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  • Reading & Leeds Replace New Artist Showcase With “Nepo Baby Stage”

    When the UK sister festivals Reading and Leeds took place over the weekend, there was one hilariously bleak change in the programming.

    The post Reading & Leeds Replace New Artist Showcase With “Nepo Baby Stage” appeared first on Stereogum.

  • Who Will Rise as This Week’s Champion on the MDR Battle Of The Bands? 08/31/26 – 09/04/26 – @thebeast



    🔥 Who Will Rise as This Week’s Champion on the MDR Battle Of The Bands? 🔥
    And who will dominate next month as Band of the Month on Metal Devastation Radio?
    Last month’s winners, OKL’S FRUITLOOPS, crushed the competition with a staggering 5,083,542 VOTES , claiming the title of Band of the Month on Metal Devastation Radio! You can check them out HERE !
    This is the weekly championship edition of the Band Of The Month – Battle Of The Bands that we host every month on MDR!
    How does it work?
    Every Monday, we launch a new poll featuring bands that submit music each week on metaldevastationradio.com. Voting runs until Friday at 9PM EST .
    Each Friday night , at the start of The Zach Moonshine Show , I’ll be spinning the Top Six weekly winners , and announcing the #1 band of the week live on air — getting thousands of listens on Mixcloud !
    At the end of the month , all weekly votes are added up, and the band with the highest total votes becomes our Band of the Month !
    Winning Band of the Month gets:
    A featured post on our Facebook page, reaching thousands of fans
    A front-page spotlight on metaldevastationradio.com , which pulls in hundreds of thousands of views every month
    A free PR email blast from Metal Devastation PR, hitting 40,000+ contacts including labels, zines, stations, and more
    Airplay every hour during general rotation
    Tons of social media shares and exposure across our network
    If you want the world to know who your band is, this is the easiest way to make it happen!
    💥 Want in on the next battle?
    Comment below with your band name and we’ll add you to next week’s poll — or email me at zach@metaldevastationradio.com with “Battle Submission” in the subject line.
    Bands can compete as many times as they want , and if you enter multiple weeks in the same month, your votes combine toward the Band of the Month title!
    👇 Click on the bands below to vote as many times as you like, or add your own! Poll closes Friday, September 4th at 9PM EST!




    Who Will Rise as This Week’s Champion on the MDR Battle Of The Bands? 08/31/26 – 09/04/26


  • OKL’S FRUITLOOPS CROWNED SEPTEMBER 2026 BAND OF THE MONTH AFTER MASSIVE 5,083,542 VOTE VICTORY – @thebeast

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
    OKL’S FRUITLOOPS CROWNED SEPTEMBER 2026 BAND OF THE MONTH AFTER MASSIVE 5,083,542 VOTE VICTORY

    Slovenian melodic death metal force Okl’s FruitLoops have officially been crowned Battle of the Bands Champions and Band of the Month for September 2026 after dominating the competition with an incredible 5,083,542 votes , securing a massive victory in Battle of the Bands history.
    The overwhelming support from metal fans across the globe propelled Okl’s FruitLoops to the top of the competition, proving once again that the underground metal community has no shortage of passion when it comes to supporting the bands they believe in.
    Formed in 2022 , Okl’s FruitLoops have quickly established themselves as a rising force in the Slovenian metal scene. The band delivers an aggressive blend of melodic death metal , combining crushing riffs, dark melodies, intense musicianship, and high-energy live performances.
    The band’s sound draws influence from legendary melodic death metal acts including In Flames, Arch Enemy, Children of Bodom, and Kalmah , while Okl’s FruitLoops bring their own identity and intensity to the style.
    Their debut album, “Scream Of Silence,” was officially released on March 30, 2026 , marking a major milestone for the band. The album features ten tracks packed with aggressive guitar work, dark atmosphere, melodic hooks, and relentless metal energy.
    The full track listing includes:
    1. Scream Of Silence
    2. Icons Of Insanity
    3. Nightmare Rhapsody
    4. Mr. Grim
    5. Timeless Chaos
    6. Fearless Knights
    7. Fallen Demon
    8. At the End of This World
    9. Their Time Will Fall
    10. Call For Freedom
    “Scream Of Silence” was mixed and mastered by Simon Jovanović at Studio Evolucija in Ljubljana , with Timotej Hrastar handling drum recording. The finished album showcases the band’s ability to balance melodic songwriting with the aggression and intensity expected from modern melodic death metal.
    The band’s massive 5,083,542 votes in the Battle of the Bands competition represent an incredible showing of support from metal fans around the world. Their victory demonstrates the power of the underground metal community and the growing international reach of Okl’s FruitLoops.
    As September 2026 Band of the Month , Okl’s FruitLoops now join the ranks of Battle of the Bands champions who have earned their place through the votes and support of metal fans worldwide.
    Congratulations to Okl’s FruitLoops on an absolutely massive victory and a well-earned place in Battle of the Bands history!
    Keep your horns raised for Slovenia and get ready for more from Okl’s FruitLoops!

    Scream Of Silence by Okl’s FruitLoops
  • Demon Hunter Share Official Live Footage From 2025 Austin, TX Show

    Numerous videos from that set have arrived online recently with “Cut To Fit” debuting today.

    The post Demon Hunter Share Official Live Footage From 2025 Austin, TX Show appeared first on Theprp.com.

  • Marilyn Manson Albums: Complete Discography Ranked

    marilyn-manson-albums-ranked

    Marilyn Manson’s albums now number thirteen across three decades, and ranking them is less a music exercise than a psychological autopsy of American culture.

    Brian Warner has spent thirty years as rock’s most polarising figure and its most restless shapeshifter — industrial grit in the mid-nineties, glam-rock excess at the millennium, blues-soaked reinvention in the 2010s, and a gothic-rock second wind right now. August 2026’s One Assassination Under God – Chapter 2 is the newest entry, and it’s already drawing his strongest reviews in a quarter-century. Here’s the complete discography ranked worst to best.

    The count, cleared up

    Worth stating plainly before the countdown, because almost every ranking online gets this wrong.

    Marilyn Manson has released thirteen studio albums, from 1994’s Portrait of an American Family through to Chapter 2 in August 2026.

    There’s also Smells Like Children (1995), which is technically an EP — but at 54 minutes, and as the record that carried “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” into every household in America, it earns a place in this ranking. It’s marked as an EP where it lands.

    Fourteen entries. Thirteen albums and one EP.

    marilyn-manson-albums-ranked

    How this ranking works

    Three criteria: impact, longevity, and pure replay value.

    Not sales. The soul of the records.

    That longevity criterion matters for one entry in particular, and we’ll flag it when we get there — a two-week-old album can be brilliant without having proved it can last.

    Loaded Radio Recommends – Rob Zombie Albums Ranked From Worst To Best

    14. Eat Me, Drink Me (2007)

    marilyn-manson-eat-me-drink-me

    The divorce record, and it sounds like it.

    Following a highly publicised split from Dita Von Teese, Manson moved away from social commentary into deeply personal, almost emo-tinged territory. Tim Sköld’s guitar work is technically proficient, but the album lacks the world-building scale of everything around it.

    “Heart-Shaped Glasses” was a minor hit. Next to the grandiosity of Holy Wood, though, this plays like a man retreating into himself — a sombre, vampire-themed detour concerned with the pain of one individual rather than the sickness of a nation.

    It has defenders for its vulnerability. It doesn’t have the punch to sit higher.

    13. Born Villain (2012)

    marilyn-manson-born-villain

    Billed as a comeback and a return to his industrial roots, Born Villain is a gritty, stripped-back affair.

    “No Reflection” earned a Grammy nomination and there are genuinely good moments, but the production overall feels thin and muddy. It was a necessary step to shed the pop-metal sheen of the mid-2000s, and it plays more like a rehearsal for the greatness that arrived three years later.

    Manson at his most raw — authentic, and occasionally difficult to get through in one sitting.

    12. The High End of Low (2009)

    marilyn-manson-high-and-low

    Twiggy Ramirez returned, and you can hear that old chemistry immediately.

    It’s expansive, messy and long — glam, acoustic balladry and industrial noise all in one place. “Running to the Edge of the World” is one of his best ballads and a reminder of a vocal range plenty of people forgot he had.

    But fifteen tracks makes it unfocused, as though the band couldn’t decide between garage rock and nihilistic art project. A fascinating look at a creative mind in flux.

    11. Heaven Upside Down (2017)

    marilyn-manson-heaven-upside-down

    The second collaboration with Tyler Bates, attempting to bridge the blues-rock of The Pale Emperor and the industrial fury of Antichrist Superstar.

    There are high-energy bangers here built for the live stage. What’s missing is the cohesive, cinematic atmosphere of its predecessor — it’s a solid, aggressive rock record that occasionally feels like Manson playing the greatest-hits version of himself rather than forging something new.

    Punchy and violent. Short on soul.

    10. Smells Like Children (1995)

    marilyn-manson-smells-like-children

    Technically an EP, but at 54 minutes it’s longer than most albums, and it was the world’s true introduction to Manson mania.

    Driven by the enormous success of the Eurythmics cover “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” it’s a disturbing, sample-heavy trip through the band’s early psyche. Messy, noisy, and genuinely uncomfortable at times — the interludes sound like a fever dream in a haunted asylum.

    A fascinating artefact of a band on the verge of exploding, and proof that creepy could be a lucrative business model.

    9. Portrait of an American Family (1994)

    marilyn-manson-portait-of-an-american-family

    Produced by Trent Reznor. This is where the legend began.

    Essentially a Scooby-Doo-on-acid record — horror-movie samples, distorted basslines, and Manson’s high-pitched youthful shriek. “Get Your Gunn” and “Lunchbox” are raw, punk-infused industrial metal aimed squarely at the hypocrisy of the American family unit.

    The production dates it next to the Triptych, but the hunger and the us-versus-them attitude on this record is what built the cult. The sound of a band with everything to prove and nothing to lose.

    8. The Golden Age of Grotesque (2003)

    marilyn-manson-the-golden-age-of-grotesque

    Manson’s Berlin era.

    Heavily influenced by 1930s cabaret and industrial stomp, it’s his most commercially accessible heavy record. “mOBSCENE” and “This Is the New Shit” were dance-metal floor-fillers that dominated the early 2000s, and it was his last number one album for a long time.

    It lacks the lyrical depth of Holy Wood and makes up for it with high-gloss production and catchy, swing-influenced metal. The ultimate party-at-the-end-of-the-world soundtrack — philosophical dread swapped for neon-lit decadence.

    7. We Are Chaos (2020)

    marilyn-manson-we-are-chaos

    A late-career masterpiece produced by country-rocker Shooter Jennings.

    This showed a melodic, Bowie-esque side of Manson that hadn’t surfaced in decades. The title track and “Don’t Chase the Dead” are masterclasses in songwriting, choosing atmosphere over brute force.

    Lush, psychedelic and deeply emotional — the perfect pandemic record, introspective and beautifully tragic. Proof he could still surprise thirty years in without raising his voice.

    6. One Assassination Under God – Chapter 2 (2026)

    marilyn manson one assassination under god chapter 2

    The newest entry, and the hardest to place on a list with a longevity criterion.

    Released August 14, 2026 via Nuclear Blast, Chapter 2 is the thirteenth Marilyn Manson album and the fourth produced by Tyler Bates, who again shares writing credit throughout.

    It picks up exactly where Chapter 1 left off and then goes darker. Opener “Unalive” sets the tone with a gothic rock intro and a raw, theatrical baritone often dropping to a whisper — heavy, foggy instrumentals underneath. “Don’t Answer the Door” and “Lucifer’s Teardrop” push toward industrial metal and a dancier darkwave feel, while “Front Toward Enemy” is the outright aggressive one, all cold industrial texture and brutal riffing.

    “The Arsonist” contains some of the album’s strongest writing. “None of the Suns” builds a slow, creeping sense of menace against surprisingly catchy melodies. Closer “Extaniomorph” opens on unsettling samples and comes closest to a ballad.

    A detail nobody else is mentioning: “Front Toward Enemy” isn’t new. It originally appeared as the B-side to “Raise the Red Flag” back in 2024, during the Chapter 1 campaign — which tells you these two records were always conceived as one body of work.

    Right now it’s the best-reviewed thing he’s done this century. Ask us again in 2029.

    5. One Assassination Under God – Chapter 1 (2024)

    marilynmansonassassination

    The shocking return to form.

    After several years in the wilderness, Manson came back with a sound blending the bluesy grit of The Pale Emperor and the industrial aggression of his youth. “As Sick As The Secrets Within” and “Raise The Red Flag” are among the best songs he’s written in twenty years.

    It feels like a man with nothing left to lose, and that danger is what makes it vital. A survivor reclaiming his narrative with a snarl and a heavy riff — and, we now know, the first half of a larger statement.

    4. The Pale Emperor (2015)

    Marilyn_manson_the_pale_emperor_vinyl_front

    The blues-metal era.
    Working with film composer Tyler Bates for the first time, Manson ditched the industrial samples for a Mephistopheles-of-Los-Angeles swagger. It was a total reinvention and it saved his career.
    “Deep Six” and the title track introduced a suave, swaggering version of Manson that finally felt age-appropriate. Sexy, dark, groove-heavy, and still his most critically acclaimed modern work.
    Gentleman-villain Manson. It suits him perfectly.

    3. Mechanical Animals (1998)

    marilyn-manson-mechanical-animals

    The space-rock pivot.

    After the darkness of Antichrist, Manson became Omega — a glam-rock alien. A brilliant move that thoroughly confused the Satanic Panic crowd.

    “The Dope Show” and “Coma White” are absolute classics, and the production is flawless: lush, expensive, cold. A record about feeling nothing in a world that wants everything, and one of the best glam-rock albums ever made.

    Proof he was a genuine artist, capable of changing skin to survive.

    2. Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) (2000)

    marilyn-manson-holy-wood

    His response to Columbine and the media’s attempt to crucify him.

    Manson’s most ambitious work — a nineteen-track conceptual epic folding everything he’d ever done into one cohesive statement. “The Fight Song,” “The Nobodies” and “Target Audience” are biting critiques of American gun culture and celebrity worship.

    Dense, angry, musically complex, and his greatest lyrical achievement. An autopsy of a broken society, performed by the man they blamed for breaking it.

    1. Antichrist Superstar (1996)

    marilyn-manson-antichrist-superstar

    There was never any other choice.

    This isn’t an album, it’s a cultural shift. Produced by Trent Reznor in New Orleans during a period of sleep deprivation and chemical madness, Antichrist Superstar is the sound of a world ending. “The Beautiful People” is the definitive industrial metal anthem.

    From “Irresponsible Hate Anthem” to “Man That You Fear,” it’s a perfect, terrifying, brilliant piece of art. The record that made him a god to millions and a devil to everyone else.

    Undisputed king of the discography, thirty years on.

    Check This Out – The Irrevocable Legacy of Marilyn Manson: From Antichrist Superstar to Legal Reckoning

    The full ranking

    14. Eat Me, Drink Me (2007)
    13. Born Villain (2012)
    12. The High End of Low (2009)
    11. Heaven Upside Down (2017)
    10. Smells Like Children (1995) — EP
    9. Portrait of an American Family (1994)
    8. The Golden Age of Grotesque (2003)
    7. We Are Chaos (2020)
    6. One Assassination Under God – Chapter 2 (2026)
    5. One Assassination Under God – Chapter 1 (2024)
    4. The Pale Emperor (2015)
    3. Mechanical Animals (1998)
    2. Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) (2000)
    1. Antichrist Superstar (1996)

    The discography in release order

    Portrait of an American Family — 1994
    Smells Like Children — 1995 (EP)
    Antichrist Superstar — 1996
    Mechanical Animals — 1998
    Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) — 2000
    The Golden Age of Grotesque — 2003
    Eat Me, Drink Me — 2007
    The High End of Low — 2009
    Born Villain — 2012
    The Pale Emperor — 2015
    Heaven Upside Down — 2017
    We Are Chaos — 2020
    One Assassination Under God – Chapter 1 — 2024
    One Assassination Under God – Chapter 2 — 2026

    Where this ranking will start arguments

    The Triptych occupying the top three is the least controversial thing here — the arguments are about the order within it, and Mechanical Animals has a genuine case for the top spot on production alone.

    The real fight is over Chapter 2. Reviewers are rating it above Chapter 1 and, in one case, above everything since 2000. We’ve placed it below Chapter 1 for one reason only: it’s two weeks old, and this list measures durability alongside quality. That’s a defensible position and it’s also a temporary one.

    Portrait at nine will annoy purists who consider it foundational. It is foundational. Foundational and best aren’t the same thing.

    If you want more of this, the full Loaded Radio rankings archive is here, and Korn is the natural companion — another band who reshaped the whole nu metal and industrial landscape of that era.

    Where Manson is right now

    Manson is currently the subject of ongoing civil litigation, having faced allegations from more than a dozen women since 2021, all of which he denies. He has never been criminally charged; the Los Angeles District Attorney declined to file charges in January 2025. A jury trial in a separate civil case is scheduled for November 2027. The fuller picture is here, and Sharon Osbourne publicly defended him this week.

    This page ranks the records. What you do with the rest is your business.

    TL;DR

    • Thirteen studio albums plus one EP, from 1994’s Portrait of an American Family to August 2026’s One Assassination Under God – Chapter 2.
    • Best: Antichrist Superstar (1996) — produced by Trent Reznor, and less an album than a cultural shift.
    • Worst: Eat Me, Drink Me (2007) — the divorce record, personal to the point of losing the scale that defines his best work.
    • The Triptych: Antichrist Superstar, Mechanical Animals and Holy Wood occupy the top three, and always will.
    • The newest: Chapter 2 lands at six. Critics have rated it above Chapter 1 and one called it his strongest since Holy Wood — but it’s two weeks old, and this list weighs longevity.
    • The detail worth knowing: “Front Toward Enemy” on Chapter 2 first appeared as a 2024 B-side, confirming both chapters were always one body of work.

    FAQ

    What is the best Marilyn Manson album?

    Antichrist Superstar, released in 1996. Produced by Trent Reznor in New Orleans, it produced “The Beautiful People” and functions as a complete, terrifying artistic statement from “Irresponsible Hate Anthem” through to “Man That You Fear.” It’s the record that made Manson a generational figure, and thirty years later nothing in the catalogue has displaced it.

    How many albums does Marilyn Manson have?

    Thirteen studio albums: Portrait of an American Family (1994), Antichrist Superstar (1996), Mechanical Animals (1998), Holy Wood (2000), The Golden Age of Grotesque (2003), Eat Me Drink Me (2007), The High End of Low (2009), Born Villain (2012), The Pale Emperor (2015), Heaven Upside Down (2017), We Are Chaos (2020), One Assassination Under God – Chapter 1 (2024) and One Assassination Under God – Chapter 2 (2026). The 1995 release Smells Like Children is an EP rather than a studio album.

    What is Marilyn Manson’s newest album?

    One Assassination Under God – Chapter 2, released August 14, 2026 via Nuclear Blast. It’s his thirteenth studio album and the fourth produced by Tyler Bates, who also shares writing credit. Darker and more gothic-rock leaning than Chapter 1, it has drawn some of the strongest reviews of his career, with one publication calling it his best album since Holy Wood.

    What is the “Triptych”?

    The fan-named trilogy of Antichrist Superstar (1996), Mechanical Animals (1998) and Holy Wood (2000). The three are intended to be listened to in reverse release order — Holy Wood first — to tell a cohesive narrative.

    Is Marilyn Manson touring in 2026?

    Yes. He is co-headlining the Freaks On Parade tour with Rob Zombie, running 21 North American amphitheatre dates from August 20 to September 20, 2026, with The Hu and Orgy supporting. Two Antichrist Superstar 30th anniversary shows at The Wiltern in Los Angeles follow on October 31 and November 1.

    Thirteen albums, thirty years, and a brand new one critics are already ranking near the top. Does Chapter 2 deserve to be higher? Settle it in the comments. And keep it locked on the Loaded Radio streamfollow Loaded Radio for daily rock and metal news.

    The post Marilyn Manson Albums: Complete Discography Ranked appeared first on Loaded Radio.

  • Dazy Announces MAXIMUMBLASTSUPERLOUD Vol. 2 Comp With Seven New Songs: Hear “Beat Change”

    Richmond rock ‘n’ roller James Goodson is a music publicist and, full disclosure, an occasional show buddy of mine. He’s also the one-man banger factory behind Dazy, a project that has cranked out many, many excellent songs since Goodson started anonymously dropping Bandcamp tracks during the 2020 COVID summer. Back in 2021, a year before he became a Stereogum Artist To Watch, Goodson released MAXIMUMBLASTSUPERLOUD: The First 24 Songs, his compilation of Dazy’s first year. Today, he announces plans to follow it with MAXIMUMBLASTSUPERLOUD Vol. 2: 24 Songs From 2023-2026, another comp that features a bunch of tracks that we haven’t heard yet.

    The post Dazy Announces <em>MAXIMUMBLASTSUPERLOUD Vol. 2</em> Comp With Seven New Songs: Hear “Beat Change” appeared first on Stereogum.