Carly Cosgrove
The Mary Ellen Carter
Vertical Mattress & Friends
Featuring Mary Margaret Bausch, Keith Navratil, Brent Beller, Clarence Nichols, Tom Brantley, Tyler Owen, Mark Ehrhart, Vic Padios, Aaron Filipi, TJ Twit, Cy Harrison, and Henry Wiedrich
Remember Sports
Remember Sports have always sounded like a band in motion—chasing a feeling, chasing each other, sometimes running from themselves. Over the past decade, the Philadelphia-based band has built a cult following on the strength of bruising live shows, emotionally honest lyrics, and an ever-evolving sound that refuses to be pinned down. With their newest album, The Refrigerator, out February 13, 2026 via Get Better Records, the band captures the messy, cathartic energy of transformation: it’s a record born from uncertainty, grief, growth, and ultimately, love—for the music, for each other, and for the many past selves colliding into the present.
Yurei
VentanA
Rivers of Nihil
Sixteen years and five albums after the Pennsylvania band’s formation, progressive death metal progenitors Rivers of Nihil are upping the ante with their 2025 self-titled album Rivers of Nihil. Traditionally, a self-titled record can signal a return to basics and/or a fresh beginning, and in 10 powerful songs, it’s clear that both those factors are in play. Founding bassist Adam Biggs became the band’s new lead vocalist/bassist in 2023; the same year marked the appearance of additional guitarist Andy Thomas (ex-Black Crown Initiate), whose vocals also play prominently on Rivers of Nihil. Producers Carson Slovak and Grant McFarland at Atrium Audio captured the new dynamics across more than 50 minutes of music. On June 15, 2023, the band released a new single, “The Sub-Orbital Blues,” the first track with Biggs handling lead vocals (following the 2022 departure of singer Jake Dieffenbach, and also their first featuring Thomas). A second single, “Hellbirds,” dropped on October 19 of that year. On April 29, 2024, the band released the cut “Criminals” and an accompanying music video. Both “Criminals” and “The Sub-Orbital Blues” appear on Rivers of Nihil. The new album’s first single of 2025, “House of Light,” is a track the band believes “encapsulates the nature of what it is that we do perfectly while offering a different perspective on the sound with the new lineup,” explains founding member/guitarist Brody Uttley, who also plays piano and does the programming in the band. “Everything that our fans have come to love about our sound is demonstrated in this song with the new addition of Andy singing and Biggs on main vocals. It has the riffs, it has the big chorus, it has the prog, it has the solos, it has the sax. Just a real classic example of what we will do as a band in 2025.” Rivers of Nihil also showcases additional musicians, including Patrick Corona on alto saxophone; Stephan Lopez on banjo; McFarland on cello; and a slate of other guest vocalists. Further singles include “American Death,” a true-to-form beater that’s sure to slay live, and “Water & Time,” which Uttley says is Rivers’ “stab at writing a big chorus style synth-laden song. The main melody on synth came out so cool the band filled out the song with “metal band stuff” for the potent final version heard on Rivers of Nihil. Despite the fresh approach on Rivers of Nihil, the album fits neatly into the band’s discography. With Where Owls Know My Name (2018), Rivers of Nihil transcended all labels applied to them, and with its 2021 follow-up, The Work, they forged further into new territory. Metal Injection calling the latter album “by far the group’s most cohesive, ambitious, meditative, and varied effort, with greater uses of philosophical significance and transcendental respites.” The quartet’s musicianship has been honed to a fine point thanks to an unrelenting touring schedule over the past few years, including headline tours of the U.S. and EU/UK, as well as support slots on the Chaos and Carnage Tour (Cattle Decapitation, Carnifex, etc.), Lorna Shore, Between the Buried and Me, and shows with Killswitch Engage.
Savage Master
One of the most exciting and electrifying bands in the occult metal scene, SAVAGE MASTER swiftly built an impressive canon of work by releasing two cult albums, an EP, and over-the-top live shows. Founded in 2013 by guitarist Adam Neal and vocalist Stacey Savage, the band was inspired by their love of heavy metal and horror. Shortly thereafter, Savage and her hooded henchmen began their assured ascent through the underground, touring nonstop across North America and Europe, playing festivals such as Keep It True, Hell Over Hammaburg, Legions of Metal, Frost and Fire, Ragnarokkr, Hell’s Heroes, and many more, helping land their longstanding album deal with Shadow Kingdom Records.
Fust & Merce Lemon
Force 5 Records – Hard RR’s
