Kot smo januarja poročali, je v 78. letu starosti umrl Tony Clarkin, kitarist, ustanovitelj britanskih veteranov Magnum. Že takrat se je šušljalo, da to pomeni tudi konec za zasedbo, ki je to zdaj tudi uradno potrdila. Izjava vokalista Boba Catleyja:

»Hello, everybody. Bob here. All right. I wish I didn't have to tell you this, but I really can't carry on with Tony not here anymore. Please forgive me, and I hope you can understand how I feel. I've been thinking about it a lot lately.
Since we lost Tone, we lost our guiding light, the magnum force behind the band, our songwriter, our producer, our guitar player. He was everything to the band. He was everything to me. For the last 50 years, we never went anywhere without each other. On tour, in the studio, I was at his side constantly, working on stuff with him. I had a wonderful life with Tony. But now it's all too much for me, people. I can't carry on without Tony.
I may pop up in some other shape or form in the near future – you never know – but I can't keep going on like this. It's far too sad; it's all too sad.
So, I hope you understand. You've been fantastic – the best audience ever. You kept this band going year after year, album after album, and we thank you for that.
So, be good. Keep Tony's music in your heart always. I know I will. I will always carry MAGNUM inside me. And I will always have Tony Clarkin beside me wherever I go.
I love you. You've been brilliant. But it's time for me to bow out now. It's my last curtain call, okay? I'll see you sometime. Be good. Cheers. Bye-bye.«

Cemetery Skyline je gothic rock/metal zasedba, ki jo sestavljajo Mikael Stanne (Dark Tranquillity) na vokalih, kitarist Markus Vanhala (Insomnium), basist Victor Brandt (Witchery), Vesa Ranta (ex-Sentenced) na bobnih in klaviaturist Santeri Kallio (Amorphis). Band je izdal prvi single Violent Storm in ga podkrepil z videospotom, ki ga najdete spodaj. Več informacij o prihajajočem dolgometražcu sledi kmalu.

Letošnja zima bo prinesla debitanski plošček nemške sludge metal zasedbe Greh. Debitanski plošček so naslovili Dysphoric Devotion, prvi single pa nosi naslov Illusional Cenopath. 

Iz društva Železni Aktivizem sporočajo, da so v prodaji ugodnejše vstopnice (super early bird) za Vratolom 2024. Do konca aprila stanejo samo 20 EUR, kupite pa jih lahko v spletni trgovini On Parole. Festival se bo odvijal 12. in 13. julija na letnem kinu ob Škalskem jezeru v Velenju, potrjeni nastopajoči pa so: Escuela Grind, Hellripper, Traitor, Basement Torture Killing, Hobos, Rabid Dogs, Srd, Vulvathrone, Human Host Body, Diamond Dust in Black Camo.

Deseta izvedba festivala bo na žalost tudi zadnja, zato ga nikakor ne zamudite. Ogrevanje na Vratolom v klubu Jalla Jalla na Metelkovi bo 18. maja s skupinama Dead Corcoras in Marjetice.

Dirty Skunks so med velikonočnimi prazniki objavili vest, da je ljubljanski koncert finskega glasbenika VV razprodan. Ville Valo trenutno po Evropi predstavlja album Neon Noir in se bo v četrtek 11. aprila s predskupino Zetra ustavil v Cvetličarni.

Kanadski folk/black metal band SIG:AR:TYR po večletnem zatišju predstavlja svež material. Tukaj lahko prisluhnete novi skladbi Ascending the Stellar Throne s prihajajočega albuma Citadel of Stars, ki ga bo 31. maja izdala založba Hammerheart Records. Album obsega te naslove:

Awaiting the Last Dawn
Beyond the Stars Unknown
The Blood that Came Before You
Citadel of Stars
Ascending the Stellar Throne
I Sail on, Eternal
Who Will Guide Me Now
From the Land of the North
Where the Sun Never Sets

Švedska black metal/crust zasedba Dödsrit je prejšnji petek pri založbi Wolves of Hades izdala svoj četrti celovečerec Nocturnal Will, ki mu lahko v celoti prisluhnete tukaj.

Heavy metalci Vulture iz Nemčije predstavljajo najnovejši video za skladbo Realm of the Impaler s prihajajočega albuma Sentinels. Izšel naj bi pri Metal Blade Records, in sicer že zelo kmalu, natančneje 12. aprila.

Melodični death metalci Collapsed Minds predstavljajo najnovejši videospot za komad Villain in the Mirror z zadnjega albuma Abyss, ki je v samozaložbi izšel junija lani.

Psihedelični temačneži Lares bodo 12. aprila pri Argonauta Records izdali drugi celovečerec z naslovom Et In Arcadia Ego. Kaj pravi zasedba o prihajajoči izdaji, pa lahko preberete spodaj:

»The album is an accidental concept born from the first session we managed to play together after a long and frustrating break necessitated by lockdowns, band members in high risk categories, and mental illness. Without looking for it we found death, isolation, boredom, uncertainty, rage, and an energy that we decided instantly to try to capture and preserve as it was. No additives, no major editing. In the uncertainty of the times, we began to collect recording equipment, slowly transforming our rehearsal space into a recording studio. We developed a ritual of playing and replaying, without click, the whole 27 minutes, until we got better than close to the original, to the perfect simulacra. There is a bonus track included in the album called '10 Hygiea' that is part of the soundtrack of 'Music Appreciation', a short horror movie we collaborated with.«

Necrot so objavili nov single Drill the Skull. Prihajajoči studijski album Lifeless Birth bo izšel 12. aprila pri Tankcrimes.

Po 13 letih se na sceno vračajo progresivni death metalci DÅÅTH. 3. maja bo pri Metal Blade Records izšel njihov novi studijski album The Deceiver. Zasedba je že objavila videospot za prvi single Hex Unending, na ploščku pa se bodo našli še ti naslovi:

No Rest No End
Hex Unending
Ascension
With Ill Desire
The Silent Foray
Unwelcome Return
Purified by Vengeance
Deserving of the Grave
Into Forgotten Dirt

Po petih letih tišine se z novim materialom vračajo Vale Of Pnath. Novi plošček Between The Worlds Of Life And Death bo izšel 24. maja pri Willowtip Records. Zasedba je že predstavila prvi single Burning Light.

Znan je razpored po dnevih za Heavy Psych Sounds Fest Italy 2024, ki se bo odvil 3. in 4. maja v Trstu. Ta zgleda tako:

petek, 3. maj:
Mondo Generator
Ufomammut
Kadabra
Witchthroat Serpent
1782
TankZilla

sobota, 4. maj:
Bongzilla
Nightstalker
Mr. Bison
Josiah
The Clamps
Buss

Angleški ekstremneži Cradle Of Filth se potikajo v studiu, kjer pripravljajo material za 14. dolgometražec. Novico je v svojem profilu Instagram razkrila vokalistka in klaviaturistka Zoë M. Federoff:

»I am beyond humbled to have been allowed to contribute vocals and/or keys to many of the songs on this album. Dani and the guys showed a lot of faith in me for my first album with the gang, and I went in extremely nervous and hellbent on making them all proud. Thank God Dani Filth and producer Scott Atkins are so good at calming my nerves! That was the most fun and relaxing studio session I've had in ages!

Fourteen will be something very special, a distinctly new chapter, and it quite satisfies both the musician and the long-time Cradle fan inside me. A piece of each of our souls lives audibly in it. Prepare yourselves, Filthy family!«