Upcoming Metal Releases: 9/26/2021-10/2/2021
Here are the new (and recent) metal releases for the week of September 26th, 2021 to October 2nd, 2021. Releases reflect proposed North American scheduling, if available. Expect to see most of these albums on shelves or distros on Fridays.
See something we missed or have any thoughts? Let us know in the comments. Plus, as always, feel free to post your own shopping lists. Happy digging.
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Upcoming Releases
Enslaved — Caravans to the Outer Worlds | Nuclear Blast | Progressive Black Metal | Norway
Enslaved’s new EP (a rare occurrence for the band) is packed with expressive and explosive black metal—to be honest, more material so soon after their last full-length is almost too much too fast when you stack on the set of live albums they also put out. But then again, Utgard never really had a chance to shine thanks to the pandemic, so Caravans to the Outer Worlds should serve as a reminder to go hit that one again too.
–Ted Nubel
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Ministry — Moral Hygiene | Nuclear Blast | Industrial Rock + Metal | United States (El Paso, TX)
I dig the Stooges cover on this—certainly Ministry isn’t breaking any boundaries anymore, but they’re pretty comfortable in this niche of politically-minded industrial rock.
–Ted Nubel
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Full of Hell — Garden of Burning Apparitions | Relapse Records | Powerviolence + Grindcore + Death Metal | United States
In the same amount of time it’ll take you to read this, you could listen to “Industrial Messiah Complex” and let Full of Hell melt your brain. That’s a much better use of a minute and a half.
–Colin Dempsey
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Churchburn — Genocidal Rite | Translation Loss Records | Blackened Sludge + Doom Metal | United States
From Tom Campagna’s track premiere of “Sin of Angels”:
Rhode Island’s Churchburn return with another blackened sludge bomb of an album, Genocidal Rite. The band, comprised of Dave Suzuki (ex-Vital Remains) Ray McCaffrey (ex-Grief), Timmy St. Amour (Howl) and Derek Moniz are here to make album number three their heaviest to date. Clocking in at just over half an hour, Genocidal Rite can operate slowly and at times, beautifully during its entire run time—their sludge/black/death/doom hybrid soars, even, which isn’t how one would normally describe this genre.
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Caveman Cult — Blood and Extinction | Nuclear War Now! Productions | Black + Death Metal | United States (Miami, FL)
There’s a cyclical consistency to the over-the-top blasting madness of Blood and Extinction, and although I’m not sure what exactly creates this condition, it’s what makes good war metal really good: you can sink into the utter madness, borne away on a tide of snare drums and half-heard riffs.
–Ted Nubel
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Kryptos — Force of Danger | AFM Records | Heavy + Thrash Metal | India
The super-sharp guitar work and up-tempo pacing here find a slightly unusual, but extremely satisfactory companion in the sleazy, snarled vocals. It’s very much as if the motorcycle-riding, leather-clad persona of Motörhead-inspired speed metal has blasted off into space, bringing technological devastation while chugging no less whiskey than before.
–Ted Nubel
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Fiat Nox — In Contemptuous Defiance | Personal Records | Black Metal | Germany
Resplendently layered in melody and mood, In Contemptuous Defiance is an intriguing wellspring of black metal. Call-and-response vocals on “Amok Hymn” show off the band’s explosive dynamics, while “Those Shunned Hills” dabbles in atmospheric ambience.
–Ted Nubel
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Light of the Morning Star — Charnel Noir | Debemur Morti Productions | Gothic Metal | United Kingdom (London, England)
An intoxicatingly dark blend of gothic rock/metal, doom, black metal, and more, Light of the Morning Star’s latest album is big on mood and overwhelming atmosphere. Whereas a lot of gothic metal tends to be vocal-focused and hooky, Charnel Noir intones lyrics like the chanting of a choir, just another layer in their dark orchestrations.
–Ted Nubel
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Crystal Spiders — Morieris | Ripple Music | Stoner + Doom Metal | United States (Raleigh, NC)
From Ted Nubel’s track premiere of “Maelstrom”:
The duo’s debut album Molt demonstrated that not only did they sound a little different from their voluminous competition, but they also had the songwriting chops to back up their approach, providing sleazy, groovy doom with a retro-horror flair that wasn’t just surface-level. They’re poised to release their next album Morieris in October, offering the same smoky spookiness with a few new tricks.
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Duel — In Carne Persona | Heavy Psych Sounds | Doom Metal + Stoner Rock | United States (Austin, TX)
To be honest, the album art on this one is probably a step down from the excellently bizarre Valley of Shadows, which we highlighted in our 2019 album art ‘best-of‘. That being said, Duel’s riff-fueled engine is burning brighter than ever, radiating with a heat and energy that can’t be imitated.
–Ted Nubel
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Gloosh — Sylvan Coven | Independent| Black Metal | Russia
Like a carefully maintained weapon, Sylvan Coven doesn’t sacrifice beauty for impact: though the riffs here evoke images of magical wildernesses, they also conjure thoughts of the lurking dangers within.
–Ted Nubel
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Gràb — Zeitlang | Trollmusic | Black Metal | Germany
Featuring ex-Dark Fortress vocalist Grant, Zeitlang is a concept album about a secluded old man reflecting on his life. Might not sound riveting, but it’s a whirlwind flight through the riffiest and most headbang-friendly forms of black metal.
–Ted Nubel
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Lavaborne — Black Winged Gods | Wise Blood Records | Heavy + Doom Metal | United States (Indianapolis, IN)
Lavaborne has taken a while to come out with more material since their 2017 demo, but the wait was clearly worth it. Self-described as “power doom,” Lavaborne brings twisted riffs with traditional metal heritage and doom flair, then adds in unusually low-timbre vocals courtesy of Chris Latta (ex-Spirit Division) and punchy drums with double-bass aggression. Suffice it to say that Lavaborne are more focused on delivering a high songs-to-riffs ratio than sticking to ‘traditional’ pacing.
–Ted Nubel
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Megalith Levitation — Void Psalms | Aesthetic Death | Stoner + Doom Metal | Russia
Stoner/doom metal laced with pyschedelia; Void Psalms moves slowly and deliberately like a hypnotist’s watch, luring you into its spell with delicate twists and turns.
–Ted Nubel
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Sadistic Force — Aces Wild | Independent | Black + Thrash Metal | United States (Austin, TX)
Black/thrash metal with a little more ‘fun’ than usual—from the colorful album art to the righteous leads within the punishing tracks, Sadistic Force is out to pillage as much as any other black-thrasher band out there, but they have their own style while doing it.
–Ted Nubel
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Seltar — Autoscopia | Beverina | Black Metal | United States
Atmospheric, almost glittering, the evocative Autoscopia very clearly brings to mind the feeling of light filtering through trees and the wonder that instills. It’s also purportedly a side project of Windfaerer, though I’m not sure which members are involved.
–Ted Nubel
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Tempter’s Sacrament — Temptation Steel Scourge | Invictus Productions | Thrash Metal | United States
Three nouns in the album title? Yeah, it’s gonna rip. Stay tuned for our EP premiere on Tuesday!
–Ted Nubel
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Laang 冷 — Xinteng 心疼 | Talheim Records | Black Metal | Taiwan
冷 describes his music as ‘terror black metal’, drawing from the horrors experienced while he lay comatose after being shot in the head during a carjacking. Given this context, the frustration in 冷’s hardcore-laden vocals comes from a place of tangible helplessness. The entire project surges with anger as a means of conveying his trauma.
–Colin Dempsey
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Etxegiña — Herederos del Silencio | Independent | Black Metal | France
Herederos del Silencio is the story of Spanish journalist Eduardo de Guzmán, who was sentenced to death in a concentration camp for reporting on the state-led violence on the village of Casas Viejas during the Spanish Civil War. Turns out epic black metal is the perfect method for Etxegiña’s narrative pathos.
–Colin Dempsey
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