It’s Friday, which means two things: giving the week the finger and new music! Tune in every Friday for The Pit’s round-up of new metal releases, from singalong hard rock to pus-drenched underground death metal. Keep those ears bleeding!
Iron Maiden, Senjutsu (Sanctuary Records Group)
For fans of: …it’s Iron goddamn Maiden
Standout track: “Days of Future Past”
Man, the new Iron Maiden snuck up on us, but only now do we realize it’s what we’ve needed all year. And Senjutsu is certainly worth the wait, maneuvering the band’s steely storm of blades into some gorgeous, cinematic songwriting. As always, Maiden bring their patented acrobatics and dynamics, though this time around the songs are slightly more focused and easier to follow, taking the listener along on an epic journey. Meanwhile, the big singles still go huge, giving fans all the soaring choruses and excitable riffs they need. Up the irons, though c’mon, when were they ever down?
Carnifex, Graveside Confessions (Nuclear Blast)
For fans of: Brand of Sacrifice, Inferi, Winds of Plague
Standout track: “Cemetery Wander”
Yes to this kind of deathcore! It sucks that Carnifex had to lose hundreds of thousand of dollars on a canceled tour and worry they were done to make it to Graveside Confessions, but fuck, the end product is so awesome, we think the ends justify the means! The album is a macabre, energized blast of metal-oriented deathcore, never losing its beautiful fury in too many breakdowns or gutsfuck gurgles. Instead, the listener is engaged at all times, feeling like an arachnid cadaver crawling down a crypt wall. If deathcore’s going to make a comeback, it better fucking sound like this!
Dana Dentata, Pantychrist (Roadrunner)
For fans of: FEVER 333, Lingua Ignota, Twiztid
Standout track: “Apology”
It’s interesting that Dana Dentata chose birth as the theme of her new album, because she definitely sounds as pissed off as a newly-squeezed-out baby. Pantychrist is as much an experimental ambient album as it is a rap record, with Dana’s fuzz-drenched reverb-overloaded beats offering as many interesting takes as her rhymes. While certainly not every metalhead’s cup of tea, listeners looking for a darker, more nuanced take on the recent dark hip-hop trend will love the shit out of this. Fear the mother.
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Other crushers:
- Portrait, At One With None (Metal Blade)
- Beyond Grace, Our Kingdom Undone (Prosthetic)
- Bokassa, Molotov Rocktail (Napalm Records)
Want to check out other great new metal releases we’ve spotlighted recently? Good. Here you go.
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Words by Chris Krovatin
