That's Not Metal

There's discussion of Iron Maiden's Senjutsu being another double album, the success of Eurovision rock winners Måneskin, and Josh Todd's mad Minor Threat fantasy, reviews of new Descendents, Alexis Marshall, and Erdve, and Album Club toasts half a century of Black Sabbath's monolithic Master of Reality.

The week is made massive by new tracks from Trivium, Ice Nine Kills, and actual Iron Maiden, questions include the worst self-titled albums, reviews follow up on our Killswitch Engage special with Times of Grace and Light the Torch alongside Powerwolf, and Album Club is on Blood Command's 2010s cult hit Funeral Beach.There are some issues with microphone quality in this episode that clear up around 45 mins in, so heads up there. Tech has not been on our side this week but cheers for supporting.

Reviews catch up on some of 2021's gems, spanning grunge, NYHC, Norwegian legends, prog goth, expansive doom, and sickening death metal.

Iron Maiden are tickling our tastebuds with their online teaser campaign, At the Gates' masterfully strange new album tops reviews along with Urne and Pt. 2 of The Hell's Joris saga, and with the announcement of its sequel Album Club is Between the Buried and Me's demented prog classic Colors.

Perran is joined by friend of the podcast Mitch Harrod for a review of Download Pilot, the first rock festival to return after the COVID-19 pandemic, to discuss what a festival is like after COVID and of course the bands who won the weekend.

Metallica's Blacklist looks mental and prompts talk of the best remasters, reviews of new Beartooth, Helloween, and Amenra records, and Album Club is the progressive post-hardcore immersion of Thrice's Vheissu.

Perran and Alec topline the crazy Hellfest news, new songs from Machine Head, Unto Others & more, Fear Factory, Hacktivist and Bossk are in reviews, and Album Club looks at the MySpace moment and surviving status as a heavy music landmark of Job for a Cowboy's Doom EP.

It's the arrival week of AFI's Bodies along with new Deafheaven and Poppy in news, Go Ahead and Die and Wristmeetrazor reviews, talk on the best albums not streaming, and Album Club is Alice Cooper's career-reviving crack at making glam spooky with Trash.

We discuss Download Pilot, genre purity, and fictional universes, reviews are of Rise Against, Red Fang's noisy new record and Boss Keloid's odd prog, and Album Club is on one of the most individual metal bands of the 2000s with Nevermore's This Godless Endeavour.

New music from Turnstile, Times of Grace & more, the news that David Ellefson is out of Megadeth, and it's a bumper reviews week racing from punk to black metal to darkwave to deathcore with Noctule, Perturbator, Kaonashi, Fiddlehead, Dödsrit and Mental Cruelty.

UK metal upstarts Vexed, The Devil Wears Prada's Zombie II and Jess & the Ancient Ones are reviewed, there's new Green Day and discussion of how music livestreams might persevere, and an extended edition Album Club goes into Entombed's debut classic Left Hand Path.

Reviews plug into the scene with SeeYouSpaceCowboy and If I Die First's split, Manchester Orchestra and Bala, questions on affectionate blind spots for insufferable artists, and Album Club is Slash's rock jukebox with his first solo album.

TNM glams up for a review of the legend Van Weezer, plus Salem II and Evile, questions hair metal's legacy in rock's mainstream credibility and what it means to be dated, and examines another insane glam genre crossover with Blessed by a Broken Heart's Pedal to the Metal.

The long-awaited return of Gojira is here, along with reviews of Royal Blood and Capra, Album Club is swallowed up by Neurosis' legendary Through Silver In Blood, and minds are lost at Darkthrone calling an album "Eternal Hails......"

It's a bumper reviews week hitting every emotion, tackling Greta van Fleet, The Offspring, a sonic revolt from The Armed and a stirring swansong from Bodom After Midnight, Mudvayne reunite, and Weezer play their orchestral OK Human show.

The week's reviews are While She Sleeps, Holding Absence and Amigo the Devil, there's new Salem and a consideration of the news that Faust will be performing with Emperor again, Album Club is Cobalt's drunken Americana rage with Gin, and Dave Grohl helps out the elderly.

Cannibal Corpse continue to blow our minds with Violence Unimagined, fellow reviews are for Devil Sold His Soul and GHLOW, it's a packed questions week, and Album Club recognises 10 years of the Foo Fighters' Wasting Light.

Architects get orchestral, releases from Citizen, Wode and Godspeed You! Black Emperor get reviewed, and Album Club weighs up where .5: The Gray Chapter fits into Slipknot's sound in a post-WANYK world.

New tracks from Beartooth, The Bronx & more, Evanescence top reviews with their first album of original material in ten years backed by Sanguisugabogg and Dollar Signs, and Album Club is Testament's victorious thrash watershed The Formation of Damnation.

It's Awards Season as we look at the outcome of the 2021 Grammys, reviews highlight a bunch of the best hardcore and crossover releases of the past couple weeks, and Album Club gives a peek at our in-depth Rammstein special available on Patreon with their masterpiece Mutter.