Best New Music - 2021 edition

Just gave Mammoth WVH a listen, not the heaviest record but it has some excellent tracks, my personal favourites upon the initial listen are the opener "Mr. Ed.", "Epiphany", "Think It Over" and the bonus track "Distance". I'd say it is worth checking it out.
 
A pretty great run of new albums recently:



Powerwolf’s Call Of The Wild is more of the same, but in a good way. They continue to lean in a slightly poppier direction with their very specific take on gothic werewolf-themed power metal, and this is probably their best album since 2013’s Preachers Of The Night.



Helloween’s self-titled album was a very pleasant surprise for me. I was never a big Helloween fan, especially after Kai Hansen left; but with Kai and Michael Kiske’s return, the 7-member incarnation of the band is playing familiar but well-executed power metal that makes very good use of all three singers. I was always more of a Gamma Ray guy myself, but Helloween beats every Gamma Ray album from the last 15 years.



George Lynch’s first all-instrumental album Seamless just came out today, and it exceeded all my expectations. Heavy, bluesy, funky, and thoughtful. Not empty wankery. Loving it through multiple back-to-back listens.
 
Oh, and how could I forget?



Lord Of The Lost’s Judas is a double concept album about (not surprisingly) Judas Iscariot, weighing in at a whopping 1 hour and 44 minutes. This is gothic metal delivered with style and finesse, featuring the deep, dulcet tones of Chris Harms’s vocals, punctuated by occasional screams and growls. Some tracks lean into a metal / industrial feel, while others have a synthier New Order sort of vibe. There’s also a recurring component of church choirs and pipe organ to give things an epic feel. Lots of memorable hooks and recurring musical themes. There’s a lot to digest here, but it’s well worth the journey.
 
There’s a little-known British band that had a brief period of success in the 1980s, but multiple lineup shuffles and changing public tastes left them largely overlooked in the years since. While the quality of their output has gone up and down over time, their most recent album is actually attracting a bit of attention, and after several listens I’m pleasantly surprised to say that it’s on my short list for the best albums of 2021:
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Poto said:
I have listened to it a few times. Quite good, altough I didn't get hooked. Worth checking out though.
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For me, this album is the continuation of Angra's 'Temple Of Shadows' and is the way that the band from Brazil should have taken rather than doing bad albums like 'Aqua' or the followings with Fabio Lione on vocals. Angra could still be an interesting band, which is not anymore.

I've done a review explaining that. :)

Métal Intégral - Chronique / EDU FALASCHI - Vera cruz

Metal Integral. Webzine de l'association PLANETE MUSIC au service du metal melodique. Chroniques d'albums, galeries photos, reportages, live report... et une rubrique 'Futures stars' consacrée aux groupes underground du monde entier
www.metal-integral.com
 
KOHI Sting of Steel.jpg

This thread is for the "best" and I'm not saying this is, but def a favorite for 2021. The band is KINGS OF HIGH IRON, and the album is called "Sting of Steel." Part of the New Wave of Old School Heavy Metal (NWOSHM), you'll hear nods toward late 70s/early 80s Maiden, Priest, Accept, Dio-era Sabbath, AC/DC (I know they're not metal, but work with me), with a dash of UFO and VH (see AC/DC comment).

Now, full disclosure: this is my band. I'm not here hawking any CDs or anything, you can find our songs free on Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, etc. Thanks to COVID killing gigs last year right when the CD was done, we're about as unknown as you can get (we have a whopping 12 followers on Spotify). So I thought I'd share this here and maybe people with similar tastes might like some of it.

Meanwhile, here's a hard-charging tune to check out: KINGS OF HIGH IRON -- Hail Mary
 
JFM said:
View attachment 17153

This thread is for the "best" and I'm not saying this is, but def a favorite for 2021. The band is KINGS OF HIGH IRON, and the album is called "Sting of Steel." Part of the New Wave of Old School Heavy Metal (NWOSHM), you'll hear nods toward late 70s/early 80s Maiden, Priest, Accept, Dio-era Sabbath, AC/DC (I know they're not metal, but work with me), with a dash of UFO and VH (see AC/DC comment).

Now, full disclosure: this is my band. I'm not here hawking any CDs or anything, you can find our songs free on Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, etc. Thanks to COVID killing gigs last year right when the CD was done, we're about as unknown as you can get (we have a whopping 12 followers on Spotify). So I thought I'd share this here and maybe people with similar tastes might like some of it.

Meanwhile, here's a hard-charging tune to check out: KINGS OF HIGH IRON -- Hail Mary
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I liked the tune you recommended, though I think that the less busy tracks (like Gonna Start Livin') do a better job of showcasing the full range of the band, especially the bass.

Good stuff though, enjoyed the tracks I've listened to so far.
 
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Yet another great album from 2021 came out on the same day as Senjutsu:



Doctor Smoke’s sophomore album Dreamers And The Dead is heavily influenced by Megadeth’s first six albums, but has more of the jazzy swing feel that popped up in Megadeth’s songs from time to time, and it goes in its own directions often enough to not end up feeling like a clone. Technical and exotic riffing is combined with strong songwriting, evocative occult lyrics, and a smoother take on Mustainesque vocals to create a potent musical brew. This one’s competing aggressively for my listening time these days.
 
I enjoyed the new Doctor Smoke album, but I prefer the less polished feel of the 2014 predecessor, The Witching Hour.
 
Jer said:
Yet another great album from 2021 came out on the same day as Senjutsu:



Doctor Smoke’s sophomore album Dreamers And The Dead is heavily influenced by Megadeth’s first six albums, but has more of the jazzy swing feel that popped up in Megadeth’s songs from time to time, and it goes in its own directions often enough to not end up feeling like a clone. Technical and exotic riffing is combined with strong songwriting, evocative occult lyrics, and a smoother take on Mustainesque vocals to create a potent musical brew. This one’s competing aggressively for my listening time these days.
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I will check it later. The cover is disturbing. The old man is the passive smoker , right?
 
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Perun said:
I enjoyed the new Doctor Smoke album, but I prefer the less polished feel of the 2014 predecessor, The Witching Hour.
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This seems very consistent with your established taste. I also enjoy The Witching Hour, but a bit less because of the poorer production.
 
Monegros Acid Resort - Osbourne Rehab Mental Sanatorium (2021). Napoleon Rigor Mortis is on again with a massive and long, like a freeway to outer space release, and with such a powerful title. Who doesn't know - this is a good musician from Italy, who is good at stoner music and all that. It's worth paying attention to the cover; I didn't put it in, but you can find it, and I think someone can even find a reference to it. It's not free sound tracks; it's a real art. I love it when the musicians work on the concept, on the idea.
 
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