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Northlane have announced that the release date of their new album ‘Anemoia’ is being changed, but have shared a new track as a treat for everyone being so understanding.

Originally due to drop on October 30, the record will now be released on November 27. This is due to production delays.

But it does mean that we have ‘Deathwish’ to enjoy now, a track that the band see as a companion to their previous single ‘Crucified’. A woozy, breathless, euphorically compelling blend of drum and bass battery and caustic metal thrills, it is the peak of the band’s attempt to build bridges that have defined this cycle so colourfully.

Vocalist Marcus Bridge had this to say about it:

‘Deathwish’, is “a companion song to ‘Crucified,’ but where that song surveys the landscape, ‘Deathwish’ zooms in on the individual. It’s written from the first-person perspective of someone who is entirely unwilling to listen – convinced of their own reality, blind to anyone else’s. I’m the centre of the universe / I’m blind to what you need. The lyrics aren’t self-referential, but it communicates an understanding of the psychology well enough to inhabit it, and the chorus turns the lens slightly inward: am I the one that’s cursed? I know it’s all I’ve come to be.”

And here is ‘Crucified’, so you get the whole vision:

Northlane have also announced that their upcoming tour of Australia and New Zealand is being rescheduled to May 2027 due to the need for guitarist Josh Smith to receive immediate care for this “worsening chronic health”.

The band are still due to head over to the UK and Europe to support Dayseeker later this year. Here are all of the dates:

NOVEMBER

28 – WOLVERHAMPTON KK’s Steel Mill
29 – WOLVERHAMPTON KK’s Steel Mill

DECEMBER

01 – LEEDS Project House
02 – MANCHESTER Academy 1
03 – BRISTOL Prospect
05 – GLASGOW O2 Academy Glasgow
06 – LONDON O2 Academy Brixton
08 – PARIS Élysée Montmartre
09 – OBERHAUSEN Turbinenhalle 1
10 – HANNOVER Capitol
12 – WARSAW Proxima
13 – BERLIN Huxley’s Neue Welt
15 – PRAGUE Lucerna Music Bar
16 – MUNICH Tonhalle
18 – AMSTERDAM Melkweg

The post Northlane Share New Track ‘Deathwish’, Move New Album Release Date appeared first on Rock Sound.

If your idea of a good festival weekend involves guitars, band stories and a few familiar names doing something unexpected,…

In punk rock’s history, a lot of albums haven’t hit as hard as Rancid’s … And Out Come The Wolves. Its effects are still being felt today. A lot of bands took inspiration from Rancid’s ska punk sound, but for filmmaker Danny Peykoff he used the record as the basis of his directorial debut. The aptly titled, …And Out Comes The Wolf. Z2 Comics has taken the reins on the official comic adaptation of the film.

The story follows Willy, a young punk rocker and drug dealer, who is counting on his best friend Brixton and his baseball skills to get out of Berkeley. Things go awry when Max, a drug dealer that Willy ratted on, is released from prison and forces him to sell his new product. Little bags of cocaine that have Val Kilmer’s hat and moustache ala his 1993 turn as Doc Holiday in Tombstone. After getting dumped by his girlfriend, Willy and Brixton meet two girls on the bus. It all goes downhill from there. While it’s not a difficult or unfamiliar web to untangle it is an interesting story nonetheless. The characters that inhabit the world are niche to fans of Rancid and East Bay punk or punk rock in general, but are unique enough.

Willy is our narrator and guide through his punk rock world. He rides this weird line of being this drug dealer punk rocker teenager who’s tough life seems to intersect and even ruin the others in it. This typically comes off with statements on what is or what’s not, but not here. It’s not too preachy. I think it can be hard to make a punk rock story without doing so. In general. I remember multiple people saying that about SLC Punk!, and I’d like to think time has been much kinder to it. What is and isn’t punk has evolved since it’s inception. This story doesn’t really focus on this rather than the plot itself which is a bit refreshing in a punk rock story.  

Kevin Mellon is a force to be reckoned with while pulling double duty as writer and artist. I’m not able to review if this is a good adaptation, as I’ve yet to see the movie. The comic Mellon has written based on Danny Peykoff, Jamie Neese, and Jason Neese’s script works well. The art almost has an Archie and the gang style to it, if Archie and Jughead sold drugs and jumped into pits. I loved Gab Contreras’s colors on Z2’s Blues Brothers comic and I think her game has definitely stepped up here. Given that Z2 does mostly music related comics, Contreras pivoting to a different genre does not seem to have any bearing on her quality. Tom Williams’s letters are the perfect amount of chaos for this story.

While there are a ton of Rancid easter eggs, a term I use loosely because some of them are glaring obvious, they don’t detract from the story. There are characters named after songs along with direct references to the band themselves. Willy has an unhealthy fixation on OG Rancid drummer, Brett Reed, while a female character named Ruby has been burned by a bass player named Matt. 

Despite being a drummer, we never actually see Willy play drums. He does show up to the Ivy Room to watch a band play and jump in the pit. While the scenes at the Ivy Room establish a lot more tone, characters and essentially the catalyst of the story. In general, I’m usually disappointed in comic book adaptations of movies. Sometimes things are left out. I remember a Shaun of the Dead comic adaptation that missed the best parts from the movie, but time makes that determination. 

…And Out Comes the Wolf functions well as a story, it’s a fun ride and has nods to the East Bay, Rancid, along with the landmark record this film/comic took its title from. If you’re chomping at the bit to see what this story is about and can’t find a theater to see the film, this could hold you over. On the other hand this may also be a great companion piece to what may be your next favorite punk rock movie.

…And Out Comes The Wolf is available through the Z2 website in a few different editiions.

When affordable synthesisers arrived just as punk ran out of its initial puff, the new machinery offered an alternative to picking up a guitar and learning three chords.

Thus, tens of thousands of converts plugged in a keyboard and learned three notes – which, of course, is all you need if you have something to say.

The Human League were there at the vanguard. Mainly hailing from post-industrial Sheffield, they always believed in the DIY ethic of punk, even if they expressed it through MIDI pop. And therein lay the prog, especially with the arrival of former Rezillos guitarist Jo Callis in time for 1981’s Dare.

The pop-culture-obsessed ex-art student had delivered a number of hit singles with an approach heavily powered by David Bowie and Mick Ronson; and so it would prove here. (Callis’s 21st-century band FingerHalo gave a convincing live adaptation of The Width Of A Circle, one of Bowie’s proggiest tracks.)

Dare will always be remembered for the smash hit Don’t You Want Me, so ubiquitous that it’s still earning co-writers Callis, singer Phil Oakey and keyboardist Adrian Wright royalities to this day. It’s irrefutably pop – until you listen to the chord structure leading to the chorus and in the chorus itself.

A technical expert will have to explain what’s going on, but it plays on the notion of straightforward construction by presenting alternative inversions of chords near the ones you think you’re hearing. Prog or what?

Don’t You Want Me is the last track on Dare because no one thought it would do anything. Earlier on, though, we have Seconds – and, at this point Callis, Oakey and Wright have transplanted themselves to the world of krautrock, complete with motorik beats, droning backing notes and minimalist leads.

Meanwhile Oakey delivers his lyrics – addressing how the world changed with the assassination of JFK in 1963 – with an almost wilful dismissal of verse-chorus structure.

Such dark, subversive alternative influences are all over what’s regarded as a genre-defining pop record. That’s partly down to producer Martin Rushent, whose proggy credentials by then included Gentle Giant, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Groundhogs, Curved Air and The Stranglers.

The you-can-do-it-too influence of Dare contributed to the Musicians’ Union’s attempt to ban synths in the mid-80s; meanwhile, Rushent helped invent the notion of the remix album, helming 1982’s Love And Dancing under the banner of The League Unlimited Orchestra. It contains a seven-minute version of Don’t You Want Me where you can really hear those weird chords in action.

Seconds remains a massively drawn-out, theatrical part of The Human League’s performances, offering audiences a shamelessly prog moment amid the electronic, not-quite- new-romance. It’s evidence that Dare is a secret prog album hidden in plain sight – which is pretty daring by any measure.

Hard Rock Hell promoter Dark Watch has announced that it has ceased trading, with the November 2026 festivals cancelled just weeks before they were due to take place. The announcement has left ticket holders facing uncertainty and renewed concerns over outstanding payments to musicians and other people working in live music.

Dark Watch announced its decision on 20 October, directing lead bookers to check their emails. In a message circulated to ticket holders and seen by MetalTalk, signed by Jonni Davis, the organisation said its November events could not proceed. These include Hard Rock Hell 19, scheduled for 5–8 November, and HRH Prog 16, scheduled for 12–15 November, at Seal Bay Resort in Selsey, West Sussex.

“We are heartbroken to share that Dark Watch has ceased trading. As a result, our November events cannot go ahead,” the message stated.

Financial pressure and a search for a buyer

In the communication, Davis said the business had spent recent months trying to keep events operating but had reached a financial position it could not overcome. The message cited a difficult trading climate, rising costs, unfinished websites and problems affecting a new site.

Davis also said that a prospective buyer had come close to agreement before the process was delayed. According to the message, that left the organisation unable to meet suppliers’ conditions in time to stage the November events. It said operations had stopped while a buyer was being sought.

The communication did not name an administrator or liquidator, and MetalTalk has not independently established that a formal insolvency appointment has been made. Ceasing trading and entering administration are not the same thing.

Unpaid fees: the impact on musicians

The announcement follows publicly reported disputes over payments connected with HRH events. In February 2023, bands withdrew from Hammerfest amid controversy over booking and payment arrangements.

A Forest of Stars said at the time that they had not been paid for a December 2022 HRH Vikings appearance. More recently, Anvil and Killer raised concerns over deposits ahead of HRH19, as previously reported by MetalTalk.

Blues-rock guitarist Jack J Hutchinson has said he is owed money for headlining HRH Blues in September. He subsequently reported an £800 loss of earnings associated with the show and has shared a PayPal link after supporters offered to help him and his band.

“As an independent musician often surviving on a shoe string budget, it’s pretty hard to take,” Hutchinson wrote in a public statement. His account illustrates the practical consequences of a missed payment for working musicians who budget around expected performance income.

The total value of any unpaid artist, crew or supplier fees has not been established. The fact that complaints have been made does not, on its own, determine which legal entity is responsible for any particular debt.

Some brands set to continue

The ticket-holder message said HRH Sleaze and HRH Blues, together with other city-based brands, had been acquired by Sheffield venue Network and would continue as planned. It also said HRH 66, Off Yer Rocka and Hard Rock Hell Radio would continue as separate entities.

The message does not explain the terms of those arrangements or whether purchasers have assumed any existing liabilities. Those claims about future events and acquisitions have not yet been independently confirmed by the organisations named.

Ticket holders advised to seek protection

Lead bookers were advised to contact their credit or debit card providers to ask whether a claim might be available, and to check any applicable travel, accommodation or ticket insurance. The message did not set out a direct refund timetable or procedure.

A loss for the wider live music community

Beyond the financial consequences for those affected, the disappearance of these long-running events is another blow to the live music ecosystem. Over the years, HRH stages have hosted established acts while giving smaller bands opportunities to reach audiences they might otherwise struggle to find.

That contribution does not erase legitimate questions about payments and accountability. But it does underline why the closure is more than a story about a promoter. Fans lose events, musicians lose work, and staff and suppliers face the possibility of unpaid bills.

MetalTalk previously approached HRH for comment on the Anvil and Killer dispute but did not receive a response. We will update this report if further information about the closure, refunds or outstanding payments becomes available.

The post Hard Rock Hell: Dark Watch Ceases Trading As November Festivals Are Cancelled first appeared on MetalTalk – Heavy Metal News, Reviews and Interviews.

When it comes to folk-infused indie rock, the crowd tends to overthink and overreact, claiming this subgenre has

DELAIN announces an exciting new creative transformation with an extraordinary cast of musicians and vocalists joining its new setup. One that opens its musical world to different voices, personalities and musical perspectives. Joining this new chapter are well-known musicians such as Marko Hietala, Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation), Fabienne Erni (Eluveitie), Anneke van Giersbergen, and […]

The post DELAIN Enters A New Chapter With An Extraordinary Cast! appeared first on ROCKPOSER DOT COM.

Less Than Jake have unleashed another B-Side from their Uncharted EP with the release of new single Overloaded. More than three decades into an already impressive career – which includes 8 studio albums, tours with Descendents, blink-182, Bon Jovi, Linkin Park, Snoop Dogg, Bad Religion, and more, and over 365 shows on the Vans Warped […]

Acclaimed local heavyweights Northlane return with Deathwish, a visceral new single and the fourth preview of their upcoming seventh studio album Anemoia, now with a new release date of November 27, following production delays. Deathwish picks up where previous single Crucified left off, painting a stark portrait of selfishness and the destructive consequences of unchecked […]

In March 2027, Heilung will bring their extraordinary live experience back to Australia and New Zealand for a monumental seven date tour, including two very special performances at the iconic Sydney Opera House, Melbourne’s Sidney Myer Music Bowl, Adelaide’s AEC, Brisbane’s Riverstage, Auckland’s Spark Arena and Perth’s Red Hill Auditorium. Their live rituals are extraordinary […]