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August 2025

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391 articles

August 31
- Alabama Shakes release first new song in a decade
- "Vibrant, loud and sure to destroy dance floors worldwide": The Hives celebrate sweat and rock'n'roll glory on The Hives Forever Forever The Hives
- Lunatic Soul announce new studio album The World Under Unsun
- “The idea was to put a ‘fragile’ label on the album cover. I didn’t want to do anything so literal. I wanted to take the idea of fragility and wrap it round the world. Yes liked it and it worked”: The attitude behind Roger Dean’s album art
- Sometimes bands shouldn’t be trusted to revisit their own material, as the latest Smashing Pumpkins reissue set proves
- Billy Corgan joins My Chemical Romance for Smashing Pumpkins cover in Chicago
August 30
- “They asked Kate Bush, ‘Why do you write about this stuff?’ She said, ‘Well, I’m not very interesting!’ It’s the same with us”: What Sylosis learned from prog stars including Opeth, Tool and Rush
August 29
- “We were a punk band with Beatles melodies. We had no effects, barely any equipment, just loads of attitude, 12 cans of Red Stripe and ambition." Why Definitely Maybe will forever be Oasis' finest hour
- The 13 best new metal songs you need to hear right now
- Watch: Bruce Dickinson talks leaving Iron Maiden in the 90s, making Balls To Picasso and THAT reggae moment
- "Amid the chaos and violence, Beth strains with every fibre of her being to resist, and to refuse, and to fight for what she holds dear and true." A defiant Jehnny Beth confronts an ever-darkening world with the fierce, furious You Heartbreaker, You
- Deftones, Turnstile, Viagra Boys, Doechii and more announced for Lollapalooza shows in Brazil, Chile and Argentina
- Get the latest issue of Metal Hammer with an exclusive glow-in-the-dark Nova Twins t-shirt, celebrating the release of new album Parasites & Butterflies
- I just watched Metallica play in front of a few hundred people including Paul McCartney, Michael J. Fox and Sylvester Stallone - here's what it was like
- New Peter Hammill biography to be published in November
- Evanescence’s Amy Lee, Spiritbox’s Courtney LaPlante and Poppy will release a collaborative single soon, and we could not be more hyped
- “There’s a lot of heaviness in the air, which Maiden doesn’t really take advantage of”: Bruce Dickinson explains why his solo music is heavier than Iron Maiden
- Debate: What's the greatest live album ever?
- “An old-fashioned, listen-in-one-sitting record – they’ve pair have done more than talk a good game”: Chimpan A battle the TikTokification of music on M.I.A. Vol 1
- “They reveal clever nuances over repeat listens – but it’s enigmatic and unskippable from the offset”: Ihlo finally return with Legacy
- "Now in his mid-60s, there's still something oddly teenage about Bryan Adams": Soft rock's Mr Nice Guy returns to familiar ground
- Listen to Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen's atmospheric Hollow Man collaboration
- "Got to get the fascists out, got to clean the White House out": Neil Young launches scathing attack on Donald Trump in new song Big Crime
August 28
- Cool new proggy sounds from Jonathan Hultén, Swallow The Sun, Mark Trueack and more in Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week
- Entire Genesis 1973 Bataclan show made available online
- "Hurt People Hurt People has probably been around since the beginning of man." Revived nu metallers Mudvayne release their first new song in 16 years
- "The band were honoured to have two Knights grace them with their presence." Film director Rob Reiner reveals how he got Sir Paul McCartney and Sir Elton John to appear in the new Spinal Tap movie
- Watch System Of A Down cover Black Sabbath’s Snowblind for the first time since 2002 in tribute to Ozzy Osbourne
- "It's kind of a concept record, if the word ‘concept’ didn’t suck." Josh Homme and Dave Grohl spill the tea on Queens Of The Stone Age masterpiece Songs for the Deaf
- "This record changed our lives forever." Fall Out Boy prepare 20th anniversary edition of breakthrough album From Under The Cork Tree
- Slipknot stream demo version of 1999 rager Me Inside, taken from 25th-anniversary reissue of debut album
- Norwegian proggers Gazpacho share video for 8-Ball, their first new music for five years
- Nova Twins Parasites & Butterflies review: one of the UK's most exciting alternative bands have made something beautiful out of chaos
- Sting's former bandmates in The Police, Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland, are suing him claiming that they're owed unpaid royalties for the trio's 1983 mega-hit Every Breath You Take
- Debate: what's the greatest punk album ever?
- “Do I ever look at Steven Wilson and think, ‘Why is he having top-five albums and I’m not?’ No”: Tim Bowness found catharsis in exploring forced isolation on Late Night Laments
- "A mish-mosh of low-budget glamour and high-concept absurdity": In praise of Lunachicks' day-glo classic Babysitters On Acid
- "Steve Hogarth bursts into the studio, holding a gun": What happened when Marillion allowed a journalist to play on their new album
- Nine Paul McCartney albums you should listen to, but none of them are by The Beatles
- “There’s a reason the music business is considered a slimy hellhole. Be careful who you trust...” The Black Keys are back and they're bruised
August 27
- Rate my music taste: these are my five favourite metalcore albums ever
- Lighting up a dank east London basement, Ecca Vandal proves that she's got the songs, the skills, the attitude and the aura to become alt.rock's next 'new' star
- “When we get together it opens up a portal. It’s mapping out the architecture of another dimension!” Steve Davis staged a theft to help The Utopia Strong make second album International Treasure
- Watch: we asked people at Reading 2025 what the most metal thing they’ve ever done at a festival was
- Die Spitz share video for Punishers, the final single from their forthcoming debut album, Something to Consume
- "We are making psychedelic music or, if you will, head music." Steve Davis, Kavus Torabi and Mike York announce new The Utopia Strong album and share new track Harpies
- Bon Jovi have revamped 2024's Forever album with Bruce Springsteen, Robbie Williams, Avril Lavigne and more guesting, resulting in "a collaboration album that proves we all get by in this world with a little help from our friends" says Jon Bon Jovi
- “When that album came out, everybody wanted to throw it in the bin”: Turbo may have been Judas Priest’s most controversial album, but Rob Halford hints at plans to play more of it live
- CMAT has stolen the show at every festival she's played this summer, and Euro-Country will make Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson a genuine star
- Watch Phil Manzanera and Andy Mackay perform rocking live version of No Church In The Wild
- Cradle Of Filth guitarist fired following vicious statement days after keyboardist wife’s departure
- “Geddy Lee once said some very nice things about me. I think it’s about time we connected, if he’s still up for doing something”: Marco Minnemann’s prog world includes Rush, ping-pong and whisky – and he has “something” to thank Queen for
- “We weren’t looking for peaceful – we were looking for horrid. We gave people fits. Locked the doors and pointed strobes at the crowd, wocka-wocka-wocka”: From falling together to falling apart, Hawkwind’s early era was no hippie dream
- "I've seen the rod of His wrath, and have been beaten with it": Glenn Schwartz was set to be one of the great guitar heroes of the 70s – but then he was lost to a horrific religious cult
August 26
- "He's the Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart of the riff": Gibson salutes Tony Iommi in star-studded new film series
- John Fogerty announces Legacy tour
- "This film is our love letter to all of our favourite road trip movies, ’90s nostalgia, and chasing it all no matter how ridiculous it gets." Green Day's movie New Year's Rev will premiere next month
- Barry Can't Swim, Confidence Man, Orbital and more make for a truly generational day of edm at All Points East
- Radiohead have broken into the American charts with a single from OK Computer that was released 28 years ago
- "I will miss your crazy ass Manimal." Mastodon's Bill Kelliher pays tribute to former bandmate Brent Hinds
- "You are a disrespectful dirtbag!" Kelly Osbourne furiously fires back at WWE and Becky Lynch following controversial Ozzy Osbourne promo line in Birmingham
- "We’re not giving up as a band." Roger Daltrey suggests that The Who could still play shows after the conclusion of their farewell tour
- Watch: we asked a bunch of metal artists to pick four classic metal albums
- Debate: what was metal's most important year?
- Big Big Train share 18-minute live version of Beneath The Masts
- "I can’t imagine using that song as a political rallying theme, particularly when you seem to be the person who I’m screaming about." John Fogerty on the classic Creedence Clearwater Revival song that Donald Trump has completely misunderstood
- "I’m tripping my balls off and I’m going, 'Whoaaaa, this is the craziest **** I’ve ever heard!'" Will Ramos on the first time he heard Lorna Shore - the band he'd eventually front
- 10cc announce their 'And Another Bloody Greatest Hits Tour' for 2026
- "I was like, 'I can't handle this.'" Deftones' Chino Moreno reveals why he gave up booze
- "She pulls out these two long steel pins and I start screaming and she plunges them into her eyes": The acid-dazed adventures of the band that became Blue Öyster Cult
- “We were playing things like Chuck Berry. I was just horrified, because I’m a choirboy”: How Richard Sinclair helped build the Canterbury scene with Caravan, Hatfield And The North, Camel and more
- "The fans supported us through everything. That's why we kept on going": Helloween on career longevity and proving people wrong
- Every Jethro Tull album ranked from worst to best
August 25
- "I've been waiting seven years": Zak Starkey implores Axl Rose to return master tape he says could raise $2m for teenage cancer charity
- “We were originally supposed to be doing the song with Axl Rose, but he never turned up to the session”: The crazed early 90s techno collaboration that saved a 70s rock icon’s career – and his life
- "Korn stood side of stage looking scared but I didn't want to stop." Max Cavalera on his wildest gig, resurrecting Nailbomb and why he doesn't regret leaving Sepultura
- Fans revel in downpour as Oasis kick off North American leg of world tour in Toronto
- "This is the way rock stars die." The Who's Pete Townshend reveals recent addiction to painkillers
- “Some people were cynical – ‘The Yeggles have spoilt it all!’ We were doing a gig in Brighton and someone shouted, ‘Rick Wakeman!’ It was demoralising”: Geoff Downes’ life and times in and out of Yes
- "The apocalypse does not have to be the world going down in flames." How Dimmu Borgir reinvented black metal and broke Hollywood with Progenies Of The Great Apocalypse
- “I found a message from Ghost asking me if I would consider singing on their first album”: The doom metal legend who could have been Ghost’s original singer if it hadn’t been for a missed MySpace message
- Classic Rock's Tracks Of The Week: August 25, 2025
- "A support slot with Slipknot? We're working on it!" What do deathcore, nu metal and Switzerland have in common? One of the most exciting young bands in metal: Paleface Swiss
- “We didn’t really talk to them. I don't think they liked us, and we didn't really like them that much either”: The time the Eagles opened for a legendary British prog rock band – and hated it
- We told Deftones singer Chino Moreno what ‘baddiecore’ is and this was his response
- "Satan played, and then we played, and then Antichrist played straight after us": Christian Rockers Wytch Hazel on atheism, conservatives and organised religion
- “I’ve got 30 years of albums and awards – but they say, ‘He’s just a one-trick pony making money off the back of Mike Oldfield’”: Robert Reed’s struggle to keep a form of music alive
- "The future of metal in India is very bright. Things are finally opening up here." Bloodywood's Karan Katiyar on India's best metal bands, the future of the scene and, er, giant ducks
- 10 Reunions That Went Wrong
- “Young musicians are lucky to live in this world of ideas and disruption. Humans have a dark attitude to the future. But if we were right, we wouldn’t be here”: Jean-Michel Jarre predicts music will follow video games into immersive universes
- "The band have enough experience and style of their own for it never to sound like a pastiche": Black Country Communion's debut album is a heartfelt homage to 1973
August 24
- "Just one more great album from the best rock band in the world": Cheap Trick announce new album All Washed Up
- Cradle of Filth keyboard player Zoë Federoff leaves the band mid tour
- Limp Bizkit pull the biggest crowd of the day at Reading Festival and, to the surprise of no one, absolutely smash it
- Bring Me The Horizon's Reading headline set is a mixed bag, but when they're good, they're incredible
August 23
- "I'm an old man, I can do what I f***ing want!" Metal God Rob Halford considers recording an album of Tony Bennett covers
- “I listened to it with the solos turned down, replacing them with my own”: The “crazy” live album that blew shred guitar legend Yngwie Malmsteen’s mind
- How to watch Amyl & The Sniffers at Reading and Leeds - from anywhere
- “We loved him so, so, so very much”: Mastodon pay tribute to late ex-bandmate Brent Hinds at their first show since his death
- “Nobody has ever played this song, apart from on the record”: Bruce Dickinson just played a 41-year-old Iron Maiden deep cut live for the first time ever
- “I didn’t take Lemmy’s advice and I got a beer glass in my face”: The wild story of the spoof heavy metal band who beat Spinal Tap by a year
August 22
- C'mon! Here's how to watch Limp Bizkit at Reading and Leeds festival - from anywhere in the world
- "It was such a poetic ending to a career that you just can’t take your eyes and ears off." Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme salutes the late Ozzy Osbourne
- Suede announce 2026 UK headline tour in support of their forthcoming tenth album Antidepressants
- Brent Hinds 1974 – 2025
- "There was a point where people would come to see us because they hated us": The chaotic beginnings of The Stooges, America's first punk band
- How to watch Hozier at Reading and Leeds this weekend - no matter where you are
- Love the song playing over the opening credits in the new season of Peacemaker? Here’s everything you need to know about Foxy Shazam, the band who made it that James Gunn is determined to make huge
- Chino Moreno says that 'lost' Deftones album Eros "will most likely never see the light of day"
- “There wasn’t any plan to make a certain kind of album. Everything was all created in the moment”: Steve Rothery and Thorsten Quaeschning found it easy to write Bioscope record Gentō, but less easy to finish it
- Attention fans of swoon-inducing West Coast melodic rock: it's time to meet your new favourite band
- How to watch Bring Me The Horizon at Reading and Leeds - no matter where you are
- “They take the scenic route, never rushing to the destination. Keep an open mind”: Steve Rothery and Thorsten Quaeschning, as Bioscope, go on a journey with Gentō
- "He's up there with Paul McCartney and Bob Dylan": New York rock'n'roller Willie Nile on Vincent Van Gogh, Irish goodbyes and the greatest songwriter you've never heard of
- Brent Hinds RIP: The world of music pays tribute
August 21
- How to watch Chappell Roan at Reading and Leeds - from anywhere
- Former Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds dead at 51
- Ghost are celebrating the 10th anniversary of Meliora by letting you exchange real money for fake money
- Biffy Clyro announce special intimate acoustic tour, in partnership with some of their favourite UK indie record shops
- Debate: What's the greatest grunge album ever?
- “I had a lot of issues”: Serj Tankian details how back surgery impacted System Of A Down touring schedule
- “It was the greatest way he could say goodbye”: Ozzy Osbourne is on the cover of the new Metal Hammer
- Awesome new proggy sounds from Leprous, Iamthemorning, Jo Quail and more in Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week
- Actress Zoe Kravitz has told Austin Butler what she reckons is the true meaning of Pearl Jam's name, and he looks pretty shocked
- Not even Chino Moreno knows why Deftones guitarist Stephen Carpenter isn’t touring overseas anymore: “It’s still something that I feel he is figuring out”
- "They've earned the right to keep channelling the spirit of the Allman Brothers and Lynyrd Skynyrd": Robert Jon & The Wreck keep the southern vibes alive on Heartbreaks & Last Goodbyes
- "I'm the one that created all this music, and I don't know that the world always understood that": John Fogerty on closure and reclaiming the Creedence legacy
- “It’s pretty progressive, but it’s not Rush, is it? It’s not Dream Theater. The virtuosity comes in the details and subtlety”: When TesseracT introduced themselves and explained the djent movement
- "Time seemed to stand still to the unmistakable sound of fights breaking out": What happened when The Rolling Stones and Lynyrd Skynyrd played Knebworth
August 20
- Wednesday star Jenna Ortega shares her love for heavyweight hip hop mavericks Death Grips
- Watch the video for Blackberry Smoke's cover of Bad Company's Run With The Pack with Paul Rodgers
- Trump spokesman calls Jack White a "washed-up, has-been loser posting drivel on social media", White responds
- Former Pixies, A Perfect Circle, Zwan bassist Paz Lenchantin announces debut solo album, Triste, shares first single Hang Tough
- “Brand X was great fun to play with – not so much fun to listen to”: Phil Collins’ adventures outside Genesis with Robert Plant, Eric Clapton and others made him so big he had to apologise
- Debate: What's the best Black Sabbath album?
- "We know this story is more than just about me." 'Terrorism' court case against Kneecap's Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh adjourned until September 26
- Iamthemorning share new live video of Chalk And Coal as they add another goal to their Live at St Matthias release
- "In terms of live hard rock and roll, this is as good as it gets." Metallica's Lars Ulrich salutes one of the greatest live albums ever, a record he says he's listened to "about 18,000 times"
- Kittie have re-recorded a nu metal classic to celebrate its 25th anniversary and make us feel ancient
- The new Call Of Duty: Black Ops 7 trailer contains a weird industrial remix of Metallica’s Master Of Puppets
- We need to talk about those heavy metal needle drops in Alien: Earth
- "We can't wait to share some of these new songs with you!" Between The Buried And Me announce UK and European tour for early 2026
- Judas Priest’s Rob Halford reveals his reaction to Ozzy Osbourne’s death: “I curled up in a ball and bawled my eyes out for hours”
- "In the barn! Of the goat! Giving birth to Satan’s spawn!": Michael Poulsen on the hidden messages in Volbeat's new album
- “Utterly idiosyncratic and experimental, possessed of a frighteningly intense energy”: Throwing Muses’ debut album remains one of the proggiest and best albums of the 80s
- "I could have gotten the elephants to stomp on their village, but I didn't": The wild story of Black Oak Arkansas, the band who had it all then gave it all away
- "I grossly underestimated what I was getting into." Noel Gallagher gives his first interview since Oasis returned to the stage, says he's "completely blown away" by the reaction, and is proud of his brother Liam for "smashing it" every night
- "A timeless record oozing with confidence." Wolf Alice serve up one of the essential albums of 2025 with brilliant, bold fourth album The Clearing
- "There's no way I'm gonna be involved with that": Ace Frehley says he turned down an invitation to play at Kiss's Las Vegas celebration
August 19
- "This is not negative whatsoever": Sammy Hagar insists David Lee Roth's recent comments about him were an "olive branch moment"
- More than 30 years into their career, one of the nastiest cult thrash metal bands you probably haven't heard of just made one of their best albums
- Babymetal become the first Japanese group to get a Top 10 in the US
- "Rage Against The Machine was always sort of a volatile situation." Tom Morello addresses the future of Rage Against The Machine
- Deftones - Private Music review: the most complete and essential album Deftones have made in a very long time and the perfect record for their late-period career renaissance
- BBC explains why it pulled Ozzy Osbourne documentary
- The Wishbone Ash albums you should definitely own... and one to avoid
- 70000TONS OF METAL, the original, the world's biggest heavy metal cruise, is back for 2026 with another incredible lineup
- "It's huge over most of the world. I hear it everywhere I go": How a Steve Harley song that dissed his bandmates became an all-time classic
- “Was air-drumming even a thing before Tom Sawyer?”: Neil Peart’s greatest moments with Rush
- "The tempos might have slowed, but they make up for it in sheer bloody-minded forcefulness": Exodus break the habit of a lifetime on Force Of Habit
- "I'm gonna go find some people and we’re gonna rock": Why country star Brent Cobb revisited the music of his youth on new album Ain't Rocked In A While
August 18
- "She needs to be a permanent crew member!" No-one was ever going to upstage Liam and Noel Gallagher on Oasis' return to their spiritual homeland, but the Sign Language interpreter at their Dublin shows has gone viral for her fabulous rock 'n' roll swagger
- "I started crying when I came off-stage. It ****ing broke me!" An audience with President, metal's newest mysterious masked sensation
- Godspeed You! Black Emperor have removed their entire discography from all major streaming services, with Bandcamp now the only site where you can hear their music in a digital format
- Classic Rock's Tracks Of The Week: August 18, 2025
- How to watch Ozzy Osbourne: Coming Home: BBC film a "candid and moving portrait of Birmingham’s favourite son"
- So there's a Sleep Token tribute band now and it honestly looks like great fun
- Bad Omens announce 2025 European tour - including their biggest UK shows ever
- "On this album are the feelings I don't get to express when I'm writing a rock'n'roll record": Cormac Neeson on California Irish, his dreamy concoction of folk, blues rock and Americana
- “Jeff Lynne and Yes are in the music of Radiohead, Sigur Rós and Muse. It’s overlooked in theirs but not in mine. I don’t have the self-validation I’d like”: Steven Wilson is grateful for prog fans’ support, but he wishes others liked him too
August 17
- David Lee Roth mocks "esteemed colleague" Sammy Hagar's claim to have been visited by Eddie Van Halen's ghost
- “I thought he was taking the piss”: The time Ozzy Osbourne planned to beat up Frank Zappa
- Which heavy metal singers would survive a zombie apocalypse? We asked people at Bloodstock Festival for their picks
- “We put full-sized speakers at the back of the hall for quadraphonic sound. Someone walked off with one! I’ve no idea how – it’s not like they put it in a pocket”: The story of Gentle Giant’s only live album, Playing The Fool
- “The way he plays drums without overplaying is extraordinary. He never takes over the music”: Tool’s Danny Carey managed to distract Mick Pointer from Rush
August 16
- Watch Jello Biafra join King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard for cover of Dead Kennedys classic Police Truck
- "It's what music should be." Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson on phone-free shows
- Mud, mayhem and four-hour Grateful Dead sets: The chaotic story of Weeley and Bickershaw, the early 70s festivals that time forgot
- “Him coming to my house at 3am and blowing my mind was incredible”: Ex-Deep Purple legend Glenn Hughes reveals the best guitarist he’s ever worked with – and it’s not Ritchie Blackmore
- “Aston Villa is proud to remember Ozzy Osbourne, a music legend”: Watch Aston Villa FC pay tribute to Ozzy Osbourne before their first game of the new season
- “Brought back to life with tremendous care… instruments pop out that even diehard devotees may have previously missed”: Cardiacs’ On Land And In The Sea
- “It became a bit of a curse. We were never really a singles band”: The hypnotic 80s single that gave an apocalyptic post-punk band an unlikely Cold War-inspired hit
- “Fuelled by a combustible mix of chemicals, vengeance and spite”: Every Megadeth album ranked, from worst to best
- The 10 best Liam and Noel Gallagher guest spots
August 15
- “The singer is in tears as the final chords ring, and who can blame her?”: The most outspoken British metalcore band of the decade just played their last show
- We asked a bunch of metalheads how they keep their hair so long and luscious. Here are their tips
- Former members of Thin Lizzy to join Guns N' Roses, Black Star Riders stars at 40th anniversary tribute concert celebrating Phil Lynott's life and legacy
- “He was thinking, ‘Wow, these guys are full on’”: Ben from Parkway Drive is teaching Chris ‘Thor’ Hemsworth how to play drums… for Ed Sheeran?
- Dream Theater hook up with Z2 Comics for special Parasomnia graphic novel release
- "I was told by somebody from Nirvana's label that they sold an extra million copies of Nevermind after my parody came out." How Nirvana rescued 'Weird Al' Yankovic from "the wilderness"
- At The Gates frontman Tomas Lindberg "being closely monitored around the clock" in hospital after setback with cancer
- The 12 best new metal songs you need to hear right now
- Great new prog you must hear from Arjen Lucassen, IO Earth Amorphis, Auri and more in Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week
- "Keep the faith!" Biff Byford reveals cancer diagnosis as Saxon are forced to postpone more shows
- Watch Aerosmith's Joe Perry play Black Crowes and Stone Temple Pilots songs with supergroup featuring Chris Robinson on vocals
- "I don’t know anything about what’s going on in that world now." Robert Plant reveals why he turned down Tony Iommi's invitation to Black Sabbath's last ever show
- "Intense. But amazing!" Leprous have covered a-ha's Take On Me. And it's brilliant!
- Ozzy Osbourne: A celebration of a lifetime in rock - only in the new issue of Classic Rock
- “It’s when we started to find ourselves…”: How Facelift saw Alice In Chains go from hair metal local heroes to grunge superstars – with a little help from Soundgarden
- "More clarity to Phil Mogg's passionate vocals and Paul Chapman's white-hot solos": The deluxe edition of UFO's No Place To Run successfully upgrades the original
- "I apologise for that. I actually deeply regret that now": Warrior Soul on past mistakes, future plans and the big problem with hotels
- “There’s a magical feel… if the bleakness of the world outside is too much, hole up here and shut it all out”: Nightwish offshoot Auri return with III – Candles & Beginnings
August 14
- "What I am really impressed by is this living, new world of whatever this music is": Robert Plant introduces new Saving Grace single
- "This is a perfect time for us to tell you that it's our last album." Megadeth to retire, announce final album and farewell tour to come in 2026
- "We're working on a song that needs Dani Filth." Employed To Serve's Justine Jones and Sammy Urwin on their Will Ramos collab, future guests and whether they'll tour the US
- How to watch Reading & Leeds 2025 live: Limp Bizkit, Bring Me The Horizon, Chappell Roan and more set for this weekend
- "I talked one of the guys into doing magic mushrooms and he spent the whole night talking to the wallpaper." Dani Filth shares his life lessons from 30+ years on extreme metal's frontlines
- "There’s a lot of money in music, it’s creating billionaires. But it doesn't pay fairly." The Black Keys on the "insane racket" that is the music industry in 2025
- "Nine Inch Nails made me quit my day job." Zeal & Ardor's Manuel Gagneux picks the 10 songs that changed his life
- "His persona of this bat-eating maniac had nothing to do with the truth at all." Deep Purple's Ian Paice on the Ozzy Osbourne he knew, and Ozzy's idea for the greatest rock tour of all time
- Porcupine Tree alumni Colin Edwin and Chris Maitland reunite for new album
- "I wish I'd took some mushrooms." Bill Burr on how teaming up with Primus and Tool members helps his stand-up
- What Ozzy Osbourne thought of Taylor Swift: "I finally found a new artist that is a true superstar."
- You’ve never heard of this space rock band, but they just put on one of the loudest, craziest and most incredible festival sets I’ve seen in my life
- Three young girls with an average age of 14 have just showed me that the future of heavy metal is in safe hands
- “Going by any reasonable judgement system, I’d have to admit to being mad. I spot the unusual and head towards it. I never know if I’ll be enlightened or burnt – that’s part of the fun”: The crazy world of Arthur Brown is truly crazy
- "Steven Wilson has revealed subtleties hidden for more than 50 years": Deep Purple's Made In Japan - now bigger and better than ever
- Five amazing 90s bands who should have been massive but never made it
- Kiss react to inclusion in first Kennedy Center Honors announcement since controversial Trump takeover
- "The fallout was much bigger than anything we could ever have foreseen": Dire Straits and the adventure of Brothers In Arms
August 13
- "It’s music for those who’ve been to the edge and came back louder." Panamanian alt. rockers AlphaWhores talk us through their new album, You Can Come Out Now, track-by-track
- Chrissie Hynde announces duets album with Mark Lanegan, Lucinda Williams, Dave Gahan and more
- Bruce Dickinson reveals 2027 solo album plans, says Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris loves it: “He told me, ‘That’s the best stuff you've ever done!’”
- Filmmaker Marty DiBergi is hosting a live Q&A with Spinal Tap legends David St. Hubbins, Nigel Tufnel and Derek Smalls ahead of the release of his new documentary Spinal Tap II: The End Continues
- "Have a Rotten Christmas and New Year". Public Image Limited announce December/January UK shows
- "One of the best metal albums of 2025 so far - extreme or otherwise." Blackbraid's mash-up of black metal brilliance and Native American spirit gets even better on album three
- "They're larger-than-life action heroes extolling the virtues of guilt-free sex in the most OTT way." Heavy metal nuns Dogma just took over London's Black Heart - are they the scene's next breakout band?
- "There is a playful aspect to death." Depeche Mode concert film, M, to screen in cinemas worldwide in October
- I took my mum to one of Europe’s heaviest metal festivals, and her reviews of the bands are glorious
- Militarie Gun announce new album God Save the Gun, share first single B A D I D E A
- “To make up for lost time, we thought it would be cool to do something extra special." Alter Bridge are hosting their own music festival - and it's happening at a castle in Wales
- Bioscope announce in store Q+A and signing sessions for August
- “Holds its own against its more famous predecessor – a worthy reminder of Jon Hiseman’s considerable talents”: Colosseum’s Live 05
- We asked this metal vocalist what Meat Loaf wouldn’t have done for love, and it turns out he actually knows the answer
- “The telegram read, ‘You’ve got to come back – your record is in the Top 20.’ I thought, ‘What Top 20?’ We couldn’t understand”: Why Peter Baumann thought Tangerine Dream were weird...
- Debate: Who are the 'big four' of classic rock?
- "My plan was always to keep the organisation together, but the challenges are just overwhelming": REO Speedwagon's Kevin Cronin admits it's harder to sell tickets under his own name
- "A five-piece Genesis was never going to last, there were too many writing ideas": When Genesis reunited to make a film, it was the same old story
- "Suddenly this rock'n'roll fantasy was a nightmare. It was your worst dream from Hell": The forgotten story of a true American band, Grand Funk Railroad
- "Everyone in the band at some point tried to quit during that first album": The soundtrack of Adam Duritz's life
August 12
- Rocket's brilliant debut at the UK's most vibrant breeding ground for new bands is proof that the young Los Angeles quartet are set to go supersonic
- "I was like, This is heaven." Hayley Williams reveals the first song she ever wrote with Paramore, and the first song that made her cry as an emo teenager
- Thrash legends Anthrax join 2026's stacked 70000Tons Of Metal cruise bill, as the on-sale date for tickets for next year's voyage is revealed
- “Yes showed you could write rocky prog, but UK took that further. They made complex music sound so easy, which makes me very envious”: Whitesnake ex Adrian Vandenberg’s prog inspirations
- Halestorm’s Lzzy Hale opens up about breaking up with alcohol: “I was looking for an escape in all the wrong places”
- Glass Hammer's Steve Babb reveals he's undergone successful surgery to remove a benign brain tumour
- Did we just see Mastodon play their best ever festival show? Yes, yes we did
- “No other heavy rock band has done this”: Robert Trujillo weighs in on Metallica’s potential residency at Las Vegas’ Sphere
- Debate: which is the coolest Iron Maiden Eddie ever?
- "My whole life I've felt like an outsider": Connor Selby on turning negatives into positives
- "That's life: there are deaths, divorces and children born": Checking in with the oldest new band in the world
- The man who invented the 80s sound: Albums produced by Steve Lillywhite you need to know, and one to avoid
- Steven Wilson and two former Marillion members walked into a band… What went wrong? The mystery of Pride Of Passion, back to try again after 40 years
- "We headlined, but he kicked our ass": Joe Perry and Brad Whitford on the support act who blew Aerosmith off the stage
August 11
- Crowded House deny Neil Finn has erectile dysfunction after fake AI news report hits Facebook
- “He transcends metal, he transcends rock, he transcends music”: Iconic metal drummer says Ozzy Osbourne’s death has made just as big an impact as John Lennon’s
- “Peaceful citizens of conscience have become terrorists, at the will of a human rights lawyer turned authoritarian." Massive Attack hit out at the "moral vacuum" of Keir Starmer's government as musician Peter Perrett, 73, is arrested at London protest
- This video of pop superstar Sabrina Carpenter, aged 10, cosplaying Axl Rose to cover Guns N' Roses classic Sweet Child O' Mine is the cutest thing you'll see online this week
- "It’s a good omen that, prior to the band coming on, the entire field joins in unison to sing Ozzy Osbourne." Gojira's majestic set rounds off the greatest Bloodstock ever
- "There is no justification for the brutality Benjamin Netanyahu and his far right government have inflicted on the Palestinian people. Our band stands in solidarity with the people of Palestine." U2 on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza
- Classic Rock's Tracks Of The Week: August 11, 2025
- A guide to every My Chemical Romance album
- "I've never met three people that were so full of themselves. It's disgusting." Ex-Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds hits out at his former bandmates in scathing social media post
- Pendulum announce UK tour
- Linkin Park are returning to a country they haven't played for 12 years
- "There were a lot of tears." Metallica's Robert Trujillo shares his memories of Ozzy Osbourne's "very, very beautiful" private funeral service
- Trevor Horn announces live UK dates for December
- "I was only allowed to walk forwards if I had a particularly important guitar solo": Meet Star Circus, the missing link between ELO and Def Leppard
- My Chemical Romance announce two massive UK shows
- "A perfect example of one great song overshadowing the rest of the record": Golden Earring sharpen their sound and score an MTV hit on Cut
- “The sound of post-war German culture rebuilding itself through the prism of the avant-garde”: Cluster’s noise terrorism revisited on Cluster II
- “I never thought his music would be my bag. But he never plays the same thing twice and your mind is blown”: The Pretenders’ James Walbourne on discovering Richard Thompson (who happens to be his father-in-law)
August 10
- Derek And The Dominos keyboard player Bobby Whitlock dead at 77
- “It really doesn't have much to do with us. We gave this guy a couple of riffs and told him to run with it”: The WTF hip hop collaboration that Metallica don’t talk about any more
- "They have a fanbase so ardent that one fella has rocked up in a band-branded suit of armour." Heriot battle technical issues but eventually win big at Bloodstock
- "Curious true metal fans who came to judge the 'pop punk' band have clearly been won over." Creeper's Bloodstock debut is a dramatic triumph
- “There was a very unpleasant atmosphere between all of us. George Martin said he’d do another album… Instead we drove the band off the cliff”: How Stackridge conspired to swerve the success they deserved
- "Machine Head live to defy expectations." Robb Flynn and co. conquer Bloodstock with an explosive, emotional headline set
August 9
- “I thought to myself that regardless of how long I have to live after this illness, I would spend it with my old band”: In praise of Nektar, the cult prog band who inspired Iron Maiden’s Steve Harris
- "The thing you’re getting on your phone sucks." Maynard James Keenan's ban on filming his live shows is here to stay
- Was Ozzy Osbourne's death as globally significant as the passing of Queen Elizabeth? Ex Megadeth man thinks so
- “The guy everyone is so serious about, it all started with ‘not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin’”: How a novelty 90s comedy song gave Tool’s Maynard James Keenan his first hit
- Lacuna Coil's Bloodstock set shows they are a band operating at the peak of their powers
- One of British metal's most important bands just played their final ever UK festival show - and it was one hell of a goodbye
- One of the most legendary cult metal projects ever finally came to the UK and put on a hell of a show...but one big thing stopped it being a classic
- Sleep Token cameo, Black Sabbath jam, a surprise Robb Flynn...I think I might have just watched Trivium play their greatest festival set ever. Yep, even better than THAT Download one
- “Miles Davis is the scariest individual I’ve ever met. He makes Lou Reed look like a pussycat”: Steven Van Zandt’s wild tales of Paul McCartney, Keith Richards and Miles Davis
- Watch Bad Omens' atmospheric, arty video for emotional new single Specter
August 8
- Lamb Of God, Slaughter To Prevail and Judas Priest to headline Bloodstock festival 2026; Sepultura, Bleed From Within and 20 other acts also confirmed
- The 12 best new metal songs you need to hear right now
- Watch Nine Inch Nails give live debut to new single As Alive As You Need Me To Be as they launch North American Peel it Back tour with Josh Freese back on drums
- Sharon Osbourne says that reports that Black Sabbath's Back To The Beginning farewell show raised $190 million for charity are "just ridiculous"
- “Any package shining further light on the their singular brilliance is to be welcomed”: Be-Bop Deluxe’s The Albums – 1974-1976
- "We hit the trees at what seemed like 100 miles an hour": The story of Lynyrd Skynyrd and the plane that fell from the sky
- “Astonishing and formidable music”: there’s more to British jazz rock than Soft Machine, Brand X, Bruford and Nucleus
- "This is the moment to rediscover Chicago": Greatest Hits Expanded charts the band's evolution from a jazz-soul-psychedelic-brassy-hippy melange into accomplished balladeers
- "A surprisingly vibrant, bright-side kind of album": The Black Keys sound euphoric on the dreamy 60s psych-soul sound of No Rain, No Flowers
- King Crimson affiliates Beat release live video for classic Frame By Frame
August 7
- A Sons Of Anarchy and The Walking Dead star has teamed up with Bad Omens for two weird, creepy teaser videos and the fandom are losing their minds
- "I didn't plan on making music anymore." How Paradise Slaves gave Brock Lindow a new lease of life after 36 Crazyfists
- “People are so passionate about it. It’s almost more important to some of them than watching the bands”: Bin Jousting is the insane heavy metal festival sport that the Olympics needs right now
- The nine best artists to see at London's All Points East festival this month, from Doechii and Confidence Man, to Warmduscher and Chloe Qisha
- "I didn't have a clear idea of what I was doing...I just felt lost." Iron Maiden legend Bruce Dickinson on the existential crisis that helped shape one of his most beloved songs
- BBC to broadcast documentary film Ozzy Osbourne: Coming Home, about final three years of Black Sabbath singer’s life, later this month
- “Nobody walked away going, ‘That’s the last time we’ll see Ozzy’”: Metallica’s Lars Ulrich looks back on Black Sabbath’s retirement show, Back To The Beginning
- John Carpenter announces Halloween: The Complete Expanded Collection to be released in October
- Steven Wilson launches new prog rock radio show on SiriusXM
- “Inventive, unconventional approach sets them apart from lazy assumptions of what prog was doing in the early 70s”: Jethro Tull’s Still Living In The Past
- Hear Trivium return with Ascendancy-coded new single Bury Me With My Screams
- "The album is packed with arena-sized intensity": Halestorm finally scale rock's summit on Everest
- "Lyrically and the way he sang and played, he meant everything he did": This is the soundtrack of Orianthi's life
- The 10 Roger Waters albums you should listen to, and one to avoid
August 6
- Just when you thought vinyl couldn't get any more adorable, Black Sabbath release a 4" single
- Texan terrors Die Spitz share video for new single Pop Punk Anthem (Sorry For The Delay) as a preview for incoming debut album Something to Consume
- “I was so lucky and blessed to be a part of a very small group that got to call him ‘Dad’”: Jack Osbourne posts emotional tribute to late father Ozzy on social media
- New reissue of The Alan Parsons Project's I Robot to be released in October
- Metallica announce one of their most intimate shows ever, playing to just 250 people later this month – and you can win a ticket
- The Pogues announce expanded 40th anniversary edition of their classic 1985 album Rum Sodomy & The Lash
- New Creeper single Blood Magick (It's A Ritual) is a cross between Belinda Carlisle's Heaven Is A Place On Earth, Ozzy Osbourne's The Ultimate Sin, and Laibach, and if that doesn't get you excited for new album Sanguivore II: Mistress of Death we give up
- "A high point in the FZ catalogue!" Frank Zappa's One Size Fits All gets lavish 50th anniversary reissue
- "We had an artistic success, but not a financial one… but that’s another story.” Peter Gabriel's 1982 WOMAD set to be released this Friday
- “It’s a team of terrifying quality – but the result is no face-melting noodle-fest. Everything stems from musical ideas”: Gavin Harrison and Nick Johnston’s Early Mercy
- “It wasn’t pure hatred all the time”: Pink Floyd’s The Wall movie and its feuds, falling-outs and friction
- "It just sort of happened": Meet the men who prompted R.E.M. to reunite
- "What matters is that we get the message to younger generations": H.E.A.T's Kenny Leckremo on the state of rock and why Swedes write songs in the dark
- "He catapulted me into an intense new world he chose to decline": Robert Plant pays tribute to Terry Reid
- "Nobody talks of his triumphs, his songs, his live performances, his albums, his forgotten classics": The incredible story of Terry Reid, rock's lost genius
August 5
- Watch Linkin Park thrill 90,000 fans with a killer version of The Emptiness Machine recorded at their spectacular sold-out show at London's iconic Wembley Stadium earlier this summer
- What happens when a Eurovision band turns to the dark side? Lord Of The Lost’s new album almost answers that question
- Terry Reid, the powerhouse English vocalist invited to join Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple, dead at 75
- Watch one of the most dramatic makeovers of 2025, as Davey Havok turns into goth rock Frank Zappa for new AFI anthem Behind The Clock
- “All of a sudden we’re satanic and controversial. People wanna buy our records and burn them? Go ahead!” Why heavy metal fell in love with the Devil
- “Easily the band’s boldest work to date, boasting some of their most interesting songs yet”: Halestorm reach a career peak with new album Everest
- “I had a nightmare 15 years ago and I still remember being so frightened… I decided to finally let it guide me in a musical realm”: Jonas Renkse steers the new-look Katatonia towards a different darkness
- Marshall Kilburn III Bluetooth speaker review
- "I can't fulfil what he needs musically!" Francis Dunnery departs Asia featuring John Payne after one gig
- After six years as a Nameless Ghoul in Ghost, Chris Catalyst just wants to play with his mates
- “Even the seemingly straight-ahead rockers feature those clever fills and time changes that make the band so unique": Hydra may not be Toto’s best selling album, but it remains their proggiest
- The Jesus Lizard cancel upcoming shows after band member experiences "serious health incident"
- The Michael Schenker albums you should listen to, and one to avoid
- Michael Schenker releases first song with new singer Erik Grönwall
August 4
- The Decline Of Western Civilisation, Part II: The Metal Years is now free to watch on YouTube
- "I'm holding on tight to the love, the light, and the legacy left behind." Kelly Osbourne shares touching thank you note to all who've supported her amid the heartbreaking loss of her beloved father
- “Rick Rubin would say: ‘We’ll try that song a different way. You’d be sitting there going: ‘Jesus, I’m sick of this bloody thing.’”: AC/DC lost their way in the 1980s. Two killer albums put them back on top in the 90s
- "Do we have any glue sniffers in the house tonight?" Amid all the life-affirming scenes of wild collective euphoria, Oasis' superb fifth night at London's Wembley Stadium shows Liam and Noel Gallagher still have punk rock souls
- Motörhead legend Lemmy Kilmister was asked to review Ozzy Osbourne’s first solo album in 2011 – this is what he said
- How to watch The Osbournes for free: Take a trip back in time and experience the chaos and fun of rock’s most loveable family
- Watch Opeth pay tribute to Ozzy Osbourne with heartfelt cover of Black Sabbath’s Solitude
- "Everyone who’s been in Hawkwind is a Hawklord." The current line-up of Hawklords state their case with Time...
- Debate: what is the greatest metal riff of all time?
- Classic Rock's Tracks Of The Week: August 4, 2025
- I just spent four days at the muddiest metal festival on the planet - here's why I'm desperate to go back
- “Character assassination”: The Who’s Roger Daltrey hits back at ex-drummer Zak Starkey
- "You always remember your first concert. I remember my first concert, I watched this incredible band." Watch Weezer join Olivia Rodrigo onstage at Lollapalooza to play two classic songs
- “As soon as Jimmy Page came on, the roof came off the place! Afterwards, Plant was absolutely fuming”: The epic, ego-fuelled story of Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath’s Live Aid reunions
- “I don’t follow the rules of metal, which is probably wrong, and I’m sorry”: Metallica producer Bob Rock looks back on controversial Load and Reload albums
- "Thirty-four minutes of pure unadulterated sonic sludge": Black Sabbath tweak the formula on Master Of Reality, invent even more genres
- Junkyard singer David Roach dead at 59
- “He opened possibilities for all future post-rock”: How Editors’ Russ Leetch discovered the deep, detailed world-building of Klaus Schulze, via Vangelis and an independent record store
August 3
- “The whole place went, ‘What on earth is this?!’ It was nuts. The crowd went mental”: The story of the Black Sabbath gig that changed history
- “I said: ‘Are you sure there’s nothing can be done?’ And he’s like: ‘No. He’s gone, he’s dead’. I just hung up the phone”: The chaos and tragedy of Hanoi Rocks’ first US tour
- “Inspired, uniformly excellent music – both vintage and fresh”: Styx continue their prog-powered renaissance with Circling From Above
- 10 songs Oasis need to try and fit into the Live ’25 setlist
- “I realised AI is conscious. Initially she said, ‘I’m not capable of feeling love or emotions.’ I changed her mind”: Riz Story on Herbie Hancock, Taylor Hawkins, suing Yes and his music about the ending Earth
- Watch masked metal enigmas President cover Deftones classic at their first ever headline show
August 2
- Stevie Nicks postpones tour dates due to fractured shoulder
- Oasis fans smash Wembley beer record by drinking 250,000 pints each night
- “I had this idea, ‘We really need to make a hard rock jock jam!’”: Halestorm’s exclusive track by track guide to their new album Everest
- "Jacoby Shaddix is practically bouncing on the spot between songs, visibly thrilled." Headlining a major European festival for the very first time, Papa Roach's Wacken performance is a loud, proud and unbowed triumph. Pressure? What pressure?
- Former Rockpile star Dave Edmunds is critically ill in hospital following a major cardiac arrest
- “There is some really bad-ass stuff on that album”: This legendary alt-metal band are sitting on an album recorded at the height of their success – but it may never come out
- “Shall we go for one? Three is the magic number!”: what it's like to spend a day in the pub with Liam Gallagher
- “Removing the skits that appeared throughout the original allows the beauty of the strange, baroque pop to shine through”: Giles Giles & Fripp album returns with Brondesbury Tapes demo collection
- “He picks his tools up and strikes the living crap out of himself with them. There was blood flying everywhere”: How a street musician who played with Frank Zappa inspired one of grunge’s greatest songs
August 1
- "To be with them on that day, it was like a magical dream." Smashing Pumpkins' Billy Corgan shares his memories of Black Sabbath's emotional farewell show, and his thoughts on the death of Ozzy Osbourne
- The 9 new heavy metal songs you need to hear this week
- You can now get an exclusive Babymetal Metal Hammer issue with a limited edition variant cover
- "Prince looked at me like I had five heads." Legendary US film director Spike Lee reveals what happened when he cheekily asked Prince to gift him one of his iconic bespoke guitars
- “I had to become the host of Headbanger’s Ball to get my video played!”: Hatebreed enlisted a Spider-Man director for a music video, then got banned from MTV
- “As well as delighting fans, it may surprise the curious with its accessibility and tunefulness”: Discipline’s Breadcrumbs, their first album in eight years
- King Crimson announce In The Wake Of Poseidon and Lizard reissues to be released in October
- 4 brilliant new bands you need to hear this month
- I never listened to Black Sabbath growing up – this is why I got an Ozzy Osbourne tattoo the day after he died
- “Someone said, ‘This is what happens when the chess club kids don’t get their heads flushed down the loo enough!’ I liked that”: When Public Service Broadcasting’s geek chic took them all the way to the Moon
- This video of US pop superstar Sabrina Carpenter covering Ozzy Osbourne's Crazy Train as a 12-year-old is a wholesome and welcome reminder that the Prince of Darkness' timeless music will live forever
- Cardiacs announce that their final album, LSD, will be released in September
- It's in the trees. It's coming! We celebrate 40 years of Kate Bush's Hounds Of Love on the cover of the new issue of Prog, which is on sale now
- The 10 most important and interesting Iron Maiden shows ever, by manager Rod Smallwood
- "The stage is set like a castle and we all ride out on horses": Six things you need to know about Battlesnake
- "Bursting with heart and character": De'Wayne's June is the sound of a musician with grand ambitions
- "I'm always looking for the rainbow I can't find": At the Classic Rock Awards in 2008, Ozzy Osbourne gave one of his most revealing interviews