𝐏𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐎𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐕𝐨𝐥. 𝟑𝟎 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞! Discover the deep underground!
The latest edition of the monthly Pest Records Online Compilation features 30 tracks taken exclusively from demos and EPs released during August 2026, all included with the direct permission of the bands themselves.
From old-school Heavy Metal, savage Black Metal and crushing Death Metal to grim Doom, monumental Sludge, angry Hardcore, ferocious Grind, relentless Thrash and experimental sonic assaults, Vol. 30 explores the diverse and uncompromising sounds of the international underground Metal scene.
Timed perfectly for October, Bastion Rose returns with “Supernatural,” a refreshingly dangerous sounding track that tackles the human tendency to believe in the supernatural as a shield against the threat of the unexplained. The song serves as the final, unsettling advance single before the band releases their highly anticipated album, Blue Rising, on January 15.
With 3 million catalog streams and counting, Bastion Rose continues to build a heavy sonic architecture defined by precision and aggression, coupled with the hallmark vulnerability and sensuality the band has become known for.
“Supernatural” delivers sharp commentary disguised in ritualistic imagery. The track opens with themes of possession and moonlit communion before crashing into a soaring chorus demanding, “Bury me, bury me / And cover me in snake oil.” The track delivers Bastion Rose’s usual progressive rhythmic approach, but this time features slide guitar, banjo, and ghostly vocal harmonies.
“The song carries this inherent creepiness because it deals with what terrifies us most,” says the band. “We surround ourselves with myths, prayers, and superstitions because the alternative—that we are nothing more than matter, destined to decay—is an unsettling possibility to face. The song is a look at how we use the supernatural as a ward against our own mortality.”
While Blue Rising prepares for its January launch, the band refuses to slow their momentum. Bastion Rose is already back in the studio with three-time Grammy-winning producer David Bottrill (Tool, Godsmack, Mastodon, Coheed and Cambria, Rush) recording their next record, setting the stage for an aggressive release schedule throughout 2027.
Bastion Rose is a cinematic hard rock project based in Bloomington, Indiana. Known for their sophisticated fusion of monumental 70s-era grooves and 2000s era alternative metal intensity, the band has earned international recognition for their high-caliber production and narrative-driven songwriting. Following their David Bottrill-produced debut Traces of Gold, the band is currently unveiling the next chapter of their evolution with the album Blue Rising.
Inland Empire purveyors of vehicular hardcore mayhem BIG ASS TRUCK I.E. have announced their catastrophic debut EP, FOUND ON ROAD DEAD, arriving digitally and on limited edition vinyl October 20th via Nuclear Blast Records.
Along with the EP announcement, BIG ASS TRUCK I.E. have unleashed its bludgeoning first single, “DRAGGING MEAT,” accompanied by a music video directed by Astral Media/Zack Perez that captures the band’s full-throttle collision of hardcore, concussive breakdowns and monster trucking chaos.
Commenting on the impending record and new single, vocalist Abel Abarca states:
“We’re super stoked to finally get these tracks out into the world. Starting with ‘DRAGGING MEAT’ only made sense with how hard it hits, this song has become one of our favorites we’ve made and we cant wait to bring it out to our live shows this October/November.”
FOUND ON ROAD DEAD will be available on all digital music services as well as on limited edition 10” “Tire” vinyl and merch on October 20th.
FOUND ON ROAD DEAD marks the first full statement from the Southern California wrecking crew, expanding on the vehicular destruction introduced with the band’s previous singles “BACK WHEEL STOMP” and “PUSHED BEYOND THE BRINK.” Assembled in Inland Empire, the band has quickly established its own absurdly heavy lane, welding hardcore aggression, gigantic riffs and breakdowns built for maximum pit damage.
FOUND ON ROAD DEAD Track List:
FOUND ON ROAD DEAD
DRAGGING MEAT
BIG ASS GUN
FORCED THROUGH SLUDGE
1 TRILLION POUNDS
The EP arrives as BIG ASS TRUCK I.E. prepares to take its high-octane live show across North America on an extensive fall headline tour. The run kicks off on October 20th in San Diego and features a rotating lineup of CHAMBER, MUGSHOT, LOAD THA NINE, SURFACED, RESTRICTOR PLATE and LIE, along with festival appearances at Furnace Fest and Warped Tour Orlando.
Following that, BIG ASS TRUCK I.E. will head to the UK in January for a headlining tour with support from local hardcore crew PINTGLASS. Tickets are available now at https://bigasstruckie.com/.
NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES:
Oct 10 – Birmingham, AL – Furnace Fest Oct 20 – San Diego, CA – Corazon Del Barrio^ Oct 21 – San Francisco, CA – Neck of the Woods^ Oct 23 – Portland, OR – High Limit Room^ Oct 24 – Spokane, WA – The District Bar^ Oct 25 – Seattle, WA – El Corazon^ Oct 26 – Boise, ID – The Shredder^ Oct 28 – Denver, CO – Ante Up^ Oct 30 – Minneapolis, MN – Underground Music Venue* Oct 31 – Chicago, IL – Gods of Chaos Nov 1 – Milwaukee, WI – X Ray Arcade* Nov 2 – Detroit, MI – Catacombs at the Sanctuary* Nov 3 – Pittsburgh, PA – Preserving Underground* Nov 4 – Cleveland, OH – Mahall’s* Nov 5 – Toronto, ON – Hard Luck Bar* Nov 7 – Hartford, CT – Webster Underground#* Nov 9 – Baltimore, MD – Metro Gallery#* Nov 10 – Worcester, MA – Palladium Upstairs#* Nov 11 – Brooklyn, NY – Saint Vitus#* Nov 12 – Philadelphia, PA – Ukie Club#* Nov 13 – Richmond, VA – Canal Club#* Nov 14 – Atlanta, GA – Masquerade (Purgatory)#* Nov 15 – Orlando, FL – Warped Tour Orlando Nov 17 – Houston, TX – The End~ Nov 18 – Dallas, TX – Three Links~ Nov 20 – San Antonio, TX – Rock Box~ Nov 23 – Mesa, AZ – Rosetta Room~ Nov 24 – Las Vegas, NV – American Legion Post 8~ Nov 25 – Pomona, CA – The Glass House ^Load Tha Nine #Restrictor Plate *Surfaced ~Lie
UK TOUR DATES:
Jan 1 – Newcastle, UK – The Grove Jan 22 – Glasgow, UK – Classic Grand Jan 23 – Liverpool, UK – Rough Trade Jan 24 – London, UK – Downstairs at The Dome Jan 25 – Nottingham, UK – Rescue Rooms Jan 27 – Leeds, UK – Boom Jan 28 – Bristol, UK – Exchange Jan 29 – Portsmouth, UK – Kola Jan 30 – Birmingham, UK – Flapper Jan 31 – Manchester, UK – Rebellion Feb 2 – Dublin, IE – The Grand Social Feb 3 – Belfast, UK – The Limelight 2
About BIG ASS TRUCK I.E.:
Born in the Inland Empire. Fueled by diesel and bad decisions.
2000 horsepower breakdowns. 12-ton riffs. Anyone in the way catches the back wheel stomp.
Not a band. A wrecking crew on bald tires.
BIG ASS TRUCK I.E. isn’t here to partake in hardcore. It’s here to run it over, back it up, and run it over again.
Stuttgart modern metalcore outfit MAVIS return with their brand new single ‘Safe Place’, delivering another powerful step forward for one of Germany’s most promising emerging heavy acts.
Built on crushing riffs, atmospheric depth and an emotionally charged vocal performance, ‘Safe Place’ captures the tension between isolation and connection. The track explores the walls we build to protect ourselves from the outside world and the unsettling moment when someone manages to break through them. At its core lies the realization that being truly understood can feel equally comforting and dangerous, especially when that understanding comes from someone carrying fractures of their own.
Lines such as “Are we really broken / Or just going round the bend” sit at the heart of the song, questioning whether the damage we see in ourselves is really something that needs to be fixed. As the narrator recognises his own struggles reflected in another person, vulnerability slowly becomes a source of connection rather than weakness.
Musically, ‘Safe Place’ brings together the qualities that continue to define MAVIS: uncompromising heaviness, cinematic atmosphere, infectious melodies and raw emotion. Massive guitars and hard-hitting passages collide with an immediate chorus, while vocalist Phil Donay moves between intensity and vulnerability to give the track its emotional weight. The result feels both deeply personal and built for the live stage.
Formed in Stuttgart in 2019, MAVIS have steadily established themselves as an exciting name within Germany’s modern metalcore scene. Following their signing with Arising Empire in 2023, the band released their acclaimed debut album Grief Is No Ally, a record that showcased their ability to combine devastating breakdowns, soaring melodies, atmospheric electronics and deeply personal songwriting. Since then, their momentum has carried them through packed shows across Germany and onto major stages including Summer Breeze Open Air, while subsequent releases have continued to sharpen and expand their sound.
With ‘Safe Place’, MAVIS push that evolution further. Rather than simply searching for shelter from the chaos outside, the song finds safety in another person who understands that chaos from within. The repeated confession “Somehow I let you in” becomes the turning point: a moment where control gives way to trust and isolation gives way to connection.
Heavy, vulnerable and unmistakably MAVIS, ‘Safe Place’ captures a band growing increasingly confident in their identity while refusing to sacrifice the emotional honesty at the core of their music.
Following the strong first impression made by their debut single ‘Gravity‘, German newcomers Neovise return with their second single ‘Lifeline’.
While ‘Gravity‘ introduced the band’s emotionally charged take on modern heavy music, ‘Lifeline’ pushes that identity further into darker, heavier and even more vulnerable territory. Where ‘Gravity’ was about the person who holds your life in orbit, ‘Lifeline’ explores what happens when that person is suddenly gone. Together, the two songs establish the emotional ground Neovise write from: love and fear.
‘Lifeline’ is not a song about giving up. At its core, it is about wanting to stay without knowing how. It captures the difficult space between having already made the decision to keep going and still searching for the strength to do so. A plea for a reason to stay runs through the track, turning its darkness into an ode to living rather than leaving. That conflict also manifests itself through self-sabotage.
Daniel explains: “This is the most honest we’ve been. ‘Lifeline’ is that moment where you’ve run out of strength and the only thing left is to say it out loud: I need someone to pull me out. It’s the bravest thing you can do.”
Musically, Neovise translate that emotional tension into a dynamic collision of crushing heaviness, atmosphere and carefully placed moments of restraint. Instead of relying purely on impact, the band deliberately leave room for silence and vulnerability, allowing the quieter sections to hit just as hard as the song’s explosive peaks.
Michigan metalcore force Of Virtue unleash their highly anticipated fourth studio album Death Of The Altar, out today. Following the breakthrough success of 2023’s Omen, the new record sees the band pushing their sound into heavier, darker and more emotionally charged territory while delivering some of their most immediate songwriting to date. In celebration, Of Virtue are now releasing a brand new video for the track ‘Too Late’.
Built on crushing guitar riffs, industrial electronics, atmospheric production and the striking contrast between Tyler Ennis and Damon Tate’s vocals, Death Of The Altar moves effortlessly between claustrophobic heaviness and enormous, soaring choruses. Across the record, Of Virtue explore what happens when devotion becomes destructive, when love turns into dependency and when the things we give ourselves to begin taking more than they give back.
That idea runs through the album in different forms. Relationships collapse under the weight of obsession, guilt and resentment, while elsewhere the band confront isolation, grief, mortality, mental turmoil and the consequences of self-destructive behaviour. Religious imagery repeatedly collides with deeply human experiences of love and suffering, turning the altar into a symbol for everything we worship, sacrifice for and eventually may have to leave behind.
Catch the band live: 03.10.2026 I – I Paris, France 04.10.2026 I – I Tilburg, Netherlands 05.10.2026 I – I Nijmegen, Netherlands 06.10.2026 I – I Cologne, Germany 07.10.2026 I – I Hamburg, Germany 08.10.2026 I – I Berlin, Germany 09.10.2026 I – I Munich, Germany 10.10.2026 I – I Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
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
1917, 
Acidic Demise, 
Apocalyptic Leaders, 
Assimilated Transdimensionalization, 
Barracuda, 
Charnel Crown, 
Humerror, 
Killing Spree, 
Marccon, 
Noctivagus, 
Oblivion Voyage, 
Ortolith, 
Rad, 
Saqraruna, 
Staota, 
Terrorscum, 
Wrekan
