It's been a mixed week for heavy metal as Ozzy Osbourne revealed he has been forced to cancel his live comeback at Power Trip festival, admitting that his body "just isn't ready". There was a silver lining at least, and that was the confirmation from organisers that metal gods Judas Priest would be taking his place, headlining alongside AC/DC on October 7. But, even with all of that going on, the new music is still flooding in.
So first, the results of last week's vote! It was a tight race, but in the end Orbit Culture proved that their ascendant star couldn't be stopped as they beat out brilliant new songs from Asking Alexandria and Ghost with the epic From The Inside, yet more proof that band is seriously on the rise right now.
As ever, this week we've hunted high and low to find you the very best new metal songs around, from the genre-spanning approach of Corey Taylor and Japan's SiM to Svalbard's emotional blackened post-hardcore and a healthy dose of prog metal from Tesseract and Voyager. There's also brutal offerings from Thy Art Is Murder and Werewolves, as well as a stoner rock'n'roll rampage from Margarita Witch Cult. But don't just take our word for it - check out the songs yourself below and don't forget to vote for your favourite!
Corey Taylor - Post Traumatic Blues
With recent interviews suggesting that Stone Sour won’t be returning any time soon, Corey Taylor has nonetheless tapped into some of the rock enormity of his other band on new solo single Post Traumatic Blues, albeit with a Slipknot-style snarl that shows the singer’s sheer versatility. The result is a rager with a real triumphant feel, suggesting that Taylor’s upcoming CMF2 album - out September 15 - will have as much sonic adventurousness as its predecessor.
Tesseract - War Of Being
Five years since Tesseract released Sonder, the prog metal heroes have announced their fifth album War Of Being will be with us on September 15, as well as unveiling the epic-length title-track as the album’s lead single. War Of Being shows the band’s ambitions haven’t lessened over time; a cinematic epic with blaring riffs, dexterous fills and floating, weightless melodies perfectly accentuated by an epic sci-fi style video that sees two warriors in samurai garb battling in a ruined coliseum. God, it’s good to have them back.
Svalbard - Faking It
Across three stellar albums of blackened post-hardcore, Svalbard have never been a band shy to confront tough issues or complex emotional subjects, so no surprise that Faking It - the lead single from new album The Weight Of The Mask, out October 6th - continues that fine form. As ever, even while tackling the bleakest of subjects the band find ways of offering undeniable catharsis, the song’s explosive energy feeling like you’re letting loose in the eye of a massive storm. Stick it on loud and drown the world out.
Thy Art Is Murder - Keres
As befitting their status as heavyweights in Australia’s deathcore scene, Thy Art Is Murder’s latest single Keres is an absolute colossus of anthemic brutality. The song’s titanic stomp feels ready-made for massive audiences, while vocalist CJ McMahon invokes all the fury of a wrathful deity, the song even offering a death metal take on gang vocals to add another dimension of roar-along brilliance to the song. Taken from their upcoming album Godlike - due September 15 - it’s fair to say Thy Art Is Murder won’t be left in the dust as deathcore claws its way back to prominence.
Voyager - Ultraviolet
It’s no secret that Aussie prog metallers Voyager know their way around big hooks and synth-driven melodies, but new single Ultraviolet shows the band know how to get down and dirty with guttural heaviness when the time calls for it too. Teaming up with Make Them Suffer’s Sean Harmanis, much of the track feels well within Voyager’s wheelhouse of 80s style rock, but grows ever more frenetic and shuddering until Sean comes in with a vicious snarl that perfectly matches the chaotic, malevolent edge the song’s tone takes on.
SiM - RED
Back home in Japan, SiM have been a big deal for a while now, their last three albums achieving top ten positions in the album charts. With 2020’s Thank God, There Are Hundreds Of Ways To Kill Enemies reaching number two in the charts, it stands to reason that the band will be hoping their newly announced Playdead can take that top spot, while the band’s debut UK performances at Download Festival and a sold-out O2 Islington suggest their time as Japan’s best kept metal secret might be up, especially considering how punchy and vibrant new single RED is, playing with nu metal motifs whilst maintaining an ear for massive sing-along choruses.
Of Virtue - Sober
Of Virtue are no strangers to radio-friendly metal anthems, but Sober feels especially - and somewhat ironically, given its subject matter - addictive as the band lay it on thick with hooks and massive choruses. Taken from their upcoming album Omen - due for release September 29, the track is a headlong plunge into pop sensibilities, conveying a sense of enormity that must surely match the band’s ambitions.
Moodring - SHI=DEATH
Taken from the freshly released Your Light Fades Away EP, Moodring’s SHI=DEATH sees the Floridian alt-metal group push their sound further out, experimenting with juddering, almost electronica-infused bursts of extremity alongside massive melodic choruses that feel more pop than their usual shoegaze. The fact they pop up in one of the band’s heaviest songs to date is testament to just how diverse the band’s sound is becoming as they continue to evolve.
Werewolves - Destroyer Of Worlds
Now on their fourth album since their 2020 debut The Dead Are Screaming, Australia’s Werewolves aren’t wasting any time in sharing their sinister death metal vision with the world. Where the band’s previous singles My Enemies Look And Sound Like Me and Under The Ground were all about slavering, rabid pace, Destroyer Of Worlds is all about slow menace, building to an explosive payoff of visceral nastiness.
Margarita Witch Cult - Annihilation
With a name like Margarita Witch Cult and the fact the band hail from the Sabbath homeland of Birmingham, it’s fair to say that Margarita Witch Cult probably know their way around a doom riff. But Annihilation sees the band embrace a Motorhead style assault on the senses, going hell for leather with some sweaty, greasy rock’n’roll that feels like lightning shot through the spine.
