As the spooky season approaches, and horror films begin to be shown on repeat, it’s only reasonable to wonder if these characters listen to what is arguably the best genre of music. We all know and love these iconic villains, and we all know they’d listen to the scariest genre on earth, metal of course. Horror and Metal have been intertwined genres for years, in makeup trends, imagery and more. It’s impossible not to assume horror villains must like metal, the raging sound of the genre surely matches that of a horror film sociopath. From Bear (Obsession) to Freddy Krueger (A Nightmare on Elm Street), if these villains had their headphones on during a kill, what would be playing? GHOSTFACE Ghostface, possibly the most iconic villain of all time, the scream franchise has always used alternative music in their soundtracks, so it’s fitting to include ghostface in this list! Ghostface is always following a vendetta, the kills are rarely random and there is always a clear motive. MALEVOLENCE seems like the only option for ghostface. The charged lyrics, the confidence their songs carry scream Ghostface. Their favourite track to listen to during a kill would undoubtedly be TRENCHES. ‘Hostile Intentions, don’t overlook me down in the trenches’ feels like something Ghostface would say when their identity is revealed. FREDDY KRUEGER Freddy Krueger is one of the most recognisable villains ever, and one of the most malevolent. A child murderer who was burned alive, his spirit haunts the dreams of kids and kills them, both in their dreams and in real life. It only makes sense that his favourite metal band is Manchester's own, GUILT TRIP. If Freddy put together a Spotify playlist of kill songs, it's without a doubt Sweet Dreams would be on there, maybe even on repeat. The brutality in their lyrics is definitely something Freddy Krueger would enjoy. Film still from A Nightmare On Elm Street - DoP Jacques Haitkin, still from New Line Cinema BEAR Obsession is the hottest film of 2026, and with that, the controversial villain, Bear, would have something to say about current metal front runners, SLEEP TOKEN. Not the most traditional metal, but they do have the elements sprinkled in. Bear uses a magical branch to make his lifelong crush love him more than anyone in the world, but it soon goes all wrong. Bear has made all his problems himself, and it only feels right that he would lock himself in a room, put his headphones on and play Caramel. Classicly misinterpreting the meaning of the song, and finding comfort and relatability in it. THE DEADITES The Deadites are a collective, zombies and spirits controlled by the Necronomicon, able to possess the living and dead, they are tricksters. The chaos of The Deadites can only be likened to KNOCKED LOOSE. As they possess hosts, they could be seen as Deadringers. There is so much imagery throughout KNOCKED LOOSE’s lyrics that can pull you back to the deadites, especially throughout A Tear in the Fabric of Life. The Deadites would undoubtedly be spinning this EP with every single host. Film still from Evil Dead - DoP David Garbett, still from Ghost House Pictures ART THE CLOWN Art the Clown is the antagonist of the Terrifier film series, a brutal killer with supernatural abilities and a desire to kill. He is often laughed at in the films, and due to his costume his victims do not see him as a threat. If Art had earphones in, and metal blasting as he makes his moves, STATIC DRESS would for sure be on the playlist. He can relate to the concepts in their music, and the horror themes laced through their lyrics. His favourite song to have on repeat would be Male-bomb. THE JIGSAW KILLER / JOHN KRAMER John Kramer is the main villain in the SAW franchise, he kidnaps civilians he believes have done wrong and tests them, hoping it will teach them a lesson, helping them grow and improve morally. He is completely convinced he is in the right, which is why his favourite band is STRAY FROM THE PATH. He completely misinterprets everything they stand for. His favourite song of theirs is definitely Fortune Teller, he resonates best with the lyrics ‘The futures in my bones’ as he badly attempts to punish immorality and ‘help’ these people redeem themselves. Film still from Saw II - DoP David Armstrong, still from Lionsgate Films Words: Kei Wells

Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho got queer cinema terribly, terribly wrong. Yes, Norman Bates oozes this unnerving charisma as one of the most recognisable movie villains of all time, with a mid-picture twist so devious that it turned watching movies on its head, but it came from a place of serious misunderstanding. A mistake so costly it weaponised queerness for decades after its release. Based on Robert Bloch’s novel, and supposedly centered around the narrative of Ed Gein - a real killer who (supposedly - the extremities of this narrative are wildly contested, as Gein could not be found guilty by cause of insanity, as well as some seriously homophobic and transphobic accounts by authorities, which resulted in him spending the rest of his life in mental institutions) exhumed bodies from graveyards and mutilated women including his own mother to make a human ‘female skin suit’. His testimony was forged with the mutilated remains found in the basement of his family home and some truly shoddily written accounts of the entire ordeal. He was a truly complicated man and this made him truly entertaining to contemporary news. With Psycho, Hitchcock took this further and turned transness into a novelty. A punchline with a purpose, rather than explore psychological queerness that is anything more than skin deep. It vilified an already oppressive agenda of an era that championed any diversity as ‘the other’, whilst also simultaneously setting a precedent of perverted - and at times cannibalistic - personas that signposted queer trauma away from queer communities. The Norman Bates’, the Leatherfaces and the Hannibal Lecters of this world, all with origins in the Gein story, were more intent on creating something for male-centric audiences with its own signature brand of sadistic corruption. Further filthy reworkings of this story - looking at you, Ryan Murphy - whilst seemingly watchable slop to the masses, allow queer critics to provide more insight into the truth of this alarming story. So, how can filmmakers get queerness right? To understand queer horror, film theory only tells half of the story. Carol Clover’s 1992 work Men, Women and Chainsaws, a revolutionary work hellbent on looking at horror cinema through gendered perspectives, is an insight into audience reception of the slasher genre. The first to recognise this infamous “final girl”, aligning audiences not with this male-centric killer, but rather with the feminine anti-hero that often threw around “boyish” tropes. In the same breath, Clover contests the symbolic power of phallic weapons, like knives and guns, as a framework where gender norms are continuously subverted in acts of violence, a “masculine penetration” as the killer rarely gets his way. In moments of panic and humiliation, male killers also go through emasculation, often experiencing continued pleasure and almost erotic moments of body horror as a reflection of their distorted intentions. With this, a narrative of gender-fluidity and radically progressive inversion of gender roles has made it incredibly powerful for queer people to identify with these theories. Let's break this down. For example, the uptight mysticism of vampires, instigated from the fear of venereal blood diseases, continued polyamory and out-of-era charm creates a dazzling framework for queerness. Away from Camilla, and Bram Stoker's supposed likeness of the imprisoned Oscar Wilde to Dracula, is this timeless story of characters that provide their own path away from a heteronormative society. In the case of Lestat and Louis in Interview With A Vampire, queer meaning is centered around two male characters who share an alarmingly challenging sanguine secret together - painfully addictive and wildly speculated sharing parenting duties of a child. Whilst author Anne Rice denied this homosexual reading for years, modern adaptations, including the 2022 series, can allow queer interpretations of the novel to be expressed in real time - where this LGBTQIA+ lens could be expressed with openness and confidence that wasn't able to be shown before to contemporary audiences. Taking this further, shipping Twilight’s Edward and Jacob really does have fantastical implications of how a fandom identifies with queer theory. This is but just one example of how LGBTQIA+ audiences take ownership of horror cinema as a way to express implicit and sexualised desires. Interpreting their own meaning, even if Bella is left out of the picture. And it can be seen elsewhere too. It's how Rocky Horror gained cult status, The Fly gained sensual and moral ambiguity, Suspiria’s enigmatic coven gained iconic precedence over the horror landscape and Eggers’ Lighthouse uses bestial imagery such as mermaids and tentacles to once again ship Robert Pattinson with an unbothered mortal enemy, Fortnight. Because fans make or break popular culture, right? Audience reception is the ultimate gauge outside of queer creators to decide if something is overtly “gay” or not. Even if it's One Direction during that one performance of X-Factor where they’re singing Total Eclipse Of The Heart for Halloween week. AO3 was all over that. Projecting self-identified meaning onto cinema, as a viewing lense to reveal more about the inner desires of an audience member, is why queer horror cinema is so insightful, complex and fascinating. This is why Jane Schoenbrunn’s Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is one of the most innovative films to come out of this year. Her misunderstood monster, Little Death, is a characterisation of the queer lens taking revenge on the traditional cinema foundations. Quite literally - their head is a box, a frame to understand the heteronormative world run by seemingly “straight-presenting” horror tropes. The summer camp. The urban myth. The misunderstood child. Using the well-established parameters of horror media, endless references to slasher movies until physical media becomes a focal part of the story, is an exciting way to explore the understanding and origins of desire and nostalgia in a really thorough introduction to ‘the queer archive’ where memories and media become integral to sexual identity and genre. Her other work, I Saw The TV Glow, a refreshing insight into self-identification in queerness through discovering transness in media, is a landmark in queer cinema. It builds on the work of this new wave of authors, such as Maggie Nelson and Carmen Maria Machado, that challenge memory as a way of understanding trauma. Queerness becomes frightfully intimate to its creator. In this, nothing compares to horror cinema forged by queer creators. Luca Guadagnino, immortalised by Call Me By Your Name, throws incredible tenderness into the 2015 remake of Suspiria, as well as the electric standalone Bones And All. Whilst not openly queer herself, Julia Ducournau’s lesbian-centric films add a new dimension to French cinema. Notably, 2019’s Raw empowers a lifelong vegetarian to become a cannibal with endless insight into female desire. The Watchowski sisters, coming out as transgender long after the release of the Matrix trilogy, have left an incomparable legacy on scifi cinema, and is worth a re-watch with an understanding of how queerness shaped the narrative with the understanding we have today. No queer cinema analysis could be complete without the legacy of the Hellraiser series. Clive Barker, whose experiences as a gay man handcrafted this film's pained narrative as an extension of his own external suffering. Androgenous unidentifiable beings, BDSM clothing straight out of Bergheim culture and this continued need for physical and mental torture provide heavy foundations that created one of cinemas most recognisable characters. Here, queerness is authenticity. Its freedom of expression, built on this innate desire to not fit conventional stereotypes, but to just exist, and live with confidence. Critic Jose Esteban Munoz describes this as an unobtainable utopia, where the closer to acceptance the LGBTQIA+ community gets, the more they demand of the world, because it is a reality they have not been able to have perspective on until now. This view is testament to how queerness is constantly evolving with worldwide acceptance, and modern pushback with anti-LGBTQIA+ rhetoric is an indicator of how far our community has come in the last century. Horror, whilst unconventional, for some it bridges that gap of a utopia, at times flirting with the gothic and finding beauty in the shadows. Sometimes, creating the supernatural is a way to process trauma, find understanding in chaos or live out that fantasy that feels out of reach. In this world, it is the framework that makes sense of it all. Horror was built for the queer community, and cinema is the lens that makes it incredibly identifiable, reliable and rewatchable. Endless sentimentality that words struggle to find the meanings of. Even if sometimes it's just sexualizing mothman… Words: Amber Brooks

Time to dust off your battle jacket because DAMNATION FESTIVAL is upon us once again. Taking place at the B.E.C Arena in Manchester on the 7th and 8th of November, DAMNATION FESTIVAL is known for putting on amazingly heavy line-ups backed back-to-back with bands you need to know. And this year is no different. Headlined by CULT OF LUNA and SATYRICON, you're destined to beat any record of bands you’ve seen in a day with this festival. Here are ten of my favourite undercard bands that we think you should check out at DAMNATION FESTIVAL, so be sure to check them out before you go and add them to your line-up. 10: FINAL DOSE If you like a bit of hardcore punk with a splash of black metal thrown in there, then FINAL DOSE is your answer. With their E.P ENDLESS WOE that came out just in January, and the festival fitting right in the last half of their Europe/UK tour FINAL DOSE blend genres wo well with their own experimental downbeat way, giving blackened hardcore the way it should be delivered. 9: BLACK SHEEP WALL After some time away, BLACK SHEEP WALL have returned, and if you love sludge/doom metal, which I assume you do if you’re at DAMNATION, then these are the guys for you. The band hit their popularity after uploading a song to Myspace which led them to being signed. Heavy guitars and guttural vocals, be sure to check them out so they don’t disappear on us again. 8: MEDULLA NOCTE 8. Another band that disappeared for a while but have made a remarkable return are MEDULLA NOCTE. A thrash/ hardcore band from right here in the UK, upon the bands dissolution in 2001, most of the members went on to form the death/hardcore/sludge band MURDER ONE, but now they are back to their hardcore roots and bringing their iconic guitar sounds along with them. 7: COLTAINE 7. From first listen of COLTAINE, you will be hooked. With the most captivating, atmospheric vocals and a mix of soothing acoustic guitars that blend perfectly into their polished electric sounds this is a band that needs to be seen. The most sorrowful trance like experience you will get taking you on a trip of cinematic menoncholia. Coltaine by Atoosa Salamat for Out Of Rage 6: EYEHATEGOD 6. Want more sludge metal? Of course you do. Enter EYEHATEGOD. Dirty riff that blend their doomy sound with more metal sounds that really pack a punch. A legendary band in the sludge scene, they blend their invasion of fast-paced onslaught with slower, down-tuned doom metal and a hint of southern blues. 5: WALLS OF JERICHO 5. This list wouldn’t be complete without including metalcore legends WALLS OF JERICHO. With their last album being released in 2016, and a much-anticipated release of their next in November, the band has been on the road, reminding everyone why they deserve a place on this list. WALLS OF JERICHO built themselves a legacy as staple names within the metalcore genre, and it’s easy to see why. High energy, high impact WALLS OF JERICHO never sounded so good. 4: CROWBAR 4. After being around for 3 decades and a string of albums CROWBAR are still high up there as need-to-see sludge bands that will be playing at this festival. Deep riff and mournful vocals, it’s easy to see why even Beavis and Butthead were privy to a bit of CROWBAR. 3: CARCASS 3. After their last release being in 2021, after a very long break, CARCASS are still uncompromising to their pure death metal sound. Inexplicable, gruesome lyrics, and being able to experiment with new sounds as a band with such a long-standing legacy, CARCASS know how to do it right. 2: HEALTH 2. If you don’t know HEALTH from Max Payne 3, Grand Theft Auto and Cyberpunk radio, then I don’t know what to tell you. You’re not using your time right, and it’s time to get to know them. Ethereal vocals and an industrial stained sound, HEALTH make you feel like you’re trapped in a videogame cutscene and you know everything is about to be so, so good. 1: EYES 1. And top of the list is EYES, rebellious hardcore band from Copenhagen, EYES manage to blend their heavy, anime-Esque-inspired songs with their intense hard-hitting sound, and it works perfectly. The band are currently touring the UK and their shows are nothing more than full energy and commanding, and everything that makes hardcore such a great genre to enjoy. There are so many great bands to cover at DAMNATION FESTIVAL this year, and they hold their status of being a must -see festival really high, never disappointing with a great line-up. So even if you’re new to some of these bands or genres, and never dipped your toe into something heavy, you won’t leave disappointed with this line -up. Words: Shana White

In a world where everything needs to be neatly labelled and boxed in, rock and horror found each other in the in-betweens. Beyond imagery, both are most of all unafraid to approach taboo topics such as excess, transformation, sexuality, death, and the possibility of becoming something other than what society expects you to be. The public figure of the rock star and the horror monster/villain are, in their own ways, variations on the same fantasy: an outsider walks into the room and refuses to behave normally. They both share a root in being ostracized, unifying nations of “weird kids” that don’t fit in either and giving them a place outside the acceptable limits. Progressively, the limits between rock and horror also started to blur: Sometimes horror inspires the music, musicians become horror characters or rock musicians even make horror films themselves. They became so intertwined that music can often become the emotional architecture of a film. However, not everyone sees it this way and for many different means terror and threat. The Satanic Panic of the 1980s is one brick in that wall but it also backfired as musicians and horror enthusiasts quickly realised how fun “looking dangerous” could be. Film still from Stranger Things S4 - DoP Caleb Heymann, still from Netflix Emerging from a pit carved to welcome the unwelcomed, there was an understanding that a rock performer wasn't simply supposed to sing songs. They were embodying something, and from that came an inane theatricality. The figure of the monster became a natural metaphor for the rock star due to this theatricality. It has a costume, an entrance, a mythology and a body that refuses to fit the norms, which became even more explicit by the late 1960s and 1970s. A decade later, the cultural climate changed. The Satanic Panic of the 1980s transformed heavy metal into one of America's favourite explanations for everything frightening about youth. Records were allegedly containing hidden messages while musicians were supposedly influencing children toward Satanism, suicide and violence. Heavy metal's visual language of crosses, demons, skulls, pentagrams, blood and occult imagery suddenly looked less like theatrical provocation and more like a declaration of war to people outside the culture. The irony is that rock musicians had spent years deliberately blurring that line. BLACK SABBATH is one of them and took it further by lacing horror into its sound. They’re famous for their use of the tritone, an interval spanning three whole tones, traditionally described as diabolus in musica (the Devil in music). Its unresolved, unstable sound was used by the band for dissonance to be turned into atmosphere. Their riffs demonstrated that horror didn't have to be described solely in the lyrics or shown on the album cover, it could be built directly into the sound. That didn’t stop them from playing into the theatrics, taking their name from the title of a horror film, leaning into that supernatural imagery to bring something heavier and more oppressive to the genre. Ozzy Osbourne became the "Prince of Darkness", a sort of living horror character, a deliberately exaggerated figure of evil, excess and grotesquery. Fans understood that it was part of a spectacle; however, mainstream critics and religious groups condemned their imagery, which just fanned the flames, bringing more and more listeners in, the band’s supposed dangerousness becoming part of the attraction and thrill. However, for many, performance was evidence. Visuals became proof of satanic faith, and lyrics about death or evil statements of intent. Ozzy himself complained that people heard only "Satan" and "death" while ignoring the context and tone of the songs. Black Sabbath at Lollapalooza 2012 - photography by Mark Weiss Horror had already been doing the same thing for decades: putting monsters on posters and selling tickets to people who knew perfectly well that the monster wasn't real. The difference was that rock musicians could walk out of the screen and into the real world. That made them much easier to blame. Performance itself became a form of transformation with artists such as DAVID BOWIE or MARC BOLAN. Makeup, costumes, platform boots, and deliberately questioning identities tied into rock. The story building around a musician went one step further as Bowie became Ziggy Stardust, an alien, a rock star and a character that could have its own lore. It is also the moment where glam rock connected to body horror. The latter focuses on the fear that the body can change beyond our control. Flesh mutates, gender becomes uncertain, and the familiar body becomes unfamiliar. Something appears beneath the skin that was not supposed to be there. Glam served as an open door for many, holding up a mirror that was a source of anxiety. Instead of bearing witness to a body changing against your will, you could take control. The same transformation that body horror presents as a nightmare could suddenly become a form of pleasure and affirmation. The supposedly natural body could be rearranged, exaggerated and reinvented. Horror as a whole is obsessed with transformation. Whether it’s turning into a vampire, a werewolf or the dead returning to life, it often represents a body and identity that changes. With glam the rock stage (just like horror films), could become a place where the rules were temporarily suspended. They both showed us that we could become anything we wanted to and that people didn’t need to understand for it to be real. One cannot simply talk about glam, rock and horror without talking about The Rocky Horror Picture Show. It is more of a movement than it is a horror film, oscillating between science-fiction parody, musical, glam-rock fantasy, celebration of B-movies and a piece of queer cultural history all at once. It understands something fundamental about both rock and horror: people love to be frightened by something they secretly wish they could become or be close to. Frank-N-Furter isn't a horror villain, he is a performer. He enters in fishnets and heels, commands the room, seduces whoever he wants, creates life in his laboratory, and treats conventional morality as an amusing inconvenience. He is simultaneously a scientist, monster, drag performer, sexual provocateur and rock-star fantasy. In the same space, the worlds also merge with Meat Loaf being Eddie. They combine when Eddie crashes into the film like he’s opening a rock concert. His status is made clear from the get-go with his motorcycle, leather jacket, and a song that sounds like it escaped from a 1950s rock 'n' roll revue. Like in a show, the audience itself is also part of the performance. They’re acknowledged by direct looks into the camera but also through the effervescent midnight screenings all over the world that has people come in costumes and sing along. It brings fans together in the same rally that rock concerts do. Film still from The Rocky Horror Picture Show - DoP Peter Suschitzky, still from Fox Studios Of all the genres to touch on horror, goth and industrial metal may be the most directly inspired. The romances turning dark and desperate, the imagery feeling like a movie. One of the example of that crossover is none other than The Crow. Alex Proyas's 1994 film, based on James O'Barr's comic, is drenched in the visual vocabulary of Gothic rock: black leather, rain, ruined buildings, corpse-pale faces, heavy makeup, industrial cityscapes. At its centre is Eric Draven, a murdered rock musician resurrected to avenge himself and his fiancée. Brandon Lee's performance gave the character the physicality of a musician as much as a comic-book/movie antihero. Eric moves through the film like a performer who has stepped out of a music video and discovered that the entire city is now his stage. The soundtrack is also built as a portal into that world and music festival in one with legends such as THE CURE, PANTERA, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, STONE TEMPLE PILOTS and NINE INCH NAILS. That placed the film not only in a cinematic space but also directly inside the alternative-rock culture of the early 1990s. It also reframes the role of rock music in movies. It doesn’t just tell us that it’s supposed to be dark, it tells us what kind of darkness it is and makes it contemporary. This isn't the gothic horror of castles and aristocrats; it is urban, industrial, post-punk and grunge-adjacent. It belongs to clubs, warehouses, record stores and rainy streets. It belongs to the kids who wear black because black makes more sense than the world around them. The movie helped turn the aesthetics of alternative music culture into a cinematic mythology. The eyeliner, the leather, the guitars, the rain and sense of romantic despair weren't accessories; they were the world. The tragedy surrounding Brandon Lee's death during production has, inevitably, become inseparable from the film's mythology. However, its cultural power doesn't depend upon it. The Crow already had an extraordinarily strong ideas at its centre: the resurrected rock star as a Gothic antihero seeking revenge and love overcoming death itself. It is almost the perfect embodiment of the rock and horror pipeline: The musician dies, returns and becomes a myth. If The Crow represents rock culture becoming horror mythology, ROB ZOMBIE takes it literally by being a rock musician turning horror filmmaker. Starting his career as the frontman of WHITE ZOMBIE, he experimented through the band’s music, artwork and videos which were filled with references from cinema, monsters, science fiction, grindhouse imagery and classic horror. His movies are the cinematic equivalent of a WHITE ZOMBIE record dialed up, the boundary between his musical and cinematic careers becoming almost impossible to pinpoint. His movies look like his music sounds and his music sounds like his movies look. Zombie belongs to a line of musicians who understood that horror isn't merely a genre but an aesthetic language. He grew up consuming horror films and the iconography surrounding them, then put those influences back into his own music and art. Horror wasn't simply something he sang about, it became the world their music inhabited. That idea became even more theatrical and literal with bands like GWAR and LORDI, who effectively transformed themselves into horror creatures. GWAR constructed an elaborate science-fiction/horror universe around its members with monstrous costumes, grotesque characters, elaborate sets and theatrical stage performances. LORDI approached the concept from the perspective of classic creature films, with every member appearing as a different monster. They made stage performances live horror movies. WEDNESDAY 13 explored the relationship between horror and heavy music with a new focus: the slasher films. Their music, artwork and stage personas draw heavily from the visual aesthetics of masked killers, blood soaked films and classic horror imagery. This goes even further with ICE NINE KILLS. Their music taking individual horror films and reconstructing their stories as metalcore songs. Horror characters, scenes, killers and iconic film moments become the foundations for new musical narratives, while their music videos extend those songs into elaborate cinematic worlds. Wednesday 13 on their 2025 tour - photo by Claire Cabanac Other bands have built similarly theatrical identities around darkness, fantasy and horror. GHOST constructs an elaborate occult inspired mythology through its characters, costumes, stage productions and music videos, presenting the band more as a fictional theatrical troupe than a rock band. THE 69 EYES, fuse gothic rock with imagery drawn from vampires, dark romance and horror cinema. What connects these musicians is not that they all make the same kind of music, or even that they approach horror in the same way. In each case, horror becomes more than a subject, it becomes an identity. It opens a bridge with freedom of expression, where an album cover can resemble a movie poster. A music video can resemble a trailer, and a concert can resemble a horror movie. Trent Reznor takes a similar journey with a completely different direction. Where many approach horror through characters, gore and theatrics, Reznor approaches it through atmosphere. NINE INCH NAILS was never simply an industrial band. Their music built worlds of anxiety: machinery, sexuality, isolation, obsession, repetition, degradation and psychological collapse. All those elements made them a natural fit for cinema. When Reznor began working with Atticus Ross on film scores, particularly for David Fincher, the old boundary between rock music and horror became almost irrelevant. The Social Network isn't a horror film, but its score demonstrates how effectively they could make ordinary environments feel alien and emotionally unstable. Reznor didn't need a guitar riff to tell us something was dangerous, he understand texture. That experimentation between rock music and horror also pushed the genre itself further. For decades, horror filmmakers have understood that rock can make fear feel contemporary. This is particularly important in films about teenagers. The audience hears the music their characters would actually listen to, and suddenly the horror belongs to their generation. That's why soundtracks became so important to the horror boom of the 1980s and 1990s. The Lost Boys practically weaponised music as part of its identity, The Crow built a world through alternative rock, Judgment Night blurred the boundaries between rock and hip-hop, and Spawn turned its soundtrack into a collision between metal and electronic music. Even films that weren't technically horror understood the same principle: if you want to capture a particular generation's anxiety, put its music in the bloodstream of the movie. That is the real cultural exchange, beyond anything, rock and horror both share an audience psychology. They tell people who feel uncomfortable in the mainstream that there is somewhere else to go. They say that “normal” isn't the only option and that sometimes, when the lights go down and the music starts, the thing you've spent your entire life being told to hide becomes the thing everybody in the room came to see. Words: Lysandre Pons

This year Beyond The Music festival dazzled as a beacon of both hope and foresight into both the touring and recording industry. Set at the infamous Dock10 studios of Mediacity, this conference-turned-music festival broke the fourth wall. Music industry royalty loitered in the halls that are normally home to broadcast staples including Mastermind, Match Of The Day and University Challenge, passing out business classes and talking about the future of an industry in a state of extreme reformation. From the threat of AI, the oncoming storm of social media and its algorithms and bolstering live touring from the grassroots up, here are 10 things we learned about the future of the industry from the people right at the top who make it happen. Photo: Luke Brennan AI is making big strides to seemingly destroy the creative industries, but consumers are voting with their feet. As a starter for 10, AI was the main talking point of this year's conference. The Friday was bolstered with an entire programme of events centred on how to protect artists creativity, whilst also asking about how more regulation can be used to champion an industry that is seeing creativity ripped apart by software including Suno, with Andy Burnham even weighing in on how we can empower our recording and touring economies. An early keynote speech from the Chair of the Ivors Academy and GOMEZ vocalist, Tom Gray, spitballed an important conversation on how we can improve conditions for songwriters in what he termed as 'sovereign creativity' calling on bigger players to do more for British music, and this lingered in conversations about how to bolster audiences who are growing wary of artificial interactions and algorithmic pigeon-holing as a way to optimise listening consumption. New inventive ways to improve audience engagement are shifting to curate engaging experiences for fans both online and on the stage. Live Music is totally back in fashion, and the industry is buying into it. How can you market in a world that optimises everything? In the growing age of online media, this is becoming more of a challenge to create authentic experiences and customer satisfaction is more important than ever. The industry has noticed that live music offers seemingly priceless moments to market and also ground consumer tastes, not just as an anchor point for potentially a lifetime of music listening and influence. “We survived the pit” mentality has defined the next era of supporting the industry. Music brands, including publications, journalists and the radio industry are incresingly putting on more curated events under their own name to culture authenticity, whilst also producing the pull needed to champion a brand from the grassroots up. In this, bespoke artist events, including signings, are invaluable for making magical moments that last, whilst also leaning into physical merchandise sales. Fan culture is becoming increasingly more punk rock It's clear that whilst profit margins make music financially possible, it cannot be further from the truth in how to make the industry sustainable. During a panel discussion on fandom culture, our speakers were asked what one innovation would be used to make the music industry better. Their unified answer was making ticket prices cheaper or breaking up the music monopolies that control large proportions of the industry. It seemed clear in their answer that making music affordable for young people was the key to grow an artist fanbase organically and invest back into a generation that is met with the cost-of-living crisis. In this, the prevailing sentiment is that newer generations are the driving force behind physical media sales, including vinyl's and cassettes, that really sparks promise that music is in safe and capable hands. K-pop is setting the standard and the western world is only now waking up to it Rock and metal move over; Out Of Rage is finally talking about K-pop, and with good reason! The Korean industry giants such as Hybe, JYP and YG are one of the most influential players in the game, the “gold-standard” of music creation and marketing, that the Western world is desperately trying to match. There are a few resonant points that make artists like BTS, BLACKPINK, AESPA, ATEEZ and STRAY KIDS so influential. Most notably, the resounding loyalty of the fans that are an extension of the band’s label, a fierce and unrelenting marketing tool that creates this intense superfan culture. Rules are enforced by fans on how to support an artist and this intensity - regardless of the moral standpoint of this - is intensified. It feels like only the beginning of the wildly influential impact of K-pop on mainstream music. Yungblud does it all, and then some In conversation with Evie Mundy,Tommas Arnby, Adam Wood and Jules Budd, we were given an insight into the YUNGBLUD universe, which is powered by the sentiment that there is no dulling the shine of Dom’s ideas, only matching him at his level. From his store on Denmark street to the iconic Bludfest, creating authentic experiences for his fans is one of the biggest priorities for the team. Here the YUNGBLUD brand becomes an expression of community and collaboration leads to opportunity that uplifts and transcends what rock music can be in 2026. The entire team are masters in the art of overdelivering and it really does take a village to make a rockstar truly great. Class is the invisible characteristic that needs to be at the forefront of creating upcoming talent The most powerful conversation during the conference was about shaping creative pathways for the working class youth, and creating opportunities outside of London. Often described as an ‘invisible characteristic’, class is understated and underrepresented in the music industry, including artist development. Positive infrastructure from education - including that from the vice principle of the Brit School - was key to providing long-term change. In their creation of these safe spaces, important conversations around providing safe environments for particularly women and girls can often be taken advantage of in these spaces. Alongside this, over 25’s who go beyond the call for the ‘youth’ stereotype are often being overlooked. Live venues are prioritising more accessibility for those that have anxiety or neurodiversity In a round table with some of the important voices in venue creation and management, including AEG and YTL, the conversation turned to delivering positive fan experiences, but it was a comment from Rebecca Lott at the Coop Live that said that the most important development at the venue was making the space accessible and training staff up on creating the best experience possible for those who are neurodivergent or have anxiety. Mentioning “overdelivering” for customers, there should be no barriers to people accessing live music. Music truly does go beyond money Several of this year's conference panels talked about reducing ticket prices and making music affordable, but really the social and interpersonal connections can be felt at ground level at the humanitarian aspects of listening to music. In an aptly named panel called “How Music Can Save The World” we approached the industry from a different perspective, one powered by human connection and considering our climate, as an act of unity. Less than an hour later, Martin Goldschmidt, founder of Cooking Vinyl, spoke about the impactful work he led supporting Palestinian musicians, putting on the first showcase festival in the West Bank, and the trials of continuing his work during a genocide. Ultimately, we were some of the youngest people in the room, but were the most talked about as a demographic… And it was (mostly) positive! Throughout the conference, there was much to commend young people on including, the driving force behind physical media, a reliance on ‘experience’ led entertainment keeping music alive and consequently the adverse reaction to AI creation. Whilst social media has drastically changed music’s landscape, we’re still incredibly conscious of improving our environment and our community, and being vocal about the issues that matter. Yes, with a financial strain it’s harder for young people to access music on a local level, but as long as we continue to advocate for the industry, there is hope that this is only the beginning of making music a better and more sustainable for everyone. Words: Amber Brooks

After taking a step back from the spotlight, Finnish band BLIND CHANNEL returns with Painstream, their sixth studio album released through Century Media Records on October 30th. With it, they take a new turn. Not because the band has suddenly abandoned their signature sound but because they have something new to say. As lead singer Niko Moilanen explains, “We're not singing that much about ourselves but more of a world and how it affects us and what we see around us.” That change in perspective runs through the entire album. There is still plenty of aggression, attitude and energy, but beneath it lies a more personal and reflective record, one shaped by uncertainty, frustration and the search for hope. The title Painstream brings together two ideas: pain as something deeply personal and also as something that connects people everywhere. In a world where differences often seem to push us further apart, BLIND CHANNEL asks whether the things that hurt us might also help us understand one another. What is also refreshing is that they do not pretend to have the answer. As Niko admits, “I don't think it necessarily answers it because I couldn't answer it myself. None of us could.” Instead, the album leaves the question open, inviting listeners to find their own meaning in it. Bringing this all together however did not come easy but after writing around forty songs, the band narrowed it down to twelve hard hitting tracks. The opener, entitled Messiah, sets the tone beautifully. It begins with an almost acoustic feel before building into progressive, melodic metalcore. The chorus has a choir-like quality, while the echoing production gives the song an enormous, almost cathedral like atmosphere. It is dramatic without losing its emotional pull, making it an effective introduction to the album's bigger themes. Youthanasia connects past and present by bringing up elements we know the band for such as a high energy, a driving rhythm and backing vocals made for a crowd to sing along to. It reminds the listeners that there is still that familiar rebellious spirit here, but it feels more considered, as though the band is revisiting their roots with a clearer idea of who they are now. We then take a more melodic route with Stars We See. There is a sense of longing running through the track, with a sound that recalls the emotional side of early nu-metal. It is one of those songs where the melody carries as much weight as the heavier instrumentation, giving the album room to breathe. That breathing space, however, does not last long. Into The Void, featuring Aaron Pauley from OF MICE & MEN, pushes things into heavier territory with electronic textures, sharp riffs, fast drums and a mix of screams and melodic vocals. The song explores the possibility that humanity might be alone in the universe. Pauley's contribution also gives the track an additional voice and momentum to match its scale. Types Of Killing is another heavy highlight, built around gritty, distorted guitars and moments that edge towards thrash metal. The song moves between anguished, soaring passages and bursts of outright aggression. It is raw and intense, but that intensity feels connected to the album's wider emotional themes rather than being there simply for impact. On Revolution: Now, the vocals bounce between voices, creating the impression of people answering one another and gradually finding common ground. Its rallying energy very much carries the central idea of people coming together through shared experiences. Me Versus Me takes a similar vocal approach but turns the conflict inward. Blending rap and metal, it captures the frustration of fighting against your own thoughts and becoming your own worst enemy. The delivery is fierce, giving the song a restless, almost confrontational feel in itself. Some of the album's strongest moments also come when BLIND CHANNEL pulls back. Scapegoat opens with delicate piano and fragile vocals that seem to hang in an empty space. Rather than building into a crushing chorus, it lets its harmonies gradually grow, making the emotion feel more exposed. Villain In Your Story follows with a more familiar balance of heavy guitars, acoustic touches and a catchy chorus, showing how naturally the band can move between vulnerability and their bigger, more accessible sound. Diana is a clear centrepiece and heavy hitter. Its gritty, strained vocals give the chorus a sense of desperation, while its amplitude builds towards a powerful release. It is the type of song that will emotionally sucker punch many is the best possible way. It is a chockhold that is impossible to ignore. No Encores In A Swan Song makes a strong companion piece, bringing heavier electronics and a more forceful post-chorus while still allowing the melodies to shine. They both embody very well the dualities and strength we can find in this opus. The closing track Ache brings many of the album's ideas together. It starts with a groove that almost leans towards pop before adding choir like vocals, screams and electronic details. It is a fitting conclusion to a record that refuses to stay in one lane. The intriguing more code ending also stands as a hidden message for the fans to decrypt. “We've always done this with our albums. We leave these Easter eggs or these little puzzles where if people crack them, they might get hints about where we might be headed next musically. We already have some kind of idea what we're going to do after Painstream. It's not a complete idea, but we know the basic thematics, and then we try to leave those signs in the album.” says Niko. The conversation and connection is continuing through this even after the music stops. Painstream is about making a difficult world liveable by uniting the people living in it. Pain can be the loneliest thing, but it is also what makes us human, and sharing it with others creates a vulnerability that builds profound connections. BLIND CHANNEL has made a record that is heavier in places, more reflective in others, and more personal in a way that extends beyond the band themselves. It beautifully represents very complex layers of the human experience and allows us to perceive the band members as people not just artistic figures. This openness also gives us an opportunity to start a discussion with each other and ourselves. Their upcoming European headline tour will also be a chance to bring these topics and connections with fans across Europe. Score: 9/10 Painstream will be released on 30th October 2026 via Century Media Records. Words: Lysandre Pons Photos: Aslak Junttu

It’s no question that we exist in tumultuous times, fuelled by a seemingly insatiable lust for wealth and power, and Brooklyn based four-piece DIIV continue to commentate upon this with potent depth on their newest record, ZIRP! (standing for ‘zero interest rate policies’). Two years ago, the band released Frog In Boiling Water, a record that anxiously reflected on capitalism’s products of greed through a dystopian-feeling shoegaze sound, themes and tones that evolved from their 2019 release Deceiver, a more personal, fragile experience. Expanding upon Frog…, ZIRP! sees the quartet aim to further develop their style, describing how they attempted to create desirable pop tracks, featuring catchy hooks and anthemic scores with a satirical undertone beneath it all. It’s promoted as “the new alternative, a new genre for the 21st century”, which ultimately criticises the shiny, predictable mainstream music currently presenting itself as the dominant sound, and challenges listeners to open their mind to understand the intentions behind each track, rather than using it as a source of background noise. Intensely kicking off this eleven-track run with menacing, distorted glide guitars and ghostly vocals is The Fountain, the fitting lead single of the record, introducing us to a highly unnerving yet brilliantly captivating atmosphere and the catchy hooks that inhabit much of the album. Fans reminisce on early shoegaze pioneers such as MY BLOODY VALENTINE, citing the deeply brooding instrumental, specifically the enticing guitarwork by Andrew Bailey. Here the tale of the fountain of youth is utilised lyrically as a metaphor for a harmful influence that leads to poisonous cycles, rather than a source of salvation. Following the harsh start, we lead into a somewhat more sombre track about reflecting on childhood, taking a more tender direction that many fans were able to resonate with due to its touching deliverance and compelling lyricism. On Kid, the second single, frontman Zachary Cole Smith thinks back to when he was little, expressing how much the world has changed, but suggests that people don’t change much at all, still fuelled by a desire to belong and harbouring many of the same insecurities. Moving forward, When The Glow Came For Us begins with a floaty ambience that progresses into a calm beat, where Smith’s charming vocals compliment the fuzzy, electronic vibe. There are further themes of yearning for a place of comfort, paired by a doleful tone, an energy that DIIV effectively manifest through their melancholic shoegazey style. The noisy guitars return on Dare Me, combined with electronic beeps and whirrs to embody a flavourful and nostalgic atmosphere, while the song mentions the first instance of cataclysm in the form of a post-capitalist hellscape, a foreboding discomfort that continues into the next track, The Crash. Smith’s reserved style of singing is enhanced by the dramatic cacophony of noise, notably allowing drummer Ben Newman to unleash a barrage of crashes with excellent ability to control a level of cohesiveness while doing so. The glitchy alt rock force present on this track makes for a thrilling listen, but inspecting the lyrics reveal the slamming of capitalism and billionaires, where the speaker fears for an upcoming collapse of society, acted out through the boisterous instrumental. Remaining cohesive thematically, Trillions flips the perspective, being a sarcastic track sung by someone obsessed with money, and how they would indulge in meaningless possessions and refuse to share their wealth. This being the third single was admittedly a bold choice by the band due to the unconventional use of autotune by Smith, a decision that seemed to prioritise message over aesthetic, interpreted as a way of mocking the fake, performative people being represented. DIIV say they wanted to create the kind of song that would earn a billion streams, embracing an unexpectedly glittery, clean finish to their robotic pop-rock approach. Us Against You is driven by soaring guitars, crashing drums and a synthetic resonance in a satisfying showcase of talent, contributed to by the remaining unmentioned member, Colin Caulfield, once more exploring escapism. Evangelizer, the following song, houses one of the groovier beats on the record, with an electronic fluttery vibe, performed with infectious drums and deep guitar tones, met with strong cadence by Smith. The lyrical content shines in the later portions of the album, becoming heavily driven by blunter political commentary, but written to flow through the track with a gratifying tempo. On Underground the pacing is once again slowed to allow the commentary to be easier understood, encouraging the listener to wind down and take it all in. My Star offers a mix of the strengths heard previously, Smith channels the energy, passion and tenderness into a song that seems to be dedicated to his children, thinking out loud about how fast the time seems to pass as he watches them grow. ZIRP! concludes with Idiot In The Sky, a song that takes a lighter, luscious approach to allow for a more emotionally powerful track to appear. The song concludes the project of time and cycles, lyrically seeming to embrace death as a means of breaking this cycle, delivered delicately by Smith, sounding somewhat random at first glance, but finding sense as the track progresses. With a soulful melody and more careful drums, this feels like acceptance, the desperation has finally subsided. DIIV continue to mature, and their outspokenness alongside an already present virtuosity sees them reaching new heights. Score: 8/10 ZIRP! will be released on October 30th 2026 via Fantasy Records. Words: Paul Cutts Photos: Louie Kovatch

While music fans debate genres and which bands fit the boxes, POLYPHIA pay no mind to anyone else's rules as they push the experimental boundaries further on new album Be Not Afraid. The Texas band take contrariness and stylise it into eclectic rhythms and mind-scrambling samples, combining futuristic metal with hip-hop bites, without a single organic word uttered by the band themselves to take away from the sonical exploration. Be Not Afraid on paper shouldn't work as well as it does - the juxtaposing genres and jarring beats would clash in less daring hands, but for fans in the know this is where POLYPHIA thrive in the spaces others fear to tread, keeping a steady balance between meticulous attention to detail in their mixing and obvious enjoyment and freedom in how they play. There’s a story told within the album of good and evil tearing each other apart on the more dramatic breakdowns and thundering riffs, but also existing together in reluctance, both fighting to be heard as the tracks build into cinematic crescendos but leaving a space. POLYPHIA stands out as a band unafraid to tackle any sample, hook, and blended rhythm, creating entire stories and messages through careful instrumental work and handpicked sound bites. It’s admittedly difficult to try and hear the story when there aren’t specific lyrics from the band detailing their own personal journeys or making up something as a metaphor, and if you’re new to POLYPHIA it may take a few tracks or even a second album run to begin hearing the story beyond the organised chaos. The moment you scratch past the top layer and uncover more of the cinematic intensity to it, the better you can appreciate Be Not Afraid for being as unapologetic as it is and how deep the band have travelled to achieve this sound. From the off, Let There Be Light is an explosive introduction to this battle of forces, futuristic prog-rock and metal infusions waxing and waning in volume before an impressive beat rips through, while With Eyes To See has an entirely different but no less impactful beginning that melds heavy metal guitar hooks with RnB vocals, the story beginning to take form on the breakdown. Blending straight into Screwtape, here’s where the unseen characters come out of the substantial rhythms into an electrifying beat and relentless guitar riff for something borderline chaotic and dangerous, before Power In The Blood powers through with a mix of driving notes and galvanising monologues, gentle harp-like notes very similar to PVRIS’ Hallucinations notes playing under the vocals before rising again to dramatic levels. They Know Not What They Do plays off different genres and cultural styles before descending into an EDM track, keeping up the expectation that we shouldn’t know what to expect with this album, taking on a ‘ye olde’ quest feel as the story continues onward into Mark Of The Beast and its initial unnerving feel that weaves between smug triumph and threatening aura - where the other tracks blend themes of good and evil together and don’t stand out for one side specifically, this song is the closest to outright saying “this is a song for the bad guys” (the bad guys always get the best soundtracks though, let’s not pretend they don’t). While subtlety can’t be used to describe Be Not Afraid in any case, Can You Feel It really moves away from any semblance of the word with thumping club beats and a resounding voice crying out “can you feel it?” over the braided instrumentals, getting loud and impossible to ignore. Near Death is one of the shortest yet sharpest tracks on the album as the battle begins to reach its peak and juddering beats and impossibly rapid strings akin to DRAGONFORCE crash into each other. J Bomb feels like we’ve witnessed the fall of good and are now seeing them picking themselves back up, refusing to give up as emotionally stirring riffs push them forward to the endless battle with trap beats adding spice to the tracks, before Deny The Flesh storms in with a tasty bass and rhythms that wouldn’t be out of place in a cinematic videogame from the 90s as you fight your way to the Big Bad, prepared to stand your ground no matter what you have to face. Devil Get Behind Me’s cathedral bell opener feels like an “oh shit, here we go” moment as everything collides together in a showdown of cosmic synth and guitar notes, pulverising drums and an otherworldly voice rumbling on the outro. We come to the conclusion of the final battle on closer Fear God, its tone initially victorious until something more creeps in with the crashing notes that feels the exhaustion of winning but knowing the cycle of good vs evil never truly stops - the battle will begin again. Score: 8/10 Be Not Afraid was released on 23rd October 2026 via Rise Records. Words: Julia Stark Photos: Anna Lee

The horror film genre and alternative metal music scene have always gone hand in hand over the years. The dark elements of rock music and the creepy elements of horror naturally intertwine, with both genres frequently borrowing from one another. Few bands have embraced that relationship more openly than ICE NINE KILLS, who have built much of their identity around incorporating classic horror tales into their lyrics, albums and, perhaps most notably, their music videos. Heavy metal and alternative rock have also frequently featured on horror soundtracks, so it is perhaps no surprise that some of the biggest names in rock and metal have eventually found themselves on the silver screen. OUT OF RAGE looks at 10 memorable appearances from rock and metal artists in the horror genre. Joey Belladonna - Pledge Night In the 1988 supernatural horror comedy Pledge Night, which was released in 1990. The lead singer of metal giants ANTHRAX, Joey Belladonna, plays Young Sid, the younger version of the character who eventually becomes the film’s vengeful killer, Acid Sid. His character is accidentally killed during a fraternity hazing ritual after being submerged in acid, setting up the events of the film years later. Belladonna’s appearance is small, but it is made even more interesting by the fact that ANTHRAX provided the film’s music. It is a very low-budget horror film and certainly isn’t one that has gone down as a classic, but there is something strangely enjoyable about its bizarre combination of fraternity comedy, gore and supernatural slasher elements. It may not hold up particularly well as a film, but having a genuine metal legend appear in it makes Pledge Night considerably more memorable for fans of the genre. Corey Taylor - Bad Candy SLIPKNOT and STONE SOUR frontman Corey Taylor with his role in the 2021 horror anthology Bad Candy. Set in the fictional town of New Salem, the film follows local radio DJs Chilly Billy and Paul as they tell a collection of Halloween horror stories during their annual broadcast. Taylor plays Chilly Billy, with Gremlins star Zach Galligan appearing alongside him as Paul. Taylor is perfectly suited to the role, with his unmistakable voice giving the radio segments an appropriately sinister quality. Corey Taylor is one of the most recognisable and influential voices in metal since the turn of the millennium, which gives what is otherwise a fairly mediocre horror anthology an extra push. Bad Candy has some decent practical effects and plenty of gore, but the individual stories are inconsistent and the film never quite reaches its potential. Taylor, however, is one of its strongest selling points and provides exactly the sort of crossover appeal that horror and metal fans can appreciate. Jon Bon Jovi - Cry Wolf Up next next at is rock legend Jon Bon Jovi in the 2005 mystery thriller Cry Wolf. Bon Jovi plays Rich Walker; a creepy, sleazy character, in a film centred around a group of students who create a fictional story about a serial killer, before the game begins to take increasingly sinister turns. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer’s appearance is one of the more unusual pieces of early-2000s horror trivia, particularly because his public image is so far removed from the character and world of the film. Cry Wolf is very much a product of its era, with its glossy teenage cast, psychological twists and increasingly elaborate attempts to keep the audience guessing. It isn’t a perfect slasher and critics were hardly kind to it, but it is an entertaining enough ride if only for the twists alone. Meat Loaf - The Rocky Horror Picture Show At number seven is another Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, the ever-flamboyant Meat Loaf, who played Eddie in the gothic, sexy horror-comedy musical The Rocky Horror Picture Show in 1975. The cult classic has become one of the most recognisable musicals in cinema history, and Meat Loaf’s contribution remains one of its most memorable moments. Eddie is an early experiment of Dr Frank-N-Furter who bursts into the castle on his motorcycle before launching into the unforgettable Hot Patootie - Bless My Soul. Meat Loaf had already played Eddie on stage before reprising the role for the film, making his performance a genuine part of the character’s history rather than simply a celebrity cameo. It is camp, ridiculous, theatrical and completely committed to its own insanity, which is exactly why it works. The Rocky Horror Picture Show became a cult classic for a reason, and Meat Loaf’s performance is a small but unforgettable part of that legacy. Film still from The Rocky Horror Picture Show - DoP Peter Suschitzky, still from Fox Studios Ozzy Osbourne - Little Nicky The Prince of Darkness himself and legendary BLACK SABBATH frontman has appeared in a number of films and television projects over the years, with the horror film Trick or Treat being one of his most notable genre appearances. However, OUT OF RAGE has opted for his wonderfully ridiculous appearance in horror comedy Little Nicky. Osbourne appears as himself and recreates one of the most infamous stories in heavy metal history when he bites the head off a bat, although this time the moment is played entirely for comedy. It is an obvious nod to Ozzy’s infamous on-stage reputation while simultaneously turning one of metal’s most notorious stories into a punchline. Little Nicky may not be high art, but it is a comedy built around the ridiculous, and Ozzy’s appearance fits perfectly into that world. Andy Biersack - American Satan Entering the top five is BLACK VEIL BRIDES' frontman Andy Biersack, who features in the 2017 supernatural thriller American Satan. Unlike several other artists on this list, Biersack isn’t simply making a cameo; he plays the lead character, Johnny Faust, the frontman of the fictional rock band THE RELENTLESS. The film follows the band as they move to Los Angeles in pursuit of success, only for their ambitions to bring them into contact with a mysterious figure offering them everything they want at a price. It is essentially a modern Faustian pact story transplanted into the world of the rock industry, dealing with fame, temptation, sex, drugs, money and the consequences of selling one’s soul for success. American Satan is far from a perfect film, but the concept is almost tailor-made for Biersack, taking on a major role within a supernatural horror story. Mike Patton - I Am Legend Arguably the most hidden yet coolest contribution on the list is Mike Patton, lead singer of FAITH NO MORE and one of alternative music’s most versatile vocalists, who provided the creature vocalisations for the Darkseekers in the 2007 post-apocalyptic horror film I Am Legend. Patton’s contribution is never seen on screen, but his voice can be heard behind the mutated humans hunting Will Smith’s character, Robert Neville. His ability to create disturbing and otherworldly sounds makes him an inspired choice for the creatures, particularly because the Darkseekers need to sound recognisably human while still being deeply unsettling. Patton’s work as a voice artist has extended far beyond film, with his distinctive vocal talents also being used across several video games. It is a brilliant Easter egg because most viewers would have absolutely no idea that one of alternative music’s most recognisable vocalists was responsible for some of the most disturbing sounds in the film. Chester Bennington - Saw 3D At number three is one of the most recognisable alternative rock artists to feature in one of the most iconic modern horror franchises: Chester Bennington from LINKIN PARK appearing in Saw 3D. Bennington plays Evan, the leader of a white- power skinhead group, who wakes up in a car junkyard trap alongside his girlfriend and friends. What makes the sequence particularly memorable is that Bennington is the focus of the entire trap. His performance is built around his physical reactions, fear, struggle and screams as the machinery surrounding him slowly begins to turn against him. The casting also works because Bennington possessed one of the most recognisable screams in alternative rock, and Saw 3D makes full use of it. Although the film itself is generally regarded as one of the weaker entries in the Saw franchise, this particular sequence remains one of its most memorable. For LINKIN PARK fans, seeing Chester Bennington thrown into the world of Jigsaw is bizarre enough, but his involvement in such an elaborate trap makes the appearance genuinely unforgettable. Film still from Saw 3D - DoP Brian Gedge, still from Lionsgate FIlms Stevie Nicks - American Horror Story: Coven The only television series to make the list, is the legendary Stevie Nicks. The iconic FLEETWOOD MAC frontwoman appeared as a fictionalised version of herself in the third season of American Horror Story, Coven. Coven is one of the most stylish seasons of the entire AHS franchise, combining witchcraft, gothic fantasy, black comedy, supernatural drama and plenty of camp rather than relying purely on conventional horror. Nicks’ appearance is particularly fitting because her real-life image already carries an almost mythical and mystical quality. The character Misty Day, played by Lily Rabe, idolises Nicks and her music, particularly RHIANNON, and Nicks appears within the season’s story while leaning into that witchy mythology. Her presence feels almost inevitable in a season built around witches and female power, with the real Stevie Nicks becoming part of the show’s own mythology. Nicks later reprised the role in the eighth season AHS: Apocalypse, the cameo a brief moment that showed the impact and influence Nicks has in alt-culture, with fans exhilarated to see the White Witch return. Coven remains one of the most memorable examples of a genuine music icon crossing directly into the world of modern television horror. Film still from AHS: Apocalypse - DoP Gavin Kelly, still from FX Networks Jonathan Davis - Queen of the Damned And at number one is Jonathan Davis, lead singer of KORN, and arguably the artist on this list who had the greatest creative influence over the project itself. Davis does appear in the 2002 horror film Queen of the Damned, playing a ticket scalper who attempts to sell Jesse tickets to Lestat’s concert, but the cameo itself isn’t the reason for his position at number one. Davis worked with composer Richard Gibbs to create the songs for Lestat’s fictional rock career and provided the uncredited singing voice for Stuart Townsend’s Lestat. Due to contractual restrictions, Davis’s vocals could not appear on the official soundtrack album, so other major names from the nu-metal and alternative scene recorded versions of the songs for the soundtrack such as STATIC X and LINKIN PARK. This gives Queen of the Damned a fascinating place in music and horror history, because the film became a snapshot of the nu-metal and alternative scene at the height of its cultural power. The film itself may be a bad-to-average vampire movie, but its musical identity is something completely different. Davis didn’t simply turn up for a small cameo; he helped create the musical world surrounding Lestat. Without his creative influence, Queen of the Damned would simply be another early-2000s vampire movie. Horror and rock music will forever continue to influence one another. The relationship may not always develop simultaneously or completely hand in hand, but both genres continue to borrow from each other’s imagery, atmosphere and attitude. From BLACK SABBATH’s dark and occult imagery to ICE NINE KILLS’ cinematic approach to horror storytelling, the relationship continues to evolve. Sometimes the crossover produces something genuinely brilliant, sometimes it produces something completely ridiculous, and sometimes, as with Queen of the Damned, it produces something that is arguably far more interesting culturally than it is successful as a film. That is the appeal of the relationship. Horror and rock don’t always need each other, but when they collide they can create something that neither genre could have produced alone. As long as musicians continue to embrace the darker side of their art and filmmakers continue to embrace the power of rock music, there will always be another crossover waiting to happen. Words: David Waites

In a small room called The Lodge, at Manchester’s Deaf Institute, TROPIC GOLD played a sold-out show on the second night of their first solo-headlining tour. Alongside singer HARPY, they kicked off the weekend with an explosive start. There was a buzz of excitement in the room as the crowd waited for the opener, soundtracked by a fittingly loud pre-show playlist over the speakers. An eclectic mix of accents among the punters hinted at the distances travelled and the dedication present, and their shared enthusiasm would become clearer throughout the night. First to take the stage was HARPY, who had recently collaborated with the headliner TROPIC GOLD for a single named Witch House. With her two backing musicians, the opening song Medicine immediately turned it up to 11. The music was fast-paced and energetic, barely contained within the room that held it. While sometimes a show may have openers that aren’t as energetic as the headliner, it became quickly clear that this was not one of those shows. A few songs in, and the crowd was already into it, with a mosh pit forming in the rear of the room. The highly intimate nature of the venue meant that even the small pit took up a lot of space, but there was a sense of comradery as fans protected other fans where needed, and sincere apologies when knocks were unavoidable. Many of the songs on the setlist were taken from her debut EP, VII, which took inspiration from the 7 deadly sins. The Bandcamp page for it describes it as ‘where seduction meets shame… sensual and unapologetically human’, which was felt in the way she performed: provocative and unafraid, paired with powerful and haunting vocals. One new song was present on the setlist named Voyeur, the introduction for this new song led into the announcement for her first headliner tour coming in February. While her opening set was not the longest, it was a taste of great things to come from her. The energy from the crowd remained high as the wait for the headliner went by, like a dog pulling at its lead. Much like a dog running off, the energy from the crowd was immediately unleashed as soon as the first TROPIC GOLD song, Sodium, began. Lead singer Jacob Parris demonstrated a mastery over vocals, juxtaposing strong singing with impactful screams. There was an enthusiasm in the audience that could rival a crowd ten times its size. There was movement everywhere, and a circle pit that would come and go. Parris noted that it was their largest Manchester crowd to date, and his appreciation shone through as he was met with cheers in reply. His appreciation, and that of his fellow band members – guitarist Joshua Lee and drummer Amy Barnett – would appear to grow with the love from the audience continued to be shown throughout the night. When it came to the fourth song of the night, HARPY returned to the stage to lend her talent for Witch House, and the two singers complimented each others’ performances well. The collaboration led into the introduction of a new song, dubbed Glitter. Despite it being a fresh song, the crowd responded positively to it, continuing the energy of the night thus far. If the passion from the crowd had somehow gone unnoticed by anyone, it was abundantly clear about midway through the set and impossible to ignore. A fan movement had been organised before the show’s start, and revealed itself to the band during Outta My Head. A slight twist on the trope of phone torches out in the crowd, with the torches coloured green by little slips of paper handed out by the organising fan, mirroring the lighting design on stage. The gesture was clearly very appreciated by the band, Parris saying ‘that was special’. Continuing the night, the band pulled from a variety of places in their discography, including singles Breathe and Adrenaline. The rock and metal stylings were occasionally punctuated by hits of synths, adding a nice contrast to the heavier guitars. As the setlist drew to its close, Lee quipped that he felt they didn’t need to teach the call-and-response of the final song Holy Horror, as he appeared in awe of the crowd’s dedication. While the band began to pack down in practised routine, the crowd chanted for ‘one more song’, a reaction that the band stated they were unprepared for. A request for suggestions for the impromptu encore was met with a ruckus of numerous songs, before the band decided to reprise their opening song Sodium, with the caveat that ‘the intro [was] still attached’, and to pretend that they were redoing their stage entry. When the set ended, this time for real, emotions were high, some fans in tears as they expressed appreciation for the show that just occurred. TROPIC GOLD clearly already have a dedicated following, and one that is sure to continue to grow. Their mix of metal, rock, and electronic influences is attention grabbing, unfailing to drive the energy up for a mass of movement in a crowd. It’s not hard to imagine them performing in larger venues where the space can accommodate the enthusiastic and frequent moshing. Words and photos: Ace Cheng

Dark clouds gathered over Brixton Academy in London as BEHEMOTH, DIMMU BORGIR, DARK FUNERAL joined forces to unleash a night of black metal fury. It's a powerful testament to the sheer pedigree of the lineup that a band of DARK FUNERAL's calibre was the opening act. The Stockholm five-piece has been Sweden's loudest answer to Norway's iconic second wave sound for more than 30 years. And with only half an hour to liven up our rain soaked crowd they get to work immediately. Fans were still streaming in while the pummelling double-bass of Unchain My Soul shakes the cobwebs from Brixton academy's ceiling, and while the task of cheering a sober and sodden is an unenviable one. Songs like Let the Devil In and Where Shadows Forever Reign were more than fit for the task. Unfortunately the set was over almost as quickly as it began, with a decent chunk of the audience still stuck in queues, enduring the worst of the rain and venue security well after doors. Proudly theatrical, even in a genre known for its bold visuals and atmospheric sound, DIMMU BORGIR came out draped in leather, caked in corpse paint and with a lush backdrop of orchestral flourish to set the tone. Frontman Shagrath acted as a conductor, waving through the blast beats and vicious tremolo. Staring down the crowd, looking every part the shaman, inviting them to join in the unholy, mystic cabaret. Perhaps more from a lack of familiarity than a lack of affection. It's unfortunate that more recent material, songs like opener Ulvgjeld & Blodsodel and recent single Ascent receive a slightly flat reaction from the crowd. These moments however were brief with minutes between triumphant renditions of Mourning Palace and Puritania. Maintaining an icy demeanor though they must surely be sweltering as the steady waves of pyro burst around them. The showmanship is matched with a crisp mix. Keeping the bounty of ear-worm melodies that DIMMU BORGIR litter their songs with at the center of attention. Combining to allow the operatic grandiosity of Gateways and closer Progenies of the Great Apocalypse to steal the show. Joyfully spitting anyone who thought time or critical acclaim could dull their edge, BEHEMOTH refuse to deal in subtlety. Bolder than ever as they approach their fourth decade in action, the greatest challenge BEHEMOTH have tonight is finding a way to condense their sprawling catalogue into a single setlist. With the air heavy with incense, a brief projection of eerie visuals drew the crowds attention to the stage and BEHEMOTH explode into action with the brutal combination of Daimonos and Ora Por Nobis Lucifer. Frontman Adam NERGAL Darski wasted no time rushing around the stage, giving the front rows some special attention and dodging some brow scorching pyrotechnics. Muscling through songs at a breakneck pace, it's no small achievement that recent album cuts The Shit ov God and To Drown the Svn in Wine received deafening responses from the crowd. Easily competing with established fan favourites like Conquer All that have enjoyed a near quarter century of affection. Despite enjoying the polished finish of an act with countless thousands of hours in rehearsal under their belt. BEHEMOTH maintained a rawness to their sound, that even on as prestigious a stage as tonight's, gives the performance a genuine sense of urgency. In contrast to DIMMU BORGIR's pomp and theatre, the orchestration of Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel instead deepens the atmosphere of ritual in the room. And it's while this sense of intimacy is at its highest that a rare moment of sentiment and emotion is shared. Joined by Shagrath, a cover of VENOM's iconic In League With Satan pays tribute to frontman Cronos’ recent passing. An artist without whom we can safely assume that tonight's lineup, and today's burgeoning culture would simply be impossible without. By the time an encore of O Father O Satan O Sun! followed to end the night, and in spite of the bleak aesthetics on offer, the atmosphere feels celebratory. For all its nihilistic trappings, black metal is often a celebration of vitality, and through all the noise and fire, BEHEMOTH have it in abundance. Words and Photos: Anton Smeeton

POPFREE’s next EP Overt covers all bases in rock and emo - self hate and growing pains with breakups and a sprinkle of anti establishment sentiment. Over seven tracks of dancing chords and building drums POPFREE resign themselves to the frustrations and laments of the world around them; the resulting EP making the perfect listen on the bus home from work as the nights get dark. Overall, Overt enjoys a resigned lamenting within its lyrics, with opening track Giving Up painting a picture of a deep sigh as you start to get sick of keeping positive. Disappointed and stuck is a feeling that permeates through this track and the whole project; White Spruce is more on the nose with this, admitting that it feels like they have hit a dead end in their life, lamenting missed opportunities in its chorus with “right place/wrong time” repeated as its motif. POPFREE’s lyricism is plain and honest - they paint scenes that the emotions they discuss take place in rather than dress that emotion in metaphor, which matches perfectly with the dragging power chords that make up the emo soundscape. At its most honest there is All I Can Remember, a track that puts to paper memories its author has spent time trying to let go. The introduction falls into the more hardcore side of Overt and its first verse blames itself for not speaking up as the screaming starts downstairs, but as the track bears on the anger at ‘him’ for his treatment of the subject and the desire for the memories to go away, painting the picture of listening to mum and her new boyfriend have it out past bedtime. There is a gorgeous plucked guitar melody in the intermission and a gentleness throughout that contrasts the dark subject matter, giving the scene the quiet that lets you drift off between bouts. Back in the present Overt keeps the anti-establishment leanings in Fools Gold with a punkier instrumental and a floor lead drum solo underneath an angry musing about working for nothing and being called lazy while the rich line their pockets with your labour. The tinge of clean vocals that frontman Jacob Bever has utilised disappears in Fools Gold, with the venom in his voice clear as he laments the idea that working hard would allow you to achieve your dreams. The track closes with a speech on men of power and capital wanting to puppet the working classes on strings, which transitions well into the call for community on Can You Feel?. Can You Feel? takes the anger of Fools Gold and asks for attendance in your local shows, evoking the feeling of being on stage and the unity of a venue to convince the listener that they should get a ticket and let their hair down. The vibe change to the positive is a welcome break from the raw tones of the rest of Overt, and stands as a reminder with the feeling of isolation in the rest of the project that the richness of community can help even if it can’t completely heal. Goodbye closes Overt with a long instrumental opening - lazy ride cymbal lead and chords that feel absentmindedly strummed when away with the fairies. When the twelve lines of lyrics do kick in, they have a breakup feel to them; a couple promising this is the final goodbye with a resignation in their delivery that makes it feel absolute. The reverbed chord draws out Overt to its conclusion, and finishes the project with a track that feels like it could be the breakup montage in an angsty teen movie. Overt is an apt name for POPFREE’s second EP, with its subject matter calling to a band that is not afraid to wear its heart on its sleeve. Lyrically Overt is honest with the skeletons in its past and the dissatisfaction with the present, but this is balanced with hope for the future that stops Overt from being fuel for a spiral. In short, Overt is the perfect EP for the bus ride home from work in the dark evenings with a soaked through jacket Score: 8/10 Overt will be released on 23rd October 2026 via New Morality Zine. Words: Julia Brunton Photos: Samuel David Katz