Existential Prog Metal, Prodigies, Jazz Goats, Mellotrons & more: 16 new highlights

The first in a couple of debut releases to be highlighted in this edition of our Releases of the Week(s) series, rising Danish quintet ONLY HUMAN are already hitting the bulls eye with their apocalyptic take on Existential Prog Metal present throughout “Planned Obsolescence”. For one thing, there’s an excellent balance of melody, heaviness and dark, desperate vibes musically. Conceptually, the urgency of their message of warning against the rise of technocracy and seemingly inevitable decline of humanity comes shining through thanks to both vocalist Patrick Grønbæch Christensen’s passionate delivery as well as the tight instrumental delivery and punchy production from everyone involved. Excellent discovery by renowned French label Season of Mist and a hungry young band to watch out for! Dario

New stars on the Instrumental Prog Metal horizon, Pt. 1: Rostock, Germany based trio THOUGHTS clearly wanted to make sure that their debut album “Of The Radiant Void” had an excellent production. By choosing French veteran sound guru Chris Edrich (Leprous, TesseracT, Devin Townsend, Klone, The Ocean…), they didn’t have to worry at all. That department was expertly taken care of. For a trio, their sound is expansive and intricate at the same, with room to breathe in between atmospheric layers, but crunchy and heavy where the songs call for it. Tiny little details like the occasional subtle synth oscillation expand the tight arrangement when needed. The most important thing though: the songs are incredibly catchy despite their textured riffiness. Fans of all the aforementioned bands who don’t mind the absence of vocals should definitely risk an ear or two! Dario

Striking an excellent balance between layered Post Rock atmospheres and more technical Prog Metal prowess is UK based instrumental quartet Chonky Dogg on their debut EP “The World is Quiet Here”. ‘Panini’s Bridge’ is a great example for that, while the following ‘Barbenheimer’ surprises with slightly djenty chugs before erupting in an explosive  solo. Naturally. All in all a more than solid first effort that should put these four talented Musicians from York on your radar if you like your music instrumental and chonky. Dario

“Sapien” marks the return of Norwegian Avantgarde Metal juggernaut Ram-Zet, 14 years after their previous, fifth album “Freaks in Wonderland”. A lot has happened in this time, and maybe the title just means that Homo Sapiens is just a freak in freakland now. It certainly feels that way sometimes. Before hitting play on “Sapien”, I was vaguely aware of the band name only I got to admit, but opening bulldozer ‘Zerocane’ didn’t take long to convince me: yes, this is the real shit! Madder Mortem, Atrox and maybe some Diablo Swing Orchestra (even though they’re Swedish haha) put into the freaky blender with some more extreme stuff, starved Avantgarde Metal heart, what more do you want? With the maniacal double vocal attack of SfinX and mastermind Zet as well as returning violinist Sareeta’s embellishments and newcomer Aazu’s (Trollfest) quirky keys and accordions, “Sapien” is not only resurrecting the seemingly rare art of proper Extreme Avantgarde musings, but puts the name Ram-Zet back on the underground metal map. Not to be overlooked! Dario

The slow rise of doomy old school death metal bands embracing progressive songwriting is refreshing to see. With their sophomore full-length album titled “Liminal Shrines”, Canadian death metal newcomers Gutvoid have created an immersive and compelling release by mixing up their OSDM riffs with odd-time structures in quite a few places, plus with elements of post-metal. The performances aren’t too technical, as they like to focus more on soundscapes and grooves that make you bop your head. While the ideas aren’t super out there in terms of originality, their approach here feels like a breath of fresh air while holding onto moments of nostalgia. This reminds me of what I recall from other similar artists like Ancient Death, Slimelord, and a bit of that latest Tomb Mold album. If you’ve been digging anything in that realm over the last few years, or are looking to dive more into it, I highly recommend this album for you to spin! Colin

The very unique Black Metal interpretation of Dutch quartet Dystopia has always been raw yet melodic, intense yet atmospheric. Ever since multi-instrumentalist and producer Thomas Cochrane joined them in 2016 for the deep “Chaos Philosophorum” that followed, his addition of Trumpet and Trombone sounds affected the sound profoundly, in the best possible way. The two long-tracks on “De Verboden Diepte II: De Weg van de Meeste Weerstand” don’t rely on that uncommon feature alone though, as they meander their way through a vast, dark cosmos. As this compositorial prowess collides with the epic brass embellishments, something quite magic that deserves to be heard is happening. Dario

Not even one year after the first musical sign of life from the exceptionally talented Angell Solberg Tveitan that was his “Veiled by Woe” debut demo EP, the curtains are drawn back and “Unveiled” sees the light of day. That means the 18 year old prodigy has released 33 minutes of top notch Progressive Extreme Metal to his name to date, and even if he added the attribute ‘demo’ to both, elsewhere this body of work would be praised as a masterpiece of an album. With a signature growl that indeed carries a certain similarity to the Black Metal rasp of his father Ihsahn, but with, yet with a full-bodied deepness the Emperor-legend rarely reached, the most jaw-dropping part of it all is equally the instrumental precision on all of the instruments as as much as the gifted compositional and arrangement work, both worthy of the highest praise. To top it all off, Angell is not the only name any Extreme Metal fan will hear a lot more of in the times to come: Noak Mendez (son of Opeth’s Martin Mendez and himself mastermind of the EOS “Eye of Surrender” project) shows us out with a blistering guitar solo. The future of the genre is indeed safe in the hands of these exceptional talents! Dario 

And while her children are making their first successful steps in the music business (see review of Angell’s “Unveiled” above and check out ARIADNE’s new single ‘Darkest Lover’), Heidi Solberg Tveitan reinvents her solo project Star Of Ash by stripping away all electronic and rock elements of previous releases, leaving a stunning cinematic, orchestral backbone on her new EP, “Sólblindi”. Brought to life by the violin of Bent Knee’s Chris Baum, Øystein Aadland’s piano and finally Raphael Weinroth-Browne’s magnificent Cello tones on the title track, these three pieces breathe pure honesty and sincerity. A Netflix show could feel honored by having music as brilliant as “Sólblindi’ as their soundtrack and/or main theme, yet it might even feel too trivial a purpose. Pure art. Dario

Also a seemingly little three-track EP, Narayan’s “Transcendence” leads us back onto well-known (Instrumental) Progressive Metal paths musically. Melbourne-based, Fiji-born guitarist Adrian Narayan has enlisted the bass and drum talents of Toby Peterson (The Omnific) and David Parkes (I Built The Sky) for this endeavor and poured absolutely everything into the production of not only the music (very punchy yet crystal clear), but also the absolutely professional videos. “I make guitar music for my head and heart.” he states in his Facebook bio. Luckily not only for his own, but also for ours. Thank you for that, good sir, as “Transcendence” surely knows to stimulate both. Dario

Three years into the Johan Niemann solo era, we’ve already been blessed by lots of bubbly synth gorgeousness (“Karnivore” & “Frankly…”), dark ambient drones (“Anhedonia” & “Kalpa”) as well as a foray into “The Vast Expanse” of melodic guitar playing, to name just a few . “Celestial Traveller”, his newest outing, is a journey into the vast expanse of the cosmos and combines again his love for spacey synths and endlessly addicting bass grooves. I doubt that we’ll be hearing such a gorgeous synth solo as heard in ‘Messier 80’ on the next Evergrey album (what a pity), but I’m content to at least have those two worlds separately. Who’s joining this celestial traveller on a trip? Dario

Discovering the music of Italian artist Lili Refrain live supporting Kalandra was – and I exaggerate not – absolutely breathtaking. Just with her voice and percussions, she was able to mesmerize the audience to the point of quite a few dropped jaws. Her new album “Nagalite”, even though only about thirty minutes long, develops an epic, almost archaic, ritualistic quality to it that might even bewitch you into a deep trance. To be completely honest, I’m usually not the biggest fan of electronic influences in something so deeply rooted in pagan folk traditions, yet her art completely defies any notion of genre or even electronic vs. acoustic. Anything goes and everything works, in a truly unique amalgamation of sounds. Dead Can Dance, Wardruna and Heilung meet at a rave and decide to flee from the relentless beats into the woods to sing some opera? Ok, that might be a bit exaggerated, as there is luckily no endless computer beat. But maybe you’re catching my drift? If not, listen to “Nagalite” and fall under the spell yourself. Dario

Ok, I can’t help it. What this edition of our Releases of the Weeks series still desperately needs is some Mellotron. We’re a PROG online magazine after all, aren’t we? Luckily, “Terra Tiempo” comes to the rescue. With Mellotron in absolute abundance, even throwing in lots of (Hammond) organ sounds on top. The return of the Dutch Prog trio Trion thirteen years after their third album “Funfair Fantasy” (damn, that was a lot of threes) of course harkens back to the golden age of Prog and sounds first heard from British bands like Genesis, Yes or Camel in the early 70’s. A nostalgic sound for sure. Constantly treading the thin lines between cheesiness and beauty, whimsical cuteness and grandiosity, simple melodies and classical counterpoint complexity, I can’t help but derive a genuine, joyful smile from these very pleasant sounds. With two out of twelve songs vocally adorned (‘Growing Clouds’ even evoking Laughing Stock at their most Genesis deepness), I’d still call this an instrumental Progressive Rock record though. And a very beautiful one at that. Dario

Now that we’ve got our Mellotron in, it’s time for that Jazz/Fusion fix, don’t you think? Canada based quartet Finely Tuned Elephant is providing these vibes in spades on their new album. “No Goats”. The four virtuoso musicians apparently have already delivered complete tribute performances to Japanese fusion legends Casiopea – so it comes as no surprise that they are indeed the goats. The highest level of musicianship paired with a tongue-in-cheek sense of humor (see album- and song-titles as well as the cover artwork) that even shines through the pure joy of all the performances – what’s not to love? Dario

Whether you like it or not, masked Portuguese Post Metal shooting stars of Gaerea are an absolutely unstoppable force in 2026 with their new, fifth album, “Loss”. When new bands with an underground meets modern mass appeal sound suddenly explode, they’re obviously automatically an industry plant. When an established smaller band suddenly makes it big – granted, with more and more concessions to a more streamlined Alternative Mainstream Metal sound – they’re immediately accused of selling out. Changing labels from Season of Mist to Century Media Records might certainly look that way as well. And hell, even I don’t like everything on “Loss”. Still, it doesn’t stop me from being impressed by the continued high quality output. Musically, the “Limbo”, “Mirage”, “Coma” triple might speak more to me, yet “Loss” is Gaerea’s very own next step, and the direction they’re taking will certainly bring them even more fans. Well deserved. Dario

A bassist solo album is not really a genre – can we really put Evan Brewer’s “Your Itinerary” in the same bucket as the recent “Tulpa” by Linus Klausenitzer? Michael Peter “Flea” Balzary may just be one of the highest profile bassists alive, considering the induction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of The Red Hot Chili Peppers. This warrants some attention to what he has to say as a solo artist – and this is to be taken quite literally, as the album includes some spoken word passages in pleas for peace.

Flea’s origins in Trumpet and Jazz come through strongly, as he’s playing quite a bit of the former, while 6 of the 10 tracks are covers of the latter style. An extensive who-is-who of guest musicians supports in creating a unique soundscape. ‘Traffic Lights’ comes around with Primus vibes; ‘Willow Weep for Me’ is interpreted in a minimalist approach with a droning synth. A special highlight is ‘Wichita Lineman’ featuring the brooding and emotive vocals by Nick Cave.

Returning to the original point: As a bassist solo album, “Honora” is most akin to the recent “Bringing it Down to the Bass” by Tony Levin – an expressive, avantgarde-yet-listenable oddball whose significance can exist only by virtue of its creator’s fame in conventional bands. For Prog fans open to unusual sonic flavors, it’s a stimulating listen and a nice display of what the beautiful low-end instrument (and its players) can contribute to music. Bas

(Retro-)Polish guitar phenomenon Maromaro had completely passed by me until recently, but now, thanks to a small hint by former The Progspace collaborator Alix, I’ve been introduced to his unique Moonverse full of weird characters. “Full Moon” seems like a compilation of the theme songs for all this character- and world-building so I’m very curious, where this concept will lead. If you’re into fun, whimsical, yet technically proficient guitar melodies, don’t mind cheap programmed drum beats, and love yourself some nerdy lore-building, come on, dive into the Moonverse! Dario