Metal Hammer's Tracks Of The Week: July 26
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July is over! Well, almost, at least. With the summer holidays now well and truly underway and plenty of festivals still to come in the US, UK and across Europe, it feels like we're hitting one of the most fun parts of the year. But while some of us might be jetting off on summer holidays, the gears of the music world are fast at work, with brilliant new tracks for us all to enjoy.
That in mind, here are the results of last week's vote! There was a hefty bunch to select from last week with 15 tracks in the running, but ultimately only three bands could take the podium. Masked black metal entities Gaerea took a healthy third place with Hope Shatters, while Epica's Simone Simons lived up to her status as a symphonic metal icon by taking second. But the overall champions were Finnish symphonic death metallers Assemble The Chariots, Departure beating the competition by a good distance.
It just goes to show there's no hard rule on who can win these votes, and this week we've assembled a diverse and bulky selection of brilliant new metal songs for your persual. Whether you want grandiose black metal, old school heavy metal or something more in the grunge and nu metal revival vein, we've got you covered with brilliant new tracks from Jerry Cantrell, Grand Magus, Powerwolf, Wrex and so much more. Don't forget to vote for your favourite below - and have a brilliant weekend!
Jerry Cantrell - Vilified
Alice In Chains legend Jerry Cantrell is back with a new solo album. Titled I Want Blood, the record will be with us October 18 and first single Vilified shows the guitarist isn't straying too far from his iconic sound, sludgy guitars and soulful vocals tapping into the unmistakable tone he's been championing for over 30 years.
Ad Infinitum - My Halo
Ad Infinitum might have started out in the realms of symphonic metal, but the Swiss group are clearly striving for something bigger for their fourth album. The first outside of their Chapter format, Abyss is set for release on October 11 and lead single My Halo showcases an altogether different sound for the group, still built on Melissa Bonny's sublime vocals, but adding a sense of heft and immediacy that brings to mind a similar path forged by Within Temptation on recent releases. Either way, it's massive and we can't wait to hear more.
Fit For A King - Technium
We know a song can't be judged purely on the merits of its music video, but we also know that some awe-inspiring imagery can definitely help cement a great track in the public consciousness. Surely that's the case for Fit For A King's latest single Technium, an epic, fantasy-aligned video chucking up shades of everything from Vikings and The Northman to Game Of Thrones with an epic sword battle to boot. And the track itself? An absolute fucking rager, chucking up shades of the best parts of Parkway Drive and Slipknot in a roaring, titanically crushing package that feels perfectly suited to massive stages. Fir For A King will be over in the UK next year with Motionless In White - all dates already sold out - so this could well be the inescapable live anthem of 2025.
Plague Of Angels - Beyond Salvation
British mob Plague Of Angels feature Cradle Of Filth, Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride alumni in their ranks, so we shouldn't be too surprised that their sweeping, melodramatic strand of symphonic metal is sprinkled with a touch of gothic grandeur and bombastic mischief. Beyond Salvation follows in the grandiose tradition of previous single What Lies Beneath, confirming the seven-piece as one of the UK's ones to watch. Subtle, this lot ain't.
Powerwolf - We Don’t Wanna Be No Saints
They might wear priestly robes, but you don’t need to look much further than Resurrection By Erection to see Powerwolf aren’t exactly prudish puritans. Still, the band’s proclamation We Don’t Wanna Be No Saints is a handy reminder that Germany’s heavy metal and werewolf loving troupe do have a zealotry when it comes to heavy metal brilliance, delivering a typically massive, bombastic tune that even drafts in a backing choir. Taken from their new album Wake Up The Wicked, the track is exactly the kind of joyous tune you need to take you into the weekend.
Fit For An Autopsy - Hostage
Fit Fot An Autopsy reached new heights on 2022's Oh What The Future Holds, and if Hostage any indication, their next record will be just as immense. The first single from The Nothing That Is - due October 25 - Hostage balances anthemic potential with sheer, undeniable heft, their death metal leanings still front and centre even as they write ascendant, crowd-uniting choruses.
Grand Magus - Skybound
Grand Magus and Beowolf - surely a match made in heaven (or Valhalla, at least)? That's the overarching concept feeding into the group's upcoming tenth album Sunraven, due October 18, but needless to say the Swedish heavy metal champs aren't getting lost in lofty, prog themes as they roar forth with a sense of triumph that could only come from trad metal.
Emil Bulls - Warriors of Love (feat. Doro)
Almost 30 years into their careers, Germany's Emil Bulls have been a constant, if at times background, presence in the metal scene. The band's latest single should be more than enough reason to thrust them into the spotlight however, as they've teamed up with heavy metal legend Doro Pesch for the surprisingly incendiary Warriors Of Love, a track which has smatterings of metalcore-style fury before giving way to an epic chorus that draws on trad metal but captures some of the surprising tonal shift of Anaal Nathrakh. Brilliant.
Crucifiction - Amputated Satisfaction
Shrieking, snarling deathcore from Bloodbather’s Salem Vex, Crucifiction announced themselves to the world with Caged For Extermination earlier this year. Now the band have announced that debut album Will To Power will be out October 11, new single Amputated Satisfaction delivering sonic-boom triggering heft in a stompy, tooth-gnashing three (and a bit) minute package.
Wrex - Take A Walk
Following on from the buoyant Heaven's Gate, Brighton Wrex has unveiled the similarly gravity defying Take A Walk, the latest single from their upcoming EP This Hell Goes A Long Way Down, out August 16. Much like their previous single, the track has an underpinning of electronic elements, albeit done just subtly enough that rock and metal purists won't be too distracted from the sheer percusive force of the track nor its massive hooks.
Ec{c}entric Pendulum - Encaged Visions of the Unobstructed
Infernally complex progressive death metal out of India, Ec{c}entric Pendulum's latest single Encaged Visions Of The Unobstructed is an absolute must for any tech-metal lovers. Instrumental acrobatics see riffs swing, crash and burst forth with an almost cosmic tone to the whole thing lending the band a spacey, truly progressive feel. Taken from their upcoming record Perspectiva Infernalis, out September 6, this lot are definitely wortth keeping eyes out for if you like inventive extreme metal.
Ocean Grove - My Disaster
Long before the nu metal revival hit TiKTok, Aussies Ocean Grove were holding down the fort with a distinct fusion of styles that left no mystery as to what era they were beholden to. Latest single My Disaster is a prime example of their unique fusion of styles, taking bouncy, hardcore beats and riffs and mixing in shades of Linkin Park style rapped bars, only to give way to Deftones-style sublime melodies. It's a potent mix, and yet more proof this band should be way more beloved. Don't sleep on them.
Defiled - Smoke And Mirrors
Smoke And Mirrors might be the title of Defiled's latest single, but the Japanese group aren't bothering with any useless excess when it comes to delivering a vicious death metal beatdown. Drawing heavily on old school death metal, the track is no frills brutality and a handy reminder that they've been at this for over 30 years.
Kingdom Of Giants - Asphalt
Powered by a riff that could make you take down a wall with your face, California's Kingdom Of Giants are going hard on latest single Asphalt. Balancing the heft of the verses with ascendant, mass-appeal choruses, the track is taken from their upcoming Bleeding Star EP, out September 20.
Izzy Reign - Sandman
Blending crushing metalcore, pulsating EDM and throbbing industrial rock, Izzy Reign follows in the footsteps of other boundary-blurring artists such as Bad Omens, Poppy and Mothica to craft her particular brand of beat-heavy, genre-splicing noise. Sandman is the third single from Izzy's upcoming album of the same name, due out in 2025. It's a mighty long time to wait, but on the basis of what we've heard from her so far, it'll be worth it.
Winterfylleth - Upon This Shore
Reliably epic, British black metallers Winterfylleth return with another gloriously grandiose composition on latest single Upon This Shore. There's only a few weeks to go until the band's new album The Imperious Horizon arrives (on September 13, to be exact), but this should be all the persuasion you need to stick this one on good and loud on the day of release, such is its blistering force.
