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Inner Axis - 2024 - Midnight Forces

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(52:18; Fastball Music) Track list: 1. I Am the Storm 5:37 2. Strike of the Cobra 4:51 3. Midnight Hunter 4:41 4. This Is the Way 5:00 5. Evil Dead 4:59 6. Spartan War-Cry 5:31 7. Steelbladed Avenger 4:12 8. Master & Commander 4:19 9. Burn with Me 4:45 10. Blade of Glory 8:23 Line-up: Kai Hagemann - vocals, keyboards, programming Zacharias Drosos - guitars, backing vocals Nino Helfrich - guitars, backing vocals Thies Jacobsen - drums, backing vocals Rich Gray - bass with: Corinna Hoefeld-Jacobsen - trumpet Timo Höcke - backing vocals Petr Kröninger - backing vocals Helge Paulsen - backing vocals Marcel Fünkner - backing vocals Marc Neubauer - backing vocals German band Inner Axis have been around for 15 years or thereabouts, in addition to a prehistory under a different moniker that goes back to the end of the 1990s. Under their current band name they have three albums to their name, with their debut appearing back in 2011 and the follow-up appearing in 2017. For the past three yea
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Fifty One - 2024 - Love / Hate

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(44:30; M&O Music) Track list: 1. Adios Motherfucker 2:54 2. Stroke of Midnight 3:59 3. Dead End Situation 3:56 4. Wearing Black 3:52 5. The Irish Punk 4:26 6. Living Hopeless 3:58 7. In My Head 3:57 8. Our Paradise 3:40 9. Budd's World 4:08 10. Tall Can Lovers 3:55 11. Silly TV Shows 2:32 12. The Last One 3:13 Line-up: Max Ducat - vocals, guitars Theo Mattera - guitars Julien Maleuvre - bass Alex Ortega - drums French band Fifty One have been around for close to a decade at this point, with an initial EP to their name released back in 2020 and with a small handful of singles to their name as well. At the start of 2024 they signed up to Frenchy label M&O Music for the release of their full length debut album "Love/Hate". The promotion for this album points towards something called the California scene and name-drops bands such as Blink 182 and Sum 41 as possible points of reference. While I have heard about the latter two without being overly familiar with them, t
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Riffless - 2024 - Ghost Is a Woman

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(15:43; M&O Music) Track list: 1. I Won't Start a Fight 3:50 2. Ghost Is a Woman 4:03 3. I Don't Feel Like Not Dancing 3:36 4. Scaring Myself 4:14 Line-up: Ben Patigny - vocals JP Devox - guitars, vocals Vincent Fis - guitars Jean-Philippe Dirix - bass Marcus Weymaere - drums with: Didier Dessers - piano, strings Belgian band Riffless was formed back in 2020, and self-released their debut album two years after the official band formation. I understand that this first outing by the band was given a positive reception, which presumably is why the band is now attached to a label. This spring Riffless are back with four new songs that have been released as the EP "Ghost Is a Woman" through French label M&O Music. While the band name does suggest otherwise, this is an EP that is filled with quite a lot of guitar riffs. In this case by a band that by and large stays away from the classic metal territories though, and that instead have chosen hard rock as their speci
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The D.O.O.D - 2024 - Subterfuge

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(4:20; SelfMadeRecords) Track list: 1. Subterfuge 4:20 Line-up: Jonzey Dood - bass Dogbite Dood - drums Indiana Dood - guitars Raynus Dood - guitars Brian Amoroso - vocals US band The D.O.O.D. have been around for a couple of decades at this point, and from 2017 and onward they have been releasing new material at a steady pace with one EP, three full length albums and a number of singles to their name. The band is now out with the single "Subterfuge", which was released through the label SelfMadeRecords. What we get here is a fairly expressive variety of what I'd describe as 80s era thrash metal. We get some instrumental parts that flirt a bit with more classic heavy metal, but once the verse and the vocals kicks in we are placed inside of a foundation and a context that gives me associations to classic era Nuclear Assault in many ways, albeit perhaps not quite as hectic as this legendary band had a tendency to be back in the day. We then switch over to an arguably more t
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Tevalik - 2024 - Schattenläufer

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(53:50; Echozone) Track list: 1. Arsinath 2:49 2. Freakstreet 4:27 3. Netzhass 4:17 4. Schattenläufer 4:01 5. Codes & Crashes 4:03 6. Pure Soul 3:25 7. The Ways 3:57 8. Nur Ihre Tränen 4:52 9. Dance of Gods 4:29 10. Tanzarroganz 4:00 11. Fremde Neue Welt 4:18 12. Schlussschatten 4:38 13. Du Hast Kein Herz (Tevalik Remix) 4:34 Line-up: Michele Pesch Thosrsten Schumacher German band Tevalik started out back in 2020 or thereabouts, and since their formation they have two EPs and two full albums to their name. Their most recent album "Schattenläufer" was released in February 2024 through German label Echozone Records. It is a cold and dark universe we are transported into with the sound and soundscapes crafted by this band, with electronic pop arguably being the best general description of the music explored here. Of the three types of variations within this overarching framework, the one in the clear minority are more atmospheric laden instrumental creations that draw in imp
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Tanks and Tears - 2024 - Timewave

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(30:13; Swiss Dark Nights) Track list: 1. Intro 1:50 2. Timewave 3:22 3. Nightmare 3:27 4. Darkside 3:42 5. Crystal Ball 2:53 6. Haze of Lies 3:24 7. Galaxies 4:03 8. Vampire Bite 2:47 9. S.O.F.T. 4:45 Line-up: Matteo Cecchi - vocals, synthesizers Claudio Pinellini - guitars, synthesizers Francesco Ciulli - drums Lorenzo Cantini - keyboards, synthesizers    Italian band Tanks and Tears have been around in one shape or another for the past decade and a bit. The band made their debut with an EP back in 2015, with the band's full length debut album "Aware" following two years later. In 2002 another EP saw the light of the day from the band, and now in the spring of 2024 Tanks and Tears launched their second full length album "Timewave". As with their previous releases, the label Swiss Dark Nights has been the band's label of choice for this most recent creation of theirs. What we get with this album is a solid dose of retro charm, from a band that probably know
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Deep Within - 2024 - Deep Within

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(31:08; M&O Music) Track list: 1. Fractured 2:56 2. On Coming Storm 3:31 3. Ground 4:15 4. Devils Den 4:26 5. The Machine 4:12 6. Valhalla 4:41 7. Strong Arm 3:15 8. Deep Within 3:52 Line-up: Matt Wiggins - vocals Jason Trevino - bass Joe Hawkins - guitars Cody Hellion - drums US band Deep Within have been active in one form or another for at least a decade from what I can see, but they have taken their good time to develop their craft prior to hitting the recording studio. Following an initial single released a few years back, the band is now out with their debut album "Deep Within", which was released by French label M&O Music. In terms of metal traditions, this is a band that I by and large would place inside of an alternative moniker. Not because I find this album to be all that similar to alternative metal bands as such, but rather because the more inclusive spirit of the songs in sum makes this an album with a bit of an alternative scope. Those fond of groove or
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