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AS WE STRAY Return with New Single ‘Alone’

Posted by tarjavirmakari on May 22, 2026
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: AS WE STRAY. Leave a comment

As We Stray return with their new single â€œAlone”, a powerful and emotionally charged track that explores the theme of toxic relationships and the physical and psychological violence that can exist within an emotional bond that becomes extremely difficult to escape.

“Alone” tells the story from the perspective of the victim, trapped in a destructive dynamic where emotional attachment turns into invisible chains that are hard to break. The entire song remains anchored in this point of view until the bridge, where a significant shift occurs: Mark’s vocals take on the role of an omniscient narrator, observing the situation from an external perspective and perceiving the gradual disappearance of the victim’s presence, almost as if they were no longer there.

From a musical standpoint, the single is intentionally heavy, tense, and claustrophobic, built on irregular rhythmic structures and off-kilter metric patterns. This deliberate choice enhances the sense of instability and emotional discomfort, immersing the listener in the same tension experienced by the protagonist of the story.

The release is created in collaboration with organizations with a strong social impact, including Hope For The Day, dedicated to mental health awareness, and Ghost Killer Entertainment, further strengthening the message of the project beyond its purely musical dimension.

With “Alone,” the band also announces the official addition of Angie Six as their new bass player, a well-known figure in the Turin metalcore scene, whose presence further consolidates the band’s new artistic direction.

“Alone” is more than just a single: it is a raw, direct, and necessary narrative that blends music and awareness, addressing sensitive themes with an uncompromising and impactful sound approach.

Stream the single on Spotyfy.

New Tribute to BADFINGER Legend “Just Look inside The Cover – Songs of Pete Ham” Out June 19th

Posted by tarjavirmakari on May 22, 2026
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: Badfinger, Pete Ham, tribute. Leave a comment

Y&T Music is proud to announce the release of a special tribute album, “Just Look inside The Cover – Songs of Pete Ham,” featuring 22 new recordings of songs written by Pete Ham. This very unique tribute album features songs that were only previously released as home demos and never recorded by Badfinger.

Pete Ham was one of the 20th century’s greatest overlooked artists. Certainly, the Swansea, Wales-born musician received some recognition: three of his songs – “No Matter What,” “Day After Day” and “Baby Blue,” all recorded by his group Badfinger – were hit singles, and the popularity of those songs endures to this day. And “Without You” – co-written with band mate Tom Evans – would become a standard when covered by American singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson. With Badfinger, Ham made seven albums, all of which are today recognized as classics of melodic rock.

While the total output of Pete Ham penned songs released during his short lifetime would be less than 40 songs, he proved to be a startlingly prolific songwriter. Thanks to the diligent archival work of people working in close cooperation with The Pete Ham estate, demo recordings of many of these and previously unknown songs have come to light in recent years and are the focus of this tribute.

Many of those songs, compiled on several posthumous Pete Ham albums, demonstrate that Ham’s songwriting prowess yielded a bounty, the like of which would be astounding even if created by an artist who lived much longer than his brief 27 years. They also underscore the fact that Ham could – and quite often did – write excellent songs that were well outside the musical scope of The Iveys or Badfinger. Moreover, Pete Ham exerted great influence upon countless artists who came after him, many of whom weren’t yet born when he tragically took his life in 1975. His gifts with words and melody continue to inspire musicians and listeners alike.

This tribute features some of today’s most renowned artists in the field of melodic and indie rock, each providing their take on a gem from the largely overlooked portion of Ham’s creative output. Given complete creative control, some take the approach of arranging the song in a way that suggests how Badfinger might have done it; others use Ham’s words and music as a canvas upon which to paint a picture all their own. Just Look Inside The Cover also includes new recordings by Ron Griffiths, and Bob Jackson, both who have recorded and toured with Pete Ham, as members of The Iveys and Badfinger.

THE SONGS
1. Mike Delevante – A Lonely Day
2. Pezband – Tulip
3. Sharp Pins – Just How Lucky We Are
4. Eric Dover – Leaving on a Midnight Train
5. Arlan Feiles – You’re Such a Good Woman
6. Bill Lloyd – Our Song
7. Rob Bonfiglio – Hand in Hand
8. Mary Karlzen – Dawn
9. The Fraternals – Catherine Cares
10. Fernando Perdomo – Time is Mine
11. Mic Harrison And The High Score – A Little Bit of Rock and Roll
12. Tobin Sprout – Keep Your Country Tidy
13. Humbert – Little Mary
14. Steve Barton – Ringside
15. The Parlophonics – Makes Me Feel Good
16. Richard Barone (featuring The Midnight Callers) – I’m Only Human
17. Darren Hayman and Robert Rotifer – Love Will Be
18. Mark Healey – It Doesn’t Really Matter
19. Jeff Alan Ross – The Day Begins
20. Ron Griffiths – Take Good Care of My Baby
21. Bob Jackson – Just Look Inside The Cover
22. Tobin Sprout – Keep Your Country Tidy (Reprise)

To pre-order: https://www.amazon.com/Just-Look-Inside-Cover-Various/dp/B0GZWP3G6G/

A few words from Y&T Music founder Rich Ulloa: https://glassonyonpr.com/a-few-words-from-yt-music-founder-rich-ulloa/

For more information:
https://www.badfingerlibrary.com/
https://www.ytmusiconline.com/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMNRJiVQ3H9fK9P2CpaR1EA

U.S. BASTARDS Announce New Album “Negligent Discharge” + Unload New Track ‘Knife Crime’

Posted by tarjavirmakari on May 22, 2026
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: U.S. BASTARDS. Leave a comment
📸: Brad Price

Today, after a 10 year long bid, U.S. BASTARDS are back on the street and ready to unleash their new album, ‘Negligent Discharge,’ on June 19th. Spearheaded by Brent Purgason (ex-GWAR), the band gives fans a taste of the raucous to come with their new track, “Knife Crime.” The new single arrives alongside a visualizer, available below.

Listen to the single here: https://my.spread.link/dgq8

In a world full of pleasantries and kiss-assing, U.S. BASTARDS are neither. A four-piece hardcore punk criminal enterprise from Virginia, the band has re-formed after a chance meeting in county lockup. Brent and Robby knew the four members didn’t land in the same cell for no reason. It was fate calling them back to life on the road; back to sleepless trips, dungeon whips, gas station speed, and canned meat. Doug agreed fate was calling them back to teach the masses what a truly bad time could be. … and Brendan just happened to be in the room.

“I’ve been doing so much hard time lately, it’s time to be hard on the road.” â€“ Brent

“…[two middle fingers]…” â€“ Doug

Ran-when-parked, the outlaws took straight to the van to get the message out. After a ten-year hiatus, they have agreed to utilize their newfound freedom from the state to write harder, catchier, faster, harder-er, hell-raising songs glorifying their exploits and shine a light on the gatekeeping tendencies in the music scene that has never accepted them.

When the rest of the world goes quiet, the BASTARDS get loud and angry, blazing across the country with a wall of cranked Marshall stacks. This is the way punk rock should be: loud, unapologetic, pandering to no one, and having no qualms with being the bad guy.

U.S. BASTARDS new album ‘Negligent Discharge’ is set for release June 19th featuring bonus track covers of Judas Priest and Motorhead songs. 13 tracks of hard and fast music that kicks the door off its hinges. Best to listen with a shotgun in one and a 40oz duct taped to the other, these are anthems for the outcasts among the outcasts. Skip work! Give your neighbors kid a cig! This is full throttle, no brakes, speed-rocking crime metal. Full stacks and gun racks packed, these delinquents are coming to your town. Clutch your pearls! U.S. BASTARDS are back.

Pre-order it here: https://usbastards.net/

‘Negligent Discharge’ Track List:

  1. Ripsnorter
  2. Wasted Life
  3. Piss Boner
  4. Knife Crime
  5. Scenester Deceiver
  6. Everybody Sucks
  7. Heading Out to the Highway
  8. Put the Gun in Your Mouth
  9. Bad Deeds
  10. Police Violence
  11. Informant
  12. I Don’t Like You
  13. Killed by Death

U.S. BASTARDS are:
Brent Purgason – Guitar & Vocals
Doug Fines – Guitar
Brendan Artz – Bass
Robby Scarce – Drums

More info: https://www.facebook.com/usbastards/

SOULGRIND Return with Third Single ‘Dark Water Wide’ from Upcoming 10th Album

Posted by tarjavirmakari on May 22, 2026
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: Soulgrind. Leave a comment
Photo by Timo Muilu, edited by JP Immonen / Lord Heikkinen

The legendary Finnish metal band Soulgrind, founded in 1992, is set to release its tenth album ‘Ad Pulchram Mortem’ on August 14th 2026 via Inverse Records. The third single ‘Dark Water Wide’ is unleashed today and it’s available here: https://push.fm/fl/soulgrind-dark-water

–Composed by Lord Heikkinen & Azhemin
–Lyrics by Lord Heikkinen
–ISRC: FI3FC2551504
–Single cover by Lord Heikkinen

The band comments:

“Dark Water Wide leads the listener deep into the shadowed currents of Tuonela — the mythic river of the underworld — where the journey drifts through the darker depths of the mind.

Heavy yet beautifully melodic, the song blends Nordic atmosphere with Finnish darkness. Its harmonic structure weaves minor seventh chords tainted by subtle twists, creating a sense of tension and melancholy. Azhemin conjured the melodies, while Lilith shaped them into form — grounded by Suntio’s relentless, pounding rhythm that resonates through the entire composition.

Dark Water Wide is a voyage across vast, dark waters — an introspective descent into death’s beauty, embodying the very essence of Ad Pulchram Mortem.” 

WATCH music video of first single ‘Jylhä Metsämies’ https://youtu.be/aoBIyV44VOY
LISTEN to the second single ‘Tears of the Earth’ https://push.fm/fl/soulgrind-tears

Track list:

  1. Nousee Musta Lintu
  2. The Origin of The White Serpent
  3. Jylhä Metsämies
  4. The Last Day of Therinon
  5. In The Circus of Tuonela
  6. Dark Water Wide
  7. Tears of The Earth
  8. A Whispered Curse Upon The Gale
  9. As A Narrow Fjord Descends
  10. Into The Shadows of Devotion

Album pic by Susanna Mansner

BIOGRAPHY:

Soulgrind is a Finnish metal band formed in 1992, known for blending gothic metal, thrash and black metal into a dark, melodic atmosphere. The band was founded by Lord Heikkinen, who has consistently contributed guitar and programming. Since 1999 Miika ‘Azhemin’ Niemelä has handled keyboards and programming, later adding harsh vocals.

Soulgrind’s music often explores themes related to the darker aspects of Finnish history and psyche, combining passion, war, and the “dark side of mind” into their lyrical content, reflecting a deep connection to Finland’s cultural and historical roots. But there has always been the bride side for the aspects as well. Classic war of love and hate.The  sound has evolved over the time, but Soulgrind has maintained a core identity rooted in metal with a dark, atmospheric edge, resisting strict genre categorization and embracing musical development freely. Freedom of metal has always been the theme. And so it shall be.

Soulgrind is recognized for their intelligent and unique approach to metal, merging melodic and dark elements to create a distinctive sound within the Finnish metal scene. Their long-standing presence since the early 90s marks them as a significant act in the gothic and black metal genres in Finland.

Line-up:
Lord Heikkinen: guitars
Azhemin: Keybords, vocals
Tanya Lilith: Vocals
Suntio: Drums
JP: Bass
Micko Hell: Guitars, Vocals

Former members: Roope Latvala ( Children of Bodom, Stone ), Juke Eräkangas, Tommi McLaunone (Gloomy Grim, Nomicon), Henrik Laine (Deepred )

https://www.facebook.com/SoulgrindFinland
https://soulgrind.bandcamp.com

THE WESTERN FRONT Reveal Final Single ‘Rain from Long-Awaited Album

Posted by tarjavirmakari on May 22, 2026
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: THE WESTERN FRONT. Leave a comment
Photo Credit: Reed Hutchinson

The Western Front reveals the latest single Rain, taken from the near-mythical album Eureka, which will be released on 10 July via Music Theories Recordings / Artone Label Group. Listen to ‘Rain’ HERE.
 
The Western Front was conceived by rock luminaries Scott Gorham (Thin Lizzy, Black Star Riders), Marty Walsh (Supertramp, John Fogerty), Darrell Verdusco (Mark Knopfler, Van Morrison), and stellar session players Richard “Moon” Calhoun (Chaka Khan, Andy Gibb) and Derek Bergmann (Yvonne Elliman, Jeff Barry), alongside guitarist, and longtime collaborator Dennis O’Donnell—a veteran music executive.
​
Talking about Rain, Derek Bergmann recalls, “It wasn’t easy to record that one. I remember that day in the studio. It was like, ‘Man, I can’t come up with a part that makes any sense in this song’, because it was just so guitar-heavy at that point. But I’m happy with where we got it. The intro is guitar and synth, and I’m playing this really gnarly, dissonant part on a Jupiter-8.”

Rain follows Set Me Free, which was the first song to be released from the album. To understand the roots of Eureka, rewind to Los Angeles, California, 1980. Following a run of acclaimed but fleeting bands, the two session aces— Marty Walsh and Derek Bergmann—joined up with fellow guitarist and writing partner, Dennis O’Donnell, all set to leave their mark.

“Dennis and I had seen Richard ‘Moon’ Calhoun singing with his band The Strand, at a club in the San Fernando Valley,” recalls Walsh. “Moon was incredibly impressive, so Dennis, Derek and I had a conversation about bringing him in.” Meanwhile, Walsh tapped Thin Lizzy’s Scott Gorham: an old friend with whom he was then working at Supertramp drummer Bob Siebenberg’s Unstable Studio.

The chemistry was an instant fit.  The band would spend the next two years writing and recording the Eureka material. Tracked between ’83 and ’84, the track listing nods to its era but still sounds vital today.
​
In a fair world, The Western Front’s debut would have arrived in the mid-’80s, right after Atlantic Records promised a major-label deal—only to have label upheaval sweep Eureka off the schedule. Fast-forward to 2023, when a Stockholm record man heard a couple of Western Front tracks online and reached out to ask why their near-mythical debut never saw the light of day. At the recommendation of friend and Toto guitar legend Steve Lukather, Walsh was able to strike a deal with the Mascot Label Group.
​
The Western Front’s Eureka is a moment of long-overdue triumph, introducing a ‘new’ band to the world. “Eureka was a labour of love,” admits guitarist Marty Walsh.

Four decades down the line, the history of early-’80s rock is cast in stone, shining brightly for everyone to see.

Track listing
1. The Law of the Jungle
2. Set Me Free
3. 1000 Nights Away
4. Just Go
5. If I’m the One
6. Rain
7. Chain of Light
8. Danger
9. Heartland
10. I Would Rather Be Lonely
11. Man to Man
12. This Is War

Belgian Metal Pioneers DRAKKAR Return with Savage Second Single ‘Invasion’

Posted by tarjavirmakari on May 22, 2026
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: DRAKKAR. Leave a comment

Drakkar return with “INVASION”, a fast-paced speed/heavy metal anthem built on relentless rhythm and vivid battlefield imagery. The single drives forward with sharp riffs, driving percussion, and commanding vocals, capturing the chaos and momentum of a seaborne raid and its aftermath. Designed for impact on stage as much as in recording, “INVASION” delivers direct energy, tight songwriting, and a clear nod to classic heavy metal traditions while keeping a modern edge.

Stream “Invasion” Single: orcd.co/invasionsingle

Pre-save The Album “Invasion”: orcd.co/invasion

About Drakkar

Founded in 1983, Drakkar built their reputation on the European metal circuit throughout the late 1980s and 1990s. Their 1988 debut album X-Rated, released through New Musidisc (Paris), earned strong critical recognition and led to support slots on major European tours with QueensrĂżche, Metallica, Overkill, and Slayer. The record has since become a touchstone of the Belgian metal scene.

After a period of inactivity, the band reformed in 2011 with a new lineup. X-Rated was remastered and reissued in 2012, produced by Simone Mularoni (DGM), with original vocalist Fab “Leni” Vanbellinghen returning to the fold in 2013. The reformed band recorded Once Upon a Time in Hell in 2014, featuring Jonas Sanders of Pro-Pain on drums, and went on to play over 80 dates across Europe, including the Power, Prog & Metal Festival in Mons. A live album, Once Upon a Time Hellive, followed in 2016.

The band suffered a significant loss when founding member Thierry Del Cane passed away shortly after. They chose to continue in his memory. Subsequent years brought further lineup shifts alongside new recordings, including three singles and a music video released between 2022 and 2025.

Invasion marks a new chapter: Leni Andersen returns on vocals, and founding member Guy Duvy is back on bass. The current lineup is completed by Thomas Vanhorebeek and Nico RR on guitars, and Adrien Delgambe on drums (member since 2015). Adrien is the son of former drummer and founding member Tim Delval, bringing the band back to its roots alongside Guy and Leni, and continuing to deliver their signature furious heavy/speed metal.

Connect With Drakkar:

drakkarband.com
www.facebook.com/Drakkar
www.instagram.com/drakkarofficial
www.youtube.com/@DrakkarBelgium
drakkar-belgium.bandcamp.com

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