Features

In pictures: Electric Castle festival 2025

Is anyone else completely exhausted by festival season 2025? Nope, not us! We headed to Transylvania to catch YUNGBLUD, Refused, QOTSA, Joey Valence & Brae and more at 24-hour fest Electric Castle…

“He has the ultimate legacy”: Meeting the fans as Birmingham pays tribute to Ozzy Osbourne

As metal fans from across the world descend on Birmingham to pay tribute to Ozzy Osbourne, we head down to the Black Sabbath bench and mural to meet those who were so deeply touched by his life and music…

Ozzy Osbourne: No ordinary man

Once he’d entered his 70s, Ozzy Osbourne told us that he wanted to “live life to the full”. Now, following the devastating loss of metal’s greatest-ever icon, we look back over exactly that: an incredible lifetime of changing heavy music forever, influencing more bands than anyone can possibly count, and of course causing some memorable mischief along the way…

The Dirty Nil: “If plugging into amps and turning it up to 10 doesn’t do it for you anymore, then you’re done”

It’s safe to say that The Dirty Nil frontman Luke Bentham has never been a fan of music industry bullsh*t. And going into fifth album The Lash, his tunnel vision on the pure joy of rock’n’roll was more set than ever – so much so that not even a cease and desist from the Vatican could halt the unstoppable Canadian duo…

Scar Power: How Daron Malakian learned to let go

Having made “peace” with the fact that there’s no new System Of A Down record on the cards right now, Daron Malakian is back with Scars On Broadway’s superb third album Addicted To The Violence. During a midnight chat with the guitarist at home in LA, we find a musician enjoying true creative freedom…

Yorkshire Tea, onstage rambles and Dream Machines: Life on the road with Judas Priest’s Rob Halford

As Judas Priest roar back into UK venues, the one and only Rob Halford reveals his “bizarre sleeping ritual” on tour, what it was like to play Loch Ness, and why tea is an absolute essential…

“It’s like a voice note of us taking the piss”: Why Panic Shack’s debut album is an urgent, unhinged listen

Crammed full of razor-sharp wit and zippy indie-punk, Panic Shack’s self-titled debut is an absolute riot of sound and colour. The Cardiff quartet talk to Kerrang! about bin men, body image and why their bond is “unbreakable” after seven years…

“We’ve started to define what the new era really sounds like”: Eric Vanlerberghe takes us inside I Prevail’s revitalising new album

As I Prevail reveal new album Violent Nature, Eric Vanlerberghe takes us inside the making of the record and the impact of becoming the Michigan metallers’ sole vocalist…

13 essential Ghost songs you need to know

Across six albums, numerous frontman and many different styles, Ghost have taken over metal in spooky, spectacular style. This is how they’ve done it, through 13 dead-good tracks…

“I’m interested in how empathy can change you”: Inside Black Veil Brides’ heavy new chapter

After conquering Wembley last year, Black Veil Brides have returned with a monstrous new single Hallelujah – taken from their soon-to-be-announced seventh album. In an exclusive interview, Andy Biersack reveals how this “much heavier” record explores his observations on empathy, ideological shifts and being comfortable with what he can’t control…

Jason Momoa: “We’re going to kick down the doors for the next generation of Hawaiians to tell our stories”

Next month sees the culmination of a life’s work for Jason Momoa, the release of Chief Of War, his new Apple TV+ series that explores the most important period in the history of Hawaii – the islands he calls home. In an exclusive interview with the metal maniac himself, we dive under the waves of his “passion project” and discover why music has played such a central role in his life…

Cwfen: “I have no interest in being some ‘sexy’ frontperson. I’d much rather be seen as horrifying”

Cwfen have quickly established themselves as one of the UK’s most excitingly atmospheric new bands. The Glasgow doomgaze collective explain how they’re reconnecting with the forgotten past to conjure a brighter future, the magic of imperfection, and how they’d have once been burned at the stake…

Breaking The Lore: The ultimate guide to Ghost’s majestic world

Pantomime pageantry and Satanic provocation is all well and good, but there’s deeper, more subversive purpose in Ghost’s never-ending lore. Kneeling at their unholy altar, we slip beneath those bedazzled vestments to chart all the dark humour, razorblade social commentary and righteous purpose on the path of the Papas...

Simple Plan: “We focused on our fans and took care of them, and they took care of us”

Twenty-five years into their career, Simple Plan are the biggest and most successful they’ve ever been. As they celebrate their latest band milestone with new Amazon Prime doc The Kids In The Crowd, frontman Pierre Bouvier talks support systems, social media, and forever sticking to their guns…

PVRIS: “Art makes people happy, and it’s a connecting tool, and it can be used politically. I’m trying to remember that”

Looking at the roots of PVRIS for the anniversary of their White Noise debut, Lyndsey Gunnulfsen wasn’t keen on how things were back then. But, as they prepare to headline 2000trees for the first time, things are much different now. And it started with realising what was missing, and being the change she wanted to see in the musical world…

Split Chain: “Life is not easy and never will be – this album is a depiction of all that sh*t”

Ahead of their hotly-anticipated debut album motionblur, we head backstage at one of Split Chain’s umpteen shows this summer to discover the darkness behind the music, and how they’ve found themselves as one of the most talked-about bands of the year…

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