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Long-standing US epic doom metal band Solitude Aeturnus revealed that they have parted ways with singer Robert Lowe who had been part of the ranks since 1988. Below is the official statement from the band.
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Twin Temple are one of the most unlikely breakouts of the 2020s metal scene. This is their story

Hidden within the increasingly gentrified confines of Digbeth, Birmingham, Supersonic Festival has been a sanctuary for underground and experimental music for over two decades. Now earlier in the year than usual and scaled-back to two days, the festival nonetheless continues to champion music and culture indiscriminately.

It’s for this reason that the depth of Supersonic 2026’s lineup is so ineffable. This year’s performers exist not within genre but within some hazy universe of their own making. Acceptance is a central pillar of Supersonic and this extends to the music, however arcane; Thorn Wych’s experiments with homemade instruments, Lucifer Sky’s brutal soundscapes of noise, etc. Folk remains ever-present too, as ØXN and Milkweed draw two of the weekend’s most attentive audiences.

Similarly evident is Supersonic’s penchant for the type of heavy music that thrives within counter-cultural spaces. “Supersonic recommends wearing earplugs to all shows” says a sign near the bar at the festival’s main venue, The Crossing. As the weekend progresses, one thing is clear. This is extremely sage advice.

Words: Ben Williams  //  Photos: Supersonic – Joe Singh, Robert Barrett & Sam Frank Wood

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Saturday

Greet

Greet consists of little more than harmonium and voice. Masterminded by Yorkshire’s Matthew Broadley, it is in principle a minimalistic project. The result, however, is akin to the maximalism of the undulating Yorkshire Dales. Alongside a free-standing setup of harmonium and microphone, Broadley plays the instrument like a pair of bellows, breathing life into each fiery pulse of the harmonium’s stoic chords. These dense textures neatly sit underneath Broadley’s voice, at once both gentle and valiant. Crafted as folk songs, the compositions themselves have more in common with the sombre ambience of genres like doom metal and drone, as instrument and voice blend into the room, becoming one with the building itself.

Bong II

Original Bong members Dawn Terry and Mike Smith reunite alongside Smote’s Daniel Foggin to present the inaugural performance of Bong II, an exciting continuation of the longstanding drone metal project. It begins with a roaring eight minutes of noise, with Foggin, back to audience and guitar pointed firmly towards amplifier, handling his instrument like an ancient relic. Smith’s drums, once they eventually begin, build to a pummelling of seismic crunches that produce visible wobbles from the precariously placed surrounding microphones. Terry meanwhile adds melodic depth through both bass and vocals. The latter is far from lyrical, and instead adds an additional texture to the already multi-layered performance. Between the three musicians is a remarkable telepathy too, as tempos are pushed, pulled and twisted across a 45-minute display of rib-cage rattling vibration.

Traidora

Traidora are an anti-fascist queer punk band led by Eva Leblanc, a Venezuelan-born trans-woman currently living in the UK. Performing tonight alongside Charley (guitar) and Maeve (drums) as a three-piece, although the exact personnel of musicians vary between performances, the scale of the occasion has not escaped Traidora. “You can usually see us in the basement of a stinky-ass pub” says Charley. The band however remain unbothered by the venue’s size as they power through a 30-minute performance of gnashing punk energy. Leblanc’s conversational tone between songs adds context to Traidora, a project that celebrates queerness in a way that aligns to Supersonic Festival’s continued support of queercore music. It’s a rapid half-an-hour of effervescence that viscerally entertains as much as it culturally matters, perhaps now more than ever.

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Sunday

Guttersnipe

Leeds’ Guttersnipe is a curious prospect. The duo, consisting of Urocerus Gigas (guitar/keyboard) and Tipula Confusa (drums), face each other on stage as they unleash a cocktail of noise rock, their flailing profiles partly obscured by their equally flailing hair. Tipula Confusa’s drumming style is jazzy, sticks falling into a mic’d up drum kit that is itself heavily distorted. It adds an industrial edge that blends well with Urocerus Gigas’ frenetic guitar playing. What’s most remarkable about Guttersnipe however is the duo’s ability to conjure a variety of sounds, seemingly from thin air. The music at times slows to a grungy sludge, and at others accelerates to something of chiptune free-for-all. With both members singing into microphones that are fed through enough processing units to make their between-song stage patter sound like the clangers (to their own admission), the duo’s endearing chemistry only adds to the thrill of each noisy digression.

Monoxide Brothers

The pleasingly DIY Monoxide Brothers – made up of Emily Doyle and Sophie Hack – stand before their setup of electronics with a sense of pride. It looks like a collection of findings that an EDM-obsessed magpie has gathered. This motley assemblage is the powerhouse behind Monoxide Brothers’ surprisingly catchy but nonetheless heavy electro-leanings. Above this sits Hack’s vocals. Her lyrics traverse songs about trans rights and female body autonomy, consistently delivered with a sly and cutting matter-of-fact sardonicism. Doyle’s supporting role is one of controlled chaos, as she battles, mostly successfully, to keep each looped electronic pulse under control. They’re backed by a tapestry of live coded visuals courtesy of collaborator Rose Davies. Protean shapes of psychedelia create colourful swirls as code sprawls across the screen, adding a techno-futuristic flair.

Microplastics

Microplastics’ debut performance is one of Supersonic 2026’s most hotly discussed bookings. Jennifer Walton, 96 back and aya are each known predominantly as solo artists. Now united, they unleash a whirlpool that intersects black metal, hardcore and techno with seldom paralleled creativity. With 96 back’s frantic electronics remaining centre stage throughout, the remaining two members swap sides and instruments (guitar and drums) during what aya calls “switcheroo time”. It offers ample opportunity for some friendly bickering about which ear aya is slightly deaf in (the right apparently) and why Walton’s glasses are falling apart (aya accidentally punched her in the face earlier this evening). Following an incendiary opening run, ‘Kick Stupid’ brings a moodier energy that’s haunted by the ghosts of stoner rock, while a cover of ‘It Eats Itself’ from Walton’s debut album ‘Daughters’ is aptly melancholy. It all sums to a breathtaking premiere as the trio deliver the performance of the weekend.

Ameretat

Formed by S and K but performing as a five-piece, Ameretat are a punk band who seriously know how to riff. They’re also likely the fastest band to perform at Supersonic 2026, but much is hidden amongst the velocity. With both core members contributing vocals – each deploying vastly contrasting registers (Blood Brothers, anyone?) – S and K are a complementary pairing. Both can roar like they’ve eaten barbed wire for breakfast too. They are also children of the Iranian diaspora, and the sounds of Iranian music permeate Ameretat’s sound palette. Away from the music lies the reality of the band’s friends and family, living in Iran during what has in the past few months become an increasingly unsafe environment. The band retell a harrowing story of the fatality of a loved one, while imploring everyone: “Don’t talk over people when they’re telling you their experiences.” It’s one of several moments of Supersonic 2026 where the bleak realities that exist outside the festival’s perimeter are acknowledged with candid honestly.

Prostitute

“I’ve come to dance”, deadpans Prostitute frontman Moe. “So, let’s dance.” He means it too. As Detroit’s Prostitute bully their way through the experimental post-punk of their debut album ‘Attempted Martyr’, Moe’s body is transformed into a vessel through which every musical impulse the band produce is electrically passed. The band are tight, fearfully quick in dexterity and aloof in presentation. The music is aggressive too, but having come here to dance, there’s also a spritely energy to Prostitute’s toe-tappers. Between songs, Moe pauses. Staring at the audience and saying nothing, his eye contact is eerily intense. This is post-punk at its most volatile; frighteningly unpredictable. Throughout a lean 45-minutes, he consumes multiple bottles of water. This presumably provides the strength required to lift his keyboard over his shoulder as he departs the stage in what looks like a bid to become something of a post-punk Rick Wakeman. Far from ostentatious, it’s a striking image and a fitting ending to Supersonic 2026; few could draw the festival to a close quite this brazenly.

As Supersonic Festival’s Artistic Director Lisa Meyer says: “We are living through dark, volatile times shaped by war, violence, and the erosion of freedoms, alongside the ongoing struggle for bodily autonomy, trans rights, and basic dignity. These realities are not separate from this space. They are part of why coming together like this really matters.” Supersonic Festival is therefore both a meditation on and an escape from a hostile planet. It remains one of the only true independent festivals. Local artists run workshops throughout the day, a local brewery keeps the bar stocked, and a core audience of independent music-lovers keep the festival alive. It is for these reasons that an overwhelming sense of possibility emanates. Supersonic is unafraid to confront difficult topics. But in doing so, one leaves with more hope than when they arrived.

BEN WILLIAMS

Forty years in the life of a rock band is no longer merely an anniversary — it is something of historical proportions. In the case of Ossian, this is especially true: generations have grown up with Endre Paksi’s lyrics, while concerts, albums, eras and fan stories have built upon one another, as the band has […]

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Albion, the band fronted by former Jethro Tull guitarist Joe Parrish-James, return with their second album which is titled It Was in the Month of May. This being the follow-up to their impressive debut album of Lakesongs of Elbid from 2024. Whereas that debut had a heavier prog/folk/metal edge to it, here on It Was […]

The post Albion: It Was In The Month of May Review first appeared on New Wave of British Heavy Metal.

Denmark’s rising AOR contenders Boys From Heaven return with their third studio album The Wanderer, landing May 22, 2026 via Frontiers Music, marking their debut for the label, The album finds the band doubling down on their signature blend of glossy ’80s AOR nostalgia and modern melodic rock finesse. Produced by frontman Chris Catton and polished by Erik Martensson, expectations are understandably high as I’ve loved all of their previous outings. But from the first spin, The Wanderer makes it clear this is a band hitting their stride.

From the opening moments, The Wanderer leans hard into that synth-driven AOR sweet spot—lush keys, soaring hooks, and a cinematic sense of scale. There’s an unmistakable nod to the genre’s golden era, with echoes of Toto and the L.A. soft rock scene woven into a distinctly Scandinavian melodic sensibility. The production is pristine too, giving every sax flourish and layered harmony room to breathe. But it’s in the songs themselves where the album really lives or dies—and thankfully, there’s plenty here to love.

Lead single ‘I’ll Wait’ sets the tone perfectly, delivering that “power-montage” energy the band themselves alluded to. it’s an interesting song to choose as a lead single simply because there’s so much more I love here. It’s a little understated, as are a lot of the songs here, but that is of course part of the charm.  It’s the kind of opener that grabs attention immediately and refuses to let go and sounds absolutely vintage in a good way. It’s also the longest track on display here.

Follow it up with the more soulful 80’s AOR Radio flavoured ‘Hotline’ and the even nimbler ‘Hold Your Heart’, and you get the feeling that this is going to prove a worthy successor to ‘The Great Discovery’ and ‘The Descendent’. It’s all here in the first few songs: the familiar pacing, the hooks, the wonderful mix all helping to establish the album’s DNA early on.

As the album settles in, with shorter tracks like ‘Street Life’ and ‘Say Goodbye’ (the two briefest here) you realise that almost anything here could have led as a single. I actually prefer this pair – the funkier ‘Street Life’ especially. There’s a confidence in the songwriting here that suggests a band comfortable in without complacency stepping in. ‘How Long’ has a nice bit of weight to it with the opening bust of guitar and sounds more urgent (I love it) and ‘Eileen’ brings with it a funky feel and Pop sensibility that could be the completely legitimate offspring of Lionel Ritchie and early Hall & Oates.

Heading into the final run, ‘I Will Never Let You Down’ is another highlight with Chris Catton sounding at his very best, it’s another more urgent song and that light edge elevates things wonderfully. Conversely ‘Time Is On Our Side’ takes a more AOR less West Coast route with the guitars a little sharper and the melodies a little more urgent. By the time we reach ‘Till The Bitter End’, you’ll be in a peaceful place. That’s the beauty of this band, they sail you away to a brighter, better place. Rounding things out on a high with a more traditional ballad there’s a nice build, wonderful guitars and some lush melodies. It’s still one of my favourites many plays in.

Performance-wise, Chris Catton’s vocals are sublime, while the band as a whole delivers a tight, cohesive performance throughout. The addition of saxophone brings a rich, textural layer that lifts the album above standard AOR fare, and teh West-Coast vibe sets them apart. Martensson’s mix ensures everything lands exactly where it should it’s wonderfully clean, deceptively powerful, and polished just right. The Wanderer is another confident, statement from a band clearly on the rise, and whether you’re here for the nostalgia or the craft, Boys From Heaven deliver an album that feels timeless.

 The band stated: “Recording the last record ourselves and having Erik Martensson take care of mixing and mastering was a winning combination, so we had no doubt that we wanted to do the same thing with “The Wanderer”.

“With the new album we’ve leaned even harder into that 1980’s synthesizer-driven power rock sound, and our fans can definitely look forward to an album which is high-energy right from the first chord is struck, all the way to when the last note has rung out”, they added. “We can’t wait to share it with you all!”

With special guest contributions from Lucas Szczyrbak (bass) and Michael Catton (background vocals), the album is a true ensemble effort, executed with taste, precision, and emotion. From the first track to the last, the band demonstrates their deep respect for the genre’s legacy while injecting it with rich textures, impeccable songwriting, and a clarity of vision that’s rare in modern melodic rock. 

Three albums and three absolute gems!

9/10

 

“The Wanderer” Tracklist: 1.  I’ll Wait | 2.  Hotline | 3.  Hold Your Heart | 4.  Street Life | 5.  Say Goodbye | 6.  How Long | 7.  Eileen | 8.  I Will Never Let You Down | 9.  Time Is On Our Side | 10.  Till The Bitter End

Line Up: Chris Catton – Lead vocals | Jonas Klintström Larsen – Saxophone | Mads Noyé – Keyboards | Mads Schaumann – Guitar and backing vocals | Søren Viig Mathiesen – Drums

The post ALBUM REVIEW: BOYS FROM HEAVEN – The Wanderer appeared first on The Rockpit.

Posted on April 29th 2026, 11:01a.m.

Haste the Day was originally published on HM Magazine by Nao Glover.

In 2023, Haste the Day took the stage at Furnace Fest without expectations. What they gave was an epic performance many felt lucky to experience again, and what they received in return was more than a warm welcome home from their fans. It was also a reminder of what their music and their brotherhood meant […]

Haste the Day was originally published on HM Magazine by Nao Glover.

Our Complete List Of Duran Duran Songs From A to Z includes all the songs from a band formed in 1978 around keyboardist Nick Rhodes, John Taylor, and singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, who took their name from Dr. Durand Durand, the character from the 1968 science fiction film Barbarella. The early lineup changed quickly, with Duffy and Simon Colley leaving in 1979, Roger Taylor joining on drums, John Taylor moving to bass, and the group finding its first real home as the resident band at the Rum Runner nightclub in Birmingham. That club became more than a venue; it was

The post Complete List Of Duran Duran Songs From A to Z appeared first on ClassicRockHistory.com.

[Cover art by Jef Whitehead]

Cognizance’s In Light, No Shape serves as a useful reminder that when it comes to our musical preferences, our whats are subservient to our whys. If, for example, you are a fan of the early ‘90s wave of technical death metal forefronted by bands like Death, Atheist and Cynic because you favored the guitar-forward production, catchy riffs and refined melodic sensibility, then the Leeds, U.K.’s fourth full-length might be right up your alley. However, if that particular clutch of bands caught your ear simply because they were offering some of the most innovative and technically accomplished metal on the market at the time–because they were something new– then I’m not sure Cognizance’s latest will scratch your itchy parts.

For those in the former group, let me steer you to a track like “Vertical Illusion,” which commences in media res before deploying a set of riffs that succeed on the strength of their trickiness and musicality as opposed to sheer heft. The one that begins at about 1:22 chops n’ thrashes its way around a scale run while additional guitars add some harmonic flavor you’ll begin to taste when you go back for seconds. Hot dog, we get ourselves another wiener at 1:11 of “Witness Marks,” where again the guitars and syncopated drums get their hooks in despite the riff sounding like it’s accomplished by solving a Rubik’s Cube with one hand and screwing in a light bulb with the other.

At 1:52 of closing track “The Zone,” twin guitars harmonize legato riffs over a splashy but not overly flashy odd-meter rhythm laid down by polymelian skins-man David Diepold. Once you meet In Light, No Shape where it’s at, it’s hard to stop noticing all the exceptionally neat and well-executed musical moments it has to offer.

But, what of the latter group? Those who, yes, have made knowing and loving music the very essence of their existence, but are also in search of something novel. Perhaps they heard it on Unquestionable Presence, and so simply won’t hear it here. In 2026, their pleasure center can only be accessed by the sound of flash-frozen rotisserie chickens being fed into a high-efficiency toilet with a flusher that activates a rusty garbage disposal attachment. It’s up for debate as to whether this particular album of complex but easily discernible riffs, drum patterns, and vocal lines is too complex or not complex enough for that crowd, but in the final estimation, it is probably not enough for that kind of mind. And, full disclosure, I can feel where they’re coming from. Despite its many merits, In Light, No Shape’s narrow dynamic range and predictable pacing do have a tendency to fade into background noise. This may be because, while no doubt a challenging album to compose and perform for the band, this style of moderately tempered technical death metal doesn’t really pose any serious challenges to the listener.

I ultimately stand somewhere between these two groups. As much as I seek to have my breath taken away by metal’s unique capacity to repulse, terrify and scandalize, I’m also a bit of a dork who likes when bass, drums and guitars do cool stuff. Cool stuff indeed abounds here. Up top, we discussed what we like and why we like what we like. So I think now it’s appropriate to mention our hows – if yours revolve around seeking the initial rush of exhilaration that attends setting foot on uncharted territory, then you’ll find little respite here, weary traveler. But if you’re the type to set aside some attentive time for new dogs doing some old tricks well, then this might be a place to stop and rest a while.

The post Cognizance – In Light, No Shape Review appeared first on Last Rites.