Written By Kevin McSweeney
Welcome to Seven Deadly Songs, Metal Lair’s weekly feature in which we highlight songs from seven of the best new releases of the week from artists who have yet to achieve the level of recognition that their talents deserve, with one or two words about the legends beforehand.
You might remember me moaning last week about the paucity of new releases by the more established artists.
That’s been more than made up for this week with the return of the mighty Moonspell. The Portuguese gothic metal grandees have always been exceptionally prolific when it comes to releasing new music.
They have followed up an EP released in April this year with Far From God, their fourteenth full-length album, due to be released on July 3rd via Napalm Records.
What’s that? You want an even more legendary band than Moonspell? That won’t be easy. In order to oblige you, I will have to turn to some of the founding fathers of metal itself.
As luck would have it, the iconic Deep Purple are due to release their 24th(!) full-length album via earMUSIC on July 3rd. Titled Splat! It is, according to the band, their heaviest album in years.
They inspired literally everybody, directly or indirectly, operating in the genre of metal. Legends simply don’t come any more legendary than Deep Purple.
Now, for seven bands who will inspire the metal musicians of tomorrow, let’s get on with the list!
Agarwaen – Bad Beginning
Agarwaen, waen, waen, push pineapple, shake the tree… Sorry! I don’t know what came over me then!
We can forget all about hula mistresses in Waikiki, because we’re heading to freezing cold Finland for what is ironically a very good beginning to our list.
It’s also ironic that this chilly nation makes me feel so warm and fuzzy with both the quality and quantity of the metal they produce.
It’s melodic black metal in this case, coming in the form of the third single from Agarwaen’s third full-length album.
The Murder Trend is available from July 3rd via Over The Border Records, and there’s more excellent Scandinavian black metal coming this week from just over the border, such as Mørketid from Norway’s Mortem, and Descending Into Madness by Sweden’s Zornheym. Who needs Black Lace when you have black metal?
Code Red – Hell Diver
Hell Diver, you’ve been down too long in the Sea of Japan. Nineteen years, to be precise, as this track first appeared on Code Red’s 2007 debut album Wolves of Warfield.
It rises from the water like Godzilla once again on Hellforged Warpath, the third full-length album from the Yokosuka thrashers.
This latest release is available from July 1st via Thrashing Cult Records. (If you’re going to put out a thrash metal album, that’s the label for it.)
Hell Diver is furious stuff, coming at you faster than the Shinkansen and heavier than a Sumo wrestler, with an air of authenticity added by a production that is so raw, it could be Sushi.
For more Japanese metal this week, there’s the self-titled debut album from Tokyo’s “idol” power metal band Sirius, which is available also from July 1st via Zillion Mode Production.
Coprolith – Possessed by Violent Incoherent Suggestions
Well, aren’t we all? We have some fantastic titles this week, it has to be noted, though Canada’s Coprolith get straight to the point with the title of their debut album, which is Putrescence.
No messing about there! This is the last of six tracks on that album, which is due to be released on July 3rd via Me Saco un Ojo Records. It’s quite a lengthy track, with a production that’s as rough as a badger’s arse.
They alternate between slow, doomy passages and lightning fast death metal, but it’s extremely heavy either way, with vocalist K.D. sounding like a demon drowning in sulphurous sludge.
For more fantastic death metal with a fantastic title this week, we also recommend Dichotomy’s Lucifer Owns The Fence. That’s one boundary dispute in which I will not be intervening!
Nxmad – Amber
This is not to be confused with the song of the same name by 311. (Have you ever heard 311 Sucks by the band I’m simply going to refer to as AXCX? They make a valid point!)
I don’t actually know if it’s meant to be Nxmad, or Nomad with the O crossed out, but either way, this a solid bit of sludge, if that’s not a contradiction in terms, from the Mancunian metal band.
The riffs are as filthy as Lancastrian canal water, and as for clean vocals? Those are for soft Southerners! The track is taken from The Second Fall, which is indeed their second full-length effort. It is due to be released on July 3rd via APF Records, and will be well worth getting up for.
For more sludge/stoner metal this week, check out the gloriously-named Weedwizard’s Blood Cathedral.
For more British metal, check out Witchsorrow’s The Devil and All His Works, which I might well be reviewing if I can pull my finger out.
Solace – Spiral Will
We turn now to New Jersey, where we encounter a band who might feel aggrieved not to be listed as legends. They are certainly veterans, having been making sweet stoner metal music for three whole decades now.
This song is taken from their fifth full-length album. (In true stoner style, they leave long gaps between releases!) Fading Failing Ruin – available from July 3rd via Magnetic Eye Records – is their first release since 2019’s The Brink.
It sounds like it’s been worth the wait, as they’ve returned with a sound that’s even bigger than their vocalist. Justin Goins might be the tallest man to front a metal band since Type O Negative’s towering frontman Peter Steele.
I don’t know how tall he is, but I’m 190cm and I think I’d be looking up at him. I certainly look up to his band and their excellent music with its huge hooks and catchy choruses, as demonstrated ably on Spiral Will.
Soothsayer – Eroding The Sky
We’re going to wrap up proceedings this week with a double helping of atmospheric doom metal.
The first installment comes courtesy of Corkonian quintet Soothsayer, who release their second full-length album The Unbinding via Apocalyptic Witchcraft Recordings on July 3rd. It comes a full five years after their debut Echoes of The Earth.
Eroding The Sky is a lengthy track, coming in at just under eight minutes, but then it’s from a five-song album that lasts forty-five minutes, so it might actually be the shortest number on it.
It’s one of a number of outstanding albums to come out of Ireland this year, and arguably the best from Cork since This Will Become Clear Later, Like The French Revolution by Uncultivates, which was reviewed on February 7th of this year by my good self.
Well, McSweeney is a Cork name. You’ve got to give the boys a dig out.
TodoMal – Point of Coalescence
We conclude this week’s list with an offering from our good friends at the awesome Season of Mist. If an album has been released via that label, you can be assured of its quality.
You have to be good to be worthy of sharing a label with the likes of death metal titans Cryptopsy and progressive death metal pioneers Cynic.
The Spanish atmospheric doomsters give us one last spectacular title for “El Camino” in the form of Graveyards of Joy, their third full-length album, which will be interred on July 3rd.
Point of Coalescence is the lead single from an album described by the press release as: “…nine tracks of slow-burning, widescreen doom,” as well as: “a DIY record of striking emotional depth and modern, alternative edge.”
The band’s name translates into English as “all evil”. Their music, on the other hand, is all good.
So, that’s your lot for this week. I’m sorry we didn’t find room for Tsar Stangra, whose excellently-titled Hymns of The Broken Worlds was released independently on July 1st .
It’s astonishing that he managed to record and release a metal album so soon after he resigned as British prime minister. And on that note, we’ll see you in seven for another seven.
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SEVEN DEADLY SONGS Q&A
Q: What is Seven Deadly Songs?
A: Seven Deadly Songs is Metal Lair’s weekly roundup of the heaviest new releases across the full metal spectrum. Each week we spotlight seven standout tracks you shouldn’t miss.
Q: When does Seven Deadly Songs update?
A: We post a new edition every Friday, typically highlighting weekly new releases.
Q: Where can I find the best new metal songs?
A: Right here. Seven Deadly Songs is your go-to source for discovering the latest metal tracks including fresh black, death, thrash, doom, and speed metal releases, all curated in one place.
Q: How can I listen to the songs featured?
A: Every featured track links out to the artist’s official release, streaming platform, or label page so you can dive deeper and support the bands directly.
Q: Does Metal Lair have other weekly series?
A: Absolutely, Try:
- Deep Cuts – Metal’s Hidden Gems and lost recordings from rock and metal history.
- Metalhead Horoscopes – Weekly forecasts laced with riffs, attitude, and a lucky song for every sign.
- World Metal Weekly – A global passport through the underground, one country at a time.
- Women in Metal – A series celebrating the voices, pioneers, and rule-breakers reshaping heavy music’s DNA.
- Ministry of Metal – A satirical authority devoted to the laws, rituals, and unspoken rules of heavy music. Features proclamations, decrees, cultural edicts, metal lore, and an original comic book series, all delivered with humor and bite.
- Metal Legacy Profiles – Deep dive essays honoring artists who shaped metal’s sound, culture, and philosophy. These aren’t timelines or greatest-hits lists, but examinations of impact, conflict, evolution, and what each figure left behind.
- Road Riffs: Metal On The Map – We take metal beyond the speakers and onto the highway, exploring legendary venues, scene-defining cities, historic landmarks, local haunts, and travel stops tied to real
metal scenes around the world that every metalhead should experience.
About The Author
Kevin McSweeney is Metal Lair’s resident scribe of the underground, eternally rummaging through the global metal scene for riffs worth your time.
As the guiding hand behind Seven Deadly Songs every Friday, he has an uncanny knack for finding the track you didn’t know you needed, usually before finishing his pint.
Equal parts loyal, kind, and quietly razor-witted, Kevin brings deep knowledge, impeccable taste, and a steady, reliable presence to Metal Lair.
Read More From This Author:
Album Review: Apocalyptic Steel by Nargaroth
Album Review: Altered State by Defiled
BlackMarket – Radical Views EP Review
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