Looking for something new to listen to? Get acquainted with these tracks from some lesser-known bands released in February 2023 thanks to our monthly Underground Roundup! Check out our playlists below featuring this month's picks (as long as they're on streaming services), and you can listen to all previous editions of the Underground Roundup here.
Botanist – "Angel's Trumpet"
Plant-based metal avant-gardists Botanist is here to make you hallucinate with their new single "Angel's Tumpet." The single is an addition to the ever-growing and increasingly psychedelic discography of Botanist, VIII: Selenotrope due out May 19. Now go get weird.
Celestial Sanctuary – "Perpetual Annihilation"
Celestial Sanctuary is here to fuck your whole day up with their new single "Perpetual Annihilation." The single comes fresh off the band's performance with Undeath and Obituary in London, and is included in the bonus tracks of the Soul Diminished (Redux) album coming on March 27.
Dååth – "No Rest No End"
It's been 13 years since their last record, but Dååth is back with a crushing new song and a brand new record label! Dååth's recently dropped their debut single on Metal Blade Records, "No Rest, No End," whose runtime brings massive orchestrations alongside the usual finger-breaking riffs you'd expect from the band.
Defiled – "Off-Limits"
Tokyo-based death metal unit Defiled has announced their new record The Highest Level for April 28 and is now streaming the single 'Off-Limits." If you've ever heard anything Defiled has put out over the last 20 years, then know to expect only the grossest death metal.
Entheos – "Darkest Day"
Entheos, the duo of vocalist Chaney Crabb and multi-instrumentalist Navene Koperweis, will releas their new record Time Will Take Us All for March 3. If you're not familiar with the hallucination-inducing insanity of the band just yet, check out "Darkest Day" below.
Fires In The Distance – "Wisdom In The Falling Leaves"
Fires In The Distance is now streaming their gorgeous new single "Wisdom In The Falling Leaves." The single runs over seven minutes long and really captures that deep winter freeze in all its slow-burning, meticulously-composed melodic death metal.
Foretoken – "The Wraith That Weeps"
Foretoken is here to ride into the mist and tell you the tale of La Llorna, The Weeping Woman, with their latest single "The Wraith That Weeps." Equal parts galloping heavy metal and terror-inducing black metal, "The Wraith That Weeps" is a journey you're absolutely taking more than once today. It's too good not to.
Frozen Soul – "Morbid Effigy"
Frozen Soul is now streaming their new single "Morbid Effigy" featuring the talents of Dying Fetus frontman John Gallagher. Of course the single is as heavy as a bag of hammers, but the music video directed by Brendan McGowan is just deceptively gross as hell. Frozen Soul will release Glacial Domination on May 19.
Gel – "Honed Blade"
Gel, the band you might know as one that tore up a New Jersey Sonic parking lot, is releasing their debut album Only Constant on March 31. The album is a furious 16-minute affair that you can get a little beat up by right now thanks to their latest single "Honed Blade."
Grand Cadaver – "Serrated Jaws"
Grand Cadaver is Dark Tranquillity vocalist Mikael Stanne, guitarists Stefan Lagergren (The Grifted, ex-Treblinka, Expulsion) and Alex Stjernfeldt (Novarupta, Let Them Hang), drummer Daniel Liljekvist (Disrupted, ex-Katatonia), and bassist Christian Jansson (Pagandom, Dark Tranquillity). It's brutal.
Judiciary – "Paradigm Piercer"
All hail west Texas, right? Judiciary is now streaming their single "Paradigm Piercer" from their coming record Flesh + Blood. I'd imagine all those cracks and dent in the floor on the cover of the album are from people who heard this song, and the subsequent throwing down they did.
Kommand – "Chimera Soliders"
I'd say 20 Buck Spin is on a roll this year, but I'm not sure they're ever not. The label's latest offering is from death metal unit Kommand and their upcoming album Death Age due out March 31. Now go get wrecked with the band's new Bolt Thrower-tinged single "Chimera Soldiers."
Kruelty – "Harder Than Before"
The title says it all, really. Kruelty is simple harder than before, which is incredible considering their previous output was also hard as fuck. But here we are. Kruelty will release their new record Untopia on March 17 and you can blow out your speakers with their latest single below.
Lo! – "Salting The Earth"
Lo! will release their new record Cannibal Culture on April 7 and is here to start riot right now with their new song "Salting The Earth." Clocking in around three minutes, Lo! only moves at a brisk pace and constantly feels like they're right on the edge of falling apart… and that end section surely does.
Majesties – "Our Gracious Captors"
Majesties is the new band featuring Obsequiae's Tanner Anderson alongside Inexorum's Carl Skildum and Matthew Kirkwold. If you're missing old-school Gothenburg-styled melodic death metal, then Majesties is for you! Majesties will release their debut record Vast Reaches Unclaimed due out March 3.
Nightmarer – "Throe Of Illicit Withdrawal"
Nightmarer, featuring vocalist John Collett (ex-Gigan), guitarists Simon Hawemann (ex-War From A Harlots Mouth) and Keith Merrow (Conquering Dystopia, Demisery), bassist Brendan Sloan (Convulsing), and drummer Paul Seidel (The Ocean) is back with "Throe Of Illicit Withdrawal" and a new album Deformity Adrift due out May 3.
Palms – "Opening Title/End Credits"
Palms, featuring ex-Isis drummer Aaron Harris, bassist Jeff Caxide, and guitarist Bryant Clifford Meyer alongside Deftones vocalist Chino Moreno, is streaming two unreleased tracks. It's not clear when the two songs are from, though the hashtag #Palms10 seems to indicate they're from Palms 2013 self-titled (and only) album.
Predatory Void – "Endless Return To The Kingdom Of Sleep"
Predatory Void features guitarist Lennart Bossu (Amenra, Oathbreaker), vocalist and tattoo artist Lina R, bassist Tim De Gieter (Amenra, Doodseskader, Much Luv Studio), guitarist Thijs De Cloedt (Cobra The Impaler, ex-Aborted), and drummer Vincent Verstrepen, and here we are – kickass metal.
Sermon – "The Distance"
Sermon will bring their brand of gloomy, Katatonia-styled rock to the world on March 31 via their new record Of Golden Verse. If you need an earworm that'll also bring your mood down today, check out their latest single "The Distance." And maybe go check out Sermon's list of kickass masked bands right here, too.
Spirit Possession – "Second Possession"
Spirit Possession is bringing back everything you loved about their blackened death-meets-thrash sound with their upcoming record Of The Sign..., due out March 31. In the meantime, you can get just a little charred thanks to their most recent single "Second Possession" below.
Sunrot – "Gutter"
Sunrot has teamed up with vocalists Bryan Funck (Thou) and Emily McWilliams (Silver Godling) for a crushing new single "Gutter" off their forthcoming record The Unfailing Rope due out April 7. If you're in the mood to look at a depressing snapshot of modern days, here it is.
Thulcandra – "As I Walk Through The Gateway"
Thulcandra, the band fronted by Obscura's Steffen Kummerer, will release their new record Hail The Abyss on May 19 and is now streaming the single "As I Walk Through The Gateway." Given their penchant for having all their album covers a Dissection-shade of blue, you know what you're getting with Thulcandra.
Voidceremony – "Writhing In The Facade Of Time"
Voidceremony, featuring members of Worm and Mournful Congregation, is back to teleport you to another dimension once again with their brand of cosmic death metal. Voidceremony will release Threads Of Unknowing on April 14 and is now streaming the crushing new single "Writhing In The Facade Of Time."
Wake – Vast And Infinite
Fresh off release their 2022 record Thought Form Descent, Wake is back with a new single "Vast And Infinite" alongside a Jesu remix of the same track. If you like your death metal mixed in with your grindcore, Wake is for you. "Vast And Infinite" was only a two-song EP, so here's hoping Wake has more up their sleeve?
