Defects Detail Artificial Icons, Featuring Matt Heafy on “Signs”
Defects pair a renewed two-guitar lineup with Jim Pinder’s production and a Matt Heafy guest appearance on their second album, Artificial Icons.
A second album, two new members and a guest from Trivium: Defects have several moving parts behind Artificial Icons. The follow-up to 2024’s Modern Error is listed for October 16, 2026 through Mascot Records, with Jim Pinder producing and Matt Heafy appearing on “Signs.”
Mascot’s current lineup names Tony Maue on vocals, James Threadwell and Orlando Morris-Winmill on guitars, and Rowan Jack on drums. Morris-Winmill and Jack are the new arrivals in this version of the band.
Two guitarists, one new chapter
For guitar listeners, that makes this more than a familiar-name feature. The current two-guitar lineup provides one point of interest, while the Heafy collaboration adds a connection with Trivium.
The label describes an album that moves between wider social themes and personal conflict. “Signs” addresses war; the title track tackles control and deception. Elsewhere, “The Other Side,” “State of Mind” and “Afterglow” turn toward loss, manipulation and self-examination.
What to check first
The eleven-song listing includes “Heresy,” “Where Did I Go Wrong,” “Critic” and “All For Nothing.” “Signs” is the obvious starting point for anyone arriving through Heafy, but comparing it with a non-guest track should give a clearer sense of Defects’ own identity.
Which tells you more about a developing metal band: the high-profile collaboration, or the song where it stands entirely on its own?
Defects performing at Rockharz, Ballenstedt, Germany, 4 July 2025. Archival photograph. Photo: Stefan Bollmann, via Wikimedia Commons, attribution-only licence. Cropped and resized.
