These heavy bands are touring the country together, but they don't have much in common. Black Tusk's music is a gnarled amalgam of sludge, thrash, and death metal, following in the swampy tradition of their hometown of Savannah, Georgia's celebrated scene. The band's new album, Pillars of Ash, is their first since bassist Jonathan Athon died after a motorcycle accident in late 2014—it's a thunderous tribute to a fallen brother. Holy Grail, on the other hand, eschews the rough edges of modern metal in favor of the genre's more traditional sounds: chugging riffs, twin-guitar shredding, and skyscraping vocals from the band's arena-ready singer, James Paul Luna. Holy Grail's new album, Times of Pride and Peril, is one of the catchiest heavy albums of 2016—a bracing blast of clean lines, unabashed grandeur, and massive melodies. BEN SALMON