New Music Friday is back with a packed October 2nd 2026 release slate, spanning Heavy Metal, Hard Rock, Extreme Metal, Doom, Punk, Progressive music, and more.
Browse the full list below, support the artists through the official links, and tell us what is hitting your speakers first in the comments!
Photo used with permission from the private collection of Michael Anthony Alago. https://www.instagram.com/michaelanthonyalago/
“Bass solo, take one.”
September 27, 1986, remains one of the darkest days in Metal history, as we remember Cliff Burton of Metallica, who died on this day 40 years ago. Perishing in the infamous bus crash near Dörarp, Sweden, Cliff’s shadow has only grown larger in the four decades since his death. Metallica continues to pay tribute to Cliff at every concert, and while the band reached heights of fame and success Cliff likely never dreamed of, the loss of their bandmate, friend, and creative force looms over them forever. As former Ghost Cult Senior Editor Metal Mark wrote in an article in 2017, “…we will never know the full greatness that he could have achieved with the band.” Meanwhile, his legacy lives on with the annual Cliff Burton Day, held in his hometown of Castro Valley, California. Metallica will soon celebrate their arguably greatest achievement with Cliff, and maybe Thrash Metal’s greatest album, Master of Puppets, with a residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas, with Life Burns Faster At The Sphere. Not only leaving a musical legacy, Cliff’s father Ray Burton created a foundation in Cliff’s name that continues donating his royalties to charity. Check out these tributes to Cliff and appreciate this once-in-a-lifetime person and talent. RIP.
Washington, D.C.’s Bad Brains – one of the most important and influential bands to emerge from the American underground music scene – today announce the November 6 release of Are You Ready: The First Studio Recording (Inner Ear – March 1979) via Trust Records. For decades, the recordings circulated unofficially among tape-trading punks – an ask-a-punk rarity known only to a relative few. Now, nearly five decades later, the session has been newly mixed by Ian MacKaye and, in cooperation with Bad Brains, will receive its first official release, available on vinyl, cassette, and digital. Listen/share “Pay to Cum” here and watch the video – with footage was filmed by Barry Masterson at CBGB’s on October 24th 1979.
Founded by The Satanic Temple’s Lucien Greaves (with Dave Lombardo, Justin Pearson, and Luke Henshaw), Satanic Planet recently unveiled their new single, “Church Burning.” Arriving with an official music video, it comes from Dead Deities, the band’s new album for Relapse Records, due October 30th. Watch it below and read more.
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As the old saying goes, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Well, thirteen records into a career filled obsessively with Vikings and Norse mythology, and the only result Amon Amarth expects to change is the number of listeners. Judging from their continuing rise in popularity, that’s pretty far from insanity.
Belgian razorgrind institution Leng Tch’e returns after nearly a decade of silence with debut single “Hammered Into Collapse,” the lead track from a two-song EP out October 23 via Season of Mist. Nine years and not a drop of momentum lost. Stream it now. Continue reading
