AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): MALAURIU — “THE THIRD NAIL”

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Mar 302026
 

(written by Islander)

On April 3rd Adirondack Black Mass will release the third album by Malauriu, fittingly named The Third Nail (though we suspect that name has other meanings besides the fact that it’s the band’s third full-length). We’re giving it a big showcase, not only providing listeners a full stream today but also publishing an interview of Malauriu’s founder Schizoid and their vocalist RM tomorrow.

Those of you seeing the album’s cover art for the first time will likely be perplexed by how strange it is, and it’s worth sharing Schizoid’s explanation, because the cover image connects to the album’s lyrical themes, and indeed to the often macabre nature of the music. Here is an excerpt from the interview we’re publishing tomorrow: Continue reading »

IMMOLATION – DESCENT

 Album Reviews  2 Responses »
Mar 302026
 

(Andy Synn takes on the titans in Immolation for the start of a new week here at NCS)

One of the things we love doing here at NCS is pushing new and up-and-coming bands and helping them find their audience.

This, however, is not one of those times.

Because what we also love doing is celebrating seminal artists undergoing a well-deserved career-resurgence, and few bands deserve recognition in that regard more than Immolation.

Continue reading »

THE DUSKFALL: “THE EVERLASTING SHADOWS”

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Mar 302026
 

(This is DGR’s review of the first new album by The Duskfall in a dozen years. It was independently released earlier this month.)

There is no such thing as the phrase “did not have that on my bingo card for the year” when said bingo card has effectively been shot to shreds and has existed as confetti since mid-January. While loathe to make predictions for the year outside of trying to will albums into existence by virtue of bringing them up at end-of-year season, a lot of that has basically been a smoking hole in the ground and replaced with a lot of new band and genre explorations in its place.

While we aren’t unfamiliar with bands returning from hibernation at this site – we’ve had a few premieres over the years for groups taking another shot after a decade-plus away – there are times when albums you expected to happen or were even being hinted at just kind of don’t. For whatever reasons, the group will go silent, the assumption being that they’re basically done, so that upcoming album forever exists on a hard drive somewhere but otherwise won’t be seeing the light of day. Eventually the thought just leaves your recollection and a group’s standing catalogue becomes its cenotaph. This was the case with The Duskfall, who it seemed like might have quietly called it a day after five decent-to-great albums. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD ON A SATURDAY: DIMMU BORGIR, SHADOWSPAWN, THORIUM, TERROR, VEIL OMEGA, IVOIRE, SLEEPBOMB, BLOOD GRAVE

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  No Responses »
Mar 282026
 

(written by Islander)

I took a break from NCS last weekend, a short vacation that led me to eastern Washington. That means I now have twice the usual number of new songs and videos sitting in front of me as I ponder what to feature today. But rather than try to go back and figure out what I might have done last Saturday, today I focused mainly on what surfaced within the realms of metal over just the last week. It was a lot, and so I’ve made this roundup a bit bigger than usual.

I’ve managed to pull out eight new songs, six of them accompanied by videos. I think they provide considerable variety, and I’ve arranged them in a way that made sense to me as I listened to everything. Of course, they’re also a reflection of the darkness inside my head these days.

Tonight I’m going to a retirement party for a close friend. She’s too young to be stopping work altogether, just closing one chapter in her life and starting a new one, but I still want to be there. Doubtless, it will keep me out late, with probably a three-hour round-trip on the travel alone. I don’t know if that will impact tomorrow’s SHADES OF BLACK column, but it might. Another reason why today’s collection is bigger than usual. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: RIVERFLAME — “WHERE DRAGONS ONCE RULED”

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Mar 272026
 

(written by Islander)

“Riverflame were created in 2024 by members of Hail Spirit Noir, Ponte Del Diavolo, and OWLS.” That short announcement got my attention just as effectively as if it had been a meteor plowing into the house next door. Those other groups happen to be personal favorites, so there’s that, but the strong attraction also derives from curiosity about what these four musicians have done together.

What they’ve done is to record an album named Lunar Crusades that will be released on April 24th by code666/Aural Music. But what shape(s) does the music take? That’s hardly predictable, given the distinctively different nature of the music they’ve made in their other bands. The label provides some strong clues by describing the album as “a journey of epic medieval black metal atmospheres and neo-classical arrangements,” channeling “the spirit of Stormkeep, Summoning, and Dissection.”

Even more tangible clues were provided through the release of a song that shares the band’s name, and now we’re presenting more evidence through our premiere of the stunning album track “Where Dragons Once Ruled.” Continue reading »

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: SAILLE — “CYCLE OF CYNICISM”

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Mar 272026
 

(written by Islander)

Today we have a reminder for you — and, as you’ll see and hear, it’s not a subtle nudge or a polite whisper. The reminder is that the epic black metal band Saille (originally formed in Belgium but now a fully Netherlands-based group) released their sixth album Forebode last month through Non Serviam Records, and it’s one you really ought to check out if you haven’t already. The reminder takes the form of a new lyric video for the ravishing album track “Cycle of Cynicism” that we’re premiering today.

For those listeners who are new to Saille’s music, this latest album provides a great introduction. It includes four new songs, of which “Cycle of Cynicism” is one, but also a newly re-recorded version of “Haunter of The Dark” from their 2013 album Ritu and an extended classical version of “Eater of Worlds” from their 2014 album Eldritch, with additional instruments.

In addition, the physical edition of the album (unlike the digital version) includes three bonus tracks — live recordings, featuring a violinist, that were captured at Metal Méan Festival and Graspop Metal Meeting.

And now… onward to the new lyric video for “Cycle of Cynicism“. Continue reading »

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: WITHOUT MERCY — “THE SAINT”

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Mar 262026
 

(written by Islander)

Vancouver, Canada’s Without Mercy have announced that on May 8th they will release a new three-song EP named Infinite Loss. The EP is a mark of change for the band. They’ve explained that for the first time they “left home to make a record, crossing borders, abandoning routine, and committing fully to the process.” That process included confining themselves in a studio environment for 10 days.

As guitarist DJ Temple has stated: “There was no comfort, no distance, and no way to step away. That isolation mattered. It stripped everything down to what was essential. This record exists because we chose to be uncomfortable, to argue honestly, and to stay in the room until it felt right”.

As the first sign of what that creative process yielded, today we’re premiering the EP’s first single, “The Saint,” accompanied by a new music video. Lyrically, the song confronts the idea of being enslaved by the land, “all the different whips, and all the different backs.” Musically, it puts some head-spinning twists on Without Mercy’s branding as a “groove metal band”. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: YEAR OF THE COYOTE — “MAN ALIVE”

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Mar 262026
 

(written by Islander)

Year of the Coyote is a new name here at our site. They’re a DIY sludge-hardcore trio from Portland, Oregon. They descrbe their music in terms that piqued our interest: “Paying homage to an array of grimier hardcore and metal acts — think the suffocating feel of Coalesce, Cult Leader, or Torch Runner mixed with the open, sledgehammer ambiance of late-90s Isis — Year Of The Coyote churns out a mix of off-kilter grinding intensity and avalanche-like dissonance.”

The band released a three-song debut demo in late 2014, and then a first full-length named Siege in 2018. That was quite a while ago, and of course the world has become a very different place, but at last Year of the Coyote will be releasing a second full-length on April 23rd. Its name is Hell Wall, and today we’re premiering its first single, “Man Alive“. Continue reading »

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: SICARIUS — “NEX”

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Mar 262026
 

(written by Islander)

The U.S. black metal band Sicarius has a storied history, one that includes two albums released in 2017 and 2020 by M-Theory Audio, extensive touring, and stage performances with such bands as 1349, Goatwhore, Vader, Marduk, Disgorge, and Incantation. But in the next few years following release of their second album, the band essentially dissolved and was left for dead.

Yet a resurrection has occurred. The band’s co-founders Argyris and Carnage reconnected and have rebuilt the dead organism of Sicarius. We’re told that they began writing and recording new songs in 2024, pulling influences from bands such as Bathory, Rotting Christ, Dissection, Mayhem, Urghehal, Marduk, and Absu, and fusing in elements from groups like Type O Negative. They also brought on board a new vocalist of wide-ranging power, Akefalos.

And now their work on a new album named Nex is complete, and the record is set for release on April 10th by Adirondack Black Mass. It is described as “a 10-track story about loss, death, retribution, and fury that honors tradition while being unafraid to venture on its own.” It’s the album’s title track that we bring you today through a lyric video — a song that includes a guest performance by guitarist Charles Hedger (Ghul) of Mayhem. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: URLUK

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Mar 262026
 

(Comrade Aleks brought us the following excellent interview of the two members of Urluk, an Italian band whose new album will be released next month by Pest Records.)

We interviewed Italian Urluk two years ago or so, and back then they performed haunted and doomed black metal with an original authentic concept that was soaked with bleak shadows of abandoned dwellings and grim countryside. At least this description helped to better perceive their full-length More, and I expected something similar from the band’s second album Memories in Fade that is announced to be released on April 10th via Pest Records.

Yet the truth is that Urluk remained true to their lyrical concept but changed musical direction significantly. Memories in Fade combines the elements of alternative rock, black metal, and ambient alongside some specific pieces which are difficult to categorize. But in the end of the day, they are still Urluk, and I’m glad to support the band with another interview. Continue reading »

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