Written By Kevin McSweeney
Welcome to Seven Deadly Songs, Metal Lair’s weekly feature in which we draw attention to some of the best new releases of the week in the world of rock and metal, and highlight the songs making us most excited for them.
As ever, our focus is on those artists who have yet to achieve the level of exposure their talents deserve, but first a word or two about the legends.
They don’t come much more legendary in black metal circles than Immortal. The Norwegian veterans are to release the fantastically-titled live album To The North and Into Eternal Winter – Live in Darkness 1993-1995, via Darkness Shall Rise Productions on May 22nd.
It promises to capture them in their genre-defining pomp. It would be remiss of us not to mention also their fellow Norwegian extreme metal stalwarts Cadaver, who have a compilation titled Demos & Live 1988-1991 to be released on the same date and via the same label.
If that weren’t enough, there’s also the ninth studio album from LA metal institution Armored Saint to consider. Titled Emotion Factory Reset, it will be available via Metal Blade Records, once again on the 22nd.
It’s nice to see something new from John Bush just as we have news of a forthcoming new album from his erstwhile bandmates in Anthrax, Cursum Perficio.
One other thing: Look out for Le Sanglot, the new album from Impure Wilhelmina, which is getting the full Metal Lair review treatment, when yours truly pulls his finger out and writes it! On with the list!
Seven Deadly Songs: Abandon Agony – Writing on The Wall
We commence proceedings this week with a heavy but strangely hummable effort from Swedish melodic death metal newcomers Abandon Agony.
Their debut full-length album, Endbringer, is due to be released independently on May 22nd, and it’s one worth getting excited about, as this is a highly polished performance from a band that have only been together since 2023.
It’s very much in the At The Gates tradition, with its harmonised guitars and its tunefulness breaking through the intensity like crepuscular rays through dark clouds.
It’s very much a modern iteration of that classic Swedish sound that ultimately inspired metalcore. So, not all good, then, but definitely good enough for inclusion.
Seven Deadly Songs: Blossom Death – Morning After
Some of my recent inclusions in this column might have given my readers, if I have any, the impression that I love a bit of gothic metal. And indeed I lap it up like a greedy little vampire at a chaste young maiden’s porcelain-white neck.
This brooding little beauty is taken from Spirit, the debut album from these Greek goths, which is due to be released on May 21st via The Circle Music.
It’s as mournful as My Dying Bride and as sensual as October Rust-era Type O Negative, with a vocal bifurcation from Kostas Katikos and Marita Makaronidi that echoes that of Peter Steele And Val Ium on the latter’s In Praise of Bacchus.
For more dark and despondent delights, check out Our Gods Need Blood, which will be released on the 22nd via Seeing Red, for some quintessentially English-sounding goth rock, courtesy of California’s Rival Cults.
Seven Deadly Songs: Crimson Day – Hexed
I could tell you that we have some excellent new metal from Finland here, but I might as well tell you that each member of this photogenic quintet has a head, such is the consistent quality of loud music from that country.
Crimson Day have been around since 2013, and Dark Dimension, which is due to be released via Wormholedeath on May 22nd, will be their fourth full-length album overall.
Their sound is billed simply as heavy metal, though it verges on symphonic, due mainly to the soaring vocals of Milka Uusitalo. I love her voice, and also her chocolate.
It’s not the only bit of sonic superbness from Suomi this week, of course. You might also like to check out the second full-length album from black metal band Downfall of Nur, which is due to be released via Avantgarde Music also on the 22nd. Its title? And The Firmament Will Burn to Quench The Pain of This Earth. How’s that for avant garde?
Seven Deadly Songs: Haemoth – When The Dust Finally Settles
This is distinctly old school black metal from French duo Haemoth, who consist of vocalist, guitarist and bassist Haemoth and drummer Syht.
Apparently, your name isn’t reflected in the band’s name if you’re only handling one instrument, even though it sounds like Syht is doing the work of three drummers on this near-eight minute epic.
This gargantuan track is taken from their fourth full-length album Black Dust, which is due to be released on May 22nd via Agonia Records.
It’s far from the only bit of black metal to be getting excited about this week. There’s the aforementioned Downfall of Nur.
For God’s sake, don’t make me type that title out again! We also have A Virulent Steam, the third full-length album from Canada’s Barren Canyon to contend with. That name makes them sound more like a country band, but don’t let that put you off.
Seven Deadly Songs: Heaven is Sleeping – Pulled Through
My God, they’re young! Whenever I see an up-and-coming new band live, I like to chat to them after the gig. I’d be very reluctant to do so with Houston’s Heaven is Sleeping, however, just in case anyone thought I was grooming them.
Astonishingly, the teenage Texans – I’m assuming they’re teenagers. I’m going to feel very old if I find out they’re thirty – are already on their second full-length album, despite having only been around since 2023. (I don’t mean that’s when they were born, though you’d be forgiven for thinking it.)
Judging by this beauty of a track, the self-titled album, which is due to be released independently on May 21st, will be a sumptuous feast of doom-laden stoner metal, much like Corrosion of Conformity’s Wiseblood, but with black metal vocals. I’m going to wrap this entry up quickly, as it’s probably past their bedtime.
Seven Deadly Songs: Sandstorm – Slave to Sin
This Canadian/Swedish trio couldn’t be more “Eighties” if they ditched their tour bus in order to fly to gigs on the dog-faced dragon from The Neverending Story, wearing leg warmers and juggling Rubik’s Cubes along the way.
The artwork from Dungeon of Death, the six-track EP from which this track is taken, even resembles the cover of a ZX Spectrum game. Dungeon of Death kinda sounds like the title of a ZX Spectrum game as well!
As for the music, it’s pure NWOBHM-style nostalgia, though obviously not British, with a retro production that makes it sound like it was recorded when Ronald Reagan was in the White House.
The EP is due to be released on May 22nd via Dying Victims Productions, and it’s not the only release with fabulous artwork this week.
We also urge you to savour the cover of Greek heavy metal band Night Spectre’s self-titled album (and also the music, of course,) which seems to bear an image of Shredder from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Seven Deadly Songs: Vision Divine – 18 (It Feels Like Heaven)
We conclude this week’s list in a thoroughly melodic fashion, and make no apologies for doing so, as we partake of some progressive power metal, courtesy of Tuscany’s Vision Divine.
It’s fair to say that the sound is equally divine. The title made me fear we might have another song like Seventeen by Winger on our hands. Thankfully, that isn’t the case, so don’t try to cancel us over this inclusion!
It’s 18 years of frozen rain, apparently, which sounds more like Manchester than their native Italy. That’s one way to make our friends and their fellow Italians Shape of Water regret their move!
The angelic anthem is from their forthcoming EP A Clockwork Reverie, which is actually long enough to be a full-length album (of which they have released nine in their illustrious three-decade career.)
The EP is available from May 22nd through Scarlet Records. Snap yourselves out of your reveries and go get a copy, and 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:
The Outfit by Opensight Review: Progressive Rock With Cinematic Flair
Album Review: The Dark Overlords of The Universe by The Ghoulstars
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