On July 10, the band shared a new single, ‘my mind is a mountain’, along with details of the project. The record has been co-produced by Nick Raskulinecz, who previously worked with the band on 2010’s ‘Diamond Eyes’ and 2012’s ‘Koi No Yoka’.

The brutal instrumentation might remind listeners of their earlier work, though with a new polish to it. Fans have shared their joy at hearing a fresh release from the group, giving a warm reception to the new single.

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The band began teasing new music at their massive headline show in London earlier this month, with projections on screens that read “Private Music” and “X.VII.MMXXV distributed by Deftones, all rights reserved.”

It’s been five years since Deftones’ last release, ‘Ohms’, which came out in 2020. The record received positive reviews from critics, with Consequence of Sound describing it as “their hardest hitting effort in years”.

Alongside their upcoming album, Deftones have announced a 2026 headline tour that will see them travel through Europe and the UK. The 15-date tour will see the band visit Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester, Dublin and Cardiff in February, before wrapping things up at The O2 in London on Feb 20.

Joining them as support will be Florida hip-hop star Denzel Curry and New York post-hardcore band Drug Church. You can view the full list of dates below.

Deftones 2026 tour with Denzel Curry and Drug Church

January

29 Paris, FR – Adidas Arena
30 Brussels, BE – Forest National

February

1 Hamburg, DE – Barclays Arena
3 Munich, DE – Zenith
5 Lodz, PL – Atlas Arena
6 Berlin, DE – Max-Schmeling-Halle
7 Dortmund, DE – Westfalenhalle
9 Stuttgart, DE – Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle
10 Amsterdam, NL – AFAS Live
12 Birmingham, UK – BP Pulse Live
13 Glasgow, UK – OVO Hydro
14 Manchester, UK – Co-Op Live
16 Dublin, IE – 3Arena
18 Cardiff, UK – Utilita Arena
20 London, UK – The O2

Tickets will go on sale this Friday, July 18 from 9am local time. You can find them here.

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The members Vessel, II, III and IV formed the band in 2016 with a mysterious shtick that intrigued listeners, as the band wore masks to remain anonymous. Since the band does not take part in interviews, they kept listeners guessing and created a dedicated fan base set on deciphering everything from their lyrics to the changes in their masks. The band has released five studio albums with their debut ‘Sundowning’ in 2020. The album was a shocking collection of choral/metal tracks such as ‘The Offering’ which showcases Vessel’s standout ghostly vocals amongst shifts to heavy metal breakdowns, making for a unique sound that earned them a massive fan base after its release. 

‘Even In Arcadia’ features ten tracks that blend their alt-metal sound with R&B and electro inspirations, continuing an in depth narrative around songs as offerings to a deity called ‘Sleep’. Though, this album takes a different sonic direction with a seven minute heavy metal opener ‘Look To Windward’ which also offers a surprising trap section. Following this they share a jazz inspired alt-metal track ‘Emergence’ which was released ahead of the album in March.

Their previous album release in 2023 ‘Take Me Back To Eden’ similarly showcased a bold fusion of genres, though this release gave a blend of progressive metal, pop and R&B. 

With their strict anonymity, Sleep Token’s performances are widely anticipated. They are known for their captivating live concerts, sharing their uniquely hard hitting tracks on stage with fans.  

@lunyxa__ 3 minutes of RAIN in Berlin. #sleeptoken #sleeptokenworship #sleeptokenlive #sleeptokenrain #sleeptokenband #germanheadlinerituals #sleeptokenvessel #sleeptokeniv ♬ original sound – LU

The band embarked on their US tour Teeth Of God, before deleting all their Instagram posts, changing their bio to the ominous phrase “Nothing lasts forever” and going on hiatus. Their mysterious social media activity left fans curious and perplexed, unsure if the band would ever return to music.

One fan posted their confusion on Reddit.

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Their return to music was welcomed whole heartedly this year when they released tracks from ‘Even In Arcadia’, ‘Emergence’, ‘Caramel’ and ‘Damocles’.

The band will be performing at the greatly anticipated Download Festival this June as well as the Louder Than Life festival in September. Additionally, they will be embarking on their Even In Arcadia tour in September. Tickets can be found to this on their website.

Green Day, a longstanding figure in pop-punk, headlines the festival’s opening night. Despite having been a fixture in rock for decades, this will be the band’s first performance at Download, and their new billing reflects a renewed relevance following the release of Saviors earlier this year. The album was widely praised, with Classic Rock’s Mark Beaumont describing it as “the sound of reassuring rebellion from the midst of the 21st-century breakdown”.

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Following Green Day, Saturday will see Sleep Token’s anticipated ascent to headliner status. The enigmatic UK band has seen a meteoric rise, moving from Download’s smaller stages to the pinnacle of its main stage within just a few years. Known for their atmospheric blend of metal, pop, and ambient music, Sleep Token gained substantial traction in 2023, largely due to viral exposure on TikTok, making their announcement today a surprising one to many metal fans. Their most recent album, Take Me Back to Eden, was released in 2024 to considerable acclaim. Download chief Andy Copping explained to NME that the decision to elevate Sleep Token stems from their recent success and popularity, saying, “It’s time. It’s Sleep Token’s moment,” adding that the festival has often led the way in breaking newer acts, from Slipknot to Bring Me The Horizon.

 

 

 

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Rounding out the top of the bill is nu-metal stalwart Korn, who last performed at Download in 2022 as a main-stage support act. Although they have been part of Download’s line-up since 2004, 2025 will mark the first time Korn headlines the festival. Their career-spanning set is expected to draw from their 30-year history, including fan favourites from their recent Gunnersbury Park performance, which attracted a record UK crowd. The band is reportedly working on new material, adding further anticipation to their Download headlining debut.

.@DownloadFest 2025? Fuck yeah!

Tickets on sale Thursday at 9PM here: https://t.co/aD8KptBxLT.#DLXII pic.twitter.com/MrgwvZdE2d

— The Darkness (@thedarkness) November 12, 2024

In addition to the headline acts, the festival will feature a diverse range of bands and artists, from punk to extreme metal. Notable inclusions are Weezer, Jimmy Eat World, The Darkness, Alien Ant Farm, Bullet for My Valentine, and Frank Carter’s collaboration with the Sex Pistols. Further down the bill, acts such as Cradle of Filth, Steel Panther, Meshuggah, Poppy, and McFly provide breadth to this year’s programming. “There’s something for truly everyone,” Copping remarked to NME, emphasising the festival’s need to adapt and sustain a broad appeal to survive.

But wait, there’s more! UK, you’re in luck because we’re playing @DownloadFest in June (!!!) AND a show in Halifax on 30th June @ Piece Hall. The mailing list pre-sale for all of the headline shows starts tomorrow at 10am GMT/11am CET. Sending the code out in 2 hours, sign up… pic.twitter.com/Ujk9v7MUE4 — weezer (@Weezer) November 12, 2024

Download’s organisers appear to be continuing a trend of expanding the definition of a “rock” festival, following a 2024 event marked by quarrels about genre and sponsor controversies. Last year’s line-up, headlined by Queens of the Stone Age, Fall Out Boy, and Avenged Sevenfold, was criticised for under-representing traditional metal acts. The event faced last-minute challenges, as multiple artists withdrew in response to Download’s sponsorship by Barclaycard, which later withdrew after facing scrutiny.

Photo credit: Raymond Flotat

The news was announced in an Instagram post after the gig and stated that though the band had managed 8 years ‘dodging the unfortunate inevitable’ the window to their van was smashed whilst there were playing in Manchester.

The post shows a picture of the broken window along with the caption reading ‘Help us out if you can!’ The band are currently undertaking their first-ever headlining tour in the U.K., which kicked off on the 5th of June, when thieves broke into their van and stole many personal belongings. Fortunately, the band’s equipment was not in the van and therefore they can continue with the rest of the European tour however the luggage of their drummer Chris Enriquez, their sound engineer Terence, and their driver Ian all had their luggage stolen which contained valuable personal belongings like iPads as well and clothes and toiletries.

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On the GoFundMe page set up by frontman Mario Quintero detailed that the main priority for the band is make sure those that lost their clothes and toiletries have access to them. The description for the donation page reads ‘We’re extremely lucky that we had all of our equipment with us at the time but Chris, our sound engineer Terence, and our driver/merch Ian all had their luggage stolen. There were laptops, iPads and all their clothes and personal belongings in there.’ The band are also required to ‘pay a hefty deductible to the rental company for insurance’ due to the damages made to the vehicle.

With the wave of rock and heavy metal sound slowly creeping its way into more mainstream media with Måneskin gaining some serious popularity after last years contest, are more experimental sounds finally getting the attention they deserve from the general public? Bambie Thug thinks so noting to NME that ‘Personally, I’m not one to shout…So for me, it’s really an outlet. Maybe people want a bit of a rush… Maybe that’s why they’re connecting with metal more, because it is a release.’ Has the wider world finally began to identify with the rush that metal and rock music provid? You decide for yourself and watch the video that goes alongside ‘Doomsday Blue’, Ireland’s entry this year, below.

Though Ireland has only around a 6% chance of winning as predicted by the Eurovisionworld website, Thug stated to NME that they are ‘never one to try and look at the odds…you could always beat the odds, because anyone can make the odds go up and down with a bit of money’ and told the platform that ‘the fact we (Ireland) are even in the top 10 is incredible. Bambie Thug will compete alongside Italy who are represented by Angelina Mango with the single ‘La noia’ and Croatia’s Baby Lasagna with the song ‘Rim Tim Tagi Dim’ who, with a 30% chance, are in the running to win this year.

The final will take place in the Swedish city of Malmö after Sweden’s victory in 2023 with Loreen, formally known as Lorine Talhaoui, and her single ‘Tattoo’. Loreen has recently announced a UK and European tour beginning in the spring which kicks off in Birmingham on March 17 before she headlines London’s Eventim Apollo on March 19. The tour will continue on throughout the rest of the UK, ending in Dublin on March 27th. In an Instagram post dated 7th of May she told fans ‘Last year’s tour was one of the best times of my life…this next tour is all for you’. You can pre register for tickets here and they will go on sale from the 10th of May.

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She is set to perform her newest single ‘Forever’ at the final this Saturday and the track will be released a day before. With the second leg of the semi-final fast approaching on the 9th of May, its still all to play (or sing) for. You can watch both the final and semi-final on BBC One at 8pm BST this Thursday and Saturday.

Cardiff – #Rammstein kommt!
Tickets available now: https://t.co/9htrxJe4TA pic.twitter.com/mFD9iPxiEm

— Rammstein (@RSprachrohr) July 31, 2019

Despite forming in 1994, this will be the band’s first ever stadium tour and the band’s line up remains as it was 25 years ago. They have been teasing their European tour via clips on their Facebook page since last year and now on their Youtube channel.

Rammstein are best known for their elaborate and expansive live shows, with lead singer Till Lindemann enduring life-long burns after parts of the stage and various props fell on the band during a show, back in 1996.

This hasn’t stopped the six-piece metal group from planning their biggest and most hideously beautiful tour to date, and video clips show fiery angel wings, cauldrons and various members of the group dressed as frenzied psychopaths. It has been described as a “hellish inferno cathedral” and their fans are absolutely ready for it. The band took a hiatus in 2013 and returned for a summer festival tour in 2016, but since then, have been focused on their most recent album, released in May of this year.

Tickets are still available to purchase for all UK dates* and it has been reported that they will be performing well-known hits, such as “Du Hast” and “Sonne”, as well as new material from their most recent album, “Untitled”. The band still have tour dates to unleash on fans and it can be assumed that they will announce these in the coming weeks, as well as more teasers. Fans should be prepared to buckle up and get ready for a most epic performance.

UK DATES ARE:

14/06/2019 – Principality Stadium – Cardiff
17/06 – Boucher Road Playing Fields – Belfast
20/06 – Ricoh Arena – Coventry

Fresh from having released their debut album Yours To Defend at the back end of October, ACODA are now ready to get in the van and embrace the cold winter as they travel up and down the UK, showing you what their record sounds like, only up close and personal. Having played shows with the likes of Funeral For A Friend, Don Broco and Arcane Roots and performed at prestigious festivals such as Sonisphere and Download, ACODA are a band that deserve your attention, so stand up straight  and flail around like a fish out of water to their brutal blend of hardcore and alternative rock that will leave you gasping for air at the end of each track. To get a taster of what’s in store, check out their recent video for The Ludovico Technique below before reaching for your wallet and booking them tickets. If that’s not enough to twist your arm, support comes from rising French punk rockers Vera Cruz. Sounding like a pissed off Cancer Bats, they will be setting the standards high for ACODA each night, but one the midland rockers will be able to reach. Check out the dates below, see which one is easiest for you to get to, and book those tickets!

November

Wednesday 20th – Big Noise Studio, Northampton

Thursday 21st – North Wales Inn, Rhyl

Friday 22nd – Audio, Glasgow

Saturday 23rd – Tunnel 2, Aberdeen

Sunday 24th – Beat Generator, Dundee

Monday 25th – Escobar, Leeds

Wednesday 27th – The Flapper, Birmingham

Thursday 28th – Joiners, Southampton

Friday 29th – Ministers Bar, Stoke

Saturday 30th – Hairy Dog, Derby

December

Sunday 1st – Static, Swansea

Monday 2nd – Upstairs at The Garage, London

Tuesday 3rd – Boiler Room, Guildford

Wednesday 4th – Bogiez, Cardiff

Thursday 5th – White Rabbit, Plymouth