Heavy New Music
Extreme Metal Stalwarts Enslaved, Kataklysm, and Ihsahn All Release New Singles: Stream
Renowned extreme-metal acts Enslaved, Kataklysm, and Ihsahn all released new singles with accompanying music videos on Friday (August 28th), delivering a thunderous dose of new music to metalheads everywhere. Norwegian metal veterans Enslaved have unleashed “Urjotun” as the third single from their upcoming album Utgard, due October 2nd via Nuclear Blast. “The lyrical idea for ‘Urjotun’ had been spinning around in the chaos in the back of my head for quite a while, when Ivar sent me the riff-demo last autumn,” stated Enslaved singer Grutle Kjellson of the song. “I knew instantly that this was it, the very soundtrack of the rise of the primeval giant, the Urjotun! Our mutual love and fascination for that early krautrock scene and for bands like Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk, finally fully as...
Mining Metal: Cobra Spell (Premiere), Atramentus, Humavoid, Krallice, Necrot, Nug, Question, and Terminal Nation
“Mining Metal” is a monthly column from Heavy Consequence writers Joseph Schafer and Langdon Hickman. The focus is on noteworthy new music emerging from the non-mainstream metal scene, highlighting releases from small and independent labels — or even releases from unsigned acts. As I’m writing this, the metal underground is still reeling from the unexpected passing of Riley Gale, vocalist for Texas thrashers Power Trip. Gale was known for his unabashedly political lyrics, charismatic live performances, and interpersonal messages of kindness. The underground will be feeling his loss for some time. I first heard Power Trip a few days after publishing an essay on Invisible Oranges declaring the post-Municipal Waste thrash revival dead. Power Trip’s debut album, Manifest Decimation rendered my...
Uniform Share Title Track from Upcoming Album Shame: Stream
New York City trio Uniform have unleashed the title track from their upcoming new album, Shame, out September 11th on Sacred Bones. “Shame” follows on the heels of previous single “Delco”, showcasing the idiosyncratic blend of heavy music Uniform have honed for their latest LP. John Carpenter-style synths build into a crushing blast of electronic and live instrumentation. It’s not quite metal or industrial or hardcore, though there’s subtle elements of each. Vocalist Michael Berdan stated, “‘Shame’ is the song that sets the thematic tone for the rest of the record, which seems appropriate for a title track. It is a portrait of someone riddled with regret in the process of drinking themselves to death. Night after night they sit in dark reflection, pouring alcohol down their throat in order...
99 Metal Artists Team Up to Sing “99 Bottles of Beer” for Charity: Stream
Testament’s Chuck Billy (photo by Antonio Marino Jr.), Philip Anselmo (Amy Harris), Sepultura’s Derrick Green (Philip Cosores) Well, this is one helluva collaboration! Ninety-nine metal artists have banded together to sing “99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall” for charity. Among those providing their voices to the charitable track are members of Pantera, Mastodon, Slayer, Testament, Sepultura, and more. The collaboration was the brainchild of Scour guitarist Derek Engemann and bassist John Jarvis, as well as Gruesome bassist Robin Mazen, all under the moniker The Boozehoundz. They recruited the likes of their Scour bandmate Philip Anselmo (Pantera, Down), Kirk Windstein (Crowbar, Down), Bill Kelliher (Mastodon), Gary Holt (Slayer, Exodus), Brendon Small (Dethklok, Galaktikon), Derri...
Coheed and Cambria Unleash “Jessie’s Girl 2” Featuring Rick Springfield: Stream
Coheed and Cambria have recorded and released a sequel to Rick Springfield’s ubiquitous 1981 hit “Jessie’s Girl”. What’s more, the song and accompanying music video feature Springfield himself. “Jessie’s Girl 2” is not a cover of the ’80s pop hit, but a brand-new song that continues Springfield’s story about losing out on the love of his life to one of his friends. It’s a left-field collaboration from the progressive rock heroes and the veteran pop idol, but Coheed frontman Claudio Sanchez said he was inspired to tell the rest of Springfield’s story. Sanchez stated, “Has anyone ever written a sequel to another artist’s song? I don’t think so. As a fan of movies, it just seemed like a really interesting idea.” While the song picks up where Springfield’s hit left off, it doesn’t have a...
Carcass Announce Despicable EP, Share New Song “The Living Dead at the Manchester Morgue”: Stream
Death metal pioneers Carcass are returning with a new EP, Despicable, this fall. In advance of its October 30th release, the band has unveiled the single, “The Living Dead at the Manchester Manchester”. The UK band has been perfecting its brand of complex death metal for over three decades, and the song is pinnacle Carcass — featuring grueling musicianship, lyrical images of horror, and a hint of melody. Despicable will be Carcass’ first collection of new music in seven years and includes the previously released single, “Under the Scalpel Blade”. “Well the COVID situation has put the release of the new Carcass album on the back burner for the time being,” singer-bassist Jeff Walker said in a press release. “Given that we said there’d be new music in August we thought it would be cool to ha...
Deftones Unveil Title Track from New Album Ohms: Stream
After weeks of speculation and social media teases, Deftones have unveiled the title track from their upcoming album, Ohms. The single is the band’s first new song in four years, following up the 2016 album Gore. The track “Ohms” comes on the heels of the new album’s artwork, tracklist, and September 25th release date being confirmed hours earlier. The Ohms LP will contain 10 songs, with the title track closing out the album. The forthcoming album was produced by Terry Date, who helmed Deftones’ first four LPs. It was recorded at Henson Studios in Los Angeles, and Trainwreck Studios in Woodinville, Washington. The song is undoubtedly Deftones, driven by a heavy guitar riff by Stephen Carpenter, as singer Chino Moreno delivers his signature soaring vocals. An accompanying video, directed by...
Seether Premiere Powerful Video for Heavy New Song “Beg”: Watch
Seether are getting set to release their new album, Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum, and the band has teamed up with Heavy Consequence to premiere the video for the crushing new song “Beg”. The track is one of the heaviest songs Seether have ever released, with frontman Shaun Morgan delivering a thunderous scream of “Beg motherf**ker” in the chorus. It’s an intense track that’s made even more powerful by its compelling music video. The animated clip portrays a young girl who grows up to exact revenge on her childhood abuser. It was directed by Turkish video-maker Mertcan Mertbilek. “This is our second collaboration with Mertcan, and I wanted to get his interpretation of the lyrics,” Morgan tells us. “I sketched a rough idea and he ran with it to create a video that I think is powerful and provoc...
Spirit Adrift Announce New Album Enlightened in Eternity, Share “Harmony of the Spheres”: Stream
Spirit Adrift have announced the upcoming release of their fourth full-length album, Enlightened in Eternity, due October 16th. The band has also shared the lead single, “Harmony of the Spheres”. Picking up where they left off with 2019’s Divided by Darkness, Spirit Adrift deliver another riff-filled heavy metal ripper with “Harmony of the Spheres”. Evoking vintage Ozzy Osbourne and Judas Priest, singer-guitarist Nathan Garrett continues to get stronger with each release — his vocals more confident and his guitar playing as piercing and tight as ever. The band’s ability to fuse melody with elements of speed metal and doom makes their songs particularly memorable, and the new single is no exception. “I wrote the songs on Enlightened in Eternity before my life fell apart, and from the beginn...
The Damned Announce The Rockfield Files EP, Unveil New Song “Keep ‘Em Alive”: Stream
Legendary UK gothic punk act The Damned have announced a new EP, The Rockfield Files. In advance of the release, the band has unveiled a video for the single “Keep ‘Em Alive”. For the new effort, The Damned returned to Rockfield studios, where they recorded their early 1980s LPs The Black Album and Strawberries, as well as the Friday 13th EP. The Rockfield Files will arrive on October 16th, containing four new songs, including “Keep ‘Em Alive.” The lineup on the EP, which was recorded in 2019, includes classic members David Vanian, Captain Sensible, and Paul Gray, as well as Monty Oxymoron on keyboards and Andrew “Pinch” Pinching on drums. Pinch has since left the band, having played his final gig with The Damned on Halloween of last year. The songs were produced by Tom Dalgety, who w...
North Kingsley (System of a Down’s Shavo Odadjian) Unveil Vol. 1 EP: Stream
Last week, System of a Down bassist Shavo Odadjian’s new band North Kingsley unleashed their debut single, “Like That?”. Now, they’ve released the full three-song collection Vol. 1, along with a video for the track “Die for the Pic”. The trio is rounded out by vocalist Ray Hawthorne and producer Saro Paparian, with Hawthorne delivering biting commentary on social media trends in the song “Die for the Pic”. “Die for the Pic is a statement on modern hypocrisy,” explained Hawthorne. “The masses are tending to follow popular trends without taking the time to analyze what’s actually going on. People often agree with whatever they are told the correct way to think is, and then post about it online, in an effort to be perceived well by their peers. In my experience, most of these people don’t eve...
Lzzy Hale Shows Off Her Pipes on Cover of Dolly Parton / Whitney Houston Classic “I Will Always Love You”: Stream
Dolly Parton (CTK Management), Lzzy Hale (Jimmy Fontaine), Whitney Houston (from The Bodyguard) Halestorm frontwoman Lzzy Hale has one of the strongest voices in hard rock, and she shows off her pipes on a newly released cover of the Dolly Parton / Whitney Houston classic “I Will Always Love You”. The song appears on Halestorm’s new six-song Reimagined EP, which also features re-worked versions five of the band’s previous singles. A couple weeks ago, Halestorm released a new version of “Break In” featuring Lzzy duetting with Amy Lee from Evanescence. Lzzy has performed “I Will Always Love You” at select Halestorm concerts in the past, but this marks the first studio recording of her cover. While Dolly Parton wrote and originally recorded the heart-wrenching ballad in the ’70s, Lzzy’s rendi...
