A few weeks ago, Berlin thrashers DEIMOS’ DAWN not only announced their upcoming live album (Live To The Slaughter, out May 8), but also teased a separate surprise. Now the cat is out of the bag: the band has taken on the Depeche Mode classic “A Question of Time” and turned it into a punchy thrash metal version.
Anyone who ever doubted that a 80s synth pop song can’t be a headbanger should definitely give this one a spin. Frontman Marc Grewe once again proves that he is not just Germany’s true death metal allrounder, but also has a wide vocal range, putting his own stamp on the track.
“A Question of Time” is out now on all major streaming platforms, as well as a video featuring studio recording footage on YouTube.
Next Live Date
April, Kiel “Mosh im Mai” (Live To The Slaughter Record Release)
Finnish Heavy Doom band Occult master are set to release their self-titled debut album on August 14th 2026 via Inverse Records. The first single ‘Island of Leper’ is unleashed today and it’s available on streaming services: https://push.fm/fl/occult-master-island
The band comments:
“A contemplative, multi-part, poignantly beautiful and overwhelmingly heavy progressive metal epic takes listeners on a sombre, melancholic journey, centered around two former lovers who are struck by a devastating misfortune after contracting leprosy. The couple, beloved of youth, meet on the island of the lepers, where they reminisce about their wonderful youth. The island, their final resting place, ultimately embraces them in its leprous embrace, where they will find an ultimate fulfilment.”
–Composed & lyrics by Ari Eskola –ISRC: FI3FC2552702 –Cover art by Kimmo Lukkari
Occult Master Track list:
Just Another Nail in the Failier’s Coffin
Island of Leper
Heavy Metal Madness
Lucifer’s Henchman
Ground of the Damned
Who Is Our Enemy
Sorry Soul
Soothing Swamp
Gnarly Geezer
–Recorded by Jussi Risto –Mixed & mastered by Kimmo Lukkari –Cover art by Jarno Vesa
“Occult Master was founded in 2012 in Oulu, Finland, first starting as a heavy rock/doom band. After a line‑up change in 2020, the musical style turned faster, more rhythmic and more complex. Occult Master’s music is heavy, versatile and full of nuances, ranging from full‑throttle metal blasting to quiet, subtle and beautifully eerie musical landscapes. The band’s roots lie strongly in the classic heavy metal of the 1970s and 1980s. The songs are delivered in a hardy, straightforward and no‑nonsense style. In the dark‑toned music, the lyrics deal with different matters of life and the world in general, and at times even horror stories told with a devilish grin.
Occult Master are: Ari Eskola – guitars and vocals Toni Mäki – bass and backing vocals Jussi Risto – drums
Elevate Records is proud to announce the signing of Silver Horses, one of the most appreciated Anglo-Italian hard rock bands in the European scene.
The deal brings with it news that fans have been eagerly awaiting: Weird Tales, the band’s fourth studio album, will be released in June 2026.
Founded in 2011 by guitarist and songwriter Gianluca Galli, Silver Horses took shape gradually: once the band’s core was established, legendary vocalist Tony Martin (ex-Black Sabbath) joined the fold, giving life to a project destined to leave its mark. The current line-up — completed by Jacopo “Jack” Meille on vocals (frontman of the legendary Tygers of Pan Tang), Andrea Castelli on bass, and Matteo “Bona” Bonini on drums — stands as one of the most authoritative and exciting in European hard rock today.
Weird Tales is the sixth chapter of their discography and the first released on Elevate Records. Twelve original tracks spanning territories of dark romanticism, cinematic atmospheres, and powerful, visceral rock — following the artistic path of Electric Omega (2024) and Perspectives (2025). Influences range from Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple to Black Country Communion, but the result is unmistakably Silver Horses: music that doesn’t look back out of nostalgia, but because it knows exactly where it’s headed.
We are thrilled to welcome Silver Horses to the Elevate Records family. Their music embodies exactly what we believe in: quality, substance, and a rare ability to move people.
From the beginning, it was clear that Beyond Creation possessed a special aura. Back in 2011, the Montréal four-piece quickly proved they were the next progressive evolution in technical death metal with their very first album. Now, fifteen years later, the genre still basks in the enduring glow of The Aura.
“Laden with atmosphere, The Aura stands out from the crowded 2011 tech/death scene thanks to the prominent use of fretless bass, varying drum patterns, and experimentation with tempo”, wrote Metal Injection in a recent retrospective. “Combine that with a variety of searing vocal styles and classically-influenced, lightening-fast sweeps, The Aura is a decadent joy to the mechanically and sonically minded”.
As the Independence Music Award winners and Canadian Grammy nominees prepare to perform their landmark debut in full for the very first time on their upcoming Latin American tour, today, Beyond Creation are announcing a special anniversary reissue of The Aura. The new limited-edition colored vinyl variant is cut at 45 RPM for superior sound quality. It comes with a double-sided full color poster and an embroidered patch.
“Fifteen years ago, The Aura marked the beginning of our sonic journey”, Beyond Creation lead vocalist and guitarist Simon Girard reflects. “Our celebration of its 15th anniversary officially begins with this special limited-edition reissue. Join us in the celebration during our upcoming tour of Latin America with our special guests Fallujah, where we will perform the album in its entirety for the first time ever, as well as our new single ‘Reverence’”.
Listen to the full album stream on the Season of Mist YouTube channel:
Beyond Creation The Aura 15th Anniversary Latin American Tour with special guest Fallujah
April 19 – San Jose, Costa Rica @ Utopia [TICKETS] April 20 – Bogota, Columbia @ Relevent Music Hall [TICKETS] April 22 – Buenos Aires, Argentina @ Teatro Flores [TICKETS] April 23 – Sao Paulo, Brazil @ Burning House [TICKETS] April 24 – Santiago, Chile @ Blondie [TICKETS] April 26 – Monterrey, Mexico @ Cafe Iguana [TICKETS] April 29 – León, Mexico @ Rock Station [TICKETS] April 30 – Guadalajara, Mexico @ Foro Independencia [TICKETS] May 1 – Aguascalientes, Mexico @ RockSi [TICKETS] May 3 – Mexico City, Mexico @ Circo Volador [TICKETS]
The Aura immediately stood out as a shining achievement for technical death metal. With microscopic precision, the band spliced together classic brutality and prog’s unbending curiosity with an unforeseen tact for melody. “Coexistence” opened eyes far and wide to a new realm of possibilities, where headbanging riffs don’t collide but resolve amidst an extended instrumental passage that glistens like the cosmos. After more than 6 million views on YouTube, “Omnipresent Perception” is still blowing people’s minds. Its fretless bass solo, while impossible to follow, leads along the path to enlightenment.
“Are we the chosen ones?”, Girard wonders during “The Deported”, the album’s epic 11-minute closer. He’s questioning humanity’s own presumed superiority, but when it comes to Beyond Creation and the universe of progressive technical death metal, the answer is still a resounding “yes”.
The French part of Canada is home to a vibrant culture of technical death metal fostered by outstanding acts such as Gorguts, Cryptopsy, Martyr and Neuraxis. This illustrious family tree has produced many sprouts in the past, yet none of them are as brilliant as Quebec’s amazing scion: Beyond Creation.
Beyond Creation saw the light of day in 2005 in Montreal, Canada but it wasn’t until 2010 that the band was ready to hit the stage with their original line-up consisting of Simon Girard, Kevin Chatré, Guyot Bégin-Benoît and Dominic ‘Forest’ Lapointe. A year later, the band self-released their debut full-length album The Aura (2011), which quickly became a highlight in the genre. Since then, Beyond Creation has been known as the progressive, innovative and exciting new metal sound of their homeland, Quebec.
In late 2012, the band had Philippe Boucher (Ex-First Fragment, Incadescence, Chthe’ilst, Décombres) take Guyot’s place on drums and things started moving at a faster pace in 2013, when they joined Season of Mist, re-releasing ‘The Aura’ and touring North America, Japan and Australia. In 2014, Beyond Creation released their second masterpiece Earthborn Evolution.
After the addition of Hugo Doyon-Karout (Brought By Pain, Equipoise, Conflux) on bass, the band focused on touring as much as possible on the Earthborn Evolution album cycle compiling three North American tours, three European tours, countless shows in Canada, appearances in Mexico, Colombia and Dubaï, sharing the stage with heavy weights like Arch Enemy, Hate Eternal, Misery Index, Dying Fetus, Psycroptic and Obscura. They also took part in multiple large-scale music festivals such as Hellfest (FR), 70 000 Tons of Metal (US), UK Tech-Fest, Montebello Rockfest (CA), Heavy MTL (CA) and Damnation Fest (UK).
In 2018, Beyond Creation recorded their IMA award-winning and JUNO-Nominated third album Algorythm at The Grid Studio in homeland Canada. With their latest album, Beyond Creation delivers a ferocious blend of technicality, melody, and brutality aided by fang-filled growls, which is interwoven with beautiful progressive interludes.
Since then, Beyond Creation have toured extensively. The band have played multiple times across North America, Latin America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand with the likes of Ne Obliviscaris, Decapitated, Cynic and Rivers of Nihil. They’ve also hit the festival circuit with appearances at Shred Fest, Loud As Hell Open Air and Trois-Rivières Metal Fest.
In 2026, Beyond Creation released “Reverence”, their first single in eight years, ahead of the 15th anniversary of The Aura. To celebrate 15 years since the release of their landmark debut, the band announced a special limited-edition reissue of the album through Season of Mist. They will perform the album in full for the first-time ever during their 2026 Latin American Tour with special guests Fallujah.
Line-up Simon Girard: Vocals & Guitars Kevin Chartré: Guitars & Back Vocals Hugo Doyon-Karout: Bass Philippe Boucher: Drums
California has always been fertile ground for thrash metal, leading the charge with some of the genre’s most legendary acts. San Diego’s NUKEM follows in the footsteps of thrash metal’s founding fathers, producing the kind of time-tested, neck-breaking thrash that invokes deep nostalgia while still sounding fresh and modern.
The thrashers are now pummeling fans with a performance video for the single “Policies of Hate,” which can now be found at THIS LOCATION.
The track is taken from the band’s new sophomore full-length, ‘The Grave Remains,’ which was released on April 10th, via Redefining Darkness. The album can be purchased in the U.S. HERE and the rest of the world HERE.
The artwork for ‘The Grave Remains’ was created by Megan Mushi and can be found below along with the tracklist.
Nukem is a Thrash metal force from San Diego, California, that delivers an honest, old school thrash attack. Formed in 2012, Nukem released their 2016 debut album “The Unholy Trinity,’ which was mixed & mastered by Ulrich Wild (Pantera, Static X, Dethklok, White Zombie) and was released via Sleaszy Rider Records out of Greece.
Nukem had entered the studio in 2024 once again with Ulrich Wild to work on our second album. Ten songs of pure molten metal! Some songs are full on unstoppable Bay Area style Thrash metal violence while others are more of a mid tempo power groove. Nukem has now forged a new union with Redefining Darkness for the release of their oncoming onslaught… stay tuned!
Recording Lineup: Steve Brogden – Vocals & Guitar Norm Leggio – Drums Don Lauder – Bass
Live Lineup: Steve Brogden – Vocals & Guitar Norm Leggio – Drums Don Lauder – Bass Xander Gambini – Guitar
Special Guests: Gary Holt (Exodus, Slayer) – Solo on ‘Empress of Evil’ Lee Altus (Exodus/Heathen) – Solo on ‘Don’t believe a word’ Rob Cavestany (Death Angel) – Solo on ‘Into the Kill Zone’ Russ Tippons (Satan) – Solo on ‘Random Acts of Violence’ Laura Christine (Dark Angel/Warface) – Solo on ‘Empress of Evil’
Cover Art: Megan Mushi
Produced by Steve Brogden & Nukem Recorded at The Wilderness with Ulrich Wild & Forge Audio with Steve Brogden Forge Audio with Steve Brogden Mixed by Ulrich Wild Mastered by Maor Appelbaum
For Fans Of: Exodus, Megadeth, Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax, Overkill
Italian trio SCONFITTA will release their debut album “Essere Nessuno” on May 1, 2026, marking the first official statement from a project built on the deliberate rejection of success, coherence and convention.
SCONFITTA has as its sole objective in failure.
By fluidly blending various niche musical genres, from hardcore punk to metal, passing through dark wave, post-punk, and jazz, we aim to be a dissonant and out-of-tune note in the paradoxically homogeneous and artificially harmonious chorus of protest music. In a system, both related to the music industry and life in general, that promotes the hegemony of ambition and considers victory the sole measure of excellence, even protest is stifled within traditionally predefined genres and languages, which end up neutralizing its revolutionary force by confining it to an uncritical and self-referential model.
The lyrics are important, and they are all political.
Shifting rapidly between feelings of anger, introspection, indignation, and reflection, “Essere Nessuno” speaks only to those and with those who have no interest in winning, only to those and with those who place the nobility of failure before success at all costs.
Schizophrenic music against standardized dissent.
FFO: Negazione, Mr Bungle, Refused, Hüsker Dü, and Johnny Dorelli (for non Italians, imagine some ‘70s nightclub jazzy vibes of sort). But all blended together.
Tracklist:
1) Sconfitta (3:33) 2) Brucia sempre così (2:34) 3) Senza esempi (3:27) 4) Buio nella mente (2:35) 5) Lunghe ombre (1:39) 6) Non un vizio di forma (2:01) 7) Essere nessuno (3:25)
SCONFITTA was born from a (bad) idea by Simone. After failing almost all of his previous musical incarnations (Antropofagus, Feed Them Death, Nganga, Grieving Sea, Pseudodoxia), he felt the need to create a new project to add to the long list of things no one else really needed. The nearly seven years spent with Giorgio (Derhead, Katiusha, Dual, Grieving Sea, Ultio) stubbornly sowing seeds of failure with the label Brucia Records became the blueprint on which the duo decided to lay the foundations for their new musical failure.
Last but not least, Enrico arrives to complete the debacle. Technically gifted and strangely showing no signs of obvious mental health issues, he is still a drummer and therefore plays and collaborates with various bands simultaneously (ExpiatoriA, IKITAN, The Healing Process, Derhead, and Noisext). He’s the most handsome and successful of the three, but he’ll lose by osmosis.
In just a few months, the trio has composed an album without rhyme or reason that’s unlikely to please anyone, and they’ve even topped it all off with a little book that no one will ever read.
Defeated, possibly, by name and by nature, but always by choice.
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s 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 Kuusniemi’s 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 “Aurora Nuclearis”, 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 ) 