Photo Credit: Max Rubin

Five years on from their last full-length, Chicago’s Sleepwalk return with their most expansive and emotionally charged record yet. View From The Outside arrives 13th November via MNRK Heavy, finding the four-piece pushing their collision of shoegaze, ’90s alternative rock and post-hardcore into stranger, heavier and more atmospheric territory. 

Today, they unveil ‘Sandbox’, a driving, textured first glimpse of an album that moves between dreamlike beauty and raw frustration, confronting isolation, disillusionment and the increasingly surreal reality of the world outside.

Watch the video for 'Sandbox' here: https://youtu.be/lAAGh2WqWRU

Pre-save View From The Outside here: http://sleepwalk.ffm.to/viewfromtheoutside

"'Sandbox' is about our frustration with the normalisation of conspiracy theory thinking that is proliferating throughout our culture as well as anger with the current administration/general MAGA movement," explains vocalist and guitarist Ryan Davis.

It is an appropriately uneasy introduction to View From The Outside, an album that exists somewhere between the dream state and the waking world, where chiming guitars, battered rhythms and wistful melodies collide with the uncomfortable business of being alive right now.

Sleepwalk have always occupied the space between things. Shoegaze without the shoegaze clichés. Post-hardcore without the obligatory aggression. Alternative rock with enough strange corners to keep it from settling comfortably into nostalgia. On View From The Outside, those contradictions become the point.

The band's fourth full-length finds them moving decisively beyond the nu-gaze beginnings of their earlier work, expanding their palette without losing the hooks, heaviness or emotional directness that brought listeners to them in the first place. There are moments of towering guitar noise and bruising post-hardcore; dreamy passages that feel almost weightless; flashes of ’90s alternative rock; and, unexpectedly, even trip-hop.

“We wanted to explore some sub-genres that weren’t explored in the same way before,” says guitarist Tyler Gargula. “There’s dreamy things that weren’t as intricate; more rocky things that are now very clearly rock focused; and even trip-hop on the album’s closing track.”

The result is an album of dramatic shifts and subtle moods, weathered without being sentimental, melancholy without becoming miserable and adventurous without forgetting how to write a great song.

There is a distinctly Chicagoan DNA running through it, too. The album was recorded over twelve days at Earth Analog in Tolono, Illinois, the studio of Hum guitarist and vocalist Matt Talbot, an especially fitting setting given Hum's influence on Sleepwalk's sound. Once again, the band worked with producer Zac Montez (Whirr, Cloakroom), whose fascination with electronic music brings another dimension to Sleepwalk's already densely layered sound.

Formed in 2015, Sleepwalk built their reputation by seamlessly combining the visceral and cerebral. Lush, fuzzy guitars and reflective vocals, propelled by hardcore-inflected rhythms, saw the band draw comparisons to Hum, Failure, Quicksand and fellow Chicago legends The Smashing Pumpkins, while their live shows alongside Glassjaw, Thursday and Nothing introduced their strange, heavy little world to an increasingly devoted audience.

Now, with MNRK Music Group behind them, Sleepwalk are entering their next chapter. View From The Outside is heavier. Stranger. More considered. More ambitious. But at its centre remains the same idea that has always made Sleepwalk compelling, heavy music for the lighthearted, made by people trying to find something beautiful while everything around them gets progressively weirder.

And sometimes, the best place to do that is from the outside.

Sleepwalk are:
Ryan Davis - Vocals/Guitar 
Tyler Gargula - Guitar/Vocals
Victorino Ordonez - Bass 
Marcus Johnson - Drums 

Sleepwalk online:
Instagram | YouTube | TikTok | Facebook | Bandcamp

Tracklist:

1. Point Break
2. Sandbox
3. In Flames
4. Suckerfish
5. Jan 22
6. The Lighthouse
7. Cold Front
8. Shell
9. Dreamlessness
10. Pushback

Photo Credit: Sam Coussens

Belgian post-metal quintet Hippotraktor have today revealed their new single 'Builder of Eden', featuring Loic Rossetti, former vocalist of The Ocean.

The single is taken from the band's forthcoming album Annihilist, due 2nd October via Pelagic Records.

Watch: https://youtu.be/3vgbDfNNXk4

Stream: https://orcd.co/hippotraktor-annihilist

The band comment: "For 'Builder of Eden', we joined forces with one of our biggest inspirations, Loïc Rossetti (ex-The Ocean Collective), to create one of the most monumental and heavy tracks on the album. 

"The song follows our nameless protagonist as he violently defies his creator, breaking free from the empty burden of existence thrust upon him.

“‘We are all hypothetical legends, regressed. Overprivileged sons trapped in a numb, mechanical dream.’”

Since emerging from Mechelen, Belgium, Hippotraktor have steadily carved out a singular artistic identity guided by an enduring commitment to exploration. Their music unfolds through carefully sculpted contrasts, where immense rhythmic force exists alongside delicate melodic detail. Moments of overwhelming intensity dissolve into passages of quiet reflection, suspended stillness erupts into visceral power and sonic chaos; their sound is a meticulously crafted interplay between movement and heaviness. Every composition feels organic, themes emerge gradually and transform unexpectedly, as deconstruction, precision and instinct are in constant negotiation. Their sound is defined by intention; every eruption, moment of restraint and subtle shift is embedded in an atmosphere of purpose.

To the joy of ear-splitters and deep-feeling appreciators of post rock, Hippotraktor will release their third studio album Annihilist on 2nd October via Pelagic Records.

Once again Annihilist showcases the band's ability to balance crushing physicality with emotional nuance, whilst pushing further into highly cultivated experimentation. For Hippotraktor, immense sonic weight coexists with remarkable clarity and depth, and through the many shifting passages and moments Annihilist becomes a journey of awe, dissolution, melancholia and rampaging power. At the heart of this album is a sense of collective inspiration. Guitarist Chiaran Verheyden's compositional vision provides the framework for music that is both intricate and instinctive, yet Hippotraktor's identity is forged through the dialogue between all five musicians.

Although often associated with progressive metal, post-metal and sludge, Hippotraktor resist classification. Their music draws freely from multiple traditions while remaining unmistakably their own, blending rhythmic complexity, cinematic atmosphere and deeply human expression into a sound that feels both expansive and immediate. From the visceral, roaring opening of 'Builder of Eden', to the deconstructed finale of 'Courageous Apathy', this album exhibits the vast arsenal at Hippotraktor's disposal.

As an album Annihilist is not only gripping in every moment and turn, but their balance of the intimate and titanic feels deceptively effortless; a testament to their galvanised abilities. Technical accomplishment is never presented as spectacle; every note exists in service of atmosphere, narrative and emotional resonance. Annihilist is undeniably heavy, yet drenched in groove and bittersweet tenderness. It is progressive without becoming self-indulgent, atmospheric without sacrificing immediacy, and emotionally expansive without relying on sentimentality. Hippotraktor craft immersive sonic environments that invite complete surrender, where intricate musicianship and instinctive expression become indistinguishable.

Line Up:

Stefan De Graef – Vocals
Chiaran Verheyden – Guitar
Jakob Fiszer – Bass
Lander De Nyn – Drums
Kristof Du Jardin – Guitar and Vocals

Online:
Official Website
Label Page
Instagram
Facebook
Bandcamp

Track list:

1. I Breathe, I Am
2. Courageous Apathy
3. Builder of Eden
4. Oblivion Walker
5. Annihilist
6. Everything Is Permissible
7. A Different Now

Photo Credit: Manon Hure

Denver’s Wayfarer will release their new album Riders Of The Setting Sun on 20th November via Vesperian, marking a bold new chapter for the acclaimed Dark Americana band. Alongside the announcement, the band have unveiled the album’s second single and video, 'Hollow Hearts On The Trail To Eden'. Their most accessible and expansive record to date, Riders Of The Setting Sun sees Wayfarer push their distinctive blend of American West mythology, folk, rock ’n’ roll and post-punk into darker, stranger and more cinematic territory.

Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/DqvV8MTppzE

Stream and pre-order Riders Of The Setting Sun here: https://tr.ee/vesperian_wayfarer

A sombre, melancholic song, ‘Hollow Hearts On The Trail To Eden’ follows a weary traveller wrestling with doubt, betrayal and the weight of his own mistakes as winter closes in. An epic guitar solo brings the song to its emotional peak, as he carries his hollow heart into the darkness, eventually burying it alongside his name.

For Wayfarer, the American West has never been merely a backdrop. It is a character. A memory. A wound. Formed in Denver, Colorado, the band have spent more than a decade developing a sound as vast and unforgiving as the landscape that surrounds them, building a singular strain of Dark Americana from the mythology, history and haunted beauty of the Western United States.

For the first time, Wayfarer have joined forces with visionary producer Ben Chisholm (Chelsea Wolfe), with recording and mixing contributions from James Barone (Beach House) and Iver Sandøy (Enslaved). The result is a record that feels simultaneously ancient and unfamiliar, a strange collision of Western dust, nocturnal highways, widescreen guitars and songs that sound as though they have been waiting for decades to be uncovered.

It is Dark Americana, but not the sepia-toned kind. This is the America after the sunset. The ghosts. The gamblers. The drifters. The dead. The beautiful things that should probably have been left buried.

Adding further weight to the album's lineage, Riders Of The Setting Sun features a remarkable cast of collaborators including David Eugene Edwards (16 Horsepower, Wovenhand), Munly J Munly, Midwife and Kelly Schilling (Dreadnought), while Steve Von Till (Neurosis) provides the spoken introduction to 'The Dusklands'.

The album also features Wayfarer's own take on Kris Kristofferson's 'Casey's Last Ride', a song that sits naturally within the band's dark Americana world, its tale of loneliness, regret and a man disappearing into the night echoing the album's broader fascination with the darker corners of American mythology.

With album artwork created by celebrated artist Tony Stella, whose distinctive film-poster work has become synonymous with some of cinema's most iconic visual worlds, the artwork for Riders Of The Setting Sun feels less like an album cover than the poster for a lost Western, a film that perhaps never existed, but somehow feels familiar. It would also become one of Stella's final works before his passing earlier this year.

Riders Of The Setting Sun is therefore not simply another Wayfarer album. It is a record about endings, departures and the things we carry with us when the road finally runs out.

A record about the American West, not as postcard, but as ghost story. A record where Dark Americana rides into the sunset and doesn't look back.

Riders Of The Setting Sun will be available on Digipak CD, cassette and vinyl LP, with the vinyl edition featuring a dedicated LP booklet and OBI strip.

Watch previous single 'Perdition's Crossing' here: https://youtu.be/R7Ukxm9qA2I

Wayfarer are:

Joe Strong-Truscelli: Guitars
James Hansen: Bass
Shane McCarthy: Vocals, guitars
Isaac Faulk: Drums

Discography:
Children Of The Iron Age (2014)
Old Souls (2016)
World’s Blood (2018)
A Romance With Violence (2020)
American Gothic (2023)

 Wayfarer online:
Instagram | Facebook | Bandcamp |Youtube

Tracklist:

1. The Dusklands - feat. Steve Von Till
2. Perdition's Crossing – feat. David Eugene Edwards
3. Black Roses & Early Graves
4. Casey's Last Ride – feat. Kelly Schilling
5. Fell Spur
6. Grey Country – feat. Munly J Munly
7. Hollow Hearts On The Trail To Eden    
8. Prairies Of Babylon – feat. Midwife

Riders Of The Setting Sun will be available digitally and in the following physical versions:

• Ltd. Digipak CD

• Ltd tape with clear-orange tape shell and full-color J-card

• LP version with black vinyl, LP-booklet, and OBI strip

• Ltd. LP version with picture vinyl, die-cut cover, LP-booklet, and OBI strip (500 copies)

• Ltd. "high noon heat" LP version with red/gold-metallic splatter vinyl, LP-booklet, poster, and OBI strip (700 copies, exclusive for Europe)

• Ltd. "prairie twilight" LP version with orange/red merge vinyl, LP-booklet, poster, and OBI strip (700 copies, exclusive for North America)

• Ltd. "glowing embers" LP version with orange/gold/black splatter vinyl, LP-booklet, poster, and OBI strip (500 copies, exclusive for North America)

• Ltd. "barren plains" LP version with clear + black/yellow vinyl, LP-booklet, poster, and OBI strip (300 copies, exclusive for Bandcamp Europe and the Vesperian online store)

• Ltd. "exit wound" LP version with red/white splatter vinyl, LP-booklet, poster, and OBI strip (300 copies, exclusive for Bandcamp US)

•  Ltd. "Grand Mesa dawn" LP version with yellow/red ink spot vinyl, LP-booklet, poster, and OBI strip (300 copies, exclusive for Frozen Records, France)

Photo Credit: Defences

Following millions of streams, multiple sold-out headline tours, and appearances at major festivals including Download, Takedown, Turbulence, and Burn It Down, future alternative metal greats Defences team up with Skindred's legendary singer Benji Webbe for 'More Of Us (Than There Are Of Them)'. As one of the scene's most recognizable figures, Webbe joins the band on a fiery track inspired by the growing outrage, animosity, and political discontent of our time.

Watch the video to 'More Of Us (Than There Are Of Them) (ft. Benji Webbe)' here: https://youtu.be/wjpsDhpG6xo

Stream the single here: https://defences.lnk.to/moreofus

Singer Cherry Duesbury comments on the theme of the song: "One of the tipping points for me was seeing the first wave of ICE abductions taking place and the slew of public scandals that followed. With my immediately family living in a majority Republican state in the US, this hit home for me and struck terror in my heart more than previous news stories had. 'More Of Us (Than There Are Of Them)' came from my desire to shed a light on the growing collective consciousness awakening of recent years to combat this as the next generation enters the workforce, world leaders continue to reveal their true nature and dictators and tyrants operate above the law in plain view. I’ve been inspired by the growing feeling that more and more of us are asking ourselves ‘why is this the way things are?‘ and wanted to write a song that expressed my feeling that we’ve reached a point of no return, that the public is finally turning on the rampant institutional corruption. These whispered questions talk of upheaval and, ultimately, rebellion, and this song means to stand as an anthem as those whispers turn into screams.“

Catch the band on tour this autumn:

25.09. UK, Brighton - Heavy Foundation Fundraiser
04.11. UK, London - The Garage /w Future Palace
05.11. UK, Manchester - Academy 3 /w Future Palace
06.11. UK, Glasgow - Slay /w Future Palace
07.11. UK, Leeds - Key Club /w Future Palace

Known for their eclectic blend of synth-heavy melodies and crushing riffs, fronted by the distinctive tones of singer Cherry Duesbury, Defences have taken modern metalcore to the next level. Across a decade, two EPs, and three LPs, themes of introspection, self-reflection, and inner strength remain front and centre - delivering self-acceptance-core at its finest.

The British group has built a formidable live reputation across the UK and Europe, sharing stages with RØRY, Future Palace, Trash Boat, and Redhook alongside selling out their own headline shows and landing major festival slots. With over 15 million streams to date and features across flagship streaming playlists, Defences continue their steady rise.

Defences are:

Cherry Duesbury - Vocals
William Young - Keys, Vocals
Calum Wilmot - Guitar
Owen Hughes-Holland - Bass
Kyle Parke - Drums

Defences online:
FACEBOOK
YOUTUBE
INSTAGRAM
HOMEPAGE
TIKTOK

Photo Credit: Curtis Perry

Ahead of the release of his third solo album Empyrean on 11th September and a forthcoming tour with Einar Solberg, later this month, acclaimed Canadian cellist and composer Raphael Weinroth-Browne unveils the album’s emotional centrepiece, 'Dissolution'. The new track is a mesmerising deconstruction of one of J. S. Bach’s most recognisable cello melodies, which gradually fractures from Baroque elegance into distortion, noise and near-abstract sound.

Originally composed for UK contemporary dance company James Wilton Dance and their production BACH Reimagined, the track sees Weinroth-Browne push his instrument to extraordinary extremes, using layered live-looping, effects and repetition to move from a sombre, funereal reimagining of the Sarabande from Bach’s Sixth Cello Suite through an increasingly dramatic and operatic crescendo before finally dissolving into pulsating waves of noise. It is a striking embodiment of Empyrean's fascination with transformation, impermanence and the fragile boundary between order and chaos, questioning what holds music, life and existence in harmony before everything inevitably begins to dissolve.

Watch the video: https://youtu.be/jXtf1D9y4sE 

Listen to 'Dissolution' here: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/raphaelweinrothbrowne/dissolution

Pre-order Empyrean album here: https://raphaelweinroth-browne.bandcamp.com/album/empyrean

Comments Raphael: "'Dissolution' was originally composed for the contemporary dance production BACH Reimagined with UK-based company James Wilton Dance. It is the centrepiece of the Empyrean album, and is most certainly its emotional apex. Of everything I have released as a solo artist, this is at once my most classical and experimental work to date. 

"The piece is based around the opening melody from the Sarabande of the 6th Cello Suite by J. S. Bach. While the original movement is bright and hopeful, in a major key, here I decided to transpose it into minor, reharmonizing the melody to give it a sombre, funereal quality. The idea was to take a melody, strip it of its harmonic colouring, and gradually transform it using live looping and effects from Baroque purity into distorted noise over the course of many repeating cycles. What begins as a solemn chorale becomes a dramatic, almost operatic solo before giving way to a churning maelstrom of distortion not unlike something one might hear from Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and finally dissolving into pulsating waves of noise. 

"When working on the music for the BACH Reimagined show, one of the concepts that James Wilton and I discussed was the convergence and collision of religion and science in the time of Bach and Sir Isaac Newton. With 'Dissolution', I wanted to explore that dichotomy - the intersection of beauty and abstraction - and to ask the question, “what keeps the music in harmony and prevents it from dissolving into chaos?”

"For the music video, I travelled all the way from Canada to the UK to shoot on the gorgeous north coast of Cornwall in a variety of spectacular caves, sand dunes, and in the ocean itself. Since 'Dissolution' felt like the pièce de résistance of both the BACH show and the Empyrean album, I really wanted to showcase the incredible dancing of James and Sarah with the video for this track, to highlight our collaboration and share it more widely beyond our performances on tour. The awe-inspiring power of nature and the elements is on full display here, giving the video a timeless, epic atmosphere."

The origins of forthcoming new album Empyrean itself are as cinematic as the music it contains. In 2024, Weinroth-Browne was commissioned by James Wilton Dance to compose an 80-minute score inspired by the music and legacy of Johann Sebastian Bach. What emerged became BACH Reimagined: a touring multidisciplinary work exploring immortality, artistic transcendence and the pursuit of the sublime through creation.

Rather than simply reinterpret Bach, Weinroth-Browne entered into dialogue with him across centuries. The resulting compositions fuse the purity and mathematical elegance of Baroque counterpoint with distorted textures, electronic ambience and towering rhythmic weight. Tracks such as 'Speed of Light' and 'Dissolution' plunge Bach-inspired motifs into vast storms of noise and metallic tension, while the meditative 'Sanctum' evokes Sufi mysticism and devotional stillness.

“At its core,” Weinroth-Browne explains, “Empyrean is about the search for the sublime. As artists, we spend our lives trying to create something that transcends the everyday, if only for a split second, as if to glimpse eternity through a keyhole.”

Captured at Union Sound Company in Toronto immediately following the sessions for 2025’s critically acclaimed Lifeblood, Empyrean finds Weinroth-Browne operating at the peak of his creative powers. The album was recorded and engineered by Darren McGill (Rush, The Dirty Nil), mixed by Adam Noble (Leprous, Katatonia) and mastered by Robin Schmidt (Leprous), resulting in a sound both immense and intimate, every bow stroke preserved with almost tactile immediacy. Artwork comes from London-based printmaker and collage artist Cally Conway, discovered by Weinroth-Browne in Brighton during the BACH tour.

Watch the videos for previous singles 'Speed of Light', 'Reflection' and 'Evocation', and discover Raphael's breathtaking standalone interpretation of Sleep Token's 'Fall For Me' released last month, showcasing yet another side of his remarkable artistry.

The forthcoming release follows a run of widespread critical acclaim. His 2020 debut Worlds Within was praised as "masterful" and "a stunning example of less being more," while 2025's Lifeblood saw Raphael further expand his sound into rich cinematic territory, earning praise as "a triumph of vision and virtuosity" and "the most ambitious album of Weinroth-Browne's career."

That same fearless boundary-pushing has made Weinroth-Browne an essential figure within modern progressive music. His cello work can be heard on hundreds of studio albums, including Woods of Ypres’ Juno Award-winning W5: Grey Skies & Electric Light and across many major film and TV soundtracks. Viral interpretations of Opeth, Katatonia and Steven Wilson have drawn direct praise from the artists themselves, further cementing his reputation as a boundaryless interpreter and composer.

Since joining Norwegian prog visionaries Leprous in 2016, he has performed over 200 shows worldwide and contributed to three of their studio albums, helping redefine the role of cello in progressive heavy music. Beyond Leprous, he has shared stages with Evanescence, Apocalyptica and Devin Townsend.

As a solo artist, Weinroth-Browne has become an ambassador for what the cello can be in the 21st century. He has made waves at prestigious festivals such as the Cello Biennale Amsterdam and the International Cello Festival of Canada and has opened for artists ranging from Polish neoclassical pianist Hania Rani to Nordic folk ensemble SKÁLD and Danish prog metal masters VOLA.

With a busy year of live performances, including a recent European tour with Earthside and an upcoming run alongside Einar Solberg, Raphael Weinroth-Browne continues to expand the possibilities of the cello. With Empyrean arriving later this year, he further cements his reputation as one of the instrument's most adventurous and distinctive modern voices.

Catch Raphael Weinroth-Browne live on the following dates:

September 18 – The Garage, London, UK (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 19 – Café de la Danse, Paris, France (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 20 – Le Rex, Toulouse, France (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 21 – La Rhapsodie, Biarritz, France (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 22 – Mouco, Porto, Portugal (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 23 – República da Música, Lisbon, Portugal (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 25 – Be Prog! My Friend, Barcelona, Spain (with Einar Solberg)
September 26 – L’Ampérage, Grenoble, France (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 27 – Euroblast Festival, Cologne, Germany (with Einar Solberg)
September 29 – Hype Park, Kraków, Poland (solo and with Einar Solberg)
September 30 – Lido, Berlin, Germany (solo and with Einar Solberg)
October 1 – Gebläsehalle, Neunkirchen, Germany (solo and with Einar Solberg)
October 2 – Werkk Kulturlokal, Baden, Switzerland (solo and with Einar Solberg)
October 4 – ProgPower Europe, Baarlo, Netherlands (with Einar Solberg)
October 7 - Queens Hall Arts Centre, Hexham, UK (BACH Reimagined with James Wilton Dance)
October 23 - Guelph, ON - Silence
October 24 - Guelph, ON - Silence
October 29 - Toronto, ON - Burdock Music Hall
November 6 - Ottawa, ON - Carleton Dominion Chalmers Centre

Raphael Weinroth-Browne online:
Official Website || Facebook | Instagram || Youtube ||  X || Bandcamp || Tik Tok 

Empyrean Tracklist: 

1. Speed of Light
2. Remnant
3. Evocation
4. Murmuration
5. Integration
6. Dissolution
7. Sanctum
8. Reflection
9. Empyrean 

Rising alternative heavy act PLUME return with their striking new single 'My Cortisol Face', the final release before their highly anticipated debut album Saferooms & Healing Frequencies arrives on 25th September  via Arising Empire.

Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/Lqy0Mc8K0AY

Stream and pre-order here: https://arisingempire.com/plume

Blurring the lines between hyperpop shimmer, emotional metalcore and futuristic electronic production, 'My Cortisol Face' captures PLUME at their most vulnerable and volatile. Glittering electronics collide with crushing guitars, ethereal clean vocals and piercing screams, creating a track that feels equally fragile, chaotic and euphoric.

Lyrically, the song dives headfirst into anxiety, distorted self perception and the exhausting battle against your own reflection. Images of glitter caught in the throat, ribs beneath paper thin skin and rehearsed smiles paint an unsettling picture of someone desperately trying to maintain the surface while everything underneath begins to fracture. The recurring question of whether this experience is a nightmare or everything they have been dreaming about sits at the emotional core of the track.

That conflict erupts in the chorus, where pain and style become almost inseparable. 'My Cortisol Face' transforms inner turmoil into something strangely beautiful, balancing vulnerability with an undeniable sense of attitude and immediacy. As the song builds towards its desperate final moments, repeated questions of whether the pain will ever end underline the feeling of being trapped in an emotional freefall.

The single follows PLUME’s recent releases 'Digital Waterboarding', 'Furious Icon', 'Angel Engine' and 'A Cure For A Knife’s Blade', each revealing another side of the band’s rapidly evolving sonic identity. Since signing with Arising Empire earlier this year, the German four piece have continued to establish themselves as one of the most intriguing newcomers in modern alternative heavy music, combining pop sensibility with distorted guitars, synthesizers, fractured rhythms and a visual identity inspired by glam rock and contemporary digital culture.

Fronted by Pascal Pashaee alongside guitarist David Riederer, keyboardist Luka Lorch and drummer Richard , PLUME approach their music as more than a collection of songs. Their immersive live performances and carefully constructed visual world form an extension of a sound that refuses to sit comfortably within a single genre.

With their debut album Saferooms & Healing Frequencies set for release on 25th September, PLUME are preparing to bring that vision into full focus. The 13 track record represents the next major step for a band increasingly determined to reshape the boundaries between pop, metalcore and forwarKiliand thinking alternative music.

As the final glimpse of the album before its arrival, 'My Cortisol Face' feels like a fitting statement of intent: intimate, dramatic, unpredictable and unapologetically PLUME.

Catch the band live:
​
19.09.2026 I Le Petit Salon I Lyon 07, France

PLUME online:
https://www.instagram.com/plumeofficial

French modern metalcore force REVNOIR return with their powerful new single 'Fracture', a gripping anthem that channels fear, resistance and the determination to keep fighting when hope feels increasingly difficult to hold onto. The release also marks the beginning of the pre-order for the band's highly anticipated debut album, Sometimes I feel you, sometimes I don't, set for release on 27th November via Arising Empire.

Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/vwIbTw6mOSA

Pre-order the album here: https://arisingempire.com/revnoir

Described by the band as "a collective cry of resistance: the surrounding fear, and, in spite of it all, the refusal to give up," 'Fracture' captures the tension of living in a world where silence, uncertainty and helplessness can become overwhelming.

Built around the question of whether we simply stand by or find the courage to speak up, the track moves between raw vulnerability and outright defiance. Its lyrics paint a bleak picture of fear taking hold, voices being swallowed before they can be heard and people desperately searching for better days. Yet beneath that darkness lies a powerful sense of unity. "Fracture" ultimately refuses resignation, transforming anxiety and isolation into a collective call to stand together.
Musically, REVNOIR deliver one of their most commanding statements to date. Stunning vocals collide with intricate, virtuosic instrumentation and colossal modern production, steadily building toward a towering and unforgettable chorus. Heavy, atmospheric and deeply emotional, 'Fracture' showcases the band's ability to balance vulnerability with sheer force while pushing their distinctive take on modern metalcore further forward.

Since emerging in 2023, REVNOIR have quickly established themselves as one of the most exciting new names in the French and European modern metal scene. Across their first two EPs and subsequent releases, the band have already accumulated more than 8 million streams, while their rapid rise earned them the title of Best Breakthrough Artist at Les Foudres 2025. Their growing reputation has also taken them to major stages across Europe, including Hellfest Main Stage, alongside extensive touring and festival appearances.

Their momentum has been equally evident on the live front. Following sold-out headline shows in Paris, REVNOIR have continued to expand their reach beyond France, including a European tour alongside Future Palace, proving that the intensity and emotion behind their music translate just as powerfully to the stage.

With 'Fracture', REVNOIR now open the next chapter of their journey as the pre-order for their debut album Sometimes I feel you, sometimes I don't .begins

REVNOIR online:
https://www.instagram.com/revnoir_

Photo Credit: Robert John

Gearing up for the release of the highly anticipated 50th anniversary album, Teutonic Titans 1976-2026 (out this Friday, 4th September, Napalm Records), heavy metal force ACCEPT have unveiled the final single of the record.

Today they release a new re-recorded version of 'Losers and Winners'. Originally appearing on Balls to the Wall (1983), the re-rendition of the track shines with guest vocals by Hansi Kürsch, guitar by Paul Gilbert, bass by Chuck Garric and Tommy Aldridge on drums.

Listen here: https://youtu.be/PCVldz0LkYM

Wolf Hoffmann about 'Losers and Winners':

“We’ve known Hansi for a long time. Funnily enough, we’ve never really toured together or hardly ever played at festivals together, but we’ve known and respected each other for many years. They’ve been around forever. I thought Hansi would be a cool guy for that song, and lo and behold, he did a fantastic job. I really like how much effort people put into it. Nobody phoned it in and did a half-assed job. Everyone gave it all.”

Marking ACCEPT's 50th anniversary, Teutonic Titans 1976-2026 contains 19 re-recorded songs from the band's iconic catalogue, produced, mixed, and mastered by the legendary Zeuss, and features 50 A-list guest artists. The fourth single off of the album, 'Losers and Winners' serves as further impressive proof of ACCEPT staying relevant and powerful throughout their 50-year career.

German heavy metal legends ACCEPT celebrate 50 years of pure power, bringing together the scene’s A-list musicians for a landmark release. Teutonic Titans 1976–2026 stands as a definitive statement of the band’s legacy, forged in steel and driven by unmistakable riffs. Arriving 4th September via Napalm Records, the album delivers some of the most iconic songs ever written in heavy music.

Led by guitarist Wolf Hoffmann, the longtime architect of ACCEPT’s sound, the band are joined by a staggering 50 guests across 19 reimagined versions of their biggest tracks. Teutonic Titans 1976-2026 is ACCEPT’s most ambitious and star-studded release to date, reaching far beyond their country’s borders. Featuring the biggest names in heavy music paying tribute to the German icons, the record cements the band’s standing on the global stage.

Wolf Hoffmann about Teutonic Titans 1976-2026:

“There is no better way to celebrate this 50-year anniversary than to have our musical peers, friends, and inspirations come together with us to record these classic ACCEPT songs, which I am honored and proud to share with the world. I hope everyone enjoys this very special record as much as we all enjoyed making it.”

Chronologically progressing through albums from their formative years, from I’m a Rebel (1980) to Eat the Heat (1989), ACCEPT present their songs with an all-new, all-star lineup, alongside the signature voice of Mark Tornillo and Wolf Hoffmann’s unmistakable riffs. By enlisting a Who’s Who of metal, no two songs on Teutonic Titans 1976-2026 are the same. Every track features a different combination of vocals, guitars, bass, and drums, giving each classic a fresh edge.

Tobias Forge delivers a commanding performance on the track 'Save Us' (I’m a Rebel, 1980), joined by Ray Luzier on drums. Phil Anselmo, Kirk Hammett, and Mikkey Dee tear through the speed metal classic 'Fast As A Shark' (Restless and Wild, 1982). 'Balls to the Wall' surges with the powerful range of Metal God Rob Halford, alongside the guitar work of Matthias Jabs, while the reimagined 'Love Child' is elevated by Billy Corgan and David Ellefson (both songs from Balls to the Wall, 1983).

Other guest stars on ACCEPT’s extraordinary release include K. K. Downing, Bobby Blitz, Hansi Kürsch, Chris Jericho, Ralf Scheepers, Billy Sheehan, Ola Englund, and Jeff Loomis. The album also features a re-recording of 'Hellhammer' (Eat the Heat, 1989), performed by ACCEPT’s current lineup: Wolf Hoffmann, bassist Martin Motnik, guitarist Philip Shouse and drummer Christopher Williams, joined by Jason McMaster on vocals. The album masterpiece was produced, mixed and mastered by legendary producer Zeuss.

ACCEPT are:

Wolf Hoffmann – guitar
Mark Tornillo – vocals
Philip Shouse – guitar
Martin Motnik – bass
Christopher Williams – drums

ACCEPT online:
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NAPALM RECORDS

Tracklisting: 

1. Fast as a Shark
2. Balls to the Wall
3. Aiming High
4. Run If You Can
5. Hellhammer
6. Metal Heart
7. Losers and Winners
8. Save Us
9. Up to the Limit
10. Wrong Is Right
11. Starlight
12. Fight It Back
13. Love Child
14. Breaker
15. Demon’s Night
16. T.V. War
17. London Leatherboys
18. Monsterman
19. Restless and Wild

French sludge metal quartet Love Sex Machine will release their mighty new album Thriving on 13th November via Pelagic Records.

In celebration, the group have streamed the first single from the record, the vicious 'The Herd'.

Watch: https://youtu.be/vCNQFoT1mIQ

Stream: https://orcd.co/lsm-thriving

The band comment: "This song is about being processed in a slaughterhouse run by cows. Probably unbearable. So is the song."

Formed in Lille, France, Love Sex Machine have spent more than a decade developing one of the most recognisable strains of contemporary sludge. From their earliest recordings the band established an approach built around weight, repetition and confrontation, stripping heavy music down to its most physical components while retaining a distinct sense of brutal humour. Love Sex Machine continue to expand through sludge, post-metal, post-hardcore and blackened extremity as a band with zero interest in restraint or convention.

Uncompromising, darkly humorous and physically overwhelming, Love Sex Machine‘s new album Thriving is “…uglier, more direct and more violent than anything we’ve done.“ Though routed in a violent approach to sludge, the band constantly distort that foundation through the angular precision of modern metal, the tension of post-hardcore and the colder, more hostile colours of black metal. The songs arrive and sustain such density and repetition that their massive depth of sound is unapologetically abrasive; rattling listeners to the core and giving direct access to the human shadow in all its vile glory.

Short and brutally immediate compositions give Thriving a particularly urgent character, whilst each song stands unique in the onslaught of ear-drums and curdling flesh. The result is music that is filthy yet precise, punishing yet strangely catchy, ugly yet meticulously constructed. Love Sex Machine make heaviness itself the organising principle, and then find increasingly inventive ways to make it stampede over all expectations and sensibilities.

Love Sex Machine online:
https://www.instagram.com/lovesexmachineband
https://lovesexmachine.bandcamp.com/album/love-sex-machine

Love Sex Machine are:

Xavier - Drums and Backing Vocals
JB - Guitar and Backing Vocals
Laurent - Bass and Backing Vocals
Yves - Guitar, Lead Vocals and Mix

Tracklisting:

1. Yellow Is Dead
2. Borrow The Will
3. The Herd
4. Dig
5. Holy Filth
6. Awaken
7. Born Erased
8. Polymorphism
9. Ultrasatan
10. Amputation
11. Thriving