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Black Magnet, the American industrial metal project led by multi-instrumentalist and vocalist James Hammontree, has been steadily carving out its place in the heavy music world over the past decade. Hallucination Scene in 2020 was a solid debut from the band, and Body Prophecy in 2022 was a clear step forward. But now, with their third full-length Megamantra, something has clicked with this band. This isn’t just a good band getting better — this is a full-blown leap into being a damn good band that’s going to turn quite a few heads.

Megamantra is Black Magnet‘s most ambitious and fully realized work to date. It’s a dense, dynamic barrage that pushes their industrial foundations into both harsher and more infectious directions. The album fuses punishing rhythms and anthemic energy with a punk-inspired urgency, creating something that feels all at once very methodical and volatile — but definitely violent and also pretty dancey at times.

Drenched in scorched-earth synths and serrated guitar work, Megamantra lurches forward like a steel-plated juggernaut that’s ruthless in its precision, yet heavy with this inner and unspoken dread. The result is an album that captures the inescapable tension of modern existence, with a healthy dose of sheer musical heaviness thrown in there for good measure.

Black Magnet has always played heavy, guitar-driven music, but Megamantra refines that vision into something sharper, darker, and far more immersive. This is like if Godflesh, Nine Inch Nails, Health, 3Teeth, Code Orange, and Author & Punisher all got together — and then some dudes from Deftones occasionally popped their heads in. I know that’s a lot of comparisons, but give this album a spin and you’ll see exactly what I mean.

After a brief and brooding intro, Black Magnet comes crashing in with the song “Endless,” unleashing lumbering grooves and low-tuned riffs that hit with full-force immediacy. And just from this one track, there’s already so much to say about Megamantra as an album.

First and foremost, the tonal palette on this album is ferocious. Black Magnet‘s sonic choices — amplified by Sanford Parker‘s crushing mix and Vlado Meller‘s precise mastering — place the rhythm section front and center. Black Magnet wields bass, drums, and low-end synthesizers like a hammer throughout Megamantra, and then uses fuzzy, staticky guitars and vocals to add serrated edges to the proverbial weapon. It’s monstrous.

And tied in with all that, Black Magnet has a great grip on how to combine acoustic drums with electronic elements. Even on “Endless,” you’ll catch pounding live drums locked in with programmed hi-hats, creating this relentless mechanical pulse. It’s human, it’s machine, it’s cyborg. And it fits the album’s aesthetic perfectly as it fuses flesh and steel into something brutally cohesive.

It’s not all sheer aural violence — or at least, not at the same unrelenting level as “Endless.” “Better Than Love” eases up just enough to let some softer, shimmering synths bleed through, riding atop a big, swaggering groove that’ll have your neck involuntarily snapping in time. Then there’s “Spitting Glass,” which plays like Molchat Doma suddenly deciding to crank their aggression level up about 200% — moody, hypnotic, a little dancey, but sharpened to a very lethal edge.

Black Magnet also explores a slower, more atmospheric side on tracks like “Coming Back Again” and “Night Tripping.” These cuts recall Nine Inch Nails‘ more restrained moments, where tension simmers just below the surface instead of exploding outright. It’s a welcome contrast, showing that Megamantra can brood and smolder just as effectively as it can throw you into a digital meat grinder.

If I have one real complaint about Megamantra, it’s how the album ends. “Night Tripping” is relatively subdued compared to the rest of the record, and it transitions seamlessly into “Birth” — a track that, in my opinion, should’ve been the closer. “Birth” feels like a perfect summation of everything Megamantra sets out to achieve. It’s aggressive but controlled, digital yet human, and carries an air of finality that makes it feel like a natural endpoint.

Instead, Black Magnet chooses to close with “Smokeskreen.” And to be clear, it’s a solid track — the chorus introduces a new sonic palette not really explored anywhere else on this album, which is interesting, but it disrupts the emotional and structural flow coming right at the end. Had it appeared earlier in the tracklist before “Birth,” it might’ve made more sense in the grand arc of the record. But it didn’t — it’s the closer, and it just kind of is what it is.

I wouldn’t call the songwriting on Megamantra super technical or even adventurous, but it doesn’t need to be. It’s not trying to dazzle you with complexity or impress anyone with sportsman-like musicianship — it’s all about hitting you with a dreadful feeling that you can move to, but also headbang to. And on that front, it delivers.

Even though Megamantra clocks in at just a little over 25 minutes, it never feels like it’s cutting itself short or holding anything back. The album makes excellent use of its runtime — every track feels fully realized, with ideas and themes that are explored to their natural conclusions. It’s not one of those records where you’re left thinking, “Oh, that could’ve used another verse,” or “That concept wasn’t quite finished.”

They know what elements they put on this record, and they wield them extremely effectively. In fact, the relatively short runtime works in the album’s favor. If it had gone on too long, there’s a good chance some of that raw intensity might’ve started to wear thin — or even the quieter parts might’ve started to get boring if they just kept going and going. Part of what makes Megamantra so effective is its sense of urgency. It hits hard, it quiets down where it needs to, it keeps the pressure on, and then it gets out before anything has a chance to stagnate.

It’s lean, it’s focused, and it doesn’t waste a second. Megamantra is a very solid 8 out of 10 for me. Black Magnet isn’t reinventing the genre or even doing something that’s going to send every industrial musician running to copy their super original ideas. They’re refining industrial through their own lens, sharpening the edges, pushing it forward, and putting out something concise and really well done.

I am excited to hear whatever Black Magnet does next, but in the meantime, I don’t see myself getting bored of Megamantra any time soon. Hey, thank you so much for watching! What did you think of the new Black Magnet record? Let me know in the comments below!