Latest articles by Stephen Hill
How cult fixtures Prong found their brief mainstream moment
1994’s Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck was a hit, but it wasn’t enough for the hardcore-turned-metal band’s big-label bosses
The best new metal bands you need to hear in January 2026
From 'nu deathcore' pioneers Autumn Lies Buried to Finnish black metallers Svarta Havet, Black Label Society side project Dark Chapel and psychedelic sludgers Witchrot, these are the metal bands you need to hear in January 2026
Human Waste Project, the lost nu metal band who should have been huge
Fronted by the magnetic Aimee Echo, the four-piece had a major record deal and were close friends with Korn. But their career was sadly short-lived.
How Sugar started System Of A Down’s climb to dominance
1998 single Sugar brought the future nu metal superstars to the dance – and they were weird as hell
How Type O Negative, Sepultura and Life Of Agony helped turn Roadrunner Records into the most influential metal label of the 90s
"It was the perfect tragedy. Heavy metal albums found in their rooms, antisocial behaviour." How Lemmy, Corey Taylor, Henry Rollins and the metal community united to save three teenagers at the heart of a murder case that shocked America
The story of the West Memphis Three captured the attention of the metal world - and some of its biggest artists took action
Metal Hammer's albums of the year: 2025
From chart-toppers Ghost and Sleep Token to rising stars Lorna Shore and Spiritbox, 2025 has been a massive year for metal
A Perfect Circle have made four albums. These are the stories behind them all
A Perfect Circle’s Billy Howerdel breaks down his band’s four studio albums
How Killswitch Engage's The End Of Heartache brought some romance to the metal scene
One of the gretaest metalcore songs ever written turned this band into household names
How Skindred mixed reggae and metal to produce a classic 2000s rock banger
How Skindred hit on the ragga-metal classic that would save frontman Benji Webbe’s career
How Laid To Rest – against all odds – gave Lamb Of God an actual career
The opening track of 2004’s Ashes Of The Wake helped lift the band from heavy metal underdogs to generation-defining superstars
The story behind the Foo Fighters classic that everyone assumed was about Kurt Cobain
People misinterpreted this song's meaning for years, but it made it no less poignant
How Cave In briefly became alt-metal’s next big thing with their single Anchor
In 2003, Cave In embraced mainstream attention and wrote Anchor. Unfortunately, their stint in the big time would be short-lived.
How A Certain Shade Of Green turned Incubus into poster boys for a scene they hated
With one song, they suddenly found themselves at the front of a music scene they truly hated
"They talk about that album in the same way I talk about Ziggy Stardust...and it was the first time a Slipknot member had unmasked!" How a metal icon embraced horror and glam rock to make one of the most surprising side projects ever
When it was revealed that one of Slipknot's most beloved members had a new project on the go, no one could have predicted how it'd end up sounding
How Korn broke the charts with a smutty song, a controversial look and a truly deranged video
Anyone who grew up with nu metal has a very different idea of what the letters A, D, I, D, A and S mean
The crazy forgotten project featuring a host of rap and metal superstars
This could have been incredible, but it was an absolute flop
Inside the top secret HQ of Sabaton, power metal's biggest band
20 years on from their debut, Hammer joined Sabaton in their hometown of Falun to dive into the band's history
The surprising influences behind Metallica's most successful single (and no, it isn't Enter Sandman)
With a new look, a new attitude and a dizzying new set of musical influences, Metallica crafted one of their most controversial singles. It was also their best-selling
Why Sabaton don't sing about modern conflicts
For 20 years Sabaton have sung about battles and warriors, but they admit there's lines they won't cross
How a Primus song about a beaver sparked a surprise encounter with Winona Ryder
When Primus wrote this weird art rock classic, they weren't expecting a visit from one of America's coolest actresses
Hatebreed’s Jamey Jasta names the essential hardcore bands everyone needs to hear
If you need someone to guide you through the world of hardcore, you won’t find a bigger aficionado than the frontman of Hatebreed
