Dystopia, progressive metal, and fun facts about Voidchaser! Over Hyperspace Metal Festival weekend in Vancouver, BC, in mid April, I had the privilege of interviewing the band Voidchaser, easily one of my most anticipated sets of the entire Fest! It was a gorgeous day, so we decided to do the interview outside at Dr. Sun […]
Crushing atmospheric melodeath from Greece! Greek melodic death metal band AmongRuins recently released their fourth full length album, “Advent of Chaos.” I will admit that prior to listening to this album, I was completely unfamiliar with the band. Like many genres, melodeath can cover a lot of ground, and I was curious where exactly AmongRuins
AmongRuins – Advent of Chaos – Album Review Read More »
An incredible and defining progressive metal dystopian concept album! I love a great concept album. Add some dystopia and sci-fi, and I can be easily hooked. But much like writing a great novel, great concept albums don’t just happen, and I have listened to a handful released in 2026 that I really wanted to love
Voidchaser – Interstellar I – Album Review Read More »
A melting pot of European melodic death and progressive metal, live in Portland, Oregon! Back in October, Dark Tranquillity and Soen did the Ultima Ratio Fest tour across Europe together, with support from Iotunn and Equilibrium. For this tour, Dark Tranquillity was playing a special set, celebrating 30 years of “The Gallery” and 20 years
Various flavors of heavy metal collide in Uster, Switzerland, for a fantastic early year Festival! Elements of Rock Festival took place March 13 – 15 at Stadthofsaal in Uster, Switzerland. It started in 2004 and has run annually since, with exception of a few years during COVID. I have only been once before, in 2007,
Five albums from January 2026 that deserve your listening attention! I am a little late posting this (something about launching my website and getting things ramped up), but here are my top 5 releases from January 2026. The reality is, January kicked off the year in splendid fashion. I reviewed 19 albums released during the
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The OGs of progressive extreme metal on the big stage! Opeth recently completed their second leg of the “Last Will and Testament” Tour, supporting their 2024 release “The Last Will and Testament,” with tour support from Katatonia. They wrapped up the tour in the Pacific Northwest, with final stops in Seattle, WA, and Vancouver, BC.
A wide variety of extreme metal bands making up a fantastic show! The Glacial Ascension Tour featured 5 bands on a short tour up the West Coast, culminating in an appearance at Day 3 of Glacial Mutilation Fest in Vancouver, BC, Canada. The penultimate stop was at Substation in Seattle, WA, on Friday, February 20,
Progressive metal from Hungary incorporating symphonic, gothic, and death metal notes with a heavy dose of cinematic flair! I stumbled upon Hungary’s Meteora back in November via an Instagram ad letting me know about their at the time recently released EP, “Broken Mind.” I liked the clip I heard, and after diving in for a
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HEAVY modern symphonic metal with killer melodies and fabulous song writing! I didn’t know who Flowerleaf was until late last year when they released a single called “Silksong” that came to my attention via an Instagram ad. If you are a video game aficionado or just happen to be familiar with the Hollow Knight series,
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