Jonah Roth channels raw frustration and introspection on Not Your Friend, a gritty alt-rock cut that echoes a post-modern take on Nirvana-esque angst. Driven by distorted guitars and a restless energy, the track captures a sense of helplessness in the face of a chaotic world, turning that tension into something loud and cathartic. Roth’s delivery feels unfiltered and urgent, reinforcing the song’s emotional weight while keeping it grounded in melody. Striking a balance between vulnerability and defiance, Not Your Friend hits with a familiar ‘90s spirit while carving out its own contemporary edge.
Venom will celebrate the release of their new album Into Oblivion with a special in-store signing at Raven Records in Camden, London on 2 May 2026 at 1pm.
Fans can meet the band by preordering the album through Raven Records to gain priority access. The event marks the arrival of Venom’s sixteenth studio album, released via Noise/BMG on 1 May 2026.
Into Oblivion features the long-standing lineup of Cronos, Rage and Dante and delivers thirteen tracks of signature Venom sound, blending their classic ’80s Heavy Metal style with a more modern, progressive edge while retaining their raw intensity.
Formats include double vinyl editions, CD digisleeve and digital release. For further details and event information, visit Raven Records. You can pre-order the Into Oblivion album via Raven Records at ravenrecordshop.com/product/into-oblivion-preorder-2/
The Tubs! They’re one of the best bands going, and they just signed to one of the finest labels in indie rock. After two albums for the late, great Chicago institution Trouble In Mind, the London janglers have linked up with Merge Records. Along with the announcement, the Band To Watch alums are sharing a…
The advent of the single with a Side A and Side B took place in 1949, when the first 45 rpm, 7-inch phonograph record became a method of distributing popular music. Through the 1950s and until the 1980s, when CDs replaced vinyl records, the 45 rpm record was an economically popular way to disseminate music. All the Top 40 radio hits were available on 45 rpm records, and since they had two sides, something had to go on the non-hit side. Sometimes the non-hit side was as good as the hit or would also become a hit, but let the listener be the judge of the following 10 blues rock B-sides.
Blue Cheer – “Out of Focus”
“Out of Focus” is the B-side of Blue Cheer’s single “Summertime Blues,” released in 1968. It was an important year in the evolution of rock music, when both technology and creativity were allowed to flourish in a rapidly growing musical environment. Blue Cheer was one of the San Francisco bands and one of the heaviest-sounding groups on the West Coast at the time. They were a psychedelic hard blues rock trio, and the track was written by bassist and vocalist Dickie Peterson and appears on their debut album Vincebus Eruptum. “Out of Focus” is a hard-rocking, riff-driven wall of guitar from Leigh Stephens, backed by a hard-driving rhythm section featuring Paul Whaley’s pounding drums and Peterson’s relentlessly thumping bass.
Robert Cray – “Fantasized”
“Fantasized” is the B-side of Robert Cray’s breakthrough hit “Smoking Gun,” from his fourth album Strong Persuader, released in 1986. The song is a smooth, seductive counterpoint, steeped in late-night longing and a materialized fantasy. Cray bridges the gap between traditional blues and his 1980s contemporary style, using subtle guitar licks coupled with a tight rhythm section and atmospheric horns. The song was written by Dennis Walker and paints a vivid picture, with Cray’s silky, soulful vocals delivering emotionally restrained, sensual storytelling.
Creedence Clearwater Revival – “Lodi”
“Lodi” was the B-side to “Bad Moon Rising” and was released in 1969. It was written by John Fogerty and appeared on Green River. It tells the story of a musician who gets trapped in a town in the middle of nowhere, playing to an indifferent crowd every night. It uses the same formula as Delta blues but applies a 1960s swamp rock filter to deliver one of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s most enduring and blues-soaked performances. It’s a master class in rootsy storytelling and emotional authenticity, overshadowed by its chart-topping A-side.
“I came into town, a one-night stand
Looks like my plans fell through”
The Doors – “Roadhouse Blues”
“Roadhouse Blues” is the flip side of “You Make Me Real,” released as a single in 1970. Both songs are from Morrison Hotel. “Roadhouse Blues” is a gritty, roadhouse, barroom boogie blues rock track driven by a relentless, stomping shuffle, powered by John Densmore’s rock-steady backbeat. Jim Morrison’s Lizard King persona growls and howls its way through a whiskey-soaked performance. It is one of The Doors’ most authentic blues rock songs, capturing the band’s love for American electric blues.
Fleetwood Mac (Peter Green era) – “Jigsaw Puzzle Blues”
Peter Green originally formed Fleetwood Mac as his blues band and named it after a combination of drummer Mick Fleetwood and bassist John McVie. “Jigsaw Puzzle Blues” is the B-side of “Albatross,” and both tunes are instrumentals, with Green’s guitar featured on the A-side and Danny Kirwan’s guitar on the other. The song is a tasteful blues rock gem that exudes a lightheartedness reminiscent of French jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt.
Jimi Hendrix Experience – “Highway Chile”
“Highway Chile” was the B-side of “The Wind Cries Mary” in the UK and “Purple Haze” in the US. All three songs were by The Jimi Hendrix Experience and are associated with their debut album Are You Experienced, although “Highway Chile” did not appear on the original 1967 US release and was included in a later updated version. It’s a fiery blues rocker, featuring Jimi Hendrix’s signature explosive guitar pyrotechnics and storytelling lyrics about life on the road.
Albert King – “Down Don’t Bother Me”
Albert King wrote “Down Don’t Bother Me,” which appeared as the B-side of the 1966 Stax Records A-side single “Crosscut Saw.” King’s backing band on both tracks was the Stax house band Booker T. & the M.G.’s, along with the Memphis Horns. The weary authority of King’s electric blues embodies the stoic endurance at the heart of the genre. His stinging call-and-response guitar lines spar with the horns before breaking into a stellar solo. The track rides a tight, mid-tempo groove driven by raw power and emotional depth, and it appeared on King’s 1967 landmark album Born Under a Bad Sign.
“I’m gonna take all my troubles
And cast ’em in the deep, blue sea”
Led Zeppelin – “Hey Hey What Can I Do”
“Hey Hey What Can I Do” is the B-side to “Immigrant Song,” which was released in 1972, and is a sweat-soaked blues jam that could have come from a Mississippi roadhouse. It’s blues heard through a 1970s British filter, led by Jimmy Page’s deft fingerpicking. Robert Plant delivers his signature howl, combining country blues with Memphis soul, interpreted through Led Zeppelin’s unique style. It swings more than it stomps and has a loose, joyous sound. It appeared on an Atlantic Records 1972 compilation album of various artists.
Rolling Stones – “The Spider and the Fly”
“The Spider and the Fly” is the B-side to “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” released as a 45 rpm record in 1965. It’s a raw, slow-burning, bass-thumping, harmonica-blowing, Chuck Berry-influenced blues rocker. The song is the perfect embodiment of B-side brilliance, acting as a counterbalance to an A-side that exploded into rock immortality. The driving rhythm section of Charlie Watts’ drums and Bill Wyman’s heavy bass thumps provides the greasy, late-night groove for Mick Jagger to wail on his harp and belt out sly, leering vocals.
“Smoking, moping, maybe just hoping
Some little girl will pass on by”
ZZ Top – “Just Got Paid”
“Just Got Paid” is the B-side to “La Grange,” and it’s boogie blues rock done with ZZ Top’s signature sound. It’s a raw, greasy slice of Texas blues boogie that perfectly captures the band’s early 1970s swagger. Billy Gibbons’ gravelly vocals, coupled with his stinging slide guitar, deliver Southern roadhouse blues, telling the classic story of a working stiff finally getting his paycheck. The song was written by Gibbons and manager-producer Bill Ham, and it appeared on ZZ Top’s 1972 sophomore album Rio Grande Mud.
The Last Ten Seconds Of Life – The Dead Ones (Unique Leader Records) [Spike]
If you’ve spent any significant time in the deep end of the deathcore scene, you know that The Last Ten Seconds Of Life don’t really do “lightweight.” They’ve spent over a decade perfecting a sound that feels like a slow-motion car crash, rhythmic, terrifying, and impossible to look away from.
For me it’s been a while since I listened to them and on The Dead Ones, they’ve managed to take that “unpleasant” noise I was expecting and sharpen it into something remarkably clinical without losing the snot-and-tears grit that made them a necessity in the first place.
The album ignites with the title track, The Dead Ones, and it’s a proper jolt of reality. The first thing that hits you isn’t just the volume, but the specific “thud” of the production. It’s a level of distortion that feels like it’s physically occupying the room with you.
It leads directly into Make It To Heaven, featuring Signs Of The Swarm, which is a masterclass in the balance of symphonic scale and blunt-force trauma. It’s a collaboration that actually justifies the “epic” tag, providing a cinematic weight that keeps the listener pinned to the wall.
What makes this record a bit of a milestone for the long-term fans, though, is the guest list. Getting Nate Johnson (ex-Fit For An Autopsy) on Rat Trap is a stroke of genius; he brings a veteran snarl that anchors the track’s frantic, heart-attack pulse.
But the real tectonic shift happens on the closer, XXXXXXXXXX, with the return of original vocalist Storm Strope. For those of us who remember Soulless Hymns, hearing that voice back in the mix is pure catharsis. It’s not just a nostalgic call-back; it’s a high-velocity confrontation that proves the band still understands its own skeletal roots.
The middle stretch of the record, Freak Reflection, 1-800-DO YOU WANT TO DIE?, and Stiletto, moves with a predatory intent. 1-800-DO YOU WANT TO DIE? might win the award for the most confrontational title of the year, and the music backs it up with a rhythmic instability that reminds me of early 80s industrial-punk friction. It’s unpolished, honest, and possesses a level of “crustiness” that is sorely missing from the high-gloss metalcore circuit.
The production avoids the sterile traps of modern tech-death. You can hear the snare crack and the strings groaning under the weight of tracks like Dollar To A Dime (featuring Distant). It’s a sound that sounds like it was recorded in a space where the air is too thin to breathe; properly suffocating.
By the time the finale eventually snaps, you’re left with a ringing in your ears that feels like a well-earned bruise. The Dead Ones isn’t an album that asks for your time; it’s one that demands your total submission. It’s a pained, sophisticated bit of survivalism that suggests that even after all these years, the Pennsylvania lot still knows exactly how to weaponize the void. 8/10
I Am The Avalanche– The Horror Show (Rude Records) [Spike]
Six years is a long time to keep a motor idling, but for Brooklyn’s I Am The Avalanche, the silence since 2020 hasn’t resulted in any rust. If anything, The Horror Show feels like a band that has spent that half-decade sharpening their teeth in the dark.
It’s a record that occupies that rare, holy ground in punk rock: it sounds exactly like the band you fell in love with a decade ago, yet it carries the heavy-set gravity of people who have seen a few more winters and have the scars to prove it.
The needle drops on God’s Travel Plans, and you’re immediately hit by that unmistakable Vinnie Caruana rasp, a voice that sounds like it’s been conditioned on urban exhaust and hard-won resilience. There’s a specific, bruised-rib honesty to the delivery here that sets the tone for the entire record.
It leads straight into the title track, which serves as a masterclass in melodic friction. The guitars have a “room-sound” grit that prevents the anthemic hooks from ever feeling too sanitized; it’s the sound of a band playing for their lives in a basement where the lights keep flickering.
What really stands out on this release is the pacing. You’ve got these brief, high-velocity jolts like Osprey and True Legends Never Die that act as palate cleansers, maintaining a heart-attack pulse that keeps the record from ever settling into a mid-tempo slump. I Miss California And Every Dog I’ve Ever Met is arguably the heart of the album.
Beyond the spectacular title, it’s a pained, melodic standout that captures the specific, road-weary exhaustion of looking backward while trying to keep moving. It’s the kind of songwriting that makes you realize “melodic” doesn’t have to mean “easy.”
The production throughout, hitting its peak on tracks like Alive On 14th Street and Rogue Knife, avoids the high-fidelity traps that rob so much modern punk of its soul. It’s dirty, honest, and properly loud. You can hear the floorboards groaning under the weight of the rhythm section on the closer, Trébuchet, a track that finally allows the band to stretch into a more expansive, cinematic finish without losing the snot-and-tears intensity that got them here.
By the time the final vibration of Trébuchet grinds to a halt, you aren’t just left with another set of punk songs; you’re left with the realization that this band is a necessity. I Am The Avalanche have managed to bottle that un-killable Brooklyn frequency, the one that turns a decade of urban decay into a three-minute anthem. It’s a messy, glorious bit of reality that proves veterans don’t have to play it safe to stay relevant.
My only real grievance is the calendar; after a six-year gap, this feels overdue. Let’s just hope we aren’t waiting another half-decade before the getting another serving. 8/10
Stud Farm Mafia – Did You Have Good Weekend? (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
Modern alt rock bow from Stud Farm Mafia who tell tales of the absurdity of modern life with some arena ready hooks and a massive addition of British sarcasm. Compared to band such as Royal Blood, Skindred and Queens Of The Stone Age, Stud Farm Mafia do have a lot of those influences on their music.
It’s modern rocking made for big stages, huge choruses that will get you singing along and clever lyricism that lifts them higher than many bands of a similar ilk. There’s thought on these five tracks, you’ll find yourself tapping your foot or banging your head but also maybe a smile or a smirk when they use that inherent British humour to offer you a situation you may be intimately familiar with.
Be it the constant 9-5 existence, pretending you’re fine, or the thousands of blokes who do nothing but look at themselves in the gym mirror, there’s an honesty and heart to these songs, taken from real life but featuring the bands ideologies through them as their S.O.S was written for the charity ActionAid and shows a band who wear their hearts on their sleeve taking aim at many of the issuses that people will definitely understand and relate to.
The grooves, breakdowns and choruses here will sound massive on any stage as they’re big enough on the EP. Stud Farm Mafia are aiming for big things with Did You Have A Good Weekend? a collection of tracks showing that time is the only real currency worth anything so we should have a damn good time while we’re here. 8/10
DA – DA (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
Almost overlooked this one but glad I didn’t as London band DA have produced a debut album that draws from a lot of what I like in a metal band and brings it all together.
In terms of those influences the biggest are Judas Priest, Dio and Sabbath (Ozzy and Ronnie), stuck right on that cusp of late 70’s early 80’s heavy metal where you could still be atmospheric and theatrical before the punk elemts made everything faster and harder. I’d also say they have a link to Blue Oyster Cult in their sound too especially in the hard rock tracks here.
A lot of where they come from musically is in the history of guitarist Robin Brancher who was formerly in NWOBHM act Desolation Angels and vocalist Matt Oakman who is a former vocalist of power thrashers Stormborn, their combined influences are all over this record, from heavy metal, to thrash, classic rock to even moments of power metal, there’s a veteran appeal with a modern edge.
Joined by Neil Craddock on bass and Dan Smith on drums, their debut album is a classic metal feast full of air guitar toting riffs and massive choruses from Oakman’s wide Halford-esque vocal style on tracks such as Higher, while elsewhere Rock It features a strutting riff and plenty of organs, The Devil’s On My Side is pure anthemic Priest, while the final track You Gotta Believe It is almost a two part affair with a pulsing rocker striding into a Zep like epic.
DA are a new force with veteran instincts, fans of old school heavy rock will love this self titled record! 8/10
The Last Ten Seconds Of Life – The Dead Ones (Unique Leader Records) [Spike]
If you’ve spent any significant time in the deep end of the deathcore scene, you know that The Last Ten Seconds Of Life don’t really do “lightweight.” They’ve spent over a decade perfecting a sound that feels like a slow-motion car crash, rhythmic, terrifying, and impossible to look away from.
For me it’s been a while since I listened to them and on The Dead Ones, they’ve managed to take that “unpleasant” noise I was expecting and sharpen it into something remarkably clinical without losing the snot-and-tears grit that made them a necessity in the first place.
The album ignites with the title track, The Dead Ones, and it’s a proper jolt of reality. The first thing that hits you isn’t just the volume, but the specific “thud” of the production. It’s a level of distortion that feels like it’s physically occupying the room with you.
It leads directly into Make It To Heaven, featuring Signs Of The Swarm, which is a masterclass in the balance of symphonic scale and blunt-force trauma. It’s a collaboration that actually justifies the “epic” tag, providing a cinematic weight that keeps the listener pinned to the wall.
What makes this record a bit of a milestone for the long-term fans, though, is the guest list. Getting Nate Johnson (ex-Fit For An Autopsy) on Rat Trap is a stroke of genius; he brings a veteran snarl that anchors the track’s frantic, heart-attack pulse.
But the real tectonic shift happens on the closer, XXXXXXXXXX, with the return of original vocalist Storm Strope. For those of us who remember Soulless Hymns, hearing that voice back in the mix is pure catharsis. It’s not just a nostalgic call-back; it’s a high-velocity confrontation that proves the band still understands its own skeletal roots.
The middle stretch of the record, Freak Reflection, 1-800-DO YOU WANT TO DIE?, and Stiletto, moves with a predatory intent. 1-800-DO YOU WANT TO DIE? might win the award for the most confrontational title of the year, and the music backs it up with a rhythmic instability that reminds me of early 80s industrial-punk friction. It’s unpolished, honest, and possesses a level of “crustiness” that is sorely missing from the high-gloss metalcore circuit.
The production avoids the sterile traps of modern tech-death. You can hear the snare crack and the strings groaning under the weight of tracks like Dollar To A Dime (featuring Distant). It’s a sound that sounds like it was recorded in a space where the air is too thin to breathe; properly suffocating.
By the time the finale eventually snaps, you’re left with a ringing in your ears that feels like a well-earned bruise. The Dead Ones isn’t an album that asks for your time; it’s one that demands your total submission. It’s a pained, sophisticated bit of survivalism that suggests that even after all these years, the Pennsylvania lot still knows exactly how to weaponize the void. 8/10
I Am The Avalanche– The Horror Show (Rude Records) [Spike]
Six years is a long time to keep a motor idling, but for Brooklyn’s I Am The Avalanche, the silence since 2020 hasn’t resulted in any rust. If anything, The Horror Show feels like a band that has spent that half-decade sharpening their teeth in the dark.
It’s a record that occupies that rare, holy ground in punk rock: it sounds exactly like the band you fell in love with a decade ago, yet it carries the heavy-set gravity of people who have seen a few more winters and have the scars to prove it.
The needle drops on God’s Travel Plans, and you’re immediately hit by that unmistakable Vinnie Caruana rasp, a voice that sounds like it’s been conditioned on urban exhaust and hard-won resilience. There’s a specific, bruised-rib honesty to the delivery here that sets the tone for the entire record.
It leads straight into the title track, which serves as a masterclass in melodic friction. The guitars have a “room-sound” grit that prevents the anthemic hooks from ever feeling too sanitized; it’s the sound of a band playing for their lives in a basement where the lights keep flickering.
What really stands out on this release is the pacing. You’ve got these brief, high-velocity jolts like Osprey and True Legends Never Die that act as palate cleansers, maintaining a heart-attack pulse that keeps the record from ever settling into a mid-tempo slump. I Miss California And Every Dog I’ve Ever Met is arguably the heart of the album.
Beyond the spectacular title, it’s a pained, melodic standout that captures the specific, road-weary exhaustion of looking backward while trying to keep moving. It’s the kind of songwriting that makes you realize “melodic” doesn’t have to mean “easy.”
The production throughout, hitting its peak on tracks like Alive On 14th Street and Rogue Knife, avoids the high-fidelity traps that rob so much modern punk of its soul. It’s dirty, honest, and properly loud. You can hear the floorboards groaning under the weight of the rhythm section on the closer, Trébuchet, a track that finally allows the band to stretch into a more expansive, cinematic finish without losing the snot-and-tears intensity that got them here.
By the time the final vibration of Trébuchet grinds to a halt, you aren’t just left with another set of punk songs; you’re left with the realization that this band is a necessity. I Am The Avalanche have managed to bottle that un-killable Brooklyn frequency, the one that turns a decade of urban decay into a three-minute anthem. It’s a messy, glorious bit of reality that proves veterans don’t have to play it safe to stay relevant.
My only real grievance is the calendar; after a six-year gap, this feels overdue. Let’s just hope we aren’t waiting another half-decade before the getting another serving. 8/10
Stud Farm Mafia – Did You Have Good Weekend? (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
Modern alt rock bow from Stud Farm Mafia who tell tales of the absurdity of modern life with some arena ready hooks and a massive addition of British sarcasm. Compared to band such as Royal Blood, Skindred and Queens Of The Stone Age, Stud Farm Mafia do have a lot of those influences on their music.
It’s modern rocking made for big stages, huge choruses that will get you singing along and clever lyricism that lifts them higher than many bands of a similar ilk. There’s thought on these five tracks, you’ll find yourself tapping your foot or banging your head but also maybe a smile or a smirk when they use that inherent British humour to offer you a situation you may be intimately familiar with.
Be it the constant 9-5 existence, pretending you’re fine, or the thousands of blokes who do nothing but look at themselves in the gym mirror, there’s an honesty and heart to these songs, taken from real life but featuring the bands ideologies through them as their S.O.S was written for the charity ActionAid and shows a band who wear their hearts on their sleeve taking aim at many of the issuses that people will definitely understand and relate to.
The grooves, breakdowns and choruses here will sound massive on any stage as they’re big enough on the EP. Stud Farm Mafia are aiming for big things with Did You Have A Good Weekend? a collection of tracks showing that time is the only real currency worth anything so we should have a damn good time while we’re here. 8/10
DA – DA (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
Almost overlooked this one but glad I didn’t as London band DA have produced a debut album that draws from a lot of what I like in a metal band and brings it all together.
In terms of those influences the biggest are Judas Priest, Dio and Sabbath (Ozzy and Ronnie), stuck right on that cusp of late 70’s early 80’s heavy metal where you could still be atmospheric and theatrical before the punk elemts made everything faster and harder. I’d also say they have a link to Blue Oyster Cult in their sound too especially in the hard rock tracks here.
A lot of where they come from musically is in the history of guitarist Robin Brancher who was formerly in NWOBHM act Desolation Angels and vocalist Matt Oakman who is a former vocalist of power thrashers Stormborn, their combined influences are all over this record, from heavy metal, to thrash, classic rock to even moments of power metal, there’s a veteran appeal with a modern edge.
Joined by Neil Craddock on bass and Dan Smith on drums, their debut album is a classic metal feast full of air guitar toting riffs and massive choruses from Oakman’s wide Halford-esque vocal style on tracks such as Higher, while elsewhere Rock It features a strutting riff and plenty of organs, The Devil’s On My Side is pure anthemic Priest, while the final track You Gotta Believe It is almost a two part affair with a pulsing rocker striding into a Zep like epic.
DA are a new force with veteran instincts, fans of old school heavy rock will love this self titled record! 8/10
