Beastwars singer battling cancer, can't work for six months

The front man for Wellington metal act Beastwars is undergoing treatment for cancer.

The band confirmed in a Facebook post that Matt Hyde is suffering from Non-Hodgkin lymphoma and had received chemotherapy for the past six weeks.

"Although the doctors are confident he will make a recovery, he still needs another six months of treatment," the band wrote.

They're selling rare pressings of albums and T-shirts "to help him with groceries and other life necessities".

The band is currently on hiatus after touring and releasing their third album to rave reviews.

The record, called The Death of All Things, was a rough one to make for the band, with Hyde revealing they nearly split during its creation.

"It was our lowest moment of interacting as human beings. People were saying, 'I don't really need this, because this is shit'."

But Hyde also said it was an album they needed to get out of their system.

"The chapter's ended and I feel really relieved and happy. (It was) like an exorcism, totally an exorcism."