A packed night at the Barrowland, but surprisingly there was no queue outside when I arrived just early enough to catch the start of The Bar Stool Preachers. The only home-grown band on the bill (almost – they’re from London), their infectious brand of ska, two-tone, and pop-punk made them about the best opening band … Continue reading Gig Review: Less Than Jake / The Bouncing Souls / The Aquabats! / The Bar Stool Preachers – Barrowlands, Glasgow (7th March 2026)

Veteran thrashers Sacred Reich have announced ‘No Truth, No Justice’ summer tour across Europe, with special guests Angelus Apatrida, Sarcator, Aquilla and Velozza on select dates.
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One year after the release of The Screaming Of The Valkyries LP, Cradle Of Filth frontman Dani Filth confirmed in a recent interview with Australia’s ‘Heavy’ that the band has almost finished writing new material for their next outing and will enter the studio in 3 weeks time.
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What Is Alissa White-Gluz’s New Band Blue Medusa?

Blue Medusa is the newly announced band from former Arch Enemy vocalist Alissa White-Gluz, featuring guitarists Alyssa Day and Dani Sophia, with Alicia Vigil and Delaney Jaster joining the lineup for live performances.

TL;DR:

After an 11-year run fronting Arch Enemy, Alissa White-Gluz has revealed her next chapter: a new band called Blue Medusa. Announced on International Women’s Day, the project brings together guitarists Alyssa Day and Dani Sophia, with Alicia Vigil and Delaney Jaster set to join the band live. White-Gluz says the band represents the next evolution of her creative vision, promising crushing riffs, blazing solos, brutal vocals and deeply introspective lyrics. Blue Medusa is already scheduled to make its first festival appearances at Louder Than Life and Aftershock.

Alissa White-Gluz Unveils Blue Medusa On International Women’s Day

Alissa White-Gluz has officially launched a new band called Blue Medusa, marking the next chapter in her career following her departure from Arch Enemy.

The announcement came via Instagram on International Women’s Day, a deliberate choice that White-Gluz said reflects her long-standing commitment to supporting women in heavy music.

“The year of the snake is finally over — now it’s time to shed the skin,” she wrote.

After more than two decades performing on major stages around the world, White-Gluz says Blue Medusa represents a fresh creative beginning.

“Blue Medusa is the next evolution of everything I’ve been building toward — a project where my full artistic vision can exist without limits.”

According to White-Gluz, the band’s music will combine:

• blazing guitar solos
• crushing riffs
• brutal vocals
• fast and aggressive drumming
• melodic and thoughtful songwriting
• deeply layered lyrical themes

Her message about the band’s concept also carried a symbolic twist.

“Medusa turned people to stone… I want to pave the road in sapphire.”

Browse upcoming heavy metal concerts and ticket availability here

The Musicians Joining Alissa In Blue Medusa

Blue Medusa features a lineup of musicians from across the modern metal scene.

The band’s core recording lineup includes:

Alyssa Day — guitar (Mindscar, Absentia)
Dani Sophia — guitar (formerly of Till Lindemann)

For live performances, the band will also feature:

Alicia Vigil — bass (DragonForce, Vigil Of War)
Delaney Jaster — drums (Stitched Up Heart)

White-Gluz praised the chemistry developing between the musicians, noting that the guitar partnership between Day and Sophia has already helped shape the band’s heavy sound.

She recently explained that the two guitarists bring different playing styles that complement each other, helping create music that is both aggressive and melodic.

Fans won’t have to wait long to hear the results, as White-Gluz confirmed that new music from Blue Medusa is coming soon.

Loaded Radio Recommends – Arch Enemy Albums Ranked: Loaded Radio’s Definitive Ranking of All 13 Studio LPs

Blue Medusa Already Booked For Major Festivals

Even before releasing music, Blue Medusa is already scheduled for major festival appearances.

The band’s first confirmed shows include two of the biggest rock festivals in North America:

• Louder Than Life
• Aftershock Festival

For a newly formed band, landing those festival slots signals the level of anticipation surrounding White-Gluz’s next move after Arch Enemy.

Why Leaving Arch Enemy Was A Difficult Decision

White-Gluz spent 11 years fronting Arch Enemy, stepping into the role in 2014 following Angela Gossow.

During her time with the band, Arch Enemy released four albums featuring White-Gluz on vocals:

• War Eternal (2014)
• Will To Power (2017)
• Deceivers (2022)
• Blood Dynasty (2025)

Announcing her departure last November was not easy.

“It was definitely difficult,” White-Gluz said in a recent interview with Germany’s Metal Hammer. “When you spend that many years with something, it becomes a huge part of your life and identity.”

Despite the emotional weight of the decision, she said the overwhelmingly supportive response from fans and fellow musicians helped reinforce her excitement about the future.

“There was so much love and encouragement. It really motivated me and made me feel confident about stepping into this next chapter.”

Alissa’s Long-Awaited Solo Album Is Also On The Way

Alongside the launch of Blue Medusa, White-Gluz is also preparing to release her long-anticipated debut solo album.

The first single, “The Room Where She Died,” was written alongside Kamelot keyboardist Oliver Palotai.

White-Gluz handled all the vocal performances and also co-wrote the script for the track’s music video, which was produced by Serbian visual team iCODE Team.

The song and video mark another step in White-Gluz’s expanding creative output.

She explained that she never wanted to rush her solo album, despite signing with Napalm Records for the project as far back as 2016.

“The intention was always there,” she said, “but I never wanted to force it into the wrong moment. Now everything feels aligned creatively.”

Music Videos And Visual Storytelling Remain Important

White-Gluz also remains passionate about the visual side of music.

Growing up watching music channels like MTV and MusiquePlus in Quebec, she developed a deep appreciation for storytelling through music videos.

That approach continues to shape her work today.

Rather than treating music videos as simple promotional tools, White-Gluz sees them as an extension of the song itself — visual storytelling designed to amplify the emotional meaning of the music.

Why Collaboration Is Driving Her New Music

While vocals remain her primary instrument, White-Gluz has also been exploring songwriting through guitar and piano.

Learning guitar, she said, has been a humbling experience — but it has helped her create song foundations that she can develop with other musicians.

That collaborative spirit is shaping both Blue Medusa and her solo work.

White-Gluz has spent recent months writing with friends and other artists across the metal scene, experimenting with new ideas and sounds.

For her, the goal moving forward is simple.

“Make good music with good people — and enjoy it.”

Check This Out – 13 Perfect Metal Albums With Zero Skips

 

 

 

 

 

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FAQ

What Is Blue Medusa?

Blue Medusa is the new band formed by former Arch Enemy vocalist Alissa White-Gluz.

Who Are The Members Of Blue Medusa?

The band features Alyssa Day and Dani Sophia on guitars, with Alicia Vigil and Delaney Jaster joining the live lineup.

Why Did Alissa White-Gluz Leave Arch Enemy?

White-Gluz said leaving Arch Enemy was a difficult decision after 11 years but that she wanted to explore new creative directions.

When Will Blue Medusa Release Music?

White-Gluz confirmed that new music from Blue Medusa will be released soon.

Alissa White-Gluz Bio

Alissa White-Gluz is a Canadian metal vocalist known for her powerful harsh and clean vocal performances. She first gained international recognition with the melodic death metal band The Agonist, before joining Swedish extreme metal giants Arch Enemy in 2014. Across four studio albums with the band, White-Gluz helped expand Arch Enemy’s global success and touring presence.

Beyond music, she has been an outspoken advocate for environmental conservation, veganism and animal rights. With the launch of Blue Medusa, White-Gluz begins a new chapter in her career focused on creative independence and collaboration.

The post Alissa White-Gluz Unleashes New Band Blue Medusa After Leaving Arch Enemy appeared first on Loaded Radio.

When the world felt very unstable in 2001, Jimmy Eat World delivered the feel good hit of the autumn

Band:	Außerwelt
Release:	Breath
Genre:	Post-Metal
Country:	Germany (Münster)
Release Date:	02.10.2025
Released via:	Moment of Collapse Records
Mix and Master:	Dennis Koehne
Produced by:	Dennis Koehne, Kris Lucas
Recording:	Kris Lucas, Manuel Klein, Meredith Schmiedeskamp
Illustrations:	Carmen Alba
Layout:	Dana Wolter

Some albums are released and you instantly know you should be giving them your full attention. And yet, weeks – sometimes months – pass. Breath, the debut full-length by AUßERWELT, is exactly that kind of record for me. Released in autumn 2025 via Moment of Collapse Records, it has long since begun to make its mark – and I admittedly failed to give it the timely attention it so clearly deserved. All the more reason why this review is not a belated filler, but a necessary acknowledgement of an album that stands out as one of the most compelling genre statements in recent memory.

With Breath, the Münster-based quartet deliver their first full-length after more than a decade of shared evolution. Across 63 minutes, the band offer more than a mere statement of intent – they demonstrate that Post-Metal can still surprise when treated not as a rigid template, but as an open and evolving framework.

Post-Metal without the template

The stylistic markers are familiar enough: the music draws on multiple strands of extreme and experimental heavy music, blending the restless tension of Black Metal, the crushing density of Death Metal, the direct emotional punch of Post-Hardcore and a clear affinity for progressive song structures. Yet AUßERWELT avoid the genre’s most predictable habits. The common loud–soft–loud dynamic – so often reduced to formula – rarely feels mechanical here. The shifts on Breath unfold less like calculated crescendos and more like internal necessity.

Tracks such as “Breath” and “While The Ruins Still Linger” highlight the band’s ability to move between controlled dissonance and expansive release without sounding schematic. Riffs evolve instead of merely repeating. The rhythm section does more than provide foundation, it subtly redirects momentum. The result is a sense of organic motion that sets the album apart from many of its peers.

Space as a compositional tool

What truly distinguishes Breath is its relationship to space. Where many bands in the Post-Metal sphere pile on layers to achieve monumentality, AUßERWELT understand restraint. Even in the densest passages, there is air in the mix – room for details to surface. The DIY recording process, carried out in the band’s own studio, does not feel limiting, it feels intentional.

The mix grants the album both heft and clarity. Harsh vocals cut sharply through the instrumentation, while clean singing and piano passages function as emotional anchors rather than decorative contrasts. The ambient interludes, “Finite/Solitaire” and “Eyes To The Sea”, are not mere breathers between assaults but structural pivots, subtly reframing what surrounds them.

Fittingly, Breath has also been released in two colored vinyl pressings (orange and clear) – a format that suits the album’s patient pacing and immersive flow particularly well.

Darkness without posturing

Lyrically and thematically, Breath navigates tension between exhaustion and resilience. The motif of breathing operates less as rigid concept and more as structural principle: compression, release, recovery. Unlike much of the genre’s more self-indulgent bleakness, AUßERWELT do not fetishize despair. There is darkness here, certainly – but not nihilistic theatrics.

This underlying sense of reflection – even quiet defiance – gives the record a distinct character. It feels engaged rather than escapist, emotionally exposed without sacrificing intensity. The human element never disappears beneath the distortion.

Minor flaws, lasting impact

The album is not without minor weaknesses. In its middle stretch, the pacing occasionally threatens to plateau, and a few transitions could have been carved with sharper edges. Yet even these moments feel less like missteps and more like measured pauses within a larger arc.

Ultimately, Breath stands as an impressively cohesive record – not flawless, but fully convinced of its own vision. It does not beg for attention, it earns it.

Perhaps the delay in addressing this album was not entirely misplaced. Some records benefit from time – from distance. For me, Breath is one of them.

Good Day Noir Family,
Feminaija’s “A Song of Peace” opens with a graceful string motif that sets a pastoral tone. The arrangement feels spacious and organic, as if the music is breathing alongside the listener.

A song of Peace is Feminaija’s Single Out Now

 The artist’s voice enters softly, carrying words that reach beyond melody and speak directly to the conscience.

The message centers on peace in a world that often appears restless and fractured, and that intention shapes every moment of the track.

The vocal delivery remains gentle yet assured. Feminaija sings with clarity and warmth, allowing the lyrics to resonate naturally. The phrasing reflects emotional awareness rather than theatrical excess. This restraint strengthens the song’s impact. In addition, the melodic line flows smoothly, guiding the listener through a narrative built on hope and reflection.

The composition blends subtle ethnic influences with a refined pop sensibility. Traditional textures emerge in the instrumentation, yet they never overshadow the contemporary structure. Instead, they enrich it. The harmonic progression feels thoughtful, supporting the theme without unnecessary complexity. The song maintains accessibility while preserving artistic depth.

The orchestration deserves attention. The strings continue to frame the atmosphere throughout, adding layers of warmth and sincerity. The rhythm remains understated, ensuring that the focus stays on the message. This balance between arrangement and meaning highlights Feminaija’s compositional maturity.

The imagery evoked by the track is striking. You can almost picture open landscapes, green hills, and distant horizons that promise renewal. The song does not drift into fantasy. It grounds its optimism in realism, acknowledging turmoil while offering a constructive alternative. That contrast gives “A Song of Peace” its emotional credibility.

Feminaija delivers a refined and heartfelt single that calls for unity and compassion. The blend of pastoral elegance and modern pop elements creates a timeless quality. It’s a thoughtful and inspiring release that I genuinely recommend.

A song of Peace is Feminaija‘s Single Out Now!

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A song of Peace is Feminaija’s Single Out Now

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The post A song of Peace is Feminaija’s Single Out Now appeared first on Edgar Allan Poets – Noir Rock Band.

Apolaustic, a melodic black/death metal unit from Switzerland, are streaming several new tunes from their oncoming debut album No Plenitude Without Suffering. The latter hits the streets April 3rd via Transcending Obscurity Records.
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Australian one-man atmospheric/ambient black metal act Forlorn Citadel will release a new studio record, An Oath Undone, through Northern Silence Productions on April 3rd. To taste a first piece of the new music output, check out the opening track “Ironclad”.
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With the release of a lyric video for the new song called “Baptized In Blood”, Lion’s Share offer another insight of their upcoming album Inferno, set to land in stores on March 27 via Metalville.
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