Welcome to another Album of the Month post, and the first from the second half of the year. Readers of the June edition, and of Our Favourite Albums of 2025 So Far will know that we at The Subway have been more than a little depressed by the lacklustre output of 2025 so far. Despite a bold start when our reviewers were salivating over everything, this unrelenting summer has been something of a desert with only occasional oases to stay our unquenchable thirst for good prog. Is July a cessation of the midness? Well, not really. But we did, as ever, find a couple of gems to tide us over until the year’s most hotly anticipated album: that’s right, the new Sabrina Carpenter record with the cover where she’s been led around by her hair on all fours like a dog is the album that’s going to save music. Anyway, I found some really cool avant-garde metal this month that I highly recommend, Ian’s repping the grandly atmospheric post-rock, we’ve some chunky-riffed black metal courtesy of Daniel, and Vince has some intense, mathy metalcore with an electronica twist, and Andy’s gone back to the seventies and brought some authentically Nixon-era proggy heavy metal back with him. Make yourself a drink, get comfy, and peruse our selection.

---

Calva Louise – Edge of the Abyss
Recommended for fans of: Rolo Tomassi, Poppy, Holy War, As Everything Unfolds
Picked by: Vince

Something I love about music is you never know when it will surprise you. I went into UK metallers’ Calva Louise’s fourth LP, Edge of the Abyss, expecting another uninspiring release from a band I’d never heard of. That was my mistake, because they took my premeditated disappointment and cast it into a multiversal shredder, wherein I was torn asunder and remade anew via mind-flaying style shifts blending together skronky metalcore, Latin American rhythms, and dancey electronica. Jess Allanic’s unhinged multilingual vocal assault stands as one of my favorite performances this year; her ability to jump from psycho-sweet cleans to throat-shredding screams across English and Spanish lyrics is simply mesmerizing. Likewise, her bandmates’ ability to meet their charismatic frontwoman at every turn leads to strong songwriting and dialed in performances. The freneticism may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but if you’re looking for something fresh and furious, do yourself a favor and give Edge of the Abyss a spin.

You might also like: WTF, Aimless, Lo Que Vale, El Umbral, Hate in Me
Related links: Bandcamp | Facebook | original review

---

Abigail Williams – A Void Within Existence
Recommended for fans of: Emperor, The Black Dahlia Murder, Carach Angren
Picked by: Daniel

I feel like Abigail Williams (the girl) is pointing at me in a Salem courtroom, accusing me of witchcraft, because A Void Within Existence is a call to repentance for those of us who haven’t been paying attention to Abigail Williams (the band). Guilty as charged. The riffs are fiery torches in the night, the blast beats hammer down like so many gavels, and moments of eerie calm that feel like the hush before the verdict. The album is intense without being all brimstone, and beautiful without losing its edge. Blending ethereal atmosphere, technical precision, and a knack for knowing when to unleash the fury and when to let the music breathe.

You might also like: No Less Than Death, Embrace the Chasm, Talk to Your Sleep, Void Within
Related links: Bandcamp | original review

---

Mario Infantes – Bitácora
Recommended for fans of: Igorrr, Wardruna, Eolya, Forndom
Picked by: Christopher

Do you want an album that feels like a walk in fresh summer rain? Do you want an album that makes you cognizant of the staggering expanse that is our planet? Do you want an album that makes you worry the voice in your head you try to suppress is hammering its way out of your skull? If you answered “yes” to all of these and added “and I want them all at once,” then do I have the album for you! Mario Infantes (Cult of Lilith) explores a wealth of ideas in his avant-garde sophomore, blending unhinged Igorrr-esque metal with new age influences and a wealth of world folk traditions. A talented multi-instrumentalist and varied vocalist with a whole host of guests in tow, Infantes’ real achievement is the way in which he manages to make a manner of disparate and potentially jarring elements flow seamlessly; to make the experimental feel effortlessly accessible. There’s something profound, holistic, lurking within Bitácora, and it’s well worth seeking it out.

You might also like: Streams, Sírenu, Cianuro
Related links: Bandcamp | original review

---

We Lost the Sea – A Single Flower
Recommended for fans of: Godspeed You! Black Emperor, This Will Destroy You, Explosions in the Sky
Picked by: Ian

“Good things take time” may be a bit of a tired expression, but a deeply true one nonetheless, and few albums exemplify that old saw quite like A Single Flower. From the glacial yet inexorably advancing musical crescendoes that fill its sprawling track lengths, to the sizable six-year development cycle of the album itself, to the fact that it took several listens for its desolate, gorgeous compositions to truly weave their way into my psyche, everything about this album is the very definition of a slow burn. This is post-rock at its finest, an album whose powerful intentionality and driving force behind every dynamic buildup and teardown creates a monolithic testament to beauty in the face of adversity.

You might also like: A Dance With Death, Bloom (Murmurations at First Light), Blood Will Have Blood
Related links: Bandcamp | original review

---

Phantom Spell – Heather & Hearth
Recommended for fans of: Iron Maiden, Rush, Uriah Heep
Picked by: Andy

It really shouldn’t take much more to convince you to listen than “Heather & Hearth is like if Iron Maiden wrote a 70s Rush album.” And it’s glorious. Starting with the twelve minute epic “The Autumn Citadel” with it’s simple yet infectious chorus, galloping rhythms, retro synths, and bombastic buildup in the last third, Phantom Spell waste no time in proving that their sophomore release is one of the best trad records of the year. I mean, it starts off with what’s easily a top five song of the year. It’s not the most complex or innovative record out there, but again, it’s Iron Maiden meets Rush, and that’s enough to keep this prog fan happy as a clam.

You might also like: The Autumn Citadel, Heather & Hearth
Related links: Bandcamp | original review

---