Happy Friday! There's only a week to go until Halloween, but apparently, the spooktastic singles are all being held in reserve as we're not seeing much on the ghoulish platter this week. Nevertheless, we perservere.
First, the results of last week's vote! Eva Under Fire took an admirable third place, managing to edge out fellow alt metallers The Hara, while Portuguese former(?) black metallers Gaerea nabbed second with their bold new single Hellbound. Top spot though - and by some way - went to the nu metal flavoured Pathological by Set It Off, a powerful and decidedly unique track taking the crown.
As ever, we've got a diverse selection for you to sink your teeth into this week. Fans of heaviness will want to give Paleface Swiss, Ingested and Hellripper a spin, while more melodically inclined metal fans can delight in new cuts from Poppy and Bad Omens. There's also power metal flavoured symphonics from Beyond The Black, a prog/symphony team up from Charlotte Wessels, surprising straight-ahead rockiness from Puscifer and a few new names we want to throw your way.
Don't forget to cast your vote in the poll below and let us know which song excites you most. Have an excellent weekend!
Paleface Swiss - Let Me Sleep
Paleface Swiss might just be deathcore's next breakout stars. Dubbed "the deathcore Slipknot", they're certainly putting weight to that on new single Let Me Sleep, a track which balances genre brutality with an emotional rawness and intensity that wouldn't go amiss on the Iowa nine-piece's self-titled debut. The band's new EP The Wilted is out January 2, and they'll be touring the UK just a couple weeks later so 2026 is going to be another banner year for the band...
Hellripper - Kinchyle (Goatkraft And Granite)
Thrash, anyone? Alright, so Scotland's Hellripper technically blur the boundaries between thrash and black metal some (so, erm, Teutonic thrash, basically?). But new single Kinchyle (Goatkraft And Granite) is another fine slab of high-speed hellfire, folding in some brilliant grandstanding guitars and deft fingerpicking amidst the flurry. There's no word on a new album just yet, but with the band freshly signed to Century Media and shows at both Damnation Festival and Bloodstock's Winter Gathering in the next couple of months, we reckon it can't be too far away.
Poppy - Unravel
You never know what you're going to get with a new Poppy single. It could be a seething, nu metal inspired rager, it could be a headlong dive into pop. For Unravel, she's set somewhere between those two worlds; there's a big, hooky chorus that could come from the likes of Architects or Bring Me, but a melodic sensibility that feels more akin to a pop-coded Evanescence, only to break out some snarls. There's no word on a new album just yet, but with this following the massive Amy Lee/Courtney LaPlante collab End Of You we'll be surprised if there's not a new album coming in 2026.
Puscifer - Self Evident
Speaking of creatively unpredictable artists, Maynard James Keenan has unveiled his next vision for Puscifer. Self Evident is the first single from the band's upcoming fifth album, Normal Isn't, and feels like a more straight-ahead track than we're used to from the group. There's still subtle electronica in the mix, but it suggests the band are refining themselves. We'll know for sure February 2 next year, at any rate.
Ingested - Nefarious Tongues
Meaty, brutal death metal - plain and simple. But then, that's just how we like it when it comes to Ingested singles, and the death metal band don't let us down with Nefarious Tongues, a lumbering beast of a track that gleefully thumps away like a meat tenderizer.
Beyond The Black - Can You Hear Me (ft. Asami)
There's always a sense of the epic to symphonic metallers Beyond The Black, but they've gone in a different direction on new single Can You Hear Me? Drafting in Lovebites' Asami to give the track a more obvious power metal feel. It's grandiose and invigorating in the finest of ways, getting us plenty excited about new album Break The Silence, due January 9 2026. The band are also on tour that month, headlining Shepherd's Bush Empire on January 16 and playing the 70,000 Tons Of Metal cruise at the end of the month.
Bad Omens - Dying To Love
With Bad Omens already tagged as "baddiecore", we're fairly certain Dying To Love is only going to fan the flames even further. There's a decided Deftones-ishness to the sultry, floating atmospherics of the track, albeit cut with Bad Omens' own anthemic sensibilities and a big breakdown that wouldn't sound out of place in a Sleep Token cut. The band will be over in the UK playing arenas next month, so it looks like their status as one of metal's next big things is all but assured.
Roman Candle - This Band Has Led Me To Places I Wouldn’t Go With A Gun
New signees to Sumerian, Roman Candle have come out swinging with new single This Band Has Led Me To Places I Wouldn’t Go With A Gun. There's some of the chaotic energy of an Every Time I Die or Dillinger Escape Plan in the track's more careening moments, but also a melodic, introspective twist that could come from the realms of post-hardcore and 00s emo. It's thrilling stuff, and we can't wait to hear more.
Charlotte Wessels - Backup Plan (ft. Asger Mygind)
Charlotte Wessels is no stranger to collaborations, possessing a prodigous talent for team-ups that add fresh new flavours to her repertoire. Backup Plan is no exception; drafting in Asger Mygind of Danish prog metallers VOLA, the pair craft an emotional, melancholic duet that bridges symphonic grandeur and gorgeous prog melody. Mad to think it's a bonus track on the deluxe edition of Wessels' The Obsession as it easily could've been a highlight on the main record.
Sable Hills - Namu
Tokyo's Sable Hills are seemingly moving away from their metalcore roots on new single Namu. Adding folk tinges, the new track feels more like the massive melodeath assault of Orbit Culture than something you'd get from Killswitch, Bleed From Within or just about any other band in the metalcore pantheon, delivering some seriously tasty riffs and thumping beats that have us eager to see what the band are cooking up. Here's hoping it's a new album in 2026.
The Fear - The End Is The Start
Manchester's The Fear seem to have their sights set on the enormity of arena metal with new single The End Is The Start. From the thundering staccato drums, to the massive vocal melodies, its a track that upholds the DNA of bands like Architects and Bring Me The Horizon. Taken from new EP Falling Forward, it's a very promising start from these newcomers.
Ad Infinitum - Regicide
One last track to take us bounding into the weekend, and what better than Ad Infinitum's Regicide? The second that riff comes in you'll want to leap around like the floor is electrified, but the band add more layers to the track with some gorgeous melodies and reflective moments that make great use of Melissa Bonny's voice.
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