Linkin Park review – nu-metal escapees move beyond teen angst
Pop-R&B smashes and an appearance from Stormzy underline just how far the band have come since the dark days of Limp Bizkit
Kiss review – bombast and nostalgia from a slick, monetised hit machine
After Gene Simmons waggles his tongue for the 100th time, it feels as if you are humouring a beloved grandad’s party trick – then paying them
Iron Maiden review – metal mavericks embrace the dark arts of metal silliness
Steaming cauldrons and drum riser acrobatics … Bruce Dickinson and co’s languid brand of British heavy metal shows no signs of rust
Incubus: 8 review – middling return by the gentlest of the nu-metallers
With their spiritualist-tinged, beach-bum demeanour and love of a delicate chorus, California rockers Incubus always seemed something of an outlier in the nu-metal scene, less likely to Break Stuff than lightly rearrange a few items before retiring for a cup … Continue reading
Mastodon: Emperor of Sand review – metal progressives serve up melodic mischief
Mastodon fans seem to come in two forms: disgruntled diehards who prefer “the early stuff” and an increasingly huge mainstream rock contingent who will doubtless be delighted by the straightforwardly melodic fare that makes up much of the band’s seventh … Continue reading
Me and That Man: Songs of Love and Death review – melodramatic, sandblasted Americana
Long-time fans of Polish death metal crew Behemoth are unlikely to be surprised by frontman Nergal’s decision to make a record such as Songs of Love and Death. A stripped-down exercise in melodramatic, sandblasted Americana, his collaboration with folk stalwart … Continue reading
Obituary: Obituary review – death metal revival with sharp, insidious hooks
Their biggest “hit” is called Chopped in Half and they have spent more than 30 years exploring the depths of sonic depravity: Obituary are simply the living embodiment of death metal’s gruesome spirit. Plainly intended to be definitive, their 10th … Continue reading
Mayhem: De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas Alive review – ferociously feral
Few underground observers would dispute that Mayhem’s 1994 debut, De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, remains the single most important album in the Norwegian black metal saga. This furious live document of the band’s first ever front-to-end performance of it, recorded in … Continue reading
Avenged Sevenfold: The Stage review – stadium metallers make a forward leap
Unexpectedly hurled into the ether at the end of October, The Stage has already been widely hailed as one of Avenged Sevenfold’s most convincing statements to date. As the one metal band of their generation with genuine stadium-filling potential on both … Continue reading
Metallica: Hardwired… to Self-Destruct review – thrillingly direct
(Blackened Recordings)
Metallica: Hardwired … to Self-Destruct review – their best riffs for decades
Metallica have just made their finest record in 25 years. Hardwired … to Self Destruct is by no means perfect: at 88 minutes it’s far too long and sags dreadfully during its second half, but when it’s good, it’s almost … Continue reading
Tanya Tagaq: Retribution review – apocalyptic growls and lupine snuffles
Related: Tanya Tagaq: the polar punk who makes Björk sound tame Inuit throat-singer Tanya Tagaq won Aboriginal album of the year at Canada’s Juno awards last year, but she is unlikely to end up on the coffee tables of right-on … Continue reading
Korn: The Serenity of Suffering review – darker, nastier and more commanding
The return of guitarist Brian “Head” Welch in 2013 clearly made a huge difference to Korn’s collective state of mind. What the Bakersfield veterans have needed more than anything in recent years, however, is an album that reignites the untamed … Continue reading
Alter Bridge: The Last Hero review – exhausting bombast from arena-metal tryhards
The main problem with Alter Bridge’s sixth album becomes apparent about six tracks in. Cradle to the Grave brings a few moments of delicate restraint to the party, but up to that point every last second of The Last Hero is purposefully, … Continue reading