April is gonna be a massive month for metal. Not only do we get new albums from Epica, Machine Head, Employed To Serve and Ghost, but we'll also be getting our first proper glimpse of this month's Metal Hammer cover star Papa V Perpetua as the Satanic Swedes hit the road in the UK. Top stuff.
But that's besides the point - here are the results of last week's vote! It was a surprisingly tight-run battle for top spot, with Japan's Esprit D'Air taking an admirable third place finish. But even with their Hollywood connections in vocalist Vera Farmiga, The Yagas couldn't beat out the might that is Evanescence and new single Afterlife, a track that proves Amy Lee and co are still alt. metal masters after 20 plus years.
We've got more massive offerings for you this week as we bring the latest singles from Babymetal, Sleep Token and Machine Head, as well as all-new songs from Kid Bookie, Dogma, UnityTX and so many more. As ever, don't forget to tell us which tracks excite you most at the moment by voting in the poll below - and have an excellent weekend. Happy listening!
Babymetal - from me to u ft. Poppy
"Let's go!" Babymetal have never been averse to a good feature. They're really leaning into that with new album Metal Forth, the tracklist packed with guest appearances as everyone from Bloodywood to Spiritbox and Electric Callboy pops up. To celebrate that fact - and the announcement that the album will be with us on June 13 - Babymetal's latest single sees them team up with hyperpop maverick Poppy on from me to u. In many ways, the track feels like a throwback to the sugary sweet/thumping beat mix of Babymetal's earliest releases, but added howls and breakdowns from Poppy that bring to mind her work with Knocked Loose on last year's epic Suffocate.
Sleep Token - Caramel
Our next taste of Sleep Token's Even In Arcadia, Caramel feels like perhaps the most revelatory song in the band's back catalogue. While their lore has long been coached in poeticism and mystery, there are lines here that seem to directly acknowledge the struggles of maintaining anonymity and dealing with parasocial relationships. "Every time they try to shout my real name just to get a rise from me", Vessel sings. "Acting like I'm never stressed out by the hearsay/I guess that's what I get for trying to hide in the limelight." Seeded amidst a song that really plays up the band's interplay between R&B dynamics and crushing, clattering breakdowns, it's a real underscore for the unique sound and position Sleep Token inhabit in metal in 2025.
Machine Head - Bonescraper
Did anyone order a massive Machine Head banger? 'Cause that's definitely what we've got with Bonescraper, a real stompy headbanger with a killer hook ("Love is just a loaded gun") and plenty of "whoah-ohs" that've got us practically bouncing on the spot thinking about their Bloodstock headline appearance this summer. With new album Unatoned coming in just a few weeks on April 25, we reckon we're onto a stormer.
Kid Bookie - Get Out (ft. Griffin Taylor)
Six years ago Kid Bookie teamed up with Corey Taylor on the genre-bending Stuck In My Ways. Now he's going nex-gen as he recruits Griffin Taylor to bring massive snarls and howls to Get Out. A collision between bassy hip hop and thumping metal, the track is strengthened by the fusion of styles, Taylor bringing some colossal vocal prowess atop a stomping beat that feels like it was designed to slay festival crowds and bring different audiences together.
Volbeat - In the Barn of the Goat Giving Birth to Satan’s Spawn in a Dying World of Doom
The hardest song title of 2025? We'd have to say so, Volbeat not holding back with their latest single. From slinky country rock to neck-bothering heavy metal, it's a distillation of what Volbeat do oh-so-well and a prime example of why we'll be delighted when God Of Angels Trust arrives on June 6. Granted, the song doesn't go quite as hard as its title, but then... what does?
Dogma - Banned
Dogma clearly adore being transgressive. While they might've offered up traditional-style heavy metal on their self-titled debut, their message - and naughty nun aesthetic - was designed to raise hackles with the overly straight-laced. They're not stopping with the cheeky sultriness on new single Banned, but the band have traded away their guitars and riffs for almost doo-wop style swing. Dogma/Twin Temple/Ghost tour when? [we'll also warn you, probably best to avoid the video if you're at work or around minors. Ahem].
Ghost Bath - Well, I Tried Drowning
Ghost Bath might play depressive black metal, but there's a kernal of bleak gallows humour to the title of latest single Well, I Tried Drowning. It's not quite the only lightness amidst the sweeping maelstrom of riffs however; there are notes of synth and brittle high-end that add an otherworldliness to the blackened fury. Taken from new album Rose Thorn Necklace, due May 9, it's a reminder that although the days are getting brighter, the darker arts still thrive.
UnityTX - Heinous
2023's Ferality was a serious swing for hardcore/hip-hop crossover mob UnityTX. New single Heinous catches the band at their most transgressive, balancing out a stompy, beatdown riff with rapid flows, all teeth and fists in a delightful mix that brings to mind the most furious ends of bands like Biohazard or Stray From The Path with a bit of electronica chucked in the mix for good measure. On tour in Europe and the UK later this month with metalcore group Thrown, this band are well worth keeping eyes on.
The Big Hell - Heaven Knows I'm Trolling You Now
Powered by queasy, lurching bass and squealing vocals, The Big Hell's latest single Heaven Knows I'm Trolling You Now is all weirdness and noise rock brilliance with a stompy beat that'll make you want to put the floor through. The Wolverhampton band - featuring former God Damn vocalist Thom Edward - put out their debut album Horrendous Friends way back in January, but this looks to be a taste of something else they've been cooking up.
Tallah - What We Know
The nu metal vibes are massive on Tallah's latest single What We Know. Coming on like a collision of turn-of-the-millennium Korn, Slipknot and Dope, it's got us itching to break out the baggy jeans and wallet chains, all wailing angst and juddering beats. The first taste of new album Primeval: Obsession // Detachment, due September 5, it's a floor-filler from top to bottom.
Ward XVI - Blood Is The New Black
If there's one thing we know about metal in the 21st Century, it's that colourful characters and big personalities can go a long way. Horrorcore heroes Ward XVI certainly don't demure in new single Blood Is The New Black, an industrial metal tinged banger that stomps along with wailing synths and even a cheeky strut section that puts a bit of circus theatricality to their horror aesthetic. Taken from new album Id3ntity, due July 11, it's a deceptively addictive listen.
Seven Blood - To The Unknown
German newcomers Seven Blood go big on the atmospherics with To The Unknown. Set somewhere between alt metal and metalcore - think Spiritbox, Lake Malice et al. - it's a wonderful balance of melody and heft that promises big things from debut album Life Is Just A Phase, due November 21.
