🔥 Who Will Rise as This Week’s Champion on the MDR Battle Of The Bands? 🔥And who will dominate next month as Band of the Month on Metal Devastation Radio? Last month’s winners, ANTIPOPE , crushed the... More

🔥 Who Will Rise as This Week’s Champion on the MDR Battle Of The Bands? 🔥And who will dominate next month as Band of the Month on Metal Devastation Radio? Last month’s winners, ANTIPOPE , crushed the competition with a staggering 721,717 VOTES, claiming the title of Band of the Month on Metal Devastation Radio! You can check them out HERE! This is the weekly championship edition of the Band Of The Month – Battle Of The Bands that we host every month on MDR! How does it work?Every Monday, we launch a new poll featuring bands that submit music each week on metaldevastationradio.com. Voting runs until Friday at 9PM EST. Each Friday night, at the start of The Zach Moonshine Show, I’ll be spinning the Top Six weekly winners, and announcing the #1 band of the week live on air — getting thousands of listens on Mixcloud! At the end of the month, all weekly votes are added up, and the band with the highest total votes becomes our Band of the Month! Winning Band of the Month gets: A featured post on our Facebook page, reaching thousands of fans A front-page spotlight on metaldevastationradio.com, which pulls in hundreds of thousands of views every month A free PR email blast from Metal Devastation PR, hitting 40,000+ contacts including labels, zines, stations, and more Airplay every hour during general rotation Tons of social media shares and exposure across our network If you want the world to know who your band is, this is the easiest way to make it happen! 💥 Want in on the next battle?Comment below with your band name and we’ll add you to next week’s poll — or email me at zach@metaldevastationradio.com with “Battle Submission” in the subject line. Bands can compete as many times as they want, and if you enter multiple weeks in the same month, your votes combine toward the Band of the Month title! 👇 Click on the bands below to vote as many times as you like, or add your own! Poll closes Friday, May 15th at 9PM EST! Who Will Rise as This Week’s Champion on the MDR Battle Of The Bands?? 05/11/26 - 05/15/26 Less

BraveWords Records Opens the Gates for “KnuckleTracks Volume One” Submissions TORONTO, CANADA (May 8, 2026) — BraveWords Records is officially calling it wide open. No velvet rope, no soft landing, just pure heavy metal impact. The label is now... More

BraveWords Records Opens the Gates for “KnuckleTracks Volume One” Submissions TORONTO, CANADA (May 8, 2026) — BraveWords Records is officially calling it wide open. No velvet rope, no soft landing, just pure heavy metal impact. The label is now accepting worldwide submissions for “KnuckleTracks Volume One”, a brand new compilation built around one simple mission: the hardest, heaviest, loudest, most unrelenting tracks in modern metal. If your band hits like a sledgehammer and leaves dents in the speakers, this is your shot. A Legacy Reignited For those who remember the golden days, “KnuckleTracks” was originally the legendary Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles CD sampler that shipped free with the magazine starting back in 1997. It became a launchpad for underground and rising bands, helping push real metal into the hands of real fans. Now, nearly 30 years later, it is back in a new form. “KnuckleTracks helped launch and propel bands to the next level,” says BraveWords Founder/CEO “Metal” Tim Henderson. “And here we are doing it again to a new wave of exciting bands that want to be heard around the world!” No hype machine needed. Just volume, attitude, and songs that refuse to sit quietly in the background. What They Want This is not a background playlist situation. BraveWords Records is looking for tracks that belong in the pit, not on easy listening rotation. Big riffs, sharp edges, zero apologies. If your music hits hard enough to shake loose paint, it might just belong on this release. How to Submit Bands can submit directly through the official BraveWords Records submission form. Make sure to clearly note that the submission is for KnuckleTracks Volume One. Go to this link:https://bravewordsrecords.com/bravewords-records-is-seeking-submissions-for-knuckletracks/ About BraveWords Records BraveWords Records has built a roster rooted deep in classic and modern heavy music, working with artists such as Crimson Glory, Alcatrazz, Bangalore Choir, Paul Di’Anno’s Warhorse, ASKA, Jack Starr, and more, with future releases featuring Phil Soussan, Lillian Axe, and additional Alcatrazz material. Backed by nearly a century of combined industry experience, the team is focused on global distribution, press, media coverage, streaming strategy, and long-term artist development. The goal is simple, get great metal heard everywhere it deserves to be. For nearly three decades, BraveWords has kept its boots planted in the underground and its ears tuned to anything loud enough to matter. “KnuckleTracks Volume One” looks like the next chapter in that same loud, proud tradition. Bottom line: if it doesn’t hit hard, it doesn’t belong here. Less

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE The Haunted North Go Deep On Tone, Riffs, and Real Heavy Music On The Zach Moonshine Show The Haunted North returned to The Zach Moonshine Show for Part II this week on Metal Devastation Radio, and this round went straight... More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE The Haunted North Go Deep On Tone, Riffs, and Real Heavy Music On The Zach Moonshine Show The Haunted North returned to The Zach Moonshine Show for Part II this week on Metal Devastation Radio, and this round went straight down the gearhead rabbit hole. Guitarist Sean Francis joined the show for a laid back but seriously deep conversation covering everything from the making of the crushing new single “Savage Ghost” to vintage gear, gain stacking, classic metal influences, Black Label Society connections, and the spirit of authentic heavy music. Right out of the gate, Sean revealed that the main riff behind “Savage Ghost” had actually been sitting around unfinished for nearly five or six years before finally clicking into place. “We didn’t know what in the hell to do with it. Then me and Randy got together last summer and the whole song was done in about ten minutes.” The discussion quickly shifted into guitar tone territory, where Sean proudly embraced his reputation as a full blown tone nerd. For recording, Sean relies heavily on his prized 2001 Gibson Zakk Wylde Bullseye Les Paul loaded with older EMG pickups, paired with a Friedman BE100 amp and a J Rockett Archer IKON overdrive pedal. Instead of maxing out amp distortion, Sean explained that his signature sound comes from carefully stacking overdrive tones together. “I’ve never wanted to go full distortion from the amp because it gets too fizzy. I’m always about stacking overdrive and keeping both under half gain. The sustain and warmth you get out of it is just slamming.” The conversation naturally turned toward gear collecting and Sean dropped another bombshell by revealing he owns one of the ultra rare limited edition Randy Rhoads Les Paul relic guitars. Meanwhile, Zach shared his own excitement over recently getting his hands on one of Zakk Wylde’s Wylde Audio guitars, leading into a larger conversation about modern guitar manufacturing, setup quality, and why Wylde Audio instruments have become some of the best bang-for-the-buck guitars on the market. Beyond the gear talk, the interview dug deep into Sean’s longtime friendship with legendary guitarist Zakk Wylde. What started as a chance meeting during an Ozzy Osbourne tour stop in Canada back in 2007 eventually grew into a real friendship that opened doors to collaborations with members of Black Label Society including John “JD” DeServio and Jeff Fabb. Sean explained how those relationships eventually helped shape The Haunted North’s recordings. “Sometimes you just throw it out there and see what happens.” That simple mindset eventually led to JD and Jeff becoming heavily involved in the project after hearing early material. The interview also explored classic metal memories, with Sean and Zach bonding over discovering bands like Metallica, Pantera, Kiss, Alice In Chains, Cinderella, and Ozzy Osbourne during their younger years. Sean even credited Prince’s “Let’s Go Crazy” as one of the first riffs that truly hooked him into guitar music as a kid. “Nobody talks about Prince as a guitar player enough. That guy could absolutely play.” The conversation stayed rooted in a shared appreciation for all forms of authentic music, whether it was metal, country, glam, grunge, or classic rock. As Sean put it: “If it’s good music, you dig it. Who gives a crap what kind of music it is?” Toward the end of the interview, Sean hinted that The Haunted North already has six or seven new songs completed along with major announcements potentially arriving in the near future. The band is currently focusing heavily on preparing live performances while continuing work on future material. “It’s going to be never ending. More new music for the next forever.” The episode wrapped with Sean encouraging fans to follow The Haunted North online, support underground music, and continue backing independent outlets like Metal Devastation Radio that keep heavy music alive outside the mainstream machine. For fans of real amps, real riffs, and real heavy music, this interview hit exactly where it needed to. Track List from the show:  Battle Of The Bands Top Six Winners: 1 - Trivan - Abyss Of Crawling Shadows -  (269,086 votes)2 - NIKOLA'S CAGE - RASCAL - (39,787 votes)3 - Severed Sun - Complex - (39,787 votes)4 - Heidbekka - Völva - (39,787 votes)5 - Another Demon - Drawn and Quartered feat. James Murphy (Testament, Death, Obituary) - (6,002 votes)6 - Mistress - Terrified eyes - (4,070 votes) The Zach Moonshine Intro 7 - Ozzy Osbourne - Rock 'n' Roll Rebel8 - Black Label Society - Lord Humungus/Suffering Overdue The Haunted North - Interview featuring The Beast/Savage Ghost/BLEED 9 - The Red Mountain - Cosmic Guns10 - The Prodigal Son - Silence Of Kaos11 - Archfiend - Life Of Decay12 - Tito Thomvs - spiraling13 - Violence System - Endmother14 - Enigmatical - Alien Abduction (Re-Abducted Version)15 - PROCESS OF SUFFOCATION - Mephisthopheles16 - Burnt Witch - Bastard17 - THE RED MOUNTAIN - Babble On18 - Triptykon - Abyss Within My Soul/Circle Of the Tyrants/Dethroned Emperor [Live]19 - Metallica - So What/Am I Evil- (Live at Tushino Airfield, Moscow, Russia - September 28th, 1991)20 - NetherDred - Spellbound21 - Pentagram - petrified/Forever My Queen/Be Forewarned22 - Disassemble - The Abyss23 - Lecherous Nocturne - Fission24 - Royal Hunt - Last Goodbye (Posada Rock Festival, 2023)25 - Indominus - Black Lake26 - MATANZICK - The End Is Just the Beginning27 - The Proxima Design - Tongues Carved From Glass28 - IATT - Walk Amongst Streaming now on Mixcloud: The interview segment is also available on YouTube, Spotify, Apple etc [jrEmbed module="jrYouTube" youtube_id="xG_H7G9E_tM"] Super massive shout out to the 303,372 metal maniacs from around the world that tuned in to the live devastation Friday!  Follow the band:  https://www.thehauntednorth.com/ Less