BABYMETAL - METAL FORTH (Album Review)

BABYMETAL - METAL FORTH
‍Released: August 8, 2025

Lineup

Su-metal // Vocals & Dance
Moametal // Screams & Dance
MomoMetal // Screams & Dance
Kami Band // Guitar, Bass, Drums 

Online

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It’s been fifteen years since BABYMETAL formed and brought kawaii metal to the international audience. Having finally seen them live at KNOTFEST earlier this year (review here), I can attest to their magical power over an audience, as the combination of metal and Japanese idol genres proved impossible to resist. This fusion is best represented on their first trilogy of albums, with their fourth release, The Other One (2023), being more experimental and conceptual. I enjoyed the band’s progressive take on their sound so to be honest, METAL FORTH is more of a retreat than a way forward. The band now describe The Other One as an alternate universe concept record, making METAL FORTH their fourth album in the canon. Or something. 

If you’ve caught any of the five singles released already then you’re aware the album features an array of collaborations. They largely represent a fusion of BABYMETAL’s synth pop style with each of their collaborators. The album opens with ‘from me to you’, in which pop-core star Poppy enters the kawaii metal world with her trademark cuteness and deep vein gutturals. It’s a match up that preserves the BABYMETAL style of the first three albums, making it a perfect entry point. Their 2023 single ‘METALI!!’ is also a distinct BABYMETAL song with guest guitarist Tom Morello only contributing a flashy solo. 

The other singles get fired off in quick succession, with this batch sounding more like their collaborators leading the way and adding BABYMETAL afterwards. There’s a real variety to the guests though and it’s likely to pay off for fans of both bands. Electric Callboy’s ‘RATATATA’ remains an absolute banger, a perfect party anthem and earworm as soon as you've heard it once. Given the humorous nature of both bands it’s a clean fit and you’ll be left wondering why there isn’t a whole album or EP in this style.

I’m not sure whether this mimicry always pays off in a satisfying way. They go full deathcore on ‘Song 3’, with Slaughter to Prevail providing high tempo and breakdowns that give BABYMETAL a new level of brutal heaviness. Alex Terrible sings in Japanese, Russian and English, arguably softening his tough guy persona. It pushes both bands to incorporate each other’s signature elements and might see more crossover in their fanbases, which the cynic in me says is entirely the point.

Recent release ‘Kon! Kon!’ sees BM dual with Indian nu metal heroes Bloodywood. It’s their second collaboration this year, after BABYMETAL guested on ‘Bekhauf’ from Bloodywood’s album Nu Delhi. Like that track, ‘Kon! Kon!’ is very much a Bloodywood song with their trademark Indian instrumentation and rap vocals. It’s a killer tune for fans of both bands, with BABYMETAL bringing their sound into the genres of other bands. However, the first half of the album feels like a compilation of collaborations rather than a real BABYMETAL album and whilst enjoyable, I found myself missing some of The Other One’s more serious music experimentation.

Of the new collaborations, their song with Spiritbox - ‘My Queen’, is an absolute rager. It gives the band a metalcore edge, showing off Su-metal’s vocal prowess with Courtney LaPlante lurking in the background, appearing on the final bridge. The chorus is just epic. On the other hand ‘Sunset Kiss’ features Polyphia, whose prog rock style leads BABYMETAL into the strange realm of summer rock anthems. It’s an odd fit, but the guys give the ladies some djent riffs and key changes to sing over.

It’s on the BABYMETAL only tracks where the band stretch their sound. ‘KxWxlxl’ is a hip hop song that moves between riffs and dub on the verses, making it a nu metal fest that has no comparison in their back catalogue. It’s a curiosity but I didn’t love it. ‘Algorism’ is a basic BM song with a driving up-tempo chorus and heavy riffs complimented by synths. Su-metal remains a fantastic singer and new addition MomoMetal providing great gutturals. ‘White Flame  -白炎-’ is the best of these songs, with a cool power metal influence of fast paced musicianship giving the ladies a chance to carry the song’s melody. It’s probably my favourite track on the album. 

METAL FORTH is a strange listening experience, shifting sounds with each collaboration and pushing BABYMETAL into new sub genres. It speaks to their standing that they’ve managed to pull so many rising forces in the metal world, from different countries, into the BABYMETAL universe. METAL FORTH positions them for greater world domination but they lose some of their identity when they appear as vocal guests on someone else’s music. The result is an album that feels like a rollercoaster; it’s fun to ride once but you’ll be looking for better thrills elsewhere. 

METAL FORTH is out August 9, 2025 via Capitol Records / Universal Music. Pre order here. 

Words by KJ Draven @kjdraven