An absolutely massive week for new music this week, featuring some massive names from the rock, metal and country worlds. Let’s check it all out!

Brothers Osborne: Watertown

Album five from the country duo is certainly an interesting release. I’ve been a massive fan since their debut and we LOVED their last album. This one, while I don’t think opens very strongly, is definitely a grower! I’m a CoJo fan, but ‘Born and Raised Hell’ was an oddly chilled way to open a Brothers Osborne album, and single ‘R.I.P.’ feels a lot more fitting. It’s a massive, catchy and infectiously fun country rock track like only the pair can do, and is an easy highlight. Then you have the likes of ‘High’, ‘Stubborn’, chilled, summery single ‘Bottle it Up’ and the Stephen Wilson Jr. featuring ‘Tough Kid’ that are also big highlights.

However, I do have to say, a lot of this is on the slower side. I know they have always had a more chilled-out side, but it is usually used to compliment the rockier songs. This feels predominantly slower, though. None of it is bad by any stretch, but it does mean I enjoyed it a little less than their self-titled release, or ones before that. I completely appreciate this will be the sort of sound they wanted to play for this record, and they still get plenty of time to show off their incredible talents. It may grow on me, but for now after a first listen, I do have to say I’m ever so slightly disappointed. Still, it’s a solid slower country albums with a couple of songs still having their fun rock flair near the start. Up to ‘Doors’ is a really excellent album, but the pace certainly slows after that. 7.5/10, but hopefully that goes up with another few spins!

Polyphia: BE NOT AFRAID

We’ve already checked out this awesome new album! Read the full review here.

Tony Iommi: From the Dark

Somehow the first solo album in over two decades from the Black Sabbath legend, this is over 40 minutes of excellent doom riffing and writing, and I love it! Tony’s riffing is phenomenal, as expected, and Jorn’s vocals fit over the top perfectly, being a criminally underrated singer these days. And, the rest of the band kill it too. Karl Brazil kills it behind the kit, especially given his change of pace, ans Fury/Mercyful Fate’s Becky Baldwin is one of the best bassists on the scene today. The whole album is excellent and flows fantastically, it going by in a flash. Songs like ‘Black Times’, ‘Beyond the Dead’ and ‘Return of the Arbalist’ are personal highlights, but honestly the other five tracks are just as phenomenal! It’s almost criminal we haven’t had a full release from him in 13+ years, and I’m so glad we’ve finally gotten more of his powerful, evil riffing again. It’s an album that took me back to my youth in the best way possible, and is one I’ll certainly be spinning again plenty moving forward. A very easy 8.5/10 from us!

LOCASH: CHRIS & PRESTON

Album six from the country duo comes barely a year after the excellent Bet the Farm, and continues that momentum amazingly! It’s exactly what you’d expect from the pair, and is a fantastic half-hour of pop-adjacent country music. And, while the likes of ‘These Days’, the Parmalee-featuring, Rupert Holmes’s-inspired ‘Let the Country Music Play’, ‘YES’ and ‘Fish Her Off My Mind’ are all personal highlights, there really isn’t a bad song throughout! I don’t know what it is, but the band scratch all the right itches in my brain, and I can never get enough of them! It’s just the right amount of rock, pop and country cheese all rolled into one, and the pair’s voices and writing compliment each other perfectly. I think it’s honestly impossible to dislike the band, and the fact that they have pumped out such a crazy amount of high quality music in just 18 months speaks to the sheer talent involved! I can’t give this any less than 9/10. It’s maybe slightly less packed full of bangers as their last record, but only barely, and is still a release I’ll be listening to a lot of the rest of the year!

Beyond Extinction: Three Swords

Following up on their excellent debut album last year, the Essex death/extreme metallers once again kill it with another four tracks! Heavy doesn’t even begin to cut it; the brutality and aggression of the riffs, screams and drums is downright evil and disgusting in all the best ways. And, every track is as good as the last, each song flowing effortlessly into another and making for 16 minutes that goes by in a flash! Having said that, single ‘The Estuary’ is particularly incredible, and my favourite on here. The band honestly kill it throughout, all getting their own chance to shine, and the songwriting speaks for itself. It’s certainly not going to be for everyone, but I loved every second of it. I can’t recommend it enough to anyone even slightly into the heavier side of metal. It’s every bit as good as their album, and honestly the conciseness may make it even better for me on repeat listens. Another very easy 8.5/10 for the band!

Stand Atlantic: GODBREATH

Album five from the alt rockers picks up perfectly from where 2024’s WAS HERE left off! It’s half-an-hour of catchy, pop-punk infused hard rock, and I enjoyed every second. The band are so seasoned and polished at this point, playing and writing their style excellently alongside some top notch production. While tracks like ‘NEXT2U’, ‘So Cool’ and ‘HeadRush’ are personal favourites, there really isn’t a bad song throughout. If you are a fan of the band or this sound, you will surely love this! With this style being bigger than it’s been in well over a decade, this album could very well be the one to push the band to the stratosphere, and it is certainly good enough to do so! While not quite as strong as their last album, mainly because it doesn’t have as many memorable tracks and moments, it is still solid release, and one that gets an easy 7/10 from us.

Baby Lasagne: End the Party

The second studio album from the Eurovision alumni is a damn fun party metal release! We missed his debut and, though I remember enjoying his entry in the show, I honestly didn’t know what to expect with this. So, because of that, I was rather blown away! However, even without my expectations, it’s still a damn good album in its own right! ‘Anyway’ opens the record excellently, while the likes of ‘My Show’, ‘Sedated’ and the title track are all other massive highlights. However, every track on this is excellent, and it flows excellent. It’s far heavier than I expected it to be after ‘Rim Tim Tagi Dim’, with there being some awesome screams and huge riffs and breakdowns throughout. It’s very much a modern metal/metalcore sound, but also with a healthy dose of everything European; think Electric Callboy but with a twist of both Bad Omens and even some power metal and Europop. If you are at all interested I cannot recommend checking it out enough, and I’m going to be listening to this a LOT moving forward. Another very easy 9/10 from us this week!

Jacob Hackworth: What Took You So Long

The debut EP from the breakout country star is a beautiful, chilled out 20+ minutes of music. While it’s generally a little short and not fully my sort of thing when it comes to the genre, there is no denying how great it is, and how bright a future Jacob has! Single ‘I Wanna Quit’ is a massive highlight, as is ‘Help Yourself’. It’s very much a modern, Morgan Wallen-esque pop country sound, so if you are into that sort of vibe then this is well worth a listen! I’m at the very least curious to see where he goes from here in terms of his style, sound and career, and I certainly wouldn’t turn this off if it came on again. So, while not inherently my thing, I think the shorter length helped its case, and it gets a solid 6.5/10 from us!

Mason Hill: World so Wonderful

We’ve also reviewed this album in full, aren’t you lucky?! Check it out here.

Wolves in the Throne Room: Estuary

The first new studio album from the US black metallers in over half a decade picks up right where their previous works left off. It’s exactly what you’d expect from a modern black metal album and, while I am usually indifferent towards the base genre, I actually quite enjoyed this! Don’t get me wrong, I’d very much still prefer it live than on track, but I had a good time with the tracks here too. The band’s talents are off the charts, both in terms of playing and songwriting, and the dynamics throughout were really fantastic. And each track flows into another pretty effortlessly too, making the insane 50 minutes spread across just six songs surprisingly palatable. Because of that, it’s hard to pick sole highlight tracks, but I’d definitely recommend giving it a full listen if you can. It’s certainly not a release for everyone, but if you like black metal this is well worth checking out! An easy 7/10 from us!

Hector Gannet: The Great Shakedown

Album three from the “modernist folk” Brit is a damn fun collection of tracks! I wasn’t familiar with him before this, but I had a great time with it. It’s quirky and interesting and feels pretty unique in terms of its sound and delivery. The sheer depth of production and instrumentation is fantastic and makes it all sound and feel huge, and the writing around it is great! It has elements of everything from jazz to folk, easy-listening to rock, and reminds me of everything from The Cat Empire to Tom Seals to even a bit of Tim Armstrong. Tracks like the opener/title track, singles ‘Seven Signs’ and ‘The Mother Tongue’ are big highlights, but the whole album has a definite appeal to it. There is maybe one too many slow songs in the latter half, but that’s where his folkier side and lyric writing really takes president, and is still fantastic! It’s another release that isn’t for everyone, but is well worth a listen if you are interested! 7.5/10

Ghostemane: AM:FM

The trap metal pioneers ninth studio album comes after a far longer gap between records than any of his previous, with there being a whopping six years since ANTI-ICON. He shows that he has not at all lost a step in that time with this release! His unique blend of nu, industrial, gothic metals and hip-hop is so interesting and fun, and leads once again to some really awesome moments through this 33 minute album. Tracks like ‘Deux Ex Machina’, ‘Miazma’, ‘Cyberia’ and ‘Noose Knot’ are all fantastic, but I honestly loved every song on here. It feels like what Manson would be putting out if he hit the scene in the 2020’s, but there is plenty of other influences too, from Static-X to SOAD, Fear Factory to P.O.D. to early Slipknot.

So yeah, if you can’t tell, I LOVE this! It’s right up my street and everything about it is awesome. Even if you are slightly curious do yourselves a favour and check this out, it’s a release I’d recommend to anyone! Even with the slight energy lull in the middle, it’s still fantastic. It’s arguably the best release he’s ever put out, and it’s another album that gets a huge 9/10 from us this week!

Alex Henry Foster: The Fragile Beauty (Of New Morning Hopes)

Solo album six from the Your Favourite Enemy frontman is a dark, reflective prog/alt rock collection. It gives big Placebo vibes in the best ways. It’s another fantastically interesting listen, packed full of some amazing lyrics and vocals, and some really fitting instrumentation. However, I do think an hour of gloomy, trash tempoed music at once was a bit much for me. The opener and ‘Springtime’ are personal highlights. And, while the rest of the album isn’t bad by any stretch, it’s a release that is very much designed for a full listen, as there aren’t many songs that stand on their own much. It’s incredibly well written and if you are into this sort of style it is absolutely worth giving a spin. It may still grow on me, as I do want to give it another listen, but for now it still gets a strong 6.5/10 from me!

Ignea: Monumental

The modern metal Ukrainians add to their already impressive discography perfectly with album four. It’s massive and grandiose, packed full of soaring vocals, melodic moments and huge soundscapes. And, from ‘Dreams of Lands Unseen’ to the Combichrist-featuring ‘Prefab’ to ‘What Buildings Dream of’, there are some truly fantastic songs throughout! The bands ability to shift between brutal heaviness and huge melodic moments is insanely impressive, and on show throughout the whole album perfectly! It may honestly be their strongest overall release yet, having a bit of something for everyone. They are definitely a band to watch as I can see this pushing them to even greater heights, and it gets a very easy 7.5/10 from me!

LEADFEATHER: Catch the Silvertrain

The sleazy/bluesy UK rockers chase their 2025 debut EP with another corker here! Six tracks all as good as the rest, and that are every bit as good as anything from Roll the Dice. It’s easy to see why the band are gaining quite a bit of momentum already, as they are all such talented musicians and songwriters. It’s another release that it’s incredibly hard to pick highlights from, as every song is so good. From the boot stompin’ openers to the acoustic ballad in ‘The Answer’, it’s all excellent! If you are at all into any of the genres this release or band encompass, this is an absolutely must-listen! They have found their home comfortably in the NWOCR scene, and it won’t be long before they are at the very top of it if they keep putting out releases like this! 8.5/10

The Flower Kings: HOPE

More prog, this time from the Swedish legends. Being the middle part of a trilogy of albums started last year, I did go back and check out LOVE before this. Honestly, the two pair up perfectly together, even if it does make for 129 minutes of music overall! Prog is always a fun one for me as I don’t listen to enough of it but can certainly appreciate a good band doing it well, and this is certainly it! The band are all absolutely massively mind-blowingly talented, and I love that they have written just four tracks here and split some up into multiple parts, giving everything so much time to breathe. Don’t get me wrong, it can get weird at times, and is an album that definitely isn’t for the faint of heart or those new to prog. However, I found myself getting lost in it, and having a lot of fun in the process. I’m very curious to see where they go with part three, but will happily be spinning this again in the future too! 7/10