
THE HEAVY METAL CITADEL
CHORT & CHERN BRING YOU METAL INTERVIEWS, NEWS, REVIEWS AND MORE FROM THE UNDERGROUND

Interview With Brazilian Thrashers, Violator!
Brazilian thrash legends Violator on their new album Unholy Retribution, political themes, the thrash scene, and metal as a weapon against injustice. Check out what Poney had to say!
VOTE FOR THE BEST ARTIST/BAND OF 2025

Reviews
Parisian trio Hexekration Rites debut with an album that prizes authority over chaos. Misanthropic Path of Carnal Deliverance fuses ritual menace with disciplined songwriting, blasts, hulking mid-tempos and incantatory vocals across nine tracks.
Kanonenfieber unleashes "Z-Vor!", a blast of blackened death metal fury inspired by the Battle of Jutland. It’s the first strike from their new concept compilation "Soldatenschicksale", arriving January 2026.
Swedish death metal legends Unleashed return with Fire Upon Your Lands, a fifteenth album of searing riffs, mythic storytelling, and battle-ready ferocity. From the first note to the final roar, it’s a masterclass in veteran metalcraft.
Philadelphia’s epic doom torchbearers Crypt Sermon are back with Saturnian Appendices, a masterfully heavy, atmospheric EP weaving myth, melancholy, and colossal riffs into an unforgettable journey.
Since first emerging in 2022, Blackbraid has become a defining force in American indigenous black metal. Blackbraid III marks the project’s most ambitious and technically accomplished work yet.
Ancient Torment unleash one of 2025’s strongest USBM records with Follow the Echo of Curses—a raw, ritualistic debut soaked in sorrow, filth, and conviction. From haunting riffs to liturgical pacing, this is black metal with purpose.
Cleveland’s blackened speed metal legends Midnight annihilated the New Cross Inn in London on August 1st 2025. From fan-favourite classics like Satanic Royalty to brutal new cuts off Steel, Rust and Disgust, this was a sweat-soaked warzone of riffs, pits, and filth.
Nihilvm’s Ancient Cosmic Emanation explodes into the Polish black metal scene. Blending razor-sharp riffwork, precision drumming, and cosmic-scale atmosphere, this debut is equal parts violent, methodical, and downright massive.
Alice Cooper and Judas Priest tore the roof off London’s O2 with fiery riffs, guillotines, and Halford’s iconic chopper. Chaos, £9.50 pints, and pure metal magic.
Bruce Dickinson’s More Balls to the Wall reworks his 1994 solo album with heavier riffs, modern production, and the same commanding voice that defined an era.
Alice Cooper’s The Revenge of Alice Cooper is a riotous blend of old-school shock-rock swagger, bluesy grit, and macabre humor that proves the king of theatrical rock still reigns.
Abigail Williams return with A Void Within Existence, blending searing black metal fury, cinematic atmospheres, and razor-sharp technical precision into their most ambitious album yet.
Submersus by Hell is a slow-motion descent into sonic despair. With glacial riffs, cavernous production, and gut-wrenching emotion, it’s funeral doom perfected.
Oskoreien’s Hollow Fangs is a masterclass in atmospheric black metal—blending beauty, trauma, and fury into a cinematic, fanged ritual.
Skyforger Ignites Riga: Pagan Fury and Folk Fire at “Teikas”
Unto Others played London’s O2 Kentish Town in 2025, bringing their unique brand of heavy metal goth to an adoring crowd.
Kanonenfieber stormed The Dome with crushing riffs, gripping storytelling, and theatrical flair. War-themed metal at its most intense!
Uada delivered a dark, atmospheric show at London’s Underworld, blending furious riffs and intense energy for a night black metal fans won’t forget!
Experience Spectral Wound’s unrelenting black metal storm from their recent live show at The Dome on Oct. 24th 2024 in London. A must-read for fans of visceral, frostbitten black metal.
Read our latest interview with Crypta as they discuss their explosive London gig, new album ‘Shades of Sorrow,’ and what’s next for the death metal giants.
Check out Chort’s wacky night in Oslo, Norway as he reviews Zustand Null, Sworn, Andakt live at Revolver.
Midnight brought their mayhem to London, leaving The New Cross Inn in ruins, or at least significantly stinkier, battered, and littered with metal pins on the floor than it was when they arrived.
The Infernal Sea unleashes their new album live at the Underworld in London. Chort and Chern were there to witness it.
Destruction at 40: Live in London at the Garage Gig Review. Old school Thrash METAL at its finest.
Crepuscule Natura is an album that surprises with its production and dynamism. Uada deserves a nod for their meticulousness. Read more!
Conjure the dark one with this latest single from Asagraum off their upcoming LP, “Veil of Death, Ruptured” set to release on Oct. 20th 2023. It’s all female, 90’s black metal with a hint of the psychedelic. Read on!
Celestial Sanctuary's "Insatiable Thirst For Torment" delivers a rancid, intense experience, evolving from earlier output to deliver a pummelling modern DM album.
Spirit Adrift return with another full-length of pure, unadulterated metal, the kind that gets your blood pumping and your head banging 'til your necks snaps like a Twix bar. This is Ghost At The Gallows!
Sometimes we feel like a bit of the ol’ thrash metal. Chart & Chern go to a politically charged rally- I mean gig - featuring Sacred Reich
Interviews
"The entire album revolves around the theme of vengeance. A hellish revenge against the Christian fundamentalism that fueled the rise of neo-fascism in Brazil over the last decade. So there's a dialectical mix between a very heavy metal allegory of Hell and something very real and concrete: the political challenges of our lives in the global south under this decadent capitalism.”
Dan Elkin of Echoes of Gloom dives into the creation of The Mind’s Eternal Storm, exploring the raw emotion, atmospheric soundscapes, and influences behind his introspective black metal project. From gear choices to the underground Australian scene, this interview captures the soul of a rising one-man band.
"Be yourself, no rules. Stay true to your identity. Keep on recording, making albums and play live."
“I see myself much more in an amphitheater or an abandoned castle in the middle of nature, setting up the show like a sort of sequential tale, staged with scenery and animated sequences in the background, preferably with an accompanying orchestra.”
“We have always done music on our own terms and not being afraid of how people would take it.”
“Deitus is the knife in the back of man.”
One could think that living under the impression of Nazis about 70 years ago should have left an impact, but that’s just wishful thinking. Fascism works because it’s so easy to blame others, and fighting against this will always be a nuisance in the view of these people.
“Lithopaedic came from a dream that Frank had. Lithopaedic deals with discovering an alternate self in a parallel world, and challenging or reckoning with that self. Afterward a stronger version of yourself emerges at the behest of some mysterious force of chaos and change.“
“Technology has ruined everything already, now it will even ruin art. We are doomed as a species, and we deserve it. Fucking stupid arrogant humans. We have way bigger things to worry about than the metal scene.”
“All of the artists that are worth their shit, they maybe had like ups and downs in their career, but the only way that they've ever been satisfied is by knowing internally that they made something that they really wanted to make that was unaffected by any sort of, outside influence.”
“Finding fans who have tattooed our logo or cover art on themselves has been pretty crazy. I’ve had fans come tell me how they wanted to kill themselves and my art has helped them with that.”
“I did care a lot when I was younger what people thought of me, but I do not anymore...I don’t judge anyone for their choices or for what they like or do. When you accept that, I think it's way more easy to just go through life curious and make out of it what you want.”
“I'm inspired by topics like the middle ages, nature and very personal, dark things that happened in my life. ”
“Narco life is here to stay so why shouldn't I make music about it if that’s how I grew up? It’s not fake, it’s real, I wanna make music that I myself and others that grew up in the USA, Latin America and other parts of the world can relate to.”
“For us, in the first place there is always quality and customer satisfaction. Profit is also important, because we live from what we do, but our business is NOT profit-driven. It’s quality-driven.”
“The biggest driving force for everything Hellripper is simply my enjoyment of doing it! I’m very grateful for the support people give me and I’m glad people like the music.”
“We incorporated a lot of harsh imagery and completely avoided showing any of us musicians. As the song intends, it should slightly drain and confuse the viewer with a somewhat sober perspective of our world.”
“Propaganda was everything back then [WWI]. People were told glorious stories about pride, dignity and honor. In the end, most of them died in the mud, torn apart by shells.”
“I believe that regardless of our advancement as human species and as a society, there’s no way of finding something that can universally be described as “meaning”.”
“Metal is based in emotion and conflict, which indigenous people are no strangers to, so I think a lot of us are drawn to music like metal or punk from a very early age.”
[In reference to war] “Don’t ever expect for it to end. It never will. ”
“I think it's pretty obvious that Finnish black metal and Finnish melancholy drive us all. All of us listen to a lot of various music besides black metal and all that stuff influences us.”
News
Your metal guide for London gigs in September 2025. From old-school death metal legends Cancer to the black metal maelstrom of Cosmic Void Fest, we cover the must-see bands, venues, and ticket links.
We step inside Ozzy Osbourne’s moving funeral, where family, friends, and rock royalty celebrated the life of the Prince of Darkness with music, stories, and love. From tears to laughter, it was a farewell only Ozzy could inspire.
This is your definitive list of the Top 10 Movies for Metalheads. From This Is Spinal Tap to the blood-drenched madness of PG: Psycho Goreman, we’ve hand-picked films dripping with riffs, gore, and demons!
Draugveil’s “Cruel World of Dreams and Fears” sparked a storm over AI in metal, was it genius or a digital deception? Hear what BugBOY has to say!
Spinal Tap returns from the grave in The End Continues a full volume sequel with the original cast new music absurd cameos and a final gig that promises total destruction.
Ak’chamel’s music feels like a hallucinatory desert ritual, mixing psychedelic folk, strange instruments, and hypnotic grooves. With their upcoming London show at The Horse Hospital, we dive deep into their sound and myth.
Ozzy Osbourne is gone, but his voice, and his spirit will live forever. In this tribute, we reflect on his legacy.
Unleash your inner metalhead with our ultimate guide to the best heavy metal shops in London. This is your brutal roadmap to London’s loudest record stores, merch spots, and venues.
Looking for the best metal bars in Tokyo? From underground thrash dens in Shinjuku to glam-metal hangouts in Shibuya, this guide will take you deep into the city’s loudest and most legendary metal bars.
Discover the latest metal singles, EP, and full length album releases for September 2023.
Here are some of the trending news in metal for the week of 21/08/23.
Valkyries of The Citadel
Join Katja, a passionate content creator, as she shares her Wacken 2025 experience, love for metal bands like Slipknot and Judas Priest, and tips for festival-goers. From vinyl hunting to surviving the mud, explore her vibrant metal lifestyle.
Claire, known online as Cruedom, has built a 50k-strong following by blending underground metal passion with TikTok creativity. From Megadeth tattoos to rare merch and deep scene insights, she’s become a powerful new voice in the metal community.
A fierce presence in the pit and on the page, this Valkyrie channels pure underground energy. Get to know the warrior behind the leather and riffs.
Step inside the Citadel with Eve Kozi, a fierce force shaped by riffs, ritual, and raw energy. From Slipknot-fueled chaos to band tee battle scars, this is metal without compromise.
Karla is a metalhead from Romania, the birthplace of Dracula, with half-Hungarian, half-Palestinian roots, now crushing the UK scene. Find out more about her taboo, metal driven perspective.
A disciple of the grim and frostbitten anthems of Mayhem and Darkthrone, discover what dark things Alisa enjoys!
Citadelians, welcome our latest addition to the Valkyries of the Citadel, Ghita! This Venetian black metal lover is a professional body piercer, has a deep affinity for writing, and has some controversial statements when it comes to Dimmu Borgir. Read more.
Citadelians, welcome our latest Valkyrie of the Citadel, Scarlett. This UK-based shield-maiden started off listening to some classic metal hits before going into the more extreme pits of black metal.
Hailing from Germany, Natalie is one of the latest Valkyries to join the Heavy Metal Citadel. This badass vixen has her own band, and was on stage with Steel Panther, and loves her Sabaton. Discover more about her.
Hailing from the Ukraine, but now living in Amsterdam, Angelina is one epic Valkyrie. She has crushed it live on stage with her band with some epic bass playing Read more about this awesome Valkyrie.
This accomplished valkyrie is not only an alt-model but also a dental hygienist that blasts Metal while working on her patients teeth. So, if you guys need a root canal done while listening to Cannibal Corpse you need to find out more about Ayesh!
Raise your horns, Citadelians! Join us in welcoming Jule from South Germany to the ranks of the Valkyries of the Citadel. This shield-maiden loves her metalcore, post-hardcore music. Read more now!
There we were just minding our own business at the local graveyard when we met our latest Valkyrie, Claudia Sleighter! Claudia is a lover of Melodic Black and Death Metal, and quite a fan of one of the Citadels favourite Portland bands, Unto Others. Check out what she had to say.
Need your DSBM fix? Introducing Christina, a black metal enthusiast hailing from Miami, but with roots in Scandinavia and the UK.
Long time supporter of the Heavy Metal Citadel, massive vinyl collector and all around epic fuckin’ human, Abra has graced us with her presence and joined the Valkyries of the Citadel. Read what she had to say.
Welcome, Lauren aka Loronskii to the Valkyries of the Citadel! This UK-based metalhead has some diverse metal tastes and one badass battle jacket too! Read the full interview now!
All hails, Elizabeth! This Valkyrie loves her Black Rock’n’Roll and enjoys blasting some classic Midnight jams, in fact, she’s been on stage with them! Find out more about this Valkyrie of the Citadel!
Hailing from the Germany, our latest Valkyrie Liv-Synneva is a lover of all things Gorgoroth, Darkthrone, and Enslaved! Find out more about her favourite bands, live shows, band shirts and more.



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Panzerchrist return with Maleficium Part 2, a sharpened blast of Danish blackened death metal. Our review dives into the witch-trial concept, Tue Madsen’s Antfarm production, and standout cuts Witchfinder General and Hex Maleficium Pex.