Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! This week we've got seven more new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Congratulations to New Jersey prog duo Datura Lodge, whose up-tempo Stone won last week's Tracks Of The Week, narrowly pipping Venezuelan quintet Changing Places In The Fire and with Japanese psych trio Maya Ongakku in third place.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - it makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it?

The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post. Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week, we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

HAKEN - DELIRIUM

The currently slimmed-down Haken have just announced they will release a new EP, in a fever dream (styled lowercase, before the grammar police are on our backs!), which they'll release through InsideOut Music digitally on July 17 and physically on September 18. They're helped out on bass by both The Aristocrats' Bryan Beller and Periphery's Adam 'Nolly' Getgood, and new single, delirium, is a proper prog-rocking banger!

“This EP was born from a period of reflection and rediscovery," the band say. "Over the last few years, we’ve faced challenges that forced us to look inward, both as musicians and as people, and the songs on this record are the result of that journey. This EP captures a moment in time of us finding our feet again - moving forward, taking risks, and creating from a place that feels as genuine as we have ever been.”

REZN - AERIAL BIRTH

There have been quite a few musical labels attached to Chicago quartet REZN, but 'dreamlike' is the word we'd attach to the band's new single, Aerial Birth. It's taken from their upcoming album, Cycles In The Infinite Dream, which is out through Sargent House on July 24, and which offers a sound that binds together prog, psych and something a little more muscular. We're certainly liking what we've heard so far...

“We moved towards the dream and subconscious state as a lyrical concept and melodic theme,” the band explains. “The pseudo-waking state is a reflection of a second existence—something that you can flee to or be imprisoned by.”

ENSLAVED - SPIRIT HELPER

Norwegian prog metallers Enslaved continue to explore new musical territory light years away from their original black metal sound with the release of Spirit Helper, a collaboration with Kevin Kicking Woman (his family's spiritual tribal name), an Elder of the Blackfeet Nation. Although it echoes the band's immense Havenless from 2003's Below The Lights, Spirit Helper shows the band in a whole new musical light

"Ultimately, Spirit Helper is a song about connection - between past and present, traditions and people, and the spiritual and human worlds," says guitarist Ivar Bjørnson. "For Enslaved, it stands as one of the most meaningful musical journeys we have undertaken."

"Songs are the Blackfoot way of knowing," adds Kevin. "Expressing relationship and responsibility, belonging and accountability. The purpose of this song is having the performative expression giving meaning to life. Connecting to the universes through the cosmos, earth beings, water beings and spirit beings. Spirit helper is the physical documentation in this process."

HAPPY THE MAN - FOURTH OF JULY: AN AMERICAN SUITE

US prog rockers Happy The Man have shared a video for their brand new single, The Fourth Of July: An American Suite, the first new music from the band in over 20 years! It comes courtesy of drummer Ron Riddle, originally created in the 2000s during his years as composer for the television series Detonators. It also features a nucleus of original Happy The Man members who have continued collaborating musically in recent years, including bassist Rick Kennell and guitarist Stanley Whitaker.

“This project feels strangely inevitable,” says Riddle. “The original piece already carried the DNA of Happy The Man inside it. What’s exciting now is hearing those ideas finally realised by the musicians who inspired that side of the writing in the first place.”

STICK MEN - SWIMMING IN TEA

Stick Men really should need no introduction to Prog readers, featuring as they do King Crimson’s Tony Levin and Pat Mastelotto along with multi-instrumentalist and composer Markus Reuter. The trio are releasing their first new album in a decade with Let’s THRAK Again, a Robert Fripp-sanctioned homage to King Crimson’s THRAK, out via their Bandcamp page on September 4, and from which comes new single, Swimming With Tea.

"Let's THRAK Again is 60 minutes of pure, kinetic energy," notes the band. "We didn't just write 12 new compositions; we designed an entirely new sonic vocabulary for them. Our audience listens deeply. They don't just want to hear the notes; they want to understand the architecture of the sound. It’s a roll of the dice, a sonic triptych, and a tribute to the heavy, mechanical impact of the original THRAK era."

PLAYGROUNDED - SNOW

Multi-national proggers Playgrounded have announced that they will release their new album, A Flower To Water, through Pelagic Records on September 18. An eclectic bunch at the best of times, the band's new single Snow is a catchy yet brooding and meditative slice of proggy electronica that could easily win the band an army of new fans.

“We slightly lift the veil to uncover the themes of A Flower To Water in black and white," the band state. "We speak of grief as a process, its marks on time, the anticipation of the new. So… we let it go, inside the snow, today."

SUSANNA - A SWALLOW

Norwegian art rock artist Susanna is celebrating 15 years of running her own label, SusannaSonata, and will release three new albums through the label of artists she "deeply loves to listen to", as well as sharing her own video of a live performance of A Swallow, which was originally from her recent Meditations On Love album.

The video features just Susanna, her voice and Finnish/Norwegian composer, musician and producer Juhani Silvola for a sparse and haunting rendition.

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! This week we've got seven more new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Well, what a battle we had on our hands last week! And huge congratulations to Bulgarian proggers Untold Stories, whose Pale Horizons edged ahead of Alex Henry Foster to win last week. And in third place, we had US prog metal quintet Outrun The Sunlight who pipped fellow US band North Sea Echoes by the closest of margins to grab third place. Well done all!

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it?

The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post. Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

THE PINEAPPLE THIEF - HOLD THE ASHES

The new single from The Pineapple Thief, Hold The Ashes, is the band's first release since signing to InsideOut Music, and although there's no news about a new studio album yet, Prog understands the band have recently completed work on their as-yet-untitled sixteenth album. So it doesn't take much to connect the dots and reckon this is a taster for the new album. Sounds really good, too...

“One thing is certain, one day we’ll all be ashes," says signer and guitarist Bruce Soord, cheerily. "It’s the ‘gift from the gods that comes to us all’. For some reason, when writing this song, I couldn’t stop singing about ‘ashes’ in the context of understanding what life is about. ‘Writhing in constant conflict’. Why? So take these ashes and scatter them far and wide. You know, make the most of it.”

CHANGING PLACES IN THE FIRE - HOME

Changing Places In The Fire are a Venezuelan quintet who will release their self-titled debut album through Wild Thing Records on July 24. As you will hear from the band's latest single, Home, they meld muscular prog rock - think Tool, laced with Porcupine Tree, with more expansive post-rock moments which bring to mind the much-missed Oceansize. We reckon they're in to a winner here...

"Home reflects on distance, guilt, and memory - on the ghosts that follow long after leaving," explains keyboardist Alfredo Ovalles. "It confronts the ache of belonging to a place you can’t fully return to, and carrying that absence forward."

SOURCE - OPTIMISTIC

If you're going to cover a song like Radiohead's Optimistic, then you'd better be prepared for some scrutiny. Fortunately, this Boulder, Colorado trio have got the chops and deliver a thoroughly engaging version. The band talk of their music in terms of "heavy psychedelic prog rock" and they've released four albums thus far, with new single, Optimistic, nodding ahead to a fifth.

"When we decided to cover Optimistic, we really wanted to showcase our love for the song while bringing our own voice to the arrangement," the band say. "I think our version has a lot of similar ingredients, but the way we choose to highlight those ingredients really displays our unique approach and sound. The tones are much heavier, the tempo is faster so it feels like there's more energy, and the way we flip the ending into a heavy riff is my favourite part of our version."

RAPHAEL WEINROTH-BROWNE - FALL FOR ME

Not one but two covers this week! Canadian cellist Raphael Weinroth-Browne offers up his take on Sleep Token's Fall For Me, the video set against the stunning backdrop of Ontario bathed in golden sunlight. Sleep Token divides the prog world, mostly, we suspect, because they seem to have emerged from the metal world despite evidently not being a metal band, but Weinroth-Browne offers a take on the song that's probably far more palatable to prog fans, all the while managing to keep his shirt on for a promo video. No mean feat in itself!

"Fall For Me is a hidden gem in Sleep Token’s catalogue - its gorgeous melodies and rich choral harmonies lend themselves perfectly to the cello. In reimagining this song, I tried to convey the same juxtaposition of sadness and beauty that makes the original so poignant," he says. "The music video was shot at the epic Eagles’ Nest Lookout in rural Ontario by Ben Kissner of Monscene Studios. My face was completely devoured by mosquitoes and black flies by the end of the shoot, but I believe it was worth it for the final result!"

PRINCE OF FAILURE - PHANTOM

Prince of Failure is the new collaborative project featuring TesseracT singer Daniel Tompkins and Paul Ortiz from Chimp Spanner, and they've just released their self-titled debut album through Kscope. It's an album rooted in deep ideas, based around neurodivergence, masking, and the psychological weight of living out of alignment with expectation

"Phantom explores the fight against the darker forces that live both within and around us. It’s about being haunted by destructive impulses, temptation, and the feeling of losing control to something that seems impossible to escape," Tompkins explains. "Within the wider story of the album, it represents a descent into chaos - the moment where the protagonist is forced to confront the parts of himself he’s tried to suppress, only to realise that the battle may already be consuming him. Themes of conflict, self-destruction, and overwhelming power run throughout the song, creating a sense of inevitable collapse as everything begins to burn around him."

MAYA ONGAKU - ASTRAL ECHOES

Anyone who's been suffering during the heatwave that's been hitting the UK this past week might find the gentle melodies of Astral Echoes something of a balm. it's the new single from Japanese psych tri Maya Ongaku, who will release their new album Nothing Space Music on August 7 (digitally) and September 9 (physically) via Guruguru Brain. The band draw inspiration from the experimental rock of the 1960s and 70s, Japanese folk and psychedelia, avant-garde art movements, literature, philosophy, and cultural anthropology, and this all sounds rather wonderful.

"Astral Echoes explores the moment when art comes into being — when inspiration quietly enters the mind," the band state. "I believe inspiration is not something to be chased or seized, but something that emerges when we patiently wait for its arrival in silence."

DATURA LODGE - STONE

Datura Lodge are a brand new prog duo from Bergen County, New Jersey. The enigmatically named Nicky B and “W” will release their self-titled debut album through Arquen Records on October 2. The album has been produced by the band and Ben Karas from Thank You Scientist, who also adds violin to this single, which, according to the band, "fulfils the 'rock' component of their progressive sound."

"I was listening to Lou Reed’s 'middle-aged man era' albums a lot and love how his lyrics are rooted in reality but also very funny," explains "W". "Stone is my third-rate impression of that."

Renowned prog guitarists Steve Hackett and Steve Rothery have shared their first new music as Hackett & Rothery, with a video for The Black Sea.

It's taken from the pair's upcoming studio album, The Roaring Sea, which Prog announced last week was being released through InsideOut Music on August 28. The pair have also shared the artwork for the sea-themed album as well as the tracklisting, which you can see below.

"I think The Black Sea is the perfect introduction to the sonic world we’ve created between us," says the Marillion guitarist. "We have a very special chemistry.”

“For The Black Sea, our joint guitar sounds with the keys created a strong vibe of intrigue along with a sense of a musical dark sea adventure," adds Hackett, adding, "It’s not the kind of album that guitarists normally make together.”

"You’re trying to create an atmosphere… like painting a picture,” Rothery continues. “Taking people on a journey."

The pair are joined on The Roaring Sea with Hackett's new keyboardist, Riccardo Romano, who has also performed in Rothery's band as well as French proggers Nine Skies, and who also co-wrote, mixed and played keyboards and bass, and drummer Leon Parr, also from Rothery's band.

The Roaring Sea is available on several formats, including a limited edition CD+Blu-ray mediabook edition including Dolby Atmos (by Andy Bradfield) and High Resolution Stereo mixes. The album will also be available as a standard CD and a Gatefold 180g LP, cut at half-speed at Abbey Road Studios by Miles Showell. All feature artwork and layouts have been created by Simon War.

Pre-order The Roaring Sea.

Hackett & Rothery: The Roaring Waves
1. The Storm
2. Sandsend
3. Red Dragon
4. The Roaring Waves
5. K-129
6. The Black Sea
7. Pacific Coast Highway

Norwegian prog rockers Green Carnation have announced the third part of their epic A Dark Poem trilogy of albums, The Messiah Complex, will be released through Season of Mist on September 4.

And the band have shared their first new music from the album with the release of a video for new single, Unconditional Artificial Chemistry.

“A Dark Poem is by far our biggest achievement since Light of Day, Day of Darkness”, Green Carnation vocalist Kjetil Nordhus says. “Our new album trilogy returns to the epic storytelling that put us on the map back in 2001. While the reception to Part I and Part II has been overwhelmingly positive for us, we do believe that Part III saves the best for last. The Messiah Complex ties the whole story together with our most uncompromising statement to date."

“The intention behind A Dark Poem was to build a completely new musical universe”, Green Carnation bassist and primary lyricist Stein Roger Sordal says. “While the direction revealed itself as the creative journey unfolded, The Messiah Complex was carefully planned with a clear vision for where we wanted the story to end. Our goal was for all three parts to stand on their own, but Part III brings them all together into a unified whole."

“The video for Unconditional Artificial Chemistry tells a meta story about the danger of artificial intelligence”, Nordhus continues. “We all know, if we are being honest with ourselves, that A.I. is going to take control of our lives. There are powerful people who stand to profit from it and that makes its takeover inevitable.

"The video shows this happening before our eyes. As soon as the A.I. takes control, our likeness is corrupted. Before the song is even finished, we’re completely destroyed."

A Dark Poem, Part III: The Messiah Complex will be available as a CD digipack, in various coloured vinyl formats with a gatefold sleeve, and there will also be a limited edition A Dark Poem, Part I-III Colored LP Box Set (includes demos and outtakes)/.

Green Carnation will perform all three parts of A Dark Poem at a special live show at the Kilden Performing Arts Centre in their hometown of Kristiansand in Norway.

Pre-order A Dark Poem, Part III: The Messiah Complex.

Get tickets for the Kirstiansand show.

Green Carnation: A Dark Poem, Part III: The Messiah Complex
1. Unconditional Artificial Chemistry
2. The Messiah Complex
3. Broken Souls, Common Enemies
4. A Dark Poem - Orchestral Suite

Deep Purple have released another new single from their upcoming album Splat! The supercharged Guilt Trippin' envisages a conversation between God and Charles Darwin, the pair sharing a pint or two as they reflect on how things on Earth have not exactly worked out as intended.

"The song starts, and I’m in the studio," says Gillan. "I don’t have any words for it yet. So I just start screaming. It was the pure joy of yelling it.

"I vowed when I was 40 that I’d stop screaming by the time I was 60. Now I’m looking back and thinking, ‘Whatever happened to that?’ So we’ll give it a go."

Guilt Trippin' follows the release of first single Arrogant Boy in May, and Diablo earlier this month, and is accompanied by a video in which a fly and a sycamore-seed spaceship embark on a wild ride through an increasingly surreal landscape.

Splat!, which is produced by regular collaborator Bob Ezrin, will be released on July 3 and is available to pre-order now.

Deep Purple's 2026 world tour is currently on the road in Europe, with North American shows scheduled for August and September. Further European dates follow, climaxing in a run of UK shows in November. Full dates below.

Ian Gillan has also just announced a series of spoken word dates. The Talking Gib'rish UK tour will commence on April 28 next year at the Bournemouth Pavilion, and come to an end on May 29 at London's Cadogan Hall.

Deep Purple are on the cover of the new issue of Classic Rock, which is out now. Inside, they talk about the making of Splat!

Also available is the Deep Purple X Classic Rock bundle edition, which includes the new issue, a numbered print and a set of postcards, and Splat! on double yellow vinyl.

Deep Purple tour dates

Jun 24: Mönchengladbach SparkassenPark, Germany
Jun 27: Coburg Open Air, Germany
Jun 28: Ulm Klosterhof Wiblingen, Germany
Jul 04: Gredos Músicos en la Naturaleza, Spain
Jul 05: Pamplona Navarra Arena, Spain
Jul 09: Málaga Starlite, Spain
Jul 10: Cádiz Tío Pepe, Spain
Jul 16: Pisa Summer Knights, Italy
Jul 17: Este Music Festival, Italy
Jul 19: München Tollwood Festival, Germany

Aug 04: Raleigh Red Hat Amphitheater, NC
Aug 08: Clearwater The BayCare Sound, FL
Aug 09: Hollywood Hard Rock Casino, FL
Aug 12: Wantagh Jones Beach Theater, NY
Aug 13: Mansfield Xfinity Center, MA
Aug 15: Halifax Scotiabank Centre, NS
Aug 17: Laval Place Bell, QC
Aug 18: Toronto RBC Amphitheatre, ON
Aug 19: Ottawa Canadian Tire Center, ON
Aug 21: Detroit Pine Knob, MI
Aug 22: Salamanca Seneca Allegany Casino, NY
Aug 24: Indianapolis Everwise Amphitheatre, IN
Aug 25: Highland Park Ravinia, IL
Aug 27: Prior Lake Mystic Lake Casino, MN
Aug 29: Winnipeg Canada Life Centre, MB
Aug 31: Calgary Scotiabank Saddledome, AB
Sep 02: Abbotsford Abbotsford Centre, BC
Sep 04: Lincoln Thunder Valley, CA
Sep 05: Mountain View Shoreline Amphitheatre, CA
Sep 06: Highland Yaamava Theatre, CA
Sep 08: Chula Vista North Island Credit Union Amp, CA
Sep 10: Las Vegas Planet Hollywood, NV
Sep 11: Long Beach Long Beach Amphitheater, CA
Sep 12: Sparks Nugget Event Center, NV

Sep 29: Sofia 8888 Arena, Bulgaria
Oct 01: Cluj BT Arena, Romania
Oct 02: Budapest Laszlo Papp Arena, Hungary
Oct 04: Bratislava Tipos Arena, Slovakia
Oct 05: Vienna Stadthalle, Austria
Oct 07: Prague O2 Arena, Czechia
Oct 08: Lodz Atlas Arena, Poland
Oct 10: Belgrade Stark Arena, Serbia
Oct 11: Skopje Boris Trajkovski Arena, Macedonia
Oct 13: Athens Telekom Centre Arena, Greece
Oct 16: Zurich Hallenstadion, Switzerland
Oct 17: Milan Unipol Forum, Italy
Oct 19: Barcelona Sant Jordi Club, Spain
Oct 22: Paris Adidas Arena, France
Oct 23: Antwerp Lotto Arena, Belgium
Oct 25: Copenhagen Royal Arena, Denmark
Oct 26: Stockholm Avicii Arena, Sweden
Oct 28: Oslo Spektrum Arena, Norway
Oct 29: Gothenburg Scandinavium, Sweden
Oct 31: Leipzig QI Arena, Germany
Nov 01: Hamburg Sporthalle, Germany
Nov 03: Dortmund Westfalenhalle, Germany
Nov 04: Berlin Uber Arena, Germany
Nov 06: Frankfurt Festhalle, Germany
Nov 07: Nuremberg Arena, Germany
Nov 09: Amsterdam Ziggodome, Netherlands
Nov 10: Strasbourg Zenith, France
Nov 12: Bordeaux Arkéa Arena, France
Nov 13: Nantes Zenith, France
Nov 15: Lyon LDLC Arena, France
Nov 18: Newcastle Utilita Arena, UK
Nov 19: Glasgow OVO Hydro, UK
Nov 21: Birmingham BP Pulse Arena, UK
Nov 22: Manchester AO Arena, UK
Nov 24: London Eventim Apollo, UK
Nov 25: London Royal Albert Hall, UK

Find Deep Purple tickets.

Halestorm singer/guitarist Lzzy Hale has lent her voice to a new cover of Soundgarden’s 1989 single Loud Love, also featuring Testament, Metal Allegiance and ex-Pearl Jam members.

The track, released today (June 23), is the latest offering from King Ultramega, a tribute project to late Soundgarden, Audioslave and Temple Of The Dog frontman Chris Cornell led by Metal Allegiance bassist/founder Mark Menghi. Joining Hale and Menghi on the single is Testament’s Alex Skolnick on guitar and drummer Dave Krusen, formerly of Soundgarden’s Seattle scenemates Pearl Jam.

Proceeds from the release, as with King Ultramega’s past singles, go to mental health charity MusiCares. Listen below.

Hale says of the new song: “I feel like I’m always learning something from Chris. Every few years I’ll discover something deeper in his lyrics, or higher in his range. But there is an authenticity that comes with Chris that can’t be taught or trained for. I believe every word he writes. I’m inspired by his control over his animalistic vocal range, and his poetry, but also how honestly he sings.”

Menghi adds: “If you listen to the OG version of Loud Love, Chris’ vocals are just absolute insanity and who better than Lzzy to tackle this? Lzzy has complete vocal dominance, carries such a strong presence and quite frankly is one of the best vocalists in modern rock today.”

Krusen also comments: “Seattle was a very turbulent place in the late 80s and early 90s, and I think the best thing to come out of it was all the great music. I was a huge Soundgarden fan.

“I got to meet Chris and Matt [Cameron, drums] when we (Pearl Jam) were working on [1991 debut album] Ten and they were working on Temple Of The Dog. It was a huge thrill for me. The fact that I was asked to be a part of this King Ultramega record was a huge honour. I was very intimidated to try and tackle the drum parts in Loud Love, but the guys I was recording with made it no pressure and a lot of fun.”

Cornell, who co-founded Soundgarden in 1984, died at the age of 52 on May 18, 2017, while touring North America with the band. Menghi set up King Ultramega in October 2020, when he released a cover of Soundgarden’s Rusty Cage featuring singer William DuVall from Alice In Chains, also of the Seattle alt-rock scene, plus Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante and Mastodon guitarist Bill Kelliher.

The project then lay dormant for a short while, before signing a deal with Reigning Phoenix Music. They’ve since released a series of Cornell covers and hope to corral them into a studio album. Other musicians to have joined in on the project include ex-Arch Enemy singer Alissa White-Gluz, Joe Satriani and Soundgarden guitarist Kim Thayil.

Menghi spoke about his affinity for Cornell during an interview with Hammer last year.

“I was a pre-teen when I came across [Soundgarden’s 1988 debut album] Ultramega OK at a record store in Long Island,” he said. “Since finding that cassette, Chris has been one of the few musical constants that I can remember. It’s his voice – he’s the voice, right? – but also his songwriting. I always felt connected to the things he was saying.”

Despite the new single, no update has been given on the status of King Ultramega’s as-yet-unannounced debut album.

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! This week we've got six more new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

The return of math rockers a-tota-so and their new single Death Rattle Soaper, ran out triumphant last week, well done guys! A very respectable second place to Brighton prog metal trio Redshift, with Haken coming in third.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it?

The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post. Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

NORTH SEA ECHOES - ENJOY THE VIEW

North Sea Echoes is the Fates Warning offshoot featuring guitarist Jim Matheos and vocalist Ray Alder. Musically, the band's 2024 debut, Really Good Terrible Things, steered a different course from Fates, dipping into more atmospheric post-rock. Second album, How To Cast A Shadow, which is out through Metal Blade on September 24, bridges the gap between the two.

"This record is a bit heavier, with several more songs featuring real drums, played by Dennis Leeflang," explains Matheos. "It wasn‘t necessarily intentional or planned, just the way things shaped up and how they emerged this time.”

"[A track like] I‘ll Leave A Light On is much heavier than anything on Really Good Terrible Things," adds Alder. "It has a darker, melancholic feel that fits well on this album. I loosely based the lyrics on a character from my favourite sci-fi series. I won't say which, but they do use the quote ’out there in the black.‘”

ARTHUR BROWN - NATURE

Even at 83-years old, there's a sprightly feel to Arthur Brown's new single, Nature. You can almost hear the twinkle in the God Of Hellfire's eye, even. Nature is also the title track of Brown's upcoming album, which is released through Prophecy Productions on September 4.

"This is a time of confusion and choice", muses Brown. "Deep inside us is a consciousness, which is the basis of everything. Can we find a way to know ourselves as being it? At the moment all our social structures, our laws, education system, everything in our culture are no longer using the parts of our brain that can care for the world in its totality. From this comes our discomfort in our living. All our problems arise from this dualistic world image. We need to find a way to stand before this 'consciousness' and drop all our current 'answers'."

CINDER WELL - BEYOND THE PALE

Fans of Mackenzie Crook's recent and quite excellent TV series Small Prophets will recognise the name Cinder Well, as she provided the theme tune, in keeping with the acid folk musical vibe that Crook is clearly a fan of and features in much of his work. LA-based songwriter, composer, and multi-instrumentalist Amelia Baker is the face behind Cinder Well, and she releases her new album, A Blooming Body, through Hen House Studios on July 17, from which comes Beyond The Pale.

"A hangover, a break-up, a migraine, a confessional, this song features the legendary Greg Cohen (Tom Waits, John Zorn) on bass, alongside my dear friend Phillip Rogers (Hayley Hendrickx) on drums," says Baker. "The music video concept came to me in a dream, and as I relayed it aloud in the morning, I figured it was weird enough to actually try. Thanks to Cheech for making the video come to life, and for running around Los Angeles carrying a box full of water with me."

OUTRUN THE SUNLIGHT - PROTECTOR

US prog metal quintet Outrun The Sunlight return with a brand new single, Protector, which the band are calling "the beginning of a new era" for the band. It certainly packs in a lot into its seven minutes and twenty-one seconds, covering quite a few musical bases, from atmospheric prog rock to no-nonsense metalcore assault, touching on most bases in between. Some of the more aggressive vocals might be a bit much for those with more sensitive ears, but we're digging the sound.

"The song explores themes of resilience, responsibility, and becoming a source of strength for others during difficult times," the band say. "Musically, it draws from progressive metal, post-rock, and modern metalcore, resulting in what we believe is our most focused and emotionally direct material to date."

ALEX HENRY FOSTER - SPRINGTIME

Canadian musician Alex Henry Foster has shared a video for their brand-new single, Springtime. It's the first taster for the band's upcoming album, The Fragile Beauty (Of New Morning Hopes), which will be released through Hopeful Tragedy Records on October 23. Foster and his band will be touring Europe, but sadly not the UK, in November and December, before which he headlines Festival Taragalte, a nomadic music and culture festival held annually in the sand dunes of M'Hamihd El Ghizlane in Morocco.

“The song echoes the late Palestinian poet and writer Mahmoud Darwish’s references about the metaphoric nature of spring as the juxtaposing struggle between our personal faith in the profound longing for intangible evolution and the collective desire to experience a palpable long-awaited rebirth,” explains Foster.

UNTOLD STORIES - PALE HORIZONS

Untold Stories are a Bulgarian progressive and art rock band formed in late 2022. The band released their debut album, Wind And Memories, in early 2025, and Pale Horizons is a brand-new single that begins the cycle for the band's second album, which they hope to release in Spring 2027. Like the debut, it will form part of a bigger conceptual piece. Watch this space..

“Pale Horizons is an atmospheric, introspective progressive/art-rock piece built on cold textures, evolving motifs and cinematic minimalism," the band say. "The track explores themes of distance, memory and inner landscapes — those moments when the world feels stretched, distant and almost suspended in time."

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! This week we've got six more new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Congratulations to Voyage 35, whose new reworking of Porcupine Tree's Even Less walked off with the honours last week. A terrific showing from Scottish proggers Long Earth, who pushed them all the way and came second, with Gentle Giant's new video for Way Of Life in third place.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

HAKEN - BLEEDING SKY

Leading UK prog rockers have shared their second piece of music since guitarist Charlie Griffith and bassist Conner Green departed last year. Once again, Periphery multi-instrumentalist and producer du jour Adam 'Nolly' Getgood, handles bass on bleeding sky (styled lower-case, before the Grammar police start up!), another brooding slice of modern progressive rock.

The band have also just announced a headlining European tour, although no bassist has yet been announced for the live dates, and one assumes founding guitarist Richard Henshall will handle all guitar duties. “We're really excited to bring this music to the stage. We've been putting together a brand new show and can't wait to return to Europe for it," the band say. Here's hoping for UK dates in 2027.

A-TOTA-SO - DEATH RATTLE SOAPER

Great to see and hear the return of the math-rock trio a-tota-so, who will release their new album, I Told You So, through bUTTONpUSHER Records on September 4. The band have shared a couple of singles from the new album already, and here the track Death Rattle gets a great remix as Death Rattle Soaper.

“We're really excited to release this album and let you all hear the new music we've been working on as we enter the next chapter of this silly little band," a-tota-so say. "I really enjoyed taking on the vocal duties this time round, and it's been really exciting figuring out my own voice for the first time since my teenage years in early bands. Lyrically, it's a pretty miserable album at times, dealing with anxiety, depression and the state of the world we're living in, but there is definitely a message of hope conveyed in there that things can and will get better if we just stay strong. Hopefully, people will enjoy the direction we've headed and find something in here to enjoy without us completely abandoning our roots altogether. There's still plenty going on in there for the die-hards.”

POLYPHIA - CAN YOU FEEL IT

Genre-bending US instrumental US quartet Polyphia are back with a great new single, but they're currently not saying too much about it. The video for Can You feel It comes with the warning: "This video contains content that may be disturbing to some viewers. Viewer Discretion advised." Just looking at the thumbnail, we can see why!

Musically, it mixes complex guitar work with incendiary technical guitar work, as you'd expect, with the usual array of genre-busting samples. You can even dance to it. We're expecting more announcements next week...

RODRIGO Y GABRIELA - MONSTER

Some may raise an eyebrow at the inclusion of Rodrigo Y Gabriela in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, but then they'd probably be raising an eyebrow at anything and everything! Anyone who's ever heard the duo's spectacular version of Pink Floyd's Echoes will know that something proggy lurks within the instrumental duo's work, and thus it is here with Monster from their upcoming album, OurHome, out September 18 on ATO Records. If we still ran The Outer Limits feature they'd be ripe for an interview. We hope you dig it...

“Monster is such a deep, philosophical story - it’s about a psychopathic killer, but it’s so uplifting and leaves you with a real sense of hope,” says Gabriela Quintero. “We’d written that track without knowing that Urasawa was a fan of ours, and now he’s made the video for us.”

IF THESE TREES COULD TALK - SEA OF GLASS

The Ohio-based post-rockers If These Trees Could Talk return with their first new studio album for a decade when they share their latest album, The Hidden Hand, through Metal Blade Records on July 10. The shimmering Sea Of Glass shows they've lost none of their knack of penning emotive and uplifting music that continues to make you wonder how four men can create such an expansive sound.

"Sea Of Glass offers a smooth optimistic post-rock landscape guided by uplifting clean guitars and heavy chorus hooks which pay off with a haunting and explosive resolution," the band say.

REDSHIFT - THE CLOWN

Redshift are a Bath-based prog metal trio who will release their third studio album, Down The Wire, on May 29 through Pale Wizard Records. The band blend heavy technical passages with more direct progressive and melodic styles, which is more than evident on The Clown. The upcoming album also features contributions from Derek Sherinian. Given the band formed back in 2017, inspired by the likes of Dream Theater, Opeth and Rush, that's good going!

"While he grows increasingly disturbed, society carries on unquestioningly, entertained, distracted, and algorithmically sedated," lyricist, bassist and vocalist Liam Fear explains. "People perform their lives rather than live them, guided invisibly by recommendation feeds, engagement metrics, and behavioural nudges. Individuality becomes performance, and performance becomes compliance. The Clown reflects his frustration and isolation, watching humanity laugh, scroll, and dance on command, never realising the strings are digital."

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! This week we've got seven new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Big congratulations to Bristol art rock quartet Sans Froid, whose Pros And Constants won out last week, after a good to and fro battle with prog duo Candacraig, and with Leeds alt.proggers Koyo Bloom in third place.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

VOYAGE 35 - EVEN LESS

Porcupine Tree offshoot Voyage 35, former bassist Colin Edwin and live guitarist John Wesley, joined by Edwin's O.R.k. colleague, keyboard player Lorenzo Esposito Fornasari, better known as 'Lef', and drummer Alessandro Vagnoni, will take their live show of earlier P-Tree material, the band tend not to play these days, around Europe and the UK in September. The band have given us a teaser already with their take on The Nostalgia Factory, originally featured on the band's 1992 debut album, On The Sunday Of Life. And now they've tackled Even Less from 1999's Stupid Dream.

“This is no idle thought; this is a chance to re-explore and re-immerse ourselves fully in a set of material that many people have expressed a desire to hear and see live again," says Edwin. "With a view to both honouring and elevating the original spirit, with a fresh new energy, a few new flavours and some serious talent alongside us.”

GENTLE GIANT - WAY OF LIFE

It's not often we have a band of such rich heritage as Gentle Giant in TOTW, but they've just announced a remixed and remastered version of their 1973 album, In A Glass House, which will be released through Madfish Records on July 31. And the band kindly created a brand new video for the jaunty Way Of Life, from that fifth studio album. So here we are...

“When we made In a Glass House, we were pushing ourselves musically and creatively in every direction,” says singer Derek Shulman of the upcoming reissue. “Hearing the recordings again and being able to remix them with today’s technology has revealed details and textures that were always there but never fully heard. We wanted to present In a Glass House the way we always hoped it could sound, clearer, more dynamic, and true to the original vision. The detail in the performances really comes through in this new mix."

MASTODON - YOUR GHOST AGAIN

US prog metallers Mastodon have released their first new music since the departure and subsequent tragic death of guitarist Brent Hinds. Accompanied by a trippy new video, Your Ghost Again serves as a tribute to the band's former member while at the same time introducing new members, Candian prog guitarist Nick Johnstone and keyboardist João Nogueira. It's good to have them back...

“For me, Your Ghost Again is about when you lose somebody that’s close to you that you existed with for most of your life—or your whole life,” drummer and vocalist Brann Dailor says. “It’s those moments when you’re in those familiar places that you’ve always been with that person, and then, after they’re gone, you see them out of the corner of your eye, and it makes you sad because they’re not there. When we were in the studio recording, I kept seeing Brent. I’d see him on my right holding the guitar because that’s where he’d usually be. It’s the same with my mom: I keep seeing her. And you get a little jolt of excitement because you think you’re actually seeing them, but then you remember they’re not here and it takes you down a notch. So, it’s these big relationships for me that became the subject matter of the song. I was just singing about what I was seeing, and I was seeing ghosts.”

LONG EARTH - BREATHLESS

Scottish prog rockers Long Earth have announced that they will release their fourth album, Towards The Sky, through Bareneko on June 27. The band have also shared a video for brand new track, Breathless. It will be the band's first album with vocalist Maaike Siegerist and drummer Kenny McCabe.

"Some of the tracks are inspired by astronomy and space exploration – and they sound like it with Mike's amazing keyboard sounds and Renaldo's atmospheric guitars," says Siegerist. "More metaphorically, the title also refers to us, humans, pushing beyond our limitations."

Keyboardist Mike Baxter adds: "I'm really happy with how it has turned out. In my opinion, this is our best album to date."

PELAGIC UNITED AND FRIENDS - SOON

As Pelagic Records, the German new prog and post-rock label headed by Robin Stapps of The Ocean, gears up for its annual celebration of both the label and the music it revolves around with PelagicFest in August, the label has also put together a special compilation album, The Dungeon Tapes, to celebrate its output.

Opening the compilation is Pelagic United And Friends, a project consisting of members from Spotlights, Rosetta, Failure, Shy Low and Hiroe, who have come together to record a version of My Bloody Valentine’s Soon. " Turning the shoegaze into spaciousness and ethereality into brutal impact, this classic track sees a strikingly direct, darker and emotionally raw interpretation," the label says.

DITCH THE DEMON - ONE KISS

Hastings psych/prog rockers Ditch The Demon have shared their first new music from their upcoming second album, Hail The Fallen, which will be out in September, with a video for One Kiss. The band have been called "East Sussex's answer to Blood Ceremony," by Prog Magazine's Grant Moon, no less, and draw inspiration from bands such as seminal US psych rockers Coven, which is cool woth us!

"This new track leans upon sultry blues while still encapsulating the band’s signature heavy goth/prog sound," the band say. "The video was filmed in the band’s home town of Hastings with help from prog super-fan Mike Burgess."

JOHN BASSETT - ORNAMENTS & FIGURINES

It's been a while since we heard any new music from Arcade Messiah and KingBathmat's John Bassett, but he's back with a new five-track EP, Simon Says, whch is out now, and from which comes Ornaments & Figurines. The new EP is available to stream in full & to buy/download; it is free (pay what you want) - from Bassett's Bandcamp page here: https://johnbassett.bandcamp.com/album/simon-says-ep-24-bit-hd-audio.

"It should appeal to those who enjoyed the progressive long-format songs of KingBathmat and Arcade Messiah," says Bassett.

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! This week we've got seven new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

So former Haken keyboardist Diego Tejeida and his band Temic won out over Haken in last week's TOTW showdown, with Temic's live version of Paradigm romping home as winner. Haken's new single could only muster secind place, with Chantelle Smith and Richard Wileman in a very respectable third.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

THE OCEAN - LIGHT POLLUTION

German heavy proggers The Ocean unveil a brand new line-up as they announce that they will release their next studio album, Solaris, through Pelagic Records on September 25. The album is based on late Soviet filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky’s masterpiece of the same name. The new album also features Tangerine Dream's Thorsten Quaeschning guesting on modular synthesisers. Epic, near-ten-minute new single, Light Pollution, hints at the diversity of the new album.

“We’ve witnessed several communication revolutions throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, but have we actually become any better at communicating?” comments mainman Robin Staps. “Has there really been forward movement, or has the motion been orbital — have we merely been treading water? Light pollution symbolises the transparency of the postmodern age, permeating everything and everyone. Everything is constantly visible; we’ve lost the darkness to hide in, and with the relentless glare of communication, we’ve also lost our privacy.”

GREEN CARNATION - LONELINESS UNTOLD, LONELINESS UNFOLD

Green Carnation bassist and primary lyricist Stein Roger Sordal steps up to the mic for the band's latest single, Loneliness Untold, Loneliness Unfold, a plaintive ballad taken from the band's A Dark Poem, Part II: Sanguis, released earlier this year and the second in their ambitious A Dark Poem trilogy of releases. Featuring just Sordal's vocals and a sombre guitar melody that unwinds like the slow passage of time, this is a spellbinding if starkly harrowing piece of music.

"Obviously, this song is about loneliness, but more specifically, it's about watching a very good and close friend gradually shut himself off from the rest of the world", Sordal says. "It's about sitting on the sidelines, watching it happen, and not being able to do anything about it."

EYRE LLEW - BLOOM

Appearing on Prog's radar for the first time, Nottingham band Eyre Llew have been described as "Britain's answer to Sigur Rós", which is some praise, and hopefully won't become an albatross around their collective necks. That said, there are certainly some similarities with the sweetly high-pitched, keening vocals and richly melodic ambient style of post-rock. They release their second album, Bloom, on September 18 and play a hometown show highlighting new. material from the album on the next night. Definitely ones to watch.

“It’s about the moment everything slowed down, and we chose something real — love, home, and growth — instead of just motion,” the band explain. “It’s the sound of things finally taking root.”

A PERFECT CIRCLE - STARLESS

US proggers A Perfect Circle celebrate the dawn of their European tour with the release of this brand new single, Starless. The tour kicks off with two dates at London's Brixton Academy, and the band will be performing the new track live

“Absolutely chuffed to debut this new track on stage in the UK,” says singer Maynard James Keenan. “Of course, I’m excited to release the recordings, but our songs always take on an expanded personality once we start playing them live.

“Some songs get kicked around and massaged for years,” adds guitarist and producer Billy Howerdel. “But once in a while, one takes shape quickly, as if it had been there all along.”

CANDACRAIG - SUMMERFOLK

UK folk prog duo Candacraig's new single, Summerfolk, is a beauty. It's the title track of an upcoming EP which will be released later this summer, and plays up the band's proggier sound with its brooding air, gradual build, and even an undercurrent of something darker, while Sharron Cannings delivers a dramatic vocal. "Summerfolk was written about the loss of a dear friend," she tells Prog.

You can catch the band at this year's Soundle Festival, which if course, takes place next weekend, June 5-7, at the Queen Victoria Hall in Oundle, along with the likes of Stuckfish, The Blackheart Orchestra, Haze, That Joe Payne, Spriggan Mist and loads more...

SANS FROID - PROS AND CONSTANTS

Bristol art rock quartet Sans Froid are gearing up for the release of their second album, Back To The Womb, through Church Road Records on June 26. For the video for the third and final single ahead of the album, Pros And Contants, you'll find them jumping up and down on a beach to their intricately knotty rhythms and crunchy guitar work. Which, we have to admit, looks like a hell of a lot of fun!

"Pros And Constants… Working really hard at stuff you’re shit at, but doing it because you got bills to pay and then being like, actually nahhhhh I’m bored af so I’m gonna start something else again, but what am I even good at though," the band explain. "Fuck knows to be honest! Lots of just like, focusing on the stuff you can’t do instead of being happy with / recognising the stuff you can do."

KOYO BLOOM - DISCIPLINE

KoyoBloom is the new iteration of Leeds alt.proggers Koyo, who release their new album Distance, their first album with the new name, imminently. New single Discipline is a breezy affair with summery vocals against an acoustic guitar and keyboard backdrop, which mixes psych and prog with definite Neil Young elements too. Back in the days when radio occasionally played good music, this is what might have been called a "sleeper hit".

“The main theme of Discipline is this idea of having your time stolen — not wanting to look back and feel like life was spent endlessly clearing notifications, always immediately accessible, always available. It’s about the discipline it takes to lead a happy life," the band say. "It’s also about the weightlessness of meeting someone who respects your space and presence — where you don’t feel possessed, just free. Reclaiming time, connection, and autonomy.”

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! We've got six new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Congratulations to New Delhi proggers Antariksh, whose single Iltija won last week's Tracks Of The Week, with a bit of help from Liverpudlian six-stringer Jack Gardiner. US prog rockers Earthside came second, with fellow Americans, alt.proggers Shearwater in third place.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

HAKEN - IN A FEVER DREAM

UK prog rockers Halen have shared their first new music for three years, with their epic new seven-minute-plus single, In A Fever Dream. It's the band's first new music since the release of their Fauna album in 2023 and the departure of guitarist Charlie Griffiths and bassist Conner Green earlier this year.

The band has enlisted bassist Bryan Beller from respected prog instrumentalists The Aristocrats to play on the new single and has also worked with a producer for the very first time, namely George Lever, who has worked with Sleep Token and Loathe. Haken will return to the live stage on September 27 to headline Euroblast Festival in Germany

CHANTELLE SMITH AND RICHARD WILEMAN - WHEEL OF FORTUNE

Karda Estra's ever-industrious Richard Wileman has teamed up with folk singer Chantelle Smith to record a new folk horror album, Samhain Tree, which will be released through No Image via Bandcamp as a download and Elasticstage on CD and vinyl on June 8. And they've recorded a suitably eerie video to accompany first single, Wheel Of Fortune, complete with glimpses of Avebury, to enhance the folk horror vibe perfectly...

"We first worked together when Chantelle contributed to my solo 2024 album The Forked Road," Wileman says. "Those sessions went really well and it just felt a great idea to continue working together and start creating a new set of wyrd folk songs and instrumentals that encompassed our interests in experimental ambient improvisations and storytelling."

PRINCE OF FAILURE - JADED MANTRA

For the uninitiated, Prince Of Failure is the pairing of TesseracT singer Daniel Tompkins and Chimp Spanner's Paul Ortiz, and the pair will release their self-titled debut album through Kscope Records on June 19. The collaboration sees the pair moving on from past work, and musically features spacious arrangements, electronic textures and powerful guitar alongside intimate, close-mic vocals, creating a strong sense of immediacy without sacrificing the dynamic scope associated with Tompkins’ progressive background and work with TesseracT.

"The closing song - a mantra of resignation and rebirth," the pair say. "This is the point of full acceptance: the Prince and I become one. The old self dies so that the integrated self may live."

TEMIC - PARADIGM

For the uninitiated, multi-national prog band Temic feature former Haken keyboard plaer Diego Tejeida, Neal Morse Band guitarist Eric Gillette, Maraton 22 singer Fredrik Bergersen and Shining drummer Simen Sandnes, and they released their impressive debut album, Terror Management Theory , through Season Of Mist back in 2023.

Now they've shared a live video of the anthemic Paradigm, recorded live at Zoetermeer's De Boederij venue last year, and if this doesn't make you seek out their album, if you've not done so already, your ears need testing! Some killer vocal interplay between Bergersen and Gillette!

REVEALING CHAOS - DARK SIDE

Italian prog rock trio Revealing Chaos formed back in 2021 over a love of bands like Rush, Fates Warning and Ayreon, and features Andrej Surace on guitar (ex-Heretic's Dream), Christian Bruno, bass (ex-Destiny) and drummer Daniele Cortese (ex-Fenisia / Heretic's Dream). The catchy The Dark Side is the band's brand new single, released today through Volcano Records & Promotions.

The band released their debut album, Materia, back in 2023 and are gearing up for a second album with the release of both The Dark Side and the previous single, And Sail Away From Here.

DEVIN TOWNSEND - PREPARE FOR WAR/THE BIG SNIT

All the signs are that Devin's upcoming album, The Moth, which is released through InsideOut Music on May 29, is going to be pretty epic. Described as his “life’s work”, there's absolutely no holding back on this new double single, which also features a guest vocal from collaborator Anneke van Giersbergen, which can best be descirbed as full-on prog WITH the kitchen sink!

"This is a track that essentially acts as a ‘soundtrack for an unmade movie’," Devin says. "If you think of it as a ‘song’ it’s not really going to work, but if you think of it as a cinematic ‘experience’ that is representative of the final moments before a ‘fundamental change’, it’s a cool adventure.

"Either viewed from the lens of the ‘war’ being that of two warring factions whose actions have culminated in a ‘final battle’, or the same thing being essentially a metaphor for an internal struggle, it works in the same light. The battle itself can be representative of a decision, loss, change, or whatever. But sitting with the difficulty of life and our natures can often be violent work, so ‘the fastest way out is through’ and this piece of music represents that process. The ending is meant to be a representation of a sort of personal awakening.

"The name The Big Snit was taken from a short cartoon from the Canadian national film board by the same name I grew up with. If you get a chance, look it up on YouTube … I guess my version here is simply a kind of heavy metal version of that.”

SEVEN EYED CROW - WE ALL SHALL FALL

French prog rock quintet Seven Eyed Crow have just released their third full-length album, Emerge, through their own Bandcamp. Formed back in 2012, the band's name references a crow with seven eyes, able to see across seven dimensions—past, present, future, hell, purgatory, paradise, and dream—a concept reflected in their music’s depth and imagination, in case you were wondering.

"We All Shall Fall captures the darker core of the record — a confrontation with collapse, both personal and systemic — translating the album’s themes into a dense, cinematic experience," the band reveal.

UK prog rockers Haken have shared their first new music for three years, with their epic new seven-minute-plus single, In A Fever Dream.

It's the band's first new music since the release of their Fauna album in 2023. The band announced the departure of guitarist Charlie Griffiths and bassist Conner Green at the beginning of this year, stating, "Both Charlie and Conner are irreplaceable, as musicians and individuals, and they have given so much to make this band what it is today", and promising new music.

The new single represents most facets of the band's music, from a slow-building intro with gentle vocals from singer Ross Jennings, building more powerfully and progressively as the music gains momentum, exploding into a powerful and uplifting climax.

The band has enlisted bassist Bryan Beller from respected prog instrumentalists The Aristocrats to play on the new single and have also worked with a producer for the very first time, namely George Lever, who has worked with Sleep Token and Loathe.

Haken will return to the live stage on September 27 to headline Euroblast Festival in Germany.

Yes have shared a new animated video for their latest single, the lively Turnaround Situation. It's taken from the band's upcoming twenty-fourth studio album, Aurora, which the band will release through InsideOut Music/Sony Music on June 12.

“Turnaround Situation came from realising that every time I ignored my conscience, life seemed to fall apart in one way or another," explains singer Jon Davison, who wrote the song. "I’ve taken the wrong road before. Most people have. There’s always a temporary thrill in it, but eventually it catches up with you.

"Writing this song was part confession, part redemption. Ultimately, the song is meant to capture that feeling of finally being at peace with yourself — when, by choosing the high road, you stop fighting what you know deep down is right. The strange thing is, the right road is usually the harder one. It demands more from you. But in the end, it gives something back too: clarity, self-respect, and a kind of inner freedom. I think that’s what everyone’s really chasing underneath it all.”

The new video has been created by Matt Hutchings, who also made the video for Aurora, which you can watch here.

"Making this record was joyful, a chance to play, explore and give everything to the music," adds guitarist and longest-serving band member, Steve Howe. "It's always been about collaboration, somebody can write a song, but until everybody puts their contribution in it, it isn't really a Yes song. We’re not trying to echo the past; we’re carrying the spirit of Yes forward and turning it into something new."

Yes also recently announced that they had rescheduled their postponed UK Fragile tour to May 2027.

Aurora will be available as a limited deluxe 180g light green 2LP+2CD+Blu-ray artbook and poster, as well as a limited deluxe 2CD+Blu-ray artbook, both featuring artwork by Roger Dean and Freya Dean, as well as a bonus disc of instrumentals, and a Blu-ray featuring Dolby Atmos, 5.1 Surround Sound and 24bit stereo mixes (by Curtis Schwartz). The album is also available as a gatefold 180g 2LP + LP-booklet, Special Edition CD Digipak and as a digital album.

Pre-order Aurora.

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! We've got six new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

A huge well done to Dutch progressive rock quintet Iron Jinn! Last week's TOTW was the very first time Prog has mentioned the band and they've only gone and won woth their epix 18-minute long The Futurist. We'll be seeing more of them, we suspect! Chilean proggers Aisles were in second place with Muse in third.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

MONO - GERBERA

Prog was recently staying at a hotel while attending a prog event, and sat listening to the new MONO album when one of the other guests enquired as to what it was. They'd never heard the Japanese post-rockers, or even heard of them, but really enjoyed the music. We write this simply to point out that going beyond your natural comfort zone can reap great rewards and hopefully you'll discover new and good music through things like TOTW. To that end, we hope you enjoy the band's latest single, Gerbera, from the album Snowdrop, out June 12 on Temporary Residence. An album inspired by grief and loss and the flowers that are given to those who have passed.

"The language of flowers for the Gerbera is 'faithful love' and 'cheerfulness'," the band offer. "The countless, precious memories I share with you will never be forgotten. I am so glad that I met you. Innocence, purity, joy, beauty—and I will never forget your smile."

EARTHSIDE - A DYING STAR

US prog rock quartet Earthside have shared a brand new single, A Dying Star, which is the first music from the band since their second album, 2023's very impressive Let The Truth Speak Out. The band recorded the track in Luckchild Studios in Val-David, in Québec, Canada and used the striking scenery they found themselves in as inspiration for their new music. Earthside perform their very first headline show in the UK later this month when they headline London's 229 venue on May 22, the opening night of their European tour.

"A Dying Star is yours," the band state. "With chaotic intensity cranked to the max, A Dying Star bludgeons the senses with the fury of a meteor shower and the heart-wrench of a broken dream."

SHEARWATER - DAYDREAM UNBELIEVER

Shearwater must have been one of the proggiest bands ever to feature on Sub Pop Records, once THE home of grunge music! They might now release their music through their own Polyborus label in partnership with Secretly Distribution, but it remains a thing of progressively imbued beauty. The sweeping new single, Daydream Unbeliever, heralds a new Shearwater album will soon to be upon us; the band release The New World, on July 31.

“If you’re like us, you wake up feeling like the world’s on fire, and hoping you could reckon with it if you knew where to begin,” says mainman Jonathan Meiburg. “Daydream Unbeliever and More And More come from this uneasy place. If they help you feel a little less insane, welcome home.”

WILDERNESSES - [DREAD.]

London post-rock quartet Wildernesses are back with another single, the bouncing [dread.], which is taken from their newly released debut album, Groweth, which the band have released through Floodlit Recordings. Whilst the video for [dread.] presents an unfiltered look into life on the road marked by long drives, endless DIY merch preparation, cramped backstage moments and the deep camaraderie formed between band members, the song explores the anxiety hidden beneath everyday humour, silence and routine.

“[dread.] is a song about ‘the dread’ - anxiety, doom, or whatever name you want to give that feeling," explains vocalist Philip Morris. "The lyrics portray a narrator telling themselves they’re alright and the title’s parentheses are supposed to signify self-minimisation. Self-reflection sits alongside a conversation between two friends remembering drinking tinnies by the River Humber during Hull’s 2007 floods. The narrator reflects that there are worse things happening in the world and that all humans are just getting by - holding aspirations and throwing them away like cans in the mud banks. The song uses flood imagery to mirror men ‘manning up’ and the impact that ignoring emotional responses has over time - the overspill. It’s about striving to accept the feeling, which is an acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) technique that I’ve always been bad at utilising myself.”

HUBRIS - IS

hubris are a Swiss post-rock band who err on the proggier side of things, and who, after four albums rooted in Greek mythology, have turned to Tolkien's equally mythical tome, The Hobbit, for inspiration for their fifth album, White Shores, which the band will release on September 10. "The Hobbit was my very first exposure to literature as a child, and after Peter Jackson's original film trilogy, I became completely obsessed with Middle-Earth,” explains guitarist and composer Jonathan Hohl. New single Is is one of the album's five movements, each representing a word in a single sentence: Death. Is. Just. Another. Path., drawn from Gandalf's words to Pippin in Peter Jackson's film adaptation during what appears to be their last moments.

"The idea for the song started while I was messing around with a reverse delay pedal. I thought the pad-like sound I was getting was extremely soothing, and I hadn’t heard it used as the main focal point of a song before," adds Hohl. "Although at first I wanted to keep it as some sort of interlude rather than a full song, we quickly managed to build around the original idea and ended up taking it to where it is now. A long, ambient and soothing intro with a heavy climax towards the end. Everything that we love in a post-rock song."

ANTARIKSH - ILTIJA

Indian prog rockers Antariksh have teamed up with Liverpool guitarist and solo artist Jack Gardiner for their latest single, Iltija. Taken from the New Delhi band's upcoming concept album Rehguzar, which they will release later this year, while Gardiner's guest spot makes a hat-trick of global guitar collaborations for the band following Marty Friedman and Jakub Zytecki!

“Ever since I wrote and composed Iltija, I knew the song needed a guest guitar solo - someone who could bring a completely new colour and dimension to it, but also break the track wide open, because that’s exactly what that section of the song demanded. I was looking for a guitarist with exceptional phrasing, dynamics and a deep musical vocabulary," says frontman and producer Varun Rajput. "Having followed Jack Gardiner’s work and been a fan of it for nearly five years, I felt he was the perfect fit. I reached out to him through our mutual friend Karan Mehta and voila: he responded instantly and graciously agreed to play on the track. And, boy - did he deliver? It’s an absolute monster of a solo!!!”

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! We've got six new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Congratulations to Tarja, who romped home for her second big TOTW win in a month with I Don't Care. Coming a respectable second were young Mancunian prog rockers VMBRA, and we had our very first ever TOTW tie, with both A.A. Williams and Kristoffer Gildenlöw on the same amount of votes in joint third place

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

MUSE - CRYOGEN

Never ones to shy away from a hefty dose of sci-fi fuelled prog with a tantaslising dash of conspiracy theory thrown in for good measure, Muse's upcoming tenth studio album, The Wow! Signal, which the band release through Warner/Helium 3 on June 26, is named after the tale of a short radio burst detected in 1977 and which was discovered to have originated from the constellation Sagittarius, suggesting a possible extraterrestrial source. The astronomer who discovered the broadcast, Jerry R. Ehman, famously circled the now-iconic sequence “6EQUJ5” and scribbled “WOW!” on the printout beside it, giving the signal its now legendary name.

New single, Cryogen, boasts the kind of spiralling riff that wouldn't have seemed out of place on earlier Muse classics like Plug In Baby and Knights Of Cydonia!

IRON JINN - THE FUTURIST

Dutch progressive rock quintet Iron Jinn are new to us here at Prog, but anyone whose first piece of music sent in is the near 18-minute long The Futurist, you sit up and take notice! The band have pedigree too, made upof members of the much-missed The Devil's Blood, Molassess, Birth of Joy and Shaking Godspeed.

Musically, the band blends a psychedelic version of Steve Reich and 70's jazzer McCoy Tyner, as The Futurist weaves its way through different musical passages. The band will release their as-yet-untitled second album in September of this year. Remember where you heard about them first!

IF THESE TREES COULD TALK - BLURRY CREATURES

Ohio-based post-rockers If These Trees Could Talk will release their first new studio album for a decade when they share their latest album, The Hidden Hand, through Metal Blade Records on July 10. The intensely catchy Blurry Creatures is the band's brand new single.

“As we all get older and our musical tastes evolve, it‘s more of a challenge to keep the sound of the band in a specific lane and not venture too far away from where we originally started," says drummer and band co-founder Zack Kelly. “It‘s almost the same way an orchestra would be set up with the bass guitar covering cello, the rhythm guitars holding down the woodwind section and the lead guitarist covering the strings section. No matter who comes up with a riff or where it starts, the end product must always have these three components present, especially when transitioning from clean to heavy tones.”

RAPHAEL WEINROTH-BROWNE - REFLECTION

Canadian cellist and composer Raphael Weinroth-Browne will return with his third studio album, Empyrean, on September 11, and here shares his first new music from said record. Reflection represents a rockier side to the musician, who will be supporting both Earthside and Einar Solberg on live dates later this year.

“Crushing and relentless, this piece is a reflection of my prog metal influences,” says Weinroth-Browne. “As a cellist, I’m unusual in that bands like Tool and Meshuggah are a more significant part of my musical DNA than composers such as Beethoven or Brahms.

"Reflection is one of the heaviest tracks I’ve released as a solo artist. I wanted it to feel imposing and immutable, like a monolith. Despite the snarling intensity of the insistent chugging riffs and pervading feeling of menace throughout, there is also something very meditative about its repetitiveness, as though it is guiding the listener to an altered state of consciousness amidst the turmoil and chaos.”

HANRY - HER CROWN, HER EMPIRE

French melodic and atmospheric post-rock quintet Hanry have shared a new live video for Her Crown, Her Empire, (filmed at Grabuge in Rennes), the third single taken from their forthcoming debut album What Came From Silence, set for release on May 29 via Pelagic Records

“Since the beginning of Hanry, cinematic imagery has been at the core of our artistic vision,” the band say. “We often compose from mental images, landscapes or scenes that could almost belong to a film. We wanted the album to feel like a continuous experience, something listeners can fully immerse themselves in and interpret in their own way.”

AISLES - LOBSTERS AND ANTS

Chilean prog quintet Aisles may have had a bit of a revolving line-up over recent years, but the current band seem to be settling nicely, if their recent run of singles, Blue Skies and Now Is the Time, are anything to go by. Their latest, the powerful Lobsters And Ants, which builds to represent a harder edge to the band.

"The song reflects on a world driven by madness and chaos. We gave ourselves the freedom to explore the absurd, diving into that space in search of meaning," the band say. "The main riff originated from an idea Daniel (Concha, bass) created during our first composition camp, which became the foundation of the track. The lyrics are surreal and open-ended; they may or may not make sense, leaving space for free interpretation."

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! We've got seven new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Bit of a shock with the result of last week, with Million Moons pipping The Anchoress into second place to take the honours with their mighty fine new single, Black Sun Rising. Well done to the London post-rock quartet. The Anchoress's great new single, I Had A Baby Not A Lobotomy was a very credible second, with Prince Of Failure, the new project featuring TesseracT singer Daniel Tomkins and Chimp Spanner's Paul Ortiz in third, which bodes well for them too.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

VMBRA - A MAN WALKS IN

A recent Limelight band in Prog, Manchester quartet VMBRA (pronounced "umbra") impressed us with a scintillating performance at last year's Bloodstock festival, and we'd say they're easily one of the brightest young prog bands around at the moment, destined for greater things. The classy and confident A Man Walks in is released today and is the first single from the band's debut album, which is due out later this year.

"It tells the story of a man with anterograde amnesia, the inability to form new memories," the band reveal. "It deals with the loss of self over a long period of time, being stuck in the same moment, as the world moves on. It releases with a music video following the story of a man plagued by hauntings he can never remember once they've left his vision."

A.A. WILLIAMS - POISON

London post-rock luminary A.A. Williams will release her latest album, Solstice, through the Reigning Phoenix label on June 5, which means she's now labelmates with the likes of Opeth, Meshuggah and Amorphis. That doesn't mean she's gone all prog metal on us, even if her new single, Poison, builds into something with real bite. She's supporting A Perfect Circle in Europe this summer, as well as appearing at festivals, including an appearance at ArcTanGent here in the UK in August.

“Poison is a song of learning not to fear freedom," she says. "Restraints slowly melt away, you push yourself, you long for more. Recklessness begins to consume reason, limitations are forgotten, euphoria and self-sabotage look like one and the same. Desperate to satisfy the craving, you torch everything you’ve built. As the old world crumbles, and you rise, unafraid.“

CROWN LANDS - BLACKSTAR

Let's face it, it's not been difficult to see that Canadian prog duo Crown Lands have been heavily inspired by their nation's greatest prog export, Rush. But on their new album, Apocalypse, Cody Bowles and Kevin Comeau move forward towards developing a strong identity of their own. That's more than apparent on their latest single, Blackstar, with a stunning accompanying video, which tells another part of the concept behind the new record, out May 15 on InsideOut Music.

“Apocalypse is very much Blackstar’s story: his rise to power within the Syndicate, his violent victories over the Dragon Riders of Karagon, and the crushing loss of his family in the resulting civil war on his home planet," explains Comeau. "The song Blackstar reads like an old-western murder ballad like Marty Robbins’ Big Iron, only through a cosmic space-prog metal lens. It’s a chronicle of Blackstar sweeping through the galaxy, crushing all that lay in his path.”

KRISTOFFER GILDENLOW - THE ALMOSTS

Original Pain Of Salvation bassist, Dutch-based prog rocker Kristoffer Gildenlöw's upcoming album, [Humanised], which he releases on May 29, is very much a prog album. So don't let the fact that the first single, The Almosts, is a song built around only two chords! Using dynamic build-ups and layered melodies and details to keep the listener’s attention, Gildenlöw's lyrics empower outcasts, minorities, and others who tend to fall slightly outside the strict structures of the modern system; people who don’t fit through the square hole. People who are looked down on, frowned upon, or simply ignored and left to the waves.

“Everything has its time and place, and now was the time to write a heavier album," he says. "Some of the songs have been with me for many years, just waiting to be recorded and released… and now I was ready for it.”

TARJA - I DON'T CARE

Tarja's first single from her upcoming album Frisson Noir, the epic ten-minute At Sea, walked away with the Tracks Of The Week when it featured last month. Follow-up I Don't Care is no less impressive, but turns the amps up a bit, and some proggers may recoil at guest vocalist Dani Filth from Cradle Of Filth, who adds, er, atmospheric vocal accompaniment. But if you're a fan of Tarja's grandiose prog metal, you'll lap this up regardless.

"I always believed in my dreams, and I have never allowed anyone to direct my life choices," she says. "I don’t necessarily fit in, but I don’t care. I have always admired how Dani has created a brand and image for his band Cradle of Filth, and for himself, that stand out from the rest. I truly believe he is perfect for this song, where I praise individualism and simply don’t give a shit about what others have to say".

DEVIN TOWNSEND - HOME AT NIGHT

Devin Townsend's vocal prowess has never been in question for those who have seen the Candian prog polymath live in concert. Those that haven't would do well to watch his latest video for Home At Night, which is taken from Townsend's ambitious, orchestral-prog opus The Moth, out May 29 via InsideOutMusic. It's an album over a decade in the making, having existed in the back of Devin Townsend’s mind as his “life’s work”. And it's impressive...

“For the second song we release from The Moth, I present Home at Night," says Townsend. "One of the first pieces written for the project, it came from the difficulty of being away from home with young kids and a family. The video reflects my relationship with the more “drama student” side of my personality, with a healthy dose of the “trolololo guy” aesthetic :)

"Within the arc of The Moth, the song is sung from the point of view of the antagonist on the verge of leaving for battle. The broader story will unfold in time (if people are interested), but at its core, The Moth is a dystopian reflection on transformation—going through the fire to meet ourselves, maintaining equilibrium in difficult moments, and not letting our light fade as the old falls away and the new takes its place.”

LOST IN KYIV - ECLIPSE

French post-rock quartet Lost In Kyiv will release their latest album, We’re All Going To Be Fine, through Pelagic Records on June 19. The album sees the band beefing up their atmospheric sound, a move typified by their latest single, Eclipse, which features some dazzling guitar interplay between Dimitri Denat and Maxime Ingrand.

"Eclipse is a journey through contrasting atmospheres, shifting between light and darkness. The track moves from epic, melodic arrangements highlighted by a beautiful brass section, straight into one of the most violent moments we’ve ever composed. This contrast perfectly represents those dark phases within ourselves, the heavy & destructive thoughts that can sometimes arise within us."

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! We've got seven new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Congratulations to fast-rising Colombian prog rock quartet Argovia whose latest single, Unstoppable, romped home in last week's TOTW, the same week their new album, Primal Repetition, was released. Evergrey came in second with Brighton's School Disco in third place.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

THE ANCHORESS - I HAD A BABY NOT A LOBOTOMY

Prog Award winner The Anchoress returns with her first new music in six years, with I Had A Baby Not A Lobotomy, a pulsing slice of infectious prog pop, performed on Pete Townshend's vintage synth collection. It's the first taste of her upcoming third studio album, As We Once Were, which follows on from 2020's celebrated The Art Of Losing. Chock full of Catherine Anne-Davies' trademark intelligence and sly humour, the new single also features the equally Prog-approved Gwenno on backing vocals.

Davies says the new single is “a tongue-in-cheek litany of all the stupid things people said to me when I had a baby” as well as “an anthem for anyone who has ever been written off for daring to procreate”.

MATT BERRY TRIO - EVERYTHING'S PEACHY PT. 8

Matt Berry's upcoming release is the second in his label Acid Jazz's The Jazz Sessions series, for which he assembled a trio along with long-time collaborators Phil Scragg and Graham Mann and takes a musical journey from Satie to Miles Davis. Everything's Peachy is a 12-part instrumental suite, Pt. 8 of which is here for your listening pleasure, a treat for anyone who likes the proggier end of jazz or a dollop of fusion.

The whole thing has been inspired (as was Gazpacho's recent single, Sky King), by American folk hero Richard 'Beebo’ Russell, who stole a large aircraft with no flight training, performing stunts and manoeuvres, before crashing to his own demise on a deserted island in Puget Soudn near Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, and takes its name from his response to air traffic control.

BLUENECK - MOUTH OF THE SNAKE

Bristol post-rockers Blueneck have returned after a decade away, with their first new studio music since 2016's The Outpost. Mouth Of The Snake is a suitably slow-building slice of ambient-leaning prog music, that resounds with a hauntingly catchy melody that wouldn't be out of place on a Pineapple Thief record. The band announce details of their next album in May. Can't wait...

"It's been a while," mainman Duncan Attwood says. "Today we've released Mouth Of The Snake, taken from the forthcoming new album to be released in the Summer (announcement in May). You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube etc... Let us know what you think... We've missed you."

MILLION MOONS - BLACK SUN RISING

Thanks to a tip from our good friend Béla Alabástrom, we found Black Sun Rising, the brand new single from London post-rock quartet Million Moons sitting in our inbox, and what a joy of a single it is too. The first new music to be released ahead of the band's upcoming and as-yet-untitled third studio album (which will be released through Ripcord Records in the UK), and what a joy it is too, building impressively into a towering crescendo of sound that is definitely most pleasing on the ears.

"This track was inspired by Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, which warns of the impact of humanity’s use of pesticides and other industrial processes on the natural world," the band say. "The title comes from the Danish word for murmuration – “sort sol” – which translates to black sun in English."

MAGENTA - THE EMPRESS

Welsh proggers Magenta have shared the third and final promo video from their brand new album, Tarot, for The Empress. It's Magenta's first new studio album for six years, following on from 2020's Master Of Illusion, and once again, Reed has tweaked the band's sound, this time under the influence of Renaissance, which one can hear in the folkier influences on The Empress, while an infectious little hook really draws the listener in.

"There has been a great reaction to the album," enthuses Reed. "I think because we haven’t released a full album for five years the album has really gained traction. Having worked on it for two years, you never know what people are gonna make of it, but for me it's the most coherent Magenta album from start to finish that we have released. It sounds like one band from start to finish.

“The Empress, is one of my favourite tracks from the album. It really captures the sound of the album, and features an amazing 'one take' guitar solo from Chris Fry. I also do my best Chris Squire impression on bass."

SOEN - AXIS

Swedish prog metallers Soen have always walked a line between progressive finesse and metallic heft as they move away from early Tool and Opeth comparisons to establish their definitive 'Soen sound'. Both worlds collide perfectly on their latest single Axis, which you'll find on their rather good new album, Reliance, and you'll undoubtedly be able to hear it performed live across the UK and EU in November and December when the band will be touring.

“Axis is about the moment when you start to notice that the roles you’re given don’t really belong to you,” explains vocalist Joel Ekelöf. “It’s about stepping beyond that distance we learn to live with, and remembering there’s something stronger underneath it. The fire is already there. The question is if we’re willing to stand closer and follow it together.”

PRINCE OF FAILURE - HORIZON

Prince of Failure is the new collaborative project featuring TesseracT singerDaniel Tompkins and Paul Ortiz from Chimp Spanner, and Horizon is the first new music we've heard from the pair. The new single also features a guest spot from Daedric's Kristyn Hope and is taken from the duo's self-titled debut album, out through Kscope on June 19. If the genre-busting single, blending banging pop, crushing metal and atmospheric prog, is anything to go by, the upcoming album's going to be a real treat.

"Horizon captures the moment where everything feels like it’s collapsing around you, but something inside is still pushing you forward," Tompkins explains. "Within the wider story of the album it marks the beginning of the transformation - the point where the protagonist is forced to confront the weight of his own doubts and the expectations placed on him. Having Kristyn Hope on the track added another emotional dimension; her voice almost feels like a guiding presence cutting through the chaos."

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! We've got eight new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Congratulations to The Prominent Citizens, a US prog quartet from Virginia in the USA, who sent in a video for their new track, Cinnamon, on spec and ended up winning last week's TOTW. Just shows everyone's in with a shot here! Multinational progressive metal/electronic band Playgrounded were second with Swedish melodic post-rock duo Oh Hiroshima third.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

EINAR S0LBERG - VITA FRAGILIS

Leporus frontman Einar Solberg wants to be known as the "most cinematic musician in prog" and he's certainly going the right way about it if new single, Vita Fragilis, is anything to go by. As with the rest of the upcoming album, Vox Occulta, Solberg is backed by the much-sought-after Norwegian Radio Orchestra. Here, he gives vent to his full vocal range, climaxing with the kind of metallic roar that typified early Leprous releases.

"Vita Fragilis was done together with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra," Solberg says. "A cinematic and progressive track with no normal verse/chorus structure, and the longest stretch of harsh vocals I’ve done in a while. Curious how odd time signatures sound with a full symphonic orchestra?”

ARGOVIA - UNSTOPPABLE

Colombian proggers Argovia are already making a bit of a name for themselves with their melodic take on prog. The quartet release their brand new studio album, Primal Repetition, today, and to celebrate, they've released a video for their latest single, the memorable Unstoppable. Moving through themes of life, loss, healing and emotional memory, the new album questions whether we are capable of breaking the cycles that define us - or whether repetition itself becomes a form of reconstruction.

“With Primal Repetition, we challenged our own creative boundaries," says keyboardist Carlos Arminio. "We kept an organic pulse but opened space for more atmosphere, more air and more detail."

“We go deeper into vulnerability and emotion, while allowing even the complex passages to flow naturally,” adds vocalist and guitarist Ani Guillén.

SCHOOL DISCO - MESSIAH OF EVIL

Brighton psych/prog quartet School Disco landed themselves an appearance in our Limelight pages following their debut appearance in Tracks Of The Week. The band are back with the video for their latest single, Messiah Of Evil, which is taken from the band's just-released fourth long-player SDIV, and on whch krautrock pulses away alongside swirling psych guitar.

“The messiah of evil music video is made up of all the great footage we had from the farm road sessions that made up the recording of SDIV, explains vocalist, songwriter and guitarist Rory Lethbridge. "Our friend Akos recorded it, and it was edited by me. Looking back, it’s always great to see the start or genesis of the album and stamp the last video with the seedling that became the album.”

EVERGREY - THE WORLD IS ON FIRE

Although landing with a certain amount of heft, Evergrey's new single, The World Is On Fire, carries with it a more atmospheric prog feel than the full-on sound of 2024's Theories Of Emptiness. It's taken from the Swede's upcoming album, Architects Of A New Weave, out June 5 via Napalm Records. It also introduces the world to the band's new guitarist, former Scar Symmetry man Stephen Platt, who had already been touring with Everygrey as a live guitarist in 2025. He now officially joins as a full-time band member.

"The World Is On Fire was one of those rare songs that reached inside me and articulated feelings I hadn't even fully recognised yet," explains singer Tom Englund. "Once again, our timing, just as with the song Save Us is both haunting and profound. To me, this isn’t just a lament—it’s an uprising. It’s a defiant stand against the forces that thrive on chaos, fear, and silence. They want us scared, quiet, and compliant. But all we want is to raise free-spirited, free-thinking, and independent children who can help build a better world—for us, for them, and for everyone. The devastating lack of compassion and humanity is at the root of everything we see around us. This song isn’t passive acceptance or mere description of our broken reality. It’s us boldly painting a picture of the world we refuse to accept."

MONO - WINTER DAPHNE

Japanese post-rock legends MONO's upcoming album, Snowdrop, is the quartet's thirteenth, but the band didn't fathom working on it without longtime production partner and friend, Steve Albini, who died in 2023, having worked on the band's most recent album, OATH. Up stepped Albini's decades-long friend Brad Wood, who knew the band's creative and technical working process, enlisting a 10-piece orchestra as well as an 8-piece choir for the eight massive pieces that make up Snowdrop, and of which Winter Daphne is a perfect example.

"Without exception, everyone will eventually depart this world and face the parting from their loved ones," the band state. "Through this album, we wished to express our 'eternal gratitude' to those precious people who walked alongside us on the journey of life. We believe this sentiment is the only thing capable of filling the void left in our hearts and easing the profound sorrow and pain of loss.

"Every flower carries its own unique language. For this album, we incorporated the messages imbued in flowers given to those who have passed into the titles of our songs. Our hope is that this album serves as a source of light and hope for those who have lost someone dear."

CRIPPLED BLACK PHOENIX - VAMPIRE GRAVE

Give Vampire Grave a bit of time to get going. The first minute of the new single from Crippled Black Phoenix is typically uncompromising. A miasma of displaced voices swirling around your head before the song kicks into its distinctive groove. The band's forthcoming album, Sceaduhelm, is equally unyielding, and it's out through Season Of Mist on April 17.

"Vampire Grave was the first song we did together for this album," explains Ryan Patterson, who wrote the lyrics. "Justin sent me the music with that working title, and I immediately imagined two immortal lovers, blood junkies on an eternal death trip. It's a barn-burner of a song driven by Justin's drums and guitar, and perfectly completed by Belinda's creepy and beautiful backing vocals. It's one of my favourite vocal performances, and I'm excited for people to hear it."

HEDVIG MOLLESTAD WEEJUNS - DYNAMAX

Hedvig Mollestad Weejuns, the Norwegian jazz rock guitarist's trio alongside Elephant 9 keyboardist Ståle Storløkken and drummer Ole Mofjell, get all King Crimson-style atonal on their new single, Dynamax, a spriralling and complex instrumental piece taken from the band's new album, Bitches Blue, which is released through Rune Grammofon on April 17.

“Weejuns is all about interplay,” explains Mollestad. “Bitches Blues consists of six instrumental tracks, or stretches of music, with an extreme range of dynamics. Some are based around hefty beats, while other tracks are far more lyrical and rubato. It ranges from riff-based rock-ish stuff, to loud chaos, to melancholy ballads and even totally free improvisations.”

PORT NOIR - BURST

Swedish prog trio Port Noir are back with a blast of new single, Burst. It's taken from the band's upcoming fifth studio album, The Dark We Keep, which is released through InsideOut Music on May 15. The new single collates the different facets of the band's sound - rich melody, atmospheric prog and grittier, more in-your-face moments in style. A tasty appetiser for the main dish.

"What if it all bursts?," the band ask. "That question stayed with us while writing this track, and it naturally found its place on The Dark We Keep. As a band, we kept coming back to the idea of what we choose to hold onto. The things that only exist because we keep them in the dark. With Burst, it’s about reaching that point where holding on isn’t enough anymore. A breaking point where everything we’ve kept contained starts to push outward. On this record, it sits right at that edge, where the weight finally turns into pressure, and you can feel it about to give.“

New York fantasy doom metallers Castle Rat have launched a video for Siren, one of the highlights of their second album, The Bestiary. The track is the fourth single drawn from the album, following in the medieval footsteps of Wizard, Wolf I and Serpent, all of which were released last year.

The launch of Siren comes less than a week after the release of a 20-minute in-studio live set filmed for KEXP in Seattle, WA, which concludes with singer/guitarist Riley 'Rat Queen' Pinkerton and Rebecca 'Rat Reaperess' Corrigan acting out their now-famous on-stage battle - a spectacle that went viral on metal social media in 2025.

“I go onstage, I battle death, I die, and I come back to life – because I don’t want to die,” Pinkerton told Metal Hammer earlier this year. “It’s funny, because I didn’t set out to make a show about my death anxiety. I was like, ‘I think it’d be cool if I die and spit up blood and yada yada yada – but I have to come back to life because I still need to play another show the next night.’ And then I was like, ‘Oh, this is entirely about that.’”

Castle Rat kick off a support tour with Amon Amarth and Dethklok next week in Phoenix, AZ, and travel to Europe in late July for a run of dates. Full schedule below.

Castle Rat tour dates 2026

Apr 15: Phoenix Arizona Financial Theatre, AZ
Apr 17: San Antonio Boeing Center at Tech Port, TX
Apr 18: Houston 713 Music Hall, TX
Apr 20: Oklahoma City The Criterion, OK
Apr 21: Kansas City The Midland Theatre, MO
Apr 22: Chesterfield The Factory, MO
Apr 24: Minneapolis Armory, MN
Apr 25: Waukee Vibrant Music Hall, IA
Apr 26: Grand Rapids The Pyramid Scheme, MI
Apr 28: Brooklyn Paramount, NY
Apr 29: Boston MGM Music Hall at Fenway, MA
May 01: Toronto The Theatre at Great Canadian Casino Resort, ON
May 02: Montréal Centre Bell, QC
May 05: Oxon Hill The Theater at MGM National Harbor, MD
May 07: Daytona Beach Welcome to Rockville Pre-Party 2026, FL
May 09: Atlanta Coca-Cola Roxy, GA
May 10: Nashville The Pinnacle, TN
May 12: Johnstown 1st Summit Arena, PA
May 13: Detroit Fox Theatre, MI
May 14: Bethlehem Wind Creek Event Center, PA
May 16: Milwaukee Landmark Credit Union Live, WI
May 17: Columbus Sonic Temple Art & Music Festival 2026, OH
May 19: Denver The Junkyard, CO
May 20: Salt Lake City The Union Event Center, UT
May 21: Las Vegas Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, NV
May 24: Anaheim House Of Blues, CA

Jul 29: Bergen Beyond The Gates, Norway
Jul 31: Copenhagen Pumpehuset København V, Denmark
Aug 01: Wacken Open Air, Germany
Aug 04: Warszawa Klub Hydrozagadka, Poland
Aug 06: Jaroměř Brutal Assault, Czech Republic
Aug 08: Kortrijk Alcatraz, Belgium
Aug 09: Walton-on-trent Bloodstock Open Air, UK
Aug 10: Southampton The 1865, UK
Aug 12: Wittelshofen Summer Breeze Open Air, Germany
Aug 14: Seelbach Bei Hamm Hoflärm, Germany
Aug 15: Eindhoven Dynamo Metal Fest, Netherlands
Aug 16: Carhaix-plouguer Motocultor Festival, France

Find Castle Rat tickets.

Voyage 35 have shared their first new (old) music, with a new version of Porcupine Tree's The Nostalgia Factory, the video for which you can watch below. The track originally featured on the band's 1992 debut album, On The Sunday Of Life, with lyrics penned by Alan Duffy, who ran Acid Tapes and later Imaginary Records.

It's the first chance fans have had to hear the sound created by former bassist Colin Edwin and live guitarist John Wesley, who have united to go out and perform earlier Porcupine Tree music that hasn't featured in the band, or Steven Wilson's live sets, in recent years, although Wilson did perform a turncated version of Voyage 34 on his most recent tour in support of The Overview.

“I know there is a lot of love out there for the early Porcupine Tree material, and many people have expressed a desire to hear it again," says Edwin. "Most of this music kind of fell by the wayside as the band moved on, and it feels right to revisit things again with a fresh approach and new musical talent”

The pair were left out of Pocupine Tree's 2021 reunion. Edwin had been the band's bassist from 1993, performing at their very first live show at The Nag's Head in High Wycombe, until 2010, when the band went on hiatus. Wesley performed live with the band from 2002 to 2010.

In a recent Q&A, the pair revealed they had the blessing of current Porcupine Tree band members - "Steven's happy we're doing this and he thinks it's gonna be great fun," Wesley recently told fans in a YouTube Q&A.

During the same Q&A, the pair were also asked whether the band would be barefoot at their upcoming live shows.

"That's a personal decision," laughed Edwin. "There's a relaxed dress code in Voyage 35. Shoes are optional!"

"I'm pretty certain I'll be wearing shoes," added Wesley, adding, "I don't know how Steve did it all those years. You step on those pedals, it hurts!"

Voyage 35 tour Europe and the UK in September, taking Porcupine Tree's original lightshow, Fruit Salad Lights, out on the road with them. You can see the full list of live dates below.

Voyage 35 EU and UK tour dates

Sep 4: ITA Revislate 2Days Prog + 1 Festival
Sep 8: GER Aschaffenburg Colos-Saal
Sep 10: NED Utrect Tivoli Vredenburg
Sep 11: NED Uden De Pul
Sep 12: NED Zoetermeer De Boerderij
Sep 15: UK O2 Bristol Academy
Sep 16: UK London Shepherd's Bush Empire
Sep 17: UK Manchester O2 Ritz
Sep 18: UK Newcastle The Grove
Sep 19: UK Glasgow Classic Grand

Get tickets.

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! We've got seven more new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Once again there's no disputing last week's winner. UK pop proggers Explroung Birdsong absolutely romped home with over half the votes cast for their great new single, You Like It Best When It Hurts. Huge congratulations to Lynsey, Jonny and Matt. Chilean proggers Aisles fought valiantly for second place with Long Distance Calling's Sinister Companion pipping Bruce Soord's Pillars to third place by one vote!

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

PLINI - AN UNNAMABALE DESIRE

Australian prog guitar virtuoso Plini has shared a video for his brand new single, An Unnameable Desire. It's the title track of Plini's upcoming album too, which he will release on April 24. The new album, which has been mastered by Adam "Nolly" Getgood, features guest appearances from fellow guitarist Jakub Zytecki and Emily Hopkins on harp.

"I picked this as the first single because it sets the tone/sound of the album without really giving anything away," he says. "I'm known as a guitarist, but this song doesn't even really contain a guitar 'solo'. Much like the video, it's the whimsical first chapter of an adventure, and hopefully gives a false sense of security for what's to come."

OH HIROSHIMA - BROKEN SUNLIGHT

Swedish melodic post-rock duo Oh Hiroshima have shared a video for their brand new single, Broken Sunlight. It's the first new music to be taken from the pair's upcoming album, And the Dead Tree Gives No Shelter, which they release through Pelagic Records on June 5. The album title is taken from T. S. Eliot’s epic poem The Waste Land.

"With Broken Sunlight we wanted something that hits you directly, with rhythm and melody tightly interwoven," the pair, Jakob Hemström (guitar, bass and vocals) and Oskar Nilsson (drums and percussion), say. "It’s about holding onto something fragile, a shard of hope in a reality that feels increasingly fractured"

CHIMPAN A - I DON'T KNOW HOW TO LOVE HIM

Art rock duo Chimpan A have shared a video for their brand new single, a cover of I Don't Know How To Love Him, which featured in the film and play of Andrew Lloyd-Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar. The new cover sees singer Steve Balasamo returning to the famous rock opera, in which he himself played the title role in the 1990s.

The cover came about after songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Rob Reed attended a recent concert featuring Tim Rice discussing the songs he had written throughout his career. “I’d forgotten what an absolute classic this song is, and in a concert of certified bangers that Sir Tim has written, it stood out as being so, so beautiful, he says.

“Having played Jesus years ago, I never imagined I’d revisit Superstar in this way,” adds Balsamo. “But singing Mary’s words felt incredibly honest. The song suddenly became about confusion, compassion and humanity rather than role or character.”

TELEPATHY (FEATURING JO QUAIL) - HOME (REDUX)

Essex quartet Telepathy, who cite themselves as "Heavy. Cinematic. Instrumental.' have teamed up with Prog's favourite cellist Jo Quail for their new single, Home (Redux). It's taken from the band's Transmissions 2.0, which has just been released through Pelagic Records, and is a reworking of the band's lauded 2025 album Transmissions.

"With Transmissions we added a heap of synthesisers, cinematic and electronic textures to our sound - so when approaching this EP, it felt natural to give some tracks to artists that could expand on this part of our sound," the band say. "We first discovered Jo’s music at Dunk Festival in 2018. We were literally stopped in our tracks but her performance. Her music (at least to us) feels both organic and futuristic, cello meets live looping - so conceptually, as we re-imagined our full band music into a more electronic space, we felt she was the natural collaborator."

WILLIAM GILMOUR & JOHN MCGUIGAN - THE SCARECROW OF PADDENFIELD

Former The Enid and Craft keyboardist William Gilmour has resurfaced with a new composition with lyricist and vocalist John McGuigan, with whom Gilmour studied at the Academy of Music in Glasgow, but lost touch when the former moved to Bristol, before the latter's daughter put the pair back in touch almost a decade ago. They've been working together since, and the emotive The Scarecrow Of Paddenfield is just one. Let's hope we hear more soon!

"Around nine years ago, we were put in contact by John’s daughter and since then have been working on around 30 or more prog rock pieces," Gilmour explains. "This is one from a few years ago, and just managed to get the vocals from him last weekend. As for the music, I write it on a manuscript on my lap, then record it into Logic Pro X.... This Scarecrow has witnessed the battles in nature and the atrocities of man.... probably more fitting than ever. "

PLAYGROUNDED - COUNTING EMBERS

Multinational progressive metal/electronic band Playgrounded, who are based in both Greece and the Netherlands, return with their first new music in four years with brand new single, Counting Embers. The band, who have supported the likes of Riverside, Anthema and Nine Inch Nails, will follow 2022's acclaimed The death Of Death with a new album due later this year, and with which Counting Embers gives us a first taste

“Today we share new music with you for the first time in a while," the band enthuse. "A song about the fires of this world and how painfully familiar they have become. Always aware that ashes can bloom.”

THE PROMINENT CITIZENS - CINNAMON

The Prominent Citizens are a prog quartet from Virginia in the USA who describe themselves as "a genre‑bending songwriting collective built on big ideas, bigger hooks, and a fiercely DIY spirit." The band features Michael Askounes (guitars, keys, vox), John Marion (guitars, bass, keys, vox), and Jared Foster (guitars, vox)and Julio Scissors (songwriting/instrumentalist).

"The song is an 11-minute, four and a half part guitar-prog suite that touches on themes of the nature of the universe, loss, and acceptance," Askounes tells Prog. "Oh, and Death posing as an orange cat that lives on Mars."

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! We've got seven new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

No disputing last week's winner. Former Nightwish singer Tarja romped home with her ten-minute epic new single, At Sea. Trailing in her wake were Ebony Buckle, with a well-deserved secind place and with Canadian prog duo Crown Lands in third.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

BRUCE SOORD - PILLARS

The Pineapple Thief frontman got the campaign for his new solo album, Ghosts In The Park, well and truly underway with the release of a video for the first single, Pillars. The album, a record shaped by loss, memory, and the quiet spaces that reveal themselves when life continues to move while everything else appears to stop, is released through Kscope on May 29.

"Excessive, damaging introspection, I guess, is the theme of the song," Soord says of the new single. "I remember the day in my life when I was liberated from my god-fearing introspection. Only then could I see the damage it had done to me and was still doing to the people around me. The song is about that: the damage I have witnessed. It’s framed around religion and penance, but it’s not anti-religion, it’s about balance. Oh and the line about pillars. It’s a bit of a playful reference to Saint Simeon Stylites, a Christian ascetic from around 400 AD. Legend has it he perched on top of a pillar for 37 years, taking himself away from the world in order to dedicate his life entirely to prayer, fasting, and repentance. I thought it was quite apt."

EXPLORING BIRDSONG - YOU LIKE IT BEST WHEN IT HURTS

Much-loved UK pop prog trio Exploring Birsong have finally announced they will release their long-awaited debut album, Every House We Built, through Long Branch Records on June 26. They also released a video for another new single, the pounding You Like It Best When It Hurts, which, much like the theme behind recent singles, shines a light on destructive behaviour and abusive relationships.

"You Like It Best… actually began its life as a completely different song, but easily found a way to take the shape that it has now," says singer and keyboardist Lynsey Ward. "For as long as we’ve been a band, we’ve been proud that our sound has such broad shoulders, so we felt we could really push our influences from heavy music out into the open with this one and create the heaviest Birdsong music to date. Lyrically, it is written about observing a type of person that we have all come across- self-sabotaging and self-destructive, almost to the point where it seems that they can’t -or don’t want to - break the cycle. More new territory for us, as we’re now equipped to convey anger and aggression convincingly-it felt completely natural to write a bit of a love letter to heavy music whilst channelling our own frustrations."

THE CLAYPOOL LENNON DELIRIUM - MEAT MACHINES

The Claypool Lennon Delirium, who, by now, most of you should know as Les Claypool of Primus and Sean Lennon, will release their third full-length album, The Great Parrot-Ox And The Golden Egg Of Empathy, on May 1 through ATO Records. It's a 14-song concept record reflecting on morality, mortality, and the warnings of A.I., new single, the mournful Meat Machines, muses on whether human beings still have agency in a culture that seems increasingly ready to reduce life to function.

“Some people think humans are just biological machines,” states Lennon. “They think free will is a hallucination and we’re destined to be replaced by robots. Not only are they happy about this, but they’re actively trying to make it happen as fast as possible. Some of us think we still have a choice. We think there’s something special about living, breathing and feeling. We believe we can shape our own destiny, because we know we are more than just Meat Machines.”

VLMV - TRIBAL (A HEART, SELF TAUGHT)

It's always a delight to take on board new music from VLMV, which is pronounced ALMA, and the main vehicle for composer and multi-instrumentalist Pete Lambrou. New album, There Will Come Soft Rains, is as melancholic as any VLMV fan could hope for, but sees Lambrou pushing the sound on, mixing ambient and more prog-friendly sounds with his natural post-rock. It's out through Pelagic Records on April 24.

"Tribal (A Heart, Self-Taught) was the first track written for the new album, and sort of set the tone for the rest to follow," Lambrou explains. "A Berlin-inspired, ambient techno piece that is more rhythmic and drum-led than anything I've done before. It's an angry yet hopefully communal call to the wilds and questions whether we've completely missed the tipping point."

LOST IN KYIV - BURST

"We almost consider this album as the first record of a new version of the band," explains French quartet, who have changed the last word of their name from Kiev to Kyiv for the latest album, We’re All Going To Be Fine, whch is out through Pelagic Records on June 19. The album sees the band adding some serious grit to their atmospheric post-rock sound, perfectly encapsulated on the first single release, Burst.

"We're All Going To Be Fine explores the tension between hope and inner collapse, and how modern life can disconnect us from ourselves and each other," the band say. "The songs were inspired by personal experiences, societal pressure, and the idea that we often become our own worst enemy. We were also inspired by the work of Carl Gustav Jung (who is the voice at the end of the album), especially his ideas about exploring the human psyche, as well as themes from movies like Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind or Melancholia."

AISLES - NOW IS THE TIME

Chilean prog quintet Aisles will release their as-yet-untitled next album later this year. It will be their first with current singer Boris Seeder, and much like he did with previous single, last year's Blue Skies and is very much at the forefront of the pulsating prog pop of new single, Now Is The Time. A prophetic sing title? It certainly bodes well for the future...

"The lyrics explore what happens when someone chooses to obey those external voices instead of their own heart," the band state. "In the story, one person ultimately walks away, leaving the other questioning how something real could be abandoned simply to satisfy the expectations of others?"

LONG DISTANCE CALLING - SINISTER COMPANION

German proggy post-rockers Long Distance Calling celebrate their 25th anniversary this year, and they're doing it in style with the release of ninth studio album, The Phantom Void, out through earMusic on April 10. Like previous singles, the emphatic Sinister Companion uses a central figure in the videos to convey the instrumental band's concept with startling effect.

"As the closing track of the album, Sinister Companion delivers a fulminant, exhilarating finale," the band say. "A last, dramatic surge of energy that encapsulates the emotional depth and raw intensity of The Phantom Void. The song marks the culmination of the conceptual and audiovisual journey the band has crafted over the past months."

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! We've got six new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Congratulations to US modern prog quintet Advent Horizon, whose track Past Life Parable won last week's Tracks Of The Week by a country mile, with Australian prog rockers Teramaze in second and with Midge Ure in third place.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

TARJA - AT SEA

Former Nightwish singer Tarja Turunen has just announced that she will release her new album, Frisson Noir, through earMusic on June 12. To launch she's released a video for At Sea, a mighty ten-minute epic full of sweeping orchestra strings. the albums ees guest spots from Turunen's old Nightwish pal Marko Hietala, Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, Dani Filth and Apocalyptica.

Says Tarja: "In an era where technology can generate songs instantly, the album celebrates the human element in music: real performances, breath, imperfection, uncontrolled emotion, and the unpredictable spark that turns a song into an experience."

CROWN LANDS - THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS

Heavy rock ballads about dragons? Canadian prog duo Crown Lands deliver something in shorter form after the epic title track of their upcoming album, Apocalypse, which is released through InsideOut Music on May 15. The more compact Through The Looking Glass gives a hint of what Led Zeppelin might have sounded like if they'd taken an even proggier route. And jammed with Rush.

“Through The Looking Glass features rolling 12-string arpeggios, Mellotrons, and a 7/8 bridge featuring Moog leads into full proggy fun while also serving up a big chorus. I love this one," enthuses guitarist and keyboardist Kevin Comeu. "We wanted this song to show the might of the Dragon-Riders before the arrival of the Syndicate on Fearless’ planet. Is there anything cooler than heavy rock ballads about dragons? I think not.”

ED O'BRIEN - BLUE MORPHO

Best known as the guitarist for Radiohead (the tall one who's not related to Jonny Greenwood), Ed O'Brien releases his new solo album, Blue Morpho, through his new label, Transgressive, on May 22. The album is O'Brien's first solo release to bear his full name. His debut solo album, Earth, was released under the EOB title in 2020, just as the pandemic hit, and as the beautiful title track suggests, the album is a subtle blend of psych-led folk and prog-adjacent cinematic sounds.

“I’m not hiding anymore," O'Brien reveals. "I was hiding behind a doppelgänger called EOB. I had huge insecurities. Coming from Radiohead, knowing I’d be compared to Thom Yorke or Jonny Greenwood, I felt like, ‘Who am I?’ But going through that, you come out the other side and think, ‘I don’t care anymore.’ That’s a really liberating place.”

EBONY BUCKLE - MOON BLOOD

Delightfully inventive art rocker (not to mention member of proggers du jour Solstice), Ebony Buckle, has shared a video of her performing the no-holds-barred Moon Blood, acoustically, with the Queer London Collective string quartet. The song was recorded during the Summer Cottage Sessions in March of this year.

"I think the song for me, was a way of understanding the journey through womanhood, from suddenly being a young woman in a world that stares so much at you and tells you everything you have to be, to moving through that and taking back some sense of self," Buckle explains. "Stepping in the Moon Blood and walking away from all the lies."

GRICE - JUDGEMENT DAY

Art rocker Grice will release his latest album, Filter, through Hungersleep Records on May 29. It's an album that explores the idea of musical frequencies and transmissions, moving between shortwave, medium wave and VHF-inspired sonic palettes, from the 12-minute improvised centrepiece, Dumah, to more compact fare such as catchy new single, Judgement Day.

"Filter is a reflection on an age of unaccountability and diminishing humanity, an exploration of the algorithmic filters employed to stream and manipulate information, the multiple social filters we apply to ourselves, the precious organic and natural filters, the atmosphere, algae and corals that purify and protect our world which are under threat and the filters we use to drown out the noise that is all around us," says Grice Peters. "We are at 85 seconds to midnight, the atomic clock is ticking!"

AMULETS - COILED

Amulets is a musical project created by Portland-based audio/visual artist Randall Taylor, who mix ambient, post-rock and prog sounds. Coiled features multi-instrumentalist Patrick Shiroishi, and is the secind track to be released from the band's upcoming EP, Rem(a)inders, which is out on April 10 through Pelagic Records.

"Rema(i)nders started as a fragmented collection of songs, memories, ideas, and feelings that I wanted to mash and warp together beyond recognition," says Taylor. "What I ended up creating was a beautiful mosaic of texture and light in this darkening world. To remain is to remind. To remind is to remain."

Voyage 35, the band featuring former Porcupine Tree bassist Colin Edwin and live guitarist John Wesley, have shared a teaser of their first new/old music. The band have announced that they will release a new version of Porcupine Tree's The Notsalgia Factory on April 3.

The pair have also released a Q+A session on YouTube, which you can also watch below, in which they answer questions from fans, shedding more light on the band's activities.

"It's all about fun," explains Wesley in the video. "Straight up. This music meant a lot to [Colin]. It meant a lot to me, back in the day. And not being part of the reunion, I think we got left out of some of the fun.

"I love this music, and I want to play it, and when Colin and I connected and decided that we would do this, it's really about playing great music and having fun with it."

"I had the same feeling," adds Edwin. "And it was connected with not having listened to the stuff for a long time and not really thinking about it for years and then suddenly hearing the old stuff and focusing on it and thinking it was quite a good context for me, to get involved with it, even back in the early days, when it was a bit unformed, the band was finding its way. That's quite an appealing thing, for me, to go back and revisit. It was a crazy idea, but I'm glad John liked it."

The pair will be concentrating on Porcupine Tree's earlier material.

"MY idea was to concentrate on the Coma Divine era," says Edwin. "But then Joh reminded me there are some bangers after that. But this is our first tour, and we're going to try and do a bit of a selection from that whole era..

"We may choose to go in certain directions later on, but we're testing the waters, really."

Inevitably, questions on future involvement from current Porcupine Tree members were asked.

"I got a very nice Christmas note from Richard [Barbieri]," says Wesley. "He said 'enjoy your voyage...' As for Steven, he's very focused on his solo career. He's happy we're doing this and he thinks it's gonna be great fun, but he doesn't really want to go back and revisit that old material."

The drummer for the upcoming tour remains shrouded in mystery. It won't, however, be the pair's old Porcupine Tree cohort, Chris Maitland.

"I'm in contact with Chris Maitland now, I hadn't seen him for a very long time," explains Edwin. "Part of the catalyst for getting the ball rolling with this was recording the Baldock Transmission project with him. He was very enthusiastic about the project, but at the same time, unable to commit to it.

"I don't want to speak for him. He still plays the drums for a living. He does a lot of work in theatres, and he has a very set schedule. We do have a fantastic drummer, who is a huge fan of Chris..."

"And Gavin," adds Wesley. "I'm really looking forward to working with him."

"So Chris won't be behind the drumstool, but he will be involved at some point down the line, and we'll reveal that at a later date."

Voyage 35 play live dates throughout Europe and the UK in September. You can see all the dates below.

Voyage 35 EU and UK tour dates

Sep 4: ITA Revislate 2Days Prog + 1 Festival
Sep 8: GER Aschaffenburg Colos-Saal
Sep 10: NED Utrect Tivoli Vredenburg
Sep 11: NED Uden De Pul
Sep 12: NED Zoetermeer De Boerderij
Sep 15: UK O2 Bristol Academy
Sep 16: UK London Shepherd's Bush Empire
Sep 17: UK Manchester O2 Ritz
Sep 18: UK Newcastle The Grove
Sep 19: UK Glasgow Classic Grand

Get tickets.

Muse have just shared a video for their brand new single, Be With You, as they announce they will release their tenth studio album, The Wow! Signal, on June 26 through Warner/Helium 3.

The band first teased new music when they kicked off their 2025 European tour in Helsinki, Finland, in June last year, opening their set with a brand new song, Unravelling. They later released a video.

The new album, the band's tenth studio release, is their first since 2022's acclaimed Will Of The People, which was the band's seventh consecutive album release to top the charts!

The new single opens with a hefty blast of church organ before riding along on an electro pulse, before the band's expected bombast arrives with flamboyantly rocking guitars, a sound bound to delight the band's audience.

The accompanying video, directed by Nico Paolillo, who has also worked with Deafheaven and Bad Omens, finds the moon haloed in red as watchers are drawn to what appears to be a cataclysmic event.

That ties in with the album title, which, in keeping with the band's love of conspiracies, takes its name from a short radio burst that was detected in 1977 and originated from the constellation Sagittarius that suggested a possible extraterrestrial source.

The astronomer who discovered the broadcast famously circled the now-iconic sequence “6EQUJ5” and scribbled “WOW!” on the printout beside it, thus giving the signal its name and cementing its place in scientific and pop-culture lore.

Pre-order The Wow! Signal.

Muse: The WOW! Signal tracklist

1. The Dark Forest
2. Nightshift Superstar
3. Shimmering Scars
4. Cryogen
5. Be With You
6. Hexagons
7. The Sickness In You & I
8. Unravelling
9. Hush
10. Space Debris

Radiohead guitarist Ed O'Brien has announced that he will release his second solo album, Blue Morpho, through his new label, Transgressive, on May 22. He's also shared a visualiser video for the album's title track.

Blue Morpho is O'Brien's first solo release to bear his full name. His debut solo album, Earth, was released under the EOB title in 2020, just as the pandemic hit. Having waited for a suitable gap in Radiohead's busy schedule to record his first set of solo songs, the impact hit O'Brien hard, also acting as a catalyst for the music on Blue Morpho.

Taking a cue from his Radiohead pal Thom Yorke, who told him a secret key to the craft was being a good librarian - cataloguing ideas when they happened to find and revisit later, so the psych-led folk and prog adjacent cimematic sounds of the new album evolved, at first in his own London studio and then through his spiritual connection to nature in the Welsh countryside and his beliefs in the possibility of healing.

The deeply personal album has been produced by Paul Epworth (Paul McCartney), and features Shabaka Hutchings on flutes and with composer Tõnu Kõrvits, with whom O'Brien bonded over their mutual admiration for the classicist Arvo Pärt, arranged strings performed by the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra.

An accompanying short film, Blue Morpho: The Three Act Play, which premiered at SXSW yesterday, will be released alongside the album.

Blue Morpho is available on CD, cassette, LP, indies exclusive Metamorphosis Edition LP (orange vinyl) and artist store exclusive Chrysalis Edition LP (cream vinyl). A limited edition blue 7" of the Blue Morpho single is available as part of the LP album bundle on the artist store while stocks last.

Pre-order Blue Morpho.

Ed O'Brien: Blue Morpho
1. Incantations
2. Blue Morpho
3. Sweet Spot
4. Teachers
5. Solfeggio
6. Thin Places
7. Obrigado

Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! We've got seven new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

A massive congratulations to charity prog single, Do You Wonder?, which was led by Airbridge man Lorenzi Bedini and Amanda Lehmann, which was not only raising money for Amnesty International, but also won last week's Tracks Of The Week. A good showing from Scottish prog musician Marley Davidson in sednd and with German post-rockers Long Distance Calling in third place.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

HANRY- AURORA

Hanry are a French melodic post-rock quintet who will release their debut album,What Came From Silence, through Pelagic Records on May 29, and the gentle swell of Aurora is the first music to be taken from the upcoming album. The band formed in 2022 and their sound is more widescreen and cinematic with melodic ambient passages, rather than the loud-quiet-loud dynamic often associated with the genre. Ones to watch, for sure.

“Aurora is our first single from the album and the spark that ignited the band’s story,” the band explain. “Originally composed around ten years ago by Anthony Leliard, the track was later reshaped and arranged collectively for our debut album, What Came From Silence. Dark and tense, Aurora moves through contrasting periods, from heavy, shadowed moments to brighter, more radiant passages. The piece builds and recedes in hypnotic waves before culminating in a massive, liberating explosion that carries the listener toward new horizons.”

GREEN CARNATION - I AM TIME

The Norwegian prog rockers are back with a rousing tune from their upcoming A Dark Poem, Part II: Sanguis album, which is released through Season of Mist on April 3. It's the second part of an ambitious trilogy of albums, which began with last year's A Dark Poem, Part I: The Shores Of Melancholia. Part III will be released later this year. On I Am Time, bassist and lyricist Stein Roger Sordal draws from a deep well of personal and emotional feelings.

“I Am Time is one of the songs from the forthcoming A Dark Poem album trilogy that discusses the fragile nature of our lives”, Green Carnation vocalist Kjetil Nordhus says. “We do not have control over time. We should try and live in the here and now, before suddenly, it’s too late.”

“To make the song a bit more interesting, the lyrics personify time”, adds Sordal. “They’re about how we should respect and cherish the time that we have."

DEVIN TOWNSEND - ENTER THE CITY

Where do you start with Enter The City? Indeed, where do you start with Devin Townsend? Perhaps with the release of his latest album, The Moth, which the Canadian prog polymath will release through InsideOut Music on May 29. First hinted at back in 2016, but now forms part of a trilogy of releases that began with 2024's Powernerd album. The Moth, he says, is "orchestral, over-the-top, dark and uncomfortable." Listening to the first single, he's not wrong. Stunning stuff!

"The Moth is a loose story following someone who realises that old patterns of behaviour are no longer serving them," Townsend explains. "By digging in and sitting with themselves, an internal conflict is revealed, one they may have been resisting or unconsciously rationalising for years, and Enter The City comes towards the beginning of that story arc."

MIDGE URE - JUST WORDS

The former Ultravox frontman will release A Man Of Two Worlds, his first album of new material in 12 years, on May 8 through Chrysalis Records. It really is an album of two halves, presenting eight instrumental pieces on one side and eight more traditional songs on the other. Just Words is the first music released from the album, and it's from the song side, featuring Ure's rich, Scott Walker-esque tones.

“Almost every album I’ve made over the past 40+ years has featured at least one instrumental track," Ure explains. "For this album, I wanted to explore this further, showing two sides of what I do. The Man Of Two Worlds Tour will reflect this idea, combining instrumentals I have done over the years with songs, album tracks and fan favourites side by side, taking the audience on a journey.”

COAL & CRAYON - IMPENDING

They're a new one on us, but quintet Coal & Crayon hail from the Baltic Sea island of Rügen, and proudly proclaim that they "fuse progressive rock, post-metal intensity and cinematic dynamics into a sound that shifts from fragile melodies to crushing heaviness." You can certainly hear that in the engaging Impending, the band's latest single.

"After acclaimed releases like World Asleep (2013), KYRA (2017) and Beneath the Moral Void (2024), the band now signals a new chapter," they say.

TERAMAZE - THE INVISIBLE COUNTDOWN

Arguably the world's busiest prog band, and given the industrious nature of most bands that fall under the prog banner, that's saying something, Australian prog metal quartet Teramaze are back with another single, The Invisible Countdown. This one's taken from the band's upcoming album The Silent Architect, which will be the band's ninth album since 2020's I Wonder alone. Strewth!

"This is the sound I heard in my head many years ago," says guitarist and band leader Dean Wells. "I think we have really mastered it on this album and The Invisible Countdown."

ADVENT HORIZON - PAST LIFE PARABLE

US modern prog quintet Advent Horizon are gearing up to release their fourth studio album, Falling Together, the follow-up to 2023's A Cell To Call Home, and which is out on May 15. It's an album that looks at holding your beliefs under a microscope, and determining whether they are truly yours, or whether they were planted there by others when you were young and impressionable. Heavy stuff!

"Stylistically, Past Life Parable is a sort of bridge between our older music and the new direction that I've been wanting for some time to take this band in," vocalist/guitarist/songwriter Rylee McDonald explains. "It's heavy at times, but it's also a melody-driven rock song with an overall uplifting tone. The harmonised guitar/synth solo at the end is something I'm particularly proud of, and can't wait to recreate live."

Welcome to Prog's brand newTracks Of The Week! We've got seven new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

A doff of the cap to Anneke Van Giersbergen who romped home last week with her new single, Red Sky, leaving everyone else trailing in her wake. Rising Indian proggers Antariksh came in second with Norwegian's Gazpacho in third.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

LONG DISTANCE CALLING - THE SPIRAL

German quartet Long Distance really rock things up with their brand new single, The Spiral. It's the second teaser ahead of the release of the band's latest album, The Phantom Void, which they released through earMusic on April 10. It's the band's 20th anniversary this year, and they're certainly marking the moment with something of a bang.

The band are calling their ninth album The Phantom Void, "the shortest, hardest, and strongest album of their career”, and while they haven't gone all heavy metal on us, it's certainly a bold step on from the lush post-rocky soundscapes of 2022's conceptual Eraser. Into the heart of darkness we go...

PORT NOIR - EBB AND FLOW

Atmospheric Swedish prog quartet Port Noir will release their fifth studio album, The Dark We Keep, through InsideOut Music on May 15. Ebb And Flow is the fourth single the band have released from the upcoming album, perfectly highlighting the band's balance between haunting melody and impactful musicianship.

“Sometimes we don’t write songs to arrive somewhere," the band state. "We write them to move. Instead of verses and choruses, we let ideas drift, repeat, and change shape. The movement is the destination. This is a formula we explored and utilised on our earlier albums and something we wanted to tap back into while writing Ebb And Flow.

"Lyrically, it portrays a world caught in endless cycles of numb repetition, where weslowly lose awareness, identity, and agency without resisting. There’s no collapse or climax, only quiet erosion. The Ebb And Flow keeps everything moving just enough to feel alive, while actually preventing change.”

VLMV - BODIES GROWN, PT. 1

VLMV's Pete Lambrou celebrated his birthday yesterday with the announcement that the band will release their latest album, There Will Come Soft Rains, through Pelagic Records on April 24. The haunting melodies of Bodies Grown, Pt. 1 is the first new music released from the upcoming album, mixing the band's post-rock past with more progressively-inclined musicianship. We're looking forward to the new album.

"Bodies Grown is a conversation between one soul and another, a parental call and response created using analogue synths reassembled and refashioned through granular and modular synthesis," Lambrou explains. "It started as an analogue synth played into a modular, which gave me something back in response I hadn't planned. Like we were having a conversation, or a duet. It felt as though nature, in this case analogue, was in communication with a more modern form. To me, it is a family relationship. In harmony, but not the same. Moved on. Progressed and Evolved."

LORENZO BEDINI, AMANDA LEHMANN & FRIENDS - DO YOU WONDER?

Airbridge man Lorenzo Bedini has teamed with Amanda Lehmann to write this quite wonderful ten-minute song, Do You Wonder?, to raise money for Amnesty International, initially to support the situation in Gaza. However, the escalation between the US and Israel against Iran has somewhat overshadowed that, but the sentiment remains. The pair have also roped in Colosseum guitarist Zal Cleminson and former Pendragon drummer Fudge Smith to help them out while Solstice's Andy Glass has mastered. You can purchase the single here.

"Like the rest of civilised humanity, I was appalled by what was going on in Gaza," Bedini explains. "It leapt into our consciousness, remaining there during every waking minute. I only had to say, 'How are you?' to a friend or neighbour for them to reply with, 'Ma Dio buono! Have you seen a paper today, or listened to the news?' Then I heard that what was going on in Sudan was even worse, and I hadn't forgotten Ukraine, Tibet, or the child slave labour in the lithium mines..."

MARLEY DAVIDSON - FRAGILE

He's been called Scotland's answer to That Joe Payne (you'll hear why), and pianist and singer-songwriter Marley Davidson, who will open proceedings at this year's Wha's Like Us prog festival, has shared his brand new single, the emotive Fragile. Davidson's already played support to the likes of Lifesigns, Justin Hawkins, The Korgis, Russ Ballard, China Crisis, The Emerald Dawn and more, and on this showing the lad'll go far.

"I take inspiration and convey my complex thoughts and feelings about the world and human nature through my music," says Davidson. "I have been told my music penetrates deeply into the heart and soul of people. Leaving a deep connection that only music can. My new single Fragile is my first digital-only release. The song is a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions, and really showcases my songwriting/composing style. It was recorded in Dundee, while the strings were written by Alistair Steele from The Korgis."

MAEBE - LOWER CASE SONG TITLE

UK math rockers Maebe (also recent winners of Tracks Of The Week), have announced they will release their third album, Brain Paint, through Ripcord Records on May 22. The band have also released a new video for their latest single, the drolly titled lower case song title, which highlights the intricate guitar interplay between mainman Mike Astley-Brown, Will Thomas and Duncan Stagg and the way they gel with bassist Patrick da Costa and drummer Nicholas Appelgren.

“I’ve been obsessed with instrumental guitar music for over half my life, but the artists that have stayed with me all have one thing in common: melody,” says Astley-Brown. “It’s not enough to just provide a soundscape – it’s the hooks that hit the heart and rattle around the brain. And I think we’ve nailed that with this album.”

HOLOSOIL - ANIMAL

Berlin/Helsinki-based art rock quartet Holosoil are no strangers to Tracks Of The Week, and Animal is the band's fourth appearance, we believe. They'll release their debut EP, Look Up, through InsideOut Music on April. Meanwhile, Animal is an ode to experimental songwriting - raw, technical, and catchy, with a desire to be heard and seen as something that has not been done before.

"Animal is a pledge of loyalty to the greatest rock songs of our times, the band explain. "A memorable hymn that aims to resonate through the minds of pop fans and metal heads alike. Lyrically, Animal is about connecting with what makes you feel fully alive. Embracing the animal and creature inside you that wants to run free with the wind.”

Welcome to Prog's brand newTracks Of The Week! We've got eight new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Well done to NMB. Neal Morse and pals walked off with the honours last week for their latest single, the uplifting Reaching. Also great to see Blueneck guitarist Oli Duerden battling it out with worriedaboutsatan in a very tight battle for secind anc third place (which actually ran between second and fourth places).

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

ANNEKE VAN GIERSBERGEN - RED SKY

Our favourite Dutch singer Anneke Van Giersbergen may be touring again with The Gathering, but she's till making her own music! The infectious Red Sky is taken from her new EP, La Mort, the second part of her triptych La Vie, La Mort, L’Amour, which is released on March 27. A special vinyl edition will be released for Record Store Day on April 18.

“Not every song on La Mort is literally about death, writing doesn’t follow rules like that, and I’m glad it doesn’t," says Anneke. "Sail Towards The Sun, however, is about saying goodbye to my father. He once built his own seaworthy sailboat, and we spent many family holidays on the water. That memory lives very close to my heart.”

THE CLAYPOOL LENNON DELIRIUM - THE GOLDEN EGG OF EMPATHY

Inventively wacky prog duo, The Claypool Lennon Delirium (Les Claypool of Primus and Sean Lennon, in case you weren't aware), are back with their third full-length labum, The Great Parrot-Ox And The Golden Egg Of Empathy, on May 1 through ATO Records. It's a 14-song concept record reflecting on morality, mortality, and the warnings of A.I., with a story-world that doubles as a cautionary tale about sustainability and the slippery slope of optimisation without empathy. First single, The Golden Egg Of Empathy, features WILLOW on vocals and is accompanied by a suitably trippy, must-watch animated video.

"The Great Parrot-Ox And The Golden Egg Of Empathy is a cautionary tale of what could be in store for humanity if we continue to favour machines over men,” Lennon shares. “It is a tale of a technocracy eclipsed by paperclips; a young man destined to unravel the fabric of his father’s folly, and a sacred feathered Goddess (played by WILLOW), who holds the egg-shaped key to their future.”

HEDVIG MOLLESTAD WEEJUNS - FOR A MOMENT I THOUGHT I COULD HEAR YOU

Hedvig Mollestad Weejuns, the acclaimed Norwegian guitarist's collaboration with Elephant9 keyboardist Ståle Storløkken and drummer Ole Mofjell will release their second studio album, Bitches Blues, through Rune Grammofon on April 17. Away from the sometimes fiery approach of her town Trio, Weejuns offers some of the more exploratory and prog-friendly music associated with her, not least new single For A Moment I Thought I Could Hear You, an exploration of grief originally written for string quartet but exquisitely delivered like a twinkling, six-minute state of mind.

"This is instrumental music performed by electric guitar, organ/synth, and a drum set,” said Mollestad. “Bitches Blues consists of six tracks, or stretches of music, with an extreme range of dynamics. Some are based around hefty beats and good rhythm, while other tracks are far more lyrical and rubato.”

GAZPACHO - SKY KING

Gazpacho's twelfth studio album, Magic 8 Ball, ranks alongside the very best the Norwegian sextet have released. Concptually it explored "short stories about people who find themselves in extraordinary situations", and never was that more true than with latest single, Sky King, inspired by Richard Russell, an American ground service agent with no formal flight training who stole an aircraft and flew alone for over an hour. His conversations with air traffic control were broadcast live, and revealed a man speaking with unusual calm, humour, and clarity as the situation unfolded.

"This song is a tribute to human dignity and the refusal to conform to anyone or anything," the band relate. "It is dedicated to the Sky King Richard Russell who performed the ultimate rejection of that mindset and reminds us that we still have wings. Fly high!"

HEAVY AXE - EVERYTHING STRINGS UP

Don't worry, despite their choice of name, Heavy Axe are not some Viking metal outfit. Rather, they represent the return to making music by former Messenger singer and guitarist Khaled Lowe, who is part of the studio-based project that recently released their debut album, A Quiet Bay. Don't go expecting Messenger though. Heavy Axe's sound is rooted far more in electronic proggy soundscapes.

"Merging gorgeous ambient soundscapes with utterly fresh motorik pieces, it's massively recommended to anyone into Cluster/Eno, Harmonia, Popol Vuh, Sky catalogue, with latter day heroes like Boards of Canada and some Stars of the Lid / Kranky kinda stuff," say the band's label, Feral Child Recordings, describing their sound. The album's close to selling out, but you can check them out here.

EINAR SOLBERG - LIBERATIO

Leprous frontman Einar Solberg isn't holding back when it comes to the music on his second solo release, Vox Occulta, which is out through InsideOut Music on April 24. New single, Liberatio, is a strident slice of symphonic prog that strikes at the heart - the video, with Solberg set amid striking Norwegian scenery, is as eye-catching as the song is infectious. It's a far cry from the somewhat introspective approach of Solberg's solo debut, 16, and testament to his creativity and diversity as an artist.

“Liberatio begins with an unconventional string melody against a heavy drum and guitar foundation," says Solberg. "Gradually, it opens up into a freer, more expansive and catchy chorus. It’s relatively uplifting by my standards.”

ANTARIKSH - NAAQIS

India has proved a fertile ground of emerging prog bands in recent years - both Skyharbor and Coshish spring to mind - and you can add prog fusion artist Antariksh to that list. Naaqis is taken from the band's upcoming concept album Rehguzar, and features the talent of guitarist Jakub Żytecki and rising star of the Hindustani instrument, the sarangi, Momin Khan, as the band blend progressive rock with Hindustani classical elements, exploring disillusionment, grit, and the cost of choosing one’s own path.

"Naaqis represents that uncomfortable phase where the excitement fades and reality hits hard," says Varun Rajput, Antariksh frontman and producer. "It’s about feeling incomplete, let down, and questioning the people and choices around you, while still trying to summon the grit to push through. It exposes the cracks in the game and the vulnerability that comes with it. Collaborating with one of my favourite guitar players, Jakub Żytecki, and the incredibly talented Momin Khan has elevated the song to another level and made it truly special.”


DENNIS ATLAS - VIOLENT POWER

When Prog caught Toto at Wembley Arena last year, we were suitably impressed with keyboardist Dennis Atlas. Not just for his handling of the late Fergie Frederiksen's vocal parts on Isolation-era material the band had reintroduced to their set, but for a keyboard solo that included plenty of blasts of ELP! Atlas releases his new solo album, Principle, through MRI on May 15, from which comes Violent Power. Needless to say, his Toto plas have helped out.

“Joe [Williams - Toto singer] and I were at my studio going over some vocals for the upcoming Toto tour," Atlas explains. "I showed him my rough draft for a video I had for Violent Power, since he had expressed interest in helping me with this kind of stuff. He completely altered what would become the world’s introduction to this album, steering the imagery, lighting, and videography into a vision that supported the song. Then, he even helped guide me down the right path with the editing. Once he was involved, what we came up with immediately made my rough draft look like a joke! It was night and day! I couldn’t be more thankful and appreciative of his time and support. And thank you to my good friends Marco Minnemann (on drums) and Steve Bonino (co-writer of this song) for making their cameos in this video!"

Welcome to Prog's brand newTracks Of The Week! We've got six new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Hearty congratulations to Welsh heavy proggers Godsticks, whose M.I.A. won last week's Tracks Of The Week, beating off strong competition from Norwegian's Major Parkinson and with Canadian prog duo Crown Lands in third place.

The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it? The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post.

Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

POTHAMUS - HERAVIS II.II (LET LIGHT IN)

German post and prog rock label Pelagic Records, with whom Prog and sister title, Metal Hammer, are media partners for their annual PelagicFest, today announce a brand new compilation. album, The Dungeon Tapes, which features previously unreleased music and cover songs from a variety of artists on their roster.

Among those are Belgian trio Pothamus whose video for Heravis II.II (Let Light In) is included here. A beautiful slice of post-rock melded with drone music which we challenge any listener not to be moved by. Look out for a very special collaboration between Pelagic and Prog later in the year!

OLI DUERDEN - WILDFLOWER

Guitarist with Somerset post-rockers Blueneck and one quarter of West Country rockers Left Side Brain, Oli Duerden is back with his first new music since 2023's Distant Paths EP. Here he returns with his brand new, super-sounding single, Wildflower. Built around guitars in open G tuning, layers of EBow, strings and piano meld to create a quietly epic reintroduction to Duerden’s musical mind that is his grandest offering yet, reaching from minimalist beginnings to soaring emotional highs. This one is a real journey.

“I never meant it to be so long from the last EP until I next released something, but sometimes life gets in the way," he says. "Once this emerged, though, I knew I had to see it through to conclusion and get it out there.”

NMB - REACHING

Not sure why the Neal Morse Band rebranded as NMB, as from where we're seated, everyone still calls them the Neal Morse Band! Anyway, we digress, they're back with Reaching, another catchy slice of rockingly good and catchy prog rock, and the third single to be taken from their upcoming album L.I.F.T., which is released through InsideOut Music on February 27.

“Reaching became a really energetic track because of the way NMB approached it. My original sketch changed a lot when the band began to play it and we all put our vocals on it. I sketched out a lot of the original lyrics in the hotel room that morning, and brought it in, and we banged it out pretty quickly as I recall. We wanted to start it off with just vocals as we always enjoyed that with NMB right from our first outing as a band on The Grand Experiment album. If you like this band, you’re gonna love this track!”

I BUILT THE SKY - THE START OF SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL/SNAPSHOTS FROM A DREAM

Australian instrument al proggers I Built The Sky will release their new album, Promise Me You'll Thrive on May 29. And the double video of The Start of Something Beautiful and Snapshots From A Dream are the first pieces of music to be taken from the album, knitted together in one video. Mixed and mastered by acclaimed producer Forrester Savell, the album was finalised under intense studio deadlines in Brisbane’s Airlock Studios, with some songs completed just days before drum tracking began!

“It was a bold move locking in the studio before everything was finished,” says guitarist and composer Rohan ‘Ro’ Stevenson. “But the pressure forced clarity. This album became a promise to myself and to anyone listening that no matter how hard life gets, we must keep the fire within us alive and thrive.”

WILDERNESSES - SUMMERTIME, 1917

London post-rock quartet Wildernesses have shared a video for their new single, Summertime, 1917. It's taken from the band's upcoming debut album Growth, out through Floodlit Recordings on March 27. The single explores love and loss, telling the story of two male soldiers in World War One, seen through the eyes of a modern narrator who discovers their love letters while renovating a deceased loved one's house.

"I based the lyrics on a poem I wrote the year after my mum died of Motor Neurone Disease (MND)," says vocalist Phillip Morris. "I wanted to explore the conflicting feelings I had at that time, the process of acceptance, finding reasons that everything would be OK, even as death is final. Caring for her was a privilege that allowed me to know her more deeply, but I also witnessed the cruel loss of movement that ended in her death."

WORRIEDABOUTSATAN - THE DREAM IS OVER

Yorkshire-based electronic musician Gavin Miller, otherwise known as worriedaboutsatan, has a pretty good track record in Tracks Of The Week, winning recently for, what we believe may have been a second time? He's back with, The Dream Is Over, another slice of undulating electronic prog, which is taken from his upcoming his 20th album, No Knock No Doorbell, released on his own This Is It Forever label on March 27

“I wanted it to sound a bit more natural - I wanted to explore textures that weren’t necessarily electronic ones, or those you might associate with electronica - I picked the guitar back up, I got some live drums, I played bass," Miller reveals. "It’s nice to break yourself out of that feeling of ‘let’s just turn the synth on and see what it spits out’ - it had to be a bit more direct this time."

Swedish metal icons Arch Enemy have revealed the identity of their brand new singer: US vocalist Lauren Hart, formally of Once Human.

Hart's unveiling has put an end to months of speculation, and comes accompanied by a ferocious, anthemic new Arch Enemy track that sounds like a vintage 2000s-era melodeath banger. Titled To The Last Breath, it's backed by an official music video that you can watch below.

Lauren's arrival comes months after the shock departure of Alissa White-Gluz last year, and makes the American singer Arch Enemy's fourth vocalist overall.

“Connecting with Lauren has marked an important step in my journey," says Arch Enemy guitarist and band leader Michael Amott. "Working with her was an exceptional experience - her remarkable voice, coupled with her dedication and professionalism, brings a rare level of excellence. I look forward to continuing the collaboration!

“Make no mistake - this song is a reckoning," he adds. "Musically, it’s unapologetically aligned with my original vision for the band - and I believe longtime fans will recognise that immediately. Lyrically, it’s about seeing through deception and dismantling the illusion of control. It captures that moment when you realise you’ve been fed poison - and you choose to fight back. Once that clarity hits, there’s no retreat. It’s do or die.”

Lauren is yet to comment on joining the band, though fans will get to see her front the metal veterans when they tour this year, with a slew of surprise European club dates announced today that include a stop-off at the 500-capacity Underworld in London in August.

In recent weeks, fans had begun to speculate that Angela Gossow, Arch Enemy's second vocalist and the woman that Alissa White-Gluz replaced in 2014, was returning to the band following a cryptic social media post, but Gossow was quick to shoot those rumours down, stating: "It's not me! But thank you for all the love!"

Gossow stepped aside as vocalist in 2014 to manage the band, a role she has maintained since.

AFI have released a new song, announced their next album and let their frontman grow a frankly disarming moustache.

The horror-punk-turned-goth-rock quartet put out the single Behind The Clock today (August 5), accompanying it with a music video that shows off singer Davey Havok’s large and brand new piece of face furniture. Watch and listen below.

The song precedes the release of Silver Bleeds The Black Sun…, which is due out on August 3 via Run For Cover Records. The band’s 12th album, it’s now available for preorder.

The Behind The Clock video was directed by Gilbert Trejo, who’s previously directed for Jerry Cantrell and Jack White and is the son of Machete, Spy Kids and From Dusk Till Dawn actor Danny Trejo.

Gilbert says of the new clip: “We wanted the video to feel like you’re seeing something you shouldn’t. In effect you are, because that’s how Davey writes lyrics. He’s expressing himself so openly, that you’re let behind this curtain. It’s a world that most artists don’t cut to, marrow deep.”

Havok has also offered a comment from behind his recently-grown lip-tickler, saying: “Gilbert’s video has sublimated the essence of Behind The Clock. His vision and expertise is inspiring. Working with him was a privilege and utter joy. He is an artist of the purest form.”

Silver Bleeds The Black Sun… will be AFI’s first album in four years, following the release of Bodies in 2021. In 2022, Louder called Bodies the sixth-best of the band’s 11 albums, with journalist Stephen Hill writing: “It’s as 80s as necking a bottle of Babysham while watching Miami Vice, but AFI pull it off with aplomb.”

AFI will next perform live on September 14, when they play the Four Chord Music Festival in Washington, Pennsylvania. The band will start a North American headline tour at The Sylvee in Madison, Wisconsin on September 30 and wrap it up at the Soma in San Diego, California on November 5. They’re also booked to appear at Corona Capital festival in Mexico City on November 16.

It's Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week! Seven brand new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.

Congratulations to British dark prog rockers Esoterica, whose video for Into The Ether romped home with over half ot the votes last week. French post-progressive rock trio Fields Of Næcluda came second while Caligula's Horse guitarist Sam Vallen's new solo track came third.

The premise for Tracks Of The Week is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it?

The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post. Couldn't be easier, could it?

We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.

If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.

KARNIVOOL - DRONE

It's been four years since Karnivool shared their All It Takes single, signalling new activity from the Australia's quintet. And then nothing! Now we have a brand new single, the brooding yet uplifting Drone, which they promise is an indication that more new music is to follow. Australians will be the first in the world to hear what’s been brewing in the studio when the band's Ad Complementum tour kicks off in July, with European dates to, follow in August.

“Drone is the sound of Karnivool entering a new era — a slow-cooked journey forged in the studio’s heat, where every note was tested and tempered," the band say. "This track hums with the weight of vast Western Australian deserts, anchored by colossal rock riffs that could only come from our home. It’s both a reflection and a rebirth."

SONECHKO - SPLIT

Sonechko is the new solo venture from Square Wild's Lucy Shevchuk and Split is her very first single under that banner. Away from the in-you-face energy of Square Wild, Shevchuk explores an engaging and more atmospheric and dark folk and prog mix as Sonechko, not dissimilar at times to Myrkur and Wardruna's Lindy-Fay Hella . A full EP, also entitled Split, will be released in August.

"Square Wild shows a certain side of my personality, something loud, confident, in your face and boisterous," Shevchuk explains. "However, I felt I needed to create something that was darker, something that represented a side of me I was almost ashamed of for many years."

BARRENS - A NOTHING EXPANDS

Swedish trio Barrens will release their upcoming album, Corpse Lights, through Pelagic Records on September 12. The band describe themselves as dark post-rock and have appeared at the UK's ArcTanGent Festival as well as supporting the likes of Mogwai and God Is An Astronaut. Corpse Lights has been five years inthe making, and the rolling A Nothing Expands is the third single to be taken from the album.

"Corpse Lights is the name given to the folk belief that small coloured lights often appear near the home of someone about to die, leading them along the path to their eventual resting place," the band explain. "Often considered to be evidence of the soul leaving the body, the concept of corpse lights embodies Barrens approach to creating music."

NAD SYLVAN - I'M STEPPING OUT (VAMPIRATE REVISITED)

Despite stepping away from the characters that have imbued his more recent solo ventures for the InsideOut label, Nad Sylvan is back to his flamboyant best in the video for his quirky new single, I'm Stepping Out (Vampirate Revisited). New album Monumentata draws on some of Sylvan's personal life experiences and is, at times, a more reflective listen. Here, however, you can tell he's really having fun.

“It was such great fun to showcase my inner diva, to portray five different characters in this video, The Quartermaster being my favourite," Sylvan enthuses. "You can’t really tell it’s me! Tim Burton, I’m here!!”

MOUNDRAG - THE CAVEMAN

Moundrag are French brothers Colin and Camille Goallen, and come on like a Gallic version of Canada's Crown Lands with their singing drummer and keyboardist set up. Their brand new single, The Caveman, comes with a live video recorded during their performance at Motocultor Festival 2024, which shows how much noise can be created by just two people. The duo will release their second album, aptly titled Deux, through Stolen Body Records on October 17.

"The Caveman is a fierce and urgent track, reminiscent of classics like Deep Purple’s Speed King or Budgie’s Breadfan," the pair say. "This is a supersonic burst of energy where keys and drums build a sonic wall—no guitars needed. The intense, gut-wrenching vocals tell the story of a frantic, insatiable man charging toward his fate—a scream against human vanity and the blind pursuit of power."

HEMELBESTORMER - TINIA

Belgian quartet Hemelbestomer ply their musical trade in dark and thought-provoking music, which mixes prog, post-rock and touches of doom. The band will release their new album, The Radiant Veil, through Pelagic Records on July 25, from which comes the atmospheric and slow-building Tinia.

"The Radiant Veil is "a journey through our solar system as perceived by the Etruscan civilisation," explains drummer Frederik Cosemans. "Each track bears the name of a planet in the old Etruscan language, starting with the Sun (Usil) and ending with Saturn (Satre)."

ROYAL SORROW - SAMSARA

Young Finnish prog quartet Royal Sorrow recently signed to InsideOut Music and the engagingly catchy Samsara is the latest in a line of single releases from the band (one assumes a debut album will appear at some point). Despite guitarist Juha Rapanen stepping down to focus on family matters following the release of Samsara, it's busy few months for the band, touring with Leprous on their European Melodies Of Atonement dates and also appearing at the UK's ArcTanGent in August.

"The song draws inspiration from the concept of ‘Samsara’ and is in itself a meditation on finding acceptance in the fact that everything is transient and nothing lasts," the band explain. "With soaring choruses, introspective verses and a blistering guitar solo it’s an emotional journey that entices you from its conception to its end.”

Electric Callboy have launched their reinventive new single, Revery.

Eschewing the vibrant and energetic sound they employed for 2022 album Tekkno, the German synth-metal crew have adopted a far darker, more horror-inspired approach.

Listen to their heavy new song and watch its video below.

The band comment: “We’re beyond excited to finally share Revery with you! This song dives into a darker, more serious side of our sound and means a lot to us personally because it’s so different from what we usually do.

“The whole process, from writing to shooting a very special kind of video, pushed us in new ways and made us even more excited for you to finally check it out!”

Revery is the second new Electric Callboy song of 2025, following January’s Elevator Operator. Despite the recent singles, the band haven’t announced a new album at time of publication.

The release of Revery precedes the start of the band’s European festival summer. They will headline the UK festivals Slam Dunk North and Slam Dunk South in Hatfield and Leeds, UK, on May 24 and 25, respectively.

After that, they will play further festivals on the continental mainland from June to August. The band have confirmed that, for these dates, their drummer will be Frank Zummo from Sum 41. The Canadian pop-punk stars wrapped up their farewell tour with two dates at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena on January 28 and 30, 2025.

Zummo is the temporary replacement for David-Karl Friedrich, who left Electric Callboy last month after 13 years of service. In a statement, Friederick said he hoped to “do something new and… follow his own path from now on”.

After the festival season, Electric Callboy will play two legs of a European headline tour. The first will take place in November 2025, and includes their biggest-ever London show at Alexandra Palace, and the second is set for January 2026. Bury Tomorrow and Wargasm will support.

See details of the headline run below.

Electric Callboy were one of the cover stars on Metal Hammer issue 398 earlier this year. The issue is still available exclusively via the Louder webstore and comes with a long-sleeve shirt you won’t find in the shops. Order it now and get it delivered directly to your door.

Electric Callboy European headline tour 2025/2026:

Nov 01: Copenhagen Royal Arena, Denmark
Nov 05: Stockholm Hovet, Sweden
Nov 11: London Alexandra Palace, UK
Nov 12: Antwerp Lotto Arena, Belgium
Nov 14: Prague Forum Karlin, Czech Republic
Nov 15: Leipzig Quarterback Immobilien Arena, Germany
Nov 16: Dusseldrof PSD Bank Dome, Germany
Nov 17: Esch-sur-Alzette Rockhal, Luxembourg
Nov 19: Zurich Hallenstadion, Switzerland
Nov 20: Stuttgart Schleyer-Halle, Germany
Nov 23: Krakow Tauron Arena, Poland
Nov 24: Budapest MVM Dome, Hungary
Nov 26: Munich Olympiahalle, Germany
Nov 27: Frankfurt Festhalle, Germany
Nov 28: Berlin Uber Arena, Germany
Nov 29: Hamburg Barclays Arena, Germany

Jan 17: Rotterdam Ahoy RTM, Netherlands
Jan 18: Paris Zenith, France
Jan 20: Lyon Radiant, France
Jan 22: Barcelona Sant Jordi Club, Spain
Jan 23: Madrid Wizink Center, Spain
Jan 25: Lisbon Sala Tejo/MEO Arena, Portugal

Fleetwood Mac legend Lindsey Buckingham has given his seal of approval to British pop star Charli XCX after watching her video for Von Dutch for the first time.

This unanticipated development took place during the launch of 'Lindsey + Leelee React', a new YouTube series from Buckingham in which he and his 25-year-old daughter analyse music videos, a format which will be familiar to fans of '90s MTV stars Beavis and Butt-Head.

At the outset, Buckingham admits that he isn't overly familiar with Charli XCX's musical output, though he does recall seeing her perform on Saturday Night Live. Leelee Buckingham then asks her father if he has enjoyed a "Brat Summer' - a reference to the Cambridge-born pop star's zeitgeist-influencing 2024 album Brat - to which her father gamely replies: "The brattiest."

Leelee then introduces the video by stating that Charli XCX - real name Charlotte Aitchison - is "coming in fierce", as she struts through Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. "She's ripping off her pants in the airport" Leelee then observes, leading her father to respond, ""Getting kinda saucy already. Jeez!"

"That's not a good place to get saucy," Lindsey then observes sagely.

The 75-year-old guitarist is visibly taken aback when the pop star appears to head-butt the camera, leaving a smear on blood on the lens.

"Ouch!" he says, wincing, then looks shocked once more when Aitchison spits on the camera.

When the pop star is filmed climbing on to the wing of a plane on the tarmac at Paris–Le Bourget Airport, Buckingham senior comments, "I can't believe she got away with all this... I’m surprised the airport let her do all this stuff."

"Well, she's Charli XCX, she's huge now," Leelee reasons, leading her father to comment that he thinks he'd be told "Get outta here!" if he asked permission to perform in such a manner.

Summing up his reaction to the video, Lindsey Buckingham says, “I thought it was very entertaining. I mean, there was so much going on, and all in the context of a normal restrictive environment, paranoid environment, uptight environment. That set the whole thing off very well, I thought."

In conclusion, Leelee Buckingham asks her dad, 'What does it really mean? What is she really saying?"

"She's saying, 'Screw you!'" Lindsey replies.

Watch the highly entertaining clip below:

Wolfgang Van Halen's Mammoth, who appear to dropped the 'WVH' part of their name, are back with a new single, their first since 2023's Mammoth II album. The End is a rocket-powered blast of modern rock with an intro that finds Van Halen conjuring up the spirit of his late father with some furious finger-tapping.

“I’ve had the tapping idea on the intro for The End since before Mammoth," says Van Halen. "I was able to fit it into this world. It’s still over-the-top and shreddy, but it’s also melodic and controlled. Overall, I was doing some different things on the record, and I knew this was going to be a big step. Once we finished The End, it felt really special to me."

The video finds Mammoth invited to perform at a bar reminiscent of The Titty Twister in Robert Rodriguez's classic horror film From Dusk Till Dawn. They're greeted by actor Danny Trejo, with other cameos coming from Van Halen's mother Valerie Bertinelli, Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash, Alter Bridge frontman Myles Kennedy and a troupe of zombie flesh-eaters who clearly haven't been fed in a while.

Kennedy will support Mammoth when The End Tour kicks off at the end of October (dates below). Ticket presales begin on May 5, with a general release on May 9. In the meantime, Mammoth will be supporting Seether and Creed in the US, while Wolfgang Van Halen will also be appearing at the Black Sabbath reunion show in Birmingham in July.

Mammoth: The End Tour

Oct 31: TBA
Nov 01: Las VegazHouse of Blues, NV
Nov 04: Dallas House of Blues, TX
Nov 05: Houston House of Blues, TX
Nov 07: Lake Buena Vista House of Blues, FL
Nov 08: Atlanta Tabernacle, GA
Nov 09: Charlotte The Fillmore, NC
Nov 11: Silver Spring The Fillmore Silver Spring, ND
Nov 12: TBA
Nov 14: Montclair The Wellmont Theater, NJ
Nov 15: Pittsburgh Roxian Theatre, PA
Nov 18: Cleveland The Agora, OH
Nov 19: Detroit The Fillmore Detroit, MI
Nov 20: Columbus Kemba Live!, OH
Nov 22: Onamia Grand Casino Mille LACS Event Center, MN
Nov 23: Green Bay Epic Event Center, WI
Nov 25: Chesterfield The Factory at The District, MO
Nov 26: Chicago House of Blues, IL
Nov 28: Oklahoma City Diamond Ballroom, OK
Nov 29: TBA
Dec 02: Kansas City Uptown Theater, MO
Dec 03: Denver Ogden Theatre, CO
Dec 06: Tempe Marquee Theatre, AZ
Dec 07: TBA

Get Mammoth tickets.

Ghost have offered a peek at their Skeletour concerts with the new music video for Peacefield.

The track, which comes from last week’s album Skeletá, has today (April 28) been reissued with footage from the Swedish band’s ongoing world tour. It’s one of very few video snippets of their 2025 stageshow that fans will get, given Ghost have banned mobile phones from the venues they play. Watch below.

Ghost announced their Skeletour run last year, and they mark the outfit’s first full leg of shows where phones aren’t allowed. They initially put the practice in place for two nights at The Forum in Los Angeles in 2023, as they were being filmed for 2024 movie Rite Here Rite Now, but enjoyed the performances so much that they brought it back.

Singer/mastermind Tobias Forge, who performs as Ghost’s masked frontman Papa V Perpetua, explained the ban during an interview with Planet Rock earlier this year.

“I don’t wanna turn this into an ageist thing where I’m gonna tell 14-year-olds everything was better back then,” he said (via Blabbermouth). “But I swear that the experience of shows and the making of memories, the making of magic, was much more powerful [at the phone-free Los Angeles concerts].

“Some of the best shows I’ve ever been to, I have maybe not even seen a picture from that because they all live here [in my head]. They live in my core. That’s the memory I have of that. And that is an experience I wish for.”

Ghost are using Yondr pouches for their phone ban. The pouches let attendees keep their devices on their person but can only be magnetically sealed and unsealed by security at entrances and exits.

The band are currently playing across mainland Europe, with their next concert taking place at MEO Arena in Lisbon, Portugal, on April 29. See all of their upcoming dates, including North and Central American stops, below.

Skeletá came out on Friday (April 25) to critical acclaim. Metal Hammer’s Joe Daly awarded it four stars in his review.

He wrote: “This is an album that demands patience, revealing its seductive charms over multiple listens. And no, that’s not a cop-out, it’s a testament to its depth.

“This is Ghost freed from expectation. Tobias Forge has nothing left to prove. And so, he does precisely what he wants. The faithful will undoubtedly follow. The rest will be left scratching their heads, unsure whether they missed the point or if Ghost have finally moved beyond their reach.”

Ghost 2025 tour dates:

Apr 29: Lisbon MEO Arena, Portugal
Apr 30: Madrid Palacio Vistalegre, Spain
May 03: Zurich AG Hallenstadion, Switzerland
May 04: Milan Unipol Forum, Italy
May 07: Berlin Uber Arena, Germany
May 08: Amsterdam Ziggo Dome, Netherlands
May 10: Lodz Atlas Arena, Poland
May 11: Prague O2 Arena, Czech Republic
May 13: Paris Accor Arena, France
May 14: Oberhausen Rudolph Weber Arena, Germany
May 15: Hannover ZAG Arena, Germany
May 17: Copenhagen Royal Arena, Denmark
May 20: Tampere Nokia Arena, Finland
May 22: Linköping Saab Arena, Sweden
May 23: Sandviken Göransson Arena, Sweden
May 24: Oslo Spektrum, Norway

USA:
Jul 09: Baltimore CFG Bank Arena, MD
Jul 11: Atlanta State Farm Arena, GA
Jul 12: Tampa Amalie Arena, FL
Jul 13: Miami Kaseya Center, FL
Jul 15: Raleigh PNC Arena, NC
Jul 17: Cleveland Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, OH
Jul 18: Pittsburgh PPG Paints Arena, PA
Jul 19: Philadelphia Wells Fargo Center, PA
Jul 21: Boston TD Garden, MA
Jul 22: New York Madison Square Garden, NY
Jul 24: Detroit Little Caesars Arena, MI
Jul 25: Louisville KFC Yum! Center, KY
Jul 26: Nashville Bridgestone Arena, TN
Jul 28: Grand Rapids Van Andel Arena, MI
Jul 29: Milwaukee Fiserv Forum, WI
Jul 30: St Louis Enterprise Center, MO
Aug 01: Rosemont Allstate Arena, IL
Aug 02: Saint Paul Xcel Energy Center, MN
Aug 03: Omaha CHI Health Center, NE
Aug 05: Kansas City T-Mobile Center, MO
Aug 07: Denver Ball Arena, CO
Aug 09: Las Vegas MGM Grand Garden Arena, NV
Aug 10: San Diego Viejas Arena, CA
Aug 11: Phoenix Footprint Center, AZ
Aug 14: Austin Moody Center ATX, TX
Aug 15: Fort Worth Dickies Arena, TX
Aug 16: Houston Toyota Center, TX

Mexico:
Sep 24: Mexico City Palacio De Los Deportes

Trivium have released the original music video for their 2005 single Dying In Your Arms, and with it a reaction video where the band watch it for the first time in 20 years.

In a clip uploaded to the Florida metalcore four-piece’s YouTube channel, they reveal that they filmed a Phantom Of The Opera-esque video for the Ascendancy song, but that it never aired because their manager demanded them to pull it.

Upon revisiting the abandoned video, the band enjoy many laughs at the expense of their late teenage selves. “This is either the end of our career or the beginning of a new chapter,” singer/guitarist Matt Heafy laughs while introducing the clip.

They go on to rip into everything from their postures while filming to the period costume and their hairdos. “I don’t remember my hair ever looking like that!” Heafy moans. “It looks like it got blasted, like I drove in a Corvette!”

He goes on to ask regarding the footage in general: “What’s that show? Downton Abbey! It’s like a Downton Abbey murder mystery!”

Watch the full reaction video, and the original Dying In Your Arms cut, via the players embedded below.

The unveiling of the original Dying In Your Arms video is part of Trivium’s ongoing 20th-anniversary celebrations for Ascendancy. The band released the breakthrough album in March 2005 and, within months, played a famous set at the UK’s Download festival and appeared on several magazine covers.

Trivium are co-headlining a world tour with Bullet For My Valentine, who are celebrating 20 years of their debut The Poison, and are currently in the middle of the North American leg. Both acts are playing their respective 2005 albums in full.

Metal Hammer attended the London date of Trivium and Bullet’s tour at the O2 Arena back in February and awarded it a near-perfect four-and-a-half stars.

“Two of the 2000s’ greatest metal albums got the victory laps they deserve, stuffed with high-end production and audience goodwill,” wrote journalist Matt Mills. “And, perhaps even more importantly, both bands proved that they can shine in a setting this huge, planting the seeds for a future that holds even greater triumphs.”

See the remaining shows of the tour below.

Trivium and Bullet For My Valentine 2025 tour dates:

Apr 23: Grand Rapids GLC Live at 20 Monroe, MI
Apr 26: Chicago Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom, IL
Apr 27: Detroit The Fillmore Detroit, MI
Apr 29: Pittsburgh Stage AE Outdoors, PA
Apr 30: Philadelphia The Fillmore Philadelphia, PA
May 02: Boston MGM Music Hall at Fenway, MA
May 03: Laval Place Bell, Canada
May 04: Toronto Great Canadian Resort, Canada
May 06: Washington DC The Anthem
May 07: New York The Rooftop at Pier 17, NY
May 09: Bethlehem Wind Creek Event Center, PA
May 11: Nashville The Pinnacle, TN
May 13: Corbin The Corbin Arena, KY
May 14: Atlanta Coca-Cola Roxy, GA
May 17: Charlotte Skyla Credit Union Amphitheatre, NC
May 18: Raleigh Red Hat Amphitheater, NC

Jethro Tull have shared a brand new video for their track Over Jerusalem, a song the band have now added to thgeir current live show.

Over Jerusalem is taken from the band's most recent album, Curious Ruminant, whch they released through Chrysalis Records in March.

“Having visited Jerusalem to perform in concert and in Israel generally many times since 1986 I, like much of the world, have felt growing distress at the political, social and cultural dilemmas facing all in the region," says Tull mainstay Ian Anderson. "After the first visit or two, I decided to continue to perform there but to donate all proceeds to various local NGOs: mostly to those supporting co-education of Arabs, Jews and Christians and often with a musical bias.

"The deep and complex history of Jerusalem - brilliantly chronicled in the book Jerusalem: The Biography by Simon Sebag Montifiore - would be best read by many taking the simplistic view and taking polarised sides. Montefiore refers to "Jerusalem Syndrome", which pretty much sums up my own somewhat tortured views.

"I continue to hold a deep reverence and concern for the future of one of the most important cities of all time and its pivotal place in the current world. I say in the final line of the song, "I'm not over Jerusalem." Like a tragic love affair, it remains a memory which time cannot erase. Don't get me started about Moscow or Kiev....”

Get Curious Ruminant.

Canadian hardcore punks Propagandhi have released the adorable music video for new single Cat Guy.

Appropriately enough, the clip for the second single from the band’s impending album At Peace is four-and-a-half minutes of cute cat footage, because if that doesn’t get people watching on YouTube, nothing will. Take a look below.

In a statement, founding singer/guitarist Chris Hannah likens Cat Guy to UK metal legends Judas Priest and Canadian hardcore veterans SNFU. “From my songwriting perspective, the thing I was thinking of was capturing a little bit of Judas Priest’s [2018 album] Firepower as if [SNFU vocalist] Chi-Pig was writing the lyrics,” he says.

At Peace comes out on May 2 via Epitaph Records. The band released the title track last month and describe the album, their first studio offering in eight years, as “a plea for hope in an era allergic to it”.

Hannah says that At Peace’s lyrics are “a snapshot of me deciding whether I’m going to live out the rest of my life as [spiritual teacher] Eckhart Tolle or as [notorious terrorist] Ted Kaczynski”.

He elaborated in an interview with Metal Hammer last month: “I think everyone’s familiar with the adage, ‘Accept what you cannot change and change what you cannot accept.’ There is a sort of Eckhart Tolle movement to accept what you cannot change.

“On the other hand, how do you change what you can’t accept in a world where it’s been proven time and time again that nothing will change and, in fact, it will just get worse?”

Formed in Winnipeg in 1986, Propagandhi have been openly anti-fascist, pro-vegan and feminist for almost 40 years. During the Hammer interview, Hannah said that the band’s outspokenness led to them being targets for the KKK.

“When we first started the band here in Winnipeg, we had lots of problems with the skinheads locally,” he remembered. “Somebody from the paper of record here in Winnipeg wrote an article about us – we have a song about the KKK that was active here at the time – and they printed a few quotes from me and the picture of the guy who was the local leader of the KKK.

“I was like, ‘Holy shit!’ These guys were phoning my house at one point and threatening me. Luckily those people were as bumbling and impotent as I am.”

Propagandhi will start a tour of continental Europe with Pennywise next month. See dates and details via their website.

Ghost have launched a video for Lachryma, from their upcoming sixth album Skeletá. The song, which mixes typically doom-laden riffing with bright and shiny AOR sizzle, is the follow-up to Satinized, which came out last month.

Lachryma is a title which, according to our Latin-English dictionary, is a Latin word meaning "tear". It's the root of many English words related to tears, such as "lachrymose", "lachrymal" (also spelled "lacrimal"), and "Lachryma Christi". So there you go.

“It opens with more of a riffage," frontman Tobias Forge tells Metal Hammer. "And I guess now comes off as somewhat of a ‘typical’ Ghost mash-up, where it’s heavy on one end and met with a big, bombastic chorus. That’s a song about self-deceit."

Skeletá follows on from 2022's critically acclaimed Impera, and arrives on April 25 via Loma Vista, right as Ghost are set to head out on their latest world tour, which will take in dozens of dates that will include stops in Europe, the UK, North America and Mexico.

Ghost figurehead Papa V Perpetua is also due to appear at this summer's blockbuster Black Sabbath farewell show.

Full dates below. Skeletá is released on April 25.

Ghost: Skeletour World Tour 2025 

Apr 15: Manchester AO Arena, UK
Apr 16: Glasgow OVO Hydro, UK
Apr 19: London The O2, UK
Apr 20: Birmingham Utilita Arena
Apr 22: Antwerp Sportpaleis, Belgium
Apr 23: Frankfurt Festhalle, Germany
Apr 24: Munich Olympiahalle, Germany
Apr 26: Lyon LDLC Arena, France
Apr 27: Toulouse Zenith Metropole, France
Apr 29: Lisbon MEO Arena, Portugal
Apr 30: Madrid Palacio Vistalegre, Spain
May 03: Zurich AG Hallenstadion, Switzerland
May 04: Milan Unipol Forum, Italy
May 07: Berlin Uber Arena, Germany
May 08: Amsterdam Ziggo Dome, Netherlands
May 10: Lodz Atlas Arena, Poland
May 11: Prague O2 Arena, Czech Republic
May 13: Paris Accor Arena, France
May 14: Oberhausen Rudolph Weber Arena, Germany
May 15: Hannover ZAG Arena, Germany
May 17: Copenhagen Royal Arena, Denmark
May 20: Tampere Nokia Arena, Finland
May 22: Linköping Saab Arena, Sweden
May 23: Sandviken Göransson Arena, Sweden
May 24: Oslo Spektrum, Norway

Jul 09: Baltimore CFG Bank Arena, MD
Jul 11: Atlanta State Farm Arena, GA
Jul 12: Tampa Amalie Arena, FL
Jul 13: Miami Kaseya Center, FL
Jul 15: Raleigh PNC Arena, NC
Jul 17: Cleveland Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, OH
Jul 18: Pittsburgh PPG Paints Arena, PA
Jul 19: Philadelphia Wells Fargo Center, PA
Jul 21: Boston TD Garden, MA
Jul 22: New York Madison Square Garden, NY
Jul 24: Detroit Little Caesars Arena, MI
Jul 25: Louisville KFC Yum! Center, KY
Jul 26: Nashville Bridgestone Arena, TN
Jul 28: Grand Rapids Van Andel Arena, MI
Jul 29: Milwaukee Fiserv Forum, WI
Jul 30: St Louis Enterprise Center, MO
Aug 01: Rosemont Allstate Arena, IL
Aug 02: Saint Paul Xcel Energy Center, MN
Aug 03: Omaha CHI Health Center, NE
Aug 05: Kansas City T-Mobile Center, MO
Aug 07: Denver Ball Arena, CO
Aug 09: Las Vegas MGM Grand Garden Arena, NV
Aug 10: San Diego Viejas Arena, CA
Aug 11: Phoenix Footprint Center, AZ
Aug 14: Austin Moody Center ATX, TX
Aug 15: Fort Worth Dickies Arena, TX
Aug 16: Houston Toyota Center, TX

Sep 24: Mexico City Palacio De Los Deportes

Tickets are on sale now.

Babymetal have released a video for their new track from me to u featuring Poppy.

It's the opening track from the Japanese kawaii-metal superstars' upcoming fifth album Metal Forth, which is due to be released on 3 June on Capitol Records.

The follow-up to 2023's The Other One will include other collaborations from artists including Spiritbox, Bloodywood, Rage Against The Machine's Tom Morello, Polyphia and Slaughter to Prevail. It will also feature RATATATA, their collaboration with Electric Callboy, which was released as a single in 2024.

The promo video for from me to u can be viewed below. It is directed by Takuya Oyama.

Poppy will join Babymetal as support on their upcoming European arena tour, which kicks on May 10 in Belgium.

Babymetal 2025 Tour Dates

May 10: Brussels Forest National, Belgium
May 12: Hamburg Barclays Arena, Germany
May 13: Amsterdam Ziggo Dome, Netherlands
May 16: Frankfurt Jahrhunderthalle, Germany
May 17: Berlin Velodrom, Germany
May 19: Krakow Tauron Arena, Poland
May 20: Nüremberg Arena Nürenberger, Germany
May 22: Zurich The Hall, Switzerland
May 25: Madrid Vistalegre, Spain
May 26: Barcelona Poble Espanyol, Spain
May 28: Paris Zénith Paris France
May 30: London O2 Arena, UK
Jun 13: Houston 713 Music Hall, TX, USA
Jun 14: Irving Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory, TX, USA
Jun 17: Tampa Yuengling Center, FL, USA
Jun 18: Atlanta Coca-Cola Roxy, GA, USA
Jun 20: Charlotte Skyla Credit Union Amphitheatre, NC, USA
Jun 21: Baltimore Pier Six Pavilion, MD, USA
Jun 24: New York The Theater at Madison Square Garden, NY, USA
Jun 25: Boston MGM Music Hall at Fenway, MA, USA
Jun 27: Uncasville Mohegan Sun Arena, CT, USA
Jun 28: Philadelphia TD Pavilion at The Mann Cent, PA, USA
Jun 30: Laval Place Bell, QC, Canada
Jul 02: Toronto Coca-Cola Coliseum, ON, Canada
Jul 03: Sterling Heights Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre, MI, USA
Jul 05: Milwaukee Summerfest, WI, USA
Jul 06: Saint Louis Music Park, MO, USA
Jul 08: Chicago Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom, IL, USA
Jul 09: Minneapolis The Armory, MN, USA
Jul 11: Denver The JunkYard, CO, USA
Jul 14: Vancouver Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre, BC, Canada
Jul 15: Kent accesso ShoWare Center, WA, USA
Jul 17: San Francisco The Masonic, CA, USA
Jul 18: San Francisco The Masonic, CA, USA
Jul 20: Las Vegas Pearl Concert Theater at Palms Casino Resort, NV, USA
Jul 21: Salt Lake City Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre, UT, US
Jul 23: Phoenix Arizona Financial Theatre, AZ, USA

UK prog legends Gentle Giant have shared a brand new video for the new Dan Bornemark mix of Free Hand.

The new version is taken from. Playing The Fool: The Complete Live Experience, a reimagined, remastered and remixed version of their 1977 live album Playing The Fool, which will be through Chrysalis Records on May 2. The album has been newly mixed and mastered from the original source tapes by producer Dan Bornemark, who has worked extensively with the band on their recent archival projects.

Speaking exclusively to Prog, Derek Shelman said, " "To bring Playing The Fool to life visually, we set out to capture the feeling of actually being at a Gentle Giant show in the mid-’70s. Rather than create traditional music video-style visuals as we have in the past, we focused on evoking the ambience, lighting, and stage design that made their concerts so unique. The band had early iterations of using projections and visuals on stage to enhance the storytelling aspect of their performances...ahead of their time in many ways, even if the technology then was still catching up to their ambition. With this Blu-ray, we wanted to carry that spirit forward, helping to realize and expand upon those original ideas. You'll see that approach throughout, with visuals woven in to complement and deepen the live experience.

The Blu-ray features recreated stage environments, each inspired by a distinct era of the band’s touring history. In the “Free Hand” video, you’ll see the iconic Giant face neon sign glowing in the background — a fixture of their later live performances. Other videos showcase an earlier stage setup, featuring the now-famous mirrored “GIANT” sign, which carries a bit of band lore: it was originally supposed to read “GENTLE GIANT,” but the “GENTLE” portion broke in transit. The band embraced the glitch and the sign remained."

The new edition will be released across several formats including double CD, triple vinyl, Blu-ray and digital download in 96/24 stereo, 5.1 surround sound and Dolby Atmos mixes and features brand new sleeve notes and photographs along with a tracklisting that reflects the original running order of the setlist played on the tour, including three previously unreleased tracks, including Interview and Timing, and the between-song banter from frontman Derek Shulman.

Pre-order Playing The Fool: The Complete Live Experience.

Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry has teamed up with performance artist, writer and painter Amelia Barratt for the very art rock Loose Talk album, which the pair will release through Dene Jesmond Enterprises on March 28.

The duo, for which Ferry creates the music (it's the very first time he's created new music for another writer’s words), have just shared a video for the abum's title track, which features Ferry's Roxy Music bandmate Paul Thompson on motorik drums.

“The whole experience of making Loose Talk has had an interesting newness about it," Ferry says. "It seems to have opened a whole new chapter in my work. There’s a really strong mood to the work that Amelia does and I was very conscious of not getting in the way of her words. Hopefully, together, we’ve created something neither could do on our own.

"The nearest I ever got to doing pieces like this before would maybe be back in Roxy with In Every Dream Home A Heartache, and Mother Of Pearl. To some extent, those are kind of spoken monologues. I’m pleased that when we’ve played Loose Talk to people, they’ve said, “Oh, this sounds really different.” That’s what I’ve always wanted with everything I’ve done, or been involved in, to be: different. Different to what you’ve heard before, or seen before. That’s the whole point of being an artist: trying to create a new thing, a new world.”

“Loose Talk is a conversation between two artists: a collaborative album of music by Bryan Ferry with spoken texts by me," adds Barrett. "It’s cinematic; music put to pictures.

"There’s possibility for experimentation within a frame. And there’s a freedom in knowing exactly what my part to play is, then being able to pass a baton, stretching out creatively and knowing there is someone on the other side to take it further. Nothing feels off limits.”

Loose Talk will be available digitally, on CD, black vinyl, green vinyl and clear vinyl.

Pre-order Loose Talk.

Amelia Barratt & Bryan Ferry: Loose Talk
1. Big Things
2. Stand Near Me
3. Florist
4. Cowboy Hat
5. Demolition
6. Orchestra
7. Holiday
8. Landscape
9. Pictures On A Wall
10. White Noise
11. Loose Talk

Halsey has shared the new single Safeword, alongside a NSFW music video inspired by S&M.

The new track follows on from the release of their 2024 album, The Great Impersonator, and is driven by a thumping punk-rock beat, distorted snappy guitar strums and raunchy lyrics that capture the star in an empowered, domineering mood with lines such as 'I’m not a bad girl, I just like it wild style/I’m tough, I’m mean, I’m rough/Just say the safe word when you’ve had enough'.

Other lyrics include, 'Pin me to the floor, swing me by the neck / Locked behind a door, is it time yet? Time yet? / Don't be such a bore, give me respect'.

Directed by Lana Jay Lackey, the video sees Halsey clad in leather and latex, standing on their submissive's throats, walking individuals around like a dog, hung upside down by their feet in bondage rope, spanking and engaging in various other activities that might make you blush.

When teasing the video, they declared on social media that the footage is "NOT SAFE FOR WORK. OR THE BUS. OR BRUNCH WITH YOUR PARENTS. OR YOUR JEALOUS BOYFRIEND". Fair enough.

Last October, Louder writer Emily Swingle described The Great Impersonator as a "Stockholm syndrome love-letter to Hollywood" in a glowing four star review.

She writes, "This record feels like a vow to never let Hollywood consume them whole. It’s a testament to Halsey’s individuality and ferocity as an artist – and, beneath each mask, The Great Impersonator is broiling with a confidence that feels utterly Halsey."

Check out the video for Safeword below:

Radiohead and The Smile mainman Thom Yorke has again collaborated with electronic musician Mark Pritchard on a new single, Back In The Game, for which they have shared a particularly trippy new music video.

Yorke debuted Back In The Game at his first solo show in Christchurch in New Zealand, which was reviewed back in issue 155 of Prog Magazine and the song remained a part of his live set throughout his subsequent tour of Australia, Japan and Singapore.

Yorke and Pritchard first collaborated on the song Beautiful People from Pritchard's 2016 album Under The Sun. Prior to that, Pritchard, who has remixed the likes of Depeche Mode, Slowdive and Aphex Twin, remixed Radiohead's Bloom back in 2011.

Visual artist Jonathan Zwanda, who has worked with Pritchaerd before, also directed the accompanying video.

"On first hearing the original demo of Back In The Game I was immediately struck by the deranged bassline that made me think of the final scene of Staying Alive where John Travolta is cockily strutting through the New York streets but I saw it with a more sinister overla," he says. "Slowly a version of that visual arose around a character wearing a kind of giant parade head with a fixed expression of mania stuck on their face, such that you couldn't tell if their endless march was one of aggression or celebration. The more I paid attention to the lyrics the more details began to fill themselves out and the overall concept began to form of parade of many characters marching past a building from within which everything was being thrown out of a window and into a giant bonfire.

"Ultimately the film for Back In The Game ended up depicting a sort of blind celebration taking place as civilization slowly deteriorates around it, a kind of progression through regression. Overlaid onto this is an exploration of how and where we choose to place value in our collective cultural expression and how we collectively confront major cultural shifts in the 21st century."

India's nu metal meets folk viral sensations Bloodywood have released stomping new single Tadka, a mouth-watering tribute to Indian cuisine. 

The band explained the inspirations behind the track in a statement released with the single. “The word ‘Tadka’ is a cooking process in Indian cuisine where spices are heated in hot oil or ghee to create a more aromatic flavour," the band write. "It's about going the extra mile in the pursuit of a greater flavour.”

Mixing elements of nu metal, folk and groove, Tadka is a typically massive showcase of the unique sound that made Bloodywood an international metal sensation. Alongside the single, the band also officially announced their second album Nu Delhi would be released on Fearless Records on March 21. 

The band's UK tour starts the following day in Birmingham. The band explain that Tadka is another way they'll be celebrating Indian culture on their new album. 

"The song highlights the multi-faceted chaos of Indian kitchens that are tasked with perfectly executing centuries-old recipes on a daily basis as well as the immense joy they bring to most people," they explain. "This is a never-ending love story that connects an entire nation. From the fanciest fine dining restaurants to the simplest roadside stall, everyone brings something magical to the table, but the undisputed champion of the cuisine is the Indian household kitchen. When you fuse these recipes and techniques with the love of an Indian family home, the result is unbeatable.”

Watch the video to Tadka below. 

Speaking to Hammer in 2024, Bloodywood explained that their new album was based heavily on their own cultural backgrounds and their home of New Delhi.

"We’re talking a lot about home," vocalist Karan Katiyar explained. "A lot about where we come from and how things are here. There are things that come up a lot when we speak to people, they’re always curious about India and how little they know about the country.”

Karan also admitted the band's success had surprised them, but fuelled some of the writing for the second album as they prepared to play bigger rooms than they had experienced in the wake of their 2022 debut Rakshak.

"The tour has definitely affected how the album is sounding," Karan admitted. "We don’t write music with the perspective of playing to bigger audiences – in fact, I think it’s quite the opposite! It’s a risky new sound we’re doing, going heavier and darker but also more fun, if you can believe that. We’re interested to see how people will receive it.”

The band have already released two other singles from Nu Delhi - the title-track, which arrived in October 2024, and the Babymetal collaboration Bekhauf in December. 

Bloodywood - Nu Delhi Tracklist

1. Halla Bol
2. Hutt
3. Dhadak
4. Bekhauf
5. Kismat
6. Daggebaaz
7. Tadka
8. Nu Delhi

Bloodywood UK Tour Dates March 2025

Mar 22 - O2 Institute, Birmingham
Mar 23 - SWG3 Galvanizers, Glasgow
Mar 25 - O2 Ritz, Manchester
Mar 26 - O2 Academy, Bristol
Mar 27 - O2 Forum Kentish Town, London

On January 22, 1989, Metallica finally made it onto the airwaves with their video for …And Justice For All standout One. The clip catapulted the Four Horsemen into living rooms around the world and only strengthened their grip as they climbed to metal’s pinnacle. However, in this 2015 op-ed, one Metal Hammer scribe writes about the life-long scars its brutal imagery gave him.

“I’m surprised you’re not scared of this,” said my mother as I sat with my eyes fixed on the television.

When I was 12, I’d dutifully record The Power Hour, a weekly show on ITV which was broadcast during the small hours.

At the time, Metallica didn’t have any proper videos. I can only remember seeing a grainy video of the band performing For Whom The Bell Tolls in Oakland in 1985. But that was it.

But one morning in January 1989, that – and my life – was all about to change. The show’s presenter Nikki Groocock announced that they were to play a new video from Metallica – a promo for their One single. It felt like a big deal, so I remember pausing the video, pouring myself some cereal and making another mug of coffee. I drank a lot of coffee when I was 12.

I remember feeling slightly unsettled a few months earlier when I first listened to the song. I bought and played …And Justice For All for the first time on Bonfire Night in 1988. I recall this vividly because the firework display outside seemed to blend into the song’s opening battlefield sound effects and those eerie opening notes. And my non-metal-loving friends said I was sad for staying in to listen to music.

Shot in black and white and layered with a cold blue hue, the video opens with close-ups of the band’s various body parts: the back of Jason Newsted’s head, James Hetfield’s body, his face intermittently obscured by the shadow of an overhead ceiling fan. The band’s role in the video was simple: tear through the song in an empty warehouse space in Long Beach, California. Grimace and headbang. That was it. They were all dressed in black, save for Lars Ulrich, who chose to wear one of the band’s own 1988 white tour t-shirts – the one with his own face on it, just to drive home who he is and which band he plays in.

Now, at this point, I’d go through the video and break it down, minute by minute. But the truth is that I’ve seen the video three times in full, and they were all on that winter’s morning. It’s the film they used clips from that’s responsible for a monthly recurring nightmare. And I’m never watching it again.

Johnny Got His Gun was an anti-war novel written by Dalton Trumbo in 1938 and published a year later. The story is centred around a young American man called Joe Bonham who serves in World War I and gets hit by an artillery shell.

As the story unfolds, he realises that he has woken up on a hospital bed with no arms, no legs and no face. There’s a very graphic chapter in the book where he realises he’s lost his eyes, nose and mouth by exploring the gaping wound with his tongue. He’s also deaf and can only communicate to nurses and soldiers via Morse code, which he does by bashing his head on a pillow.

A film – directed by Trumbo himself – was released in 1971 and stars Timothy Bottoms. It also features appearances by Jason Robards, David Soul and Donald Sutherland, who makes a cameo as Jesus Christ in a dream sequence. It flits between black and white and washed-out colour, as we see Bottoms alone in a stark hospital room with a mask covering what’s left of his face.

Even typing this now makes me feel slightly sick and my shoulders feel considerably heavy. Who’d have thought a rock video had the power to ruin someone’s life?

After watching that video a few times, I began to overthink what I’d just seen. My cereal went uneaten and my coffee grew cold on the windowsill. I remember sleeping with the light on that night. I can’t remember sleeping alone in the dark again after that, actually.

This experience has bled into my life in all sorts of ways. The following year, I had a massive panic attack during a school trip to London’s Imperial War Museum. Their visitor attraction, the Trench Experience, recreates the sounds and smells of being on the frontline. Of course, my curiosity quickly turned into blind panic as I pushed through my classmates and ran outside, pausing to retch drily into a bin.

I had a nightmare that night.

On October 28, 1992, I got to see Metallica at Whitley Bay Ice Rink. This was during their colossal Black Album tour, where they brought their Snake Pit stage set up and played a 20-minute film in lieu of having a support band. Lars’ face would be beamed onto a screen and he’d talk to the fans from their dressing room before a documentary of sorts would kill time before their set. A brief clip from One was shown and I spent the entire gig wondering if I’d get to sleep when I got home.

I had a nightmare that night.

When the band released their 1993 boxset extravaganza, Live Shit: Binge & Purge, I tried fast-forwarding the film from their set at the San Diego Sports Arena. I managed to see the One clip then, stopped the tape and never watched the rest of it.

I had a nightmare that night.

Around this time, I’d also spend a lot of days at my friend Stephen’s house listening to records and plucking out bass lines from slower rock songs. A small dene divided the two housing estates where we lived, and it reminded me of a scene from the film, where the hapless Joe Bonham runs down a bank before the mortar attack. Some nights I’d sprint home with my heart beating out of my chest; some nights I’d walk home the long way round. And, I’m ashamed to say, Stephen escorted me across the bridge a few times, laughing his head off as I went back to safety.

I had a nightmare every night.

When I moved to London in 1994, I would regularly go to Tower Records in Piccadilly Circus. One day, I clocked the Johnny Got His Gun paperback on a shelf and snapped it up immediately. I’ve yet to experience a surge of fear quite like it since.

From the time it took to get from Piccadilly Circus to Oakwood tube station, I must have read half of the book and blinked perhaps twice. It was very easy to read: its pace quickens with a lack of punctuation during Joe’s fevered rants. I drank myself to sleep that night, which took a few pints on an empty stomach.

Over the years, I’ve had so-called friends hum One’s opening bars just to see my good mood change in an instant. I don’t like fireworks and I can only half-enjoy Blackadder Goes Forth. I can’t wash my hair with my eyes closed. I will often sleep with my feet and arms sticking out of the bedsheets. I don’t like people covering their faces with their hands and have developed the knack of turning a TV off the second I sense the video will start. It’s quite impressive, actually.

Why am I so scared of this video? I’ve always had a thing about World War I. Maybe it’s that. The idea of locked-in syndrome terrifies me, too. But it’s definitely the cloth mask covering Timothy Bottoms’ disfigured face and his feeling of utter helplessness that makes my stomach turn. And his weary voiceover makes me want to run out of the house. People I’ve bored to death talking about it agree that it’s a bleak premise, but they’re able to go to the toilet without turning every light on in their house.

So, two years ago, after consuming several glasses of vodka, I attempted to watch Johnny Got His Gun in its entirety.

I didn’t do this alone – are you mental? I watched it with my girlfriend, who I once asked to put her arms on top of the duvet to double-check she wasn’t a double amputee. She definitely isn’t.

‘Let’s watch it, draw a line under it and move on’, I probably slurred as I turned on my Macbook. It’s on YouTube in its entirety, if you’re feeling brave. With a sphincter so tight it could squeeze the life out of a single human hair, I managed 10 minutes before slamming my laptop shut. I admitted defeat, before realising I’d plunged the bedroom into complete darkness. I probably deserved that, to be fair.

This whole paralysing fear of a song, a film and a music video came to a head when I once did a phone interview with Lars. I went off-topic – the interview was supposed to be about Through The Never – and asked him whether the video had affected him to such an extent. He admitted it hadn’t, but he ended up apologising for causing me nightmares.

I didn’t have a nightmare that night. I had two, including a vivid scene where I was locked in a room with the film on an endless loop.

So thank you, Metallica. Thank you very fucking much.

Originally published in 2015.

Wandering through the corridors of his West Hollywood home, Ice Nine Kills frontman Spencer Charnas enthuses about a topic dear to his heart: horror movies. But the Zoom video feed suddenly stops, and everything goes quiet. When it reconnects, Hammer is face-to-face with the ghastly, grinning visage of Art The Clown, the murderous ‘star’ of Damien Leone’s Terrifier franchise. 

“Sorry, I never could resist a good jump scare,” grins Spencer, as he picks the camera back up and sits down by a large Art model. In October, Ice Nine Kills unveiled a 15-minute video for A Work Of Art, the official song for Terrifier 3. Even by their own standards, it was bloody, featuring the band playing to a packed venue while Art – portrayed by Terrifier actor David Howard Thornton – wreaked havoc. Partway through, he delivered a baby, before strangling the mother with the umbilical cord.

“The birth was my idea,” Spencer says. “It was like, ‘What have we not really seen in a horror movie?’ I don’t remember Freddy Krueger delivering a baby! I originally wanted to kill it too, but Damien said that was going too far. That’s a real badge of honour – if Damien, who’s created one of the most sadistic characters of all time, tells me I’ve gone too far, I feel very, very proud.” 

Although the band have written plenty of songs about horror movies in the past, A Work Of Art marks Ice Nine Kills’ first official horror movie tie-in. To say it was a massive life goal for Spencer is an understatement.

"Growing up and loving horror, there were so many tie-ins between rock, metal and horror," he enthuses. "When you go to see a modern slasher these days though and there are so few metal bands associated with it. So it was cool to have that tie-in, it’s an honour. The only other thing we had was our poster pops up in the background of Scream 6, which I have to tip my hat to the Radio Silence team for because they made that happen."

Having become friends with Damien and producer Phil Falcone at horror conventions, Spencer already had connections with the crew behind the film. But he admits he had misgivings about writing a song about Terrifier. 

“We had just done a song about Pennywise [IT Is The End] and I was wondering if I had used up all the good clown puns,” he jokes. 

That changed when he was watching Ace Ventura: Pet Detective one day, and inspiration struck. “It was the scene where Ace goes to a Cannibal Corpse show,” Spencer says. “We were like, ‘Let’s put Art somewhere we’ve never seen him before – in a crowded room.’” 

Reaching out to director Damien and producer Phil, Spencer was delighted to find they weren’t just happy to give their blessing, they wanted to be involved. After storyboarding ideas with a creative team, including special effects wizards who had worked on the likes of Kill Bill and Scream, Ice Nine Kills shot the video for A Work Of Art on a Los Angeles soundstage in July. 

They even managed to draft in Terrifier actors Catherine Corcoran (who plays victim Dawn in the first movie) and Leah Voysey (the Clown Cafe Host in Terrifier 2) for special guest appearances, as well as System Of A Down bassist Shavo Odadjian, who helped write the track. 

“I knew I wanted the song to have that manic energy that Art The Clown and Terrifier have become synonymous with; comedy, speed and viciousness,” Spencer explains. “To me, System Of A Down embody that mix.” 

In A Work Of Art, bodies are slashed, hacked and shot apart. Spencer says the trickiest effect to accomplish was a fan being split in half with a battle-axe. 

“It was especially cool because Chris Nelson, who did that effect in Kill Bill, inspired us to do it, and we had him on the video to do it again!” he enthuses. The clip’s crescendo sees Art use a Gatling gun to wipe out the surviving audience members and band onstage. 

Previously, INK had used VFX to recreate gunshots, but this time they opted for squibs – tiny explosive devices that are detonated remotely. “They’re so powerful they break open your shirt,” Spencer reveals. “It actually really hurts! We had this co-ordinator who’d be like, ‘Don’t put your hands here because you’ll blow off your hand.’” “Everyone was a little bit nervous about it, for sure,” he continues. 

“But I’m so glad we did it that way, and they rigged it so a bunch of sparks fly out of the rig as it’s being shot, and you can actually see a spark land in my mouth and illuminate it! I don’t know if that’s dangerous, but it looks really cool.”

Before Terrifier 3’s première in New York, the music video was aired on the big screen in all its g(l)ory. “Damien leans over to me, like, ‘You knocked it out of the park, man, as I knew you would,’” Spencer says proudly. 

Terrifier 3 also exceeded all expectations, clawing its way to the top of the US box office and bagging upwards of $59 million, making it the highest-grossing unrated movie ever. 

“It’s a great underdog story,” Spencer says. “They’ve built this thing over time and got a cult following that’s eventually blown $500 million movie productions out of the water on a shoestring budget. It isn’t just a movie, it’s a cultural movement.” 

For all the success of Terrifier 3 and A Work Of Art, Spencer admits one of his favourite benefits has been in tying together the cinematic universes of Terrifier and Scream - in a roundabout way. "When we got asked about Scream 6, they asked us to send a poster, so I created a fake one saying we’d played at Abe’s Snakepit," Spencer explains. 

"That was a reference to Wes Craven; when he directed softcore porn in the 70s, Abe Snake was the name he’d use. When I told them what the reference was, they loved it so much they actually used the name for the bodega in that movie. So when we did the video for A Work Of Art, the venue there is Abe’s Snakepit too, so I’ve made the Scream and Terrifier universes connect in canon!”

As for Ice Nine Kills, who’ve enjoyed an influx of new fans in the wake of Terrifier’s success, Spencer reveals there are plans to release more new music in 2025. And – spoiler alert – there will be more gore. 

“We’ve got some tricks up our bloody sleeves, I’ll tell you that,” he says. “There’s been a lot of touring [for 2021’s The Silver Scream 2] – it felt like we’d released The Black Album or something! But we’ve got some very violent, exciting and perhaps unexpected turns to take in the Ice Nine Kills universe over the next couple of years.

It's one of the most iconic sequences in rock video history: Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash, bare-chested beneath his leather jacket, a cigarette clamped between his teeth, striding purposefully out of a white wedding chapel, Gibson Les Paul in hand, to wrench out November Rain's soaring and wonderfully melodic guitar solo. Filmed from a low-flying helicopter whipping up mini sand storms in the desert bordering New Mexico's Highway 41, it's a scene which worked out even more strikingly cinematic than the video's English director Andy Morahan had initially imagined.

"You start to see [footage] on the monitors as you're filming it, and you go, Fuck, I've never seen anything like this, this is amazing," Morahan told Guns N' Roses fan podcast Appetite For Distortion in 2020.

It appears that Morahan wasn't the only one taken by surprise during the shoot, for in a new interview with The Times, Slash reveals that he hadn't been forewarned about the director's plan to commission aerial shots of his solo showcase.

“I just said, OK, I’m going to do my guitar solo - out by the church,” he recalls. “But then the director came up with this idea of flying at me with a helicopter and as we were doing it, I thought, Well, this will be the last thing I ever do.”

"I thought, This’ll be my last day on Earth," the guitarist previously admitted in a 2022 video interview with Yahoo. "It was the kind of thing where you’re just resigned to the fact that you’re probably gonna die. And at that point in time, I pretty much had that [mentality] - I didn’t have very much fear of death in those days."

One of the stand-out songs on volume one of Guns N' Roses' epic and ambitious 1991 twin-set Use Your Illusion I and II, the 8 minute 57 seconds-long November Rain was chosen as the third single to be released from the first record. The single peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on August 29, 1992, with much of its popularity attributed to its spectacular, and hugely expensive, video, which was based on an original story by Gn'R collaborator Del James, and has now been viewed a staggering 2,2 billion times on YouTube,

The video's narrative focused on a troubled, grieving rock star (played by Axl Rose) struggling to come to terms with the loss of his late partner (portrayed by Rose's real-life girlfriend, model Stephanie Seymour) who died by suicide after uncovering the truth about her beloved's repeated infidelities. But in a 2014 interview with HuffPost Live, Slash freely admitted that he wasn't entirely familiar with the concept, answering, "To tell you the truth, I have no idea," when quizzed about its meaning.

"We did some really theatrical, monumental stuff in the early Nineties," he notes in his interview with The Times, "but that was all Axl. I just like a live performance from a concert. Paradise City is my favourite Guns N’ Roses video."

At least one admirer of Guns N' Roses would disagree with Slash's opinion.

In her 2021 memoir Speaking For Myself, former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders revealed that newly inaugurated US President Donald Trump considers the November Rain promo to be nothing less than the greatest music video of all time.

"The president told Hope [Hicks] and me in the Oval [Office] he wanted the classic Guns N’ Roses song November Rain added to his rally playlist,” she wrote. “He told us it was ‘the greatest music video of all time’, and made us watch it to prove his point.”

For his part, director Andy Morahan admits that the video is "bonkers", and its visuals inexplicable at points, but he argues that the success of the video is undeniable in purely commercial terms.

"Use Your Illusion had done 12 to 14 million [sales] when they started doing the big videos," he recalled to the AFD podcast "and the albums went [on to sell] over 25 million after that... I think it became a seminal moment for a lot of fans."