Best New Releases February 2025

February ended up being a January Part II: a month in which I feared for quite a while that I'd have virtually no new releases to share with you, only to be met with a handful of great albums right as the month drew to a close (almost like a musical drought relief supply drop from the heavy underground gods). 

For me, 2025 has truly been a bit dry thus far when it comes to doom metal releases that appeal to me personally, and that remains to be the case in February. However, I have been hearing a lot of standout and sophisticated progressive rock and post metal albums in particular, and this is rather refreshing for me as those are genres I don't write about quite as often as stoner/doom. 

So, without further ado, here are my choices for the best new heavy underground releases of February 2025, in descending order: 

7.) Icarus Burns - (self-titled)

Icarus Burns makes their debut as an instrumental band specializing in heavy psych (strong emphasis on the "heavy") and progressive metal. Much like fellow German heavy instrumentalists ROTOR, Icarus Burns has a knack for interlacing spacey and ethereal psychedelic atmospheres with sudden thunderous metal crescendos (strong emphasis on the "thunderous"). These contrasts work together harmoniously to effectively create a mood and get a point or concept across without the use of vocals. 

Favorite Track: Tranen Der Sonne

You can read my full review here.

   

 6.) Atomic Peat - Demons and other friends 

Demons and Other Friends, the sophomore album from Osnabrück's own Atomic Peat, doesn't fit neatly into a single category, but naturally vacillates between heavier and lighter soundscapes as it suits the story being relayed in each individual song. You'll hear everything from modern and traditional heavy metal, nods to doom and stoner, and heavy rock to name a few. But, more than anything, Demons and Other Friends is a deeply personal album on which relatable life situations are explored in an incredibly authentic way. 

Favorite Track: Demons coming home 

You can read my full review here.

 

5.) Lightning Swells Forever - Delirium

Lightning Swells Forever is a massively underrated quartet from Japan who puts a most smoothed-out spin on "a thundercloud" of stoner/desert rock by infusing it with cool and prismatic heavy psych as well as the quintessential retro vibes of proto metal. Their latest album, Delirium, is, coincidentally, both their heaviest and most atmospheric release to date. On Delirium, Lightning Swells Forever harnesses the power of contrast more than ever before, delivering some gritty stoner-oriented heavy psych jams (such as the song Daze), some doom-laden proto metal goodness (such as Raven Tree), and some mind-bending trips punctuated by weighty zeniths (such as ending track Dream of The Lead Sun). However, most tracks on Delirium give the listener a little bit of everything, encompassing an album that's both gloriously heavy and blissfully intoxicating. 

Favorite Track: Daze 

 

 4.) Dorre - Fortress

Dorre is a proto metal band that expertly layers psychedelic rock into their sound, adding a fluidity that counteracts the abrasiveness of the metal textures. Ultimately, this creates kaleidoscopic atmospheres that are tethered to, but no bogged down by the weightiness of metal. The band also utlilizes many progressive concepts such as longer-form song arrangement, a skillful use of building, and the resulting changable nature of each track. Knowing this, it's not surprising that one of the best qualities of Dorre's latest release Fortress is its sheer unpredictability, keeping the listener excitedly on the edge of their seat for the entire duration of this enthralling album. In fact, the cinematic quality of Fortress makes it thoroughly immersive; there's absolutely no way to listen without being plunged into its delightfully volatile tale.

Favorite Track: Two Crawled Up The Mountain

 

3.) The Boy That Got Away - Peacetime

Equally heavy and heartfelt, there's not a subpar track to be had on Peacetime, the latest album from Danish grungy stoner rockers The Boy That Got Away. This is an album that sees the band continuing to do what they do best: expertly intertwining the expressiveness of melody with an undercurrent of raw heaviness and grit. On Peacetime, you'll find sandblasted desert textures, familiar heavy rock tones, stoner groove, metallic steadfastness, and murky grunge; in a nutshell: a whole lot of genuine soul counterbalanced by the stark weight of reality. 

I do have to make note of the phenomenal vocals of frontman Tim Alvin Bostrom. Impassioned and powerful with a classic grunge tone, his voice is often a dead ringer for the late Chris Cornell as he belts out each line with unfeigned feeling. 

Favorite Track: Hellraiser 

2.) The Pighounds - Tutti Frutti 

Tutti Frutti, the third full-length release from Dortmund grungy garage rockers The Pighounds, is an album that's as spirited as it is therapeutic. While it's safe to say that The Pighounds draw from garage, stoner, grunge, alternative, punk, and psychedelic rock influences, their overall sound is uniquely their own. Most notably, this is a sound that forms very naturally, in a gradual and layered way, just as human emotion would. On Tutti Frutti, you'll find sadness and pain, but it's always met with an equal amount of optimism and healing, all to the tune of some irresistibly catchy rock music. 

Favorite Track: Pay to Play

You can read my full review here.

 

 1.) Motorpsycho - (self-titled)

It's quite likely that you've heard of Motorpsycho, an avant-garde progressive rock group from Norway who's been creating their eclectic style of psychedelic progressive rock since the late 80s. On their latest release, a self-titled double album (appropriately eloquent for this magnum opus), Motorpsycho will mentally seat you before the most captivating theater performance, complete with engaging main acts, a mix of soothing and delightfully peculiar interludes, and mysterious B-plots. Additionally, the inclusion of saccharine but riff-heavy pop rock anthems such as Stanley (Tonight's the Night) really set the album apart, appealing to a wide variety of heavy music fans. The vehicle for the primary plot line is Motorpsycho's signature brand of prog, which is always both futuristic and comfortingly retro, incorporating elements of 70s heavy rock, space rock, jazz, proto metal, and above all, an immeasurable number of elaborate twists and turns that propel the listener on a most immersive mind flight.

Favorite Track: Stanley (Tonight's the Night) 

You can read my quick review here.

 

That's it for February! I hope you enjoy these amazing albums as much as I did. 

As always, don't forget to check out this month's Doom Chart, and be sure to show your favorite heavy underground artists some much-deserved love! Every stream, purchase, like, follow, share, and comment helps spread the word!