TodoMal – Graveyards of Joy (2026) – Review

TodoMal - Graveyards of Joy - Album Cover

TodoMal, all is wrong. Talk to me about announcing your intentions in a rock ‘n’ metal setting. Already, the album cover positively screams misery and desolation without a note having been played on our music machine yet. It is actually an extract from a painting by Lluís Rigalt, titled Landscape with Ruins or simply Ruïnes, dated 1865. Yup, melancholy and decay date back eons already. Who would have thought that?

But what really drew us to this record was this oxymoron of a moniker called Graveyards of Joy. There’s usually nothing joyful about them cemeteries, unless you … [...] Click to raid more!

Soothsayer – The Unbinding (2026) – Review

Soothsayer - The Unbinding - Album Cover

You won’t believe how much the RMR crew dreaded the thought of the Irish gang Soothsayer having a sophomore moment. Back in 2021, the band’s debut full-length piece, Echoes of the Earth, didn’t sit too well with the grouchy geezers of the RMR Review Desk. And as we all know, the (dreaded) second record usually is the one when things settle for the worse.

But – not always. Sometimes the exception to the rule kicks in, and our ice-cold metal hearts discover something that will hold our attention. So, will The Unbinding reach those lofty heights in one giant … [...] Click to raid more!

Fires in the Distance – Circadian Promise (2026) – Review

Fires in the Distance - Circadian Promise - Album Cover

It has been a long time since a true Melodic Death Metal piece crossed our hawse. The RMR crew discovered a bunch of ‘-ish’ guys but nothing as strongly forged as any Insomnium piece would be.

But what about some refreshing new sound that should dig this (tired old) genre out of its hole and let it soar again? They do exist, you know. The US act Fires in the Distance appears to be one of them. They kinda flew by our review pipe in 2023 when their piece Air Not Meant For US was released. But for some reason, … [...] Click to raid more!

A Dream Of Poe – Katabasis: A Marriage Among Ashes (2026) – Review

A Dream of Poe - Katabasis: A Marriage Among Ashes - Album Cover

Music has always been a guiding beacon in this reviewer’s life journey. And how could it not? So, it was early Progressive and Gothic Rock mixed with (now) decades-old electronica that got me in first contact with one Edgar Allan Poe.

Back in 1976, The Alan Parsons Project released Tales of Mystery and Imagination. A slightly melancholic yet astonishingly refreshing record dedicated to the long-defunct writer. An ode to dark tales full of birds of death and dark musings about the House of Usher. A record that was very much way ahead of its time, and thus lost a ton … [...] Click to raid more!