Eden kicks off our End of Year content for 2025 with a look back at one of the defining themes of the year - heavy metal, with shoutouts to Phantom Spell, Sacred Leather, Helms Deep, and more. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2026/01/06/a-year-in-review-the-year-heavy-metal-sucker-punched-me/

Rounding up new releases from Irreversal Mechanism, Health, Rotten Sound, Sacred Leather, Volumes, Die Krupps, Fleshvessel, Abbie Falls, Matrod, Black Rabbit, Pincer+ and more. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/12/12/release-day-roundup-15/

We've said this before but we simply adore albums whose title and cover art tell you exactly what they're about. To wit, this is heavy fucking metal. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/12/10/exclusive-premiere-sacred-leather-urge-you-to-keep-the-fire-burning/

Rounding up some last-miunte releases from Jester Majesty, Omegavortex, Kakihara, Blood Red Throne, Tesseract, Enthroned, Sepulchral, Portal to the God Damn Blood Dimension, Upon a Burning Body and a few others. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/12/05/release-day-roundup-14/

Post-metal takes on a surreal edge in the newest track from House of Heartbeats' new album, out January 16th. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/12/03/song-premiere-a-final-dream-for-in-a-house-of-heartbeats/

Master's Hammer, Blut Aus Nord, Unlucky Morpheus, Equilibrium, Dyssidia, Struck A Nerve, The Tea Club, The Old Dead Tree, Dead And Dripping, Phobocosm, Devilhusk, Feather Mountain, Josh Freese and more. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/28/release-day-roundup-13/

Welcome to a new series of posts titled Peeling Back the Leather where we will be interviewing folks from some small(ish) labels that are operating in the metal community. First up, the ever-resilient @fiadh.bsky.social! https://loom.ly/5Vs81tM

Portal to the God Damn Blood Dimension show the powerful harmony that can come from combining emotionally resonant human voices that are breaking at the seams because they really god damn care about what they're yelling about. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/24/exclusive-premiere-14/

Winter beckons. The frost is real. Black metal abounds. Oh yeah, baby. It’s time for the penultimate Kvlt Kolvmn of 2025 with Yellow Eyes, Thormesis, and Kamra! https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/20/kvlt-kolvmn-november-2025/

It’s HEAVY. Yep. That’s it, that’s the review. Insights like this are only available on the Heavy Blog. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/13/the-grasshopper-lies-heavy-heavy/

Prog doomers Ender unveil the first glimpse at their sophomore EP with new single "The Obelisk." https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/13/track-premiere-the-end-of-faith-with-ender/

Vower burn hot, short and magnesium-bright, knocking out criticism with short, punchy and brawny tracks that still show their cerebral side enough to appeal to the prog crowd. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/12/vower-a-storm-lined-with-silver/

Visual Kei (or "Visual Style") refers to an entire scene and a music genre that began in Japan's '80s glam rock scene. Let's dive into it! https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/11/starter-kit-visual-kei/

While Occultation is a clear continuation of the rich autumnal stew of sounds established previously, it is also considerably more sinister, sounding as if that very same satiating stew has been transformed into a witch’s brew. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/10/monograf-occultation/

Rounding up new releases from Astronoid, Omnium Gatherum, Agnostic Front, Pupil Slicer, Drain, Beastwars, Town Portal, Danny Brown, Zilqy, Mad Vantage, Predeceased, Cold Steel, Godark, The Mountain Goats and more. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/07/release-day-roundup-11-7-25/

Perhaps this is a beginning of a new exploration for Astronoid. Or, perhaps, Stargod just is what it is - a fun album from a band having fun. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/06/astronoid-stargod/

Sailing across stormy November seas—about as far away from me as geographically possible— New Zealand sludge metal darlings Beastwars break the horizon after two years with their sixth studio album The Ship // The Sea. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/05/beastwars-the-ship-the-sea/

An reinvigorated iteration of Omnium Gathering's signature sound, that calls back to previous pockets of their output while also bravely forging onward after 30 years and 10 albums. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/11/04/omnium-gatherum-may-the-bridges-we-burn-light-our-way/

Rotten to the Core is back with a round-up of some of the best and weirdest aux-cord-privilege-losing releases from all reaches of the -core, punk, noise and sludge world with Maruja, Irk, Naufraage, Coilguns, and more! https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/31/rotten-to-the-core-oct-2025/

Rounding up A LOT of (extremely good) new releases, from Despised Icon, Burned in Effigy, Barren Earth, Creeper, Unprocessed, Primitive Man, Hecktic, To Octavia, Spite, Trivium, Howling Giant, Aesop Rock and even more. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/31/release-day-roundup-10-31-25/

Black metal’s true season of domination is upon us, and we couldn’t be happier to bring you some sick tunes to welcome the darkness. Have a listen, feast on the misery, and as is tradition… Stay frosty. https://loom.ly/DX6-Yk8

This album rings with the unique perspective that Solemn, the brain and heart behind Sakna, had on black metal, steeped in the greats but willing and able to push past them. Excellent second wave black metal contained herein! https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/29/exclusive-premiere-13/

Firmly embedded in the barbed-wire lined battlefield that is the modern death metal scene, these wizards from the windy city wield a mean battle-axe of riffs and hooks with the precision of a scalpel. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/28/burned-in-effigy-tyrannus-aeternum/

Those expecting Barren Path to be a strict and seamless continuation of Gridlink’s final hour may be disappointed, but the technical mastery and unrelenting intensity of the members’ previous project is on full display on Grieving. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/27/barren-path-grieving/

Hey. We never plug our Patreon. You don't really get much in return because we will never gate content behind a paywall. BUT. We take whatever is left after paying operational costs and we give it back to musicians, no strings attached. We've already helped fund three albums! patreon.com/heavyblog

"It's safe to say that this is Psychonaut's best effort to date. They always had potential but World Maker sees them hone that potential into a more cohesive, convincing, and enjoyable whole". https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/24/psychonaut-world-maker/

Rounding up lots of great new releases from The Acacia Strain, Rolo Tomassi, Soulfly, Speed, Conjurer, Dawnwalker, Psychonaut, Hail The Sun, Mastiff, Leylines, Aduanten, Shiraz Lane, Bonginator, Bad Juju and many more. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/24/release-day-roundup-10-24-25/

Death's Door opens once more and reveals excellent albums from Revocation, Amorphis, Heruvim, and Mors Principium Est! https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/23/deaths-door-october-2025/

[..] a dark, razor sharp yet brittle crystallisation of their identity as musicians and humans. A jagged, warping mirror to hold up to society and reflect themselves and their audience. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/21/conjurer-unself/

If Soulfly striped back some of the tribal elements, Chama could easily be a new Nailbomb album, and may have been even better for it. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/20/soulfly-chama/

Rounding up new release from Wings of Steel, An Abstract Illusion, The Isosceles Project, Wretched, Coroner, Biohazard, Carach Angren, Militarie Gun, Tame Impala, Unto Others, Age of Ruin, Tombs, Kaksonen, Sunn O))) and more. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/17/release-day-roundup-10-17-25/

It's that time of the year again - the end of it is on the horizon. But there is still so much amazing music being released. Let's dive into some of it with Waxwolf, Igorrr, Sundrowned, Wounds of Recollection and more! https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/16/editors-picks-october-2025/

10s across the board! Rounding up new releases from Sanguisuggabog, Testament, Perturbator, Blindfolded And Led To The Woods, Seims, Ultra Raptor, Morke, God Alone, Frayle, Gonemage, Bluttgott, and more. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/10/release-day-roundup-10-10-25/

Testament's black metal album? https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/09/testament-para-bellum/

Matsubara collects many of his interstellar crew of grindcore mercenaries to keep making jagged, intense music. The result is Barren Path. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/08/exclusive-premiere-barren-path-reveal-that-in-the-end-the-gift-is-death/

If you are looking for an album that will go toe to toe with you, that refuses to settle for one thing and insists on doing all the things - then look no further. Read our full review for God Alone's The Beep Test! https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/08/god-alone-the-beep-test/

bbrrrrmmmmm with Doomsday and Elder, November's Doom, Gawthrop and more! https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/07/doomsday-october-2025/

Rounding up new releases from AFI, Cathedral, Thrice, Today is the Day, Lite, Orbit Culture, Author & Punisher, Agriculture, Alpha Male Tea Party, 50 Lions, Raphael Weinroth-Browne, Wode, Yowie, and a tired-ass showgirl. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/03/release-day-roundup-10-3-25/

Scandinavian folk and black metal form a haunted ode to despair on the new song from Monograf. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/10/02/song-premiere-last-rites-with-the-prophet/

Revocation, Mors Principium Est, Amorphis, Rage, Elder, Dying Wish, The Vintage Caravan, Peeling Flesh, Paradox, After Earth, Wounds of Recollection, Korypheus, Irk, Lightchapter, Sundrowned and a lot of djethcore. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/09/26/release-day-roundup-9-26-25/

After Earth’s Dark Night of the Soul is a good but rarely great platter of melodic death metal, saved from the muddy mess of mediocrity by a great production job and a few standout tracks. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/09/25/after-earth-dark-night-of-the-soul/

At this point, we live in the spaces between the times in which we get to premiere new music from Dawnwalker. They have a new, one track, thirty plus minutes release coming next month. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/09/25/exclusive-premiere-dawnwalker-tease-the-between-with-new-excerpt/

Doomsday bestday

Irk's "weird" identity remains at the forefront on sophomore record The Seeing House, which is bound to garner a lot of skepticism but might also be one to careen pessimists, sending seismic shock waves down their spinal cords. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/09/23/irk-the-seeing-house/

Wounds of Recollection's newest release is the ideal post-black metal soundtrack for autumnal reflections, whether regretful or triumphant. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/09/22/wounds-of-recollection-i-found-the-love-i-was-looking-for/

If you're nostalgic for that older wave of progressive deathcore influenced by the likes of early The Contortionist and Between the Buried and Me, this is just the album premiere for you. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/09/18/album-premiere-viile-a-bottomless-curse-a-bottomless-sea-2/

Ah. FINALLY. The summer fades. Leaves wither and die. The morning dew turns to a light dusting of frost. The cold beckons. It’s black metal season. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/09/16/kvlt-kolvmn-september-2025/

Asira are back with a foray into the darker, more aggressive side of post-black metal. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/09/17/exclusive-premiere-asira-return-to-cauterize/

While this might seem like main man Gautier Serre is moving in a familiar direction to longtime Igorrr fans, Amen sees him wholeheartedly pushing his work to its absolute maximum in an incredibly ambitious way. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/09/16/igorrr-amen/

Brotthogg offer exactly the right amount of surprise in their compositions to elicit exclamations of delight, while remaining firmly rooted in a familiar soundscape of black metal’s frosty forests. https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2025/09/15/brotthogg-ved-veis-ende/