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The Metal Mayan Mixtape - 03 February, 2025

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Jinjer - Duél (Napalm Records) Out February 07


Far and away one of the most in demand bands of the last decade, the years since 2021's Wallflowers have been anything but quiet for the members of Jinjer. Racking up an impressive 300+ shows supporting their last release, the combined forces of vocalist Tatiana Shmayluk, guitarist Roman Ibramkhalilov, bassist Eugene Abdukhanov and drummer Vlad Ulasevich will set the metal world ablaze once again with the release of their fifth album, Duél.


Hitting the Sirius XM Liquid Metal airwaves last August, and being featured on Jose "Metal Ambassador" Mangin's 'Devil's Dozen' for multiple weeks, "Someone's Daughter" serves up what is becoming the classic Jinjer formula: Shmayluk's captivating clean voice luring listeners in, making them unaware of the increasingly threatening grooves delivered by the rest of the band. And just when it clicks that something is off, the walls come crashing down with Shmayluk's unearthly roar backed by leveling breakdowns.


Releasing four more singles in recent months, "Rogue" is a chaotic chug-fest sure to instigate riots in the moshpit, while "Kafka" and "Green Serpent" showcase more complex details that Jinjer executes with grace. The former serving an uncanny dreamscape, and definitely recommended listening for fans of Entheos, and while the latter weaves in Cynic-like progressive textures with 2000's era metalcore passages akin to Scars of Tomorrow and Sinai Beach.


Closing the album and entering in as the most recent single, the album's title track is a barrage of heavy hitting riffs and drums that impeccably cycle back into the circle pit inciting opening track, "Tantrum".


Scheduled to perform at this year's Sonic Temple and Welcome to Rockville festivals in Ohio and Florida respectively, the first half of the year is also packed with shows in Asia, Australia and New Zealand, the U.K. and Europe. Still, as the electrifying new chapter of Jinjer starts this February, North American fans would do well to brace themselves for a potential tour.


Whether it's later this year or in early 2026, the might of Duél definitely calls for preparation - expect nothing but absolute intensity at every show.




Bleeding Through - Nine (SharpTone Records) Out February 14


Born in 1999 through the union of the Stockholm sound of Soilwork and At the Gates, and the intensity of hardcore sluggers Integrity, the list of bands today that owe their existence to the groundwork laid by Bleeding Through is long and distinguished. Although disbanding in 2014, the unbridled fury of Orange County's heaviest hitters couldn't keep the California unit quiet for long, proven once again with Nine, the band's aptly titled ninth release.


Teasing their new chapter back in 2023 with "War Time", which featured a guest appearance by fellow metalcore pioneer Brian Fair of Shadows Fall, the song's circle pit inducing riffs literally set the pace for what would come next. Proving they are still the undisputed champions of symphony meets brutality "Dead, But So Alive" and "Our Brand Is Chaos" deliver crushing blows in every moment. Vocalist Brandan Schiepatti is as pissed off as ever, his words thundering in every growl over devastating breakdown riffs and Marta Demmel's lush keyboards.


With the excellent decision to give Demmel the chance to grace tracks with her haunting voice since 2018's Love Will Kill All, she shines once again on "Lost In Isolation" and "Path Of Our Disease", the former featuring a face melting guitar solo courtesy of longtime friend Doc Coyle (God Forbid, Bad Wolves). Together with "I Am Resistance", which sees mic duties shared with Andrew Neufeld of Comeback Kid, Nine is not only a bright light for the future of Bleeding Through, but also a testament to the connections they have made in the past.


Referred to by Schiepatti as 'a really dark album' and very much intended to be so, it is this contrast of a blackened sky called Bleeding Through casting shadows over the sunny beaches of Orange County that defines the band's legacy. Whether this is a first encounter with the band, or a return to a sound first heard on 2001's Dust to Ashes, this is unquestionably Bleeding Through - fuck with them and find out.




Lacuna Coil - Sleepless Empire (Century Media) Out February 14


With a history spanning three decades and a legacy of conquering massive stages around the world, Lacuna Coil is easily one of the most recognized and respected name in the hard rock and heavy metal world. Though having released Comalies XX, a re-recorded and reimagined opus of their 2004 album, a little over two years ago, this year will be the Italian powerhouse's first year of new material since 2019's Black Anima with the much anticipated release of Sleepless Empire.


Giving fans a taste of things still to come with "Never Dawn", released as a single in summer 2023, the track ultimately serves as the closer of Sleepless Empire, but the machine gun drums under the soaring voice of Cristina Scabbia and fierce roar of Andrea Ferro remain an excellent example of the gothic, polyrhythmic infused might of Lacuna Coil.


Dropping three singles in 2024, the awe inspiring track "Oxygen" was joined by "Hosting the Shadow" and "In The Mean Time", which featured incredible guest appearances from Randy Blythe (Lamb of God) and Ash Costello (New Year's Day). With Blythe lending his iconic snarl to the former, Ferro notes that this has been a collaboration long overdue, citing the friendship between Lamb of God and Lacuna Coil formed when both bands shared the second stage at Ozzfest 2004. Joined by Costello in the latter song, her fiery stylings are a stellar compliment to the Scabbia-Ferro tag-team, creating a true triple threat of voices.


As the latest single, "Gravity", dominates Sirius XM Liquid Metal's playlist, fans new and old should keep an ear out for Scabbia's unbelievable highs in "Sleep Paralysis", and get ready to step into the pit for opener "The Siege" and the title track.


Taking North America by storm April through May alongside Machine Head, In Flames and Unearth, and then touring Europe with Nonpoint, 2025 will be a massive year for one for Lacuna Coil. Be on the frontline for their epic live shows and join the Sleepless Empire.


Advance copies courtesy of Breaking the Law PR, Napalm Records and Secret Service PR

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