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We’re officially a quarter of the way through the year! 2025 has got off to a pretty strong start so far as new metal releases goes with the likes of Spiritbox, Killswitch Engage, Jinjer and Wardruna all releasing albums in recent weeks, but there’s still plenty more to come with new albums from Ghost, Babymetal, Lord Of The Lost and more lined up on the calendar.

And that’s to say nothing of new bands to discover, of course! Much as we did last month, we’ve hunted high and low, far and wide to find you some of the most exciting new sounds around as we enter April.

You can hear the latest releases from those bands in our massive playlist below, but read on to (possibly) discover your new favourite band. So stick ’em on, and have an excellent month!

Grima

“For more than half half the year, our home is covered in snow. The majestic yet desolate mountains and forests paint powerful landscapes. That cold, raw beauty finds its way into our sound,” explains Vilhelm, regarding the compelling natural muse behind Grima, the project he began with his twin brother, Morbius, more than a decade ago.

From the use of regional Russian folk instrumentation (such as the sorrowful-sounding bayan accordion), to the wearing of remarkable phellem masks, to the band’s evocative album artwork and snow-forest fixations of their music videos, Grima have devoted themselves wholesale to the Siberian vistas of their surroundings. Even the name Grima has come to represent a malign forest deity conjured by the twins to reign over their mystical world.

“Our music is performed as a ritual, and the audience becomes part of the ceremony,” says Vilhelm. “Our costumes, our aesthetics, they alter our existence, allowing us to channel dark Siberian art. The album covers and videos help us to convey these images remotely, extending the essence of our music and its lore.”

“Grima symbolises the dark, rebellious spirit of the forest, where nature is predominantly hostile to human presence and activity,” Morbius elaborates. “An unwelcome visitor may face punishment if they don’t treat the forest temple with respect.”

With latest album Nightside, the brothers cloak Grima’s dominions in an extra layer of obsidian, escalating levels of dread and sorcery.

“Nightside explores the forest’s nocturnal side – its inhabitants and mystical entities,” states Vilhelm. “It tells of lost souls wandering tangled paths, tales of Grima’s most devoted servants, who collect skull trophies from the bodies of the dead. The album is full of stories of those who found their final rest in the taiga.” Spencer Grady

Nightside is out now via Napalm. Grima tour the UK from May 25.

Sounds Like: Melancholic black metal instilled with the frostbitten essence of the taiga
For Fans Of: Wolves In The Throne Room, Drudkh, Panopticon
Listen To: Flight Of The Silver Storm

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Catch Your Breath

Mainstream metalcore has never been bigger, thanks to the likes of Bring Me The Horizon, Sleep Token and Spiritbox. Catch Your Breath’s debut album, Shame On Me, sees the Texans aiming to be part of the next wave. Originally released in 2023, it offers a swaggering collection of riff-driven anthems that aren’t afraid of a catchy hook, while last year’s deluxe edition added dreamy pop and urgent rave to their sonic arsenal in Good In Goodbye and Ghost Inside The Shell respectively.

“It’s kinda all over the place, but that’s what I like about it,” says vocalist Josh Mowery, adding the band listened to Halsey, Banks and Demi Lovato while recording. “You need to look outside of metal for inspiration, otherwise the scene is going to eat itself.”

Lyrically, the album is a cathartic purge of repressed feelings. “All the songs come from a very real place,” Josh explains.

At first, he was worried about being too direct about his own turbulent upbringing because he “didn’t want it to feel ‘woe is me’”, but he found strength in using that pain to create something empowering.

“I was let down, neglected and abandoned, but at the same time, I created this music because of that,” he reasons.

The album bounces between fury and reflection. “Every bit of anger is usually caused by sadness of some kind. We wanted to stay true to that,” Josh adds. “But if someone is singing about being pissed off, you want to feel it.”

As well as blowing up on streaming services – they have over 2.2 million monthly listeners on Spotify – Catch Your Breath have spent the past year stealing the spotlight while supporting the likes of Dayseeker and Breaking Benjamin. Now their sights are set on Europe with their own headline run.

“Music brings people together – we want to celebrate that,” says Josh, who’s determined to turn each gig into heavy metal karaoke. “A lot of our songs are about things that would usually be hard to talk about, but we do it to show people they’re not alone. We want to prove you can be more than your trauma.” Ali Shutler

The Deluxe Edition of Shame On Me is out now via Thriller Records. Catch Your Breath tour the UK from April 8.

Sounds Like: Poptastic metalcore with plenty of bite For Fans Of: Bad Omens, Poppy, Spiritbox
Listen To: Dial Tone

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Church Tongue

Hardcore might have a reputation for lyrical aggression and righteous anger, but that’s certainly not the case with Church Tongue’s incredible new EP, You’ll Know It Was Me. Instead, frontman Mike Sugars has written six “songs about love” for his band’s latest release. Themes range from Mike embracing sobriety to the deep adoration he feels for his wife and his mother. It’s all very sweet.

“That’s the challenge: to make really heavy music but to embrace this feeling of pure love,” he says. “I’ve been making this brutal, beatdown music for a decade now. So, I’m a bit older, more comfortable in myself, and I love my mom! Why should I feel embarrassed by that?”

You’ll Know It Was Me is a sublime slab of pummelling, destructive hardcore. It grinds, blasts and is thoroughly chaotic, guests like Deafheaven’s George Clarke, Twitching Tongues’ Colin Young and Initiate’s Crystal Pak adding extra screams and howls.

“We aimed high with our guest spots,” recalls Mike. “It was a dream to get all of them. We’re just a little band, and to get these artists that we’re such big fans of to say yes to us, it’s just incredible.”

You’ll Know It Was Me is Church Tongue’s first release in four years, and it’s worth the wait. The delay was because guitarist Nicko Calderon found himself swept up in a tide of activity surrounding his axe duties in breakout hardcore stars Knocked Loose.

“We are really proud of what Nicko’s done,” explains the vocalist, swelling with pride. “He’s got his own fanbase now, so we might have a few more eyes on us, but we’re our own thing and we’re all really committed to this band, no matter who shows up.” Stephen Hill

You’ll Know It Was Me is out now via Pure Noise.

Sounds Like: Being smothered in a crushing bear hug, by an actual bear
For Fans Of: Knocked Loose, Poison The Well, Renounced
Listen To: The Fury Of Love

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Mélancolia

Mélancolia are a band destined to divide opinion. Not only do they play a pimped-up take on deathcore – itself a genre with as many critics as adherents – they do so with a style, swagger and visual flair not often seen in these breakdown-laden depths.

“I need visual representation or it just doesn’t do it for me,” explains frontman Alex Hill. “Too often I will scroll past bands that all look the same with their black hoodies. I’ve always wanted a strong image that matches the music.”

That image is culled equally from horror movies and underground industrial clubs, while the music mixes those pummelling deathcore grooves with nu metal undertones, electronic embellishments and a spatter of Cradle Of Filth.

“Dani Filth is like the magnum opus of high screams and there’s an artistry in how he creates a world for his band,” Alex nods.

The Melbourne-based newcomers presented their vision on their debut full-length, HissThroughRottenTeeth. It’s a concept album that the singer describes as being about “a deity that was thrown out from the afterlife and condemned to live in the mortal realm, with all the knowledge of being a deity but none of the power”. It’s a twisting, churning descent through personal hell that uses horror as allegory.

“There’s definitely dramatisation, but I think I create characters that are a catalyst to explain emotions, scenarios and feelings that I’ve had and experiences that I’ve gone through in life,” explains the frontman.

Mélancolia hit UK shores supporting death metal legends Suffocation this month, and Alex suggests you get there early if you’re going.

“We put on a show sonically,” he says. “We’ve got the heaviness and the evil moments, but visually you’re not going to see a band like us in this genre. Love us or hate us, you will remember us.” Paul Travers

HissThroughRottenTeeth is out now via Nuclear Blast.

Sounds Like: Cerebral celluloid splatter set to deathcore riffage and blackened screams
For Fans Of: Suicide Silence, Ice Nine Kills, Cradle Of Filth
Listen To: HissThroughRottenTeeth

Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones recalled how he managed to steal musical equipment from David Bowie the night before the last-ever Ziggy Stardust concert in 1973.

Versions of the story have been passed around for decades. However, in a recent interview with The Guardian, Jones corrected some myths and explained what happened when he later owned up to Bowie and Spiders drummer Woody Woodmansey.

Confirming he hadn’t liberated items from trucks outside London’s Hammersmith Odeon, Jones said, “It was on the stage! They played two nights, and after the first night, they left all the gear up.

READ MORE: Who Are the ‘Big 4’ of Punk Rock?

“I knew the Hammersmith Odeon like the back of my hand – I used to bunk in there all the time. I was like the Phantom of Hammersmith Odeon!

“It was about two in the morning … there was no one there other than a guy sitting on the fourth or fifth row, asleep; he was snoring. It was dead silent. I tiptoed across the stage and I nicked some cymbals, the bass player’s [amplifier] head … and some microphones. I got Bowie’s microphone with his lipstick on it!”

He got away in a stolen minivan, but Bowie soon discovered who had committed the crime. When asked if he ever admitted it, Jones said, “I kind of did, on a phone call … he thought it was funny.

How Steve Jones Made Up for Stealing Spiders Drummer’s Gear

“Actually, I don’t think I nicked anything off him; I don’t think the microphones were his. The only ones I felt bad for were Woody and [bassist] Trevor Bolder.”

Jones described the unusual circumstances in which he admitted to Woodmansey what he’d done. “He came on my radio show a few years back, and I thought I’d tell him live, when we were on the air. … I was like, ‘I’ve got to make amends to you, Woody, I nicked some of your cymbals. What can I do to make it right?’

“He goes, ‘I don’t know – give us a couple of hundred bucks.’ I think I gave him $300, so he was well happy!”

Punk Rock’s 40 Best Albums

From the Ramones to Green Day, this is musical aggression at its finest. 

Gallery Credit: Michael Gallucci

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With the first few months of 2025 behind us, it’s not too early to look backward a bit at some of our favorite releases of the year so far.

Among those who have put out new albums were some veteran artists — Ringo Starr, Neil Young and Jethro Tull — plus albums from newer acts like Dirty Honey, the War and Treaty and Envy of None.

Below, UCR staff note the best album they’ve heard this year so far.

Allison Rapp: I’ve been a fan of Larkin Poe for years now, so usually I’m tuned in to their new releases, but somehow I completely missed their new album, Bloom, that came out in January. In February, I happened to turn on Sirius XM’s Tom Petty Radio station and heard “Easy Love Pt. 1.” The rest of the album is just as robust — Rebecca and Megan Lovell have only gotten sharper in the studio. (I must give an honorable mention to Ringo Starr’s new country album, Look Up, which coincidentally features Larkin Poe on a couple of tracks.)

Bryan Rolli: It’s rare these days to hear a live album that hasn’t been doctored into oblivion, but Dirty Honey proudly bucks that trend on Mayhem and Revelry with a raucous 16-song set that lives up to its name. Culled from the North American and European legs of their Can’t Find the Brakes tour, Mayhem captures the California quartet’s infectious blues-rock boogie, with Marc Labelle’s elastic vocals and John Notto’s razor-sharp guitar solos front and center. Notto proudly informed UCR that the band did no overdub sessions for the album, but it would be a disservice to describe Mayhem and Revelry as “warts and all.” That would imply flubs instead of the tasteful improvisation and ad-libbing on display here — evidence of Dirty Honey’s road-worn chemistry and seemingly inevitable path to world domination.

Nick DeRiso: Jason Isbell recorded Foxes in the Snow without his usual backing band, the 400 Unit, and outside of a marriage that turned into a muse. What’s to become of Isbell’s career without that spark? This is the sound of figuring that out. There’s introspection about what it all means, even what his own old songs now mean, but he’s also become angrier and more lyrically impulsive. Isbell has been stripped bare, and you hear it everywhere on this new album. He’s never had more main-character energy. The results are often cathartic, and sometimes a little jarring, but Foxes in the Snow is a grower. It draws us in more deeply with each spin.

Matthew Wilkening: For years now, new Melvins music has largely arrived in two different orbits. About once a year you’ll get a “proper” full-length album from the group, almost undoubtedly featuring an outside collaborator, a lineup change or some clever twist on the songwriting or recording process. (The upcoming and excellent Thunderball, arriving April 18, is a perfect example.)

Then, a few times a year you’ll be alerted to the opportunity to purchase a new Melvins EP, frequently created in collaboration with another band, on extremely limited edition vinyl or via $5 CD. These EPs fly under the radar and are not to be found on streaming services. The most recent finds the band teaming up with grindcore legends Napalm Death for the six-song Savage Imperial Death March EP.

Truth be told, Napalm Death’s a bit stronger brand of coffee than I’d seek out on my own, but this record rips your head off quite nicely, and the true collaborative nature of the project means fans of either band who aren’t as familiar with the other already have one foot in the door and a great chance to expand their musical horizons.

Matt Wardlaw: Dream Theater reunited with co-founder Mike Portnoy in 2023 and put out their first record with the drummer in more than a decade earlier this year. While that sentence is exciting enough, Parasomnia is also a really, really good album. Openly embracing nostalgia, the record stylistically draws from a little bit of everything in the Dream Theater trick bag, yet still feels collectively like a fresh step forward. In short, Parasomnia is proof that sometimes you can go home again. Fans of their classic work and albums like Images and Words and Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence will enjoy this latest chapter.

2025 Rock Tour Preview

Elton John‘s history as a collaborator has long been a significant and not-so-secret part of his success over the past half-century. From the 1976 No. 1 “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” with Kiki Dee and a 1993 duets album to stage and film work with songwriter Tim Rice and his longtime partnership with lyricist Bernie Taupin, the generous John has never shied away from sharing the spotlight.

His last album, 2021’s The Lockdown Sessions, was recorded during the pandemic with artists ranging from Dua Lipa and Gorillaz to Eddie Vedder and Stevie Wonder. John’s Lockdown Sessions song with another of the album’s collaborators, Brandi Carlile, was so encouraging and rewarding that they’ve teamed up for Who Believes in Angels?, an entire album of new songs cowritten by the pair along with Taupin and producer Andrew Watt.

John couldn’t have chosen a better-suited accomplice than Carlile for his first full-length, single-artist collaboration project since 2010’s The Union with Leon Russell. Both artists have long championed drama in their music, and more so than any of his past singing partners, Carlile slips effortlessly into John’s personal and performance aesthetic to the point where they become one voice at times on Who Believes in Angels? (They first worked together on a song from her 2009 album, Give Up the Ghost.)

READ MORE: More 2025 Album Reviews

The launching pad for the album started with “Never Too Late,” the pair’s duet from John’s 2024 documentary of the same name. The song appears near the middle of Who Believes in Angels? as an anchor to the tracks surrounding it, but new offerings “The Rose of Laura Nyro,” “Little Richard’s Bible” and “Who Believes in Angels?” are standout cuts on a record shaped by the artists’ shared center. Entering the studio with no plan or songs in the fall of 2023, John and Carlile recorded the 10 tracks in 20 days, using each other as springboards. The result is that these songs couldn’t exist without each other’s presence and input.

That Who Believes in Angels? loses some appeal by the end is likely because Carlile has yet to make a full album that sustains her initial enthusiasm, and John hasn’t done so in decades. But there are moments here – the raucous anthem “Swing for the Fences,” the theatrical pop of “Someone to Belong To” – that are among the best of their respective recent work. As far as John’s long list of collaborators goes, Carlile, save for Taupin, achieves a near-impossible feat: uniting the line where one artist ends and the other starts.

Top 100 ’70s Rock Albums

From AC/DC to ZZ Top, from ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ to ‘London Calling,’ they’re all here.

Gallery Credit: UCR Staff

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Gene Simmons has never met a dollar he didn’t like and he’s got plenty of wisdom on the subject. For example, if you’re going to be miserable, “it’s still better to be a rich, miserable fuck,” he tells us early in our conversation.

It’s part of the reason he’s been playing solo concerts in the past couple of years since Kiss said farewell to the road, because he still remembers his modest beginnings. “It’s funny, I’m an only child to my mother and I grew up with the hard knocks of not being very romantic about what it all means,” he shares on an upcoming episode of the UCR Podcast. “I developed a harder skin and for myself, realized that everything was about the search for power and money, which is not a very romantic notion. But I didn’t want to be poor, because I know what that felt like.”

“My mother worked at a sweat factory six days out of the week and survived the Nazi concentration camps of Germany. You know, life is tough, so the romantic hippie dippie notation about life never worked for me,” he continues. “All I ever did was try to figure out how to become powerful and make lots of money, for survival. The only thing money ever does, really, is give you the freedom to do stuff you actually like doing. It’s what it’s really about and also to keep you safe, pay for your hospital bills, create jobs, give to charity, all of that stuff. A poor person never gave me a job.”

READ MORE: You Can Be Gene Simmons’ Roadie for $12,495 a Day

Sure, that logic applies in part to his career with Kiss, but for Simmons, it goes further than that. “Throughout Kiss, fame was nice, but there are a lot of famous people who are relatively poor, that’s not a lot of fun,” he explains. “But on the other side, there’s a lot of industrial types whose names you don’t recognize who are filthy rich. It’s better to be rich than poor, it really is. And if you’re a miserable fuck, it’s still better to be a rich, miserable fuck. That’s all I ever tried to do.”

What Fans Can Expect From Gene’s Solo Shows

As he told UCR last month, he found that staying away from the stage wasn’t an option for him — and he expanded on those thoughts during our latest conversation. “I can say that I’m having more fun now in ways I never thought I’d have without 60 people on the crew, without a private jet, without three triple-decker buses, without 20 tractor trailers — without a small city setting up with more firepower than some third world countries, just getting up on stage and rocking out,” he says. “It’s like your favorite band rehearsing in a garage, and then the garage door opens and everybody in town rushes over and has a party.”

“It’s very flexible.There are no plans. I can pull up people from the audience. They can join me singing, if you can play an instrument, jump in if you know one of one of the tunes, dive in,” he continues. “You can Google ‘Gene Simmons Band, teenage guitar player, ‘Parasite’,’ and you’ll see some kid step up and rock out. There was a 15-year old kid in Scandinavia who yelled out from the audience that he wanted to play the drums. [We] brought him up on stage and never rehearsed with him. ‘What do you want to play?’ ‘Christine Sixteen.’ ‘Do you know the song?’ ‘Oh yeah, I know this.’ You’ll see that he kills it. That’s half of the fun, the idea of band and fan and not having the moat around them. With these solo shows, anything can happen.”

Simmons and his band will hit the road for their next round of dates starting May 2.

Watch the Gene Simmons Band Play ‘Chrstine Sixteen’ With a Fan

Sam Mendes announced that his four Beatles biopics will premiere one at a time over four weekends in April 2028.

The director of features including American Beauty, Road to Perdition and the James Bond films Skyfall and Spectre reassured Beatles fans that there was more to learn about John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

Sony Motion Pictures boss Tom Rothman described the move as the first “bingeable moment in cinema.” Each of the movies will focus on a different member of the Fab Four, and the project has been given the working title of The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event.

Here is the project’s official synopsis:

“Each man has his own story, but together they are legendary. The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event. In theaters April 2028.”

READ MORE: Nine Movies That Almost Starred the Beatles

It had been previously revealed that Harris Dickinson will play Lennon, with Paul Mescal as McCartney, Joseph Quinn as Harrison and Barry Koeghan as Starr. You can see the first official cast photo below.

Mendes felt a TV series was the wrong format and it wasn’t until the four-movie concept arose that he knew his concept could work. “There had to be a way to tell the epic story for a new generation,” he said. “I can assure you there is still plenty left to explore, and I think we found a way to do that.”

Beatles Movie Month Will Dominate Culture says Studio Boss

He also said it would take more than a year to shoot the four films, to which Rothman joked, “Did I agree to this?” and added: “I’m getting Avatar flashbacks!”

Pitching the positives of Sony’s approach to theater owners, Rothman said: “We are going to dominate the culture that month.”

Beatles Albums Ranked

From the cheery ‘Please Please Me’ to the kinda dreary ‘Let It Be,’ we rank all of the group’s studio LPs.

Gallery Credit: Michael Gallucci

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As the temperatures begin rising, many of rock’s biggest acts will be hitting the road for 2025 summer tours.

Some of the most anticipated treks belong to artists we weren’t sure would ever tour again. Paul Simon needed a medical miracle to get back onstage, while AC/DC’s Brian Johnson similarly faced debilitating hearing loss. Despite what could have been career-ending conditions, both acts will be back on the road, captivating audiences once more. For Simon, it’ll mark his first US tour since 2018, while fans have had to wait for close to a decade for a full AC/DC North American run.

The summer will find some artists, like Foreigner and Cyndi Lauper, continuing their farewell tours, while others – most notably Oasis – will be reuniting for the first time in years. Then there’s the case of Sex Pistols, who will be touring America for the first time since 2003, but doing so without original frontman John Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten).

READ MORE: John Lydon Decries Sex Pistols’ Tour With New Singer as ‘Karaoke’

Several major acts will be joining forces on touring lineups, including Styx with Kevin Cronin, Def Leppard with Bret Michaels and Bachman-Turner Overdrive with the Marshall Tucker Band.

A couple of notable bands were forced to move their Las Vegas residencies into the summer. Motley Crue rescheduled their Sin City stay so that frontman Vince Neil could deal with a health issue, while Scorpions pushed their Vegas dates back to the summer to give drummer Mikkey Dee more time to recover from a life-threatening infection.

You can find these artists and more in our 2025 Summer Rock Tour Preview.

2025 Summer Rock Tour Preview

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Feature Photo: Ben Houdijk / Shutterstock.com

Halestorm originated in Red Lion, Pennsylvania, and began their journey in 1997 when siblings Lzzy and Arejay Hale started writing songs and performing locally. With Lzzy as lead vocalist and guitarist, and Arejay on drums, the duo quickly developed a reputation for their powerful stage presence. Eventually joined by guitarist Joe Hottinger and bassist Josh Smith, the band solidified their lineup, relentlessly touring and perfecting their distinctively energetic hard rock style.

The band’s perseverance paid off when they signed with Atlantic Records in 2005, marking the official beginning of their professional recording career. Halestorm has released five studio albums to date: their self-titled debut, Halestorm (2009), followed by The Strange Case Of… (2012), Into the Wild Life (2015), Vicious (2018), and Back from the Dead (2022). Each release has showcased their evolution as artists, experimenting with heavier riffs, lyrical depth, and emotional intensity, yet always maintaining their signature hard rock sound.

Halestorm’s breakthrough success arrived with their second album, The Strange Case Of…, propelled by the massive hit single “Love Bites (So Do I).” This track earned them the Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance in 2013, making Halestorm the first female-fronted band to receive the honor in this category. Additional hits like “I Miss the Misery,” “I Get Off,” “Freak Like Me,” and “Apocalyptic” further established their standing in rock radio and amplified their appeal worldwide.

Throughout their career, Halestorm has garnered significant acclaim and several prestigious nominations. Beyond their groundbreaking Grammy win, they have earned multiple nominations from organizations like Loudwire Music Awards and Revolver Golden Gods Awards, recognizing their contributions to modern rock music. Their reputation for authentic performances, powerful vocals from Lzzy Hale, and undeniable chemistry onstage has deeply resonated with both critics and audiences alike.

One reason Halestorm has built such a loyal and passionate fanbase lies in their relentless dedication to authenticity, musical integrity, and emotional openness. Lzzy Hale’s powerful vocal presence, combined with relatable lyrics dealing with personal struggles, empowerment, and resilience, has made the band particularly compelling. Their consistent ability to deliver dynamic, emotionally charged live performances has further solidified their status as one of rock’s most respected bands today.

Beyond music, Halestorm actively engages in advocacy for several causes, notably mental health awareness and the empowerment of women in the music industry. Lzzy Hale frequently uses her platform to speak openly about mental health struggles, sexism within the music business, and the importance of supporting young female musicians. Through public discussions and interviews, the band consistently promotes inclusivity and positive change within their community and beyond.

Complete List Of Halestorm Songs From A to Z

1. 1996 (Marilyn Manson cover) – ReAniMate 2.0: The Covers EP – 2013
2. All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You (Heart cover) – ReAniMate: The Covers EP – 2011
3. All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You (Heart cover) – The Strange Case Of… – 2012 (Japanese edition)
4. Alien – Back from the Dead – 2022 (Deluxe Edition)
5. Amen – Into the Wild Life – 2015
6. American Boys – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
7. Annabelle – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2006 Basement Demo)
8. Apocalyptic – Into the Wild Life – 2015
9. Back from the Dead – Back from the Dead – 2022
10. Back from the Dead (Acoustic) – Back from the Dead – 2022 (Japanese edition)
11. Back from the Dead (Live) – Back from the Dead – 2022 (Japanese edition)
12. Bad Girl’s World – Into the Wild Life – 2015
13. Bad Romance (Lady Gaga cover) – ReAniMate: The Covers EP – 2011
14. Bad Romance (Lady Gaga cover) – The Strange Case Of… – 2012 (Japanese edition)
15. Beautiful with You – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
16. Bet U Wish U Had Me Back – Halestorm – 2009
17. Better Sorry Than Safe – Halestorm – 2009
18. Better Sorry Than Safe (Live in Philly 2010) – Halestorm – 2009 (Japanese edition)
19. Black Vultures – Vicious – 2018
20. Black Vultures (Stripped) – Stripped – 2018
21. Blue Eyes – One and Done – 2006
22. Bombshell – Back from the Dead – 2022
23. Break In – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
24. Break In (Reimagined) – Reimagined – 2020
25. Brightside – Back from the Dead – 2022
26. Buzz – Vicious – 2018
27. Chemicals (Stripped) – Stripped – 2018
28. Coming Back To Me – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2007 LA Demo)
29. Conflicted – Vicious – 2018
30. Conversation Over – Halestorm – 2009 (Deluxe edition)
31. Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover (Sophie B. Hawkins cover) – ReAniMate 3.0: The Covers EP – 2017
32. Daughters of Darkness – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
33. Daughters of Darkness – Hello, It’s Mz. Hyde – 2012
34. Dear Daughter – Into the Wild Life – 2015
35. Dirty Mind – Halestorm – 2009 (Deluxe edition)
36. Dirty Work – Halestorm – 2009
37. Dissident Aggressor (Judas Priest cover) – ReAniMate 2.0: The Covers EP – 2013
38. Do Not Disturb – Vicious – 2018
39. Do Not Disturb (Stripped) – Stripped – 2018
40. Don’t Know How to Stop – The Strange Case Of… – 2012 (Deluxe edition)
41. Drunk Pretty – Into the Wild Life – 2015 (Japanese edition)
42. Everyone Dies (Heaven Isn’t Where We Belong) – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2008 Space Bitch Demo)
43. Familiar Taste of Poison – Halestorm – 2009
44. Fell on Black Days (Soundgarden cover) – ReAniMate 3.0: The Covers EP – 2017
45. Freak Like Me – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
46. Get Lucky (Daft Punk cover) – ReAniMate 2.0: The Covers EP – 2013
47. Gold Dust Woman (Fleetwood Mac cover) – ReAniMate 2.0: The Covers EP – 2013
48. Golden – Vicious – 2018 (Vinyl edition)
49. Gonna Get Mine – Into the Wild Life – 2015
50. Gypsy Grifter – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2006 Basement Demo)
51. Hate It When You See Me Cry – The Strange Case Of… – 2012 (Deluxe edition)
52. Heathens (Twenty One Pilots cover) – ReAniMate 3.0: The Covers EP – 2017
53. Heart of Novocaine – Vicious – 2018
54. Heart of Novocaine (Stripped) – Stripped – 2018
55. Heavy MeNtal (Fuck Yeah) – Back from the Dead – 2022 (Deluxe Edition)
56. Hell Is for Children (Pat Benatar cover) – ReAniMate 2.0: The Covers EP – 2013
57. Here’s to Us – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
58. Here’s to Us – Hello, It’s Mz. Hyde – 2012
59. Here’s to Us (Guest Version) – The Strange Case Of… – 2012 (Reissue edition)
60. Hero (Reluctant Hero) – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2006 Basement Demo)
61. Hunger Strike (Temple of the Dog cover) – ReAniMate: The Covers EP – 2011
62. Hunger Strike (Temple of the Dog cover) – The Strange Case Of… – 2012 (Japanese edition)
63. I Am the Fire – Into the Wild Life – 2015
64. I Am the Fire (Reimagined) – Reimagined – 2020
65. I Come First – Back from the Dead – 2022
66. I Get Off – Halestorm – 2009
67. I Get Off (Live in Philly 2010) – Halestorm – 2009 (Japanese edition)
68. I Get Off (Reimagined) – Reimagined – 2020
69. I Hate Myself for Loving You (Joan Jett cover) – ReAniMate 3.0: The Covers EP – 2017
70. I Like It Heavy – Into the Wild Life – 2015
71. I Miss the Misery – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
72. I Miss the Misery (Reimagined) – Reimagined – 2020
73. I Want You (She’s So Heavy) (The Beatles cover) – ReAniMate: The Covers EP – 2011
74. I Want You (She’s So Heavy) (The Beatles cover) – The Strange Case Of… – 2012 (Japanese edition)
75. I Will Always Love You (Dolly Parton/Whitney Houston cover) – Reimagined – 2020
76. I’m Not an Angel – Halestorm – 2009
77. In Your Room – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
78. Innocence – Halestorm – 2009
79. It’s Not You – Halestorm – 2009
80. It’s Not You – One and Done – 2006
81. Jump the Gun – Into the Wild Life – 2015 (Deluxe edition)
82. Killing Ourselves to Live – Vicious – 2018
83. Legendary – Back from the Dead – 2022 (Deluxe Edition)
84. Letters – Vicious – 2018 (Walmart/Vinyl editions)
85. Love Bites (So Do I) – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
86. Love Bites (So Do I) – Hello, It’s Mz. Hyde – 2012
87. Love Bites (So Do I) (Live in Philly 2015) – Vicious – 2018 (Japanese edition)
88. Love/Hate Heartbreak – Halestorm – 2009
89. Mayhem – Into the Wild Life – 2015
90. Mine – Back from the Dead – 2022 (Deluxe Edition)
91. My Redemption – Back from the Dead – 2022
92. Mz. Hyde – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
93. Mz. Hyde (Reimagined) – Reimagined – 2020
94. New Modern Love – Into the Wild Life – 2015
95. Nobody – Vicious – 2018 (Walmart/Vinyl editions)
96. Not Afraid of Losin’ – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2007 Basement Demo)
97. Not for Today – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2007 LA Demo)
98. Nothing to Do with Love – Halestorm – 2009
99. Now That You’re Gone – Vicious – 2018 (Vinyl edition)
100. Out Ta Get Me (Guns N’ Roses cover) – ReAniMate: The Covers EP – 2011
101. Painkiller – Vicious – 2018
102. Private Parts (feat. James Michael) – The Strange Case Of… – 2012 (Deluxe edition)
103. Psycho Crazy – Back from the Dead – 2022
104. Raise Your Horns – Back from the Dead – 2022
105. Ride or Die – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2006 Basement Demo)
106. Ride the Lightning (Metallica cover) – ReAniMate 3.0: The Covers EP – 2017
107. Rock Show – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
108. Rock Show – Hello, It’s Mz. Hyde – 2012
109. Scream – Into the Wild Life – 2015
110. Shoot to Thrill (AC/DC cover) – ReAniMate 2.0: The Covers EP – 2013
111. Show Me – One and Done – 2006
112. Sick Individual – Into the Wild Life – 2015
113. Skulls – Vicious – 2018
114. Slave to the Grind (Skid Row cover) – ReAniMate: The Covers EP – 2011
115. Slave to the Grind (Skid Row cover) – The Strange Case Of… – 2012 (Japanese edition)
116. Special – Back from the Dead – 2022 (Deluxe Edition)
117. Still Breathing – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2008 B-side)
118. Still of the Night (Whitesnake cover) – ReAniMate 3.0: The Covers EP – 2017
119. Strange Girl – Back from the Dead – 2022
120. Takes My Life – One and Done – 2006
121. Tell Me Where It Hurts – Halestorm – 2009 (Deluxe edition)
122. Terrible Things – Back from the Dead – 2022
123. The Hand – One and Done – 2006
124. The Proposition – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2005 Basement Demo)
125. The Reckoning – Into the Wild Life – 2015
126. The Silence – Vicious – 2018
127. The Silence (Stripped) – Stripped – 2018
128. The Steeple – Back from the Dead – 2022
129. Tired of Trying – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2006 Basement Demo)
130. Tokyo – Vicious – 2018 (Japanese edition)
131. Uncomfortable – Vicious – 2018
132. Unapologetic – Into the Wild Life – 2015 (Deluxe edition)
133. Vicious – Vicious – 2018
134. Wannabe – Back from the Dead – 2022 (Deluxe Edition)
135. What Sober Couldn’t Say – Into the Wild Life – 2015
136. What Were You Expecting? – Halestorm – 2009
137. White Dress – Vicious – 2018
138. Who Do You Love? – Halestorm – 2009 (10th Anniversary Edition, 2006 Basement Demo)
139. Wicked Ways – Back from the Dead – 2022
140. You Call Me a Bitch Like It’s a Bad Thing – The Strange Case Of… – 2012
141. You Only Die Once – Back from the Dead – 2022 (Deluxe Edition)

Albums And EPs

Forecast for the Future –  Self-released – 1997

(Don’t Mess with the) Time Man  – 1999

Breaking the Silence – Self-released – 2001

One and Done (EP) (2006): 5 songs

Halestorm (2009): 28 songs (including all bonus tracks and demos)

ReAniMate: The Covers EP (2011): 6 songs

Hello, It’s Mz. Hyde (2012): 4 songs (all also appear on the full album)

The Strange Case Of… (2012): 21 songs (including all bonus tracks and covers)

ReAniMate 2.0: The Covers EP (2013): 6 songs

Into the Wild Life (2015): 16 songs (including bonus tracks)

(2017): 6 songs

Stripped (2018): 5 songs

Vicious (2018): 18 songs (including all bonus tracks)

Reimagined (2020): 6 songs

Back from the Dead (2022): 20 songs (including all bonus tracks)

Check out our fantastic and entertaining Halestorm articles, detailing in-depth the band’s albums, songs, band members, and more…all on ClassicRockHistory.com

Arejay Hale of Halestorm: 11 Albums That Changed My Life

Top 10 Halestorm Songs

Complete List Of Halestorm Albums And Discography

Read More: Artists’ Interviews Directory At ClassicRockHistory.com

Read More: Classic Rock Bands List And Directory

Complete List Of Halestorm Songs From A to Z article published on ClassicRockHistory.com© 2025

About The Author

Brian Kachejian

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Brian Kachejian was born in Manhattan and raised in the Bronx. He is the founder and Editor in Chief of ClassicRockHistory.com. He has spent thirty years in the music business often working with many of the people who have appeared on this site. Brian Kachejian also holds B.A. and M.A. degrees from Stony Brook University along with New York State Public School Education Certifications in Music and Social Studies. Brian Kachejian is also an active member of the New York Press.

What have Donington, plus the albums Heaven And Hell, Ace Of Spades, On Through The Night and Iron Maiden got in common with Black In Black? Simple – the year 1980.

Not only was this the year when AC/DC released the biggest album of their career, but also the one that saw Black Sabbath bring in Ronnie James Dio to replace Ozzy Osbourne for the seminal Heaven And Hell album; the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal take flight into international waters thanks to the debut albums from Iron Maiden and Def Leppard (self-titled and On Through The Night, respectively); and the release of the most important album that Motörhead ever recorded, Ace Of Spades.

This was also the year when a racetrack in the Midlands became one of the famous locations in the world of rock and metal. Castle Donington may have had fans reaching for the nearest road map when it was announced that Rainbow would be playing an outdoor show at the site on August 16, 1980, but it soon became more famous for headbanging than for pit stops.

Joined by Judas Priest, Scorpions, Saxon, April Wine, Riot and Touch, Blackmore and co. turned a rain-sodden, muddy field into a Mecca for metal, one that was to be an annual pilgrimage throughout the 1980s – the Monsters Of Rock Festival at Donington was to quickly establish itself as a world-renowned and revered event. But this was merely the tip of an iceberg that arguably makes 1980 the most crucial year in the history of the music we all love.

In February of that year, EMI released the Metal For Muthas compilation, one that gave the whole NWOBHM concept a major-label cachet, featuring Maiden, plus Praying Mantis, Angel Witch, Sledgehammer, Nutz, not to mention the impossibly named Toad The Wet Sprocket and Ethel The Frog.

There was also the infamous Heavy Metal Barn Dance at Bingley Hall in Stafford, headlined by Motörhead, who led a merry metal jig with Saxon, Girlschool, Vardis, Angel Witch and Mythra. How many fans ended up sleeping on Stafford station that night, having missed their last connection?

The Reading Festival filled our heads with rock – 1980 was when Slade staged one of the great comebacks of all time during the August Bank Holiday weekend. Former UFO guitar hero Michael Schenker cut his hair and started his own band, MSG. Rush also took a radical turn away from their sword & sorcery imagery, with the Permanent Waves album.

So much happened during these 12 months that, decades on, it’s hard to pack the impact into mere words. But have no doubt what this year meant to the music scene. A young Danish wannabe was so fascinated by the UK melting pot that he spent a considerable amount of time over here, pursuing bands like Diamond Head and Jaguar. In fact he was so inspired by what was going on that the teenager determined to ditch his promising tennis career and try his hand with a drum stick.

We now know him as Lars Ulrich of Metallica. Just ask him how 1980 changed his life.

This feature appeared in Classic Rock Presents AC/DC. published in 2017.