Another taste of that new album we know is on the way, this one takes things in a more vicious direction, featuring some fantastically ferocious vocals from frontwoman Chrissy Costanza. Overflowing with emotion and blisteringly powerful, it’s another sign that their next era is going to be something very special.
Speaking about the track, the band have shared:
““Dead Man Walking” is about how the cost of survival was the person you used to be. It explores the return home from war only to find that, although everything looks the same, you yourself are so deeply different that you no longer fit. There’s a stranger staring back at you in the mirror, the ghost of someone you once were. Everyone thinks you’re fine because you made it out alive, but they don’t realise you never really did.”
Against The Current will return to the UK and Europe for a run of headline shows this Autumn.
Take a look at the full list of dates below.
OCTOBER
30 – GLASGOW SWG3 (TV Studio) 31 – LEEDS Leeds Beckett Students Union
NOVEMBER
01 – MANCHESTER Academy 03 – BIRMINGHAM O2 Institute 04 – LONDON O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire 06 – PARIS Le Trianon 07 – SAARBRÜCKEN Garage 08 – BRUSSELS Ancienne Belgique 11 – KÖLN E-Werk 12 – UTRECHT TivoliVredenburg 13 – HAMBURG Grosse Freiheit 36 14 – BERLIN Metropol 16 – VIENNA Simm City 17 – MUNICH Muffathalle 19 – ZURICH Komplex 457 20 – STUTTGART LKA Longhorn 21 – WIESBADEN Schlachthof
The band are also back on the cover of Rock Sound, celebrating their past, present and future in a brand-new interview.
Get your magazine alongside a world exclusive t-shirt design, only at SHOP.ROCKSOUND.TV
You can also pick up a special ‘Chrissy’ cover variant, with deluxe A4 poster print, at SHOP.ROCKSOUND.TV
If you, like many of us here at Last Rites, are an ancient, or at least ancient-adjacent, then perhaps you’ve been listening to death metal for quite some time. For my part, I happen to be falling apart enough to have been there since its inception, which equates to four decades of having my head bashed in by metal’s most brutal off-shoot. I have indeed ingested some rather questionable and / or damaging fare in that span, and at this point my only hope for being startled by a release in the same way I was for, say, the Deicide debut or the way Symphonies of Sickness dragged grind into the game is for a modern record to very literally spew lethal refuse into my face the moment the music escapes from the speakers.
Release date: May 29, 2026. Label: Pulverised Records.
Yes, I realize ‘physical impairment’ isn’t necessarily the end-goal of every death metal record, but I’m just trying to find a practical way to illustrate why some death metal bands in the modern age that receive wide acclaim elsewhere might not get the same—if any—applause in the tumbledown halls of Last Rites. The answer is pretty straightforward: The LR collective has been cramming this shit into our ears for long enough that a Xerox of a photocopy of a facsimile of Left Hand Path or Cause of Death probably won’t titillate the dangus the same way it did decades ago. That is not, in fact, intended to be some sort of lame flex, it is simply the fallout of overexposure.
Does that mean the death metal needle only moves around these parts when the death metal itself is so buried in the underground that it literally needs to crawl from a toilet to catch our attention? Not necessarily. Check out our collective No. 1 album from 2025, Unbirth’s excellent Asomatous Besmirchment. Sure, it’s not exactly as… basic as, say, Frozen Soul, but it’s also not exactly Sulfuric Cautery’s Killing Spree, which also made our list.
Bottom line: At this point on the timeline, there are as many death metal bands swimming in the public pool as there are bacteria, so if you’re stepping up to the plate playing “good old fashioned death metal,” it better cross all the i’s and dot all the t’s if you hope to catch the attention of those who’ve been toiling in the death metal mines for decades.
Have you yet had the pleasure of New Jersey flatteners Funebrarum? Being “active” over the course of the last three decades and releasing only two full-lengths leading up to Beckoning the Void of Eternal Silence isn’t exactly the most ideal route to renown, but what Funebrarum lacks in quantity is outweighed by quality, so we’re still very much operating in the black. And if you’ve still managed to avoid dipping thy blessed piggies into the pool, know that, as much as I triple heart their punishing debut Beneath the Columns of Abandoned Gods, I think at this point I’d recommend working backwards from Beckoning because this record marks a terrific place to start for anyone interested in what it might feel like to be brought to your end at the behest of straight-up DEATH METAL that both hits like a sloooowly rumbling tank AND transforms into a Mecha that uses a fusion-powered hammer to pound your pulp until full evaporation.
Caveat numero uno: You gotta love it slow, baby.
Slow, yes, but not exactly funereal slow—the kind of slow that makes you think of giants on a crucial trek, not sap running down a 300 year-old oak. And those sluggish stretches are often spiced with atmospheric keys and / or a penchant for crushing with the sort of serious weight that might leave you wondering if the planet’s just been tea-bagged by Galactus. Point of fact: As much as I’d agree that Funebrarum is a band largely rooted in a… less swift form of death metal, calling them death / doom isn’t terribly accurate because, despite a foundation clearly built on rotted death metal, there’s also a ferocity built into each song that conjures a parallel dimension where the early interpretation of Carcass might’ve ended up on Peaceville rather than Earache. That is to say, there’s a distinct doomed grind element here whenever the record decides to hustle, and it hustles nearly as often as it slogs.
“Anhela Odor Mortuorum (The Adepts)”: A rotted death metal grinding wheel that catches you in its cogs and pulverizes your bones into a grouting paste—hey, that’s just the sort of reduce, reuse, recycling we need in our world today. That crumbling decay that chews the corners here (and up and down the entirety of the record) is certainly magnified by sole founding member / chief architect Daryl Kahan’s approach to some of the most decrepit, rumblingest vocals you’ll hear from a living creature that’s not an irascible grizzly bear with a festering thorn in its paw. And what’s this we hear? Why, it’s extreme metal’s busiest gadabout Phil Tougas, the newest recruit to the ever-shifting gaggle packed in behind Kahan. Tougas is actually… a little restrained on this record? Is that even possible? Did Kahan chain one of Phil’s arms to a radiator? Whatever happened, Tougas gives the whole of Beckoning the Void of Eternal Silence a perfect little pinch of noodling melody, but it’s never used to a degree that might make trick the listener into believing this is anything but a vehicle bent on flattening with relentless brutality.
If you need another taste of what’s in store, cram “From Rotting Burial Shrouds” into your worried ears, a song that emphasizes the more hostile face of the band for the bulk of its run, but still manages to sliiiide into that absolutely crushing groove that guides the overall vibe of Beckoning’s 50-ish minutes. That’s not Tougas on the pretty little splash of melody this time around, but rather GOREMENT legend Patrik Fernlund. Squeeee! Squeeeee, I say!
Caveat numero two-o: Don’t come to this party looking for innovation.
Does that come across as a slight? If so, it’s fully unintentional. Again, this is all caps DEATH METAL that doesn’t bother with infusing Tubular Bells, “Us and Them” or some farkakte Dream Theater potpourri into the mix. Instead, heed the following directions: Pound, grind, rumble, grumble, repeat as necessary, just as Funebrarum has done basically since day one. In the hands of a lesser band, that might result in something far less convincing, but here the outcome is an absolute triumph. GET SQUASHED.
The restless creative drive that shaped Damon Albarn into one of modern music’s most adventurous figures first took shape in England during the late 1980s. Born on March 23, 1968, in Whitechapel, London, Albarn spent much of his youth in Colchester, Essex, where he developed an early fascination with music, theater, and visual art. He studied at the East 15 Acting School before attending Goldsmiths College in London, where he met guitarist Graham Coxon. That partnership eventually led to the formation of Blur alongside bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Originally performing under the name Seymour, the band adopted
16th May 2026 Words: Matthew Williams
Photos: Jessi Lotti
Day two of Desertfest began with a few weary heads stood outside The Underworld waiting patiently for the doors to open, but full of excitement for the day ahead. First up were London trio Instar Sling who I’d only seen clips of via YouTube, but I was suitably impressed. There’s lots of feedback as they stand still, poised to make their crushing assault on our unsuspecting senses. And wow, what a racket they make. The cascading crushing drum sound signals for the bass to rip your head off as their slow, menacing doom works superbly with the low growling vocals. There’s no variant from this relentless wall of noise throughout their set, and there are ripples of warm and appreciative applause from the people gathered inside and they’ve set the tone for the day.
One of the bands who had some hype around them today were Molten Slag. The Black Heart was packed in just for their soundcheck and led by Laura Norman, they kick off their set with the excellent “Sickening Crunch”. The drums are high in the mix, with a booming bass and the soothing, echoed voice carries into “Bloodspear”. “We’ve come from Southeast London today and this is our first single from our debut album, it’s called Hot Metal” and the slow intro increases in tempo and volume, as they raise the energy in the room.
There’s a flowing rhythm and great guitar solo during “Bitchfight” and with a Persian sounding intro they ease into “Queen of the Heap” as the vocal slips a bit during the song, but with axe in hand, “Snake Slicer” sees a return to normality as the crowd get moving along to more excellent bass lines. They finish triumphantly with “Whisper my Name” as they push their limits further, with a twiddly guitar solo for the crowd to enjoy and the packed venue leaves fulfilled.
Photo Credit: Jessi Lotti
Plenty of people stayed in the room, as they waited for another London band to make their way to the stage. It must be odd doing a soundcheck in front of an expectant crowd, but that’s exactly what happened for Okay You Win. There’s a big drum intro, nice riffs and clean vocals from Dave Kirk as they start with “Smoke” and “Red Flag” from their upcoming album. They have raucous high intense moments as the singer is expressive and animated, and the riffs they play have got the crowd gripped as the slow and low “Ten Year Trip” rips through us.
Kirk epitomises was it means for these type of bands to play festivals like this, and they can’t quite believe how packed it is for them at 4.20pm on a Saturday afternoon. Armed with a repertoire of superb songs like “The Greatest Lie” and “This Damned Place”, it’s no wonder they have the place rocking, as the singer proudly gives a shout out to the marvellous Psychlona, whose t-shirt he is wearing. Before more crushing riffs are delivered, a beaming Kirk says “it’s been a privilege to be here” as they launch into “End of Days” which gets a crowd clap along as they end with the excellent “Beat Me Down” which has the venue bouncing from side to side.
Another of the “must-see” bands of the weekend for me was heavy, droning post rockers Ian, whose 2025 released album was in my top five of the year. Unfortunately for me, most of Desertfest seemed to agree with me, as The Dev was rammed for their performance. With viewing space at a premium, I was solely reliant on listening rather than watching them and in a way that’s more than enough as they begin with “Building Pyramids”. Their compositions are so impressive that the music flows effortlessly from moody and menacing to full on melancholy. With slow processions, huge noises erupt, juxtaposed with softer, calming tones, the cello is hauntingly beautiful and fits seamlessly into this setting.
“Manuel” sees the lighting altering the mood and textures, as they bring elements of calmness with their serene music but like a budding flower, they burst into life at a moment’s notice and create such drama with their expressive arrangements. More elegance emerges with “Selma” ahead of them reminding us all about respecting everyone and fuck fascists before unleashing yet more powerful and potent music, which concludes with “Fennel” as the crowd stand mesmerised and fully immersed in one of the performances of the weekend.
After this, I needed something different and Birmingham based duo Khost, certainly bring something different. Armed with one guitarist and one bassist, they start the intro with a live bugle before bludgeoning everyone inside The Underworld. “Incinerator” is a huge, crushing industrial wall of noise with the 5-string bass feeling like the Pied Piper, leading all inside towards impending doom. It is phenomenal what these two create, with a range of impressive sounds being summoned from the pedal boards.
The slide guitar intro for the mighty “Coven” fills the venue with an eeriness, as sadistic nightmarish laughing builds up their intensity levels further. The bass is rattling and with smoother vocals it’s like a haunting softness that breaks the ear-splitting music. Their pure destructive force comes out further during “14 Daggers” as a hooded Andy Swan delivers more outstanding industrial noise. They up the spookiness with “Many Things Afflict Us, Few Things Console Us” with a pounding drum effect coming through before they end.
Another “must-see” band was Abrams, over in the UK for the first time, but sadly I couldn’t get into the Black Heart as the queue was down the stairs, so I hope that they had a great time playing to a packed crowd. With that, I headed up to The Roundhouse to catch a bit of “with a combined weight of 834lbs, the reigning, undefeated heavyweight champions of the world, Pigs, Pigs, Pigs, Pigs, Pigs, Pigs, Pigs”. In frontman Matt Baty, they have an energetic and enigmatic singer who works the crowd well, as they churn out “The Wyrm” and “Ultimate Hammer”.
They have a great mix of progressive, stoner sounds combined with elements of psychedelia, and lots of crowd surfers emerge during “Carousel” and “Stitches”. We get told about them playing Desertfest 14 years ago, and watching Sleep from the balcony, hoping one day to play that very stage, and here they are. After thanking headliners Green Lung for inviting them to play, they end with more monstrous songs, “Blockage” and “Toecurler” to wrap up their performance.
Photo Credit: Jessi Lotti
Some fifteen months after witnessing one of their biggest headline shows to date at Manchester’s O2 Ritz, Green Lung returned to the stage for their largest festival show. Saturday night at Desertfest, some 10 years after a few of them walked out of the venue and decided to form a band, is a massive leap for the group. After being locked away for several months recording new music, they released their latest single in the week leading up to the show, whetting the appetite for their return.
With the expectant crowd waiting, singer Tom Templar stands on the barricade and begins “The Harrowing”, as the audience gets their first glimpse of the band. With a gigantic Dorset Ooser taking centre stage “Old Gods” is greeted with rapturous enthusiasm from all within the packed Roundhouse, as Templar introduces the band in his usual manner with lots of words including “old English, mushroom eating heavy fucking metal” as they pick up the pace with new track “Evil in the House”. The bass sound from Joseph Ghast is high up in the mix, and it signals a new direction for their music, leaving the masses wanting more.
Frontman Templer is clearly revelling in his rock star persona, as he prowls every inch of the stage and platform to get a full perspective of just how rammed the place is for them. “Templar Dawn” and “Call of the Coven” add mystique and groove to proceedings before he dedicates the marvellous “Maxine “Witch Queen” to “all the witches out there” as the band go up several levels’ performance wise.
Photo Credit: Jessi Lotti
It’s almost as if the band were made for this moment, they seem polished after so long away, yet you know you are witnessing a band who are destined for arenas and bigger headline festival slots. They are armed with hit after hit, “Hunter in the Sky” was incredible, but never forget what they are all about, so it was great to hear “Song of the Stones” once again. They have that wonderous mystique, mixed with electrifying power as “Graveyard Sun” and “The Forest Church” clearly highlight.
With Templar stood high up in between the keyboards and drums, the emotional sense resonating across the room is palpable as they return to the “Woodland Rites” album and play “The Ritual Tree” with a stunning keyboard sound. “We haven’t played this next song live since 2019” as the bass heavy of “Into The Wild” echoes around the pillars but the rock energy returns during the monstrous “Mountain Throne” with the security working overtime as crowd surfers reign down on them.
The evil, eeriness of their music comes to life as “One for Sorrow” rings out, with that mid-section riff beautifully done before we are introduced to original bass player Andrew Cave, returning to join them for the grand finale of “Let The Devil In”, as Ghast plays sax. With their own Manotour style mascot returning to the stage for one final appearance, Green Lung are back and with their new album due in September, full European tour scheduled for December, the world is their oyster and now is the time for them to take the next steps to fully fledged rock gods.
Gary Numan: A People’s History is set for release on 29 September 2026, offering an authorised fan history of one of the true pioneers of electronic pop. Fully authorised by Gary Numan himself, the book features more than 500 eyewitness accounts from fans, friends and colleagues, alongside over 250 photographs and images documenting his remarkable career.
Best known for the groundbreaking hits Are ‘Friends’ Electric? with Tubeway Army [Check out the heavy AllSaints Basement Sessions version below] and the chart-topping single Cars, Gary Numan helped bring synthesiser-driven music into the mainstream. His influence continues to stretch across generations of artists, with musicians including Jack White, Foo Fighters, Nine Inch Nails, Queens Of The Stone Age and Afrika Bambaataa all citing him as an inspiration.
Gary Numan: A People’s History is set for release on 29 September 2026
Written by music journalist Richard Bowes, the book explores Numan’s 45-year career from its earliest beginnings through to the present day. The release also includes an introduction by Gary Numan and a foreword from Andy McCluskey of Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark.
Gary Numan: A People’s History will be available in both softback and hardback editions through Spenwood Books. The fully illustrated 496-page release celebrates the enduring legacy of one of the most influential figures in Electronic and Heavy music culture.
Bruce Dickinson has released a brand-new award-winning video for Tears Of The Dragon, filmed in São Paulo, Brazil, following his appearance at The Town Festival in September 2025. The reimagined version of the classic track appears on More Balls To Picasso, the updated edition of Dickinson’s 1994 solo release.
The cinematic video was directed by Leo Liberti and Antoine de Montremy inside a disused brewery in São Paulo, transforming the historic building into the backdrop for an emotionally charged performance.
Joining Bruce Dickinson and his House Band Of Hell for the performance was the Almai Orchestra, conducted by Antonio Teoli, who also worked on the orchestral studio re-recording of the song. Brazilian ballet dancer Renata Bardazi also features in the video, adding a dramatic visual interpretation to the atmospheric ballad.
Bruce Dickinson said: “When we reimagined the whole More Balls To Picasso album we always wanted to do an orchestral version of Tears Of The Dragon. Antonio Teoli scored it and we recorded it, then we called up the film-maker Leo Liberti who previously shot a load of live stuff for me in Brazil that was fabulous.”
The video has already received international recognition, winning Best Music Video awards at festivals including the Los Angeles Film Awards, New York International Film Awards and Eastern Europe Film Festival, alongside additional nominations across Europe, Asia and North America.
Ahead of their appearances at Slam Dunk Festival this weekend, The Home Team have revealed that they will be returning to the UK for some headline shows later in the year.
Set to bring the party to Hatfield and Leeds over the bank holiday weekend, the Seattle quartet will be back at it in November.
They’ll also be bringing the incredible Arrows In Action and True North along for the ride.
That means a bit of this.
Before a bit of this.
Rounded off with loads of this.
Speaking of the tour, frontman Brian Butcher has said:
“I’m so glad we’re able to bring The Crucible of Life tour to our fans in the UK. We put so much into this show and the people of Britain deserve to see it before we turn the page to the next chapter of THT. To be coming back to headline some of the venues that we’ve previously supported at feels amazing!!”
Take a look at the dates below.
NOVEMBER
03: MANCHESTER Academy 2 04: GLASGOW Garage 06: BIRMINGHAM O2 Institute 07: CARDIFF Y Plas 08: LONDON O2 Forum Kentish Town
Tickets will be on sale from 10am on Tuesday May 26. Get them here.
The SatchVai Surfing With The Hydra tour hit Toronto, ON, on Wednesday, May 13, for a night of exciting guitar virtuosity. Both Steve Vai and Joe Satriani are known for their precision and dynamic playing style on the fretboard, and fans were incredibly excited for what the duo would be bringing to the stage.
From the humour delivered in an entertaining intro video featuring Satriani and Vai sitting in a boardroom being told their tour needs more dancing, to the tasty licks that echoed throughout the venue, the SatchVai band know how to deliver an utterly entertaining show that will have you up on your feet wanting more.
SatchVai – Meridian Hall, Toronto – 13 May 2026. Photo: Taylor Cameron/MetalTalk
Kicking things off with a few SatchVai tracks, the duo harmonised with ease, each note complementing the other perfectly. Both guitarists are easily holding their own, both being legends in their own right.
Seeing them onstage together is otherworldly, and their musical chemistry is like no other.
The set then continued by alternating between the solo work of each musician, showcasing the talent and legacy of both players, one not overshadowing the other.
SatchVai – Meridian Hall, Toronto – 13 May 2026. Photo: Taylor Cameron/MetalTalk
Playing an array of tracks from each of their extensive discographies, fan favourites and a few deep cuts graced the setlist. From Vai’s Zeus In Chains and Little Pretty, to Satriani’s Surfing With The Alien and Sahara, the crowd was in complete awe the entire time, each song receiving an extensive round of applause and cheers.
SatchVai – Meridian Hall, Toronto – 13 May 2026. Photo: Taylor Cameron/MetalTalk
Although not a solo show, Vai could not leave his iconic Hydra Guitar at home. The guitar has three necks, harp strings and a staggering array of pickups and synth controls.
Teeth Of The Hydra is an incredibly impressive piece of music, and it is impossible to look away as Vai plays the monstrous guitar with ease. It is something almost beyond belief to watch. This is always a highlight of any solo Vai and SatchVai show.
SatchVai – Meridian Hall, Toronto – 13 May 2026. Photo: Taylor Cameron/MetalTalk
The set closed out with arguably the musicians’ most iconic tracks in their discography. Vai’s For The Love Of God and Satriani’s Always With Me, Always With You. Two powerful ballads that display immense emotion that oozed off the stage with each note and bend played by the virtuosos.
Masters of their craft, the talent brought to the stage was like no other. The crowd cheered for more as they left the stage, not ready for the night to end.
SatchVai – Meridian Hall, Toronto – 13 May 2026. Photo: Taylor Cameron/MetalTalk
Emerging from the darkness, Vai and Satriani stepped back onto the stage for an encore. Crowd Chant had everyone up on their feet, clapping their hands and singing along to the harmonies. There was no lack of crowd participation.
To finish off the night, the duo played a cover of Mars Bonfire’s Born To Be Wild. Bassist Marco Mendoza handled lead vocals with plenty of help from the audience, everyone in the room visibly enjoying the SatchVai band’s rendition of the classic rock ‘n’ roll track.
SatchVai – Meridian Hall, Toronto – 13 May 2026. Photo: Taylor Cameron/MetalTalk
The Surfing With The Hydra tour is a night that will surprise you in the best ways, delivering even more than what you would expect. It is definitely a tour worth seeing if it comes to your area. You will not be disappointed.
