
Stephen Hill
Since blagging his way onto the Hammer team a decade ago, Stephen has written countless features and reviews for the magazine, usually specialising in punk, hardcore and 90s metal, and still holds out the faint hope of one day getting his beloved U2 into the pages of the mag. He also regularly spouts his opinions on the Metal Hammer Podcast.
Latest articles by Stephen Hill

How The Mars Volta's De-Loused In The Comatorium brilliantly rewired prog rock for a new generation of punk rock kids
By Stephen Hill published
Released in June 2003, The Mars Volta's debut album De-Loused In The Comatorium is a prog-punk masterpiece

Beastie Boys fan? Here's five new bands you need to hear
By Stephen Hill published
Ch-Check it out: five fresh new bands sure to delight fans of the Beastie Boys

The greatest frontman of all time? Dave Gahan's irresistible energy ensures that Depeche Mode exude life after death
By Stephen Hill published
Dave Gahan gives a masterclass in stadium rock showmanship as Depeche Mode hold Twickenham spellbound

A beginners' guide to UK 80s indie in five essential albums
By Stephen Hill published
The 1980s were a hugely fertile period for free-thinking, boundary-pushing British 'indie' bands. Here is the story of the genre via five essential albums

“We don't want people to know what we think”: Why Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures may be the most important record to emerge from the UK punk scene
By Stephen Hill published
Released on June 15, 1979, Joy Division's bleak, beautiful masterpiece has lost none of its power or stark dread

A beginner's guide to US indie in five essential records
By Stephen Hill published
From its punk-rock roots to its genre-bending modern wave, we trace the story of US indie in five key albums

Five new bands you need to hear if you love The Fall
By Stephen Hill published
With a whopping 31 albums in their back catalogue, it figures that cult favourites The Fall have influenced a legion of fearless, boundary-pushing bands in their wake – here, five of the best

Nirvana fan? Here are five new bands you need to hear
By Stephen Hill published
Nirvana have inspired hundreds of bands since they turned music on its head some 30-odd years ago – here are five examples of how their influence is still making magic

Five new bands you need to hear if you love Pulp
By Stephen Hill published
Pulp have had one of the most fascinating careers in British music, so it figures they've inspired a legion of fans to create their own take on the Sheffield legends' legacy. Here, five of the best new bands to do it

A beginners guide to grindcore in five essential albums
By Stephen Hill published
Maybe the most relentlessly extreme subgenre of all, grindcore has been a mainstay of the underground since it screamed onto the scene in the 80s

Five new bands you need to hear if you love Joy Division
By Stephen Hill published
Joy Division have become one of the most influential alternative bands of the last 40 years, and these five new bands are bringing that sound bang up to date

A beginners guide to 90s hardcore in five essential albums
By Stephen Hill published
Hardcore went through some fascinating evolutions in the 90s. Here are the albums that tell that tale best

Five new bands you need to hear if you love Blur
By Stephen Hill published
Blur may be making a comeback, but these five young bands have been keeping their seats warm in their absence

Five new bands you need to hear if you love Radiohead
By Stephen Hill published
Radiohead delight in pushing boundaries and shrugging off labels – and these five new bands do just the same

4 brilliant new metal bands you need to hear this month
By Stephen Hill published
From masked nu metal revivialists Blackgold to 'cyber-grind' pioneers Thotcrime, you need to check out these brilliant new metal bands

Metal on Metal: How Mystic Festival has grown to become one of Europe’s most essential events for metal fans
By Stephen Hill published
One off sets played amongst an utterly unique backdrop, a line up to satisfy the taste of any metalhead and the patronage of some legends of the genre, Mystic Festival is a weekend unlike any other on Europe’s festival season calendar

A beginner's guide to new wave in five essential albums
By Stephen Hill published
From punk rock to pure pop, new wave saw it all: here, the story of how it happened, told by the records that defined the genre

Ice-T on metal, Dave Mustaine and making it against the odds: “My hustle is strong. It’s a survival instinct”
By Stephen Hill published
Body Count frontman, hip hop icon, controversy magnet, friend of Megadeth, Lemmy, Slayer and more – it’s Ice-T’s world, we just live in it

Are Sid Wilson-approved masked lunatics Swollen Teeth the new Slipknot?
By Stephen Hill published
Enigmatic nu metal livewires Swollen Teeth are here to fill the old school Slipknot-shaped hole in your life

Every song on System Of A Down‘s Toxicity ranked from worst to best
By Stephen Hill published
It’s one of the greatest metal albums ever, but that hasn’t stopped us from rearranging Toxicity’s tracklisting

Blood, ghosts and tabloids: how Cradle Of Filth's Cruelty And The Beast took black metal mainstream
By Stephen Hill published
Cradle Of Filth needed an album that'd start getting their music as much attention as their t-shirts. They delivered in style.

A beginner's guide to post-punk in 5 essential albums
By Stephen Hill published
The rise, fall and rise again of post-punk, explained by five albums that define the genre

Paramore's joyous show in London last night proved why they're the most vital rock band of their generation
By Stephen Hill published
From reclaiming classic emo anthems to dropping world class, alt-pop bangers, Paramore's O2 show proved that they remain in a league of one
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