Metal Mix Tape Volume 7
Let there be metal! Have a look to see who made Metal Mix Tape Volume Seven:
Norwegian metalcore act Fixation made their first appearance in 2020, and has since then positioned themselves as one of the most promising new international acts. Garnering high praise from notable media outlets and earning a reputation for their dynamic live performances, raw talent, and impactful music, the band is now gearing up for their debut album with the release of a brand new single Ignore the Disarray.
About the new track the band states;
“This song is about those with a desire to control other people. It’s not about religion itself, but about those who use religion or their perception of reality to justify oppression, hate and control.”
Melbourne Metalcore sextet, Earth Caller have kicked off their Renormalization Tour.
Known for their dynamic and aggressive sound and relentlessly crushing live performances, Earth Caller are at the top of their game.
The bands just released single Graphic stems from an extremely difficult time from one of the member’s home/family life. The track encompasses the devastation and hopelessness experienced from that time felt like a no win scenario. Graphic was created as a final attempt at healing and processing the grief. The songs main goal is to communicate the experience and to let people know that the help of friends and family is always necessary and relationships that were broken are put back even stronger than before.
The most important lesson of this song is if you feel something, say something.
Floridan alt-metallers, Moodring, have returned with BLACK_WAVE; a boiling blend of guitar abrasion, synthetic dissonance and an unexpectedly euphoric chorus,
BLACK_WAVE is a strike of empowerment, each ugly groove and dramatic tonal shift showcases their aesthetic evolution: though the sound and visuals are thick and laden with grime, it’s crystal clear that Moodring are writing their own playbook. The first new music since last year’s acclaimed debut full length Stargazer, BLACK_WAVE finds Moodring putting darkness and aggression on speed dial.
“This song stems from a dark place — a narrator trapped inside a nihilistic headspace, who is driven to take over, control, and torture another,” shares singer Hunter Young. “The ‘black wave’ is the dark voice inside us all, the hidden thoughts that can’t be spoken of; demons of the taboo that threaten to unleash and destroy the thin fabrics of morality and perceived ‘normalcy’.”
The track’s accompanying music video premiered exclusively via CRUNCHYROLL, the world’s leading anime streaming service.
Come get lost in the black wave, if you dare.
Japanese chaotic metalcore trio Paledusk step into new territory with triumphant new single I’m ready to die for my friends featuring VIGORMAN. The fresh new single marks the first to be released with the backing of new signing Sharptone Records, joining Australia’s own Greyscale Records.
As the title suggests, Paledusk’s latest single is a positive and upbeat offering, taking listeners on a rollercoaster ride through genre-defying, jubilant moments that show an energised and excitable side to the riotous three-piece. The ambitious new single welcomes VIGORMAN to the fold, a close friend and member of Japanese pop trio HENTAI SHINSHI CLUB.
The band’s diverse sound has captured the attention of music tastemakers across the world, with the band announcing their signing to mammoth record label, Sharptone Records for Europe, United Kingdom, North America and South America. With Greyscale Records already covering Australia and New Zealand, Paledusk are on a steady path to world domination.
Holding Absence have released their first new music of 2023 in the form of captivating new single A Crooked Melody. Accompanied by a beautifully stylised video that was directed by Lewis Cater, A Crooked Melody is an exceptional example of Holding Absence’s keen ability to craft insatiably catchy songs that serve as a vessel for poignantly relatable lyrics.
Frontman Lucas Woodland comments: “A Crooked Melody is simply a song about denial. It’s the lie we tell ourselves every night to help us sleep, but deep down we know the truth. The big difference between a crooked melody and a lie, however, is that it’s sweet, enchanting and easier to swallow.”
Savage Hands, a hard rock group hailing from the Maryland and Virginia region, have released their new EP Rock Bottom via SharpTone Records.
To accompany the new EP, the band has shared the video for Halo.
“Halo was inspired by a close person to Savage Hands, who is battling through very personal health problem,” vocalist Mikey Garrow shares. “I imagined as if I were that person and let out how I would feel about the entire situation and all others that had led to that point. Life always kicks us when we’re down and I chose to write the lines of encouragement at the end — ‘falling forward still means one step further’ — because I live by that statement day in and day out. I constantly write a lot about negative impacts on my life without showing people how I overcome these moments. I wanted to be real with everyone and show that we’re not just constantly being knocked down without standing back up.”
Portland’s Dying Wish have just dropped the video for their brutal new single Torn From Your Silhouette.
“Torn From Your Silhouette is written about taking the risk of being vulnerable with another person, only to find they have dishonest intentions and take advantage of your willingness to love,” says singer Emma Boster. “While writing this song, I was tender from a recent heartache. I felt as if society’s standard for romance had become increasingly casual. While that felt comfortable for me for a while, I had grown into a place in my life where I was seeking more from my connections with other people. I was ready to tear down the walls I had put up to protect myself. This song is about accepting that would result in what I had feared the most: rejection and pain.”
She continues, “The line ‘I’d rather feel everything than nothing at all’ is particularly important to me. I took pride in the feeling that I had at least given myself the opportunity to fail rather than continue to contribute to a repeating cycle of being numb to surface level attachments. Thanks for listening.”
There’s a massive release out via Subsidia Records, with the genre-bending new single Reasons from Excision, Wooli and The Devil Wears Prada out now.
This track combines Excision’s domineering dubstep sounds with Wooli’s signature melodic bass underneath The Devil Wears Prada’s soaring metalcore vocals. Longtime friends Excision and Wooli have worked together many times in the past, including their recent collaboration Titans and Name Drop.
This is their first time working with The Devil Wears Prada, and it came together flawlessly, meeting in the middle between emotional rock instrumentals, aggressive electronics, and a memorable topline — something fans from all of those worlds will appreciate. There has always been a clear connection between electronic and metal music, from the percussion builds to the headbanging moshpits, and the come-as-you-are attitude of the crowd. With dedicated fanbases across both genres, Reasons has unlimited potential.
The Devil Wears Prada offers, “When Excision and Wooli approached us about working together on a song, we were so stoked for the opportunity to dive into uncharted territory for The Devil Wears Prada. It was fun injecting the lyrical and musical flavors from [the 2022 album] Color Decay onto an EDM track, and the emotional and aggressive nature of our sound fit perfectly with their mastery of modern bass music.”
Heavy music’s hottest band, Spiritbox, have announced the official release of brand new track, The Void and it’s accompanying visualizer.
The track features the band’s calling card of complex, multi-layered soundscapes and gloriously ethereal, hugely catchy vocals whilst also furthering their incredible ability to release music that is immediately recognizable as Spiritbox but simultaneously sounds unlike any of their previous releases.
Speaking on the official release of The Void, Spiritbox vocalist, Courtney LaPlante shares “The Void is a song that came about very quickly. I didn’t have to fight with anything to write it, and when that happens, I don’t argue with it. It’s a type of song that I’ve been wanting to write for a long time, I’ve heard it hundreds of times now, and it makes me so happy every time I hear it. It’s been such an amazing experience playing this song on our tour, and watching people hear it for the first time, in real time.”
Southern California band MOVEMENTS — Patrick Miranda, vocals; Ira George, guitar; Spencer York, drums; and Austin Cressey, bass — are back with not one but TWO new songs, produced by Will Yip. The band has spent the past several months flexing their creative muscles, pushing their sonic boundaries, and diligently working on new material.
They have shared some of the results of their labor with videos for Killing Time and Lead Pipe.
“We feel they are the perfect introduction to a new era of Movements,” the band states about the new material. “These songs incorporate the core values and themes you’d expect from a Movements song — but they’re packaged up in a much different manner.”
Killing Time packs quite a bit of groove, tension, and dissonance. To that end, the band states that it’s “a love song with a dark, self-deprecating undertone. The verses are gritty and dense, the choruses open up into an almost pop-centric singalong before diving into a crushing bridge that exemplifies a love so strong that it can (and probably will) end up killing the narrator.”
On the flip side, Lead Pipe is a fast, driving, and intense tune that operates off a distorted grind engine, with the band deeming it “a classic mental health track, but one that you probably wouldn’t expect or even realize on first listen. The narrator here is describing the moment they realize their dark past is coming back to haunt them. Something they thought they’d overcome is suddenly knocking at the door and will do anything to get back in. However, this time is different. Our narrator is hellbent on ending that struggle once and for all, and has chosen to fight back instead of give in.”
Colorado doom lords KHEMMIS have surprise released a limited edition 7″ titled Where the Cold Wind Blows. It arrives now via Nuclear Blast.
“Surprise!,” the band says. “Today, we are thrilled to release Where The Cold Wind Blows, a limited edition 7″ featuring two tracks recorded with Dave Otero during the Deceiver sessions in 2021. ‘In the Pines’ is our somber rendition of the classic American folk song, while ‘Sigil’ is an original rager previously exclusive to the Decibel Magazine Flexi Series. The cover art and slipcase were both designed by the one and only Hokama Souza. In addition to the limited physical release, these tracks are now available on our Bandcamp page as well as on all major streaming platforms. As always, thank you all for your support and we hope to see you on the road for our North American headlining tour!”
The band has shared a visualizer for In The Pines.
Having refined their broody, mesmerising vision of gothic/symphonic metal to cinematic levels, with three EPs and a full-length album behind them, BLACKBRIAR continue to set their sails towards the future. The Netherlands based band are currently working towards their second full-length album, accompanied by long-time collaborator, Joost van den Broek. The band have released a brand-new song titled My Soul´s Demise.
Singer, Zora Cock about the new song:
“My Soul’s Demise is a song about love and pain, where you’re willing to do anything for the one you love, no matter what, even if that means that it will destroy you in the meantime. Yet sometimes you wonder, would that person do the same for you? It’s inspired by the medieval practice of sin-eating, a ritual where mourning families hired a sin eater to consume their loved ones’ sins. The sin eater would eat food left on the dead person’s chest. The food was believed to have absorbed the deceased’s lingering sins. Sin eaters were paid next to nothing for their service, they were reviled, and seen as filthy people, full of sins. Villagers even avoided looking them in the eye. I learned about the sin-eater when watching an episode of Outlander, where a sin-eating ritual got introduced.
Now it gets a bit more personal. While reading about the sin-eating ritual, and writing the lyrics, it reminded me of a story my dad once told me. A long time ago, my dad suffered from psychosis and was admitted to a psychiatric clinic. He told me a lot about his experiences, what it was like, and how his mind worked at that moment. He thought he was the devil incarnate, possessed by something dark, and he felt like everyone felt his evil presence as he walked by, everyone would flinch away from him. This made me write the bridge of the song “No one can even look me in the eye, everybody is flinching away from me as I pass by”. Somehow the story of a medieval sin-eater reminded me exactly of the way my dad explained how he felt, as if he had consumed the world’s sins and darkness.
I read about the last known sin eater of England as well, which was a very heartfelt story. His name was Richard Munslow, and he died in 1906. It is believed that the tragic loss of four of his children at very early ages that died within one week may be the reason he resurrected the macabre ritual. This made me write the song from the perspective of willing to do anything for the ones you love.
The songwriting process of My Soul’s Demise went pretty fast. After writing the lyrics, I recorded some of my vocal ideas a cappella. This is how we mostly start writing a new song. I then sent it to René, with a note saying that it sucks and that he could probably throw it in the bin right away. Haha! Luckily he didn’t throw it away, and he actually liked what he heard, and made the basics for the song that same night. We brought the draft version of the song to our producer Joost van den Broek, and worked on it some more. Another instrumental part was added, so I needed to come up with some more vocals for that extra part. This was the more ‘quiet’ bridge part where I am doing some weird stuff. I wanted to do something with my voice as if I just consumed so many sins that I couldn’t handle it anymore, as if it had taken over my body, sort of possessed, and got inspired by Anna von Hausswolff.
We shot the music video at a medieval 12th-century church in the north of the Netherlands, and it took us two days to shoot it all. I always get fascinated by the atmosphere of standing in such an old building, shooting this video there felt perfect and so fitting. We were very lucky to be able to get all the freedom and time to be creative.
Another thing that was perfect, is that the whole band portrayed a role in this story, even our ex-bass player Frank. Frank played the corpse, and it felt like we held a funeral for his bass-playing years for Blackbriar, celebrating the awesome time we spent together. A symbolic farewell. For this video we needed some extra actors to witness the ritual. We opened up a casting call to my Patrons, so the people you see sitting in the benches are all Patrons. But not only Patrons, you can also see my parents! For me, the video story itself was more challenging than other videos we did so far. I can say that I gave it my all, and I hope that you feel something when watching it. It’s one of the more personal songs of the album.”
North Carolina’s progressive-metal powerhouse STELLAR CIRCUITS has revealed an intense new single, Catch Your Death, from their forthcoming sophomore album, Sight To Sound, that’s out June 9th from Nuclear Blast.
Commenting on the new track, bassist Jesse Olsen says:
“‘Catch Your Death’ evolved from the idea of struggling with death anxiety. When we stepped back we were pleased with the sonic balance within the song and felt like it was a good representation of ‘Sight to Sound.'”
French doom metal visionaries HANGMAN’S CHAIR reveal a previously unreleased gem in the form of new single Spleenwise. Clocking in at over six minutes, ‘Spleenwise’ bears the trademark features of HANGMAN’s CHAIR, as it combines dark, brooding atmosphere with sombre melodies.
HANGMAN’S CHAIR stated about Spleenwise:
“‘Laugh at everything, sad sex and poor decisions. Silence is addictive.’
Spleenwise is a neologism to express our state of mind towards everything that surrounds us: sit around, watch the world burn and appreciate the spleen. Plus, this song is a link between the past and the future, a track written many moons ago that closes the A Loner chapter, as it is the last remaining song of the studio sessions.”
Providence, RI hard rock quartet Kingsmen have released their new album Bones Don’t Lie (via SharpTone Records). The full-length is the band’s follow-up to their 2020 LP Revenge. Forgiveness. Recovery. In celebration of the drop, the band has also unleashed a visualizer for the album’s titular track, Bones Don’t Lie. Speaking about the album, vocalist Tanner Guimond commented:
“’Bones Don’t Lie’ is an adventure into the human mind and soul. A story of discovery about the inner truth of humanity. The good. The evil. The give and take between the two. With metal and industrial influences highlighting the sonic production of this record; we deliver this to you as a heavy, melodic, and destructive message.’’
American heavy-riff devotees Corrosion Of Conformity have released a cover of the Lynyrd Skynyrd track On The Hunt, taken from the illustrious Southern Rock band’s third studio album Nuthin’ Fancy, released in 1975. This cover version brings a singular C.O.C. swagger and sludge-laden groove to the classic track.
Corrosion Of Conformity’s Mike Dean commented,
“This is our hard to find tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd, a major influence of COC. With the recent passing of the great Gary Rossington, the last living original member of Lynyrd Skynyrd , we thought it would be a good time to make this celebration of Skynyrd more widely available.”
ARRIVAL OF AUTUMN absorb the icy emotion of their surroundings in a hard-hitting hybrid of heavy metal proficiency, metalcore intensity, and skyscraping melodic sensibility. The group channels this energy on their second full-length offering, Kingdom Undone which will be unleashed on May 26th via Nuclear Blast Records.
The band releases their second single, Ghosts. The punishing single takes listeners on a rollercoaster of riffs and haunting vocals. Check out the sombre music video here:
Ty Fox comments, “Lyrically ‘Ghosts’ is the heaviest song we’ve ever written and it points the finger at religious entities that have never once taken proper responsibility for their actions. To this day. the church continues its role in lying, extortion, and it’s disgusting treatment of children and continues to protect the people who hurt them. ‘Ghosts’ touches on the dark history of Canada and the genocide committed against the indigenous people in the residential school system. We chose not to talk over them as it’s their story to tell but we do point the finger at those responsible. We had to end up censoring the music video as it was too disturbing but it is nowhere near as disturbing as the atrocities of any organized religion.”
Born from a musician’s desire to re-envelope their life in the heaviness that is metal and to refamiliarize with a conduit that could be considered detrimental amidst today’s destructive society, the gritty powerhouse that is Ontario, Canada hardcore/metal quartet TEETH emerged from the sludge of a foul generation.
Resolved to utilize the carcasses of their conquered demons as fodder for a new euphonious weapon, TEETH wanted to create the most ignorant, aggressive-sounding music imaginable. Their latest offering A Biblical Worship Of Violence will be unleashed digitally on May 5th and on vinyl on July 21st via Nuclear Blast Records.
The band states, “A Biblical Worship Of Violence is our ode to the ache of change – a snapshot of a moment in time where we were all going through dark shifts in our personal lives that forced us to see life through the lens of true pain and discomfort. We knew we needed to create something so visceral and honest to articulate what we’d been going through while also giving us the opportunity to speak on the state of this world. Division, compulsion – an intrinsic gravitational pull toward cruelty and brutality. ABWOV is a commentary on human beings darkest, most volatile conventions.”
The band release the second single Hate Me from the upcoming EP. The music video was shot and directed by the band while Matthew Daly at Clearway Media handled the editing.
TEETH comments on the single, “‘Hate Me’ is about watching the people around you – whether it’s your peers, family/loved ones, colleagues – self-destruct over petulant nonsense. Watching a marriage or friendship crumble over disagreements when both parties are too blinded by our inherent attraction to turmoil to see the pettiness of it all. It’s about how we – as humans – are so viscerally unwilling to budge in our cemented beliefs and beholden to our egos that we’d rather just let the house burn down to prove our point. I THINK THERE’S FIRE IN THESE WALLS.”
BLEEDING THROUGH, the pioneering metalcore band from Orange County, California, are back with a brand new song titled War Time out via SHARPTONE RECORDS. The release comes after a long wait from fans who have been eagerly anticipating new music from the band.
According to vocalist Brandan Schieppati,
“War Time is a statement about Bleeding Through’s career. All the lies and betrayal from people who were supposed to have our backs. It is about the greed and arrogance that is displayed in the music industry and world in general. War Time is about this band forming an even stronger bond with each other and taking on this negative world together.”
War Time is a hard-hitting track that speaks to the band’s experiences in the music industry and their struggles with betrayal and greed. The song is a powerful statement about the band’s career and their unwavering determination to overcome any obstacle.
With its ferocious guitar riffs, pounding drums, and intense vocals, War Time is a powerful reminder of why Bleeding Through has remained one of the most influential bands in the metalcore scene for over two decades.
With Wargod, the pioneers of Norwegian black metal, IMMORTAL, deliver a new single leading up to the release of their impatiently awaited 10th studio album War Against All, due to be released on May 26th via Nuclear Blast Records. The band’s 10th studio album will feature 8 new songs in the classic IMMORTAL style.
The band ìs founder Demonaz stated about the second single Wargod:
“Wargod is the heaviest song on the album. I thought it was about time to give the fans a track in the «Tyrants» again. Celtic Frost’s album “To Mega Therion” from 1986 was an inspiration to me this time. Some of it’s classic tracks had heavy opening riffs that developed into fast devastating fury and tempo. I wanted to capture that feeling again, the Immortal way. When i moved to the mountains In 2019 I went through some of my old material and unused lyrics. Wargod was one of them. The title, lyric and song ideas were originally from the early nineties, and now finally Immortalized on the album.”
TWILIGHT FORCE are excited to share the final bonus track from their latest opus At the Heart of Wintervale. The Sapphire Dragon of Arcane Might is Back Again reveals one last story to be told from this album of tales from the Twilight Kingdoms. In addition, the symphonic power metallers have also delivered an orchestral version of the previously released song The Last Crystal Bearer.
TWILIGHT FORCE comments:
“Harken ye, knights of the mortal realms! Behold the release of our final bonus song; ‘The Sapphire Dragon of Arcane Might is Back Again’ – with excerpts from three familiar Twilight Force songs reimagined in a sparkling medieval and orchestral setting, evoking memories of olden times and great deeds of yore. Featuring the beautifully ethereal singing voice and guitarwork of our venerated wood elf Aerendir, this song is a tribute to the legends and lore of the Twilight Kingdoms, and a way to reminisce about times long gone and songs from the past.
So come, brave adventurers, stay a while and listen, as our elven bard leads you on a journey of magic and mystery!
Additionally, you can hereby also enjoy the full orchestral version of ‘The Last Crystal Bearer’; the dramatic story of Blackwald’s exile from the Arcane University, and his grand quest to find and gather the Crystal Bearers. We hope that you will discover new and exciting details throughout this symphonic odyssey!”
Industrial metal pioneers FEAR FACTORY have solidified their importance and have become champions of the Metal community. Today, the band is proud to announce that Re-Industrialized and Mechanize will be available as re-issues on June 23rd via Nuclear Blast Records.
In celebration of the reissues, the band releases a remixed and remastered version of their sleeper hit New Messiah. Watch the lyric video for the single for the first time ever.
The mighty FIFTH ANGEL is proud to announce their epic fourth album, When Angels Kill, which will be released on June 16th, 2023 through Nuclear Blast Records. For FIFTH ANGEL fans, or fans of melodic power metal, this album is simply a “must have.” Weaving the lyrics and subject matter of the last trilogy of FIFTH ANGEL albums into a double concept record similar to the likes of Helloween’s Keeper of the Seven Keys, Pink Floyd’s The Wall, or Queensryche’s Operation Mindcrime, When Angels Kill is all killer, and absolutely no filler. Each song has been crafted into a standalone work, and the double vinyl, CD, and digital versions are nearly seventy minutes in length.
Ken Mary (FIFTH ANGEL drummer and producer) commented:
“‘When Angels Kill’ is actually more of a soundtrack to a movie that hasn’t been made yet. This new album combines much of the subject matter from the last three albums and weaves a compelling story. It’s very easy to visualize the “movie” as you listen to this album. Overall, it’s a deep and dark story, but the subjects that the band has always written about deal with the state of mankind. Themes of media deception, war, terrorism, oppression, betrayal, natural disasters and the battle for survival are all woven in. We even reference many of the previous albums song titles in the new lyrics, which to my knowledge has not been done before in a concept album. We hope the fans will feel that this album is something very special”
The story of When Angels Kill begins in the future, when Phoenix, a young man caught in a world undergoing enormous changes, determines that the cunning, deceptive, and ruthless global leader that is enslaving billions will not subjugate him. Although it seems pointless and even fatal to resist, Phoenix joins a remnant of people that fight on for a better world. Traitorous love, catastrophic events, isolation, and impending doom darken his days, but Phoenix somehow retains his will to survive. The story concludes with a surprise ending.
Contemporary dark wave project HOST, launched by Nick Holmes and Greg Mackintosh of PARADISE LOST, have released a cover of A FLOCK OF SEAGULLS classic 80’s hit I Ran. The track is the final song to be released from the deluxe edition of their debut album IX, which is now available on streaming services.
Greg Mackintosh comments:
“It was not my idea to do this song as a cover, I wasn’t totally convinced at first. The original, whilst being a great song, seemed a bit frothy and light to me. When I isolated the vocal line however, I saw the tragedy in it and wanted to take it down a darker, more dystopian path.”
Following their recent announcement of joining Nuclear Blast Records, Southern Californian melodic death mongers EXMORTUS have revealed plans to release their massively anticipated 6th studio album, Necrophony, on August 25th. Available for pre-order now, the record 4 years in the making finds the shredders at a new creative peak, re-born in the isolation of the pandemic and wielding a master craft of metallic savagery.
Commenting on the impending record, guitarist/vocalist Conan says:
“‘Necrophony’ was an album title idea for as long as I can remember. This Symphony of the Dead couldn’t be realized for a collection of songs until now. Finally, we have our darkest and most Classically inspired work yet, with artwork by the great Toha Mashudi to match perfectly. We returned to Sharkbite Studios to have the mighty wizard that is Zack Ohren aid us again in forging our metal and resulted in the finest steel we’re all proud to wield on the battlefield.”
The band has released the new single Mind Of Metal..
Conan adds says of the song:
“‘Mind of Metal’ is a great compliment to our previous single ‘Oathbreaker,’ in that it has contrasting rhythms and structure, but shares lyrical inspiration by Tolkien. It’s a tribute to the wizard Saruman and other like characters in the legendarium, for their will to power and domination by crafty and industrial means. This song features groove, fast licks, and some of our favorite riffs ever written. Can’t wait to perform it live!”
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