18 New Metal & Hardcore Songs Out This Week

This week in heavy, I reviewed the new Ozzy Osbourne album and the debut LP from noise/industrial supergroup Sightless Pit (Lingua Ignota, Full of Hell, The Body) in Notable Releases, and other good heavy records out this week include the first Downcast album in 25 years, Wrekmeister Harmonies (which IO reviewed), Cult of Fire (which you can read about in IO’s Upcoming Metal Releases), and more. We also got the first new Cirith Ungol single in 29 years, and new singles from Exhorder, Wardruna, Body Count, Lucifer, Hexvessel, Ruin Lust, One Step Closer, Gouge Away, Portrayal of Guilt, and more. Read on for all the metal and hardcore songs we posted this week…

CIRITH UNGOL – “LEGIONS ARISE”

Heavy metal legends Cirith Ungol announced their first new album in 29 years, and you can read more about its lead single here.

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EXHORDER – “THE MAN THAT NEVER WAS”

Last year, New Orleans thrash/groove vets Exhorder released their first album in 27 years, the genuinely badass Mourn the Southern Skies, and today they’ve shared a non-album track from those sessions that’s just as killer as anything on the album.

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WARDRUNA – “GRA”

Nordic dark folk band Wardruna, whose North American tour we’re giving away tickets to, have shared the first taste of their upcoming album Kvitravn and it’s a thrilling, psychedelic mix of traditional sounds and more modern ones.

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BODY COUNT – “BUM-RUSH”

Ice-T’s veteran rap metal band Body Count have shared the second single off their upcoming seventh album Carnivore, and it’s a political bone-crusher that Ice-T calls “another fast moving Body Count track continuing my attempt to wake people up.” It’ll take you right back to 1992, but it sounds pretty badass today too.

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KOOL KEITH & THETAN – “HALLUCINATIONS”

The insanely prolific and insanely long-running underground rap legend Kool Keith is releasing a collaborative album with Nashville powerviolence duo Thetan, and you can read more about lead single “Hallucinations” here.

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LUCIFER – “MIDNIGHT PHANTOM”

Sweden’s Lucifer make occult rock that should appear to fans of Blue Oyster Cult and Ghost, and actually, they tell Revolver their new song was specially influenced by BOC, as well as by death metal vets Autopsy. “Why no one has yet merged Autopsy and Blue Öyster Cult into four minutes is a mystery to us. ‘Midnight Phantom’ came to us in a collective nightmare and we think he made us accomplish this,” they say. The song will appear on their upcoming album Lucifer III, due March 20 via Century Media.

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HEXVESSEL – “BILLION YEAR OLD BEING”

Finland’s Hexvessel call themselves “Psychedelic Forest Folk,” and they tend to get associated with metal despite sounding more like Fairport Convention than Black Sabbath, and they’re also just a great rock band who sound a lot more approachable than you might expect from a band who seem so niche. “Billion Year Old Being” is dark and creepy in a way that recalls Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd or Fleetwood Mac’s “The Green Manalishi.”

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SYSTEM OF A DOWN’S SERJ TANKIAN & JOHN DOLMAYAN – “STARMAN” (DAVID BOWIE COVER)

As mentioned, System of a Down drummer John Dolmayan is releasing a covers album under the moniker These Grey Men, and it features various guest vocalists including SOAD frontman Serj Tankian on Talking Heads and David Bowie covers. Their cover of Bowie’s “Starman” is out now, and it pretty much sounds like what you might expect two System of a Down members covering Bowie to sound like. Check it out.

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WARISH – “WOVEN”

Warish, the fuzzed-out stoner punk band fronted by Riley Hawk (son of Tony), are back with new single “Woven,” and it’s a badass ripper that sounds like Bleach-era Nirvana crossed with the ’60s garage/proto-punk scene.

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RUIN LUST – “BESTIAL MAGNETISM”

Featuring members of Yellow Eyes, Anicon, Vilkacis, Vorde, and more, Ruin Lust takes a heavier detour when compared to its members’ more atmospheric musings, zeroing in on brawn, might, and hatred to fuel their frenzied sounds. Read more and hear “Bestial Magnetism” off their upcoming LP for 20 Buck Spin at Invisible Oranges.

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NECK OF THE WOODS – “VISION LOSER”

“Vision Loser” is the second single off Vancouver progressive death metallers Neck of the Woods’ upcoming album for Pelagic, and you can read more about it here.

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EMPLOYED TO SERVE – “HARSH TRUTH” (RELIVED)

Rising UK metalcore band Employed To Serve have shared a newly reworked version of “Harsh Truth” from their 2019 album Eternal Forward Motion, and this one features a guest spot by Stray From the Path’s Drew Dijorio. In vocalist Justine Jones’ own words, this version “sees the song take a more primitive and visceral shape.”

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ONE STEP CLOSER – “LEAD TO GRAY”

The very promising Wilkes-Barre melodic hardcore band One Step Closer will release their debut album this summer on Triple B, but first here’s a killer new single, “Lead to Gray,” which you can read more about here.

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CONSTRICT – “BLEED FOR ME”

LA metallic hardcore crew Constrict (whose lineup includes members of Vamachara, Forced Order, God’s Hate, Disgrace and more) are releasing their No Eden EP on March 20 via Flatspot Records, and you can hear the skull-crushing lead single now.

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GOUGE AWAY – “CONSIDER”

Ahead of their tour with Circa Survive, Florida punks Gouge Away have shared a ripping new song, “Consider.” The Jack Shirley-recorded song will get released as a 7″ single on March 20 via Deathwish, backed by a cover of “Wave of Mutilation” by the Pixies (who Gouge Away are of course named after), and 25% of the profits will be donated to the International Rescue Committee.

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PORTRAYAL OF GUILT – “THE END OF MAN WILL BRING PEACE TO THIS EARTH” & SLOW FIRE PISTOL – “HEART OF DISCERNMENT”

Two very different and very good screamo bands, Portrayal of Guilt and Slow Fire Pistol, have teamed up for a new split that’s out today. Read more here.

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SEED OF PAIN – FLESH, STEEL, VICTORY…

Florida’s Seed of Pain have dropped a new LP and it’s a real scorcher that combines classic hardcore and classic thrash without necessarily being straight-up “crossover thrash.” It’s full of ’80s nostalgia but it sounds fresh as hell today too.

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For even more new songs, browse the ‘New Songs’ archive. For new metal albums, browse ‘Upcoming Metal Releases’ on Invisible Oranges. And browse our ‘Metal’ category for even more heavy music news.