From Maiden Covers to AI Avatars: What This Week's Headlines Say About Metal's Future — and Ohio's Place In It
Some weeks in metal news feel like a tug-of-war between the genre's past and its future, and this week is a perfect example. On one side, you've got a drummer tackling a 1980s classic note-for-note. On the other, a legendary guitarist floating the idea of AI holograms on stage. Somewhere in the middle sits Ohio, a state that has quietly built one of the deepest, most varied metal scenes in the country — one where the old guard and the new guard aren't just coexisting, they're feeding off each other.
Iron Maiden, Drumeo, and the Enduring Pull of Classic Heavy Metal
Linkin Park drummer Colin Brittain sat down for Drumeo's "For The First Time" series and took a swing at Iron Maiden's "Hallowed Be Thy Name" — arguably one of the best heavy metal songs ever committed to tape, and a rite of passage for any drummer who claims to understand the genre. Brittain had already correctly identified cuts from Faith No More, Sevendust, and 311 before sitting down with Maiden's sprawling, galloping epic, and the segment is a reminder of just how far Steve Harris and company's songwriting reaches outside the traditional metal bubble.
That kind of reverence for classic NWOBHM songwriting is exactly the fuel behind the New Wave of Traditional Heavy Metal movement, a revival that has quietly taken root in Ohio's own scene. This state has a deeper well of straightforward, riff-driven heavy metal than a lot of scene outsiders realize. Bands like Grayhawk, Shanghai, and Clifford Meyer are all mining that same vein of no-frills, hook-first heavy metal that made 80s metal bands like Maiden and Priest into arena-fillers in the first place, while Emerald Rage pushes the tempo into speed and power metal territory without losing that classic backbone. If you've slept on this corner of the Ohio metal scene, now's the time to catch up — these are bands writing songs built to survive four decades, the same way "Hallowed Be Thy Name" has.
Bass Warrior Hits Europe, and Ohio's Thrash Roots Keep Humming
Ex-Megadeth bassist David Ellefson announced that his upcoming Bass Warrior tour dates across Europe this fall will include a full performance of "Countdown to Extinction," one of thrash's most enduring records and a strong contender for any list of the best metal albums of all time. Ellefson has spent the last several years touring as a solo entity separate from Megadeth, and leaning into a full album run is a smart move — fans who grew up on that record get the nostalgia hit, and younger thrash converts get a masterclass in why the genre's classic era still matters.
It's a good reminder that thrash isn't a museum piece anywhere, least of all in Ohio, where bands continue to sharpen the genre's teeth on local stages every month. Whatever era you come from, thrash's DNA — tight rhythm sections, breakneck tempos, no wasted notes — remains a north star for plenty of bands cutting their teeth on Ohio bills right now.
Fuming Mouth Joins Black Dahlia Murder's Nocturnal Anniversary Run
Death metal news doesn't get much bigger this week than the confirmation that Fuming Mouth has been added to The Black Dahlia Murder's European "Nocturnal" 20th anniversary tour, set for early 2027. Two decades on, "Nocturnal" remains a cornerstone melodic death metal record, and pairing it with Fuming Mouth's more hardcore-inflected death metal attack makes for a genuinely exciting bill. It's also a sign of how far in advance major package tours are now being booked — 2027 dates confirmed in 2025 tells you everything about how competitive the touring circuit for death metal and metalcore has become heading into 2026 and beyond.
Ohio's death metal scene has never lacked for ambition or historical weight — this is, after all, the state that gave the world Necrophagia, one of American death metal's foundational acts, and it continues to produce vicious modern practitioners like Mutilation Barbecue. When international package tours like the Nocturnal anniversary run eventually route through the Midwest, or when their support acts look for regional openers, Ohio's death metal underground is more than ready to answer the call. Keep an eye on upcoming shows around the state — this scene doesn't wait for permission to headline its own bills.
A Loss For Crust and D-Beat: Remembering Marcus Andersson
Sadder news arrived this week with word that Disfear drummer Marcus Andersson has died after a battle with cancer. Disfear helped define the Swedish d-beat and crust sound that influenced generations of bands working in heavier, more chaotic territory, and the tribute from his bandmates hit hard:
"Marcus was the best of friends, an incredible drummer, and a driving force, full of passion."
That description — passionate, driving, a force behind the kit — is the kind of tribute that resonates with anyone who's spent time in the doom, sludge, and crust corners of the underground, corners that Ohio bands like Two Tons and Reclusa continue to occupy with the same intensity. Losses like this one ripple far beyond the band's home country; they're a reminder of how small and interconnected the global heavy music community actually is.
New Blood: Half Me, Empty Shell Casing, and Downswing
On the brighter side of the ledger, there's plenty of new music worth your attention if you're tracking new metal bands 2026 is going to be talking about. Half Me dropped the video for "King," the fifth single off their upcoming album "Dogma" — a lot of advance singles for one record, which suggests a band that's confident in every track they're putting out. Empty Shell Casing, meanwhile, is being called out as one of the most exciting acts in nu-metal right now on the strength of "No Reason," a preview of their October mixtape "Unlimited." Nu-metal's resurgence has been building steam for a couple of years now, and tracks like this one show why a new generation is embracing the genre's grooves and aggression all over again.
Closer to home in spirit, if not geography, Downswing released the video for "At My Worst," a track built around the universal struggle of finding balance — a theme that resonates in metalcore and post-hardcore circles that Ohio bands like Miss May I know intimately, having built careers on turning personal struggle into cathartic, arena-ready riffs. If you're a band in this state working on your own version of that catharsis, don't sit on it — submit your band and get it in front of people actually paying attention to the Ohio metal scene.
The AI Debate Splits the Old Guard
Finally, the generational divide on artificial intelligence in music got a lot more interesting this week. Queen's Brian May admitted he's warmed to the idea of an ABBA-style avatar show for Queen, even while warning that AI is advancing fast enough that humanity risks losing control of it. Compare that to Anthrax's Scott Ian, marking 45 years in music with a flat, no-nonsense stance:
You will never hear A.I. on an Anthrax song.
It's a genuinely fascinating split between two artists from roughly the same generation of classic rock and metal royalty, and it's a debate that's going to keep intensifying as the technology gets better. For a scene built on DIY values — the same values that keep Ohio's basement shows, small labels, and local zines alive — Ian's hard line probably resonates more than May's openness. Authenticity has always been metal's currency, and that's not likely to change no matter how convincing the technology gets.
Vinyl Season Rolls On
Rounding out the week: Deafheaven and Bosse-De-Nage streamed their remixed and remastered 2012 split ahead of a late November vinyl and cassette release, Eagles of Death Metal's debut "Peace, Love, Death Metal" is getting a November vinyl reissue through Ipecac and Josh Homme's Rekords Rekords, Hellripper made two ZEKE covers digitally available after their run as Decibel exclusives, and BORE's "Feral" is getting a deluxe vinyl and CD reissue loaded with demos and a System Of A Down cover. Add in Dani Filth's newly announced autobiography and it's clear the back half of this year is all about physical media and looking backward — proof that even as metal barrels toward whatever 2026 has in store, its foundation is built on records worth revisiting again and again.