Decided to check up on that Firewind post I made the other day and clicked on the similar artists tab in Metal Archives, first band that popped up was this one. Guitarist Gus G. played in the first handful of Mystic Prophecy’s albums and is a permanent fixture in Firewind.

Band plays mostly power metal, of the European variety, however they employ thrash metal guitar and agression when the power metal cheese calms down a bit. I’m gonna link the song that sticks with me the most from MP’s first album, love the bits between the two solos in the last third of the track.

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Power metal band from Greece, who usually release an instrumental track, at least one per album. And you guys know me and my love for these things.

For the most part, there’s a thrashing intro before moving into a slower pace with a long and fading guitar solo. Kinda wish it was longer and they finished it out by bringing it home full circle, but alas it has its place in the album.

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If this doesn’t scream mid 80’s, idk what to say. Heavy/speed/power metal and hard rock band from LA, featuring exceptional shredder Paul Gilbert. Classic af.

And another addition to my instrumental playlist in track number 8- Y.R.O.

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Polish heavy/thrash metal from the late 80’s and still going strong to this day. Everything is in Polish, the album/title track translates to The Last Warrior.

Seems they uploaded their 2001 re-release to streaming services. This release rearranges track placements and includes a bonus track, inserted at number 4. This album has one of my favorite instrumentals as well. Honestly, it’s taken me too long to make a post about this release.

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First Anthrax album in 10 years! Pretty damn good contemporary Anthrax, too - the boys are back. Groovier and plodding along unstoppably, some highlights from me are It’s For The Kids, Everybody’s Got A Plan, The Edge of Perfection (with some awesome drumming and even post-metal guitars), and of course, the album’s title track, which I’ll be linking. I try not to do whole album recommendations, but title tracks let me get away with the ambiguity lol.

Also the EP before this, Meet The Characters, is pretty wholly unnecessary to enjoy this album; it’s just spoken word expounding upon this concept album.

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My favorite groovy metalcore/crossover thrash obsession of late released a new EP last week, and imo it’s their best stuff yet. Linking my choice of the five songs, track number three. Huge sound, wonderful guitar tone, killer riffs and breakdowns and basically flows right into the next track - another highlight - with its softer guitar interlude. Really itching for more from these dudes.

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Italian progressive death/thrash in the vein of 90’s old school tech death - Schuldiner’s Death, Atheist, et cetera. Released like two weeks ago and kicks ass. It’s exactly what you expect with those descriptors; doesn’t deviate too much outside of some vocal performances on a couple tracks. It isn’t quite as organic, but for those of us who enjoy this shit, we’re eatin good.

Linking the last track of the album, a nearly instrumental track with some of those aforementioned vocal performances lol.

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Modern Italian heavy metal band. Combining the power of NWOBHM and the voice and general sound of Mercyful Fate. Linking the title track, but honestly the whole thing sounds wonderful and is full of energy.

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Modern NWOBHM named after the Iron Maiden track. Plays exactly what you expect. I do love actually listening to this on repeated listens though, I seem to find subtleties here and there, like the rhythm guitar doin its own thing during the solo. Bandcamp link below does not have this album but their followup.

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Perfect blend of Mercyful Fate and Angel Witch from one dude - Remi A. Nygård. Besides it not being original at all, it’s perfect. The production is 🤌.

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Nothing really needs to be said, 100% certified timeless classic.

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Modern heavy metal from California, produced a little too well. Great song tho, made a spot for itself in my eternal playlist. Can also recommend Escape from Beyond, The Wrath, and the album’s title track. Can’t give it a listen on Bandcamp without putting forth money, fyi for those exclusively on BC.

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Cheesy song about a possessed guitar that plays epic music lol. Fantastic main riff that’s catchy as hell, and that’s mainly the reason I keep coming back to this track.

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This is a weird one for me to recommend. It has your classical heavy metal, a bit of black metal, complex soundscapes, and a phenomenal main female voice. This experimental release won’t be for everyone here, but I see it as a growth of the sub-genre, in a different direction.

I personally like it, or I probably wouldn’t share it. Hope this tickles some of you in the right way too.

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