SACRIVERSUM were formed in 1992 in ĆĂłdĆș (Poland), playing old school Death Metal with progressive elements and atmospheric sounds, making their complex mixture special and unique. Their debut album âThe Shadow Of The Golden Fireâ was released in 1994, at a time when a lot of Death Metal bands started to push their boundaries and became more experimental. Their music was a perfect fit along with legendary bands like PESTILENCE, DEATH, GOREFEST & ATHEIST. And this counts for SACRIVERSUM and their upcoming new album âBefore The Birth Of Lightâ even more.
SACRIVERSUM released their new album âBefore The Birth Of Lightâ on May 8th, which is available on CD, limited vinyl (300 copies) and digital.Â
Reviews on the album were amazing worldwide. Gerrman LEGACY mag called it âan atmospheric masterpiece and a must-have for fans of sophisticated death metal!â, while BLACK ANGEL predict that âSacriversum are poised to become the prog-loving death metal fanâs favorite bandâ.METAL ADDICTS confirm that âthe music Sacriversum deliver is absolutely fantastic besides being one of the most exciting bands of 2026â and METALHEADS round it up, saying that this is âan album that consistently goes against the grain and offers nothing but original music. Expect the unexpected!â
So are you ready to take that journey and enjoy this indeed unique, original and outstanding Death Metal jewel?
The album stands for raw Death Metal, with those incomparable Hammond organs. DEATH meets DEEP PURPLE. Their sound is a mixture of the above mentioned acts and is not too far apart from the latest BLOOD INCANTATION album. Both combine tradition with fiction. You have to hear and experience this Death Metal gem. Since 2022, SACRIVERSUM are back and continue, where they ended up with their debut album. Those nine new tracks on âBefore The Birth Of Lightâ are possibly the best songs SACRIVERSUM ever composed â once you got into it, they donât let you go. It is a dark ride into another dimension, another time and another space. You are captured in their own world, in a time before the birth of light.
Canadian cellist and composer Raphael Weinroth-Browne has announced his third solo album, Empyrean, is set to arrive on the 11th September 2026. Expansive, cinematic and integrated with moments of dramatic heaviness, the album weaves together Baroque grandeur, post-rock atmosphere, experimental noise and progressive metal into Weinroth-Browneâs most spiritually charged work to date, music that reaches beyond the earthly in search of something transcendent.
Ahead of the release, Weinroth-Browne has unveiled the albumâs first single, ‘Reflection’, monolithic and hypnotic, it channels ritualistic repetition into a vortex of distorted cello, Middle Eastern-inspired melodies and syncopated grooves recalling the tectonic force of Tool and Meshuggah.
Listen to Reflection here:  Bandcamp, Spotify, Apple Music and on all other available streaming services.Â
âCrushing and relentless, this piece is a reflection of my prog metal influences,â says Weinroth-Browne. âAs a cellist, Iâm unusual in that bands like Tool and Meshuggah are a more significant part of my musical DNA than composers such as Beethoven or Brahms.â
Raphael continues: ââReflectionâ is one of the heaviest tracks Iâve released as a solo artist. I wanted it to feel imposing and immutable, like a monolith. Despite the snarling intensity of the insistent chugging riffs and pervading feeling of menace throughout, there is also something very meditative about its repetitiveness, as though it is guiding the listener to an altered state of consciousness amidst the turmoil and chaos.â
Originally composed for the acclaimed contemporary dance production BACH Reimagined by James Wilton Dance, ‘Reflection’ embodies the central tension that defines Empyrean, the collision of sacred classical tradition with modern extremity. Jagged ostinatos spiral endlessly around one another like dancers locked in ecstatic trance, while waves of distortion and swelling strings dissolve the line between chamber music and post-metal catharsis.
The origins of forthcoming new album Empyrean itself are as cinematic as the music it contains. In 2024, Weinroth-Browne was commissioned by James Wilton Dance to compose an 80-minute score inspired by the music and legacy of Johann Sebastian Bach. What emerged became BACH Reimagined: a touring multidisciplinary work exploring immortality, artistic transcendence and the pursuit of the sublime through creation.
Rather than simply reinterpret Bach, Weinroth-Browne entered into dialogue with him across centuries. The resulting compositions fuse the purity and mathematical elegance of Baroque counterpoint with distorted textures, electronic ambience and towering rhythmic weight. Tracks such as ‘Speed of Light’ and ‘Dissolution‘ plunge Bach-inspired motifs into vast storms of noise and metallic tension, while the meditative ‘Sanctum‘ evokes Sufi mysticism and devotional stillness.
âAt its core,â Weinroth-Browne explains, âEmpyrean is about the search for the sublime. As artists, we spend our lives trying to create something that transcends the everyday, if only for a split second, as if to glimpse eternity through a keyhole.â
Captured at Union Sound Company in Toronto immediately following the sessions for 2025âs critically acclaimed Lifeblood, Empyrean finds Weinroth-Browne operating at the peak of his creative powers. The album was recorded and engineered by Darren McGill (Rush, The Dirty Nil), mixed by Adam Noble (Leprous, Katatonia) and mastered by Robin Schmidt (Leprous), resulting in a sound both immense and intimate, every bow stroke preserved with almost tactile immediacy. Artwork comes from London-based printmaker and collage artist Cally Conway, discovered by Weinroth-Browne in Brighton during the BACH tour.
The release follows a period of significant acclaim. His 2020 debut Worlds Within was hailed as âmasterfulâ and âa stunning example of less being more,â while 2025âs Lifeblood expanded his sound into something even more cinematic and visceral, described as âa triumph of vision and virtuosityâ and âthe most ambitious album of Weinroth-Browneâs career.â
That same fearless boundary-pushing has made Weinroth-Browne an essential figure within modern progressive music. His cello work can be heard on hundreds of studio albums, including Woods of Ypresâ Juno Award-winning W5: Grey Skies & Electric Light and across many major film and TV soundtracks. Viral interpretations of Opeth, Katatonia and Steven Wilson have drawn direct praise from the artists themselves, further cementing his reputation as a boundaryless interpreter and composer.
Since joining Norwegian prog visionaries Leprous in 2016, he has performed over 200 shows worldwide and contributed to three of their studio albums, helping redefine the role of cello in progressive heavy music. Beyond Leprous, he has shared stages with Evanescence, Apocalyptica and Devin Townsend.
As a solo artist, Weinroth-Browne has become an ambassador for what the cello can be in the 21st century. He has made waves at prestigious festivals such as the Cello Biennale Amsterdam and the International Cello Festival of Canada and has opened for artists ranging from Polish neoclassical pianist Hania Rani to Nordic folk ensemble SKĂLD and Danish prog metal masters VOLA.With a packed performance schedule this year, including European tours alongside Earthside and Einar Solberg on the horizon and Empyrean set for release later this year, Raphael Weinroth-Browne continues to push the cello far beyond expectation, toward something infinite, luminous and profoundly otherworldly.
Catch Raphael Weinroth-Browne live on the following dates:
Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voice spoke to guitarist Andy Larocque (King Diamond) and Pete Blakk (ex King Diamond) guitarist about their debut LEX LEGION album reuniting the King Diamond THEM Conspiracy Line-up.
Larqocque was asked about the musical direction of their debut album and he said, “I would say it’s heavy metal based on the 80s because that’s what we’re kind of born and raised with. Late 70s, early 80s style with a touch of darkness but still I would say is accessible and it’s got a great flow from the very beginning to the end of the songs. It’s not very progressive. I mean, if you compare to what we did back in the old days, this is a little bit more accessible, I would say. And also a lot of melodies which I think is really really important but you know 80ish heavy metal with some really interesting elements you know within the songs of course without being too technical or progressive. “
Lex Legion is a brand-new band comprised of old friends with incredible heavy metal pedigree. Comprising four-fifths of the classic late 1980s King Diamond lineup. Vocalist Nils K. Rue, Pete Blakk, Hal Patino, Andy LaRocque and Mikkey Dee.
Deep Purple will release their new studio album SPLAT! on July 3rd on earMUSIC.
With more than 120 million albums sold since forming in 1968, Deep Purple have long secured their place in rock history. Rather than simply preserving their legacy, they continue to extend it, driven by the same spirit that defined their earliest work.
âWhere we are now with this incarnation of Deep Purple feels very much like a very ânowâ version of Deep Purple as it was in the seventies.â
Once again, the band has teamed up with renowned producer Bob Ezrin (KISS, Pink Floyd, Lou Reed, Alice Cooper). Together, they have crafted an album that draws on the sound and attitude that has always set Deep Purple apart from the rest.
SPLAT! is the heaviest Deep Purple album in many years, with the band playing together in the studio â the way Deep Purple have always recorded.
Ian Gillan:Â âI have to say, now we are very much back in with material that is compatible with âHighway Starâ, âSmoke on the Waterâ, âLazyâ â the dynamics, the balance, and the fun of the music we made from â69 to â73.â
At the heart of SPLAT! is an idea conceived by Ian Gillan. Rather than treating the end as destruction, the album imagines it as transformation: SPLAT! explores the end of humanity not in any crude apocalyptic sense but as a metamorphosis beyond physical existence.
The album concept will be revealed further in the weeks leading up to its release on July 3rd. Follow Deep Purple and earMUSIC on socials to stay tuned.
To celebrate the release, Deep Purple will continue their extensive 2026 touring touring schedule with no fewer than 86 shows across 28 countries on three continents.
New music from SPLAT! is already on the way. Deep Purple invite fans to follow the journey in the weeks ahead.
Ian Gillan sums it up: âDeep Purple is in a great place right now.âÂ
SPLAT! will be available on July 3rd in multiple formats:
Limited Box Set, containing:
2LP Gatefold (180g)
12-page vinyl-sized booklet
CD Digisleeve
3 exclusive 10-inch vinyl records featuring live recordings from the Deep Purple Tour 2024
Exclusive 7-inch single featuring the bonus track âGUINNESISâ (not included on the studio album and available exclusively in the box set!)
Norwegian-Swedish atmospheric outfit Kalandra present a striking new reinterpretation of Radioheadâs Everything in Its Right Place â transformed through language, tone, and sonic weight into a version that resonates far beyond its origins.
What began as an impromptu soundcheck experiment quickly evolved into a fully realized artistic statement: a New Norse (Nynorsk) translation of the iconic Radiohead track. Rather than a straightforward cover, Kalandraâs approach reframes the songâs emotional core, using language itself as a creative instrument.
By translating the lyrics into Nynorsk, the band taps into a distinctly Nordic sense of atmosphere â amplifying the originalâs unease, introspection, and quiet tension while embedding it in their own sonic identity. The result is a version that feels both familiar and disarmingly new: grounded in the fragile stillness of the original, yet carried forward by a darker, more cinematic pulse.
Crucially, this reinterpretation arrives with full approval from the original band and rights holders. The endorsement reflects a shared respect for the songâs legacy while opening it to a new cultural and linguistic context. The band explains:
âIf youâre into Radiohead, like we are, you might recognise their influence in some of our work. We tried to stay true to that fragile balance – olding onto both the stillness and the underlying tension, ready for something new.â
Norwegian-Swedish collective Kalandra have spent over a decade carving out a distinct space between atmospheric rock, Nordic folk, and cinematic metal, building a reputation for immersive soundscapes and emotionally charged compositions.
Emerging with their debut album The Line in 2020, the band quickly gained international attention for their haunting, minimalist aesthetic â where delicate vocals meet brooding, slow-burning arrangements. Their sound, often drawing comparisons to artists operating on the fringes of metal and post-rock, is defined as much by restraint as it is by intensity.
But Kalandraâs story stretches further back. Formed in 2011 in Liverpool by vocalist Katrine Stenbekk, the band developed their identity through relentless live performances in the UK before returning to Norway and solidifying their lineup. Over the years, they have steadily expanded their reach â from intimate club shows to major festival stages including Hellfest.
Touring alongside artists such as Wardruna, Heilung and Leprous, Kalandra have connected with audiences across Europe and Australia, bridging scenes that span folk, post-rock, and progressive metal.
Their work on the soundtrack for Kingdom Two Crowns: Norse Lands further cemented their ability to translate atmosphere into narrative, while their 2024 album A Frame of Mind marked a turning point â expanding both the sonic scope and emotional weight of their material.
Now, in 2026, Kalandra mark 15 years as a band, continuing to evolve while staying rooted in a sound that feels both timeless and deeply personal. Their music has travelled far beyond its Nordic origins, resonating with a global audience drawn to its sense of space, tension, and quiet power.
The band comments: “Unearthly Kingdoms ‘Neath Lifeless Stars is an amalgam of the three members’ personal black metal preferences that was produced in weeks after the idea was thrown out there by Maleficarum. Because the creation of the music itself was a very fast-paced process, a lot of the themes emerged only as we moved on to actually record the songs. AngrmĂĄni composed the songs in a short amount of time, and wrote the lyrics afterwards. Each song is meant to evoke mental images of post-apocalyptic rituals of the occult, so the soundscape of the album is filled to the brim with cold and shrieking guitars and black metal growls, as if the songs were being played among ruins surrounded by boundless ancient battlefields. Immortal might have inspired us a lot there. The songs were recorded in a cabin in the middle of a forest, as well as in our rehearsal place. The final product was mixed and mastered by Abyssias at his home studio. The lyrics were very much inspired by all matters of esoteric and occult scriptures, which were mixed together with overlaying misanthropia. We felt that this way we got the most out of both the old school of black metal as well as what black metal has nowadays evolved into. It’s a sort of melting pot of camp and cult, so to speak. It is not unlikely that you will see Acolythus on stage in the future, and surely we will make more music. And that might just be a lot sooner than you think⊔
Track list:
Among Ruins Forlorn
Scholars of Empires Beyond
As the Slaughtered Wizards Reincarnate
Frozen Desolate Warfields
Vacuous Gods of the Abyss
Unearthly Kingdoms ‘Neath Lifeless Stars
In the Fading Light of Burning Cathedrals
–All music written and produced by Acolythus –Mix & Master by Teemu Leskinen –Album cover art by Matias Stenman
BIOGRAPHY:
Acolythus is a project strongly rooted in traditional black metal, boasting straightforward aggression coupled with a recognizable Finnish melodic approach to the genre. Featuring members from Convulse, Sargassus and Jotungrav, the band was born as an outlet for the musicians’ black metal aspirations. After the inspiration struck, ‘Unearthly Kingdoms ‘Neath Lifeless Stars’ was written and recorded in a matter of weeks. The album aims at conveying the aggression and feeling behind the music in its purest form. Hence in Acolythus’ music, the listener will only hear real instruments being played by real people – free of all edits and tricks that dominate the modern metal sound. Thematically Acolythus centers itself around esoteric and occult knowledge, as well as a somewhat misanthropic and post-apocalyptic focus on humanity. Much of the inspiration from which the music is born out of can be traced to the mystical worldbuilding and wordweaving of bands such as Alghazanth, Immortal and Emperor, to name a few. In short, Acolythus provides the listener with poetic hymns and sermons of woe, accompanied by blazing and ice-cold riffs in the most authentic way black metal should be performed in.
Kimmo Kuusniemiâs ASA unveil the long-overdue release of "Collective Failure" + first music video for title-track! Check it out and stay tuned for more news! Click image to watch the video
Kimmo Kuusniemiâs SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video
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Visionary artist KIMMO KUUSNIEMI's ANCIENT STREAMING ASSEMBLY (ASA) have released âAurora Nuclearisâ, a powerful 12-minute audiovisual experience, dedicated to the Late Keyboardist Esa Kotilainen. - Click image to watch the video
Click image to watch the video
Metal Shock Finland (World Assault )