About two dozen reporters and editors from several desks are leading The Times’s coverage of the anticipated festivities in Manhattan this week.

Fourth of July weekend is shaping up to be a cultural moment of contrasting and comparing two of the most famous Americans, Taylor Swift and Donald Trump.

Fans see, in the pop star, reflections of their own lives: hope, heartbreak and now, finally, happiness.

Sunday is the last day of Tuska Festival. It has always been like that, at least since I’ve been going to this event. And just like on Sunday people are sad that on Monday they go back to work, I’m sad that the festival is ending. But before being sad, let’s be happy and enjoy one last day of thrills, music and spectacle. Let’s start at the very beginning…

Neckbreakker

The first band of the Sunday plays at the Nordic Energy stage, and it’s Neckbreakker. If you woke up and you didn’t decide to have some heavy music, they would change that for you. I have never seen a band perform so relentlessly, so fiercely, so incredibly dedicated about their craft. They made me want to join mosh pits and circle pits, and it was barely 1 PM in the afternooon! So either you are prepared to have your world completely turned upside down by these Danish gentlemen, or you won’t have a choice…

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.

Soilwork

How many amazing vocalists are there in the metal world? So many. But how many of them are versatile enough to span different subgenres? Not that many. One of them is definitely Björn Speed Strid, lead vocalist of Soilwork. And you can be sure that if this gentleman is on stage, you won’t be able to leave his presence. His demeanor and his engagement with the crowd are simply remarkable, not to talk about how incredibly powerful and yet expressive his vocals are. But Soilwork is overall a fantastic band to see in a live setting, especially since their choice of setlist will appeal even to people who don’t know them. I’m quite confident that at Tuska they gained many more fans after their set!

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.

Tarot

I know I said that there aren’t many vocalists that are versatile in the metal world, but it looks like today there’s at least four. I mentioned Speed of Soilwork, and the next gentlemen that has captured my heart is called Marko Hietala, lead singer and bass player for the legendary band Tarot. If you’ve loved Marko during his time in Nightwish, you’d love him even more with this band. For him and all the group it seems like time has no effect at all, producing a live show that is entertaining, refined and perfectly curated. I wish I could understand more of the Finnish language to capture all the banter in between the songs, but for now I guess I’ll stick with enjoying their fabulous music!

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.

Amorphis

Part of our ongoing series “The versatile vocalists of Sunday at Tuska”, it’s time to introduce someone who needs no introduction. Amorphis is really one of the top acts to ever come out of Finland. Their performances are so perfect that at times I was wondering if they were playing live (which they were!) or I was listening to the album version of the tracks. Tomi Joutsen has all the qualities that a frontman needs to have: charisma, passion and talent. And well, I don’t disdain good looks either! From new tracks like “Bones” and “Dancing Shadows” to classics like “House of Sleep” and “Black Winter Day“, there is something for literally everyone. I can’t wait to see them again on their headlining tour next year, which I’m confident is going to be even more amazing.

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.

Malevolence

Life is unpredictable, and sometimes more than others there’s nothing we can do about it. Malevolence announced just a few days ago that their lead singer Alex Taylor was supposed to undergo surgery, and that the band would perform with some fill-in vocalists. That is a much preferred solution rather than just cancel the shows already planned, which is why I made sure to attend Malevolence‘s set to support the band in this challenging time. Konan and Tony stepped up to embrace the lead vocals and they did not disappoint. The crowd was doing mosh and circle pits from the first tracks, sign that the band hasn’t declined the quality of their live shows. Unfortunately I wasn’t very familiar with the band’s discography, but I’ll be sure to check them out a bit deeper after this fantastic set!

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.

Bring Me The Horizon

The last time I attended Tuska was in 2024, and these two years have one headliner in common: yes, Bring Me The Horizon. I was absolutely impressed with the band’s show two years ago, so I was really excited to see if this year they would top their game. Final verdict? They absolutely did. They improved the graphics shown on the screens at the sides of the stage, they’ve all returned with face paint (even though I bet that they wouldn’t do that), and they are kicking now more than ever. Their setlist featured some songs from “Post Human: Next Gen”, but also many classics like “Throne” and “Can You Feel My Heart“. The union of spectacular stage presence and production set is working in the band’s favour, creating a performance that you cannot only hear, but you have to see it as well. During “Antivist” a fan went on stage to sing with Oli, and of course he also made his usual walk near the barricade. This is a band that is going to be bigger and bigger, and I can’t wait to see what they have in store for us….

Photo: Niko Sihvonen.

The post LIVE REPORT: Tuska closes with a grand finale the 2026 edition first appeared on FemMetal – Goddesses of Metal.

Caught In A Spell is the latest single from up-and-coming German melancholic heavy metal troupe, THE NIGHT ETERNAL. The track comes off the band’s upcoming Metal Blade debut, Cold Velvet, set to drop on August 21. Comments the band, “Caught In A Spell delivers the perfect heavy metal soundtrack for a night drive. Driven by […]

The band’s fifth and final single, ‘Gut Feeling’, is taken from their second full length album, ‘Home Is

MONO – Snowdrop (Temporary Residence Limited) [Matt Bladen]

It’s difficult to lose a friend, difficult to lose a colleague, difficult to lose someone who you have been intrinsically linked with for so long, but when Steve Albini passed away in 2024, Japanese band MONO lost a collaborator, colleague and friend all at once.

His unrivalled production skills has featured on hundreds of albums, this made him one of the most recognisable and revered names in his field, but to MONO he was more than that, he was their “fifth Beatle” the concrete foundation upon which their work could be built upon, with a scientific understanding and emotional connection to their working process and exactly what made MONO tick.

This led to a period of uncertainty the grief of losing a friend but the more practical fear of losing such an integral part of the band, they must have asked themselves if they would ever sound the same again?

That is until they found Brad Wood a friend and devotee of Steve Albini, he too is a producer having made records with Touché Amoré and The Smashing Pumpkins, so he sat in the chair at Electrical Audio, Albini’s studio and alongside conductor Chad McCullough, a 10-piece orchestra and an 8-piece choir and rebuilt MONO, the group creating Snowdrop and record that this as intense as it is intimate, fuelled by the love of a brother.

This is a record that celebrates rather than commiserates, celebrating life rather than mourning death. It pays tribute to Albini, through Wood being sympathetic to the production style he had locked in with MONO, but also sees the band embracing their new working relationships and a jump into the unknown.

Snowdrop begins with the elegant title track, the guitars shimmering across the stereo spectrum, defined left and right instrumentation throughout, you must listen to this on good headphones or through good speakers to really hear it. The title track is like the first buds of spring flourishing at the start of the record before unfolding into the stunning duo of Winter Daphne where the orchestra and choir really come into their own and the triumphal feel of Gerbera, the drums like a distant marching band keeping the time against the orchestral swells.

From here Statice has me thinking of film soundtracks, it’s the repetition, the piano and the whole general feel of it I think, especially comparing it to Hedera where the guitar is king, shifting back to the post rock early days of the band. However MONO’s music has always been cinematic, songs built for never-ending horizons and long distance travels through beautiful vistas.

Fans should not fear, their first record without Albini behind the desk since 2014’s The Last Dawn/Rays Of Darkness double release, is a tribute to the great man from those that loved him while also being another epic, evocative performance from this band who communicate through their virtuosity in an unspoken way. 9/10

Junius – Sotera (Prosthetic Records) [Matt Bladen]

Boston band Junius return after nearly a decade with their new album Sotera, which in the words of founding member Joseph E. Martinez “feels like a rebirth for the band”.

Which it sort of is as vocalist/guitarist Martinez and drummer Dana Filloon are the only founding members of the band left, the rest of these soundscapes brought to life by Eoghan Mccarthy (guitar), Matthew Vincenty (guitar) and Orion Wainer (bass).

So yes folks it’s another post metal band with three guitarists, but when you hear the density of Junius’ music you’ll understand why three guitarists are the minimum, shifting from colossal heaviness into introspective atmospheres, there’s so much to unlock musically with this record, is no wonder they’ve been compared to the likes of Tool, Deftones and Cult Of Luna.

Produced by Martinez and Tom Syrowski (Blackberry Smoke, Mastodon), Sotera is a collection of songs where dynamics are key, undulating between ominous distortion and bright ambience, the angst of Deftones, sneer of Tool and the gothic brooding of Type O Negative all prominent in the expressive vocals of Martinez.

You could apply the term symphonic shoegaze to the album as while they do a lot of repeated shuffling and looking at their toes, the instrumentals layer across each other for a wall of expression and shifts in volume that comes from that 90’s era of alt rock experimentation.

A record dedicated to Hekate and divine feminine powers, it’s their first album not to be confined to just the conceptual but carry a narrative thread, rather than storytelling rigidity, so maybe Sotera is Junius relaxing into being a band after nearly 20 years.

The various genre tags that can applied all getting a bit muddled, as these tracks always offer something different to the last, yet retain a musical dexterity that’s hard to define. A clash of sounds that create a post-something noise any devotee of the 90’s alternative music scene will feel very comfortable inside. 8/10

Plaindrifter – Gestalt (Ripple Music) [Rich Piva]

Germany’s Plaindrift have figured out the perfect and delicate balance of being both proggy and heavy on their amazing new record, Gestalt, brought to us by the best label in heavy rock, Ripple Music. These six songs walk the proggy/stoner/metal tightrope with the greatest of ease, bringing the best of all three of those genres to Gestalt.

Amazing vocals, killer musicianship, and the songs…the songs are breathtaking. Immediately you feel this with the opener, Moth Murmuration, which goes in lots of directions but never waivers too far to allow you to keep guessing but never questioning the direction chosen. Eternal Season is right with it, with some amazing guitar work and next-level songwriting. 

German melodic metal veterans MOB RULES present their brand-new single Balance Of Power, offering another powerful taste of their forthcoming studio album Stories From The Verdant Vale. The album is set for release on August 21 via ROAR – A division of Reigning Phoenix Music. Stories From The Verdant Vale sees MOB RULES return to […]

VIEW HEAVY DIGIMAG #462 HERE This week HEAVY is proud to feature an Australian artist on the cover of the International DigiMag, as we welcome Dallas Frasca to chat about heading over to Canada to record her next album. We also spent time with Lorna Shore, Mammal and The Screaming Jets. We are proud to […]

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