Mining Metal

“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. This month’s mining metal veers away from the traditional and toward the esoteric. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many labels have postponed hotly awaited releases for months or indefinitely. Because of this, bands not beholden to (or resistant to) commercial scheduling take the lead — Chilean black metal and Irish progressive deathcore, both the passion projects of independent musicians, lead the pack here. Musicians with long histories on the fringes take center stage, such as German neoclassical thrashers...