Published 4th February

In this issue of Metal Hammer, we mourn the loss of Alexi ‘Wildchild’ Laiho, who tragically passed away at the end of 2020. His friends, band and peers pay a moving tribute. Elsewhere in the mag, Epica celebrate their new beginning, Architects tell us all about their bold new album, and we relive the birth of thrash. Tribulation look to the future after a significant line-up change, Wardruna help us connect with ancient traditions, and we look back at the times metal hit the mainstream headlines. A.A. Williams turns us all to emotional pudding (read it, you’ll understand), Cult Of Luna’s Johannes Persson invites us into his record collection, and Alice Cooper talks ballads and Bowie, make-up and mentoring. Kreator revisit the making of Pleasure To Kill, Perturbator embraces the dark side in the studio, and Accept’s Wolf Hoffmann explains why he’s a robot. We get the lowdown on the best new artists, and bring you the latest news and more than 50 album reviews! Plus there’s a massive playlist featuring loads of the bands in the issue!