Review: Hyena / Risingfall - "Heavy Metal Heroes"

Release date: 19/06/2026

4–6 minutes

The Nwothm

Dying Victims presents Heavy Metal Heroes, a special split EP uniting Peru’s Hyena and Japan’s Risingfall, released on CD and 12-inch vinyl.

Heavy metal continues to surge worldwide, driven by underground bands who honour the legacy of the original heavy metal heroes. Heavy Metal Heroes captures that spirit across continents, bringing together two rising forces who share the same commitment to true, traditional metal.

From Cajamarca in Peru, Hyena return after touring internationally in support of their Dying Victims debut album “About Rock and Roll”. Their contribution to this release marks the first glimpse of their forthcoming second album. The two new tracks are raw, energetic and steeped in the turn-of-the-1980s style that defines the band, delivered with even greater power and charisma.

From Tokyo, Risingfall continue their upward climb following their 2022 Dying Victims full-length “Rise or Fall” and their independently released EP “Dungeon’s Call”. After appearing at Germany’s Keep It True Rising Festival, the band has firmly established itself among today’s most dedicated champions of classic heavy metal. Their two new songs here showcase sharp riffs, strong melodies and a distinctly Eastern interpretation of old-school steel.

Heavy Metal Heroes stands as a testament to real underground heavy metal, forged in tradition, carried across borders and kept alive by musicians who remain loyal to its sound and spirit. To support the release, Hyena and Risingfall will join forces for a co-headlining run of three shows in Tokyo this June.

Review

Hyena – 1 The Evil Monk rumbles in with tom work before diving in the deep end head first. The riffs here are simple yet sound quite eerie in many ways. It pounds along with ferocious bite while the vocals chop and change between powerful delivery and a darker lower register. There is a big drop down to a slightly more mid tempo where the double kick pattern carries the solo section. However over time this develops with more intensity and variation in the lead ideas. It jumps back to the faster tempo like its been poked with a cattle prod to take it out to the end!

Hyena – 2. Tokyo Nights jolts into action continuing with more pace and electricity running through every note played. Big chords ring out while one lead fires off the melodies. This feels more exciting and has a lot more punch to it! There are some interesting spoken vocal ideas and ideas that come part way through. Soon enough we hot a super locked in rhythm section before the solo section explodes on the listener. By the time the solo is done the band go all out for another intense chorus section to lead us out.

Risingfall – 1. Rock Forever kicks things with a punishing repeating riff before digging in with the thick and meaty verse. The vocal work comes straight at you taking centre stage. Every thing has this awesome flow and before you know it you sail into the huge sounding chorus. Mighty open chords and fiery vocal work take the charge here and it catches your attention. The structure goes around again before we land on a solo section that absolutely rips before get thrown into another big chorus and all out end section that leaves you wanting more!

Risingfall – 2. Twilight opens things up with dark hungry rhythm work before it transitions into a mid tempo ride. There is so much weight here with the rolling bass and drum work as well as the lower guitar ideas that create atmosphere and menace. As I go through the song I can imagine me and my buddies dancing around with a beer in our hands having a good time. Though interestingly enough, there is a moment where it moves to a mellow loving passage where a gentle and beautiful solo sings on top of acoustic play. Things gradually build back up on top of a rolling snare pattern. Then boom! A shock to the system occurs with another razor sharp solo lightning things up.

Then it gets interesting! The music picks up the pace, the beers go flying and the mosh pit comes into action. Thunderous drumming of thrash and double kick cause a storm while the guitars shred and the bass makes your bones vibrate. All while the vocals command this excellent song!

Conclusion

All four tracks show exactly why Hyena and Risingfall work so well together on this split. Each band brings its own flavour, yet both hit with the same commitment to speed, grit and classic heavy metal spirit. Hyena tear through their songs with sharp riffs, locked in rhythms and that wild burst of energy that feels like someone plugged the whole band straight into a generator. Risingfall counter with weight, atmosphere and huge melodic moments before launching into full throttle chaos when it counts. By the time the final section erupts and everything kicks into high gear, you are left buzzing from the solos, the pounding drums and the sheer force of it all. It is the kind of release that makes you want to hit repeat, crack open another beer and dive straight back into the pit.