Features

How The Strokes saved rock’n’roll from its post-millennial doldrums... with a demo

By Niall Doherty published 17 January 26

The Manhattan quintet whose emergence in 2001 opened the floodgates for a whole new generation of guitar bands

The lost NWOBHM classic that Metallica turned into one of metal’s most famous songs

By Greg Prato published 17 January 26

How Lars Ulrich and co gave a leg up to a cult early 80s British metal band

The best metal albums of 2025 (as voted by Metal Hammer readers)

By Rich Hobson published 16 January 26

From Ghost to Sleep Token, Babymetal to Spiritbox, these are the albums you said defined metal in 2025

The story behind the Nirvana song that Dave Grohl was too nervous to include on In Utero

By Stephen Hill published 16 January 26

Dave Grohl has proven himself as a hell of a songwriter, but it took some support from his dear friend Kurt to get some self-belief

Awards and no-shows: inside the depressing night Metallica split with Jason Newsted

By Matt Mills published 16 January 26

By the time Jason took to the stage with Metallica near the end of 2000, it was so clearly already over

How a "feral" Ozzy Osbourne crowd, an onstage meltdown, and nudity on live TV sparked a police manhunt in South America

By Paul Brannigan published 16 January 26

"I don't think I'd have enjoyed a stay in a South American prison"

The Sex Pistols, ABBA, Danny Boyle and the Olympics: the unlikely story of Pretty Vacant

By Rich Chamberlain published 16 January 26

The surprising tale behind the pop-influenced, Oscar-winning director-approved punk rock classic

Metal Hammer's tracks of the week: January 16 2026

By Rich Hobson published 16 January 26

Big names, rising stars and underground favourites go head-to-head in Metal Hammer's tracks of the week

With a new deal and friends in the right places, Fury are ready to move up a level

By Dave Ling published 16 January 26

It's a long way to the top if you wanna rock'n'roll, but Fury's Interceptor album should push them in the right direction

The Beatles Quiz: How much do you know about Help!?

By Fraser Lewry published 16 January 26

A chance to test your knowledge of one of the most pivotal chapters in The Beatles' story