Brisbane progressive metalcore juggernaut Aeon Nexus returns in full force with their deliciously macabre new 3-track Final Girl EP, beginning with the release of the titular single on August 21st 2026, followed by the full EP drop on September 4th. The EP marks the quartet’s first release featuring guitarist Jordan Gray and drummer Jesse Nikolic, who were welcomed to the band in 2025.
In the 12 months since Aeon Nexus reformed their lineup, the band have amassed a slew of noteworthy live performances, including local support for prominent national and international tours by FATE GEAR (Japan), Be’lakor, Persefone (Andorra) in October 2025 and Lord of the Lost in February 2026, and subsequently headlining a stage at the Shredfest metal festival in May. Prior to that, the band had built a strong reputation not only for captivating yet brutal live experiences, but also for the taste-making impact of their previous releases. Upon releasing their debut EP Positive Disintegration in 2024, Aeon Nexus was selected by Wall of Sound as that week’s feature artist for their Aussie Heavyweights and Hitmakers playlist. The band amassed 25,000 views on their Sony Catchlight Film Festival award-nominated music video for single The Choice within a fortnight of release.
Each of the three tracks on the Final Girl EP represents a different element in the melting pot of Aeon Nexus’ complex, multi-faceted brand of progressive metalcore. Taking influence from a diverse range of genre heavyweights, from Periphery, VEXED and ERRA right through to the technical brutality of Archspire, this EP showcases the versatility of the new Aeon Nexus lineup and sound. The 5.5-minute title track interweaves cascading 80s synths with soaring soprano vocals, polyrhythmic groove and crushing slam breakdowns, painting a theatrical, visceral auditory soundscape. Aurora, by contrast, is a darkly sweet ode with moments of frenzy and impassioned, anthemic choruses, and Hydra infuses nu-metal flavours with the band’s signature groovy riffs for a defiant sign-off note.
To make these blood-soaked offerings an aural feast for the senses, Aeon Nexus turned to longtime production collaborator Chris Themelco of Monolith Studios Melbourne for mixing and mastering of the 3-track EP, while drum tracking and engineering was completed at Pulpitation Studios in Brisbane. Track artwork was created by Alex Wilton.
Aeon Nexus reprised their collaboration with videographer Seabass Snaps to bring the ambitious vision of Final Girl to life through cinema. Filmed on set at horror maze and alternative arts space EvilCorp Haunted Attractions Australia, the Final Girl music video is a gruesomely entertaining spectacle that pays tongue-in-cheek tribute to 1980s slasher films while making a bold feminist statement. The video narrative follows the abduction of an “innocent” bride and her two companions by a sadistic serial killer, and the trio’s desperate attempts to escape through the killer’s halls of horrors. Ending with the bride as the sole survivor, the video critically examines the “final girl” trope in horror films, inviting the viewer to explore important but unsettling questions around the fetishisation of female pain and victimisation in true crime and horror.
Aeon Nexus will be celebrating the launch of the Final Girl single on the day of release, Friday August 21st, with a launch show at Banshees Bar & Artspace supported by KillPill and The Graveyard Club. Tickets can be purchased via the Banshees Bar website.
Pre-save the Final Girl single release here.
