Unatoned
studio
ArtistMachine Head
CoverUnatoned.jpg
ReleasedApril 25, 2025
Recorded2024
Studio
GenreGroove metal, alternative metal
Length41:38
Label
Producer
Prev year2022

Unatoned (stylized as UNATØNED) is the eleventh studio album by American heavy metal band Machine Head, released on April 25, 2025, through Nuclear Blast and Imperium Recordings. It is the band's first album to feature Reece Scruggs on guitar.

At 41 minutes, Unatoned is Machine Head's shortest album.

Background and promotion

On February 17, 2024, Wacław Kiełtyka announced he had left Machine Head, explaining that Decapitated is his 'absolute No. 1 band' and that Decapitated and Machine Head are both active bands with overlapping tours, creating important scheduling conflicts.[1][2] In November 2024, the band announced a North American tour for 2025 with In Flames, Lacuna Coil and Unearth as support acts, and released a single, "These Scars Won't Define Us", which featured vocals from all of those bands in what Machine Head described as a "Wu Tang Clan-level thrash collaboration" (the album version does not include vocals from those bands); in doing so, the band announced its eleventh studio album.[3] The album's title, Unatoned, and release date of April 25 were announced in February, along with a second single, "Unbound", and an accompanying music video; the album will be the band's first to feature Scruggs,[4] who was being treated as a full member of the band by December.[5]

Reception

Unatoned received generally positive reviews from music critics upon release. Dan McHugh of Distorted Sound gave it a score of 7/10, writing "UNATØNED may not be Machine Head‘s finest hour but it is certainly loaded with plenty of exciting moments that will grab your attention and encourage repeat listens."[6] Angry Metal Guy were more negative, giving it a score of 2.0/5 and stating "With solid cuts in the front and lazy ones in the back, UnatØned is an unbalanced mish-mash of singles and filler pieces."[7]

Track listing

All track titles are stylized in all caps, and every letter "o" is written as "ø"; for example, "Unbound" is stylized as "UNBØUND".

Personnel

Machine Head

  • Robb Flynn – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
  • Reese Scruggs – lead guitar
  • Jared MacEachern – bass, backing vocals
  • Matt Alston – drums, percussion

Production

Charts

Chart performance for Unatoned
Chart (2025)Peak
position
French Albums (SNEP)[8]43
French Rock & Metal Albums (SNEP)[9]4
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[10]99

References

  1. ^ Blabbermouth (2024-02-17). "VOGG Confirms His Departure From MACHINE HEAD: 'It Was Bound To Happen Sooner Or Later', He Says". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. Retrieved 2024-02-18.
  2. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Archived May 29, 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-02-18.
  3. ^ Machine Head (November 12, 2024). "Machine Head North American tour 2025". machinehead1.com. Archived from the original on March 29, 2025. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
  4. ^ Mills, Matt (February 18, 2025). "Machine Head announce new album Unatoned, hear ferocious single Unbound here". Metal Hammer. Retrieved February 18, 2025.
  5. ^ "Machine Head is putting finishing touches on eleventh studio album". Blabbermouth.net. December 5, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2025.
  6. ^ McHugh, Dan (2025-04-25). "ALBUM REVIEW: UNATØNED - Machine Head". Distorted Sound Magazine. Retrieved 2025-04-27.
  7. ^ Grier, Dr A. N. (2025-04-21). "Machine Head - UnatØNed Review". Angry Metal Guy. Retrieved 2025-04-27.
  8. ^ "Top 200 Albums du semaine 18, 2025" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique. Retrieved July 21, 2025.
  9. ^ "Top 100 Rock & Metal Albums du semaine 18, 2025" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique. Retrieved July 21, 2025.
  10. ^ "Top 200 Álbuns Semana 18 de 2025" (in pt-pt). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. p. 2. Retrieved May 9, 2025.