A choir on one of Germany’s Big Four thrash bands’ new album? “We always did our own thing.”

HEAVY METAL HAS evolved a great deal since four young musicians in Birmingham, England, saw a crowd gather across the street from their rehearsal room, lining up for an opportunity to get terrified by

TWO DECADES AND eight albums into Alter Bridge’s lauded career, the hard rockers are pulling off a first in 2026 — they’re embracing the definitiveness of a self-titled album. While you could argue 20

Metallica ’s 1984 began with a gear heist and a cancelled UK tour; it ended with them being heavy metal’s Next Big Thing. Then came Master Of Puppets. This is the inside story of the making of that album and the two year whirlwind that took four “alcoholica” outcasts from the El Cerrito garage to the big time.

If you’re looking for some ‘leather, studs and bullet belts’ classic metal, get in their firing line.

THE ESSENTIAL NEW ROCK TRACKS YOU NEED TO HEAR THIS MONTH AND THE BANDS TO HAVE ON YOUR RADAR