The masters of Finnish Melodic Death Metal melancholy return with a short but sweet EP, as a continuation to their 2024 “Draconian Darkness” full-length. In this EP, Wolfheart showcases two new tracks, a live song, an acoustic track, and a very powerful orchestral track. Further consolidating the band’s status, this EP showcases the versatility of their sound, both live and in different lights.

Opening with the powerful “Carnivore”, the band picks up where they left off last year, and deliver a crafty melodic onslaught filled with intricate riffs and engaging drumming. The song while oozing melancholy, it also delivers a good heft thanks to its growls and distorted guitars. One interesting thing is that this and “Forefathers” focus a bit more on atmospheric arrangements with a dramatic orchestral edge, that expands the band’s style and gives it more grandeur.

The highly versatile Mat McNerney (Hexvessel, ex-DHG, ex-Code) comes back with a uniquely engaging (and catchy) apocalyptic Post-Punk adventure with “Slime of the Times”, from his new outfit Scorpion Milk. Teaming with Tor Sjödén (Viagra Boys) on drums, Nate Newton (Converge, Cave In) on bass guitar, and a few guests, this outfit has a certain Grave Pleasures/Beastmilk vibe with some additional Sisters of Mercy and Killing Joke elements, creating nine superbly crafted tracks.

Setting a very dystopian mood, “All the Fear” opens the release with a catchy Post-Punk attitude and McNerney’s clean and crafty vocals, with “The Will to Live” perfectly continuing the momentum as it delivers engaging guitar melodies and a catchy chorus section. The first stand-out track in this release has to be the masterful “She Wolf of London”, with Will Gould of Creeper handling the lead vocals, perfectly blending with a pulsating bass guitar line and its fuzzy guitars.

Having previously made fans wait for around 6 years between full-length releases, David Conrad and company returned in just two years with Heretoir’s fourth full-length release “Solastalgia”. Featuring 11 tracks and over 60-minutes of music, the band unleashes an interesting mixture of their old Post-Black Metal/Blackgaze style, with a cleaner and dreamier Shoegazey and Post-Rock edge. Creating a very moody and atmospheric release, this album takes the band to new territories while consolidating their standing in the scene.

Starting with the multi-layered “The Ashen Falls”, we get some of the band’s traditional melancholy very quickly as lush guitars and dreamy vocal arrangements. While there are definitely Heretoir staple elements, this track also has many SOM and Mountaineer Shoegaze/Dream pop vibes, making an evolution for the band. This evolution permeates excellent songs like the demoralizing “Season of Grief”, and the very emotional and melodic “You are the Night”.

Further going back into their earlier days, Paradise Lost returns with a hefty Doomy release that nicely balances their Gothic Rock/Metal side with their crushing earlier Death Doom days. Nick Holmes and company have mostly stayed with the same line-up (sans their drummer) since 1988, allowing them to reach back into their old bag of tricks and deliver one of their most (recently) heavy and misery-induced releases in a while.

Opening with the piercing “Serpent on the Cross”, we kick off with Greg Mackintosh melancholic guitar leads, Holmes signature growl, alongside a heavy dose of catchiness and heaviness. Setting a very dark and moody vibe, “Tyrants Serenade" continues the band’s despondent journey with a more Gothic Doom edge thanks to the soaring clean vocals, and crafty bass and rhythm guitar lines. As one of our favorite tracks from the band in more than ten years, “Salvation” is definitely one gargantuan Doomy piece filled with desolate guitars and vocal melodies.

Hailing from Germany, Der Weg einer Freiheit has slowly built up their crushing Atmospheric Black Metal sound gradually, perfecting every single aspect of their music, while also delivering some of the most crisp and clear-sounding releases in the genre. With “Innern”, the band reaches their (current) pinnacle, with a very well oiled release that sprawls in six tracks, each with its own unique awesomeness, but with all of them combining together to create a truly demoralizing and punishing listening experience.

Opening with “Marter”, one can immediately start feeling the hairs of the back of your neck rise as the atmosphere becomes very dense and powerful. Nikita Kamprad and company have been on a mission since their first Season of Mist release, “Stellar”, to create a very cohesive and crushing sound that does not depend on gimmicks, but rather fierce raw power and emotion. This is the foundation behind the masterful “Xibalba”, a track that is both cathartic and anxiety inducing as it progresses from raw and harsh sections to minimalist atmospheric parts, filled with melancholy and desolation.

Five years after their return with “Leaves of Yesteryear” Green Carnation unveils the first installment of a trilogy titled “A Dark Poem”. With “The Shores of Melancholia”, the band returns with their lush and intricate songwriting style, filled with awesome vocal melodies and crafty instrumentation. Just as with some of their older releases, this album takes more than a few spins to fully unravel and show its intricate details and secrets, so be ready to put in some work to be properly rewarded.

Opening with the dreamy and moody “As Silence Took You”, it does not take long for Kjetil Nordhus vocals to shine, alongside Bjørn Harstad’s crafty guitar leads. The song sets a very melancholic and exciting vibe, featuring some interesting tempo changes and a wide variety of proggy elements. Exploiting their ability to craft catchy and yet intricate songs, “In Your Paradise” and “Me My Enemy”, fully explore the wide palette of sound and influences that the band has polished over the years.

Being huge fans of Melodic Death Metal, we have always loved Finland’s Before the Dawn and their earlier work with Eikind handling the bass and clean vocals. There was just something highly melancholic about his vocals, alongside Tuomas Saukkonen’s melodic guitars and drums that made that era magical. Having returned in 2021 with Paavo Laapotti on lead vocals, it took us a while to fully get into the band’s different, not new, sound, and with “Cold Flare Eternal”, we are finally ready to let go and really enjoy what they are putting out this time around.

Opening with the piercing “Fatal Design”, we get the traditional Before the Dawn melodic riffing onslaughts alongside crafty drumming. The band’s staple, and highly melancholic, sound quickly comes into central attention as Paavo Laapotti’s clean vocals masterfully combine with the growls. Giving us some vibes of “Deathstar Rising” and “Soundscape of Silence”, we are quickly hooked with the catchiness of “As, Above, So Below”, “Mercury Blood”, and “Stellar Effect”. Thanks to some powerful guitar leads from Juho Räihä, the band is firing on all cylinders and delivering extreme melancholy and catchiness.

Creating a very weird and hypnotic Dark/Noise Rock atmosphere with tons of pastoral elements, Norway’s Årabrot returns with the magical “Rite of Dionysus”. Featuring ten tracks and over 43 minutes of music, Kjetil Nernes and Karin Park take the listener on a very unique aural journey, through moody atmospherics and catchy madness. As one of the most unique sounding bands we enjoy, Årabrot always proposes something different and with teeth, providing a unique listening experience to any Rock fan.

Always consistently good, and even more so since their Pumpkins United 2016 days, Helloween continues to prove they are timeless and can deliver some killer music. With “Giants & Monsters”, we get ten tracks and around 50 minutes of masterful Power Metal. As everybody can image, Michael Kiske, Andi Deris, and Kai Hansen steal the show with their talented vocal powers, but it's also the band’s signature style that unleashes some killer high-octane tracks, that we can’t wait to hear live in their 40th anniversary tour in 2025/2026.

Opening with the epic “Giants on the Run”, the vibe is set to epic and superbly crafty, with killer guitar leads, soaring vocal melodies and that playfulness that has distinguished the band over the years. Bangers like “Savior of the World” and the bombastic “A Little Is A Little Too Much” provide the catchiness that the genre demands and that Helloween has perfected over the years.