RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/beggarsbliss What a lovely little treat this self-titled effort by the Derby-based hard rockers Beggars Bliss is. Immediately accessible and full of meaty motifs and bluesy riffs, this disc is an effective slab of vintage rock with staying power and depth to it. The song arrangements often impress and the compositional skill…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://linktr.ee/drawnintodescent The Belgian black metal squadron Drawn Into Descent (whose harrowing musical resume is rather impressive in terms of quality, I might add) have returned and unleashed a punishing new opus entitled Onrust, which sees the outfit exploring even darker and more unnerving territory than previously. From the epic howl of suffering…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://linkin.bio/studfarmmafia/ Sweet mother of lord, this is some incredibly catchy and infectious stuff, and rarely has an EP struck these ears as being so uplifting and . . . well, entertaining, really. This is just what I needed today, but we should probably discuss its musical qualities (of which there are many)…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://norwegianmalum.bandcamp.com/album/from-the-voids Considering the many fabulous aspects and overall quality of the harrowing EP titled Towards Nothingness (2025) and the full-length assault In Nauseum (2023) by the Norwegian black metal entity known as Malum, it should come as no surprise that many of us have eagerly awaited and looked forward to the group’s…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://glasblume.bandcamp.com/album/city-in-rain Oslo’s Glasblume is something quite out of the ordinary and a wonderful addition to the alternative music scene, which is evident in every nook and cranny of the eleven deftly executed compositions that their deeply atmospheric debut LP appropriately titled City in Rain is comprised of. Honestly, I could not think…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://papercrownmusic.bandcamp.com/album/letters What a lovely and heartwarming gem Letters is, and what a fantastic and memorable encounter Paper Crown is for that matter. Not being familiar with the entity beforehand, I had no idea what to expect from this eclectic duo, but what we have here is a superbly crafted and deeply evocative…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://tusm-rke.bandcamp.com/album/balderdom Few if any acts are as musically devious, lyrically interesting, deeply eclectic, and all-out quirky as the inimitable Tusmørke are, and those are obviously traits and characteristics to be loved and admired. Whenever they unearth new material, you know that it is going to be positively strange and surreal yet never…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://viadoloris.bandcamp.com/album/guerre-et-paix Conceived, meticulously crafted, and perfectly nursed in solitude, this majestic and heartfelt opus by Via Doloris, which is the brainchild of former Satyricon live guitarist Gildas Le Pape, is a most welcome surprise. Across seven inspired compositions and forty-eight thrilling minutes, Le Pape and renowned drummer Frost (1349, Satyricon) guide us…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://edgedcircleproductions.bandcamp.com/album/psychodelic-darkness What we have here is a most interesting musical proposition. Hailing from Chile and nursed in oppressive gloom by mastermind (and multi-instrumentalist) Witchfucker and drummer Thoth, this short and concise slab of hellish black metal infused with speed metal influences titled Psychodelic Darkness is nothing short of a perverted musical feast…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://www.blackstonecherry.com/ Kentucky rockers Black Stone Cherry have released some impressive albums and EPs in the past, and on top of that of all that, they are also a killer live act and know perfectly well how to work the stage and the audience. Their upcoming offering titled Celebrate is nothing short of…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/JoelHoekstra13 Joel Hoekstra (Whitesnake, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Revolution Saints, Cher) is not only one of the hardest working musicians out there but also one of the most talented and productive that I can think of, and a brief glance at his impressive resume should tell you all you need to know about this…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://pymlicomusic.bandcamp.com/ The classy Norwegian outfit Pymlico never fail to stir the senses and tick all the right jazz prog boxes whenever they gift us with new music, and the upcoming album titled No More, No Less is a perfect example of how to bring inspired and forward-thinking sounds to life in a…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://gjenferdbergen.bandcamp.com/album/black-smoke-rising Just when I thought that it would be impossible for this quartet to improve on their flawless self-titled debut offering from 2024, they go ahead and do something like this, i.e. bringing a lovely crafted piece of magical hard rock with vintage vibes to life and doing it in such a…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://originalasia.com/ Legendary prog rockers Asia returned to the stage last year with a reconfigured line-up featuring original keyboardist Geoff Downes, world-class guitarist John Mitchell, bass player extraordinaire Harry Whitley, and the fabulous drummer that is Virgil Donati. At the renowned venue known as Trading Boundaries in April 2025, the quartet performed the…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://primalucerock.bandcamp.com/album/way-of-perfection The French prog metal act known as Primaluce released the impressive Dark Mirrors LP last year, which generated quite a lot of well-deserved praise, and it is therefore a thrill to see and hear that they have maintained their momentum and crafted an equally worthwhile offering in the shape of the…
Photo: Ross Sewage The long-running and legendary death metal hounds known as Exhumed are about to unleash their brand-new onslaught titled Red Asphalt via Relapse Records on February 20, and it is an inspired and utterly stimulating piece of work that sees the veteran act on fine form and as musically potent, vile, and entertaining…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://ihxhi.bandcamp.com/album/unheeding-sun The talented multi-instrumentalist L.R. Måløy (If Nothing Is, Dødheimsgard) teamed up with drummer Jens Noteng and vocalist Kjersti Marie Seiersten a while back, which resulted in the intriguing and musically adventurous prospect known as IHXHI. They released a self-titled EP last year, and just a few days ago the mysterious entity…
VENUE: GrieghallenDATE: 03.02.2026ORGANIZER: FKP Scorpio NorgePHOTOGRAPHER: C. Nepper Legendary British hard rockers Uriah Heep surely need no introduction as their classic song material is the stuff that prog-esque dreams are made of. Timeless outputs such as Demons and Wizards and The Magician’s Birthday from 1972 still resonate with fans of old while simultaneously finding new…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://exhumed.bandcamp.com/album/red-asphalt The purveyors of all things gory and unpleasant, namely US death/grind metal freaks Exhumed, are back with a punishing new record titled Red Asphalt, which essentially refers to all manner of horrors and terrors associated with the “American roadway” to borrow a phrase from vocalist/guitarist Matt Harvey. The ten bone-crushing…
RELEASE YEAR: 2026BAND URL: https://koldbrann.bandcamp.com/album/den-klandestine-kjerne-eons-in-oblivion I hardly ever review singles as life is just too short for that kind of thing, but once in a while one has to make an exception to the rule – a case in point being this split 7-inch vinyl featuring two brand-new and deeply unnverving tracks by two of my…
