It's beginning to look a lot like... erm, mid-November, actually. But more accurately, end of year is officially upon us. Yes, there's still some massive albums coming out - Linkin Park, Poppy - and some to come - Opeth - but on the whole it feels like 2024 is quietly prepping itself for a good lie down.
Not just yet, mind. Here are the results of last week's vote! There was some serious sonic heft in the running for last week's best new track and that's reflected in the polling. Recently rebranded black metallers Patriarkh (formerly one of the Batushkas) took third place, while Germany's zombie-loving troupe Dominum took second. But it was London's own nu metal revivalists Red Method who took top spot, their team-up with Bloodywood's Jayant Bhadula proving irresistible.
It's all to play for this week - especially as all things must end, including our weekly round-ups of tracks (for 2024, at least) - as we bring you new music from the likes of Machine Head, Poppy, Lord Of The Lost, Destruction and more. We've hunted high and low to find some interesting, vicious and frankly unhinged new sounds to bring to your ears, so don't forget to vote for your favourite in the poll below. Happy listening!
Machine Head - These Scars Won't Define Us (ft. In Flames, Lacuna Coil and Unearth)
Machine Head go Wu Tang? The Bay Area brutes aren't getting back in touch with their nu metal flirtations of the late 90s, but rather opening the floor to future tourmates In Flames, Lacuna Coil and Unearth for a massive collab that sees the groups all unite under a typically hale and furious MH track. The band also revealed they're eyeing up a new album release in April, giving fans plenty to look forward to in 2025.
Poppy - The Center's Falling Out
Hyper-wha? Stylistic chameleon, Poppy has traded away hyperpop for frenzied, furious metalcore on new single The Center's Falling Out. Although it still has massive hooks, there's a jagged ege to the sound Poppy is embracing on this new single, an ultra-heavy offering from freshly released new album Negative Spaces.
Lord Of The Lost & Feuerschwanz - Lords Of Fyre
Just when you think Lord Of The Lost can't get any more theatrical, they go and release a song all about flames. More than that though, they've teamed up with fellow pyromaniacs (and Germans) Feuerschwanz for a thumping track that feels perfectly suited to the massive crowds both bands have found themselves facing these days. We're calling it early, but the Lords Of Fyre tour might be the maddest bill of 2025.
Vukovi - Misty Ecstasy
Scottish alt-metal newcomers Vukovi prove as vibrant as ever on latest single Misty Ecstasy. As its title suggests, there's a sense of weightless euphoria to the track's bounding melodies, a taste of what's to come on their upcoming new album My God Has Got A Gun, due January 24.
Destruction - Destruction
When you finally decide to release a self-titled song after 42 years, you know it's got to be a ripper. Thankfully, that's exactly what German thrashers Destruction have offered with this latest single, announcing their forthcoming new album Birth Of Malice for a March 7 release with a rip-roaring blast of Teutonic thrash. Riffs fly, vocals snarl and shriek and heads will bang en masse to this pure showcase of 80s speed brilliance. As they say - if it ain't broke...
Harakiri For The Sky - Heal Me
Harakiri For The Sky have always had a knack for finding beauty in devastation. Latest single Heal Me is par for the course then; gorgeously immersive and atmospheric post-black metal crossing over into the realms of emotionally caustic post-hardcore. Taken from upcoming album Scorched Earth, due January 24, its a fair shout that Harakiri will be kicking off 2025 in epic fashion.
Eidola - The Faustian Spirit
With nimble fretwork, massive hooks and some surprisingly vicious turns, Eidola are laying out the stall for an ambitious new release when Eviscerate arrives on January 17. Coming on like a cross between the anthemia of Coheed And Cambria, the technical brilliance of Polyphia and the sheer unprecitability of Periphery, Eidola's journey from post-hardcore to prog metal excellence looks complete.
Chaos Reigns - Violent Delights
Living up to their name - and its song title - Chaos Reigns' latest single Violent Delights is a wild, thundering blast of hardcore punk energy. Taken from the Sweet Violence EP that's coming on November 30, the track plays fast and loose with the boundaries between punk and metal, bouncing along with an unstoppable force that brings to mind the likes of The Bronx and Every Time I Die with some slips toward metalcore-adjacent elements as the guitars grow more technical, even chucking a "blegh" in for good measure.
Machtklang - Panzerbatallion Prometheus
You don't have to go far these days to find brilliant one-person black metal projects; now you can add Machtklang to the list. Masterminded by Christina "Herrin" Earlymorn, Machtklang are actually a spin-off from her previous group Finsterort. Herrin's new project carries much of the same low-fi, incendiary force that characterised Finsterort's original five albums, a swirling blast of blackened nastiness with religious themes in its crosshairs that will surely please kvlt purists. The band's self-titled debut arrives December 24th - just in time for Christmas.
Within Destruction - Kanashibari
Slovenian brutes Within Destruction gnash their fangs on new single Kanashibari. Blending massive melodic choruses and electronic elements with the ferocity of deathcore, the track captrues some of the multifaceted approach the group take, swinging for the fences with wild-eyed fury.
Askin - Addicted To Pain
Nu and contemporary metal collide in Askin's new single Addicted To Pain. The Larvian group's latest single balances soaring melodies with an insistent thumping physicality that shows off their range, additional rapping adding a nu metal flourish that makes it all feel like Spiritbox by way of Linkin Park.
Mantar - Halsgericht
With an album title like Post-Apocalyptic Depression, its readily apparent that Mantar haven't suddenly decided to find the silver lining in life and become shiny happy people. Halsgericht is a typically seething slab of bared-tooth, blackened nastiness from the two-piece, the perfect primer for what promises to be another album of nihilistic, headbangable fury.
