpretation outside Tolkien and Moorcock.
9. Demons & Wizards and Stephen King’s The Dark Tower
Parts of Demons & Wizards’ Touched by the Crimson King draw on Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series.
King’s saga combines fantasy, horror, western fiction, science fiction, and post-apocalyptic settings. Roland Deschain, the last gunslinger, pursues the Dark Tower through unstable worlds filled with monsters and ruined communities.
“The Gunslinger” uses restrained passages and heavier sections to match Roland’s grief, discipline, and obsession.
Not every song adapts The Dark Tower. Some tracks use broader horror and fantasy themes. Still, the album’s darker power-metal sound fits the series’ sacrifice, madness, cosmic conflict, and damaged worlds.
10. Iron Maiden and Orson Scott Card’s Seventh Son
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son combines literary influence, folklore, prophecy, and supernatural themes.
Iron Maiden’s Seventh Son of a Seventh Son was inspired partly by Orson Scott Card’s Seventh Son and by folklore surrounding the seventh son of a seventh son.
Traditional belief gives such a child supernatural powers. Iron Maiden, the very best classic rock band of the time, used that idea to build a concept around prophecy, clairvoyance, destiny, and conflict between opposing forces.
Title track “Seventh Son of a Seventh Son” presents a gifted child whose powers may affect future events.
“The Clairvoyant” focuses on someone able to see hidden truths and possible futures. That ability becomes a source of danger rather than comfort.
Album concept does not reproduce Card’s novel scene by scene. It combines literary influence, folklore, and Iron Maiden’s own story.
Synthesizers, galloping rhythms, and extended instrumental sections support the album’s supernatural tone.
Summary
Fantasy literature can shape music through concept albums, individual songs, band names, artwork, author collaborations, and atmosphere.
Strong fantasy-inspired music does more than mention characters or places. It converts war, tragedy, prophecy, corruption, sacrifice, and heroism into riffs, rhythms, vocals, and album structures.
Fantasy and metal continue to work well together because both deal comfortably with conflict on a mythic scale.
Avenged Sevenfold have surprise released a new four-track EP, Statica. And in keeping with the increasingly adventurous and progressive creative streak that the Orange County quintet displayed on 2016’s The Stage and 2023’s out-there Life Is But A Dream…, it’s a wild ride.
Featuring the songs Lights, Statica, Rejoice and Ashes, the EP has a running time of 18 minutes and 7 seconds, and sees the band pushing sonic boundaries once again on a futuristic space odyssey, utilising robotic vocals, sci-fi synths, electronic dance beats, and precisely zero traces of the classic rock and ’80s metal homages that peppered fan favourite albums City of Evil (2005) and Hail To The King (2013), having more in common with Daft Punk, Slift or Muse at their trippiest.
The band gave no prior warning of the EP’s existence, and have, at the time of writing, issued no press statement to media outlets talking up the release.
The release of the EP comes on the eve of the launch of the band’s previously-announced North American arenas and ‘sheds’ tour with Good Charlotte.
The dates are:
Jul 25: Ridgedale Thunder Ridge Nature’s Arena, MO Jul 27: Prior Lake Mystic Lake Amphitheater, MN Jul 30: Tinley Park Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre, IL Aug 01: Maryland Heights Hollywood Casino Amphitheater, MO Aug 04: Clarkston Pine Knob Music Theatre, MI Aug 06: Toronto RBC Amphitheatre, Canada Aug 08: Montreal Centre Bell, Canada Aug 10: Belmont Park UBS Arena, NY Aug 12: Mansfield Xfinity Center, MA Aug 14: Camden Freedom Mortgage Pavilion, NJ Aug 16: Charlotte PNC Music Pavilion, NC Aug 18: Tampa MIDFLORIA Credit Union Amphitheatre, FL Aug 21: Dallas Dos Equis Pavilion, TX Aug 23: Denver Ball Arena, CO Aug 25: Salt Lake CityUtah First Credit Union Amphitheatre, UT Aug 27: Phoenix Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre, AZ
Alongside this news, the band have also shared a new track in the form of ‘I Kinda Like That’, which further cements their place at the heart of everything that is exciting about modern pop-punk. An insatiable, wonderfully catchy, brilliantly buoyant piece that will get trapped in your head instantly.
Here it is:
The band are set to hit the road in support of the EP, their first headline tour across the US. Here are all the dates:
OCTOBER
14 – DALLAS House of Blues – Cambridge Room 15 – HOUSTON House of Blues – Bronze Peacock 16 – HOUSTON 3Ten 19 – PHOENIX The Rebel Lounge 20 – SAN DIEGO House of Blues – VooDoo Room 22 – LOS ANGELES Moroccan Lounge 25 – SALT LAKE CITY Kilby Court 27 – DENVER Marquis 30 – ST. LOUIS Off Broadway 31 – MILWAUKEE Rave Bar
NOVEMBER
03 – DETROIT Sanctuary 04 – COLUMBUS A&R Music Bar 06 – BOSTON Sonia 08 – NEW YORK Mercury Lounge 11 – PHILADELPHIA Warehouse on Watts 13 – TOWSON The Recher 17 – JACKSONVILLE Jack Rabbits 18 – ATLANTA Masquerade – Hell
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Miami, FL — 70000TONS OF METAL, The Original, The World’s Biggest Heavy Metal Cruise, announces a unique performance from RHAPSODY Final Shows, […]
Apparently Chilean death-thrash crew Ripper raised quite a ruckus in the 2014-2017 period with a series of well-regarded hyperkinetic death-thrash albums, the most recent of which was 2016s Experiment of Existence. I missed all of this buzz-worthy carrying on and came to their latest release completely tabula rasa. Sometimes that’s the best way to greet a band with established history, as you bring no expectations or biases developed from past experience. The version of Ripper I encountered on their 3rd album Towards Rebirth are coming off a nearly 10-year layoff to deliver mega-aggressive, speed-drenched death-thrashery of an impressive caliber, reminding of early days Sepultura, Morbid Saint, and at times even Nocturnus (R.I.P. Mike Browning). While it’s safe to say Ripper’s sound and approach are stuck in the late 80s/early 90s, they attack their assignment with so much wanton exuberance that it’s hard not to get behind the effort and enjoy the ensuing conflagration. But how much raw aggression can a band push out after 10 long years collecting rust and dust?
After a tasty and brief instrumental opening, Ripper rips it up on “World of Darkness,” blasting and thrashing like an industrial meat mauler. But wait…I know that wild opening riff from somewhere, but where? Why, it’s almost exactly the lead riff from Riot’s immortal speed metal gem “Thundersteel”! How dare they filch such an iconic piece of New York metal history! Ultimately it isn’t too big a deal, since that “borrowed” riff is consigned to history almost immediately and they blanket the field with numerous other frenzied leads and multiple transitions up and down the tempo dial. This is pure thrash insanity with frenetic drumming, berserk basslines, and vocals that sound like vintage Max Cavalera after bad Taco Bell lettuce. The title track offers no respite with a slick cascading lead riff that kicks names and takes ass as the high-velocity madness runs wild and free. The guitar work is especially inspired, and the commitment to thrashing until death and beyond is much appreciated. The maelstrom of maniacal speed has no let-up, and as Ripper try to rupture space and time, you’ll be treated to nods to the early days of Morbid Angel on “Into the Coldness of Land of Dead” and “The Source Exterminator,” and “Message from the Other Side” recalls the early days of Deathrow.
The biggest surprise is the 6-minute instrumental “The Secret Dawn.” It’s a throwback to the 80s where such long-winded compositions were normal and almost expected, as bands sought to flex their wank hands to impress the masses. While I’m normally not the biggest fan of such non-vocal shred factories, this one is an engaging ride from start to finish, and it leaves me quite impressed with what Ripper are capable of. Elsewhere, the slightly more techy vibe of “The End of the Universe” brings the Nocturnus flavor to the airlock, and it’s a fun little ditty. The writing and playing are solid, and though every track is a blast fest, there are interesting musical choices and enough nifty riffs per song to keep the brain engaged. Do the individual tracks eventually start to blur together? Sure, but it’s an entertaining enough blur. At just under 42 minutes, things move too fast for Towards Rebirth to feel overlong, though a minute of 2 could probably be shaved off a track here and there.
The boys in Ripper are a talented lot. Patricio Spalinger and new slinger Nicolás Young come at you at full force 120% of the time with a cavalcade of ripping, tearing thrash lines and side-quests into zippy old school death grooves. What I like most about their six-string interplay is how it reminds me of so many 80s and 90s bands without really ripping any of them off (minus that whole Riot thing). There are some truly impressive riff and solo moments here, and these cats know how to craft cool, memorable leads that stick. New bassist Tomás Barriga plays at a berserk pace, delivering a chaotic low-end rumble that’s very audible and sounds like he’s always on the verge of losing control. At certain moments, his playing begins to sound like a car engine about to overheat, and that adds to the sheer rush of the music. Patricio Spalinger’s death vocals are one-dimensional and often no more than a rough bark, but they fit the style well and detract not at all.
Towards Rebirth is a rocket ride full of overdelivered speed, and there’s enough raw energy here to power a small town. It doesn’t offer anything new, aside from a very sore ass after all the kicking it receives here. I had good fun with Ripper’s latest, and it’s got me digging into their earlier releases hoping for more of the same. Ripper are reborn hard and mean, and they want to sonically abuse your ears. Let them.
From First To Last have shared their first new piece of music since Lil Lotus joined the band on vocals, and it is as quintessential as it gets.
Titled ‘Your Name In Red Ink’, it’s a track that could have been pulled straight out of 2005, with claustrophobic riffs, caustic howls and earnest emotions on show in abundance. It finds the band slotting themselves snuggly back into the sound and scene that they helped to forge without letting nostalgia take over.
The result is compelling, crushing and captivating, with Lotus fitting the bill for what is needed for such a legendary band perfectly.
It’s also the band’s first track as part of the Fearless Records family.
Lotus had this to say about the track and the signing, stating “We are excited to drop our first song off the EP and announce we are working with Fearless. ‘Your Name in Red Ink’ is a good blend of all the different stuff I love about FFTL — plus new and old screamo/emo. I am really excited to see how everyone receives it.”
Canadian roots rock band The Commoners have released their new single, “Runnin’ Blind,” available now on all streaming platforms. The track serves as the first preview of the band’s upcoming third studio album, which is scheduled for release in 2027. An official music video for the single has also been released.
“Runnin’ Blind” will also lend its name to The Commoners’ 12-date UK tour this November. The run will feature special guest Spencer Mackenzie, a fellow Gypsy Soul Records artist.
“The song symbolizes running full speed down a dark road and trusting you’ll make the turn before it’s too late,” says The Commoners lead guitarist, Ross Hayes Citrullo. “We wanted to capture that high-octane energy where everything feels urgent, loud, and off the rails. The song features blazing guitars and a driving organ to get that authentic retro vibe. It’s a track built to strip gears and rattle some speakers. We’re looking forward to performing the new single and other new songs from the forthcoming album when we tour the UK in November.”
Frontman Chris Medhurst said the band aimed to create a song with plenty of attitude while exploring uncertainty through its lyrics.
“Musically, we wanted something that carried a lot of swagger and rock and roll grit,” says the Commoners frontman Chris Medhurst about the new single. “Lyrically it confronts that uneasy feeling of moving forward when you can’t see what’s right in front of you. It sets a bold tone for the upcoming album.”
Bassist Ben Spiller said the song draws directly from the band’s experiences touring over the last several years.
“We wrote ‘Runnin’ Blind’ as a reflection on the last few years we’ve spent living on the road,” adds bassist Ben Spiller. “Touring has a way of throwing you into situations you could never plan for. Sometimes you just must trust your instincts and keep moving. That’s really where the song came from. It’s a lighthearted look at the chaos, misadventures, and unpredictability that come with chasing this dream, but it’s also a love letter to that lifestyle, and a reminder that some of the best stories come from the moments you never saw coming.”
Explore Rights Management/Cherry Red [Release date 03.07.26] We’ve commented previously that this band is not exactly prolific and, sadly, we’re not aware of any live shows either. This probably says more about the state of music and opportunities to gain … Continue reading →
Apparently Chilean death-thrash crew Ripper raised quite a ruckus in the 2014-2017 period with a series of well-regarded hyperkinetic death-thrash albums, the most recent of which was 2016s Experiment of Existence. I missed all of this buzz-worthy carrying on and came to their latest release completely tabula rasa. Sometimes that’s the best way to greet a band with established history, as you bring no expectations or biases developed from past experience. The version of Ripper I encountered on their 3rd album Towards Rebirth are coming off a nearly 10-year layoff to deliver mega-aggressive, speed-drenched death-thrashery of an impressive caliber, reminding of early days Sepultura, Morbid Saint, and at times even Nocturnus (R.I.P. Mike Browning). While it’s safe to say Ripper’s sound and approach are stuck in the late 80s/early 90s, they attack their assignment with so much wanton exuberance that it’s hard not to get behind the effort and enjoy the ensuing conflagration. But how much raw aggression can a band push out after 10 long years collecting rust and dust?
