"They push the genre forward." Yungblud reveals who he believes are the "best metal band under 40 years old", explains how David Bowie inspired him

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Emo/pop-punk singer-songwriter Yungblud has revealed his personal pick for the title of best modern metal band in the game right now - and it's the biggest British heavy band of the 21st century.

“I think Bring Me The Horizon are the best metal band under 40-years-old, really, in the world," he tells NME. "When they push the genre, they push it forward, they experiment in their field. Oli [Sykes, Bring Me The Horizon frontman] is one of my best friends and a mentor to me, and it’s been inspiring how he pushes his fucking genre to different places.

“With Yungblud, I’ve always been genre-less from the beginning," he continues. "I’ve done pop, rap, metal, rock, whatever the fuck I want to do under this umbrella. I dress the way I dress, I put my make-up on, and I fucking love rock ‘n’ roll music. Rock music is my passion, my ambition, but David Bowie was massive to me, and he was completely genreless. He was always a cultivator, and really interested in art and culture in the same way that I am.

“I learnt that from him and then embodied it myself. It works because it’s all about my community. Everyone’s positive, everyone’s down to find something new, everyone’s down to be shocked. I’ve said that from the beginning: I don’t give a fuck, I’m gonna try my best, and I’m gonna fucking make shit that I think is cool in the moment.”

Yungblud - real name Dominic Harrison - recently announced the lineup for the next edition of his Bludfest festival, with the man himself joined by an eclectic bill that so far includes Chase Atlantic, Denzel Curry, Blackbear, Rachel Chinouriri and Peach PRC. Bludfest 2025 takes place June 21 at the Milton Keynes Bowl, with more artists set to be announced.

Artists

Merlin was promoted to Executive Editor of Louder in early 2022, following over ten years working at Metal Hammer. While there, he served as Online Editor and Deputy Editor, before being promoted to Editor in 2016. Before joining Metal Hammer, Merlin worked as Associate Editor at Terrorizer Magazine and has written for Classic Rock, Rock Sound, eFestivals and others. Across his career he has interviewed legends including Ozzy Osbourne, Lemmy, Metallica, Iron Maiden (including getting a trip on Ed Force One courtesy of Bruce Dickinson), Guns N' Roses, KISS, Slipknot, System Of A Down and Meat Loaf. He has also presented and produced the Metal Hammer Podcast, presented the Metal Hammer Radio Show and is probably responsible for 90% of all nu metal-related content making it onto the site.