Heavy Metal Resource Reviews-Megadeth, Temple Balls, Michael Monroe, Mött, & Schattenmann

Index

As a longtime fan of Megadeth, it sucked to hear they were going to give us one more album, tour, then call it a day. I have been a fan since the first album and have really enjoyed the entire ride. Megadeth was special. They kept things pretty damned consistent with only small amounts of experimentation along the way. This new album to me is a bit of a return to the early days. You could say they have come full circle. There are plenty of speed moments, but at the core, it's the grit that has always been there. It's been a great ride and I am glad I took in quite a few shows along the way. I think the band have done a great job closing down their album releases with the music on this album. It's one of my favorite albums and a great way to end an amazing run. The album has been doing quite well and interest has been great. What a ride!

Release Date: January 23, 2026

I really dig these guys. I buy without hesitation now. The band write fairly catchy hard rock music. As I made my way through this album I felt like the similarities with the band H.E.A.T. were still evident, but as I listened, one other band kept popping in my mind. Sons Of Angels. Specifically the band's self titled album from 1990. The vibe on this new record reminds me a bit of that. It's a great batch of songs and they are fairly uniform in nature. Just a very fun groove to this album overall. I think the band is really hitting their stride at this point. While they retain their style and sound from record to record, you can feel the lift of confidence each time. The band evolve in their own way. If you are a fan of that late 80's and early 90's hard rock sound, this band is a very easy recommend. This will likely be one of my favorites of the new year!

Release Date: February 13, 2026

It's great to see such good output from artists like Michael Monroe.Sometimes time isn't very kind to some musicians, and then some just keep bringing the same quality they always have. Monroe fits into that latter category. I was a big fan of Hanoi Rocks early on and followed Michael's career through some of his solo stuff. This new record has some great tracks on it. A few more melodic oriented songs and the usual hard rockers fans have come to expect. The album starts off strong with 'Rockin' Horse'. A cool almost punk vibe on this one. Everything here is between the intensity of the opener and the more melodic 'Glitter & Dust'. The album feels pretty uniform in terms of quality and sticks to his usual style with some moments sounding vintage. I've been on a long rock 'n roll ride and Michael Monroe has been there most of the way. Another great record!

Release Date: February 20, 2026

MöTT is a veteran of the hard rock scene and has been writing songs for a long time. I wasn't familiar with his music, but came away from this new release pretty impressed. Just the guest list of musicians and singers shows the respect that Mott gets. One of my very favorites singers, Jeff Scott Soto lends a hand as does Chas West and a few other notable vocalists. There are many notable musicians such as Phil X, George Lynch and even Billy Sheehan that add their touch to the songs. The songs themselves are very impressive. Some very good bluesy stuff. A solid handful of melodic tracks. One of the more interesting tracks to me was the title track. Sounding very much in the vein of Van Halen in more ways than one. I feel there is very good diversity in the complete listen. This album was a surprise. Very good quality listen throughout!

Release Date: May 22, 2026

We've been following this band since early on in their career. They have been a very good quality band from the beginning and have been slowly evolving with each album. The music on each album tends to be fairly catchy with modern elements. Similarities to other Neue Deutsche Härte styled bands is evident. What feels new to me is some of the metalcore elements used on this album. I have been listening more to that particular genre so those particular moments popped out to me. I really dig where this band is musically right now. It's heavy, yet catchy. I feel songs are strong on this new album. Some of my personal favorites include 'Kamikaze Master', 'Schna-Na-Naps', 'Unmensch', 'Auf die Zunge', and 'Alter Ego'. There are many cool elements put together that just work well. This band is a lot of fun to keep an eye on. Another banger of a record!

Release Date: March 13, 2026