Rolling 2026 METAL \m/ thread

I probably bought fewer new metal albums last year than most (still a LOT) but 2026 is rife with potential

I've been listening to Eximperitus' third album, Meritoriousness of Equanimity, which comes out January 30 from Willowtip.

https://eximperitus.bandcamp.com/album/meritoriousness-of-equanimity

A metal album whose title translates from Metal to English as "It's Good To Be Chill" seems like a good way to start 2026.

omg sounds amazing - so into those song titles lol

the last few updates from the 2025 thread really gave me a boon of great stuff to listen to at the gym and on runs:

coroner - dissonance theory
i thought this was kinda cheesy at first but it's really grown on me. middle aged in the best sense.

glorious depravity - death never sleeps.
high energy and headbangable

hedonist - scapulimancy
kind of a slow burn

sanguisugabogg - hideous aftermath
just a monster of an album. zeroed-out eyes-rolled-back brutality. missed nominating this for the eoy poll.

Definitely stoked for that Eximperitus album, I loved their last one quite a bit. Seems like the logo still has their, ahem, full name - Eximperituserqethhzebibšiptugakkathšulweliarzaxułum. I can see why they've shortened it elsewhere.

Seems like the logo still has their, ahem, full name - Eximperituserqethhzebibšiptugakkathšulweliarzaxułum.

I was wondering what was going on there. The logo did seem a little long and complicated.

Hails! I wasn't around very much last year. I hope to rectify that this year.

Revolver did a 60 Most Anticipated Albums of 2026 which should be good for discussion, if nothing else!

Alice in Chains
ALISSA
Alter Bridge
Amon Amarth
Anthrax
At the Gates
Bad Omens
Zachary Baker
Better Lovers
Black Label Society
Black Veil Brides
Burn Eternal
Clutch
Converge
Corrosion of Conformity
Deafheaven
Dimmu Borgir
Down
Electric Callboy
Amira Elfeky
Evanescence
Evil Island
Exodus
Five Finger Death Punch
Gojira
I Promised the World
Ice Nine Kills
Imminence
In This Moment
Incubus
Kim Dracula
Kerry King
King Diamond
Knocked Loose
Korn
Lamb of God
Limp Bizkit
Loathe
Marilyn Manson
Mastodon
Megadeth
Ministry
Motionless in White
Mudvayne
Nine Inch Nails
Paleface Swiss
Poison the Well
Poppy
Power Trip
PRESIDENT
Primus
The Pretty Reckless
Puscifer
Sevendust
Shinedown
Slipknot
SPEED
TOOL
Jay Weinberg
Rob Zombie

My own list of things I want to at least list to... Bearing in mind I listen to everything vaguely interesting though there's a bunch of things I am dubious I will like...

7-Jan
Epica

9-Jan
Bullet
Skindred

16-Jan
Gluecifer
Kreator

23-Jan
The Damned
Megadeth
Pelican

30-Jan
Buzzcocks

6-Feb
KMFDM
Mayhem
Puscifier

13-Feb
Converge
The Hellacopters
Malefic
Worm

27-Feb
Rob Zombie

From that big Revolver list, the only ones I'm interested in hearing are At The Gates, Converge, Corrosion Of Conformity, Gojira, Ministry (Paul Barker's back!) and Rob Zombie (the first two singles have been really strong).

Time was, every Amon Amarth record was an automatic purchase for me, but the last one I bought was Jomsviking and The Great Heathen Army was terrible.

Seems like every nu-metal band has an album coming out.

And probably allegations coming out as well

Seen this MTV Rewind site? It's got over 33,000 videos going back to the 1970s, with sub-channels for 120 Minutes and the Headbangers' Ball (which has 1600 videos all by itself).

https://wantmymtv.vercel.app/player.html

The two Mayhem songs already released are strong, that's promising.

The new Kreator album is GREAT fun, because of course it would be.

A new Draconian (Sweden, gothic doom) album is coming out this spring, the studio return of their 2001-2011 female vocalist - https://www.instagram.com/draconianhorde/p/DRzjllKji50/

New Exhumed track rips, suitably gory cover art too.

https://exhumed.bandcamp.com/album/red-asphalt

This morning I got a promo email about a black metal album literally called Hate Speech. In 2026. Deleted that shit immediately.

hellhammer is reissuing the PARIAH albums (what Satan became for a while). great stuff

still catching up on 2025 releases and really enjoyed oromet’s mournful funeral doom:

https://transylvanianrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/oromet-the-sinking-isle

really hit the spot on a particularly shit day!

hellhammer is reissuing the PARIAH albums (what Satan became for a while). great stuff

― J Edgar Noothgrush (Joan Crawford Loves Chachi), Monday, January 12, 2026 4:46 PM (two days ago) bookmarkflaglink

i looked this up and the kindred sounds great indeed but i'm wondering if you meant "steamhammer" the name of the og label, not "hellhammer" the band, which are obviously two words to get easily mixed up?

oromet’s mournful funeral doom: really hit the spot on a particularly shit day!

this is sounding gorgeous thx

and that exhumed track is insane

Really dig that Oromet album, it's great.

Missed the Alkaloid listening party, but stoked to check out that album.

Missed the Alkaloid listening party, but stoked to check out that album.

The Bach one? It's pretty good in a prog-death-with-multiple-songs-about-Cthulhu way. The Bach interpretations are... done with great seriousness.

I really liked the last Alkaloid album so I was mostly curious to hear those new songs. But JCLC was raving elsewhere about the Bach interpretations.

I liked it enough that I'm including it in an upcoming newsletter devoted to classical albums.

new immolation:
https://immolation.bandcamp.com/album/descent

teaser track sounds great, as usual. album in april. hope there's a tour.

I like the brief but descriptive tags on there:

Tags
metal death metal Yonkers

Fun piece on IO. I love this cover art aesthetic.

https://www.invisibleoranges.com/the-top-20-old-school-black-metal-photoslop-album-covers-1990-2005/

oh man, have that apotheosis disc somewhere. haven’t thought about that one for quite some time.

Loving this debut from Exxûl, another project in the Longueuil lads universe (Ch'theilist, Zeycrideus, etc.). It's dark, doomy USPM, very much like Crypt Sermon. https://productionstso.bandcamp.com/album/sealed-into-none

The album cover is beautiful too.

ok this rules. sounds a bit like early confessor with some modern polish.

damn ok i love this.

i can't take this news of Carson dying every few hours guys my heart is weak

ok very wrong thread wtf

hails to carson, metal’s reigning king of riffsmaxxing

love the keys on this exxul record - adds a little “i am the black wizards” drama to an already very dramatic sound

also, i myself invoked confessor but any excuse to post their texas water park set aka the best live performance ever

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5CgB4dB0NU

great video. wiki says they're still active today with three og members.

nice. i remember thinking that their comeback record (now 20+ years old…) was surprisingly good despite the new and prominent grunge influences deployed at what must've been the least cool time in history to really go for that. i should prob spin that again sometime.

Fun piece on IO. I love this cover art aesthetic.

My personal favourite is Maniac Butcher - Barbarians, which features the band members (crudely) superimposed on horseback, in full corpsepaint.

And then on their next album cover, they did it again!

they realized four people to photoshop was just way too much work lol

still cant get enough of this exxul record. the gang vox are another unexpected element that im really into - RIYL biohazard lol

behold, Dave Mustaine in 2026
--------------------------------

I don't care if I'm out of line
I don't care 'cause this life is mine
I don't care you don't like what I say
I don't care, and I won't obey
I don't care if you're gettin' high
I don't care when the truth is a lie
I don't care when the rope gets tight
I don't care if you live or die
I don't care what the headline said
I don't care if all hope is dead
I don't care if I'm not your class
I don't care, you can kiss my ass

He was a hater and a thief, a maggot in dead meat
A traitor and a creep, a jack-off and a sheep
You know a rat never learns, you get what you deserve
You gotta know that I just don't care

You gotta know, gotta know, gotta know
You gotta know, gotta know, gotta know
You gotta know, gotta know, gotta know
You gotta know, gotta know, gotta know

I don't care if you're standing tall
I don't care if you take the fall
I don't care who you try to blame
I don't care, I don't play that game
I don't care if you're wrong or right
I don't care if you came to fight
I don't care if you call my bluff
I don't care, enough is enough

He was a hater and a thief, a maggot in dead meat
A traitor and a creep, a jack-off and a sheep
You know a rat never learns, you get what you deserve
You gotta know that I just don't care

He was a hater and a thief, a maggot in dead meat
A traitor and a creep, a jack-off and a sheep
You know a rat never learns, you get what you deserve
You gotta know that I just don't care

You gotta know, gotta know, gotta know
You gotta know, gotta know, gotta know
You gotta know, gotta know, gotta know
You gotta know, gotta know, gotta know

I'm just going to cling to my 40 year-old Peace Sells cassette and pretend that never happened.

if theres one thing megadave is known for, its for taking things in stride and not caring about what other people think or say

still cant get enough of this exxul record.

Yeah, it's a gem. It's sending me back to the amazing Zeicrydeus album too.

still haven't gotten to it. gonna prioritize that, thanks!

Came to see what others thought of the new Megadeth.
Suffice, I'm not buying.

on first listen, it was fairly middling. there's not as much effect on Dave's voice as on other late-era Megadeth and he sounds really old

Yeah, it's not great. They've made better albums, even in the 21st century. But the closing cover of Metallica's "Ride The Lightning" is... OK, from a performance standpoint it's competent. Musically, it's a precise soundalike - the band adds NOTHING to the arrangement or the performance. Mustaine didn't even write himself a new guitar solo. The vocals are bad, but he's been a shit vocalist for 40 years, why change now? But as a thing that exists, it's an act of artistic surrender that's frankly inexplicable. He spent so many years allowing "guy who was kicked out of Metallica and will never, ever stop resenting them for it" to be half his artistic identity, only to now cover one of their songs on what he claims is his final album? It's just weird. And pointless.

catching up on a few releases after some time away and this new pigs blood stood out:
https://darkdescentrecords.bandcamp.com/album/destroying-the-spirit

war metal with lots of big riffs and big drums. nothing new here, not a problem for me tho. i hope dark descent releasing it gets em some shine since i liked their last two as well.

the new portrayal of guilt ultimately didn’t do it for me but they get an e for effort :
https://portrayalofguilt.bandcamp.com/album/beginning-of-the-end

the (sub-)genre mixing is interesting enough - the explicit nods to nu-metal are pretty fun and funny - but felt too hodgepodge-ey for me, i guess? maybe others might dig it tho? i def _wanted_ to!

in theory like the Portrayal Of Guilt; but i'm not sure the material lives up to the sound/atmosphere on this one; nothing stuck with me and one listen felt like enough. contrast that with Chat Pile where the korn influence is tied to really great and impactful songwriting...

was at Incineration in London on saturday; Tomb Mold, Hypocrisy and Vacuous my highlights which was not unexpected. Tomb Mold having a singing drummer made them even more great than i'd previously realised? Dragged Into Sunlight also incredibly impressive but I only stayed for 10 mins or so; for something that oppressive I guess i want a club show rather than it being part of a day long fest running about between venues in the sunshine...
overall though the fest felt undersold compared to last year; that meant some bands like Grave opening to very small crowds in the biggest venue (due to everyone walking down the road to see them after the end of Dragged); meant the atmosphere felt a bit lacking at times. saw a bunch of people were into the headlining Bathory tribute, but Faust drumming for that meant I didn't fancy it - went for Vacuous in tiny hot venue instead.

My brother texted me from the Amon Amarth/Dethklok/Castle Rat show tonight, so I had him buy me an Amon Amarth shirt. I bought one when I saw them in 2005 (Gojira opened) but it died many years ago. I had no idea T-shirts were $50 now! WTF? The last time I saw Amon Amarth was in 2019, and I bought a Grand Magus shirt and I think it was $30.

this new pigs blood stood out:

feeling this

i'm checking out amon amarth's berserker and i quite like it. what's the best amon amarth album?

The two I return to most often are Versus The World and Twilight Of The Thunder God.

I am at Gigan and Barren Path
at a tiny dive.

Well, not Gigan. Bus broke down.

whoa, jealous! no east coast dates… :/

how were barren path?? i loved the record

They were pretty ferocious. I enjoyed their set. They played a bunch from an upcoming album. It's not my favorite genre - it kind of all sounds the same to me - but I respected their craft and they seemed like nice guys.

Third Draconian preview track before the album is released (on Friday)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONph7R88GWo

I genuinely don't know how to respond to the news that Alissa White-Gluz, formerly of Arch Enemy, is the new singer for DragonForce. Her voice isn't a good match for their music at all, and didn't she just announce a solo project?

i thought amon amarth were too cheesy for me but berserker rules!

They were pretty ferocious. I enjoyed their set. They played a bunch from an upcoming album.

hell yeah. glad to hear that there’s already a new record in the works too.

really enjoyed reading youse posts above about those live shows. very curious about seeing vacuous

(ftr re:vastum, leila broke an elbow, that's the sole reason she's not playing right now in europe with em, uff) vastum4 kills tho

so... beherit live then. O.O it's an experience, indeed. one of the best shows i've ever seen and i was far from beeing a beherit fan. until now that is

plus caustic wound rule. plus matt harvey is peaking in 2026 and we love it

I've never been a huge Cryptopsy fan, but I'm seeing them this week. It's the 30th anniversary of None So Vile, so I think they are going to play mostly that.

so... beherit live then. O.O it's an experience, indeed. one of the best shows i've ever seen and i was far from beeing a beherit fan. until now that is

hell yeah. similar experience here, tho i really like the albums. (well, some of them…) but a very different experience live. was on the fence about going since tix were quite pricey but they were incredible and it was totally worth it. really got everyone’s fists pumping, huge grins everywhere my eyes could see. for sure one of the best shows i’ve ever been to as well.

today’s lago record is pretty cool btw. morbid angel-ey.

https://everlastingspew.bandcamp.com/album/vigil

Man, Oranssi Pazuzu was great last night. I saw them in 2019 and they blew me away then, too. I will see these guys whenever I get the opportunity and recommend any fans who haven't seen them yet do the same. They are masters of tension and release.

it's here. it's not for the faint-hearted

https://effluence666.bandcamp.com/album/anticholinergic-derangement

"Endogenous Polypharmaceutical Communion Rite Of The Oracular Virgin Priestess" is a vibe. The lyrics on this album are terrific.

yeah, not for me

A few years old, but Sonja's Loud Arriver is killing me right now. The gothic heavy metal of my dreams.

Best debut album by a metal band in many years!

one day I'll actually listen to an effluence album but I'm just never actually in the mood. I guess today is not that day.

excited to catch oranssi pazuzu again next week. they ruled last tour too, yeah.

ok, I kind of like that Effluence. I guess I'm getting a taste for brutal death metal or whatever this is.

lorn are back but instead of clean, tasteful dissonant black metal, they're doing clean, tasteful atmospheric black metal now:
https://i-voidhangerrecords.bandcamp.com/album/searing-blood

really like “gallows,” which starts and ends like a peppier drudkh and gets spacey and even kinda motorik in the middle? that part reminded me of circle a little.

to me, this kinda thing doesn’t feel like a band playing a couple songs, exactly. more like a techno or ambient-adjacent model. thats prob why i find this music a bit hard to evaluate beyond “like it” or “don’t like it” but i do like this, and prob more than their previous mode too.

Amenra were miraculous tonight. Hit that tonal sweet spot where the heaviness hits you in the chest. That pop is devastating, and I am amazed at how rare it is for me to experience that. And I go to a ton of shows. It's one of the best things about metal, that patient, Roadburny heaviness that bands like Amenra pull off so masterfully.

nice

enjoying this auzawandils record:
https://auzawandils.bandcamp.com/album/laste-eclipse-ouer-golgothas-pytt

more black metal, this one's pretty psychedelic with lots of pulsating delayed waves of guitars. I esp like it when the drummer slows down and plays some tough mid-tempo beats over it.

enjoying the new desecresy as well:
https://xtreemmusic.bandcamp.com/album/the-secret-of-death

death/doom from finland with an emphasis on doom. also pretty psychedelic. have found this band spotty in the past but this is best I've heard from them.

been waiting for this one:
https://funebrarum-death-metal.bandcamp.com/album/beckoning-the-void-of-eternal-silence

haven't listened but have high hopes

Nice, I loved the preview tracks. Such a heavy, satisfying sound.

well, unsurprisingly, i like it. subsequent plays will reveal exactly how much but didnt hit me quite like the sleep of… does. but that’s a personal all-timer for me, so trying to not get too excited.

didn’t know a new pharmacist was on the way but this is a pleasant surprise for sure:
https://pharmacist-japan.bandcamp.com/album/vertebrae-after-vertebrae

sounds killer so far

Loving thr Pharmacist...not surprisingly

I've always been "fine, not fantastic" with Frozen Soul, but the new one is hitting for me, I really like it. Awesome cover art too!

https://frozensoultx.bandcamp.com/album/no-place-of-warmth-24-bit-hd-audio

ha, immediately after I posted that I read unperson's newsletter and see he pretty much agrees!

Was just coming to post the link: I wrote about Dimmu Borgir and Frozen Soul, plus two modern classical recordings very different from each other and a drum 'n' bass compilation.

Frozen Soul somehow manage to make one idea with 30 slight variations work for them. Think this one is their best.

They're a vibe more than anything and for the moment, one I enjoy

I'd like this Frozen Soul a lot more if it wasn't so reverb'd out. And yet somehow still sounds like it goes into the red, especially when they do the "now it's time to mosh" sub-bass drops.

Anybody with an opinion on the Kaataira album ? One-man folk-leaning acoustic black metal project from Brazil. Based on Rio sem Nome, it's pretty nice, the songwriting is this extended free form that is not really my cup of tea, but I do like the sound and the fact that the vocals are pretty sparse.

To add to the above, it's going in interesting directions that only retain metal as a basis. Sometimes a little rich but manages to be quite organic. I see now that the project was discussed as Kaatayra but seemingly not since the spelling was changed.

And to end my live review, the atmosphere and flute on the title track (Caminhos de água) are beautiful and will suddenly remind you of Bergtatt in the best way.

I feel kind of bad for making negative comments on the Frozen Soul production. This album is tuff af.

i gotta check these new releases out but my latest metal development is falling for amon amarth. so much dumb fun, everything is right there in the production so you don't have to listen hard at all, surprisingly affecting, even kinda inspirational lol.

Haven't heard anybody talk about them at all about Mors Verum is one of my favorite metal albums of the year so far. The label, Transcending Obscurity, seems to be based out of India. If you buy a t-shirt on Bandcamp they give you a voucher for an album download. Did that with their labelmates, Glorious Depravity a few months ago, too. Their shirts are high quality.

Mors Verum's "Canvas" is what I should have written.

oh this one’s fun. i like the airy, punchy production. the lightness feels like an invitation to focus on all of the twists and turns.

and yeah, they label puts out some good stuff. tho i do get a little cranky when you gotta scroll thru endless merch to get to the bottom of a bandcamp page and they’re prob one of the worst offenders there. (but i guess you’re in luck if you need a death metal baby onseie or whatever…)

*that label

Yeah, I really like the production on it. It really lets you hear each instrument.

They sent me a ton of stuff with the shirts. Bandcamp download codes to other albums, stickers, a patch, and a nice heavy guitar pick - all for bands I don't know anything about. haha. High quality stuff, though.

this is sweet. i like that sort of metallic prog sound. so cush-sounding too as bgm says.

i liked this in the bandcamp description: "The experience feels at once liberating and cathartic, as though having achieved epiphany after constant, dogged exploration."

"for fans of" mentions gorguts and it does remind me of that final gorguts album a little bit. gorgeous and unique. kinda wish it was longer!