Photo credit: Jillian Grace Benham (@celesticos on instagram) Rick Martel and Lauren Crosser are Chainlacing. A Duo that has created a sound that is a fuzz infused Synaesthesia of emotion, depth and an almost kinaesthetic wonder. After teasing several singles, the debut album Messuage is finally available, and it is a revelation of sound that has roots in urban shoegaze but is blessed with a dreamy ethereal wonder that surprises with every listen. It is an intelligent organ

Finsterforst- Still 9/10 For those uninitiated, the sixth full length album by Germanys Finsterforst is a celebration of their black forest metal and the crossing of genre boundaries. Dynamic and steeped in tradition, the result is an album that celebrates life and exemplary musicianship. From some simply beautifully clean guitar sections to the simply huge riff that is ‘Obduktion’’, the pacing is tempered and sparse to allow everything to fully overwhelm the senses with a s

Valfurlogi – Gneisti af eldi Guðs 8.5/10 Gneisti af eldi Guðs (A spark of God's fire) is the second album from Iceland’s Valfurlogi. It is a masterclass in modern melodic black metal that is as experimental as it is uncompromising and extreme. Gneisti af eldi Guðs reeks of a maturity that comes for compositions created over a twenty-year period. For all the chaos of the title track there is a methodical almost mathematical urgency to the riff that threatens to spin out of c

Duir- Catarsi 7.5 /10 The Second album from the faceless collective that is Italy’s Duir, Catarsi is an ambitious WWI concept record exploring the psychological despair of a soldier, the result is desolate and haunting expressed through raw folk infused black metal. From the opener of Manifesto and its grim settings the hurdy gurdy and guitar stand at equal footing, and the result is a sound that is recognizable yet also unique, it is a vast cinematic infused style that capt

Fyrnask – Íosir 9/10 For their fifth album the collective of Fyrnask from Lübeck, Eitorf (Germany) have embraced the rage and the terror of inevitability that is the conceptual “’Iosir”. Described as a ‘’album that follows a single consciousness through the realm of the dead — across burning gates, wrathful and luminous forces, and a final dissolution.” It is an all-encompassing plunge into the depths of the utterly uncompromising black metal. Fyrnask has created an alum tha

Tsar Stangra – Hymns of the Broken Worlds 8.5/10 Bulgarian Black/Folk metal band/collective Цар Стангра (Tsar Stangra) are an enigma within the extreme metal underground. Their music is truly of a cultural view that combines the harshness of modern black metal with pure Belgium tradition. Химните на разрушените светове (Hymns of the Broken Worlds) is their second full length release that continues the odyssey. Hymns of the Broken Worlds is an album that is ting

Illwind – The Unfolding at the End of Light 8/10 Hailing from Peru is Illwind. Their debut album is The Unfolding at the End of Light, a doom-infused piece of art that takes its inspiration from any source. It is as dreamlike as it is bone crushingly heavy, a modern form of doom that is also richly indebted to the masters of it across its epic five tracks. The clean vocals make for a refreshing change compared to the more prevalent funeral Doom at present. It has a moder

Sojourner doesn’t just make records but experiences. Their music is a spellbinding journey that is challenging and rewarding in equal measure, haunting and beautiful combining both the traditional and the modern. From their formation in 2014 Mike Lamb (Guitars) and Emilio Crespo (vocals) have created atmospheric extreme music that is as haunting as it is memorable. Gateways is their superb new album that further explores the realms of heaviness and reflective emotion that to

Grimveil – Beneath the Veil of Silent Woods 8.5/10 Beneath the Veil of Silent Woods is the debut album by Swedish /German duo Revenant (Order of Nosferat) and Simon (Tårfödd), it an atmospheric black /folk metal release that is a truly epic adventure across its eight tracks and sixty-two-minute running time. This is a richly dark album that is as beautiful as it is bleak and confronting. The overlaying melody line of opener’ ’Where the Path Fades to Nothing’ is literally fa

Moonspell - Far from God 8/10 Lisbon, Portugal Icons Moonspell return with their twelfth full length offering Far from God. This is Dark metal at its most pure, a gothic slow burn of an album that cements their status after a five-year break from the sounds of Hermitage in 2021. Far from God is a lavish beautifully recorded album, that captures the essence of pure gothic rock and, tinged with a sense of 80’ sensibility , there are echoes of Sisters and Field of the Nephil

Haemoth – Black Dust 8.5/10 Shrouded in mystery, the duo of Haemoth and Syht, began in 1999. The French black metallers return from their slumber after almost fifteen years with their latest masterwork, the oppressive and nightmarish Black Dust. Not so much an album as a haunting, hellish journey through the underworld. “When The Dust Finally Settles” is the perfect example, its frenetic, breakneck black metal, that dips into pure second wave excell

Sojourner – Gateways 9/10 After what seems like an interminable wait, The international collective of Sojourner has returned after six years with their new album, the simply incredible Gateways. Featuring a revamped line-up that now includes the formidable vocals skills of Heike Langhans, she is the juxtaposition to the fury of Emilio Crespo, their skills combining to create a rich tapestry of vocal ability that weaves in and out of the music th

Cristina:’’ As with Of the Muses, and perhaps to an even deeper extent this time around, My Lover the Morning Star is once again a solo endeavour. I established it right after announcing the end of my previous project, already with the intention of doing something entirely removed and experimenting with different sounds. ‘’I would say, most of all, this project was born out of a desire to make things easier for myself, by creating more freely, expressing myself in a way that

TÅKEVANDRER emerged from the Austrian Mountains in 2025 and in short order have forged their own individual path that is extreme black metal steadfast in the ideology of profanity and the lunar experience. The three piece create music that surprises and is part of the journey for something that is unique, and reflects the individual in its art. Taranis (Guitars) ‘’It was about expressing feelings and thoughts through a particular art form. Some of the music was already writt

Windswept - Howling in Baptismal Filth 9/10 Not so much a band but a force of nature. Howling in Baptismal Filth is the debut album from Winswept, a group of musicians from different backgrounds in extreme music that have coalesced into a coherent music force of sheer black metal terror. Very rarely does an album catch the fury of a live show but Howling in Baptismal Filth does exactly that. It is physical, tough, and violent, soaked in sweat and fluids repre

My Lover the Morning Star 8.5/10 Cristina Rombi returns with a brand-new project My Lover the Morning Star that is different from her other works, yet it contains the same spirit of individuality and a deep emotional connection through music. At only two tracks it a beautiful introduction to the seductive dreamlike qualities of the music Steeped in Darkwave and dreampop with a hint of the post punk Diy aesthetic and rebellious spirit.’’ la fleur de sa peau’’ ensnar

EVEALE – Enter The Woodland Realm 8/10 The US, UK Collective known as Eveale offer their debut album of multilayered black metal to the powers of the nature, steeped in mythology and passion. Simply Put Enter the Woodland Realm is a celebration of black metal by two accomplished musicians (known simply as the The North East Wizard Tyrant and Monarch of the Hillside ) and reflects their deep profound love for the genre whether it be the acoustic atmosphere of “The B

Meschera - White Captivity 9/10 Russia’s ever prolific Meschera return with their latest single, White Captivity. A song that intertwines the past and the present, the bounty of love and the agony of revenge, a captivity that is forever white. Meschera’s music is instantly recognizable from the level of talent involved and their innate ability to create atmospheric soundscapes that conjure the traditional pagan vast lands and the ferocity of modern black metal From the fi

‘’Couple years ago, Steve (our drummer) got in contact with me and asked if I wanted to do vocals in a black metal band, then slowly he started to weave together the lineup that we've got today. We're all from different musical backgrounds, scenes and have varying levels of experience playing live, so we each bring something special to Windswept. Rachel (Vocals) is the force of nature out front for New Zealand's Windswept. Their live shows are a visceral display of madness t

A.K (Vocals)‘’ I had always wanted to do a death metal band, so I pitched the idea to a few friends and we eventually got to writing and rehearsing material. ‘’ I remember first hearing Slayer's Reign in Blood album when I was getting into metal and it immediately sparked a desire to find the next level (and beyond) from that. Basically, led me on a journey of trying to find the most extreme examples of music and of course I landed on black/death metal relatively quickly. New