Written By Kevin McSweeney
Welcome to Seven Deadly Songs, Metal Lair’s weekly feature where we bring you tremendous new tracks from seven of the week’s best releases in the world of rock and metal.
Our focus as ever is on those artists who have yet to receive the level of recognition that their talents deserve, but we like to offer a word or two about releases from the legends beforehand.
Suffice to say, we are not lacking legends this week. November 6th sees the release of the self-titled fourteenth full-length album from New York groove metal pioneers Prong. This monumental moment will come courtesy of Napalm Records, and the band is sure to be as sharp as ever.
The 6th also sees the release of the ninth studio album from Connecticut hardcore veterans Hatebreed. Fatal Paradox comes courtesy of BLKIIBLK, and promises to deliver as potent a punch as ever.
We’d also like to direct your attention towards the return of Seven Deadly Songs alumnus Andy Marshall. His black metal solo project, known as Saor, is due to release Caledonia, a collection of five newly re-recorded songs from his early albums on November 6th via Season of Mist. There will be a review if a certain indolent scribe can pull his finger out. He might actually stop being indolent now and get on with the list.
Hundreds of bands. One mission: Keep underground metal alive.
With this installment, Metal Lair’s Seven Deadly Songs reaches its 115th edition. What started as a celebration of killer music has become an ongoing showcase for artists who deserve to be heard, discovered, and supported.
From emerging underground acts to established heavy hitters, the mission remains unchanged: Seven bands. Seven songs. No filler.
Here’s to the next 115!
Seven Deadly Songs: Angel Fury – Racing in Your Heart
We are under starter’s orders this week with this speedy little number from an old-school metal outfit from LA. Angel Fury have come tearing out of the City of Angels with their debut album, Sworn to Avenge, which is due to be released independently on November 6th.
This is the album’s opening track, and it blends the pace and energy of Motörhead with the sultry swagger of Mötley Crüe. Frankly, that’s more umlauts than is strictly necessary for a sentence in the English language.
The band boasts the impressive pipes of former Sirenhex vocalist Luna Salvaje, as well as the slick soloing of James Gilliam and an indefatigable rhythm unit featuring David Morales and Jadran “Conan” Gonzalez. They’re speeding off in the direction of the 1980s with this retro racer. I strongly suggest we fire up the flux capacitor and follow them.
Seven Deadly Songs: Cult of Luna – The Rift
This is not a cult formed in honour of the aforementioned Angel Fury vocalist Luna Salvaje. Rather, it is a veteran Swedish atmospheric sludge/post-metal outfit (with distinct gothic overtones, in my opinion), returning to illuminate these dark autumn nights with the lunar light of their tenth studio album.
In The Shadow of Your Shadow is due to be released on November 6th via Red Creek, and, astonishingly, this epic track is by no means the longest composition on it.
Needless to say, they’re not the only Scandinavian band smashing it this week. When do our Nordic friends ever let us down? Check out Elysia, the second full-length album from melodic black/death metallers Hyperion, which is also out on the 6th via Willowtip Records.
And, for balance, there’s also the melodic death/black metal of Finland’s I Helvete, whose third full-length album Halla will be released independently on the same day.
Seven Deadly Songs: In Vain – Winds of Fire
I know all about the winds of fire, mainly because of my fondness for a Friday night curry. This week’s lavatorial humour has been inspired by the heavy/thrash/power metal men of Madrid known as In Vain, who are due to release Architects of Mayhem, their seventh full-length album on November 5th via Fighter Records.
This fiery little number was the second single to be released from the album, and we’re sure the rest of the record from the scorching hot Spaniards is bound to be an absolute blast.
We would also like to recommend Black Magick Abraxas, the fifth full-length album by industrial Finlanders King Satan, which is out on the 6th via Blood Blast Distribution. This is primarily because of the recent single Fire in The Hole, the title of which suggests they too might be fond of a Friday night curry.
Seven Deadly Songs: Konvent – Exorcise
Anyone for some death/doom? Denmark’s Konvent have got you covered with this unnerving little number from Firesky, the all-female Copenhagen crew’s third full-length album, which is due to be released on November 6th via Napalm Records.
It’s hard to believe the vocals of Rikke Emilie List are emanating from a female throat. Come to think of it, an exorcism might not be a bad idea, before her head starts spinning 360 degrees onstage.
For further doomy delights, we point you towards fellow Danes Sonic Moon, who are due to release In Lack of Clarity, their second full-length album on the 6th via Ripple Music.
We also recommend Rupture, the third full-length album from Italy’s Night Gaunt, which will be released once again on the 6th via Aural Music, no doubt to rupturous applause. (Is rupturous a word? No! Do I care? Also no!)
Seven Deadly Songs: Orbital Gate – Neurotic Biochemical Abomination
I might be missing something, but Orbital Gate doesn’t sound like the name of a slam/brutal death metal band to me. It sounds more like a business park or an estate of newbuilds in the green belt.
The incongruously-named Illinois band won’t care what I think, which is a shame, because this belligerent belter of a track is absolutely fantastic in my opinion.
It is taken from Engineering His Planetary Dominion, their fourth full-length album, which is due to be released independently on November 6th. Liquifying Organic Matter is another choice cut from the album, with a title reminiscent of the gory glory days of early Carcass.
For more death metal from the USA released on the 6th, we recommend The Dead Sea Scrolls, the second full-length album from Boston’s Annihilus Mundi, and Eye of The Monolithicrypt, the debut album from Portland’s Besotten.
There’s also Falsimonian’s For Survival EP on the 7th, if you like your American death metal with a Mexican flavour.
Seven Deadly Songs: Surgent – Ruthless Logics
I think I’m including this mainly because it’s progressive death metal – emphasis on the word “progressive” – and yet the track is just over two minutes long. I have truly seen it all now!
Tallinn-based titans Surgent are due to release Sin Eater, their second full-length album independently on November 5th. (I remember her. She sang Toy Boy and So Macho.) The Estonians are far from the only ones subjecting us to death by prog this week.
There’s also Across, the debut album from Amsterdam’s Mystical Death (Rottweiler Records), and Worlds Beyond The Sun, the fifth full-length album from Germany’s Hannes Grossmann (Independent).
Also be sure to extend the love to Norway’s Extol, and their sixth full-length album Aura of Decay (Solid State Records). All these albums will be released on November 6th, in ruthlessly logical fashion.
Seven Deadly Songs: Waylander – Mallachtaí
If I see my mother tongue in a song title, I have to include it! Mallachtaí translates into English as “maledictions”, or “curses”, and when it comes to cursing, nobody does it better than the Irish. (Look up “Effin’” Eddie Moroney if you don’t believe me.)
So, we’re wrapping up this week’s list with a fierce bit of folk metal from the Orchard County, courtesy of Waylander.
This spellbinding song is taken from Mac Tíre: Son of The Land, their sixth full-length album, which is due to be released on November 6th via Rockshots Records.
“Mac Tíre”, which translates into English as “Son of The Land”, hence the suffix, is an old Irish term for a wolf. The sound of the tin whistle certainly had me howling with joy!
If folk metal is your thing, you might also enjoy Trollywood, the tenth full-length album from Norway’s Trollfest, which is also out on the 6th, courtesy of Reaper Entertainment. As for us, we’ll enjoy seeing you folks in seven for another seven. Slán go fóill!
Catch up on last week’s Seven Deadly Songs roundup.
Seven Deadly Songs is A Metal Lair® Original Series
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:
Look What Happened – Weak Minds for the Weekend EP Review
Leng Tch’e Hammered Into Collapse EP Review: Five Minutes of Grindcore Brutality
Fail The Enemy Sandcastles EP Review: Gothic Synths Meet Alternative Metal
Album Review: Keep The Fire Burning by Mikey Ball and The Company
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