This week’s Heavy Music HQ reviews include releases from Apocaelypse, Azgaal, Colorblind, Dreamwell, Echoes Of A Dying World, Exhumer, Flotsam And Jetsam, Immiserator, In This Moment, Kamelot, Kickin Valentina, Kulk, Miscreance, Ninth Realm, Perpetual Paradox, Squid Pisser and Static Abyss.
The ratings are on a 5-star scale.
Apocaelypse – Faenix (Self)
Ira Black has played guitar in numerous bands over the years, ranging from Vio-Lence to Metal Church to Lizzy Borden. In his new band Apocaelypse, Black also takes on frontman duties for the first time. The lineup also includes his son Ira Black IV (guitar), drummer Lonny Pasillas (Kill Devil Hill) and former Five Finger Death Punch bassist Matt Snell.
Their debut album Faenix is modern metal/hard rock with big hooks and heavy guitars. Tracks like “Intell-i-gents” are bombastic and have a 5 Finger Death Punch vibe, while songs such as “Love To Hate” incorporate the harsh/melodic vocal interplay of metalcore. There are also some industrial influences ala Rob Zombie or Marilyn Manson. Black’s vocals are solid, and the production by Kane Churko (Ozzy Osbourne, Papa Roach, Disturbed) is pristine. Faenix doesn’t break much new musical ground, but Apocaelypse have written several memorable songs.
Rating: 3
(Chad Bowar)
Azgaal – Divine Hitman (Fetzner Death)
Divine Hitman, the latest album from French veterans Azgaal is a fun album that has an atmospheric aspect along with the usual black metal proponent, making for an eclectic and interesting listen. There is a groove to the songs that makes the album more rollicking. It is still grim and black metal, but at the same time something more interesting and palatable. The band is trying to be entertaining and this is appreciated.
In terms of musicianship, the album is very good and has a strong production job to boot. The downside of the album for me is that it is still somewhat of a grim black metal release, which is generally not my preferred style. However, Azgaal attempt to do some interesting things with Divine Hitman.
Rating: 3
(Adam McAuley)
Colorblind – Who Sold You This Truth – Was It Yours To Hold (Tooth & Nail)
Colorblind have never been interested in fitting neatly into a scene, and their debut full-length Who Sold You This Truth – Was It Yours To Hold makes that clear. The Austin quartet brings fifteen tracks built around their “dreamcore” sound, where detuned, thunderous riffs collide with ambient textures and pop-leaning melody. Heavier cuts like “Chemical Warfare” and “God Complex” carry the record’s low-end weight, while “Lost In Translation” and “Heavy Heart” pull back into something more exposed. That contrast keeps the album moving with fitting, given lyrics that wrestle with identity, belief, and grief rather than settling into easy answers.
Opener “Pressure” and “Car Crash” set a tight, economical tone, and singles “Needle Eye” and “Let Down” balance immediate hooks against real heaviness. “Misery Loves Company” and “Incomplete” hold the middle stretch, while “Royal Blood” and “Neversleep” reintroduce urgency before the record eases into a more unresolved back half with “The Countdown,” “Paradox,” and closer “Cynical.” Travis Moseley’s vocals shift between melodic clarity and strained delivery depending on what each song needs, giving the tracks a consistent emotional center despite their range. It’s a debut that puts the band’s full spectrum on the table at once, both heavy and melodic, vulnerable and unresolved, all at the same time.
Rating 4
(Jeanetta Briski)
Dreamwell – Hymns For The Denial Of God (Prosthetic)
The latest release from the Rhode Island “post-skramz” quartet Dreamwell is Hymns For The Denial Of God, their third album. It explores themes of the negative impacts of organized religion and challenging said ideals when it’s used to justify hatred.
Thematically, it hits the hammer on the head. Tracks like “Anti-Christ Testimony” and “Apostates & Gentiles” are just a couple examples of how the overarching theme and message are received loud and clear. Instrumentation wise, Hymns For The Denial Of God is nothing really to write home about and is serviceable for those who are fans of the hardcore genre.
Rating: 3
(Dalton Husher)
Echoes Of A Dying World – Revelations (Self)
Hailing from Antwerp, Belgium, Echoes Of A Dying World are one of those bands that confront the listener with a wall of musical memories. With Revelations, their new EP, the band firmly steps into the territory where the raw legacy of Swedish death metal meets the melodic and dramatic spirit of the early Gothenburg scene.
Although the band had already released Before The Fall EP in 2022 and their first full length Tribulation in 2023, Revelations feels like a significant step forward. The songwriting has become more focused and mature, as if the band has dug deeper into the history of melodic death metal, searching for its beauty, fury, and darker corners; as “Generational Curses” testifies to. Much of the EP’s character also comes from Tine Vanmuysen, whose double duty of delivering both devastating growls and clean vocals adds remarkable depth to the songs. Revelations is death metal drenched in nostalgia; a powerful statement from a band worth watching.
Rating: 4
(Arash Khosronejad)
Exumer – Death Mask Messiah (Metal Blade)
On their sixth album Death Mask Messiah, Exumer continue down the path of consistency that started with their 2012 reunion album Fire & Damnation. The seminal Teutonic thrash metal band’s in your face approach is something that separates them from their more well-known contemporaries, all while tackling subjects like David Koresh (“Death Mask Messiah”), misinformation causing division and 2020’s US politics.
“Sin Bleeder” is a powerful rolling track that showcases vocalist Mem V. Stein’s unique approach as it is one of the more defining characteristics of Exumer as a whole. “Eradication” has some of the album’s more powerful riffs as it gets up close and personal with the listener in what feels like an intentional shift. The end of the album even has a cover of Nasty Savage’s “Unchained Angel” with Nasty Ronnie on vocals taking it back to the former band’s first tour of Europe. Exumer have been on a heater since 2012 with a record that properly bridges eras and sounds. Death Mask Messiah is a well-executed attack on your senses.
Rating: 3.5
(Tom Campagna)
Flotsam And Jetsam – Rats In The Temple (Napalm)
It has been 40 years since Phoenix thrashers Flotsam And Jetsam emerged with their debut album Doomsday For The Deceiver. They still have a couple of original members, vocalist Eric AK Knutson and guitarist Michael Gilbert. They’ve been consistent over the years, for the most part issuing a new album every two or three years. Their latest effort is Rats In The Temple.
They haven’t slowed down a bit, still writing songs that bring intensity, melody and plenty of shredding. Maximum riffage and minimal filler is their formula, and it continues to work. Some of the highlights include the epic “Damnation,” the groovy “Blame The Knife” and the galloping “First On The Spike.” Flotsam And Jetsam aren’t reinventing the wheel, nor should they. Their fans expect a varied collection of thrash with some traditional metal influences, and that’s exactly what Rats In The Temple delivers.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Immiserator – Blight Of Subsistence (Apocalyptic Witchcraft)
It usually takes a team effort to put an album out, from band members to mixing and mastering. New Zealand newcomer Harrison Mcenzie and his project Immiserator and debut album Blight Of Subsistence shows that it is possible to do it solo.
It is your typical black metal affair, but what stand out are the moments where the tracks dip their toes into the atmospheric side like with “An Economy of Ash.” “Consigned To The Furnace” stands out as it is the only track to use synths and have it sound obnoxious. Despite the overall brutality, the bits of atmosphere add the right amount of depth that it doesn’t overdo it. While it’s not uncommon to do everything solo; it doesn’t change the fact that Harrison Mcenzie/Immiserator managed to put together something akin to Blut Aus Nord largely by himself.
Rating: 3.5
(Dalton Husher)
In This Moment – Witch (Better Noise)
There’s a precise moment when a band shifts from casual respect to something you actively seek out. Mine came in two parts: 2020’s Mother, with its witchy overtones and ritualistic framing, and then 2025’s Rock Fest in Wisconsin, where Maria Brink’s priestess-like presence sealed my appreciation for good. With Witch, In This Moment deliver the culmination of everything they’ve built toward fusing Mother‘s sacred-art atmosphere with the arena-sized aggression of their live shows. “Shame” opens with oppressive, seductive energy, Travis Johnson’s bass line and Chris Howorth’s razor-sharp riffs framing Brink’s shift between whisper and scream. “I Want To Believe,” with Dayseeker, blends theatrical metal with soaring post-hardcore.
“Crawl” (my personal favorite on this record) and “Into The Dark” slow the pace into hypnotic, gothic territory, while “Sleeping With The Enemy” and “Wrapped Around Your Finger” show off the band’s dynamic range. “Heretic,” with Kim Dracula, is the album’s most unhinged, genre-bending moment. “Father” anchors the record as a solemn, confessional centerpiece, and two closing covers: “Another Brick In The Wall” with Kat Von D and Nine Inch Nails’ “Something I Can Never Have” bring the album to a haunting, cinematic close.
Rating: 4
(Jeanetta Briski)
Kamelot – Dark Asylum (Napalm)
Kamelot’s Dark Asylum is an ambitious, guest-heavy album that showcases the band’s full range — from bombastic highs to melodramatic lows. With nearly half the tracks featuring collaborators such as Tobias Sammet and Clementine Delauncy, the record offers impressive variety and top-tier vocals and solos, but its 15-song length and lack of cohesion make it feel more like a hits compilation than a focused statement.
Still, it’s hard not to respect a band that, thirty years in, delivers this much energy and sincerity. Dark Asylum may be bloated and scattered, but it’s made with genuine passion — a rare trait in today’s cynical music scene. While a tighter edit would have served it better, the album remains an enjoyable ride for fans of theatrical power metal.
Rating: 3
(Carlos Tirado)
Kickin Valentina – Anthems From The Underground (Mighty)
Anthems From The Underground is the latest album from Atlanta hard rockers Kickin Valentina. While the production is modern, the band’s approach and vibe embrace a classic style.
Catchiness abounds, especially on tracks like “Don’t Be Mad” and “Dance Of Destruction.” Gritty guitars deliver ample solos and a plethora of catchy riffs throughout the album. The songs are direct and don’t overstay their welcome. The record is front loaded as far as quality goes, but there are some good songs on the back half of the album, such as “Good Time Bad Guys.” Anthems From The Underground flies by, with Kickin Valentina adding another enjoyable album to their discography.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Kulk – Choosing To Die (Church Road)
The UK duo Kulk are noisy as hell on their new album, Choosing To Die. Their sludgy doom metal has been saturated in feedback, stripped for parts and condensed into the bare necessities. There are none of the lengthier dirges of the past; the longest song here barely heads past five minutes, in a move reminiscent of 2024’s It Gets Worse.
Even at under 27 minutes, Choosing To Die doesn’t completely maintain a steady rhythm. “Collapse” is a show of strength with its meaty riffs, but little else. Closer “Our Last Walk” is short ambience that quickly builds to a formless static wall. These aren’t able to sully excellent tunes like the sorrowful “Ache” or the biting “To Take Life,” though.
Rating: 3
(Dan Marsicano)
Miscreance – Reminiscence (Season Of Mist)
For their second album Reminiscence, Italian technical death/thrash metal group Miscreance have begun the process of self-discovery towards their own sonic identity. 2022’s Convergence was just a proof of concept compared to how Reminiscence retains the band’s technicality while incorporating non-metal instrumentation.
The use of percussions and woodwinds is executed so well that it’s a shame Miscreance didn’t do more with it. The bongos on “Scalp Ceremony” and the quick hits of a digeridoo or flute seems like they are testing things out instead of fully committing to the bit. Maybe this leads to Miscreance going full Atheist-in-their-Elements-era on their next release, which death metal could use more of.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Marsicano)
Ninth Realm – Damnation’s Veil (Transcending Obscurity)
On their second album Damnation’s Veil, Ninth Realm deliver a direct assault on your ears, bringing in sounds from heavy metal and hardcore while also providing a honed blackened edge to your neck. The album’s title track does all of this, varying some tempos as these Maryland marauders pull no punches with a variety of riffs and drums while their lead singer leads the horde into battle. Ninth Realm do a good job of not losing momentum as this music seems best delivered at maximum volume with a hint of melodicism as nothing seems to dip below the red line, a real success for this band.
What comes across strongly for Ninth Realm is that they are cut from a similar cloth to High Command as a crossover thrash band with more depth than is given credit for in this genre, going to battle instead of crushing it at ragers. This is aggressiveness for outcasts; dorks can be angry too. For their unique approach to the genre, Damnation’s Veil is one of the finest thrash records of 2026.
Rating: 4
(Tom Campagna)
Perpetual Paradox – May Misery Befall You (Bleeding Art)
Perpetual Paradox’s latest EP, May Misery Befall You, comes a little over a year after their debut album, Deathwish. The tight window between the two releases puts more emphasis on the technical leaps their metalcore has taken. The guitars are full of challenging harmonies and leads on “Bound And Strangled By A Black Snake” and “Laconic.”
It’s not a full-on renovation of Perpetual Paradox’s style on this EP, as the breakdowns and full-throated screams are still heavily present. The singing employed on “Smell The Rot” and the title track are tastefully done without signaling an abrupt change in pace. An EP like May Misery Befall You allows the band to test out a revamped sound.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Marsicano)
Squid Pisser – Throat Slave (Skin Graft/Sweatband)
Squid Pisser’s Throat Slave plays out like body horror set to noise punk with parasites, mutation, something incubating in the dark until it’s too late to stop it. Ash’s clinical, almost admiring line about “the perfect organism” could double as a mission statement here: something engineered purely to survive, spread, and feel nothing about the host it ruins.
The L.A. collective frames the record as a “full-length EP”: a 43-second prelude, five original tracks and seven remixes.
The originals mark real growth: groove and atmospheric dread replace pure hyper-speed velocity, with “Rats” stretching past five minutes to let tension build rather than just detonate. Lyrically, tumors and leeches sit over more grounded themes of paranoia and reclaiming identity from something that’s taken root inside you. The remix half is a full metamorphosis: Plack Blague’s “Leather Remix,” Drumcorps’ “Mucus Producer,” Fartbarf’s “Rats Leeches,” Ecology HomeStones’ “Filthy Rats,” Hyper Gal’s “Snot of Self Abuse,” Embryonic Petit Sac’s “Throat Toad,” and KK Null’s closing “Pay to Rot.” It’s technically sharp and thematically consistent, demanding a high tolerance for dissonance as a specialized release for a specific corner of the underground, where once something’s inside you, there’s no getting it back out.
Rating: 3
(Jeanetta Briski)
Static Abyss – The Dying Hunt (Peaceville)
Being the more meat and potatoes death metal arm for both Chris Reifert and Greg Wilkinson of Autopsy, Static Abyss‘ third album is The Dying Hunt. This time the drum duties are handed to Chad Gailey of Necrot to allow for Reifert to focus on and deliver his famous howls and screams as Greg Wilkinson’s guitar swirls into a maelstrom of malevolence on tracks like “Lobotomized At Last,” “Wall of Delusion” and “Bleeding In The Fog.”
The title track feels very crust punk upfront and classic death doom on the backend, giving you a solid mix of genres within the extreme realm. Static Abyss have continued to solidify their sound, which is death metal at its heart but has enough variety to differentiate it from today and the genre’s progenitors. The Dying Hunt is a great mix of genre influences thrown into a salad with each individual piece delivering a unique bite from track to track or within the same one. This is a solid slab of varied death metal.
Rating: 3.5
(Tom Campagna)
