AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: NUCLEAR TOMB — “FALLING OUT THE WORLD OF LIES”

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Apr 032026
 

(written by Islander)

“WE’RE LIVING IN A WORLD OF LIES!” That’s part of what Nuclear Tomb vocalist/guitarist Michael Brown yells at the top of his lungs in the song we’re about to premiere, and no one with a thimbleful of brain could argue with him.

To underline the point, the song’s accompanying video flashes images of many liars in positions of government authority, along with clips of rioting, police brutality, and soldiers sent off by the liars to be maimed and die (those clips are old but of course that’s happening again right now in the Middle East).

It’s a pissed-off song, and not just because of the words. It’s also a head-spinning song — and at times a very bleak one as well. Its name is “Falling Out of World of Lies“, and it’s from this Baltimore band’s new album Epoch Inhumane, which will be released in June by Rotted Life. Continue reading »

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: VOMITO MORTUORIO — “DENTRO DEL SARCÓFAGO”

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Apr 032026
 

(written by Islander)

In April of this year a quintet of international labels will release Dentro del Sarcófago, the debut album of Vomito Mortuorio. That band is the project of veteran Salvadorean metalhead Céfiro de Muerte, who has also been involved in Conceived By Hate, Conflagración, Witchgöat, Disorder, Morbid Stench, and Invocation of Death. For this new album, drums were recorded in France by session drummer J.H.

The labels describe the music as “uncompromising death/black rhythms with lyrics in Spanish and totally dedicated to cemeteries, rusted mausoleums and old human bones.” We have some descriptions of our own as a prelude to premiering a ghastly video for the album’s title song, “Dentro del Sarcófago“. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: MARIA OF COPPER MOUNTAINS — “КОЛЫБЕЛЬНАЯ (LULLABY)”

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Apr 032026
 

(written by Islander)

We have made a startling new discovery through the song we’re about to premiere, a discovery of the Russian atmospheric black metal band Maria Of Copper Mountains. Now we know that the band was founded in the Southern Urals in 2022 by the extraordinary vocalist Maria Azanova, who is accompanied on the band’s debut album by instrumentalist Nikita Sapogov.

The song we’re about to present through a lyric video is one of seven on the duo’s debut album В чёрны омуты (Into The Black Whirlpools), which will be co-released on April 16th by Satanath Records and Afterlight Records. The song’s name is “Колыбельная (Lullaby)“. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: PLAGUEWIELDER — “SON OF THE SERPENT, SON OF THE WHORE”

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Apr 022026
 

(written by Islander)

As long-time visitors here well know, we’ve been following the continually evolving music of Ohio’s Plaguewielder for many years. Most recently (late last summer), we premiered an eye-catching video for an excellent new Plaguewielder song, “Blood of the Astral Gate,” the first single from a forthcoming release entitled Year of the Plague.

Plaguewielder’s current plan is to continue disclosing singles this year leading up to the release of Year of the Plague as an album near the end of the year, which will be distributed through the band’s independent new label Mourning Shroud.

What we’re bringing you today is the second single from the album, “Son of the Serpent, Son of the Whore“, and it arrives just in time to scorn the coming Easter Sunday. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: BLACK CILICE — “INTO THE INNER TEMPLE”

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Apr 022026
 

(written by Islander)

In contemplating the discography of the Portuguese black metal band Black Cilice, the word “prolific” leaps to mind. Beginning with their first five(!) demos released in 2009, they’ve released something almost ever year — more demos, many splits, a trio of EPs, and six albums. Now there’s a seventh album on the horizon, slated for release by Iron Bonehead Productions on May 1st.

The album’s name is Votive Fire. It includes only four songs, but they are long ones, none shorter than seven minutes and the opener almost reaching 10 1/2. What we have for you today is the third of these tracks in the running order, “Into the Inner Temple“. Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): VANIR — “WYRD”

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Apr 012026
 

(written by Islander)

For people of a certain age and living in a certain time, melodic death metal opened a magical musical portal. Principally originating in Sweden, it eventually led enormous numbers of listeners around the globe (including this writer) into new worlds. Other portals forged of metal were opening at the same time, and many others have opened since then, but thanks to bands like the Danish group Vanir, this one has remained open.

Vanir have been musically exploring other worlds (often mythic ones) since 2010, with a discography that has come to include seven albums, and their eighth one — Wyrd — will be released in just a couple of days by Mighty Music. As the label describes, “The record revolves around the timeless theme of fate – spun from war, from the choices of humankind, and from the consequences that have shaped our world”, and it “invites the listener into stories of downfall and triumph, of lives lost and victories won.”

What we bring you today is the chance to hear Wyrd in its entirety. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: THE GREAT OBSERVER — “SENTENCED AT HIGH NOON”

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Mar 312026
 

(written by Islander)

The Italian band The Great Observer developed serious ambitions for delving into profound subjects after they began coming together in Rome in 2021 — ambitions reflected in the choice of their name and the philosophers they drew upon for lyrical inspiration.

To express those ambitions in their music, they spent years working toward an alchemy of Mediterranean black metal (Mortuary Drape, Zemial) and early death/thrash (such as Canada’s Slaughter, Master, Order from Chaos). The results are now encompassed by a debut album named Loss of Transcendence that will be released on April 30th by Blackseed Productions.

We will share more details about what inspired the band, but first we’ll turn to the album track we’re premiering today — “Sentenced at High Noon“. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: DEVENIAL VERDICT — “RITUALS OF IGNORANCE”

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Mar 312026
 

(written by Islander)

Devenial Verdict’s new record could be considered a retrospective on a 20-year career, but also a reimagining of their past. As a reflection of that concept, the name of the record (which is a combination of two EPs) is Old Blood – Fresh Wounds. To explain, here’s this Finnish band’s statement about the record, which is now set for release by Transcending Obscurity on May 1st:

“This release celebrates the 20th anniversary of Devenial Verdict. We wanted to update some of our older songs on this EP; these songs mark some of the most important musical moments of us as a band. We have the first instances of dissonance in our music and the seeds of our melancholic and atmospheric leanings; we have brutal passages and rare instances of melody. It was really eye opening to realise that all the influences were there all along! Some of these songs have never been properly released and exist only as live videos captured at our shows.

“We wanted to add the Soulthirst EP to this release since 2026 marks the 10 year anniversary for that release. Soulthirst functions as the bridge between all of our older material and our current sound, which we fully unleashed on Ash Blind in 2022.”

What we have for you today is the premiere of the new album’s opening song, “Rituals of Ignorance“. According to a note at Metal-Archives, it was originally part of a four-song demo recorded in 2010 but never officially released. Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): MALAURIU — “THE THIRD NAIL”

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Mar 302026
 

(written by Islander)

On April 3rd Adirondack Black Mass will release the third album by Malauriu, fittingly named The Third Nail (though we suspect that name has other meanings besides the fact that it’s the band’s third full-length). We’re giving it a big showcase, not only providing listeners a full stream today but also publishing an interview of Malauriu’s founder Schizoid and their vocalist RM tomorrow.

Those of you seeing the album’s cover art for the first time will likely be perplexed by how strange it is, and it’s worth sharing Schizoid’s explanation, because the cover image connects to the album’s lyrical themes, and indeed to the often macabre nature of the music. Here is an excerpt from the interview we’re publishing tomorrow: Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: RIVERFLAME — “WHERE DRAGONS ONCE RULED”

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Mar 272026
 

(written by Islander)

“Riverflame were created in 2024 by members of Hail Spirit Noir, Ponte Del Diavolo, and OWLS.” That short announcement got my attention just as effectively as if it had been a meteor plowing into the house next door. Those other groups happen to be personal favorites, so there’s that, but the strong attraction also derives from curiosity about what these four musicians have done together.

What they’ve done is to record an album named Lunar Crusades that will be released on April 24th by code666/Aural Music. But what shape(s) does the music take? That’s hardly predictable, given the distinctively different nature of the music they’ve made in their other bands. The label provides some strong clues by describing the album as “a journey of epic medieval black metal atmospheres and neo-classical arrangements,” channeling “the spirit of Stormkeep, Summoning, and Dissection.”

Even more tangible clues were provided through the release of a song that shares the band’s name, and now we’re presenting more evidence through our premiere of the stunning album track “Where Dragons Once Ruled.” Continue reading »

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