Heavy New Music
Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden) and Richie Kotzen Announce Better Days EP, Share Title Track: Stream
Adrian Smith of Iron Maiden and veteran singer-guitarist Richie Kotzen have announced the Better Days EP as part of their ongoing Smith-Kotzen collaborative project. The duo shared the title track from the four-song release ahead of its release date on November 26th. Straying from Smith’s metal roots in Iron Maiden, the song again sees the accomplished guitarists embracing their love of groove-based blues rock. From the sound of it, the collaboration has come naturally for Smith and Kotzen, whose overlap in musical taste made it a seamless and productive partnership. Better Days will mark their second release of 2021, following March’s self-titled debut. Advertisement Related Video “When Adrian came over to Los Angeles earlier this year, we got together and started throwing ideas around an...
Sunn O))) Announce Live Album Recorded at BBC, Share “Troubled Air”: Stream
Sunn O))) have announced Metta, Benevolence, a live album recorded in 2019 at the BBC Maida Vale studios while the band was on tour in the UK. The imitable drone-metal ensemble was invited on the behest BBC6 host Mary Anne Hobbs. The sessions saw Sunn performing two tracks from the cerebral Pyroclasts album and “Troubled Air” off Life Metal, the latter of which is now available to stream. Darkwave artist Anna von Hausswolff, who was supporting the band’s UK tour leg, sat in on the Pyroclasts pieces, adding soundscapes on a Nord C2D synthesizer as well as vocal accompaniment. Advertisement Related Video The session was tracked in Studio 4 at BBC Maida Vale and broadcast on Samhain — the Gaelic religious festival and celebration beginning the evening of October 31st through November 1st...
Mastodon Release Hushed and Grim, First New Album in Four Years: Stream
Atlanta metal band Mastodon have released their much-anticipated eighth studio album, Hushed and Grim, via Reprise Records. As Troy Sanders explained to Heavy Consequence, the new double album is deeply personal for Mastodon. Late band manager Nick John served as the inspiration for the set, as the band chronicled his battle with pancreatic cancer. “He was monumental in our existence,” Sanders says. “Almost as important, or more important, than being our band’s manager, he was our dear friend. I always called him my friend before I called him, ‘Oh, He’s also our manager.’ That’s kind of how our relationship worked, not just with me and him but all four of us in the band. He scooped us up in 2004 and, without compromising anything at all, brought us to many bigger and better stages all over...
Mining Metal: Abstracter, Conjureth, Fire-Toolz, Kowloon Walled City, Light of the Morning Star, The Silver, Sunless, Worm
Mining Metal is a monthly column from Heavy Consequence writers Joseph Schafer and Langdon Hickman. The focus is on noteworthy new music emerging from the non-mainstream metal scene, highlighting releases from small and independent labels — or even releases from unsigned acts. “Listen to them, children of the night, what music they make.” Even casual film buffs probably recognize that line, and not just because Tribulation titled an album after it. It was spoken by Bela Lugosi in the titular role of Dracula in the 1931 film. If you’ve never seen the movie, now’s the time, since it’s Halloween, and thanks to streaming it’s more readily available than probably any other film of its generation. But if you get a chance, watch the Spanish-language version, too. Moodier and more luxurious in its...
HEALTH and Poppy Team Up for New Song “Dead Flowers”: Stream
HEALTH and Poppy have joined forces for a new song titled “Dead Flowers.” They also unveiled a music video for the heavy shoegaze track, which will be included on HEALTH’s upcoming collab compilation, DISCO4 :: PART II. Known for their industrial and electronic leanings, HEALTH and Poppy take a mellower turn on “Dead Flowers.” It’s a massive slab of melodic dream-pop in the vein of Slowdive and Cocteau Twins. HEALTH lay down a bed of swirling guitars and deliberate, echoing drums. The sonics balance perfectly with Poppy’s voice, which is altered with just the right amount of reverb and registers above the oceanic feedback. Advertisement Related Video The video for the single offers appropriately hazy images, as if the band’s distortion pedals could somehow emit a smokey visual of their own...
Mastodon Unveil Doomy New Song “Sickle and Peace”: Stream
Mastodon are coming up on the release of a new album, Hushed and Grim, which marks their first-ever double album. In advance of the record’s release, the Atlanta metal giants have premiered the new song “Sickle and Peace.” “Sickle and Peace” is the third track Mastodon have unveiled off Hushed and Grim, the first two being “Pushing the Tides” and “Teardrinker.” The new song features groovy, pulsating bass and drums, in typical Mastodon fashion, coupled with doomy guitars and powerful vocals. Heavy Consequence recently caught up with Mastodon singer-bassist Troy Sanders via Zoom video to talk about the inspiration behind Hushed and Grim. Advertisement “The album is about losing our manager, Nick John, just over three years ago to a battle with pancreatic cancer,” Sanders said. “He was monum...
Myrkur Shares Spellbinding Demo for New Song “Rivers Blessed”: Stream
Myrkur has shared the demo for her new song “Rivers Blessed,” a song written about her “journey into motherhood.” Following a similarly stripped down traditional folk template as 2020’s Folkesange, “Rivers Blessed” features only harp and the voice of Myrkur, aka Amalie Bruun. “‘Rivers Blessed’ is written about my journey into motherhood, a path that by no means was easy but it changed my life and how I view the world forever,” she said via a press release. “I wanted the song to have a strong feeling of winter, and therefor the harp is the only instrument, because its sound reminds me of falling snowflakes.” Advertisement Related Video The combination of Bruun’s voice and the harp is captivating, as the singer further explores her Scandinavian musical roots. The chorus, for example, was cul...
Vended (Sons of Slipknot’s Corey Taylor and Clown) Announce Debut EP, Unleash “Burn My Misery”: Stream
Vended, the band featuring the sons of Slipknot members Corey Taylor and Shawn “Clown” Crahan, have announced their debut EP, titled What Is It/Kill It. The band also shared the new song “Burn My Misery” ahead of the EP’s November 12th release. It’s the second single we’ve heard from the Iowa metal act. Touting a serious pedigree with Corey Taylor’s son Griffin on vocals and Clown’s son Simon on drums, it’s no surprise that Vended bring a crushing extreme-metal sound, as heard on “Burn My Misery.” Like previous single “Asylum,” the band incorporate elements of prog and melodic metal into the five-minute track. There’s certainly some Slipknot influence, but Vended’s punk tendencies are more pronounced, with spitfire vocals from Griffin and lightning fast tempos. Advertisement Related V...
Nandi Bushell and Tom Morello’s Son Roman Team Up for Climate-Action Song “The Children Will Rise Up”: Stream
Young music sensation Nandi Bushell is using her platform to get the word out on the impacts of climate change. The 11-year-old multi-instrumentalist has teamed up with Tom Morello’s 10-year-old guitar-playing son Roman for the new song “The Children Will Rise Up,” with Jack Black, activist Greta Thunberg, and Roman’s dad making cameos in the music video. Nandi recently returned to her UK home after a whirlwind trip to the United States that saw her play drums alongside Foo Fighters during their concert in Los Angeles. On that same trip, she jammed with Tom and Roman Morello, revealing that they had collaborated on a new song. Now, that new song is here, with Nandi and Roman both displaying their incredible musical skills. The pair of youngsters co-wrote “The Children Will Rise Up” with th...
AFI Unveil New Song “Caught” Ahead of 2022 US Tour: Stream
AFI released the new album Bodies in June, but the veteran rock act is already back with new music. Ahead of their 2022 US tour, the band has unveiled the new song “Caught.” The new track was recorded during the same sessions as Bodies but didn’t make the final tracklist. “We were really happy with ‘Caught’ and planned for it to be on the Bodies album,” said singer Davey Havok in a press release. “We ended up cutting it at the last minute to allow for a better album flow, but still really loved the song.” “Caught” is a love song that showcases the softer side of AFI, with Havok delivering heartfelt lines like, “Hold me for a second, without a sound, in the lightest, rare, requited kiss, you a light and I, abyss.” Toward the end of the song, around the 3:40 mark, Havok makes a powerful leap...
Portrayal of Guilt Unveil Eerie Music Video for New Song “…Where the Suffering Never Ends”: Stream
Portrayal of Guilt have unleashed the new song “…Where the Suffering Never Ends” from the Austin band’s upcoming full-length, Christf**ker, out November 5th. The single is accompanied by an eerie cinematic music video. Once again, Portrayal of Guilt conjure a sense of catharsis and foreboding with a heavy onslaught that melds various styles: death metal, noise, screamo, and post-hardcore. The trio continue to prove they can exist outside of these labels while appealing to the dedicated fans of such hyper-specific subgenres. Director Craig Murray brought the song’s grim implications to life with a horrific Blair Witch-style clip. Trimmed down from an initial 15-20 minute edit, the video functions as a short film, building up a towering sense of unease and suspense before its bloody climax. ...
David Lee Roth Shares Music Video for New Song “Low-Rez Sunset”: Stream
David Lee Roth has released the new solo song “Low-Rez Sunset,” accompanied by a music video featuring original artwork by the Van Halen frontman. On the new song, Roth takes up an acoustic pop sound, applying his iconic voice to a laid back groove. It sounds like those classic Roth cuts on the early Van Halen albums, with a show-tunesy vibe and humorous lyrics. The fact that Diamond Dave also illustrated the video’s Flash-style animation makes the new song even more special. The track originally appeared as part of last fall’s “The Roth Project,” an online comic narrated by Roth featuring five solo songs. Advertisement Related Video That recording sessions featured Rob Zombie guitarist John 5 on guitar and bass, Greg Bissonette on drums, Brett Tuggle on keyboards, and Luis Conte on percus...
