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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 […]

Philly’s Soul Glo are back with Ppl Worried, a frantic punk confessional off the band’s upcoming album, NA I’M GON GRAB ALLAT, out Jan 15. Frontman Pierce Jordan wrestles with losing oneself in grief, the numbing solitude of addiction and cycles of self-sabotage, deepening the album’s compelling journey through the complexities of surviving modern existence. […]

LIVE NATION and SECRET SOUNDS have today announced the return of electronic luminaries, UNDERWORLD to Australia and New Zealand in 2027 for exclusive headline shows in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne, alongside key festival appearances. Fresh from premiering Crazy, Crazy in New York last month to critical acclaim, Underworld will return to Australia and New Zealand […]

Insomnium – Netherworlds (Century Media Records)

The intro track to Insomnium’s tenth album, Cold Song, could have easily come from Markus Vanhala’s other project Cemetery Skyline, it’s synth led and gothic but as soon as Shadowlife begins we’re back on familiar territory, a blend of gothic doom and melodic death metal that Insomnium have been dealing since their inception in 1997.

From those days, bassist/harsh vocalist Niilo Sevänen, drummer Markus Hirvonen and guitarist Ville Friman are still the core trio of the band with guitarists Markus Vanhala and Tomy Laisto joining later, Laisto only this year, meaning that Netherworlds features a triple axe attack, all three guitarists weaving the sonic tapestry switching between the metallic riffs and anthemic cleans.

They all share the clean vocals too, giving massive gang choruses against the harsh screams, as the drumming moves between ferocious double kicks and nuanced melancholic phases such as on Arch Of The Sky. These complex layers, mean that the songs can take many different paths on this record, from the atmospheric Ethereal Sleep, to the modern Remembrance, the aggressive The Banished and the epic Journey’s End.

Insomnium deliberately looking back to their earlier releases where their blistering melodeath had gothic doom and folksier tones that are found on tracks such as The Hour Grows Late, where acoustic guitars bleed into light speed riffage, along with guest features from Tomi Joutsen, Tomi Koivusaari and Santeri Kallio of Amorphis.

By looking back it feels like Insomnium have reclaimed themsleves, after a few albums that upped the directness and historical lyricism, they now address more personal and societal issues, songs about love and death but written now with more life behind them than in front, approaching these themes with a lot of life experience.

The band say that Netherworlds is a ‘best of’ featuring new songs and it’s difficult to not agree. This is about as perfect of an album you’ll get from Insomnium, guaranteed to be on your end of year list! 9/10

Shores Of Null – Homesick (Dusktone)

For fans of: Paradise Lost, Amorphis, Swallow The Sun, Katatonia, Borknagar, or so the PR proclaims and that’s spot on. Shores Of Null’s new album takes them further into the melodic realms of melodic doom metal, with Paradise Lost and Amorphis the biggest influences I can hear on Homesick.

It’s melancholic, intense, grief stricken and emotionally resonant, a ten song musing on “emotional states (such as) longing, loss, anger, vulnerability and the search for a place to belong.” Its a record that deals with nostalgia, what really is home and how does our upbringing shape us? Filtering these ideas through some anthemic death doom which features melodic moments and big choruses fit for bigger stages, with the performance of vocalist Davide Straccione a particular high point.

Not that the band have tried to create an album of singles, the opposite actually as Homesick is a record meant to be heard in full, each track thematically driven by the last, the collaborative writing in the pre production phase alongside producer Marco “Cinghio” Mastrobuono allowing them to shape theses songs exactly how they want them, so the whole record flows well, the depth of the production meaning you need to listen repeatedly to discover everything going on.

It means that with this fifth studio album Shores Of Null showcase their maturity as band, emerging from their death doom beginnings with a more refined and focussed style that is driven by a melancholic intensity, especially The Numbing Void which features vocals from Natalie Koskinen of Shape Of Despair and violin from Shaun MacGowan of My Dying Bride to bring more legitimacy and a wider sonic approach.

If you liked Shores Of Null before, Homesick is not a massive departure from their past record but it’s aimed at getting them more recognition in the death doom world, sounding more, immediate and poignant than on their early records as they mature into their position as one of melodic death dooms modern flag bearers. 9/10

Great Falls – The Bite That Grows Up (Neurot Recordings)

With their debut for Neurot Recordings compared to Ken Mode and Chat Pile, there’s going to be a lot to get your head around with Great Falls.

Objects Without Pain saw them play Roadburn, be the support to Botch’s final European tour and do US tour with the equally crushing Primitive Man, but soon they were back in the studio with producer Scott Evans to record a follow up, one that was supposed to be a calmer offering but somehow is more intense, aggressive and downright terrifying than their last album.

Chaos is the one word review I can give this record, A Small Weakness tumbles noisily into the frantic blitz of Pinned Against Time, the drumming is Nick Parks never taking any traditional patterns while the bass of Shane Mehling on tracks such as Worse Than Sleep can’t decide whether to work with or fight against the angular riffs of Demian Johnston.

The 25 year friendship of these two integral to the fervor of these off-kilter, eccentric cuts of brutality, driven by non linear time signatures, weird tunings, percussion with anyhting they can find and pained often single sentence vocals, with Hailstone Numbers having Johnston sound like he’s being tortured, against the thick bass, bristling atmospheres and then that inevitable erruption of volume.

The Bite That Grows up is sheer force, there’s going to be those that absolutely hate it, warranted for sure as the music here is very niche, nihilistic math metal is the closest I could get to explain it. However if you’re devotee of the fringe bands that play Roadburn or Arctangent then you’ll find a place in your listening for Great Falls, but let’s be honest you’ll probably already have everything on vinyl.

Erratic, explosivity from the Pacific Northwest on The Bite That Grows Up. 7/10

Generation Steel – Steelmachine (Fireflash Records)

It’s always telling how dedicated to a musical genre a country is when they get their own genre tag, over in the extreme side the Swedes have melodeath, the Greeks and Scandinavians take black metal but over on the cleaner side there’s of course NWOBHM from the UK and Teutonic metal from Germany.

Bands such as Accept, Running Wild and even Halloween all encompass this style and so to do Generation Steel, despite only being formed in 2019, founding member Jack The Riffer, looks to the leather and studs wearing heavy metal of the 1980’s with his musical output.

They’ve already released two albums and now with album three Steelmachine, they look to sharpen their attack as Jack and drummer Marc Laukel are joined by some new blood with veteran experience.

Bassist Fabian Watermann (Mad Max) locks down the rhythms with Jack and Marc while Swede Mike Stark (Stormburner) joins on vocals and the extremely experienced Thilo Herrmann who has played with Running Wild, Grave Digger takes lead guitars for this record.

The latter two also contribute heavily to the songwriting, making for some of the toughest metal Generation Steel have put to record, such as, the snarling Witches Cross, the relentless The Priest (who I assume is named Judas) or the swaggering Wings Of Steel where the melodic side comes in.

Generation Steel fire up the Steelmachine and smelt some more anthemic Teutonic metal on album three. 7/10

There are times when an album completely surprises you. And this is one of those times. Ukrainian quartet Ignea caught my attention at Bloodstock a few years ago when I was shooting the festival for MetalTalk. I don’t recall much about them, except that they were good value and singer Helle Bohdanova rightly waved their flag in defiance. They had crossed my path before, a solid set supporting Butcher Babies in Bristol in late 2023, no less. 

Ignea – Monumental

Release Date: 23 October 2026

Words: Paul Hutchings

But I will confess, I have never sat down and listened to them. Until now. Modern Metal often sends shivers down my spine. It is all a bit generic for my liking, but it’s a badge that many can wear, and of course, it is much wider than my old man’s prejudices. 

Monumental is well named. This is an album that may well explore nostalgia, but there is something wider about this release. With all lyrics written by Bohdanova, and music composed by keyboardist Yevhenii Zhytniuk, with some help from Bohdanova, it is very much a burning, internal affair. 

The melodic side of the band is very much in evidence on the opener, Darkness, its emotional tone grabbing the attention alongside some melancholic delivery from Bohdanova. To then switch to her gravel-throated roars amidst electronic techno elements on the title track of the last album, Dreams Of Lands Unseen, is impressive. As is the track, that sways from progressive keyboard passages to blunt blast beat delivery, from raging roars to angelic cleans. It is all passionate and moving in every aspect. 

There is something grandiose about this album. Presence Of The Past, with its pop-like intro that gives way to blistering drumming (programmed, I assume, given the absence of a drummer in the current line-up) whilst the vocals switch with an underlying aggression, is an ode to urban decadence, the experience of living in a city that is constantly evolving. 

Race forward to Prefab, a rave soundtrack that features Andy LaPlegua of Combichrist. Another swift left turn, this is an industrial brute, leaving nothing to chance. It is here that I thought Bohdanova and Ignea shared some parallels with Italians Lacuna Coil. Maybe you can hear it. Maybe not. 

But surprises are not over yet. After that chaotic crushing, the last thing you would expect is a track that drops like a ’60s TV advert. Echoes of Karen Carpenter, I kid you not, appear on I Am In Hell, a gently crafted piece that bridges the thunderous industrial blast of Prefab and the Eastern flavours of Between No Longer and Not Yet.

This is the longest song on the album, at over seven minutes, but it weaves its way with another schizophrenic vocal performance that keeps you on your toes throughout. I’m not 100% sure about parts of it, but the flowing mix of Doom, jazz and orchestral parts works well overall. 

And to wash that all away comes a powerhouse track that features the visceral vocals of Britta Görtz of Hiraes. This adds some real steel to the album but maintains the melodic features of all Ignea’s songs. It really is an eclectic and brave mix.

To close, Nadir. A reflective orchestral couple of moments, it seems appropriate given all that has gone before it.

Monumental is an album of many layers. It may take a little time to explore, but beneath the exterior sits some excellent music from a band who have taken their creativity to the max.

Ignea release Monumental on 23 October 2026 via Napalm Records. Pre-orders are available from lnk.to/Ignea-Monumental/napalmrecords. Ignea are on tour with Evergrey on their Architects Of A New Weave European Tour 2026 along with Stellar Circuits.

The post Ignea – Monumental: A Bold, Beautiful And Brilliantly Unpredictable Album first appeared on MetalTalk – Heavy Metal News, Reviews and Interviews.

Live Review: Khemmis – The Flapper, Birmingham

13th October 2026
Support: Celestial Sanctuary
Words: Matt Noble
Photos: Tim Finch

Opening the show are crushing death metallers Celestial Sanctuary, who command a respectable turnout at eight on a Tuesday night in Birmingham. With guttural vocals, evil lead guitar lines, and grooves to scrunch your face up to, they waste no time in creating a hell of an atmosphere. It’s heavy, filthy and full of energy. Building anticipation for their upcoming album, due in January on Metal Blade, they throw a few unheard songs into the set that give the first hints at a wonderfully brutal new chapter for the band. Lead single ‘Lashed By Chain’ was only released in the week before the gig, and it seems like there’s even better still to come. However, their older tracks, such as the particularly well-received ‘Rid The Gormless’, still kick up a storm. 

As Celestial Sanctuary dominate the stage, interacting with the crowd and headbanging, their audience throw it back to them, moving around and raising their horns in all the right moments. They sound polished and professional, with disgusting guitar and bass tones backed by an impressively tight drum performance. But most importantly, the songs are creatively written and hold the crowd’s undivided attention throughout their 40 minute set. Not an easy act to follow!

The Flapper is fairly busy by the time Khemmis are warmly welcomed onstage for only their second UK show – and first in Birmingham – following their debut on these shores at Damnation a few years ago. The Denver doom metallers clearly have a growing cult following in the UK already, and with a few more trips across the pond, no-one would bet against them graduating to much larger stages in years to come. ‘Avernal’ kicks off their set with an impactful thrashy riff, getting the pulses racing before settling on a morose, melodic doom beat that a lot of the rest of the set matches in atmosphere. 

Phil Pendergast’s soaring, soulful clean singing carries the main melodies, though he’s a mean guitarist too, teaming up with Ben Hutcherson for some gorgeous dual guitar leads. Both rocking flying Vs, they really look the heavy metal part. As a duo, their versatility on their instruments is important, from intricate lead playing down to simply letting the weight of the power chords ring out. There is something in the way that Khemmis stack their chords that really gives a dense, rich harmonic flavour to the set. However, Ben also contributes extreme metal vocals to provide contrast and allow the band to occasionally go into more dissonant, sludgier territory. The flexibility of the dual vocal and guitar attack makes the ambitious, progressive songs that Khemmis craft possible. But of course, the watertight rhythm section can’t be forgotten about, keeping the flow and sense of refinement throughout the set. Drummer Zach Coleman is just as capable of blasting and D-beating as he is of handling the slower beats, a powerhouse behind the kit, while bassist David Small navigates each riff and fill with a thunderous tone.

Yet sometimes you can find bands with technical guitar parts, haunting melodies and generally on the slower end of the tempo scale that just… stand around. Not Khemmis. This is top quality heavy metal entertainment. They engage the crowd, demanding the reception that they deserve – not that they’d need to worry about it – and making sure we’ve all got our metal horns in the air. Main vocalist Phil even jumps in the crowd for a mosh while ripping the intro riff to ‘Three Gates’. He is an impassioned, wild presence at the front, throwing himself around the stage and clearly feeling every single note coming out of the speakers. He doesn’t forget to thank the attendees for coming out on a Tuesday, wryly pointing out that Stevie Wonder is on at the arena across the road on the same night. Doom should be this fun more often.

Playing songs from all eras of the band, including their self titled fifth record that came out in June, tonight’s a gift from the metal gods for their UK fans that don’t often have the chance to see them in the flesh. It’s entertaining, well presented, energetic heavy metal thunder. As the final notes of ‘A Conversation With Death’ fade away, you can’t help but feel their hour-long set wasn’t quite enough to fully scratch the itch. Long live Khemmis.

Photo credits: Tim Finch

For all the latest news, reviews, interviews across the heavy metal spectrum follow THE RAZORS’S EDGE on facebook, twitter and instagram.

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Live Review: Quest Fest – KK’s Steel Mill, Wolverhampton

10th October 2026
Words: Chris Taylor

Quest Fest’s ninth year has come and gone and with it another fun weekend full of all things epic, and more than a little nerdy. Before launching off into a run down of all the amazing bands that took to the stage this year, it is worth mentioning that Quest Fest may have one of the most welcoming and enjoyable audiences of any festival in the UK regardless of the size. Whether at the barrier raising your horns, enjoying the soothing tunes from a roaming bard or thrashing your friends at a game of guitar hero Quest Fest 2026 once again brought a feeling of belonging and community for those who wish to unashamedly let their geeky hair down.

An hour after doors our first band takes to the stage. Crown Solace have the dreaded task of opening up the festival. There is always the worry at any festival whether the crowd will be keen enough to rush to catch the opening band of the day, however that is not a problem here. Before Crown Solace begin the room is filling up nicely and while Crown Solace won’t have had the biggest crowd of the day for sure, they had the most epic intro as a ten minute dramatic countdown for the start of day gave a sense of anticipation for the music to start. Slight technical hiccup delaying the start of their first song aside, Crown Solace lap up such an epic intro to their set and carry it all the way through. The band’s Nightwish like bombast combined with heavy harsh vocals give them scope that fills KK Steel mill. A showcase of their newest work it’s the perfect introduction to the band if they are new to anyone present. If one can believe it, their very first show was on the EMP stage of last year’s Bloodstock and are now opening Quest Fest only a year later with a triumphant set and thrilling start to the day. These guys are for sure ones to watch.

Fortune Teller follow with another epic start to a set. They may not have had the epic countdown of Crown Solace but what Fortune Teller do have is a massive opening number. Charging straight in with their self titled single with it’s catchy as hell chorus and stirring vocals it’s a statement of fierce intent right from the word go. While their debut single dropped only a year ago, the band is full of seasoned musicians who have honed their craft and it shows with a commitment and confidence that one would expect from a symphonic metal band going back decades. Every member on stage stands strong, trade off of each expertly and Theresa’s stirring ability as the front person of the band could match the legendary vocalists of this genre of metal. The setlist consists of a mixture of released and to be released tracks and those glimpses into the band’s near future proves that their current trajectory as one of the country’s most promising symphonic power metal bands is only just beginning. 

The third band is also the third, and last, band of the day hailing from the UK power/symphonic metal scene. Battle Born of course, need no introduction. Having played Quest Fest back in 2022 they have been a consistently reliable live staple of UK power metal since exploding onto the scene after Bloodstock 2021. However, their performance at this year’s Quest Fest might be the band’s strongest show yet (in this humble reviewers experience anyway). Keeping with the ongoing theme today of ‘starting with a bang’ Battle Born charge unto the stage Iron Maiden style when the music kicks off and it’s non stop high energy from there all the way through. Battle Born are well seasoned by this point and it shows, their command of the crowd is probably the best of the entire day and the audience reaction is astonishing for a band this early on. The omission of their sure fire audience pleaser ‘Bring the Metal Back’ is admittedly disappointing, however it is hard to argue with a flawless cover of Judas Priest’s classic ‘Electric Eye’. While the rest of the day is back to back more established bands from further afield, Crown Solace, Fortune Teller and Battle Born do the UK scene proud and each could be considered a highlight of the day.

Our first from one of the legendary acts of the day is the epic Serious Black. Despite the pedigree of this band and all the iconic members that have been part of it over the years their performance at Quest Fest is surprisingly understated. No big theatrics or anything like that, it’s a no nonsense power metal masterclass with musicians who clearly still love every second of being on stage. 

The show takes on a celebratory and triumphant tone when founding member Mario takes to the stage. Advised not to perform due to medical concerns, he joins his band for a couple songs just to be a part of it and the sense of brotherhood is felt throughout. It’s a very rare occurrence for Serious Black to make an appearance in the UK so it is surely quite a big moment for UK fans of the band. While nothing too flashy, Serious Black’s show is a damn fun time indeed and it’s exciting to catch a rare glimpse of the band live. Make sure you catch them at the Underworld in January next year because who knows when they’ll return to the UK again.

Probably the most apt band to follow is the legendary Masterplan, also featuring an array of power metal legends and of course having very few appearances in the UK with their last tour being a staggering nineteen years ago! Masterplan have quite possibly the most assured stage presence of any band at Quest Fest this year. Having built a long legacy over the years they let the music speak for itself and it is glorious to behold. Rick Altzi has the crowd in the palm of his hand taking the crowd from one spine tingling chorus after another. After many years of hearing Masterplan as more of a legend than anything else, owing to how infrequently to play this country, watching their set is an almost surreal experience and there is a feeling of incredible awe emanating from everyone present. Here’s hoping they return sooner than another nineteen years!

When looking over the lineup this year it could be said that Tunisian symphonic prog legends Myrath are a tad out of place when compared to the other bands. Make no mistake, Myrath are certainly epic enough to be at Quest Fest, but they stand out amongst the more soaring and uplifting bands of the day. When Myrath’s set begins the atmosphere at KK’s Steel Mill completely changes. Instead of being transported to fantasy landscapes we are taken somewhere more exotic and enchanting. Myrath are simply stunning live and utterly unique, their middle eastern take on prog metal is dripping with atmosphere and they have the audience’s wrapt attention. This year’s album Wilderness of Mirrors takes centre stage of course and it seems purposefully built to be experienced live with some of the band’s most stirring work yet. While no band today has put a foot wrong, it would be more than justified to call Myrath the winners of the day.

There was some trepidation in the months leading up to quest fest as to whether All For Metal would actually still be a band when the event finally arrived. The band exploded onto the scene a few years ago, and just as fast seem to be falling apart at the seams with five members leaving the band within the last year. With a brand new vocalist and guitarist there was a danger of this being an altogether different band. All For Metal however are, let’s be fair, very straightforward and no nonsense. Channeling that classic Manowar style fists in the air metal it’s a tried and true formula that absolutely works as the final band of a power metal festival. New vocalist Amerigo alongside fellow vocalist (and absolute giant) Tetzel are up there as two of the best front people of the day and weirdly it’s taken all the way till the final band for some actual crowd participation and it’s as silly as it needs to be. There is a slight feeling of anti-climax owing purely to the magnificent Myrath just before, and the audience seeming to thin out slightly after Myrath had concluded. But in the end All For metal closes out the day with something that’s easy to listen to, easy to join in, and appropriately fun that more than earns its place as the headliner of Quest Fest.

For all the latest news, reviews, interviews across the heavy metal spectrum follow THE RAZORS’S EDGE on facebook, twitter and instagram.

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PESTILENT DOOM

LIOTTA RAIL

CHEAP COFFINS

NASTY INSECTS

Texan singer-songwriter Ryan Hamilton has launched a GoFundMe to raise money for medical expenses after being diagnosed with Mantle Cell Lymphoma, a rare and often aggressive form of cancer.

“I never imagined I would be creating a GoFundMe to afford to fight for my life,” says Hamilton. “But I also never imagined I’d be sitting in an ICU being told I had a rare form of cancer.

“I’m a dad, and more than anything else in this world, I want to be here to watch my daughter grow up. I have songs I haven’t written yet. Shows I haven’t played yet. Friends and family I love, and a whole lot of life I’m not finished living.”

Hamilton says that he has health insurance and also qualifies for financial assistance, but the expenses involved in his treatment are “overwhelming.”

“To put it into perspective, just one of the medications I have to take costs approximately $300 per pill,” he says. “I have to take one every day for at least the next two years. That’s roughly $219,000 for one medication alone. And right now, I’m taking eight different prescriptions.

“That doesn’t include everything else that comes with cancer treatment: ongoing oncology care, chemotherapy and other treatments, testing, scans, hospital expenses, follow-up appointments, and the financial reality of trying to recover and work while undergoing treatment.”

Hamilton is a former member of indie-folk/pop duo Smile Smile and power-pop act People On Vacation, formed with Bowling For Soup frontman Jaret Reddick. After his debut solo album Hell Of A Day gained traction in the UK, he formed Ryan Hamilton and The Traitors, who toured with The Wildhearts. And later, he released the charity single Fuck You Brain with Ginger Wildheart in order to raise awareness of mental health issues.

After signing to Stevie Van Zandt‘sWicked Cool Records, Hamilton released two albums as Ryan Hamilton & The Harlequin Ghosts and toured with The Alarm. He stepped away from music in 2023, but was coaxed back into action by Van Zandt and released his latest album, Haunted By American Dreams, in July this year.

Ryan Hamliton’s GoFundMe is seeking to raise $50,000.