ỤBỤRỤ - ỤBỤRỤ (Album Review)

Release Date: 15th May 2026. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: CD/DD

ỤBỤRỤ - Tracklisting

1.Butchered 05:55

2.In Tatters 04:02

3.HSPC 03:55

4.Rotting Flesh 05:08

5.Shaman 06:31

6.An Autophage 05:21

7.An Omniphage 05:47

8.Oblivion 08:52

Members

Joe - Guitar & Lead Vox

Isaac - Bass & Additional Vox

Przemek - Drums & Percussion

Review

Death/Doom/Sludge Metallers ỤBỤRỤ is the type of debut album that you can only listen to when you’re completely pissed off at the world or in total despair with the misery going on around you. The record isn’t a pretty sight with ỤBỤRỤ playing a chaotic and violent style of underground metal that revels within its Death Metal atrophy that acts as the brutal creative glue holding everything together.

ỤBỤRỤ play some intense and turbo charged DEATH METAL beats and breakdowns on this record with the horrible vocals coming from Joe and Isaac at different times on the record. The mood is always helped along by a miserable stench of Doom/Sludge Metal with some great moments of Psychedelic kinetic energy which gives ỤBỤRỤ a highly intelligent style of delivering their music to modern day audience.

This is very much a product of the DIY recording scene with the lo-fi recording techniques and production values that the band use to capture their music and it showcases a band who could be classed as a work in progress but at least they have the tunes and threatening grooves to back up their great talent.

The album can be quite progressive within the longer tracks with ỤBỤRỤ showcasing a great style of vivid imagination and musical composition on tracks such as Butchered, In Tatters, Rotting Flesh, Shaman and Oblivion being the main standouts here. ỤBỤRỤ stay close to the EXTREME METAL way of life with brief excursions into Thrash Metal, Crust Punk and the good old fashioned style of modern day Sludge Metal that gives the band an unpredictable quality.

The sound can be quite disjointed, fragmented and superbly distorted but the experimental quality allows ỤBỤRỤ to play like a a force of nature especially within the longer tracks on the album.

The lo-fi production values start to lose their way towards the end, however, there’s still plenty of great moments for ỤBỤRỤ to entice you with before everything is said and done. For a debut album, ỤBỤRỤ have more than enough right to build up a loyal and dedicated following within the Doom/Sludge Metal underground scene. 

Words by Steve Howe

Links 

LinkTree | BandCamp

Weaving Shadows - Existential Decay (Album Review)

Release Date: April 20th 2026. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: CD/DD

Existential Decay - Tracklisting

1.Anguish 05:07

2.Fragile 07:15

3.Kodokushi 09:10

4.Leech 11:45

5.Noctu 09:30

Members

Joe - Guitar & Lead Vox

Isaac - Bass & Additional Vox

Przemek - Drums & Percussion

Review

Existential Decay is the second album from Drone/Doom/Sludge Metallers Weaving Shadows and it’s an emotionally charged record with the band taking a slight experimental approach with their music. The album opens up with a lot of intricate Electronic beats that’s merged against a backdrop of Industrial themes, Droned Out textures and sullen Sludgy surroundings. The record isn’t full on Sludge Metal but offers a slight variation on that style of music with elements of Ambient Metal, Shoegaze, Psych, Drone and Post-Metal that pushes the band into a confident style of “LOW & SLOW” instrumental movements throughout.

There’s a slightly stripped back and restrained approach on how Weaving Shadows play the heaviest sounds on the whole album and they’re quite content in perfecting their Post-Doom and Post-Metal on this aggressive journey. The vocals have an emotional depth to them that weighs heavily on the listener with the bleak and harsh subject tones the band project within their lyrics. 

Existential Decay is never in a rush to reach its eventual destination with the band taking their time allowing their highly volatile melodies to transform into some devastating Post-Metal sensibility that never quite reaches the levels of pure mayhem that some fans may call out for. This is more understated with Weaving Shadows creating their own great style of subtle heaviness that takes influences from the likes of Black Sabbath, CONAN, NEUROSIS, YOB and Primitive Man. One of the main strengths of the album is the ice-cold delivery of the vocals and how the lyrics fully come to life which they demonstrate on tracks such as: Anguish, Fragile and Leech which remain my favourite tracks on the album.

Weaving Shadows are fully committed in playing their highly understated but equally brilliant style of Post-Metal that has a sense of uplifting harmony appearing when you least expect it. The message maybe be quite opaque but the music allows the listener to make up their own minds and come to a conclusion of being mightily fulfilled on the actual journey that Weaving Shadows has taken them upon. 

The progressive sounds, despairing themes and fluid psychedelic movements are perhaps the most unique and standout moments that I will take away from this record that allow this record to be one of breathtaking quality. The production values can be too “LOW-KEY” in places but this works to the band’s advantage as they let their music do the talking and leave you wanting to hear more from this sublime record.

Words by Steve Howe

Links 

LinkTree | BandCamp

DOOM/SLUDGE/STONER METALLERS FROGLORD UNVEIL NEW SINGLE “CROAK” AHEAD OF THE MYSTIC TOAD VINYL REPRESS

Emerging from the hidden swamps of Bristol, Froglord return with another colossal chapter in their ever-expanding amphibious mythology as Black Throne Productions announces the long-awaited vinyl repress of the cult favourite The Mystic Toad, arriving this summer alongside brand new single and music video “Croak”, due for release on 3 June.

Blending crushing sludge riffs, psychedelic doom, cinematic atmosphere, and environmental storytelling, Froglord have carved out one of the UK underground’s most imaginative identities through their immersive narrative world known as The Tale of The Froglord. Their sound exists somewhere between myth, ritual, and towering fuzz-drenched heaviness.

The new single “Croak” expands the mythology surrounding The Mystic Toad while dragging listeners deeper into Froglord’s swamp-soaked universe of subterranean grooves and amphibious horror. The track will appear both as a standalone release and as an exclusive addition to the definitive vinyl repress.

Following the success of Lower & Slower, the band once again descend into the cryptid-haunted world of Loveland, Ohio through their continued collaboration with the creators of the cult horror film Frogman. Froglord contribute to the upcoming sequel Frogman Returns, continuing Dallas Kyle’s terrifying investigation into the legendary amphibian cryptid lurking beneath the town’s folklore.

Their oppressive sonic landscapes sit naturally alongside the film’s found-footage aesthetic, blurring the line between doom metal and cinematic unease. Froglord previously contributed the official track “Frogman” alongside “Amphibian Ascending”, “Swamp Boogie”, and “Frogspawn” to the original film soundtrack, with their involvement culminating in a unique live performance during the UK IMAX screening at Bristol Aquarium.

Beyond the mythology lies a genuine environmental message. Froglord actively support the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, donating proceeds from releases and merchandise toward wetland restoration efforts across the UK.

To support the release of “Croak” and The Mystic Toad repress, Froglord will embark on a UK tour this July supporting Bat Sabbath, the Black Sabbath-worshipping alter ego of Cancer Bats, before returning to Bloodstock Open Air Festival and making their debut at Stoom Festival in London.

LIVE DATES

12 July - Nottingham - Beta, Rock City
14 July - Manchester - Rebellion
15 July - Glasgow - Cathouse
16 July - Sheffield - Corporation
17 July - Birmingham - Castle & Falcon
18 July - Bristol - Exchange
20 July - Cardiff - Clwb Ifor Bach
21 July - Brighton - Concorde 2
22 July - Tunbridge Wells - The Forum
23 July - London - Scala

FESTIVALS

8 August - Bloodstock Open Air Festival (Sophie Lancaster Stage)
25 August - Stoom Festival, London

With new material emerging from the swamp, film collaborations expanding, and a packed live schedule ahead, Froglord continue establishing themselves as one of the UK underground’s most creative and immersive voices in modern doom.

The swamp is spreading.

Links

LinkTree | BandCamp | BigCartel

Thanks to Neon Leopard Promotions for the details.

ELDER Announces North America Tour 2026; New Album "Through Zero" Out May 29th!

[photo: Leon de Backer]

In support of their highly anticipated new studio album Through Zero, followed by an extensive run of European and UK live appearances, progressive heavy rock torchbearers ELDER have announced a North American headlining tour for September and October 2026.

The band states:

"This fall we'll hit the road across much of North America in support of our new album Through Zero. This will be our first 'proper' headlining tour showcasing the record after our summer festival run in Europe and we can't wait to perform new material for our friends in the US and Canada.

We're very excited that the fantastic bands Blackwater Holylight and Bask will join us on selected shows - check the symbols for each date."

Tickets will go on sale from Friday, May 15th at 10:00 AM local time.

Visit https://beholdtheelder.com/tour for more info and all upcoming live dates.

[Artwork by Adam Hill]

Tour Dates

September 09 - Richmond, VA - The Broadberry*
September 10 - Asheville, NC - The Orange Peel*
September 11 - Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade*
September 13 - TBA
September 16 - Mesa, AZ - Nile Theater‡
September 17 - San Diego, CA - Music Box‡
September 18 - Los Angeles, CA - Regent Theater‡
September 19 - San Jose, CA - The Ritz ‡
September 21 - Vancouver, BC - Rickshaw Theatre‡
September 22 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theater‡
September 23 - Seattle, WA - Neptune Theatre‡
September 25 - Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge‡
September 26 - Denver, CO - Federal Theater‡
September 28 - Chicago, IL - Avondale Music Hall‡
September 30 - Toronto, ON - Opera House‡
October 01 - Montreal, QC - Theatre Fairmount‡
October 02 - New York, NY - Webster Hall‡
October 03 - Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club‡

* with Bask
‡ with Blackwater Holylight

Two decades into their existence, ELDER remain an anomaly in the heavy underground - a rare band with the ability to absorb and shed influences from a myriad of genres without falling into pastiche or losing their own identity. Through Zero stands as a strong reaffirmation of their commitment to pushing boundaries in the world of heavy rock and cements the group’s status as leaders of the pack in heavy psychedelic rock.

Over the past twenty years, ELDER have mastered crushing riffs, melodic jaunts, progressive patterns, hypnotic grooves and ethereal atmosphere. On Through Zero, the band channel these years of experience into what may be their most immediate and engaging record to date, while allowing seeds from outside the sphere of rock music to take root and bloom within their progressive framework. Listeners will find familiar elements of new textures, sequences, and sounds alongside ELDER’s iconic take on heavy rock. As always, every spin reveals new details.

Recorded at Big Snuff Studios in Berlin across several months between tours in 2025, Through Zero marks the first album the band not only produced themselves, but also co-mixed together with longtime collaborator Richard Behrens. Mastered by Carl Saff, the result is a record that feels more like a full extension of the band’s creative intentions than ever before.

Through Zero will be released on May 29th viaThe record is set for release on May 29 in Europe via Stickman Records, in North America through Blues Funeral Recordings and Bird’s Robe in Australia. 

Pre-order the album here: https://mailchi.mp/bluesfuneral/elder-through-zero-preorders

[Cover Art by Adam Hill]

Through Zero Tracklist:

1. Sigil To Ruin
2. Capture/Release
3. Through Zero
4. Strata

5. Blighted Age

Elder is:

Nick DiSalvo - Guitar/Vocals
Jack Donovan - Bass
Mike Risberg - Guitar/Keyboards
Georg Edert - Drums

Elder Live Dates 2026:

13.06. Derby, UK - Download Festival
14.06. Colchester, UK - Colchester Arts Centre w/ Blood Incantation
15.06. Southampton, UK - The 1865 w/ Blood Incantation
16.06. Brighton, UK - Concorde 2 w/ Blood Incantation
18.06. Clisson, FR - Hellfest
19.06. Dessel, BE - Graspop Metal Meeting
20.06. Dortmund, DE - Junkyard Open Air w/ Kadavar
21.06. Frankfurt, DE - Das Bett
23.06. Winterthur, CH - Gaswerk
24.06. Karlsruhe, DE - P8 w/ REZN
26.06. Oslo, NO - Tons of Rock
27.06. Thyrnau, DE - Blackdoor Festival
30.06. Sofia, BG - Mixtape 5
01.07. Thessaloniki, GR - Eightball Club
02.07. Athens, GR - Arch Club
07.07. Slunj, HR - Bearstone Festival
10.07. Pleszew, PL - Red Smoke Festival
23.07. Reutlingen, DE - Hafensounds Festival w/ Kadavar
24.07. Budapest, HU - Monolit Festival
25.07. Tolmin, SI - Tolminator Festival
26.07. Milan, IT - Circolo Magnolia Summer
28.07. Rockstadt, RO - Rockstadt Extreme Fest
30.07. Breitenbach am Herzberg, DE - Burg Herzberg Festival
31.07. Michelau, DE - Rock Im Wald
04.08. Rostock, DE - MAU Club
05.08. Josefov-Jaromer, CZ - Brutal Assault Festial
08.08. Âncora, PT - Sonic Blast Festival
14.08. Valais, CH - PALP Festival

More tour dates announced soon

For More Info Visit:

https://beholdtheelder.com
https://www.facebook.com/elderofficial
https://www.instagram.com/elderband
https://elder.bigcartel.com
https://www.stickman-records.com
https://www.bluesfuneral.com

Thanks to All Noir PR for the details.

Sludge/Stoner Metallers HEALER Release New Song RED WAVES And Announce New EP 𝘿𝙚𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 out on July 10th! (Fléau Records/Ace Of Wands)

HEALER is something of an all-star band on the Tours sludge scene. Founded in late 2022, it brings together former members of Verbal Razors, Toekan, Beyond The Styx, and Crack House, who indulge in a french importation of the sound and intent of the Savannah, Georgia USA sludge scene. A precise and meticulously crafted confrontation of heavy, anvil-like riffs gives way to highly effective melodies. The resulting atmospheres are heavy and tormented, yet captivating. This alternation extends to the vocals of Jibus and Hardno, the raspy register of one occasionally contrasted with the clearer, more ethereal tone of the other.

Following Deconstruction, released last year and composed in the same creative burst, Desolation is the second installment in a trilogy of EPs. And it's safe to say that it already have what it takes to comfortably establish the band as a new force to be reckoned with on the French heavy scene. These 17 minutes deliver a relentless barrage of blows, fueled by punk and hardcore aggression, while also offering moments of sheer heaviness and dissonance from doom metal. 

This formula proves more than fitting for the true atonement undertaken by HEALER, who, through this saga, strive to illuminate childhood traumas. This is particularly evident in the lens of overachieving in the face of parental pressure, as suggested by the sublime artwork designed by Wizp. A little name-dropping to conclude this presentation? Because you don't change a winning team, the mastering was once again entrusted to an international figure in this galaxy: Jonathan Nuñez, guitarist of Torche!

Let’s go for a neck-slapping experience, right here right now:

The release of Desolation will be preceded by a handful of great gigs, and in good company:

Live Dates:

27/05 : Tours @ Le Jéricho w/ Zig Zags + Stalemate
28/05 : Rouen @ Le 3 Pièces Muzik'Club w/ Plomb
05/06 : Orléans @ Dropkick Bar w/ Cancer Bats + Maze
18/06 : Clisson @ Hellfest (Purple Stage)

Links

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram

Thanks to Vous Connaissez PR for the details.

SNAIL ANNOUNCE NEW SINGLE “RED TENT” — FIRST IN A ROLLING SERIES OF DIGITAL-ONLY DROPS AHEAD OF A VINYL COLLECTION VIA ARGONAUTA RECORDS

Seattle heavy-psych/stoner lifers Snail burrowed underground after 2021’s Fractal Altar and came back swinging with 2024’s live document Thou Art There: Live at The Obelisk All-Dayer. Now the trio re-emerges with “Red Tent,” a cold-sweat ripper inspired by John Carpenter’s The Thing, and the opening salvo in a 60s-style singles campaign that culminates in a full vinyl release on Argonauta Records.

“Red Tent” finds Snail leaning hard into the classic metal chassis they rode on 2012’s Terminus: knife-edge riffs, ominous harmonies, and that doom-drunk groove only this band can make swing. Fans who’ve ridden with Snail since their early ’90s origins through Snail (’93), All Channels Are Open (’94), the reunion era of Blood, Terminus, Feral, and Fractal Altar will hear the band’s signature fuzz get meaner, tighter, and freakier.

“Red Tent” is the first of a batch of new studio cuts the band has been quietly tracking since Fractal Altar. Each song will drop digitally as a stand-alone single, bringing maximal riffs with minimal waiting. Then the collected work will be pressed to wax by Argonauta, who also released Fractal Altar and Snail’s 2024 live set. Translation: we’re back to the jukebox era of one killer A-side after another until the platter lands.

Band Quote (Mark Johnson, vocals/guitar)

“We basically disappeared into the ice for a minute while writing, recording, and losing our minds on tones. ‘Red Tent’ is the flare going up. It’s paranoia, it’s body-horror, it’s fuzz that wants to tear through the canvas and eat you. We’re dropping these tracks the way the 60s did it: single, single, single, followed by the tactile vinyl ritual. If Fractal Altar was the ceremony, this is the possession. See you under the black light.”

About Snail

Formed in 1992 and reactivated in 2008, Snail has carved a cult path through psych, doom, and heavy melody. Their most recent releases include the studio album Fractal Altar (Argonauta, 2021) and the digital-only live album Thou Art There: Live at The Obelisk All-Dayer (Argonauta, 2024).

Lineup

Mark Johnson: vox/guitar
Matt Lynch: bass, keys
Marty Dodson: drums

For Fans of

Heavy-tripping doom, desert-fried psychedelia, and classic-metal menace—think the spacefaring heft of Fractal Altar with the blade-edge thrust of Terminus.

Links

https://www.facebook.com/snailhq
https://www.argonautarecords.com/

Thanks to Grand Sounds Promotion for the details.

Void Sinker - Cycle (Album Review)

Release Date: 15th May 2026. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD

Cycle - Tracklisting

1.Hanged

2.Cycle 

3.Isolated

4.Dreadful

5.Nowhere

Members

Guglielmo Allegro - Everything

Review

Drone/Doom/Sludge Metal collective Void Sinker leaves the comforting sounds of the ocean that we experienced on their last album and returns to the cold, desolate and harsh realities of the Cosmic Void. Their new album Cycles fully embraces the Drone folklore and mythology with heavy monolithic tones that are quite slow-paced in nature. As before, Void Sinker emits creative themes influenced by the likes of SUNN 0))), BONG and CONAN though sticking closely to their own rules they’ve created with previous albums released under the Void Sinker name.

The record lasts around fifty three minutes and is perhaps Void Sinker’s most sprawling and deliberately slow album to date. The tone is quite monolithic with deep instrumental passages having a dark pretence and essence to them. Sounds have a weighted grounded approach with that burgeoning thick AMPLIFIER sound perfectly tapping into the LOW & SLOW environment with the stunning opening track of Hanged. There is a down-tuned progressive theme which allows creative mastermind Guglielmo Allegro once again explore the bleak Ambient leaning Post-Doom and Post-Metal surroundings that manifests into some nightmarish style of Stoner Metal soundscapes with layers of FUZZ METAL feedback coming at you from all angles.

Void Sinker expertly taps into the Post-Industrial theme on tracks such as Cycle, Isolated and Dreadful that taps into the gloomy theatrics of a classic Science Fiction movie soundtrack such as the “ALIEN” franchise. There is a sublime “HORROR” and “SCIENCE FICTION” element that fully comes into play on tracks such as Cycle and Isolated where I feel that Guglielmo may be inspired by certain soundtracks that he grew up with or was inspired by. The sudden sharpness of the down-tuned and drone energy does move into heavier, faster and aggressive waters along the way with the album having some intense and crisp production values especially with the haunting sound effects appearing in the background.

Cycles can be quite solitary with the sludgy movements of certain instrumental passages and how Guglielmo delivers the whole flow of the album. Sometimes it’s not very subtle but it’s how Void Sinker plays out the musical momentum that pays homage to some real grounded characteristics of the Doom, Drone and Sludge Metal underground scene. With a wonderfully observed psychedelic and kinetic energy developing within the later stages of the album, Void Sinker allows the album to breathe organically especially when the heaviest and droned out sounds appear on the album.

Guglielmo Allegro has got his creative mission statement developed down to a fine art with his “Void Sinker” persona but it’s always great to hear him try new things and fully challenge himself with each album he releases either under his Void Sinker or Nightscape personas. Cycles is a gloomy and highly claustrophobic release that demands your full attention that will surely put you through a punishing regime of intense Drone/Doom Metal once more.

Words by Steve Howe

Links 

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram