Fates Messenger’s new single Eternal War, featuring Tim Williams of Vision of Disorder, is out today. It marks the second major release from the band since their formation in late 2023, rising from the remnants of UK hardcore and metalcore acts Above All, Romeo Must Die, and Stampin‘ Ground. The track leads into their upcoming EP Eternal War, due August 22 via Greyline Records—a new independent label led by the band’s frontman Tony Maddocks.
The track is a direct, DIY declaration. “‘Eternal War’ is a raw and unflinching reflection of the mental battles we all face,” the band states. “Having Tim Williams… was an absolute honour—his unmistakable vocal presence brought a new level of intensity… This track wasn’t created in a polished studio environment; it was a true DIY effort, recorded in our homes over countless sleepless nights.”
This statement holds in both sonic character and lyrical content. “Voices in my head / Twisted and controlling / Dark thoughts in my mind,” the song opens, setting the tone for a record steeped in psychological and existential unrest. The chorus pushes this further—“We fight the war inside our mind / The battle rages so deep inside.”
The full Eternal War EP, recorded by the band and mixed by Stu McKay (Desolated, Malevolence, Ingested), with mastering by Scott Atkinson (Cradle of Filth, Sylosis), consists of six tracks. Each carries forward themes of internal decay, mass violence, and religious and political corruption. Maddocks calls it “a culmination of everything we are—hard-earned experience, raw anger, and a refusal to be passive in a world that’s spiraling into darkness.”
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Lyrically, songs such as Hellstorm speak to annihilation on a mass scale: “Death to a promised land / Stripped to nothing by the greed of man… Hellstorm from above.” Elsewhere, Doomloop outlines a nihilistic cycle of societal self-destruction: “Repeat the catastrophe… our flesh burns away / We choke on ash.”
The EP includes a cover of Master Killer by Merauder, offering a brutal homage with tight vocal phrasing and rhythmic clarity, while Bleed Again injects a tone of desperation-driven resilience: “We need to bleed to feel alive again… Break free from the chains that hold us down.”
Closing track Bonechapel, which features Al Llewellyn, brings together the record’s central motifs. “We walk alone, the damned as we march to our graves… Pray to the gods of old, in salvation we bathe in blood.” It’s a final movement drenched in imagery of sacrifice and submission, reinforced by the band’s insistence on facing darkness head-on.
Following the band’s live debut supporting Earthtone9 in London and the release of their first single They Walk Among Us, the new material makes clear that Fates Messenger aren’t approaching from the margins. With this record, they’re confronting collapse, both internal and societal, with a firm hand.
Upcoming shows include July 25 in Wellingborough (Northants Rocks), September 6 in Chelmsford (Hotbox), and October 25 in London (New Cross Inn). The Eternal War EP drops August 22.
