Written By Kevin McSweeney
Welcome to Metal Lair’s Seven Deadly Songs weekly feature where we curate music from the past and the present for your listening pleasure.
Valentine’s Day is nearly upon us, and here at Metal Lair, we thought that it might be a good idea to commemorate the event by offering you a selection of some of our favourite soppy romantic ballads. Then we came to our senses, realising that our hearts are withered and our souls belong only to Satan, and we ditched the idea quicker than you might dispense with the services of a parsimonious suitor. Instead, we seek to tempt you with some tantalising titbits drawn from seven of the tastiest-looking albums due to be released in the latter half of this mercifully short month. We hope you enjoy the list, and remember: Metal loves you, even if nobody else does.
Dynazty – Game of Faces
Valentine’s Day itself sees the welcome return of one of Sweden’s finest purveyors of power metal, the mighty Dynazty, as they release their ninth studio album Game of Faces via the Nuclear Blast label, and the album’s title track is surely one of its most choice cuts. It veers dangerously close to dance music at times, with a steady dose of four-on-the-floor disco-style beats in evidence, and more than a hint of techno throughout. Thankfully, it also features plenty in the way of soaring vocals, shredding soloing and the kind of sublime Scandinavian silliness that characterises the genre at its most splendid. We’ll always be game for a bit of that.
Dawn of Solace – Fortress
Also on the 14th, we see the return of Before The Dawn vocalist Tuomas Saukkonen and mega-talented multi-instrumentalist Mikko Heikkilä under the banner of their Dawn of Solace project, with their fourth album, Affliction Vortex, released on the gloriously-named Nobel Demon label. The Finnish maestros set out their stall for the forthcoming release perfectly with Fortress, an intricately-performed piece of gothic-tinted doom metal. Saukkonen’s vocals are as atmospheric and evocative as ever, and the fact that Heikkilä can handle a multitude of instruments so proficiently in such an unorthodox time signature will, to many merely mortal musicians, offer very little solace indeed.
Bleeding Through – Path of Our Disease
Next up to kick St Valentine squarely in the nuts is Bleeding Through, the veteran metalcore outfit from Orange County, California, with the release of their ninth studio album, cunningly titled Nine, via SharpTone Records. We have opted for the third song to be released from the album, as we just love the way Marta Peterson’s ethereal vocals and eerie synths add a haunting embellishment to the brutality meted out by her male colleagues, and the track’s breakdown is one to savour, making it an instant metalcore classic through and through.
Temple of Discord – The Reaper
The Ripple Music label will deliver a belated Valentine’s gift on the 20th in the form of In The Ashes, the debut album by Swedish band Temple of Discord. The Reaper is a heavy, doom-laden affair, but with a stoner sensibility to its execution and a strong hint of Lucifuge-era Danzig in its vocal delivery. It’s a strong month for Swedish music overall, with new albums from the aforementioned Dynazty, as well as Thundermother, Twins Crew and Majestica. Temple of Discord are a worthy addition to that glorious roster, so whatever you do, don’t fear The Reaper.
Stress Test – Eternal Bliss
Oregon crossover thrash crew Stress Test are due to release their eponymously-titled debut album via Transylvanian Recordings on the 28th of February. This particular track is ironically named; it is a short, sharp blast of brutality that borders on grindcore, and brings to mind Brutal Truth or Stormtroopers of Death, or pretty much anything involving Dan Lilker, really. That the rest of the album maintains this level of ferocity is a hope that we simply can’t stress enough.
Dark Chapel – Glass Heart
We have another new band set to release their debut album on the 28th, this time in the form of Dark Chapel, featuring Black Label Society’s Dario Lorina. Glass Heart is a grungy little number in 6/8 time with sludgy guitars and lush vocal harmonies, which whets the appetite perfectly for the impending release of the album, Spirit in the Glass, via MNRK Heavy. With all these references to glass, we can only hope that it wasn’t a pane to record, and that his increased workload hasn’t left Dario feeling shattered.
Ironrat – Lost
Also due to be with us on the last day of the month is Beneath It All, the title of the forthcoming album by British band Ironrat, which is to be released courtesy of Argonauta Records. It’s their first album since 2015’s Monument, and their second overall. The men from Bradford have offered us a succulent taste of what is to come in the form of Lost, which is 6 minutes and 27 seconds of sludgy, Sabbathy goodness. Ten years is a long time to wait between albums, but this is a fine way for the Yorkshiremen to make up for lost time.