Weekly Digest, Week 16 / 2026

The time has come for some exciting up-and-comers to show their quality, and their names are Doodswens, Draken, The Moon And The Nightspirit, Ordh and Reeking Aura.

Above the underground it's really all just a big random heap:

Crimson Glory – Chasing The Hydra (heavy/progressive metal)

From Ashes To New – Reflections (nu metal/metalcore)

Holywatr – Deo Gratias (alternative rock/metal)

The Last Ten Seconds Of Life – The Dead Ones (deathcore)

Nekrogoblikon – The Boiling Sea (EP) (melodic death/folk metal)

Skindred – You Got This (reggae/alternative metal)

---

TOP PICK OF THE WEEK

Ordh – Blind In Abyssal Realms

Genre: Progressive death metal

Subjective rating: 4/5

Objective rating: 4/5

Country of origin: USA

Progressive death is an exciting niche these days, as it attracts a lot of really creative talent, and can surf on the wave of the massive OSDM resurgence. It's challenging both for the artists and the listeners, but the guys in Ordh seem to have got it right from the start. Not that they're newbie musicians or anything, but the formula for this swirling vortex of chugging riffs, semi-dissonant melody and atmospheric doom feels like it must have taken quite a bit of consideration to nail down.

At its best it builds organically to spine chilling highs, delivering both savagery and complex technicality with a warm yet space-y kind of vibe holding it all together. Other times it gets quite lost going on curious tangents, and at the end I'm actually left wishing for a more bone-jarring impact. Still, mighty impressive stuff.

Highlights: "Apis Bull" and "Blind in Abyssal Realms"

---

Doodswens – Doodswens

Genre: Black metal

Subjective rating: 3.5/5

Objective rating: 3.5/5

Country of origin: Netherlands

The sophomore release by three-piece Dutch black metal band Doodswens (death wish) takes you to a place where suffering is both expected and accepted. That's not saying that it's the sort of black metal that's physically painful to listen to, but it invokes the feelings of being trapped in the darkness, addressing the different shades of agony that is your only companion.

The album deals with this through expressing wrath, bitterness and anguish through both vocals and instruments, delivering both full-on aggression with wicked riff assaults and more restrained, slow burn stewing. Compelling stuff that I hope can keep evolving into something even more distinct.

Highlight: "Driven by Death"

---

Draken – Here Be Draken

Genre: Stoner metal/rock

Subjective rating: 4/5

Objective rating: 3.5/5

Country of origin: Norway

Here's some genre bending stoner metal from Norway. Saying that you're in for a bit of a trip and a truly diverse experience should be taken as me saying it's really exciting and unconventional within reason, and not as a suggestion that this is some incoherent super-proggy whack-job.  The trio that is Draken utilize tons of spritely desert groove, some sludge and hardcore aggression, a bit of psychedelic and doom mood-altering, and plenty of heavy rock get-up-and-go-ness. The variety is great, and the creative effort both inspiring and engaging. The flow through the album becomes a bit tumultuous, as you get pulled in quite a few different directions, but at least to me that's a big part of its charm.

Highlights: "Jólablót" and "Of Demise and Men"

---

The Moon And The Nightspirit – Seed of the Formless

Genre: Melodic folk/doom metal

Subjective rating: 3.5/5

Objective rating: 3.5/5

Country of origin: Hungary

A gothic-tinged, mildly progressive and silkily melodic kind of sound that exists vaguely inside a doom realm, but demonstrates too much flexibility and verve to be tied down to any one subgenre. There are dark trickles of black metal every now and then, but the vocals are mostly serenely beautiful, hovering between sadness and hopefulness. They do best in the middle of the extremes of aggression and solemnity, where the passion rolls steadily like waves and currents.

It fizzes out a bit towards the end, but there's a good amount of energy further back, in between the calmer sections. Definitely one to get lost in.

Highlight: "Astromorphosis"

---

Reeking Aura – On The Promise Of The Moon

Genre: Progressive/melodic death metal

Subjective rating: 3.5/5

Objective rating: 4/5

Country of origin: USA

Reeking Aura's brand of death metal isn't progressive to the same degree that this week's Ordh release is, but like a mycelium network it's spread out beyond the controllable confines of the core subgenre and established connections with its neighbors. There's a strong influx of insidious-toned melodeath, a bit of atmosphere and, to counter it, a good deal of brutal-style rhythm work and old school technicality. They weave it all together into a truly compelling whole that's frankly unlike anything I've ever heard before, adding new layers and showing new sides of themselves pretty much every step of the way.

Although the vocals are, overall, quite versatile, they are also my main issue with the album, as the predominant style is the kind of unintelligible kitchen sink gurgle that could be fine poetry or a toad burping for all you know. I'll likely never get the appeal, but that's a personal problem. Even if you're of the same opinion, you shouldn't let it stop you from checking this out, as you'll be missing out on a whole heap of excellence.

Highlights: "What Only Worms Witness" and "Sifting for Fungal Inheritance (A Mildewy, Acrid Mulch"

---

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

Infestuous – Unfathomable Mutagenic Abominations

Genre: Technical death metal

Country of origin: USA

Pilori – Sans Adieu

Genre: Black metal/hardcore/grindcore

Country of origin: France

Sabiendas – Puppeteer Of Doom

Genre: Death metal

Country of origin: Germany