Weekly Digest, Week 23 / 2026

Some big surprises flying under the radar this week, mainly from 100 Demons, Horn, Pharmacist, Shroud and Üga Büga.

The overground has some heft to it as well, just more predictably so:

August Burns Red – Season Of Surrender (metalcore)

Converge – Hum Of Hurt (hardcore/mathcore)

Evanescence – Sanctuary (alternative metal/rock)

Evergrey – Architects Of A New Weave (progressive/power metal)

Guilt Trip – Armour Of Angels (hardcore/groove metal)

Voivod – Symphonique (Live album) (Progressive metal)

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TOP PICK OF THE WEEK

Shroud – Pax Nocturna

Genre: Black/thrash metal

Subjective rating: 4.5/5

Objective rating: 4/5

Country of origin: Canada

Whoa, did this one come out of nowhere. Well, not nowhere exactly - it did come out of Montreal, Canada, but for a debut album from a band that formed in 2022, this is nothing short of phenomenal. To be fair, at least some of its members have been in the game for a good amount longer, but coming out of the gates swinging on a new project like this is still a great thing to see. Shroud play black metal with a high-revving thrash/speed engine, which is just what you want for spreading this kind of devilry all the faster.

Because of its mostly mellow, piano-featuring intro track and fairly flat production, the album starts off feeling a lot more understated than it should. You really need to crank your speakers to fully enjoy it. They certainly don't skimp on the occultist, venomous black metal feel, but the thrashy riff rampages are absolutely the stars of the show. The fact that they build up to these dominant sections with a bit of hooded nihilism just makes them all the more satisfying once they get going. It's on the ever so slightly long side for a blackened thrash album, and a crisper sound overall would have really elevated it, but I just find myself enjoying the hell out of track after track after track regardless.

Highlights: "Death Blows Over" and "The Eternal Void"

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100 Demons – Embrace The Black Light

Genre: Metallic hardcore/thrash metal

Subjective rating: 4/5

Objective rating: 4/5 

Country of origin: USA

Calm down, crossover thrash fans. This is, in fact, mostly a hardcore record. But with riffs like that, who cares what you classify it as? This is dang heavy, gravel-vocal chug heaven, for non-stop, full-body headbanging. And yes, the boys from Connecticut can thrash pretty fucking good when they feel like it.

The rhythms have different levels of energy to them, but it's lethal in every form. There's powerviolence, thrash, melodeath-derived-old-school metalcore and groove metal to be found, all with the same, mean-spirited tone. It reminds me of Spiritworld at their absolute heaviest, only that it's like this for the entire duration of the album. It's not really attempting anything new, but if you're looking for kickass in sonic form, it hardly gets any better than this.

Highlights: "Meat For The Beast" and "Night Parade Of 100 Demons"

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Horn – Apokalyps 1618

Genre: Black metal

Subjective rating: 4/5

Objective rating: 4/5

Country of origin: Germany

24 years and now 11 albums in, and this is the first I hear of Horn. Shows how well versed I am in German black metal. But this album proved to be quite the wake-up call. At first it seemed I was being presented with pure, second wave Norwegian grimness, but the sound quickly expands. First of all, the production is excellent, and even though the tone remains suitably melancholy, it also has black feathered wings with which to soar.

The songs on this album build beautifully, and certainly not always in the classic bottom-to-top order. It dips into atmospheric, doom-like lulls and charges on with riff-powered, mounted-reaper-assaults, before ascending to crashing peaks of near blackened death metal force. It allies itself with folk-leaning melody for that pagan feel, without this making it feel less dark in any way. That being said, this isn't the bleakest, most evil stuff out there, and not all of it feels equally fresh, but it retains a strong identity, delivered with conviction and obvious proficiency.

Highlights: "Am Abgrund steht der Junker" and "Apokalyps 1618"

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Pharmacist – Vertebrae After Vertebrae

Genre: Grindcore/death metal

Subjective rating: 4/5

Objective rating: 4/5

Country of origin: Japan

Miss Necroticism-era Carcass? No worries, as Japan's one-man project Pharmacist is very much keeping that unhinged, fun-loving, constantly experimenting, autopsy-obsessed (no, not the band) spirit alive. On "Vertebrae After Vertebrae", Pharmacist lean heavily into filthy death metal, which might have prompted the fairly muddled production. I think it's a bit overdone, but still suits the menacing style.

The vocals consist of a wide range of snarls and growls, all well performed and just perfect for the monstrous sound. The riffs feel hungry and deliver a stupid amount of groove. If this doesn't get you headbanging, you seriously need to check your pulse. Perhaps not quite as visceral as it could have been with more audible detail, but still an absolute beast of an album.

Highlight: "Endogenica" and "Vertebrae After Vertebrae"

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Üga Büga – Valley Of The Wolf

Genre: Stoner/sludge metal

Subjective rating: 3.5/5

Objective rating: 3.5/5

Country of origin: USA

An exciting young stoner/sludge band out of Virginia, USA, whose style revolves around a fantastical, comic-inspired concept. This mostly matters for the lyrics, but the music itself is also far from conventional. It swings from crashing riffs and throat-rending coarseness to floaty psychedelia and jazzy progressions.

Variation and imagination are the great strengths of this album, along with the performances themselves. It sounds really good throughout. The issue, at least intermittently, is that some of the tonal- and rhythm transitions can feel fairly abrupt and, at times, unmotivated. There's more than enough cool stuff on here to warrant a higher rating, it's just that the way it's all put together is a bit messier than what really suits it. Still, it's a lively, enjoyable and truly creative effort.

Highlight: "Valley of The Wolf"

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HONOURABLE MENTIONS

Belushi Speed Ball – Toxic Waste Was Everywhere In The '80s

Genre: Hardcore/thrash metal

Country of origin: USA

Dead Void – Cranial Devastation

Genre: Death/doom metal

Country of origin: Denmark

Iron Kingdom – Shadows And Dust

Genre: Heavy metal

Country of origin: Canada

Midnight Rider – Limited Infinity

Genre: Heavy metal

Country of origin: Germany

Nights Of Malice – Chaos Exordium

Genre: Deathcore/technical death metal

Country of origin: USA

Revolting – Supernatural Anthems

Genre: Death metal

Country of origin: Sweden

W.M.D. – Against All Warnings

Genre: Thrash metal

Country of origin: Canada