Up-And-Comers
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Tribulation – Down Below (January 26)
One of my favorites, Tribulation, will make a triumphant return in 2018, with their latest album since 2015's Children Of The Night. Two incredible singles from the album have already been released, one of which is available here on 7", and if the tracks are any indication of Down Below, it's the next big step in an already killer discography. – Frank Godla
The Black Queen – TBA
The Black Queen's debut album, Fever Daydream, was easily one of my favorites of 2016, so I'm eager to see where the band takes it next. We know the band has been in the studio to record, as we've previously reported, and the band continues to tease fans via their Instagram page of announcements to come. With Greg Puciato closing out the last of The Dillinger Escape Plan shows, it can be assumed he'll be getting to work, and hopefully tour, on this real soon. – Frank Godla
Gatecreeper – TBA
Death metal as blistering as the desert from which they reign, Arizona’s Gatecreeper are reportedly working on new music for 2018. Their 2016 full-length, Sonoran Depravation, showcased a style akin to death metal greats like Entombed, Bolt Thrower, and Grave.
Then last year’s 2-song EP, Sweltering Madness, saw them tighten up their sound and further solidify themselves as burgeoning titans in modern death metal. The group recently wrapped up a tour circuit with Cannibal Corpse and Power Trip that—like their Relapse Records debut in 2016—introduced them to throngs of death metal fans. The increased exposure and continued growth in songwriting has all the makings for an incredibly fruitful 2018 for one the United States’ most auspicious metal bands. – Cody Davis
EDITOR'S NOTE: Gatecreeper has a split with Iron Reagan coming on March 2.
Anaal Nathrakh – TBA
While there's no official news about a 10th Anaal Nathrakh record, savvy fans will remember that the band is apparently heading into the studio next month. That, plus the band's relatively prolific release cycle, means that we just might be lucky enough to get a new album sometime later in the year. This is exciting news, given that 2016's The Whole of the Law was a monumental return to form for what is unarguably one of the heaviest bands in the industry. If my prediction is correct and the duo drops a record this year, it's certainly going to be one of 2018's most-hyped metal releases. – Tyler Hersko
Khemmis – TBA (June 22nd)
The Denver doom rock quartet of Khemmis took heavy metal by storm in 2016 with their second studio album, Hunted. It consequently went home notable year-end honors and a slot on Decibel Magazines tour as well as numerous inclusions in individual lists, and our inaugural Album of the Year title. 2018 promises the return of the wildly talented Khemmis. It has been wonderful to see the progression of this band over the last few years. Phil Pendergast’s vocal growth simply from Hunted to their cover of “A Conversation with Death” last year has been remarkable. Likewise, for Ben Hutcherson from Absolution to Hunted.
Collectively, their instrumentation continues to captivate. Dan Beiers’ bass and Zach Coleman’s drums have evolved into an absolutely thunderous low-end that gives a grizzled touch to their towering music. These two along with Hutcherson and Pendergast and their soaring guitars return to the Flatline Audio studio with Dave Otero soon to record the third album to continue their ascent into metal’s realm of elite talents. They’ve hinted at switching things up even more for this new record. It is going to be fascinating to see what these gentlemen have been working on this coming summer. – Cody Davis
Sumac – American Dollar Bill (February 23) & TBA LP
We are getting a couple helpings of Sumac in 2018 (kicking things off with their Keiji Haino collab). This avant-garde act has another full length planned for some time this year, continuing the band’s tradition in crafting mesmerizing tracks that are laced with all-out heaviness and atmosphere. Given that in 2016 we got a EP and LP from the band, here’s hoping that Sumac offers lots of new music to captivate and expand our minds. – Michael Pementel
Abigail Williams – TBA
2015’s The Accuser was a magnificent release from the Olympia, Washington black metal act. These guys have been crafting some of the most unique black metal within the scene, embodying the genre’s use of atmospheric darkness, and brutal instrumentation. Vocalist and guitarist Ken “Sorceron” Bergeron will be balancing his time between finishing a new Abigail Williams record and touring with The Faceless, but the band’s social media states we can expect the album this year. – Michael Pementel
Aegaeon – TBA
Aegaeon put out two EPs and an LP between 2009 and 2012, and then underwent quite a few lineup changes. Those three releases are probably some of the heaviest music I've ever heard in my life, with 2011's LP Dissension still reigning as one of my favorite metal albums of all time. Aegaeon has been promising a new album for years now, but lineup changes and touring seem to have halted things.
Now in 2017, the band is still original bassist Nick Scott and Sebastian Brown, but rejoined by the complete fucking demon and original vocalist Jim Martin, who was absent betwen 2012 and 2017. Round that out with drummer Matthew Paulazzo (The Zenith Passage), and it's safe to assume that whatever Aegaeon cranks out next will be easily on par with Dissension. – Greg Kennelty
Disillusion – TBA
Fourteen years. It has been 14 years since Disillusion released Back to Times of Splendor, one of the greatest metal records ever recorded. After years of inactivity, the German quartet's third album is supposedly nearing its long-awaited release. The band previously stated that they aim to complete the album by March, so it's not unreasonable to expect a mid to late 2018 release. Now, Back to Times of Splendor is a masterpiece, and I refuse to debate naysayers.
However, you might be remembering Gloria, the band's poorly-received sophomore record, or worried about the band's use of Patreon. Crowdfunding isn't without its controversies, but while it's turned bands like Wintersun into laughingstocks, it's worth noting that it has had a meaningful and positive impact for others, such as Ne Obliviscaris. Regardless, I'm staying optimistic about Disillusion's future. The recently released single "Alea" was pretty good and I have very high hopes for the band's third record, even if it doesn't turn out to be another modern classic. – Tyler Hersko
The Armed – TBA
This genius collective tends to shroud the musicians, releases, and everything about the band in mystery, but they are without a doubt one of my favorite "bands" in the past decade.
Their abrasive mathcore industrial mix found on last years Polarizer album (feat. Nick Yacyshyn of Baptists) made it one of my Top 5 of the year, and I can't wait to see what they do next. In usual fashion, they released a cryptic studio photo from GodCity Studio this week, with what looks to me, a photo of Converge's Ben Koller behind the set! – Frank Godla
Mournful Congregation –The Incubus of Karma (TBA)
For those who are unfamiliar with me or my main role at Metal Injection, I run the Funeral Doom Friday column each week. One of the subgenre’s most important pioneers, Mournful Congregation, will be making their long-anticipated return this March. The Aussies follow up their 2014 EP, Concrescence of the Sophia, with a brand new full-length entitled The Incubus of Karma.
For the last 25 years now, Damon Good and company have crafted poignant dirges melded with a unique heaviness. Their extremity doesn’t lie in blast beats or brutal subject matter, but instead exists through overwhelming emotional connections—of course triple- layered guitars don’t hurt either. Good’s built a legacy off of this music and has inspired many bands to follow similar steps. 2018 seems to be the year that the masters return and show the world how it is done once more. – Cody Davis
Baptists – TBA
2018 will see another album from Vancouver’s chaos-core bad boys in Baptists. My love for this band has been well documented over and over on this website, and for good reason. They’re one of the best examples of crust-math-unrelenting hardcore that has emerged in the past decade, and you’d be hard pressed to find better, although many try. – Frank Godla
Nightmarer – Cacophony Of Terror (March 23)
What do you get when you combine vocalist John Collet (Success Will Write Apocalypse Across The Sky, ex-Gigan), guitarist Simon Hawemann (ex-War From A Harlots Mouth) and drummer Paul Seidel (The Ocean)? Quite literally a swirling chasm of unfathomably heavy death metal. Nightmarer's 2016 EP Chasm was one thing, but Cacophony Of Terror stands to be flat out obliterating from front to back, because if you're going to be heavy, you might as well try to collapse the listener's house in the process.
Panopticon – The Scars Of Man On The Once Nameless Wilderness (TBA)
Photo by: Kassandra Carmona
Photo by: Kassandra Carmona
Austin Lunn can do no wrong. Dude took a chance on Kentucky with a very different, very Americana black metal sound from his previously atmospheric black metal sound and nailed it. Lunn took a very regal, string-oriented approach to Roads to the North in 2014 and again, nailed it. More black metal with some Kentucky-ish instrumentation on 2015's Autumn Eternal? Nailed it.
Now Lunn is about to tackle his first double album, titled The Scars Of Man On The Once Nameless Wilderness and slated for sometime in March, and I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that whatever he chooses to do, it's going to be flawless and interesting… because when you've got a perfect track record, it's pretty hard to doubt you. – Greg Kennelty
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