SILVER LAKE BY ESA HOLOPAINEN
"SILVER LAKE"
Folk Gothic Heavy Metal
Year:28.05.2021
(NUCLEAR BLAST)

It’s the dawn of spring 2020. During one morning, Esa Holopainen’s mobile vibrates laboriously, and the guitarist picks up the phone. After some quintessential compliments, there comes the core question. “Esa, would it be the right time to start working on your solo album?”This gentle voice belongs to Nino Laurenne, renowned music producer and owner of Helsinki-based recording facility Sonic Pump. Esa Holopainen doesn’t have to think for too long, the electric guitarist extraordinaire already knows the answer.Fast forward to early 2021. Esa Holopainen is sitting on the comfortable sofa inside Sonic Pump. His first solo album –released under the artist name SILVER LAKE – has been just mastered by Svante Forsbäck (Ramm...

CANNIBAL CORPSE
"VIOLENCE UNIMAGINED"
Death Metal
Year:16.04.2021
(METAL BLADE RECORDS)

Comprised of eleven tracks, Violence Unimagined is state of the art death metal played with passion and breathless precision, making for another flawless addition to what is inarguably one of the premier catalogues the genre has thrown up. "It really follows the path we've been going down for a few years now," states bassist and founding member Alex Webster. "I think we approach the writing in a similar way most every time: each of us try to write the heaviest, most memorable songs we can. We want each song to have its own identifiable character. Showing my age, I like to say you can 'drop the needle' on any point of one of our albums and quickly tell which song you're listening to."While they continue to do what they do with aplomb, the one substantial c...

HAMMER KING
"HAMMER KING"
True Heavy Metal
Year:11.06.2021
(NAPALM RECORDS)

In the name of thy majesty - heavy metal powerhouse HAMMER KING has arrived!In the spirit of old school power metal, Germany’s up-and-comers HAMMER KING have gathered to set fire on their new album Hammer King (out June 11 via Napalm Records)! Ever since HAMMER KING burst onto the scene in 2015, they have proven themselves as an unstoppable force. Hand-picked by thy majesty, the Hammer King himself, the band consists of former ROSS THE BOSS vocalist Titan Fox V and former SALTATIO MORTIS drummer Dolph A. Macallan, alongside Gladius Thundersword on bass and Kleveland's most timeless lead guitarist: Gino Wilde. HAMMER KING keeps it heavy with speedy riffs, energic grooves and fist-pumping choruses, devoting their existence to the one and only myth of the godly Hamme...

VULTURE
"DEALIN DEATH"
Death Metal
Year:21.05.2021
(METAL BLADE RECORDS)

When it comes to contemporary thrash, there are few bands that can stand toe-to-toe with Germany's Vulture. Establishing their status with 2016's Victim To The Blade EP and 2017's The Guillotine, then cementing their reputation with 2019's Ghastly Waves And Battered Graves, they now return with the mighty Dealin' Death, one of the most ruthless records the genre has seen. "Take all our key elements - fierce riffing, halftone-shifts, aggressive vocals, huge toms, changing dynamics, horror-synths and classical twin guitar harmonies and cast it in a mould, then you have 'Dealin' Death'," says guitarist Stefan Castevet. "The result sounds a little 'back to the EP-ish' to my ears, yet it contains new approaches that we've never included ...

GO AHEAD AND DIE
"GO AHEAD AND DIE"
Thrash/ Proto-Death Metal
Year:11.06.2021
(NUCLEAR BLAST)

Max and Igor Cavalera, raw & brutal!GO AHEAD AND DIE is a raw, urgent, unrelenting, thrillingly shocking, and vibrant new band. It was born from the mind of creative writer and musician Igor Amadeus Cavalera and the bond of blood and music he shares with his dad, extreme metal icon, and Soulfly band leader Max Cavalera. Its tempos are wild, its contempt for modern social ills palpable, its riffs monstrous and captivating. They make angry, spiteful, utterly engaging, spirited extreme music for increasingly extreme times.The self-titled debut sees Max and Igor splitting guitar and vocalist duties, with utter madman style drumming from Zach Coleman of the blistering Black Curse and critically-acclaimed Khemmis. It sounds like a relic from the glory days of thras...

THE CROWN
"ROYAL DESTROYER"
Death Metal
Year:12.03.2021
(METAL BLADE RECORDS)

With 2018's Cobra Speed Venom, the band reached the same lofty heights as their 2002 landmark release, Crowned In Terror, but they were primed and ready to write its successor. "It surely set the bar up high for a follow up," Olsfelt explains.Having celebrated their thirtieth anniversary in 2020 [their first eight years spent as Crown Of Thorns], The Crown have proven themselves one of the most enduring forces in death metal. In 2021, they further up the ante with Royal Destroyer, a record that sets a new standard for the genre.Together with legendary producer Fredrik Nordström, the band tracked the resulting 10 songs at Gothenburg's Studio Fredman. "We push ourselves to the limit, really trying to make everything as good as it can get, trying to m...

ARTILLERY
"X"
Thrash Metal
Year:07.05.2021
(METAL BLADE RECORDS)

In the mid-1980s, Denmark's Artillery established themselves as being at the cutting edge of the thrash movement, and nearly forty years later, they continue to destroy. Returning with their tenth - and aptly titled - full-length X, they prove once again that they have not missed a step, delivering a record that's ruthlessly heavy, catchy and pure molten metal."We wanted to have the typical Artillery trademarks, like the riffs and hook lines in the usual combination together with aggression and melody. We always try to combine melodic thrash metal with elements from the heavy sounds of the 70s and the 80s, and this time with new elements in some of the songs," says guitarist Michael Stützer. "We don't have to push ourselves hard when we're writing a ...

LAMB OF GOD
"LAMB OF GOD LIVE IN RICHMOND, VA"
Melodic Death Metal
Year:26.03.2021
(NUCLEAR BLAST)

Miss the ferocity, groove and aggression of the one-and-only LAMB OF GOD on stage? Well, the wait is over.With their new live release available on CD+DVD as well as vinyl and digital, the mighty LAMB OF GOD offer fans the first-time-ever stage performances of the band’s critically acclaimed latest album, Lamb of God, performed live in their entirety in the band’s hometown of Richmond, VA. Due to the ongoing Covid crisis, this show was the fans’ first and only chance to witness the ferocity of the new self-titled studio album, released June 19via Nuclear Blast, as a thrilling live performance with crushing encores that include several fan favorites and classics.CD:01. Memento Mori (Live)02. Checkmate (Live)03. Gears ...

VAN CANTO
"TO THE POWER OF EIGHT "
Acapella Metal
Year:04.06.2021
(NAPALM RECORDS)

Prepare for a unique vocal offering smashing in with full force - and louder than any guitar! German acapella metal masters VAN CANTO return with their energetic Rakkatakka-power and are set to release their eighth inimitable offering, To The Power Of Eight, on June 4, 2021 via Napalm Records.Bringing pure vocal power to the metal world since 2006, VAN CANTO set the stage for their very own genre and never failed in surprising their devotees and beyond, while showcasing that metal can be heavy as hell without any riffage. With their previous full length, Trust in Rust (2018), the German rarity reworked its lineup, consisting of seven members since then. For To The Power Of Eight, the unit once again joined forces with Philip Dennis “Sly” Schunke, who had been the...

ROB ZOMBIE
"THE LUNAR INJECTION KOOL AID ECLIPSE CONSPIRACY"
Industrial Metal
Year:13.03.2020
(NUCLEAR BLAST)

As a rock icon and filmmaker with a unique vision,? ROB ZOMBIE? has continuously challenged audiences as he stretches the boundaries of both music and film. He has sold more than fifteen million albums worldwide, and is the only artist to experience unprecedented success in both music and film as the writer/director of eight feature films with a worldwide gross totaling more than $150 million.October 2020 sees the release of the first new ZOMBIE track and video in over four years — "King Freak: A Crypt Of Preservation And Superstition" off of the forthcoming full-length album entitled The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy.A classic ZOMBIE album through and through with high-energy rages like The Eternal Struggles of the Howling Man and Get Loose t...

BURNING WITCHES
"THE WITCH OF THE NORTH"
Female True Heavy Metal
Year:28.05.2021
(NUCLEAR BLAST)

The Swiss ladies hit the bullseye!Swiss heavy metal coven BURNING WITCHES and Nuclear Blast Records proudly present “The Witch Of The North”, the group’s much anticipated, fourth studio album set for worldwide release on May 28th, 2021. Following 2020’s “Dance Of The Devil”, which charted in Germany at #22, and the quickly sold-out “Circle Of Five EP”, vocalist Laura, guitarists Romana and Larissa, bassist Jeanine and drummer Lala notably up the ante on “The Witch Of The North”, their most dynamic, intricate and powerful album thus far. Perfectly mixed and mastered by V.O. Pulver and produced by German thrash titan Schmier (Destruction), BURNING WITCHES stick to their irrefutable 80’s influences (Judas Priest,...

AMORPHIS
"LIVE AT HELSINKI ICE HALL "
Heavy Metal
Year:21.05.2021
(NUCLEAR BLAST)

While concerts and cheering crowds seem to be a long-lost echo from the past these days, melancholic progressive metallers AMORPHIS bring back some of the life and incomparable energy that many of us have been missing so desperately. Recorded during a special hometown show that took place on December 7th, 2019, little did the Finns know that this would be one of their last concerts before the pandemic outbreak in early 2020. With 15 tracks in total and a running time of over one and a half hours, AMORPHIS take you on a journey through their past, showcasing their best songs from the last 30 years that saw the band turn into one of Finland’s finest metal exports.“Helsinki Ice Hall, what can I say… the very same venue where we used to see bands like Deep Pur...

HELLOWEEN
"HELLOWEEN"
Heavy Metal
Year:18.06.2021
(NUCLEAR BLAST)

This is the beginning of a new time calculation: Forget HELLOWEEN – here comes HELLOWEEN»PLEASE STICK TOGETHER !«This was the ardent wish of thousands of fans calling out to Andi Deris, Michael Kiske, Michael Weikath, Kai Hansen, Markus Grosskopf, Sascha Gerstner and Dani Löble during the PUMPKINS UNITED WORLD TOUR - and their dream has come true! With the upcoming album, simply titled HELLOWEEN, the band opens a new chapter after 35 years of a glorious career. The future of one of the most influential German metal bands from now on will feature three singers. Originally planned for the live performances only, it was the birth of a unique seven piece metal alliance.When it came to capturing the larger-than-life emotions in the artwork...

ENFORCER
"LIVE BY FIRE II"
Heavy Metal
Year:19.03.2021
(NUCLEAR BLAST)

Swedish heavy metal commando ENFORCER proudly presents its second live album, “Live by Fire II”, which will be released through Nuclear Blast Records on March 19th, 2021. “Live By Fire II” offers an intense and passionate performance captured in front of a truly dedicated and wild audience in Mexico City, 2019. “Live by Fire II” lets you experience ENFORCER at the top of their game and marks an outstanding live record documenting the group’s steady path to global recognition in recent years. It also serves as a stunning reminder of how many heavy metal anthems ENFORCER have crafted on their total of five studio albums so far! From the speedy metal attack of ‘Destroyer’, ‘Searching For You’, ‘Midnight Vice’ to ...

MONSTER MAGNET
"A BETTER DYSTOPIA"
Stoner Doom Metal/ Hard Rock
Year:21.05.2021
(NAPALM RECORDS)

"Take a trip inside the mind of psychedelic rock legend Dave Wyndorf with MONSTER MAGNET’s A Better Dystopia – a delightfully psychotic selection of proto-metal and late-era psych songs that fit the band like a glove! With wonderfully obscure song choices and excellent sequencing, the mighty Magnet pay homage to some of their favorite songs of all time, crafting another exciting and unique listening experience alike what they’ve become famous for. While the album marks a new frontier for MONSTER MAGNET as their first covers record, this is not your typical set of standards released to pass time. Wyndorf is at the top of his game on A Better Dystopia – howling, crooning, speaking… whatever it takes to get the emotional message of these very special tunes ac...