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Italians Into Darkness are plased to announced the arrival of their debut full-length instalment, Route To The Other Side, on July the 24th 2026 via Dying Victims Productions. Alongside unveiled details, check out also the first single “Jupiter”.
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“Verdronken Vlinder”, the newest preview tune from Iskandr‘s forthcoming long player Sacraal, to be released on June 26th via Eisenwald, has surfaced online. Check it out.
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Finnish hard rock super group Raskasta Joulua, featuring many well-known rock/metal musicians, has announced a 2-week long tour across Finland. All shows are booked in November and December.
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From Kyuss to Hermano, Slo Burn and Unida, John Garcia helped define a genre. Just don’t call him a stoner metal legend.

One year after the release of Isvind album, atmospheric black metal operatives Svart Vinter are now back in studio and working on the successor. More info in due time.
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Static Dress have announced a handful of intimate UK shows in support of forthcoming album ‘injury episode’.

The latest in their long-running ‘Panic Room’ series of performances, the shows will take place in Glasgow, Liverpool and London.

With all three shows set to wreak havoc on sub-250 capacity venues, they’ll be the band’s first live dates following the arrival of their latest album, which drops on May 29 via Sumerian Records.

Tickets for the shows will go on sale at 10am local time on Friday, May 08.

To get you in the mood, take a listen to recently dropped single ‘…hospice’

The post Static Dress Announce Intimate UK Shows appeared first on Rock Sound.

Typically, you can judge a cheesy power metal album just from its cover art. Look at the laser-powered sharks/dinos from Victorius, the D&D fantasy elements of Power Paladin, or the stuffed assembly of characters on Angus McSix, and you know you’re getting yourself a heap of cheddar. The covers are busy, bombastic, and as brightly-colored as Frida Ohlin’s hair (see band photo below). Sweden’s Rexoria bucks that trend. The cover art for Fallen Dimension looks like it belongs on a work of dystopian prog like Vanderlust. They deliver something far more light-hearted, though—symphonic power metal. Rexoria deem themselves the birth of a genre called “Royal Metal”—it’s in their name. Rex means king, and Oria means gold. Royal metal. Get it? So just what is this new tag? More importantly, would you like your royale with cheese?

Fallen Dimension blends old school heavy metal with modern power metal and a dash of keyboard synths. While they boast of symphonics in their promo sheet, Rexoria have more in common with Unleash the Archers than Mystfall. They combine the joyful energy of Frozen Crown with the straightforward approach of Sabaton. With honed pop structures, Rexoria set aside the wankery of many power metal bands and dive quickly into their anthemic choruses. Blink, and you might miss the music that happens between the opening spoken word segment and hooky chorus on opener “Metallic Rain.” If you like the bop and energy of power metal without its often masturbatory shredding, then this is for you. Rexoria has solos, but they’re in and out in a flash, all to ensure songs end in a (mostly) tidy 3-4 minutes. The downside is that where bands like Frozen Crown and Unleash the Archers do some really cool stuff with their guitars, the guitars on Fallen Dimension sound generic and bland.

Frontwoman Frida Ohlin gives Rexoria a more distinctive sound relative to more recent power metal bands. She has a gritty voice akin to Joan Jett rather than the smooth and joyful tone of Frozen Crown’s Giada Etro. She delivers some really good choruses, bringing to life the likes of “Break the Wave” and “Running with the Stars” with her energetic delivery. She even shows a more tender side on the rock ballad, “Heart of Sorrow,” a duet with Johnny Gioeli (Axel Rudi Pell). Her grit keeps the bouncy, formulaic songs from going too far down the road of pop music. It’s not that the other players are incompetent—they just don’t have much to work with. The drums are standard, galloping blast beats, and the guitar riffs are competent if uninspired. Rexoria brought in a new bassist (Adam Nordquist) for Fallen Dimension, but I rarely heard him. Usually a record like this benefits from outside hooks, and the synths tend to be hit or miss. There are some good ones, such as those on “Metallic Rain,” but on follow-up “Awakening,” I couldn’t help but wonder if they started recycling synth lines.

In general, Fallen Dimension is a pleasant listen that’s also forgettable due to its jack-of-all-trades nature. Rexoria’s plug-and-chug approach allows for an enjoyable energy and choruses that hit the right notes. Yet there’s very little to distinguish them from the power metal pack. The opening riff on “Wasted Land” sounds a lot like something from a Fellowship record, while a majority of their other riffs are hardly more creative than your run-of-the-mill radio rock music. I didn’t dislike any of the songs, yet nothing really grabbed me either. Some of the choruses stuck in my head for a little while, but without any real emotional impact. Rexoria has all the pieces in place—they’re just missing that extra something to make them shine.

Power metal serves as a bridge between extreme and popular music. It often contains pop structures that appeal to a wider audience, yet can still stretch the limits with exciting musical prose that can appeal to thrill-seeking extremists. The pitfall of flirting with more commercial styles is that it often leads to formulaic and watered-down music. Rexoria boasts in their promo sheet of millions of Spotify streams and half a million YouTube views, so clearly they are finding success. It would just be nice to see them take some risks. Too often, success gets in the way of art. I hope Rexoria can continue to find success while also developing the art of their music.

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Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: N/A | Format Reviewed: Stream
Label: Black Lodge Records
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook | Official Site
Releases Worldwide: May 8th, 2026

The post Rexoria – Fallen Dimension Review appeared first on Angry Metal Guy.

Sometimes you just need a break, a rock to clamber onto in the middle of a raging river, and that’s exactly what The Flatliners have provided in the form of ‘Cold World’. By their standards, the Canadians’ seventh outing is a very calm record, but it’s what we’re craving from a band who’ve ridden the tides of punk for two decades without a lineup change or compromising their values. They’ve moved on from processing the generational trauma which dominated 2022’s ‘New Ruin’ and emerged from the other side with a zen detachment from the turmoil of 2026, and what we’ve got is an album that feels like your first cold shower after you get back from a festival. 

That’s not to say that The Flatliners have gone soft at all. Lead single ‘Good, You?’ takes a side-swipe at enforced male stoicism and the “ever-open wound” of never being able to reveal your vulnerability, but with a dream-like, uplifting roar that dares you to have the courage to open up. The ironically titled ‘Inner Peace’ tightly winds through chiming guitar and lyrical claustrophobia, and the harsh harmonies of ‘Pulpit’ spark rough riffs and chanted challenges to the status quo.

While they might be happy with the position they’ve adopted as being beyond the storm and stress of the world, The Flatliners have not completely detached themselves. Rather, this whole album blooms with “nowstalgia,” the joy of living each moment with the joy that we reserve for some imagined glorious past. Even a powerful shredder like ‘Burn’ that maximises the amount of guitar that The Flatliners can pour into a track feels like a pause for a deep, mindful, albeit it rage-filled breath before making your next move. It’s a compelling experience to listen to an album from a band who know exactly who they are and who they want to be. 

‘Frozen World’ is an album that takes you on a trip around a single bubble in time. From the ferocious call to arms that sparks ‘Stolen Valour’ all the way to closer ‘United In Spite’, a tribute to sticking with your in-group of haters through it all, we’re being dragged on a guided tour through the moment in which The Flatliners are currently living. The sense of being involved and sucked into their vision is so strong on ‘Whyte Light’, a song whose occasional quiet guitar drops only make the massive chorus that more prominent. We’re still in that mental and sonic space of waiting for the bombs to drop as they sweep us forward to ‘Into Annihilation’, but there’s never a menace or worry. The Flatliners are here with us to hold our tattooed hands through all the chaos we observe around us.

We love to discuss a band’s growth over time and track their progress on some imaginary musical chart, but to hear a band taking an album of pause for themselves is supremely refreshing. The Flatliners are living in the now and we love that for them. If you turn up ‘And They’re Off’ and close your eyes, you’re practically on an inflatable drifting on the ocean (while, admittedly, a war rages on the beach), and that’s an incredibly admirable quality. They’re not reactionary or screaming about the wrongs and the rights of society, they’re taking a step back and inviting us to do the same. ‘Cold World’ is a welcome and scenic plateau in their sound for us to experience at our leisure, and a delight to absorb yourself into from start to finish.

KATE ALLVEY

The Rolling Stones have announced their new studio album, Foreign Tongues, which will be released July 10 through Polydor/Universal Music. The 14-track album follows 2023’s Grammy Award-winning Hackney Diamonds, which topped charts worldwide and achieved multi-platinum success.

The album will be previewed with the lead single “In the Stars,” which was released digitally on May 5 alongside the album opener “Rough and Twisted.” A physical release for “In the Stars” is scheduled for May 15. Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Ronnie Wood are also set to attend a media launch for Foreign Tongues in Brooklyn, New York.

Ahead of the announcement, the band teased the project with a limited white label vinyl release of “Rough and Twisted” under the name The Cockroaches. The vinyl circulated among fans and collectors and fueled speculation about the direction of the new album.

Foreign Tongues was recorded at Metropolis Studios in West London during what the band described as an especially creative stretch. The project was completed in under a month and reunites the Stones with Grammy-winning producer Andrew Watt, who also produced Hackney Diamonds.

The album features performances from Jagger, Richards, and Wood alongside longtime collaborators Darryl Jones, Matt Clifford, and Steve Jordan. It also includes a special appearance from late drummer Charlie Watts from one of his final recording sessions before his death in 2021. Guest musicians on the album include Steve Winwood, Paul McCartney, Robert Smith, and Chad Smith.

Reflecting on the recording process, Mick Jagger said: “I love doing these recording sessions in London at Metropolis. It was a very intense few weeks recording Foreign Tongues. We had 14 great tracks and we went as fast as we could. I like the room there as it’s not too big so you can feel the passion in the room from everyone.”

Keith Richards added: “The Foreign Tongues album has a continuity from Hackney Diamonds and it was great to be working in London again, and to have that London vibe around us. It was a month of concentrated punch. To me, it’s all about the enjoyment of it. I’m blessed to be able to do this and long may it last.”

Ronnie Wood commented: “The atmosphere in the room was so creative, and the whole band was on top form throughout the whole process. Very often we nailed it on the first take. I hope everyone loves it.”

The album artwork was created by American artist Nathaniel Mary Quinn, who said: “Creating the album cover for the Rolling Stones is an artistic honour – a dialogue with one of the most enduring forces in cultural history”

Foreign Tongues will be released in multiple formats including CD, deluxe CD editions, cassette, standard and limited edition vinyl variants, retailer-exclusive editions, and special box sets. “In the Stars” will also be available on CD and vinyl.

The post The Rolling Stones announce “Foreign Tongues” appeared first on Blues Rock Review.

The spirit of community and the enduring power of blues rock came together on Sunday, April 19, 2026, as Rick Estrin & the Nightcats headlined a special benefit concert for Salem, Oregon’s Northwest Hub Bike Shop. With doors opening at 4:00 PM and music kicking off promptly at 5:00, the early evening show delivered three hours of high-energy performances, blending blues, rockabilly, and hard blues rock into a celebration that served both entertainment and a meaningful local cause.

Opening the night was local favorite Johnny Wheels & the Swamp Donkeys, who wasted no time igniting the crowd with “Light Me Up.” The band, featuring Johnny “Wheelchair” Wheels on vocals and harmonica, Garry Meziere on seated guitar, Brandon Logan on guitar, Taylor Frazier on bass, and a powerhouse dual-drum lineup of Shook and legendary drummer Tony Coleman, set an electrifying tone from the outset. Coleman’s presence alone carried weight, given his decades-long tenure backing B.B. King, but it was the chemistry between the two drummers that created a relentless rhythmic drive throughout the set.

Songs like “Not My Baby” and “Snake Farm” showcased the band’s tight interplay, while Wheels’ harmonica work added a gritty, expressive edge. Coleman stepped into the spotlight with a vocal turn of his own, delivering both humor and seasoned showmanship. The band’s take on “Hard to Handle,” popularized by The Black Crowes, turned into a full-blown guitar duel, with searing leads and explosive interplay pushing the performance into overdrive. Their hour-long set concluded with “Hush” by Deep Purple, a fittingly thunderous finale that left the audience primed for the headliner.

Around 6:30 PM, Rick Estrin & the Nightcats took the stage, immediately demonstrating why they remain one of the most celebrated acts in modern blues. Formed in 2008 following the retirement of Little Charlie Baty from Little Charlie & the Nightcats, the band features Rick Estrin on vocals and harmonica, Chris Andersen on guitar, Lorenzo Farrell on keys and bass, and Derrick “D’Mar” Martin, a former member of Little Richard’s band, on drums.

Estrin opened with “Living Hand to Mouth,” preceded by a humorous monologue about songwriting that immediately established his signature blend of wit and musical authority. The set leaned heavily on original material, including “Somewhere Else,” “I’ll Never Do That No More,” and “The Main Event,” each delivered with sharp musicianship and dynamic arrangement. Estrin’s storytelling between songs, often self-deprecating and laced with humor about aging, added a layer of personality that kept the audience fully engaged.

The lone cover of the evening, “Off the Wall” by Little Walter, served as both homage and master class. Estrin’s reverence for the blues tradition was evident as he spoke about learning his craft through studying the greats before launching into a harmonica performance that was both technically dazzling and emotionally authentic.

One of the night’s standout elements was the sheer physicality of drummer Derrick “D’Mar” Martin. His high-energy style saw him repeatedly leaping from his seat mid-performance, urging the crowd to respond as he drove the band forward. During extended jams like “House of Grease,” the band reached a fever pitch, culminating in a thunderous drum showcase that highlighted Martin’s athletic precision.

In one of the evening’s most memorable moments, Tony Coleman returned to the stage, joining Martin for a dual-drum spectacle that echoed the opening set’s rhythmic intensity. As Martin left his drum kit, brandishing his drumsticks and hitting them together to keep the rhythm, he walked to the foot of the stage and then out into the audience. Coleman came forward to the microphone at the foot of the stage and began keeping time with his drumsticks into the mic until Martin returned and they performed a drumstick interplay. Interacting directly with the crowd, they paused as Martin displayed The Hits Keep Coming before diving back into a percussive exchange with Coleman. The interplay between the two drummers created a layered, pulsating groove, while Andersen’s guitar work soared above with blistering precision and Estrin punctuated the jam with bursts of harmonica firepower.

Estrin, ever the consummate showman, balanced virtuosity with humor, often clutching his chest after particularly intense harmonica runs and joking about his age. Yet there was nothing diminished about his performance; if anything, it underscored the depth of his experience and enduring passion.

The band also took a moment to acknowledge their recent honor as the 2025 Blues Foundation “Band of the Year,” a testament to their continued relevance and excellence within the genre. But rather than resting on accolades, they pushed forward, delivering a performance that felt as urgent and vibrant as ever.

As the set appeared to wind down, Estrin teased the audience with the possibility of “one more song,” prompting an enthusiastic response. The encore became a full-circle celebration as members of Johnny Wheels & the Swamp Donkeys returned to the stage, effectively doubling the band’s size. What followed was an all-out jam session, complete with dueling guitars, twin drum assaults, and a collective energy that brought the night to a fiery, unforgettable close.

Beyond the music, the concert served a greater purpose, supporting the Northwest Hub Bike Shop, an organization dedicated to providing accessible transportation and community resources through bicycle programs. The event underscored how live music can not only entertain but also unite and uplift a community.

The post Rick Estrin and the Nightcats & Johnny Wheels and the Swamp Donkeys – Salem Oregon Gig Review appeared first on Blues Rock Review.