Fiercely sinister and heavy as ever, Danish heavy hitters KONVENT return with their third album, Firesky, on November 6, 2026 via Napalm Records. Embellishing their compositions, five songs is all it takes the four-piece this time around to prove how incomparably weighty their sonic soundscapes can be. Firesky’s tracks are significantly longer than what KONVENT have offered before, but the dynamics within the dark arrangements prove the extraordinary commitment to their craft. Previously leaving their mark on the death doom scene, the band now expands on their influences and experiments significantly with black metal. They say the third album makes it or breaks it – KONVENT, however, manage to fully reconstruct the principle itself.
Paired with the album announcement, the extreme metal band releases the first track off the album. As the opening song, “Exorcise” serves as Firesky’s exposition: Slow and brutal, it opens up the gates to doom metal’s very core – only to explode in its last third, showing that KONVENT have added to their style and have their new path well thought out.
KONVENT about “Exorcise”: “‘Exorcise’ is the sound of the suffocation we feel after watching lawmakers around the world pass increasingly sexist and transphobic legislation. Legislation that will one day, like a snake, eat its own tail.”
Firesky is KONVENT’s bravest album yet. Constructed carefully, the record serves as both the atmospheric journey into the darkest depths of the soul and the guide out of the abyss. The Danish band goes to great lengths – literally and figuratively – to reshape the strong footprint they have already left in the scene.
KONVENT about Firesky: “After four years, we are finally ready to release our third album, Firesky, as our most ambitious album yet. On this album we have experimented more with black metal, as it is a genre we are all very inspired by. Lyrically it has been impossible for us to ignore the political state of the world, and we have found it imperative to comment on the active decisions to withdraw basic human rights for women and LGBTQ people. Firesky is a screaming desire to burn everything down and to create a more solidary and empathic world.”
“Exorcise” kicks the album off as a mission statement. Slow and brutal, it opens up the gates to doom metal’s very core – only to explode in its last third, proving early on that KONVENT have their new path well thought out. Carefully built-up tension releases through Rikke Emilie List’s sublime screams, contrasting previous gutturals. Following, “Scorning” constructs an equally suspenseful atmosphere. Gentle drums and guitars pave the way for deep vocals, both becoming more diverse as time passes. In a fast-paced world, KONVENT offer an escape by letting their melodies breathe. Though slow and with its tracks all set around the 10-minute mark, Firesky feels interesting as the four women use their skills to build poignant musical themes. Where delicate guitars almost make the second song feel light, “Into The Unknown” steers the quartet back into shadowy realms. Sitting at roughly 12 minutes, the album’s longest song is a masterclass in diverse, progressive songwriting within the extreme metal field. The title track, “Firesky”, stands out through clean passages shining through the cloudy heaviness like the fire in its name. Seamlessly blending into the previous track, “Postludium” closes the album as an instrumental outro.
Firesky tracklisting:
Exorcise
Scorning
In the Unknown
Firesky feat. Mai Soon Young Øvlisen
Postludium
KONVENT are: Rikke Emilie List – Vocals Amira Liv Hernan – Guitar/backing vocals Julie Simonsen – Drums Heidi Withington Brink – Bass
Italian modern melodic and symphonic metal outfit TEMPERANCE will release its new album, Arcani, on October 16 via Napalm Records. Today, their brand-new single, “The Tower: Lean Into Fear,” kicks right in, diving deeper into the album’s overall Tarot-driven line. “The Tower: Lean Into Fear” hits with rocking riffs and the roaring vocal power of vocalist Kristin Starkey, showcasing an entirely new facet of the band’s musical universe and making it a standout addition to their discography.
Since forming, the band has released seven studio albums and toured with the incomparable Tarja Turunen. In 2026, TEMPERANCE are set to embark on a European tour with labelmates KAMELOT and EXIT EDEN, starting November 1 in London, UK.
Kristin Starkey about “The Tower: Lean Into Fear”: “‘The Tower’ is one of the more feared cards to draw in a tarot reading, which can be summarized as the soul needing to go through great trial and tribulation to grow and flourish. Sometimes the right path is the most painful one, and sometimes we need to lean into that fear to become the best versions of ourselves. We try to avoid these pains, but once one realizes that these pains, scars, and trials are necessary for learning life’s lessons, we flourish. Lean into fear.”
Structured around the divinatory practice of Tarot, each of the new songs on Arcani (October 16, 2026 via Napalm Records) follows a different card of the Major Arcana deck. Pouring their passion into 13 spellbinding songs with even catchier symphonic melodies than before, TEMPERANCE’s bright future takes shape on Arcani.
Though not a direct concept album, TEMPERANCE position themselves as masters of narrative with their Tarot-themed album, Arcani. Their symphonic grandeur rising to new heights on their memorable eighth album, the Italian five-piece knows how to make their trademark alternating vocalists stand out. With the most personal lyrics of their career, the lines recorded in group sessions binding the band together even more, TEMPERANCE present a strong melodic piece of work, filled with power, passion, and perspective.
Marco Pastorino about Arcani: “We are finally here to announce our new album, Arcani! 13 incredible new songs that we have worked tirelessly on over the past year, and we are confident they will become an essential part of our live show. Epic symphonic arrangements, harmonies woven through our three distinctive voices, huge metal guitar solos, and a fantastic production! After our adventures around the globe supporting the magical world of Hermitage, we have returned with something magical once again. Welcome to the world of Arcani.”
Their first trump comes in the shape of “The Fool”. Just like the card has uniqueness in Tarot through being unnumbered or assigned 0, Arcani’s opening song takes a special role through the lack of a subtitle. Paving the way for the album, TEMPERANCE have their trademark grand sound take shape in uplifting melodies and powerful duet vocals. For “The Magician: Into the Fire”, male vocals take the lead, the blazing anthem further unfolding the potential of the magical record. The emotive mid-tempo track “Death: Right Before We Die”, introduced by gentle keyboard melodies and fleshed out by impressively high notes, draws from a personal experience the band members shared. “The Tower: Lean Into Fear” takes the form of a hard rock song—an entirely new facet in TEMPERANCE’s musical universe. Its Tarot paragon being a symbol of chaos and catastrophe as well as liberation, it is the perfect song for Kristin Starkey to show her roaring versatility. “The Devil: Sin, Sin, Sin” picks up on its predecessor’s dark undertone, using it for a dramatic composition with an incomparably rousing chorus in which the Italian masters of modern melodic metal truly shine. Following, the quintet unveils a quasi-self-titled track with “Temperance: Forgiveness”. TEMPERANCE turn the virtue card into a well-balanced, encouraging song, claiming, “Another day is coming”, before presenting theirs with the triumphant “The Chariot: Alla Ricerca dell’America” (Engl. “in search of America”), which adds both Italian lyrics, and a Swedish line honoring Starkey’s chosen home, as well as more operatic singing to Arcani. The collectively catchy “Justice: Shame & Glory” portrays a similarly victorious sentiment, before the hopeful “The Star: Surrender Control” has TEMPERANCE move back to contrasting their vocalists. Introduced by electronic melodies, “Wheel of Fortune: Come and Call Me” comes in fast and forceful—fierce change once again matching the symbolism behind the eponymous card. Much calmer, “The Moon: The Man of Moonlight” harmonizes hidden danger through enticing instrumentation and strong vocals, before the intense “The Hanged Man: Petrichor” turns from acoustic guitars to heavy extraordinaire, from metal to opera, pulling together the numerous different styles the five-piece is capable of executing without the “pitture infamante”’s sacrifice. “The World”, much like “The Fool”, stands out in its title, but also as a song itself: The closing track is an acoustic guitar track with predominantly female vocals, mirroring the Major Arcana’s final card in its feeling of success. With it, TEMPERANCE wrap up Arcani with a special feeling of overarching finality while still looking ahead.
Supporting KAMELOT’s Dark Asylum World Tour, Europe Pt. 1 w/ EXIT EDEN 01.11.26 UK – London / O2 Sheperd’s Bush Empire 03.11.26 UK – Manchester / O2 Ritz Manchester 05.11.26 DE – Oberhausen / Turbinenhalle 06.11.26 CH – Pratteln / Z7 Konzertfabrik 07.11.26 FR – Lyon / La Rayonne 08.11.26 DE – Stuttgart / LKA 10.11.26 PL – Krakow / Klub Studio 11.11.26 PL – Warsaw / Progresja 13.11.26 HR – Zagreb / Boogaloo 14.11.26 HU – Budapest / Barba Negra Red Stage 15.11.26 RS – Belgrade / Hangar 17.11.26 IT – Trezzo sull’Adda / Live Club 18.11.26 IT – Padova / Hall 20.11.26 FR – Toulouse / Metronum 21.11.26 ES – Barcelona / Razzmatazz 1 22.11.26 ES – Madrid / Sala La Riviera
ABSOLUTE POWER have shared the title track of their forthcoming second album, “Needs Must When The Devil Drives”, due out on November 6, 2026 via Time To Kill Records. The song features former Judas Priest and Iced Earth vocalist Tim “Ripper” Owens, who contributes his unmistakable screams to one of the album’s most powerful statements.
For Shane Embury, the track is also deeply personal, looking back at the environment in which he and Simon Efemey grew up and the role heavy metal played during their formative years:
“This song, whilst being title track of our new record, also talks about how both Simon and I grew up in the West Midlands listening to heavy metal of 1980’s – all the classics as you would expect. The areas where we both came from were very much industrial areas! Working class families and for us, as teenagers, heavy metal was our escape from the everyday realities of our areas – you did what you had to just to get by. Needs Must When the Devil Drives!”
Fifteen years after the release of their self-titled debut, the heavy metal project founded by vocalist and producer Simon Efemey and Napalm Death bassist Shane Embury returns with a powerful celebration of classic heavy metal. Drawing inspiration from the timeless legacy of Judas Priest, Saxon, Black Sabbath, Dio and the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, “Needs Must When The Devil Drives” combines old-school riffs, unforgettable melodies and larger-than-life songwriting with the energy and attitude of a new era.
The world is in meltdown, and we’re all going to hell in a handbasket. Thankfully, ABSOLUTE POWER are here to offer maximum-volume resistance to the madness with their monumental second album, “Needs Must When The Devil Drives”.
ABSOLUTE POWER is the brainchild of vocalist and producer Simon Efemey and bassist/multi-instrumentalist Shane Embury, two heavy metal lifers who, between them, have left an indelible imprint on modern music.
Embury is the longtime bassist of grindcore pioneers Napalm Death, a band that began pushing music to its furthest extremes in the 1980s and has never stopped evolving. Efemey is one of the most influential British metal producers of his generation, having shaped the modern scene through his work with artists including Paradise Lost, The Wildhearts and Napalm Death, while also developing a reputation as one of the most charismatic figures behind the scenes.
Together, they spent five years crafting “Needs Must When The Devil Drives”, an exhilarating tribute to the classic heavy metal they grew up with, infused with the energy and attitude of 2026.
“I want people to have a good time in the old school way,” says Efemey of the album. “I want them to forget the mundane, boring or horrible parts of their jobs. I want them to forget themselves for a couple of hours. That’s what good music should allow us all to do.”
The album continues the vision that originally brought ABSOLUTE POWER together: a desire to recapture the sense of adventure, grandeur and excitement that defined the heavy metal of their youth.
“When we did the first album, we wanted to make songs like our heroes – Judas Priest, Saxon, the New Wave of British Heavy Metal – everything we liked as kids,” explains Efemey. “When we were on tour buses, we’d have a few drinks and start blasting old-school heavy metal like Black Sabbath or Dio. One day we said we should write our own tunes like that.”
The debut album was embraced by fans of traditional metal, and “Needs Must When The Devil Drives” expands on that foundation, delivering a collection of songs built around powerful riffs, memorable hooks and a strong sense of identity. The title itself comes from an old proverb that Efemey and Embury would jokingly repeat to each other during the recording sessions.
Alongside the title track, “Saviour” and “Kernschmelze” showcase the band’s most direct and energetic side, while “Mountain Of Hope” increases the epic dimension that has always been central to ABSOLUTE POWER. Meanwhile, “Within” temporarily strips away some of the heaviness in favor of a more atmospheric and hypnotic approach, recalling the psychedelic spirit of 1970s classics such as Black Sabbath’s “Planet Caravan”.
The album also features a reinterpretation of Queen’s 1978 classic “Sheer Heart Attack”, preserving the original’s punk-driven energy while adding the unmistakable personality of ABSOLUTE POWER.
“The drums sounded terrible on it,” laughs Efemey.
For “Needs Must When The Devil Drives”, Efemey and Embury invited several respected musicians to contribute to the album’s expansive sound. Former Judas Priest and Iced Earth vocalist Tim “Ripper” Owens returns after appearing on the first record, delivering his unmistakable screams on the title track. The Mission and Tricky guitarist Mark Gemini Thwaite adds subtle layers and textures to several songs, expanding the band’s traditional metal foundation.
“I’ve known him for years,” says Efemey. “I recorded a demo for his old band years ago. I sent him some tracks and he put some magic on them. He added a little goth flavour to some of those tracks. It took it further than the first album, which was just straight-down-the-line traditional metal.”
Also appearing on the record are Napalm Death guitarist John Cooke and drummer Carl Stokes, whose career includes collaborations with bands such as Cancer and The Groundhogs.
At the heart of ABSOLUTE POWER, however, remains the partnership between Efemey and Embury. Both grew up in the West Midlands and shared formative experiences attending concerts at Birmingham’s legendary Odeon before following very different paths: Embury becoming one of extreme metal’s defining musicians, and Efemey establishing himself as a highly respected producer.
“Over the years our paths crossed, and we realized we had a similar love for music and a similar sense of humour – Monty Python, The Young Ones, really dark humour,” says Efemey.
Throughout his career, Efemey has worked with artists ranging from British indie heroes The Wonder Stuff to extreme metal pioneers Napalm Death, but his influence has always extended far beyond production. His larger-than-life personality and his approach to music have made him a unique figure within the British scene.
“You hear the stories from back in the day about these legendary bands and the mad stuff they’d get up to,” he says. “For me, that’s part of rock’n’roll. I never wanted to just be the guy sitting there in the studio nodding along with what bands say. It was more about entertaining people and entertaining ourselves.”
Yet behind all the chaos, Efemey has always remained focused on the most important element: the songs.
“We don’t take ourselves too seriously, but we’re serious about the music,” he says of ABSOLUTE POWER. “We reject ideas that aren’t good enough. Every song needs a good riff and a catchy melody. I wouldn’t let anything go out that was just fodder. That approach has always been prevalent in my work.”
That philosophy defines “Needs Must When The Devil Drives”. The album carries the confidence of a band that knows exactly what it wants to achieve, embracing the foundations of classic heavy metal while sounding fully alive in 2026. As the world falls apart around them, ABSOLUTE POWER stand tall, armed with riffs, melodies and songs built to last.
“I can’t think of many new British bands doing what we do,” says Efemey. “I think people like our stuff because it’s old-school with melodies you can sing along to. We use the formula from the 70s and 80s because we know it works. We make this kind of music because we love it and we want people to sing along with us.”
Tracklist:
1. Needs Must When the Devil Drives (feat. Tim “Ripper” Owens) 2. Saviour 3. Kernscmelze 4. Stand Up and Be Counted 5. Within 6. Mountain of Hope 7. Insanity 8. Hammer of Justice 9. Praise the Fire 10. Sheer Heart Attack 11. Orphans of the Storm
Line-up:
Simon Efemey – vocals Shane Embury – Bass, Additional Instruments
Guests musicians:
Tim “Ripper” Owens – vocals (ex Judas Priest, Iced Earth) Mark Gemini Thwaite – guitars (The Mission, Tricky) John Cooke – guitar (Napalm Death) Carl Stokes – drums (Cancer, The Groundhogs) Joe Taylor – drums Dominik Gryzbon – lead guitar Ilsa Nielson – lead guitar
Pictured: Jared Cannata (Guitar), Madame Mayhem (Vocals), Percy Trayanov (Bass), Jason “JBomb” Harrison (Drums) – (photo credit Jason Harrison)
MADAME MAYHEM to release her new studio album “Headcase” in Europe on November 27 at Metalville.
Led by vocalist Madame Mayhem, MADAME MAYHEM is a New York based hard rock band whose music has often explored personal experiences alongside the realities of working in the music industry. Those themes come together on the band’s new album, HEADCASE.
HEADCASE is an album that lives inside all the thoughts and emotions you’re not supposed to say out loud: anger, grief, betrayal, frustration, insecurity, and the moments when you wonder how much more you can take but then discover that you are stronger than you know.
The album is about owning that chaos rather than apologizing for it. As a woman, being emotional, angry, outspoken, or intense can quickly get you labeled “crazy” or “too much.” HEADCASE takes that label and turns it into something powerful. These songs came from different experiences, but together they tell the story of what happens when life keeps knocking you down and you have to figure out how to get back up.
At the center of that story is “Survived The Monster.” Madame Mayhem shares, “The ‘monster’ isn’t necessarily one person or one experience. It represents everything that has tried to break you: betrayal, disappointment, complicated relationships and the emotional toll of trying to survive. There’s a difference between defeating something and surviving it. Survival doesn’t mean walking away untouched. You can still carry the scars, anger, and hurt. The victory is realizing that whatever you went through didn’t destroy you. ‘Survived The Monster’ is that moment of finally being able to look back and say, ‘Wow. I made it through that.’”
Those experiences run throughout the album. “Fake Friends” and “Sinking Ships” pull from the realities of the music industry: learning that some people only stand beside you when there’s something in it for them, watching promises disappear, and realizing that loyalty doesn’t mean you have to go down with a situation that’s destroying you.
“Can You Hear Me?” turns inward toward family, using music to express the things that can be almost impossible to say in a conversation. It brings a different kind of vulnerability to an album that isn’t afraid to be angry.
Ultimately, the album is about survival in all its messy forms. It’s about being disappointed by people you trusted, questioning yourself, and continuing even when the world gives you every reason to stop. That’s why “Survived The Monster” feels like the heart of the record. “After all the anger, loss, frustration, and chaos, the message is simple: I’m bruised, I’m different, maybe I’m a little more guarded, but I’m still here.”, says Madame Mayhem.
TRACK LISTING 01- Welcome To The Shit Show 02- Fake Friends 03- Survived The Monster 04- Headcase 05- Drag Me Back 06- Immune To You 07- Kill You First 08- Get It Right 09- No More Chances 10- Better Than A Bullet 11- Can You Hear Me? 12- Parasite 13- Sinking Ships 14- Battle Cry
Eternity’s End has signed a multi-album deal with Scarlet Records and is currently putting the final touches to the new album to be released in fall 2026.
«We are very happy to have signed with Scarlet Records. They are as passionate about this style of music as we are and we are very much looking forward to this cooperation. This upcoming album is the fastest and most aggressive album we have recorded so far and we are excited to share our new songs with the world this fall. We are back with a vengeance!» – (Eternity’s End)
Having mainly been known for playing technical death metal for more than a decade (most notably with Necrophagist and Obscura), in 2014 Christian Muenzner decided to start a new band to play the style of music that was his first love, which is neoclassical, progressive power/speed metal, and thus Eternity’s End was born, influenced by Symphony X, Yngwie Malmsteen, Stratovarius, Angra, early Helloween, early Blind Guardian, Running Wild, Judas Priest as well as Helstar and Crimson Glory.
In 2026 Eternity’s End announced their new line-up consisiting of Mike Livas (Bloodorn, Silent Winter) on vocals, Christian Muenzner and Justin Hombach on guitars, Jimmy Pitts on keyboards, Linus Klausenitzer on bass and Hannes Grossmann on drums.
Eternity’s End are: Mike Livas – vocals Christian Muenzner – guitar Justin Hombach – guitar Jimmy Pitts – keyboards Linus Klausenitzer – bass Hannes Grossmann – drums
Italy’s MASTER BOOT RECORD will release its Computer Metal full-length on October 30th via Metal Blade Records!
Computer Metal makes a bold statement across its ten songs, kicking off with the first single, “DOT MATRIX” and wrapping up with “CTRL+ALT+DEL.” The follow-up to 2024’s Hardwarez, Computer Metal was written via MIDI in Cubase, with the computer as the main instrument. The record refines a hybrid of real guitar layered with synths and pushes the production to higher levels.
Multi-instrumentalist mastermind Vittorio D’Amore explains the thrust of his latest opus, “Hardwarez was about the hardware; Computer Metal is more connected to what computers represent in our lives and the memory we have of them. This album is a sort of codex of the genre, since each song expresses a different style of metal, while still being done with the computer.“
The record shifts from hardcore to progressive metal, thrash metal, melodic metal, death metal, symphonic classical metal, industrial metal, and so on. Each song is the expression of one of the different styles of metal that influenced MASTER BOOT RECORD‘s music making it MBR‘s most relatable album to date, appealing to a wide audience who may not be exceptionally tech savvy. “These are terms that entered everyday language, and that is the point: this culture is not a niche, it was a generation’s shared experience,” says D’Amore. “Even someone who never opened a computer case knows what it means when a screen asks you to press Ctrl+Alt+Del.”
Elaborates D’Amore on lead single, “DOT MATRIX,” “Angry printers head slamming characters into your face. Hardcore metal was never in the MASTER BOOT RECORD codebase before. Now it boots first, no warm-up.”
“Computer Metal” is not a genre tag D’Amore picked; it is a genre he built, and Computer Metal is its definition. Ten tracks, 42 minutes, a single LP, old-school. Everything you hear was written note by note by a human with a keyboard and a mouse controlling a machine. Everything you see in the artwork was typed character by character. No generated content, no shortcuts. If you lived that era, this album will read your memory. If you didn’t, it will install it. SPREAD THE CODE.
THE ROCK ALCHEMIST – Italian Rock Band from Turin with a strong sonic identity that blends modern rock with progressive, hard, alternative, and pop elements!
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video
