Articles by Holly Wright

With over 10 years’ experience writing for Metal Hammer and Prog, Holly has reviewed and interviewed a wealth of progressively-inclined noise mongers from around the world. A fearless voyager to the far sides of metal Holly loves nothing more than to check out London’s gig scene, from power to folk and a lot in between. When she’s not rocking out Holly enjoys being a mum to her daughter Violet and working as a high-flying marketer in the Big Smoke.

Articles by: Holly Wright

"While the romps through Bon Jovi territory won’t be to everyone’s taste, Brothers Of Metal pull it off." Somehow, Sweden's most flamboyant power metallers have got even more ludicrous with Fimbulvinter

By Holly Wright published 28 October 24

Brothers Of Metal harness everything from 80s glam to gothic rock on their fun as hell third album

"Maybe this was the catharsis he needed to propel his next chapter." Devin Townsend's PowerNerd isn't the all-out burst of Heavy Devy we expected, but it's still pretty damn good

By Holly Wright published 23 October 24

Devin Townsend's PowerNerd isn't the all-out burst of Heavy Devy we expected, but it's still pretty damn good

"An auspicious and metallicised spin on her dark fairytale aesthetic." The Obsession reunites Charlotte Wessels with former Delain bandmates and the stylings that made her a symphonic metal star

By Holly Wright published 19 September 24

After two experimental Tales From Six Feet Under releases, Charlotte Wessels is back on familiar grounds

“The context had changed so much. I knew I had a lot of quirks and weird things, but there were only dysfunctions left”: Daniel Gildenlöw on confronting his neurodiversity via Pain Of Salvation’s Panther

By Holly Wright published 28 August 24

The band’s 11th album, dedicated to “the outsiders,” came after he was diagnosed with ADHD and survived a battle with a flesh-eating infection

“It’s hard to justify to friends who don’t get it that you make a living, but you’re not goddamn Led Zeppelin and not playing cover sets at the bar”: Between The Buried And Me just do what they do

By Holly Wright published 10 July 24

Unable to battle the stigma of following their own path, they just got on with it; and, taking influence from Danny Elfman and Pink Floyd, went even more theatrical with 2015’s Coma Ecliptic

"Hot Singles In Your Area might not be short on shock tactics, but it’s the best vulgar display of power you’ll hear all year." Scene Queen's debut album is a naughty, fearless, genre-splicing knockout

By Holly Wright published 24 June 24

Scene Queen has lived up to the hype in salacious style with Hot Singles In Your Area

"Exactly how you’d hope Korpiklaani to sound in 2024 if your expectations revolve around zippy, accordion-driven tavern metal.": Folk metal's biggest party band have found the sweet spot on new album Rankarumpu

By Holly Wright published 4 April 24

Fiddle-loving Finns Korpiklaani offer a massive knees-up folk metal party with album #12, Rankarumpu

"It's not a comfortable ride, but it is an electric one": GosT's Prophecy brings the synthwave pioneer back to his roots

By Holly Wright published 7 March 24

James Lollar has been on shaky ground with GosT's most recent material, but a return to the darkest edges of synthwave re-energises the project

"We’re slowly becoming a band with its own identity.” How Riverside made Love, Fear & The Time Machine

By Holly Wright published 21 February 24

Trading in prog metal riffs for a sound inspired by 80s pop, Riverside’s sixth album marked a daring change in direction, which perfectly suits a record that’s all about change itself.

"The album’s biggest talking point is its ability to deliver in the face of a major line-up change." Amaranthe's The Catalyst sees one of metal's most unique bands smoothly sail into their next chapter

By Holly Wright published 20 February 24

Despite a potentially destabilising lineup shift, Amaranthe are as strong as ever

"Does the music sound like Tool? Does it sound like Opeth? All these speculations are cool." How Soen introduced themsleves with Cognitive

By Holly Wright published 15 February 24

Ex-Opeth drummer Martin Lopez is back with eagerly awaited new band Soen. Singer Joel Ekelöf explains about their “intricate rhythms” and the influence of a Latin singing Catholic monk…

“He really immersed himself in the story and spent weeks rewriting the narration… I had no idea what he was talking about, but it was so much better than what I wrote”: When Arjen Lucassen worked with his hero Rutger Hauer

By Holly Wright published 1 February 24

Blade Runner star worried the Ayreon mastermind with the amount of swearing in his rewrites for concept album Lost In The New Real

Metal Hammer's 50 best albums of 2023 (and the stories behind them)

By Rich Hobson published 27 December 23

Sleep Token, Creeper, Within Temptation: 2023 has been a massive year for metal, and these 50 records represent the very best the year has had to offer

“A band can be one thing for so many years then change into something completely different”: Once a bit metal, Leprous now have more in common with Marillion than with ritualistic rebellion against ideology

By Holly Wright published 12 December 23

Yes, they were Ihsan’s backing group… yes, they use to play extreme music and wear corpse paint… but lead singer Einar Solberg explains they’re really a grandiose prog unit.

The best metal albums of 2023 so far

By Rich Hobson published 8 November 23

From Metallica to Babymetal, Cattle Decapitation to Sleep Token, these are the best metal albums of the year to date

"We have some crazy interludes and instrumental passages.” How Haken made second album Visions

By Holly Wright published 24 October 23

By the time London prog rockers Haken released their second album Visions they were already headed for glory

“The old Genesis stuff is probably some of my favourite music ever created." Mastodon on their prog inspiration and recording The Hunter

By Holly Wright published 27 September 23

When it came to recording a follow up to 2009's progtastic Crack The Skye, the band wrote bigger choruses for 2011's The Hunter but their prog roots remained the same

TesseracT and the tale of Altered State

By Holly Wright published 25 May 23

Album number two. Vocalist number eight. The story of TesseracT's Altered State is quite something...

Metal? Punk? Jazz? Avatar’s Dance Devil Dance hits a lot of musical buttons – maybe too many

By Holly Wright published 12 February 23

Album review: Avatar are a little too eclectic for their own good on new album Dance Devil Dance is

Best power metal albums of 2022: Blind Guardian/Battle Beast/Hammerfall/Sabaton/Bridear

The 10 best power metal albums of 2022

By Rich Hobson published 12 December 22

From Sabaton and Blind Guardian to Wind Rose and Bridear, these are the 10 best power metal albums of 2022

Arjen Lucassen and the Theory Of Everything

By Holly Wright published 28 October 22

Dutch polymath Arjen Lucassen discusses his star-studded 2013 Ayreon album The Theory Of Everything

Between The Buried Me and the making of The Parallax II: Future Sequence

By Holly Wright published 9 October 22

With 2012's conceptual The Parallax II: Future Sequence US prog metallers Between The Buried Me really let their prog side to the fore

Wednesday 13’s Horrifier: sleaze is out, sludgy noise and bowel-trembling breakdowns are in

By Holly Wright published 3 October 22

Album review: ex-Murderdolls man Wednesday 13 brings the noise on his heaviest album yet, Horrifier

Riverside Discuss Love, Fear And The Time Machine – Their Most Personal Album Yet

By Holly Wright last updated 4 September 22

Trading in prog metal riffs for a sound inspired by 80s pop, Riverside’s sixth album marks a daring change in direction, which perfectly suits a record that’s all about change itself.

How Haken made The Mountain

By Holly Wright published 2 September 22

Back in 2013 Haken had just signed to InsideOut Music and Charlie Griffiths and Ross Jennings sat down with Prog to discuss their new album The Mountain

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