April is the cruelest month, it has been said. I don’t know about that. But it just might be the crudest, rudest, lewdest and loudest month — if these new tracks are anything to go by. Welcome back to the Grindhouse. Prepare to die:
Deadwood | Heretic
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Montreal deathcore outfit Deadwood have unveiled their most harrowing work to date with Heretic, the lead single from their upcoming EP Rituals of A Dying Light, slated for release later this year. The accompanying video plunges viewers into a nightmarish realm that perfectly complements the band’s brutal, fast-paced sonic assault. “This is the first song we’ve written for the next EP and one of the ones we’re most proud of,” they say. “It’s fast, heavy, and technical. We are a very intense show with a very percussive and tight guitar sound. We have a lot of samples between the songs to create a horror movie atmosphere. The fans go back home with a slap in the face. Heretic represents our darkest material yet.”
Aittala | Machines (Prologue)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The songs on Machines were originally written and demoed between 1990 and 1997 on an analog four-track cassette recorder. Now, Aittala have revived these tracks, preserving their raw essence while enhancing them with modern production techniques. The album offers a nostalgic yet powerful experience, blending early progressive metal influences with storytelling-driven lyrics. Formed in 1991 in Holland, Aittala quickly gained recognition in the Dutch metal scene, opening for bands like The Gathering and Sadist. After a hiatus, frontman Eric Aittala resurrected the band in 2008, releasing six albums. Now, with Machines, Aittala boldly step into the past, bringing long-lost tracks to life with a modern, crushing edge. This dynamic duo of Aittala (guitars, vocals) and Gary ‘Zeus’ Smith (drums) (The Fifth, ex-Mr. Blackwell) continue to write, record, and tour, bringing their distinct brand of heavy, immersive metal to fans worldwide.”
Morningstvr | The Last Of The Northern Kingdoms
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Morningstvr’s single The Last Of The Northern Kingdoms showcases the cold, atmospheric synths, thunderous drums and anguished vocals that have become hallmarks of his distinctive sound. “The Last Of The Northern Kingdoms gives reference to one of Tolkien’s works, thus telling the story of my origins,” he says. “This one stood out to me as the lead song because of its epic changes, the emotion it gives, and how heavy it became as I finished writing it.” The Last Of The Northern Kingdoms has overarching themes of medieval lore, ancient battles, and fallen empires. Sam Tchortov, the Russian-American musician behind Morningstvr, crafts a narrative that bridges his previous work In Memoriam Of The Blvck Wind with this new chapter in his Unholy Trinity saga. The visual aesthetic of the music video complements the music’s frigid atmosphere, depicting desolate winter scapes and crumbling medieval architecture that reinforce the track’s themes of lost glory and forgotten kingdoms. Drawing from his diverse influences, including Darkthrone, Hulder, and JRR Tolkien’s works, Tchortov has created a piece that stands as both a powerful single and an integral part of the larger narrative that A Fate Engraved aims to tell.”
World On Alert | They Came From The Pleiades (ft. Alex Walsh & Costa Skoulikas)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Canadian progressive thrash metal outfit World on Alert share their latest video for They Came From The Pleiades, featuring guitars from Alex Walsh and Mutank’s Costa Skoulikas. Encompassing everything from Exodus-like riffs to proggy Tool and Dream Theater themes, this is a heavy instrumental. They Came From The Pleiades appears on World On Alert‘s debut self-titled EP released in June 2024. During the pandemic, founder Gino LaPosta (CroMagnum) created his passion project to explore diverse musical styles and express deeply personal themes. He recruited musicians and friends from the Montreal metal scene, including Max Rex (CroMagnum), Justyn Vynn (Orchad), Armen Apekian (Ashes of Eden), John Vincelli (Void Within) and others. “This is a very diverse album with many different styles from prog to thrash to even pop rock,” LaPosta says. “The theme of this record is about standing up for yourself and fighting for what’s right, whether it is an illness or just internal demons.”
Frogg | Interspecific Hybrid Species
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “After unelashing their debut album Eclipse in March, New York technical modern-metal crew Frogg exhibit the new animated video Interspecific Hybrid Species. Full of proggy goodness, the track has a strong message about climate change coming for us all. Interspecific Hybrid Species is an intensely proggy, mind-bending epic that weaves intricate chaos with relentless precision, delivering a whirlwind of technical wizardry and amphibious fury. Frogg’s first full-length features 10 tracks of heavy, raw, progressive, death, and avant-garde thinking metal. The band don’t operate in one genre all the time, and Eclipse is all the proof you need. Adds bassist Ethan Emery: It’s “a sonic eclipse where every genre collides — progressive, technical, and just enough death to keep your neck sore for weeks.”
Slug Comparison | Wish To Adapt
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Known for his progressive work in the Canadian band Fen, vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter Doug Harrison announces the third album, A Battle to the End Fought on the Edge of a Knife, from his solo project Slug Comparison, due out in May. Written by Harrison along with vocals, guitar, bass, and programming, he is joined by drummer Flavio Cirillo (Art of Dying, Puddle of Mudd) with mixing done by Ben Kaplan (Biffy Clyro, Bend Sinister) and mastered by Brock McFarlane at CPS Mastering (Mother Mother, Corb Lund). Today Slug Comparison unveil the album’s opening track Wish To Adapt. The track is about reaching the end of yourself, when you know what you’re going to do in virtually every situation, and you’re bored, and you want to change, and you wonder if you can, if you can break out of yourself. This song captures the yearning that might lead to the breaking of patterns. Says Harrison: “My past work includes a lot of acoustic guitars and delicate layering. The new material is all electric, has more upfront rock production, and is more riff-heavy. I lean into my early influence of grunge, but this record also has touches of prog and alt-rock.”
Obsidian Skies | Unmade By The Ocean
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Boulder progressive-metal duo Obsidian Skies just released their new single Unmade By The Ocean, a symphonic journey through a post-apocalyptic underwater world. The single marks the first offering from their upcoming full-length. “Unmade By The Ocean is heavy-hitting, rhythmic, and technically challenging, while still maintaining a very melodic core,” they say. “With soaring solos on guitar, bass, and piano, it is a song with a unique and diverse sound. Lyrically, it tells the story of a small group of people who spent the years of Earth’s apocalypse underground, and must now come to terms with their new reality and find hope where there is none.” Born from the creative partnership of Logan (guitar) and Tim (bass/vocals), former members of the band Endlight (2014-2017), Obsidian Skies emerged during the pandemic as the duo reunited to forge a new musical path.”
