In episode 257 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas compares the things that make each sub-genre of metal cheesy and cringe. All of us have a genre of metal we look at as silly, but do we overlook the excesses of our own favorite styles? I'm even...

In episode 257 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas compares the public's response to misconduct from rock stars versus people in the Epstein files. Both cases seem to be above the law thanks to their fame and wealth, but people like Marilyn Manson...

In episode 256 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas is breaking down the best new metal albums that released in January 2026! From Black Metal, Progressive Death Metal, Post Metal, Metalcore, Technical Death Metal, and everything in between! If you...

In episode 255 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas explains how Megadeth's retirement is a sign of the decline of heavy metal. Who is next to retire? Judas Priest? Iron Maiden? Metallica? Who will take up the mantle and carry the torch for the next...

In episode 254 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas breaks down the AI music policies of Bandcamp versus Spotify. We then analyze how payment incentives shape each company's stance on generative AI Music. These factors help explain why each company...

In episode 253 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas reacts to "10 Modern Metal Trends That Need To Stop In 2026" by MetalBIRB. We made a lot of these same criticisms about modern metal and metalcore a little over year ago. It looks like the core kids...

In episode 252 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas is counting down his five favorite metal albums that don't fit the normal criteria. This is the episode where we go outside the normal parameters. You know we like it weird here! My favorite oddball...

In episode 251 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas is counting down his five favorite extreme progressive metal albums of 2025. This is an extreme metal show, and thus my progressive picks are also extreme... and beautiful. Let me know what you...

In episode 250 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas is counting down his five favorite black metal albums of 2025, but the title says ten right? This week I am joined by a mystery guest who is also bringing their top 5, which will be radically...

In episode 249 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas is counting down his five favorite black metal albums of 2025! For my tastes I prefer my black metal on the more artistic side versus the raw primal side. This list will reflect my tastes, but fret...

In episode 248 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas is counting down his five favorite thrash metal albums of 2025! The big guns brought their A game this year. We've got ripping thrash albums from legends and young blood alike. It was a good year...

In episode 247 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas votes in the 2025 Nik Nocturnal Awards. There are numerous categories spanning breakdowns, metalcore, deathcore, hardcore, modern metal, and even some extreme metal like death metal and black metal....

In episode 246 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas breaks down Rick Beato's latest rant about Heavy Metal's declining popularity. What did Rick Beato get right? What did he get woefully wrong? Is metal really on the decline or are times just...

In episode 245 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas breaks down the scam that someone used to land an AI song as number 1 on a Billboard chart. Will metal music be next to have AI music on the charts? Then we compare that scam to big business scams...

In episode 244 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas compares the practices of masked bands like Slipknot, Ghost, Sleep Token, President, Gwar, Mudvayne, Gaerea, Dogma, and more to figure out which bands are wearing masks for artistic reasons and...

In episode 243 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas sits down with Roger Merit of Agnostic Front to chat about the band's history, their new album Echoes In Eternity, and what he thinks about the current generation of hardcore punk bands like Knocked...

In episode 242 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas explores why some metalheads harbor such hatred for rap and hip-hop music. There's one obvious answer that we won't spend too much time on, because the other reasons are much more interesting. Join...

In episode 241 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas responds to Andrew Lee's video essay titled "How Heavy Metal Upholds White Supremacy." As an Asian metalhead growing up in the deep south of America, a lot of what Andrew pointed out resonated with...

In episode 240 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas sits down with Tommy T. Baron of Coroner to discuss their triumphant return after thirty years! Coroner was considered one of the most technical and progressive thrash metal bands of the late 80s...

In episode 239 of Heavy Metal Philosophy, Jon Barbas recounts one of his favorite memories covering heavy metal shows. While covering a Behemoth and Arch Enemy show, a local Atlanta band called Silly Goose crashed the party and demanded to be heard....