A short release list this week means that we won’t see a lot of new names in heavy music on next week’s Billboard chart. However, that does not discount the quality or importance of these albums. You definitely need to hear what’s coming your way this week!
Veil of Maya, Matriarch (Sumerian)
Veil of Maya’s fifth album features a major shift for them in the form of new vocalist Lukas Magyar, who brings an entirely new skill set to the vocal position in the band. Matriarch will be the band’s first album to feature any clean vocals, which has already caused some negative reactions from fans. However, the album as a whole still contains Veil of Maya’s signature technicality and heaviness, and no amount of clean vocals could ever take that away.
Sirenia, The Seventh Life Path (Napalm)
Veteran Norwegian group Sirenia returned to the label where they started their career for the release of their appropriately-titled seventh album. Treading the line between gothic and symphonic metal with expert finesse, Sirenia offer the best of both worlds with their unique style and grandiose compositions. The Seventh Life Path is a brilliant escapist piece that will leave listeners in awe.
Prurient, Frozen Niagara Falls (Profound Lore)
If you are a fan of experimental noise metal, then Prurient needs no introduction. The continued labors of progenitor Dominick Fernow are well-known to those that are versed in the genre. Prurient straddles both sides of the noise metal fence, featuring equal measures of both feedback-laden dissonance and electronica-laced ambient beauty on a single album. Frozen Niagara Falls is one of the most ambitions projects of Fernow’s career, clocking in at just under an hour and a half.
