History will remember these times for so many dark and depressive reasons (global pandemic, historic and unprecedented worldwide financial hardship). One can recount countless chapters in the hopeless chronicle of man's descent into madness and self-annihilation. However, just as mankind is painting its blackest masterpiece since the world erupted in war decades ago, the one beacon of light, hope, solace and safety is doom metal. If there is a divine entity, this would be a

For those local to the New England metal scene, Seven Spires have been kicking ass (probably the best then "underground" band the scene has seen since Fates Warning) for the past 6 years of so. Having had the pleasure to meet and chat with the members of the band, you can maturity well beyond their years. With boatloads of talent, inspiring creativity, commitment to success this was a band destined to be superstars, transcending the typical acts hailing from the region. Led

When U.K.'s Sylosis sprung upon the scene with the praiseworthy EP "Casting Shadows" back in 2006, a young vibrant and exciting brand of modern thrash was born. This "modern thrash," which the band has branded "enlightened, neck-wrecking turbo-thrash" - a more technical, serious and melodic version of the beer soaked, speed driven "old school" styles - is laced with a much less migraine inducing metalcore screech and features a boatload of riffs, the speed of which is both c

Something strange happened on the way to Algalord. Sure, parody and gimmickry have been around for ages in metal (especially thrash metal), but not as prevalent as it is in the present. Gloryhammer set a new standard for over the top power metal in 2013 with the release of "Tales From the Kingdom of Fife." While poking fun, or rather having fun, with the European style power metal subgenre, Christopher Bowes also created one of the best power metal albums of that time. It mar

Ever since the split with guitarist Victor Smolski five years ago, Rage founder/bassist/vocalist Peavy Wagner has been on a mission to take back his band. As if there was an immense amount of bottled..er, rage, Peavy has deployed a scorched earth policy, releasing three Rage albums with the newest lineup and one Refuge album (classic era Rage lineup: 1988-1993) in less than a five year period. I recall a hot steamy night in Altanta at the Artmore Courtyard at the 2016 edition

If you ever get lost in the sea of "crystal" acts (Crystal Eyes, Crystal Tears, Crystal Viper, Crystal Ball, Crystal Castle, Crystal Lake, Crystal Sword....need I go on? Ok - Crystal Dreams, Crystal Gates, Crystal Fate, Crystal Abyss, Crystal Crow, Crystal Pyramid, Crystal Sky), just remember - there can be only one true crystal master! Crystal Eyes has released consistently great albums for 20 years now, aging gracefully. For those unfamiliar to the band, imagine a tour of e

Just over three years since the release of the last full length release "Rapid Foray" in 2016, German pirates Running Wild have returned with the EP "Crossing the Blades," a "foray" into the next full length release due out in 2020. If the three new songs are any indication, we may just have one of the band's best releases since Rolf Kasparek came out of his seven year retirement in 2012. In the 80's and 90's, a new Running Wild album was just about the most exciting thing fo

Ensiferum bassist Sami Hinkka side steps (but not too far) from his main act to co-found the exciting new power metal act called Metal De Facto. The concept of the band isn't particularly new for a metal act, basking in the glorious history and battles of Ancient Rome. Death metal acts ADE and Ex Deo have more famously picked up on the idea, as well as Italy's Centvrion and Sweden's Descendant in the power/traditional metal subgenres (and a handful of other bands in other var

As a child, did you ever dream of what it would have been like had Venom sounded like early Dokken, but kept the same lyrical content. Would they still have been the forefathers of "black metal"? Or what if Celtic Frost turned glam and....strike that, it DID happen. Sweden's Deaf Rat has decided to inject some evil into vanilla hard rock, as if Ghost morphed into Hardcore Superstar. Deaf Rat draws its dark lyrics from current events and isn't quite so tongue-in-cheek. The res

NYC hardcore/crossover pioneers Agnostic Front were at the forefront of a movement back just before your author was introduced to heavy metal. The band's second album "Cause for Alarm" was a mainstay, where songs like "The Eliminator" and "Bonber Zee" were played weekly on the college radio station that administered the foundations for a metallic education. There was a bit of a revolution going on in New York City when punk, metal and thrash collided for what would be known a

As an avid old school metal fan, nothing brings greater joy than to see classic bands releasing consistently brilliant and still relevant material. The term "relevant" in this context refers to its ability to fall squarely with a band's classic releases, rather than simply dated material compared to new modern trends. Just in 2019 alone, instant classics have been issued by bands like Diamond Head, Angel Witch, Picture, The Rods. Hold on to your hats though, because Tygers of

At long last, an ambitious project that began over 20 years ago finally will be released. Originating in the period of time just before the release of "Nightfall in Middle-Earth," the once fabled Blind Guardian orchestra project in its final form draws more than just inspiration from that seminal album. A few of the voice actors from "Nightfall" return for "Twilight Orchestra: Legacy of the Dark Lands," which tells the tale drawn from German fantasy author Markus Heitz's nove

One of the most identifiable figures in heavy metal is King Diamond, especially when the leaves start to turn, die and fall paving the way for the season of the witch. In 1987, there wasn't as many metal bands around, and even less that could scare the crap out of 16 year old boys. Having already issued the unsurpassed hymn for the eve of Samhain - "Halloween" - a year earlier on the "Fatal Portrait" album (an album that genuinely unnerved your author with songs like "The Can

Back a year or so ago, Vision Divine was in a similar position as Rhapsody of Fire in that it was without the services of vocalist Fabio Lione. The band's last release "Destination Set to Nowhere" - now seven years old - was highly regarded as another in a line of power/progressive masterpieces from a band that has been consistently brilliant in songwriting, even though not consistently releasing albums. The band is no stranger to vocalist changes, but when personally speakin

"Aequilibrium," or "equilibrium," has a double meaning for Italy's Noveria. On one hand, it is the basis of the conceptual album's plot about achieving balance following a devastating earthquake in central Italy. On the other, the band's perfect balance between power and progressive metal, a thrilling modern approach that has made the quintet one of the most appealing "newer" bands out there today - Dynazty without the glitz. Though not quite as catchy as previous efforts, "A

For nearly 40 years, Denmark's Pretty Maids have been one of the most consistent hard rock bands on the planet. Sure, not every album is a perfect winner, but I'd take the odds that Pretty Maids will release a solid album out at 85%. "Undress Your Madness" follows the path of predecessors "Kingmaker" (2016), "Louder than Ever" (2014) and "Motherland" (2013), in that leans more towards the rock/hard rock rather than the heavier leaning "Pandemonium" (2010). While you author be

Mors Principium Est guitarist/master musician Andy Gillion has always been such a brilliant musician and songwriter, so when the announcement came for his solo release "Neverafter," naturally the interest was peaked for your author. Not only is Andy one of the few guitarists that emotes so well through his guitar work that his style is instantaneously recognizable, but its an automatic buy simply for his song writing mastery. "Neverafter" is an ambitious project, as Gillion

Born in 2012, The Scourge - featuring Helstar members Andrew Atwood (vocals/guitars) and Garrick Smith (bass) - released the debut EP "First Comes Destruction" in 2014. Now five years later, the band plans to horrify your Halloween like Michael Myers did to Haddenfield. If you are one of those fans looking for a technical progressive masterpiece, then The Scourge isn't for you. "Warrant for Execution" is pure unadulterated metal played in the classic style of old school thras

In the world of hard rock, the string of near perfect releases from Sweden's Eclipse is unparalleled (perhaps, in all of music). Two years out from the band's last brilliant album "Monumentum," how would "Paradigm" fare in comparison? Two words: 1. Eric 2. Mårtensson. On "Paradigm" you can expect more tunes that you can instantly identify, sing along with and make you feel alive. "Viva La Victoria," "Mary Leigh," "United" and "Blood Wants Blood" provide more proof that a s

The supergroup featuring Ronnie Romero (Rainbow, ex-Lords of Black), Mike Terrana (ex-Rage, Axel Rudi Pell) and prolific songwriter and multi-musician Magnus Karlsson (Primal Fear, Allen/Lande, Free Fall) have returned with a sophomore release "A New Evil." With Karlsson there is automatic relief that the songwriting will be top notch. Terrana is the consummate professional and one of the finest drummers. Romero's roughened, but smooth Dio-esque vocals took the world by stor