Angleški black metalci Inconcessus Lux Lucis s komadom Temples Colliding in Fire napovedujejo tretji studijski album, ki bo nosil isti naslov. Album Temples Colliding In Fire bo izšel 7. junija pri I, Voidhanger Records in prinaša komade:

From the Forge Primordial and Timeless
I Am the Crooked Blade
Temples Colliding in Fire
Meditations upon Burning Breath
Revenge of the Other God
Eternal Descent (At the Speed of Death)
And His Wounds Shall Devour the Heavens

Iz tabora hrvaških doom metalcev Old Night sporočajo, da jih je zapustil vokalist in kitarist Matej Hanžek. Vrzel v zasedbi bo na vokalu tako zapolnil njegov brat Ivan, na kitari pa se je zasedbi pridružil Rafael Cvitković (Nekroza). Spodaj lahko preberete celotno izjavo banda:

»This is a post I write with a heavy heart, yet full of hope and with a bright look on the future. After eight years with us as our lead singer and frontman, earlier this year Matej decided to step down from his duties within Old Night. I know you are hoping for some gossip or a sassy story, but there was no drama involved. He just wants to focus on other things in life and at this point, music is not a priority for him. Having said that, I wish to thank him on our behalf for everything he has done for us, all the great times we shared on stage and backstage, but also for all the long hours he has put in working on our first three records. It was a privilege and you'll always be a part of our family. Obviously, this news has taken us aback and we had to figure out how best to proceed. We took some time to see what our options were, as this is an important role we needed to fill. After much deliberation we figured out we need not look outside our band for a perfect candidate as we have one in our midst. Ivan has been singing all the backing vocals from day one and from now on he will be handling all the lead vocals. No need to worry, he’ll remain our lead guitarist as well.

The only piece of the puzzle left to figure out was who’ll play the rhythm guitars? Without further ado, we welcome Rafael Cvitković, from the Croatian death metal machine Nekroza, as our new guitarist. If you attended our concerts, you might have already seen him filling in on sound checks or working on our merch booth. Nekroza just released their debut album on InsArt Records – you can check them out and show them your support.

With our line-up complete, we will continue working on our new record and we hope we’ll have some news in that regard soon. In a couple of weeks, we’ll have our first concert with the new line-up and we can’t wait to present you the New Old Night.«

Italijanska zasedba Lacuna Coil predstavlja nov single In The Mean Time. Pri komadu je sodeloval tudi Ash Costello (New Years Day). Ali je single tudi predhodnik novega albuma, pa bomo videli kmalu.

Italijanski black metal projekt Ultio, za katerim stoji Giorgio Barroccu, bo 23. maja pri Brucia Records izdal EP Cor, s katerega sta znana že dva od šestih komadov:

Spikes
The Grey Inferno
Wretchedness
A Thousand Times More
Looking For Eyes
Cor

Organizatorji dogodkov Hangtime Agency sporočajo, da je nedeljski koncert zasedb Grima in Ultar v zagrebškem klubu Močvara odpovedan. Odpovedana sta tudi koncerta v Beogradu in Novem Sadu ter tudi 40 drugih nastopov skupin po Evropi. Zapletlo se je namreč pri vizah. Izjava banda:

»Dear followers of the Grima cult, sometimes even the biggest and oldest spruce tree can't withstand (in)human acts. There is a point where we have to bow down and accept what cannot be changed.
After 4 months of non-stop efforts from everyone involved behind the scenes, the best we got is a 30 days stay in the Schengen area. We have applied for a 90 days arts science visa, which we have been granted in past years, but not this time, the reasons have not been communicated to us.
We did everything we could do, Asgaardian Events and even Les Acteurs de L'Ombre Productions helped us as much as possible, but all we got are these 30 days for now, which we shall use to the fullest.
Our first show will be on the April 25 in Switzerland and the last one will be on the May 22 in Paris. Any other show will be cancelled. There will be no further rescheduling. We will be happy to see each one of our cultists at these shows. We won't have any other Central European tours in the near future, except a few festivals next year, which we are already negotiating with.«

Deathcorovci Chelsea Grin sporočajo, da je vrzel na bobnarskem stolčku zapolnil Josh Miller. Zasedba se je pred kratkim razšla z bobnarjem Pablom Viverosom in tako je nov polnopravni član zasedbe postal Josh. Izjava banda:

»We hope everyone has been doing well; we have some updates. We have parted ways with our fill-in drummer, Nathan Pearson. We sincerely value his friendship, as well as his devotion to furthering his craft and bringing his all to the stage. We truly look forward to watching his drumming career continue to blossom and advance, and value his time with us.

Furthermore, the band and Pablo have mutually agreed to separate. Pablo is one of our oldest friends, the life of the party, a masterful player, and a powerful creative. After Pablo spent some years away from the band, we all came together and realized that personal visions had diverged through time. We will always wish the very best for him, and seriously value all that he brought not only to the band, but to our lives. Nothing but tremendous love for him, always. We also encourage everyone to show support for him, Jaek and Alex’s new band, Ameonna.

Moving forward, we are proud and excited to announce that Josh Miller will be joining Chelsea Grin. It goes without saying that the future is bright – you will hear it in our music and witness it in our performances.

We keep very much to ourselves at this stage in our lives, but when we check in we want each of you to know that you are deeply and sincerely valued – we are so grateful for the opportunity to do what we love. We cannot wait to bring more of our vision to you all. Thank you for the years of support and love, and we will see you on our current tour supporting Fit For A King.«

Italijanski black metalci Darkend so postali del seznama založbe Time To Kill Records. Band bo pri založbi tako še letos izdal peti album z naslovom Viaticum. Točen datum izida še ni znan.

Thrash metal band Aoryst bo 2. maja izdal prvenec Relics Of Time. Pred izidom albuma pa se lahko o hitrih in razgibanih thrash ritmih prepričate s komadom Call of the Void, za katerega je band posnel tudi besedilni video. Komadi na ploščku so:

Deterministic Chaos
Call of the Void
ETNO
Hybrid Forms
Extractor of Death
Exogenesis (Instrumental)
Oceans Below
Anoxia

Kot smo januarja poročali, je v 78. letu starosti umrl Tony Clarkin, kitarist, ustanovitelj britanskih veteranov Magnum. Že takrat se je šušljalo, da to pomeni tudi konec za zasedbo, ki je to zdaj tudi uradno potrdila. Izjava vokalista Boba Catleyja:

»Hello, everybody. Bob here. All right. I wish I didn't have to tell you this, but I really can't carry on with Tony not here anymore. Please forgive me, and I hope you can understand how I feel. I've been thinking about it a lot lately.
Since we lost Tone, we lost our guiding light, the magnum force behind the band, our songwriter, our producer, our guitar player. He was everything to the band. He was everything to me. For the last 50 years, we never went anywhere without each other. On tour, in the studio, I was at his side constantly, working on stuff with him. I had a wonderful life with Tony. But now it's all too much for me, people. I can't carry on without Tony.
I may pop up in some other shape or form in the near future – you never know – but I can't keep going on like this. It's far too sad; it's all too sad.
So, I hope you understand. You've been fantastic – the best audience ever. You kept this band going year after year, album after album, and we thank you for that.
So, be good. Keep Tony's music in your heart always. I know I will. I will always carry MAGNUM inside me. And I will always have Tony Clarkin beside me wherever I go.
I love you. You've been brilliant. But it's time for me to bow out now. It's my last curtain call, okay? I'll see you sometime. Be good. Cheers. Bye-bye.«

Nemške heavy metal legende Accept niti približno ne počivajo. Tokrat predstavljajo videospot za skladbo The Reckoning s prihajajočega albuma Humanoid, ki izide 26. aprila pri Napalm Records. To bo njihov 18. studijski album po vrsti, obsega pa te naslove:

Diving into Sin
Humanoid
Frankenstein
Man Up
The Reckoning
Nobody Gets out Alive
Ravages of Time
Unbreakable
Mind Games
Straight up Jack
Southside of Hell

Sporočamo, da je umrl Dennis Cornelius, vokalist in kitarist doom metalcev Memory Driven. Naj počiva v miru. Izjava banda:

»It is with indescribable melancholy that words cannot express in which I make this announcement. Dennis Cornelius, our long time musical brother, in this band, and in life, has passed away. We cannot begin to process this immense loss, as we just send love and prayers to his family and loved ones. Thank you for so many years of such passionate and inspirational music. It has been such an honor to be a part of this journey with you. Thank you sooooo much for sharing that with us all, Dennis. You and Jyme are together again. We love you, Dennis, our brother.«

Psihedelični temačneži Lares bodo 12. aprila pri Argonauta Records izdali drugi celovečerec z naslovom Et In Arcadia Ego. Kaj pravi zasedba o prihajajoči izdaji, pa lahko preberete spodaj:

»The album is an accidental concept born from the first session we managed to play together after a long and frustrating break necessitated by lockdowns, band members in high risk categories, and mental illness. Without looking for it we found death, isolation, boredom, uncertainty, rage, and an energy that we decided instantly to try to capture and preserve as it was. No additives, no major editing. In the uncertainty of the times, we began to collect recording equipment, slowly transforming our rehearsal space into a recording studio. We developed a ritual of playing and replaying, without click, the whole 27 minutes, until we got better than close to the original, to the perfect simulacra. There is a bonus track included in the album called '10 Hygiea' that is part of the soundtrack of 'Music Appreciation', a short horror movie we collaborated with.«

Angleški ekstremneži Cradle Of Filth se potikajo v studiu, kjer pripravljajo material za 14. dolgometražec. Novico je v svojem profilu Instagram razkrila vokalistka in klaviaturistka Zoë M. Federoff:

»I am beyond humbled to have been allowed to contribute vocals and/or keys to many of the songs on this album. Dani and the guys showed a lot of faith in me for my first album with the gang, and I went in extremely nervous and hellbent on making them all proud. Thank God Dani Filth and producer Scott Atkins are so good at calming my nerves! That was the most fun and relaxing studio session I've had in ages!

Fourteen will be something very special, a distinctly new chapter, and it quite satisfies both the musician and the long-time Cradle fan inside me. A piece of each of our souls lives audibly in it. Prepare yourselves, Filthy family!«

Veljak norveške black metal scene Abbath se letošnje poletje znova odpravlja na turnejo po Evropi. Turneja z imenom Return to the Raven Realms Tour bo nekaj posebnega zlasti zaradi tega, ker se bo Abbath z bandom sprehodil skozi cel katalog komadov, ki jih je kot član legendarnih Immortal soustvaril med 1992 in 2009. 1. avgusta se bo karavana ustavila tudi na Dunaju, in kot pravi Abbath, bo celotna turneja nekaj posebnega:

»I can’t wait to get back on stage this summer to perform some old favorites that I haven’t played for a long, long time. Mark my words – it’s going to be loud and epic!«

Nemška pagan folk zasedba Waldkauz je objavila video za skladbo Pagans of our Time.