On The Radar: Crooked Royals, Le Rox, Mostly Under 3, Oceans On Orion, ODC, Profiler, Re:O & S.Y.G.M.A.

Our latest edition of On The Radar brings you brand new music from new rock and metal bands we’ve interviewed from around the world. This month, our collection of new releases brings you new tracks and a new EP by bands hailing from France, Germany, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, the UK and the US.

You can listen to all of these bands and many, many more in our range of Spotify playlists, which you can find at the bottom of this page and via our Listen To GigRadar page. But for now, get your weekend started by checking out these eight great new bands in chronological order.

Crooked Royals – CREATE ME // ERASE ME

Comfortably one of our favourite discoveries running this site, New Zealand band Crooked Royals blend intense technical metalcore with delicious melodic moments. We first discovered the Auckland quintet back in August 2018 around the release of their superb debut EP Interwine. Since then, they’ve gone from strength to strength with follow-up EP Rumination and debut album Quarter Life Daydream, which also has an excellent instrumental version. And we were excited to see they dropped their third EP, CREATE ME // ERASE ME, last week.

The EP opens up with the vicious Persona, which starts with interesting electronic noises giving way to heavy guitars and big screamed vocals that flow into laid-back clean vocals. That drops into crushing guitars with distant eerie synths, before building up to a big singalong chorus. A second chorus gives way to chugging guitars that flow into a big atmospheric section with rolling drums, which builds up in intensity before a calming conclusion.

That’s followed by the lively Catch 22, which opens up with darting riff over heavy chords before a fun verse supported by a stabbing riff building up to a big chorus. A much heavier second verse follows, ending with wild fast-paced vocals. The pace drops around three minutes in, teeing up a powerful ending. Next is Kerosene, which opens with rolling drums and whispery vocals giving way to a delicious stabbing riff. It explodes into vicious vocals that suddenly drop into a calming melodic chorus, which ends with screamed vocals and wild guitar noises. The intensity drops before gradually building up to a conclusion led by a delicious stabbing riff.

The EP concludes in style with Effigy, which begins with laid back echoey vocals and synths that return either side of more intense vocals. It eventually begins to build with rolling drums and the vocals increasing in intensity, giving way to driving guitars, violin flurries and rolling drums, then a big cry of “This was never meant to last” ushers in a delicious guitar solo and a big singalong chorus. Just when you think it’s finished, a booming low-tuned guitar riff kicks in to bring the EP to an end.

You can follow Crooked Royals on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, grab their merch, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

Le Rox – Pain Relief

Speaking of bands we discovered a long time ago brings us to London punks Le Rox, who were our New Band of the Week back in August 2022. But we actually first found them via vocalist Laura Le Rox’s previous band Pretty Pistol way back in May 2017.

Le Rox, who recently signed to German label Red Tape Music, offer up loud, brash and angsty old-school punk that’s big on anger and emotions in what they describe as “sad girl sounds.” We first met them around the release of debut single Hold Me Down, which has been followed by a steady stream of singles, including the feisty Kill For You, Wake Up and last year’s God’s Run.

On the band’s progression, Laura told us: “It has been a bit of a whirlwind, back then we were still finding our footing and figuring out who we were and what Le Rox actually was, dropping the first ever single was scary especially because it was all still so new. We understand each other a lot more now with writing and performing and it gels. I still feel like we are learning everyday, I guess that keeps it interesting!”

Le Rox just released Pain Relief, released last week, which they say “channels pure desperation” and they considered not releasing as it was “too raw.” The band describe the track as a “cathartic exploration of heartache, self-destruction, and the cycle of damage and desire” that’s “fuelled by heartbreak and the aftermath of a toxic relationship.”

Pain Relief opens up with rolling guitars and drums dropping into lively guitars under Laura’s unmistakably edgy and energetic vocals. That flows into a feisty verse that ends with the line “I woke up again, But I think I’m better off dead,” that feeds into a big shoutalong chorus “Is it a drinking problem, You won’t know when I’m gone, Your choice of words could kill me, I can’t leave you alone.” A second chorus drops into a variety of different guitar flurries, before building up to a big final blast of the chorus.

On the track, Laura told us: “You never really know what’s coming with a release, you do so much befor hand to prepare and then it’s like fuck, it’s just out there, everything personal that I’ve written is just there for everyone to hear. The anxiety and stress is mad. Expect something loud, upbeat, raw and angry. I’m still a massive emo at heart. I doubt that will ever change.”

You can follow Le Rox on Facebook and Instagram, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

Mostly Under 3 – Fire In Your Eyes

A more recent discovery, German studio project Mostly Under 3 combines classic rock power with modern production, with a heavy focus on groove and atmospheric soundscapes. We wrote about the Grafschaft duo last week, since when they’ve already released latest single Fire In Your Eyes.

It opens up with a cool little synth sound that’s joined by organ and guitars that support lively opening vocals that builds up to a big chorus. The cool stabbing organ sound continues as heavier guitars come in for the second verse, and a second chorus bridges into a piercing guitar solo. That tees up another verse punctuated by big rolling drums, before concluding with a final blast of the chorus.

You can follow Mostly Under 3 on Facebook and Instagram, and check out their music on Spotify and YouTube.

Oceans On Orion – Met My Match

Israel’s Ocean On Orion aim to thrill with a distinctive “glam core metal” sound that combines metalcore and 80s influences with dramatic vocals, big riffs and lively instrumentals team. We first discovered the band in their previous guise of Hartsbane in 2019, before featuring the new band in January 2023, ahead of the release of their debut album Start From Nothing.

Describing the sound they’ve honed, frontman Lev Kerzhner told us: “We combine a lot of classic ‘glammish’ vocal harmonies and leads with heavier, core-inspired riffing. Some call this ‘happy metal,’ but I think it’s because we have so much fun on stage. Some call it modern metal etc… but we just do what we like naturally – first and foremost, having fun and easy-going with music creation, despite some serious lyric themes in our songs.”

The band just released their third single of this year Met My Match, which opens up with a cool keyboard sound that drops into lively guitar chords and drums. A funky little synth flurry tees up a laid-back verse that builds with punky guitars before flowing into a big chorus “And I know that nothing lasts forever, You did everything you thought that I’d do, Fell in love with someone, Now I’m picking up the pieces of my heart, From the cutting room floor, I told you that it’s easy, I know you didn’t plan it, But that’s how the story goes, Guess I’ve finally met my match.” The funky synths bridge into another laid-back verse and big chorus, which ends with heavier guitars and high-pitched synth sounds, before the pace drops to tee up a powerful final blast of the chorus.

On the track, the band said: “If you’ve ever sent a 2am text you instantly regretted, Met My Match is your anthem. This isn’t a breakup song – it’s the wreckage after impact, the echo of the last word you wish you hadn’t said, and the self-awareness that hits harder than any goodbye. It’s about admitting the damage – loudly, shamelessly, and realizing that sometimes your worst instincts are mirrored back at you. It’s for fans of honesty over elegance, for anyone who’s ever lost themselves loving someone who didn’t feel the same.”

You can follow Oceans On Orion on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

ODC – My Name Is Gold

One of our favourite French bands, ODC, is back with another tasty offering My Name Is Gold, which is the third single from their hotly anticipated upcoming debut album Twisted Love. We first discovered the Parisian quartet back in October 2020 and were instantly hooked on their rock meets nu-metal approach, which we kept up with through a steady stream of singles.

Back then, Celia told us: “ODC’s music style is a mix of heavy and modern metal that makes it unique. We mainly write about freedom: freedom to become whoever you wanna be, freedom of thought, freedom of action, freedom to live up to one’s fantasies.”

My Name Is Gold opens up in style with a delicious stabbing riff with cheeky record spins. It drops into Celia’s delicious vocals over atmospheric instrumentals, gradually intensifying as rolling drums creep in and exploding into a big catchy chorus “My name is Gold, Follow me, Swallow me, I am Gold, Craving more, Needing more, Gimme more.” That gives way to heavy guitars with a wild little synth sound, before the pace drops in another laid-back verse again building up to a big chorus. That gives way to rapped vocals that continue as heavy guitars and Celia’s cries of “Gimme more, Need more” bring the track to a close.

ODC’s debut album Twisted Love will be released on 31 October and, based on what we’ve heard so far through previous singles My Only Fan and Love, I Tore It Apart, it’s going to be an absolute banger.

You can follow ODC on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, and check out their music on Spotify, Deezer and YouTube.

Profiler – Dope

Another band we first met a long time ago is Bristol’s “nu-metal reawakening” Profiler. We first discovered the band when we made them our New Band of the Week back in December 2018, around the release of their third single. But they’ve been busy since, including their eponymous debut EP in 2022 and last year’s excellent debut album A Digital Nowhere.

Describing the Profiler sound back then, frontman Mike Evans told us: “Music sucked me in from the first time I heard Linkin Park’s Hybrid Theory album – honestly, since then, Nu-Metal is all I have wanted to do. The other lads in the band made me believe in Profiler – it all happened at the right time.”

The band just sent us their most recent single Dope, which was released at the end of July. It opens up with a stabbing riff over traditional record spinning noises dropping into engaging vocals, before intense vocals. The intensity increases with wild vocals building up to a crushing riff and screamed vocals, before dropping into powerful low-tuned vocals, record spins and intense vocals to bring the track to a close. And if you like the sound of that, check out more of the same on the previous single release Waste.

You can follow Profiler on Facebook and Instagram, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

Re:O – Crimson Desire

Japanese/British quartet Re:O fuse J Pop, dark pop and metal in a sound they described to us as “dark, energetic and intricate.” We first met the band last November, around the release of their catchy single The Haunted, when vocalist Rio told us: “It is very hard to categorise our music as one music genre. I am a Synth junkie, so I like listening to EDM, Drum and Bass, Industrial Techno, and electronic music, but at the same time I like heavy music like industrial rock and metal, metalcore, rock, and alternative metal.

“I would say our music is like pop goes industrial metal. But honestly, we have no idea. Some of our fans have described us as ‘Japancore’ at a few of our shows, stating it’s a blend of industrial metal, J-Pop, dark pop and metalcore. If you have any idea what genre we are, let us know, because we don’t have a clue, but honestly, we like it that way. We like that it’s not categorised into a single box.”

The band just released their ninth single Crimson Desire, which they tell us utilises visceral imagery of vampirism while: “Exploring the realisation that what you have is not enough despite the fact that you sacrificed most of your life to get where you are. The more you gain the more it fuels an unending hunger to further advance your goals and ambitions.” The track also sees Re:O take a bit of a departure from their signature sound of Japanese-style synths to focus on raw, heavy guitar riffs that bring “an eccentric and chaotic energy.”

Crimson Desire opens up with a pulsing synth that gives way to a stabbing guitar riff and heavier synths. Rio’s laid-back vocals come in and are answered by heavy guitars, before flowing into a big melodic chorus “My dry heart, Crying out for, Something more, Affection, Approval, Renown, They’ll never quench my thirst.” That drops into stabbing guitars and the piercing synth that bridge into another deliciously building verse and big chorus. The pace drops with rolling drums that continue under a lively guitar riff and big synths, teeing up another chorus that brings the track to a heavy ending.

You can follow Re:O on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and check out their music on Spotify, Bandcamp, Apple Music and YouTube.

S.Y.G.M.A. – Killing People

French duo S.Y.G.M.A offer up a powerful metal sound that combines elements like groove and melodic hardcore and they describe as “intense, unique and sophisticated.” We first discovered the duo of Farid Benyarou (lyrics and vocals) and Vince Trombini (composer, guitars, programming and production) around the release of their fourth single The Countdown back in December.

Back then, Vince told us: “We decided to self-produce the music we’d like to listen to, with the aim of expressing our creative sense and creating our own sound. The sound of S.Y.G.M.A could be a mix of different styles of metal, groove, hardcore, melodic with a 90s background turned into a modern style.”

They backed that up with Euphoria earlier this year, before releasing Killing People last month. The track opens up with rolling drums under whispery vocals joined by a stabbing guitar riff as the whispery vocals continue. That flows into an atmospheric chorus with dual vocals supported by guitars and synths, dropping into a lively riff as the whispery vocals return. The pace drops after the second chorus before heavier vocals and stabbing guitars give way to a piercing guitar solo. That feeds into another verse, before bridging into a final chorus.

You can follow S.Y.G.M.A on Instagram, and check out their music on Spotify, Bandcamp and YouTube.