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Ghost – Infestissumam

Sweden’s Ghost returns with a new full-length that’s loaded with glitzy production, more details, and longer tracks. It’s the tunes that end up getting lost in translation much of the time.

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Ghost (B.C.) – “Year Zero”

Swedish metal outfit Ghost drops a new music video for the track “Year Zero,” which is set for release on the band’s next full-length, Infestissumam, which is dropping in the middle of April. Also, watch out for nudity on this one! NSFW! NSFW!

Check a review of Ghost’s debut full-length here:

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Kvelertak – Meir

Kvelertak delivers once again with high energy, solid production, anthemic melodies, catchy choruses, and a tastefully executed blend of influences: rock ‘n’ roll, black metal, hardcore punk, and heavy metal.

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Darkthrone – “Leave No Cross Unturned”

Legendary black metal-turned-crust punk stalwarts Darkthrone are about to release their, count it, 15th studio album in their lengthy career. Yet somehow, they’ve managed yet again to come up with new ideas while still refusing to stray from their classic heavy metal influences–particularly Venom and Mercyful Fate. Add those elements with a healthy chunk of doom metal and you’ve got a pretty good impression of what to expect here. Darkthrone’s basically trolling the rest of extreme metal right now, yet still managing to outplay bands half their age. An entertaining and fresh piece of the band, to say the least.

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Witch Cross- “Rocking the Night Away”

Here’s a bit of heavy metal from a rock band time forgot: Witch Cross. The Danish group didn’t have a lot of releases in their heyday, but what they did put out was pretty tight, anthemic, and catchy.

The label Hell’s Headbangers is putting out an anthology release for the band, featuring 3 CDs and 1 DVD. “Rocking the Night Away” comes off the compilation, and has a nice vintage flavor to it. The guitar riffs hit a nice groove, and Alex “Savage” Nyborg Madsen’s vocals pierce the air and demand attention–it’s like an air horn, but, like, awesome on the ears.

Really enjoying this. It’s torn jeans, long hair, and leather jackets all the way.

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Christian Mistress- Possession

The new Christian Mistress record is a heavy metal throwback that’s self aware enough to find a definitive spot for itself in the genre. Oh, yeah, the songs are really catchy, too.

WATCH THE REVIEW / LOVED

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Christian Mistress- “Black to Gold”

“Black to Gold” is one of two tracks to drop from the forthcoming Christian Mistress album, Possession. This outfit may be from Olympia, Washington, but they recreate that classic British heavy metal sound as if it’s coursing through their veins.

There are a few riffs here and there that remind me of Black Sabbath on this album, but most of this LP is spent indulging in the high-speed and high-melody songwriting Iron Maiden is known for–maybe there’s a bit of Motorhead-esque attitude thrown in there for good measure, too.

The layers of harmony the guitars bring together on some of these tracks is too good to be true, and the band’s singer is pretty captivating as well. Can’t wait to hear this album in full. Try out another track from this forthcoming LP here.

Look for the eventual release of Possession on Relapse. Feburary 28th! Mark it.

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Lamb of God- Resolution

Lamb of God’s sixth studio album is big on aggression, which is to be expected, but it doesn’t exactly bring enough ideas to the table to keep things interesting for me.

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Elder- “Gemini”

Elder is a Massachusetts rock band, and 2011 saw the release of its sophomore album, Dead Roots Stirring. It’s out now via MeteorCity, and the song above comes from it.

Even though this track, “Gemini,” feeds into a few stereotypes for this genre, I can’t help but find the riffs and guitar leads extremely catchy. Plus, the recording ain’t half bad, too. Heavy band is heavy.

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In Solutude- “Serpents Are Rising”

A new track from Swedish metal outfit In Solitude, whose third album dropped on Metal Blade this past May. The LP’s title is The World. The Flesh. The Devil..

The sound here is one that’s been a metal mainstay for decades, going back to the days of King Diamond and Iron Maiden. Maybe the vocals are little overbearing, but the songs are presented with a lot of sincerity. It’s definitely a throwback, but I don’t see any reason to bring authenticity into question. The riffs are too fiery to do that.