It's dark, it's cold... but hey, Christmas is just around the corner! 2024 might be starting to wind down so far as new releases goes, but there's still plenty to dig into as we hit the late autumnal months.
That in mind, here are the results of last week's vote! The nu metal revival is still going strong if the success of newcomers Arimea is anything to go by, their latest single taking a healthy third place on the fan poll. With a more mechanised edge, LA's Skumlove nabbed second place, leaving returning Corby brutes Raging Speedhorn clear to take top spot, as befitting their revered veteran status.
This week we've got a healthy mix of styles and sounds for your listening pleasure. From the new group by former(?) 36 Crazyfists frontman Brock Lindow to ethereal black metal from Patriarkh, straight-up brutality from Malevolence and brutish death metal from the likes of Neckbreakker. As ever, we need you to tell us which songs excite you most so don't forget to cast your votes below - and have an excellent weekend!
Malevolence - Trenches
"Everybody's always looking for a handout." So starts Trenches, the latest single from UK metalcore mob Malevolence, and it's a no frills clattering the band offer across the song's three-minute-19-second runtime. Described by the band as "the most aggressive, ignorant and direct song [we've] ever written", Trenches is a refutement of the idea that playing on bigger bills and to larger crowds has changed the fundamental brutality at the heart of the band. New album in 2025? God, we hope so.
Slung - Fire To Burn
On these dark nights, nothing feels quite so comforting than a fuzzy blanket of alt-flavoured doom. That's just what Brighton-based riffers Slung have to offer on new single Fire To Burn, a track that plays with classic metal motifs in a refreshing, contemporary way that'll surely please fans of the likes of Puppy, Mastodon or Red Fang.
Patriarkh - Wierszalin IV (ft. Eliza Sacharczuk)
Occult-inclined Polish group Patriarkh continue to show off their unique take on black metal with new single Wierscalin IV. The frost-tipped blastbeats and harsh snarls that have long defined the genre are still powerful up front, but its the band's usage of orthodox style chants and subtle folk instrumentation that lends a sense of ethereal menace to their sound, guest vocalist Eliza Sacharczuk heaping some gorgeous melodies on top to really highlight the contrast of styles.
Neckbreakker - Face Splitting Madness
Living up to their new name, Neckbreakker's latest single is exactly the kind of spine-bothering menace your doctors warn you against. Not that it'll do a blind bit of good, mind; the second the track lurches forth from its slow intro to a ceaseless thunder of double-bass, its obvious that everything that comes after - tides of tight, crushing riffs, snarls and squealing guitars - is all in the service of making as many people bang their heads as possible. Resistance is futile.
Burning Witches - The Spell Of The Skull
Trad metal heroines, Burning Witches evoke some of the infernal majesty of 80s heavy metal bands like Warlock and Mercyful Fate on latest single The Spell Of The Skull. Glorious, grandstanding guitar solos add an air of theatricality and triumph that embodied the heavy metal of yore, Burning Witches continuing to assert themselves as the genre's truest champions as they close in on a decade as a band.
Korpiklaani - Sauna
Folk metal Finns Korpiklaani never made a secret of their love for alcohol, but on their latest single they pay tribute to a national love affair: the sauna. Needless to say, Sauna isn't some switch to meditative chill-out music, rather the Finns go hog wild with an upbeat jig, the band even switching the lyrics from its Finnish album version Saunaan to ensure their message isn't misconstrued.
Highsociety x Coping Method - Obs0lete
It's been a while since dubstep was the chief crossover genre of choice for metal, but its making a big comeback on Obs0lete, the latest single from Coping Method seeing them team-up with dubsteb-metal crossover merchants Highsociety. The result is a track that squeals and snarls with electronica, buzzing and exploding in ways that bring to mind the likes of fellow electronica/metal experimentalists like Bring Me The Horizon.
Paradise Slaves - A Fever To Defeat
It's been a while since we last heard from Brock Lindow. The frontman of 36 Crazyfists, things fell silent from that band in 2021 amidst rumours of a break-up, leaving 2017's Lanterns as their last release. Lindow's emergence with new band Paradise Slaves certainly suggests that his old group have been buried, new single A Fever To Defeat marking the start of a new era for the vocalist's distinct tones, albeit with a familiar sense of heft and punchy metalcore anthemia.
Hangman's Chair - Kowloon Lights
French doom metallers Hangman's Chair know a thing or two about sonic sadness, so perhaps it shouldn't come as too much of a surprise that their new album is titled Saddiction. Set for release on February 14th, the record promises a freshly devastating mix of melodic doom and goth metal if lead single Kowloon Lights is anything to go by, fragile guitar tones giving way to Cédric Toufouti's despairing wails.
Red Method - All For One, None For All (ft. Jayant Bhadula)
With jutting, angular riffs and drifting vocal melodies, Londoners Red Method's latest single All For One, None For All sits in the oft-unexplored expanse between tech and nu metal. It's a distinctive blend that maximises the impressive instrumentation of the former and the anthemic capabilities of the latter, a hybrid of Meshuggah and Deftones elements that is utterly fascinating, the band even drafting in Bloodywood's Jayant Bhadula for some guest vocals.
Dominum - One Of Us
Powerwolf, but make them zombies. Alright, so that's a reductive reading of Dominum, but the German group certainly capture some of that big-budget, OTT brilliance of their countrymen, even delivering massive choruses to match. Taken from their upcoming second album The Dead Don't Die, due December 27, One Of Us plays with sacrilegious themes with a video all about zombie Jesus. Whether you think it's a bit late (Halloween was last week, after all) or too early (Christmas already? No thanks!) the track is plenty of fun for metalheads to sink their teeth into.
Dark Chapel - Glass Heart
Taking a break from his dayjob as guitarist in Black Label Society, guitarist Dario Lorina has unveiled his own project in Dark Chapel. Far from the world of motor grease and southern rock grooves that BLS inhabit, Dark Chapel instead strike a balance somewhere between the lofty instrumentation of prog metal and muddied emotional tones of grunge, Lorina's vocals having a Chris Cornell like husk that adds a soulfulness to this first single. The band's debut album Spirit In The Glass is due February 28th and is well worth keeping eyes out for.
