On February 5th, Cult of Luna will release a new EP, entitled The Raging River, via Red Creek (red-crk.com) - the band's newly created record label, which will be physically distributed by Metal Blade Records (in North America) and Season of Mist (in Europe). For a first preview of The Raging River, the new single "Three Bridges" can be heard now at: youtu.be/wgN3OV6XtTY
Pre-order The Raging River at: metalblade.com/cultofluna (North American ltd edition pre-order; vinyl & CD) and red-crk.com (limited editions, band merch & more). See below for available formats:
- digipak-CD
- transparent red w/ gold splatter vinyl
*First pressing SOLD-OUT; 2nd pressing available via Red Creek
The Raging River is a seamless continuation of the writing process and the creative mindset that has guided Cult of Luna for the last couple of years. "'The Raging River' feels more like a bridge. A midpoint that needs to be crossed so we can finish what we started with 2019's 'A Dawn to Fear,'" the band adds. "It's been an interesting, as well as an introspective, way of working, having our instinct leading the way and then having to figure out where it takes us. But not only has it been a linear journey; some aspects of it are also clearly circular. For example, we have been a fan of Mark Lanegan for many years. So in 2005, when we wrote the song 'And With Her Came the Birds', we had his voice in mind, and the working title was 'The Lanegan Song'. But we were not many years over 20, and our lack of self-confidence prevented us from even daring to ask. It took fifteen years for us to get the guts to ask him. Hearing his voice on 'Inside Of A Dream' is nothing more than feeling that we're inside of a dream."
This past November, Halifax, Canada’s Ancient Thrones unleashed their concept album “The Veil”. The full length is 57-minute descent into the afterlife telling the story of grief that people can relate to through dark and progressive blackened death.
Ancient Thrones explains:
“The record is a concept record so it’s meant to be listened to in its entirety to get the full experience of the story. Even the songs were written and laid out in a way that they seamlessly transition into each other. Almost as if it was just one long piece of music broken up into separate parts as tracks. We want people to headbang and mosh, but we also want to bring people on a journey through this world of purgatory and grief and understand each phase of grief the record represents through the 10 tracks.”
Today, in support of "The Veil", guitarists Dylan Wallace and Nick Leslieare sharing their playthrough for the track "Divided/Dissolve", which is a mix of blazing-fast melodic riffs and crushingly heavy breakdowns keeping this nine-minute behemoth fresh the whole way through. The song takes no prisoners and tolerates no sympathy in its entirety, beckoning you to question your own sorrow and resistance to fulfillment.
To view "Divided/Dissolve" guitar playthrough, please visit GearGods for its premiere HERE.
Former members of CHURCH OF VOID, HORNA and BATTLELORE give life to BYRON, signing with THE GOATMANCER RECORDS
Soon after the Finnish heavy doom band Church Of Void ceased to exist in 2017, drummer Johannes Lahti, aka Byron V, started planning the release of few songs he had made during the years and were buried in the drawer.
He had just joined the band Neon Angel and finished recording drums to their debut album "Neon Light District" (Sliptrick Records 2020) when he felt the time was right to get his songs to be heard. Enlightened by the realization of the few songs finally being pushed out, Johannes started composing more material in late 2019 and what started out as a studio project EP, first became two EPs and finally formed as a full-length album. A band called Byron was born.
The band, finally reaching its form in late 2020, prepares for the release of their debut album via Goatmancer Records and eagerly waits to play the songs live.
Byron is a melodic heavy metal band from Finland. Founded 2019 as a one-man studio project, now standing as a full-grown band, Byron mixes it´s eclectic sound with influences from various genres, such as occult rock and stoner/doom, topping it with themes and imagery of the arcane and the occult.
Participants at “The Omega Evangelion” - sessions were:
Johanna Eteläkari, Christoffer Frylmark: Vocals
Jaakko Puusaari, Jyri Vahvanen: Guitars
Johannes Lahti: Bass, guitar, drums, piano
+ Magus Corvus: Guest vocals
Byron's debut album, "The Omega Evangelion" represents the birth of the band with tracks from different eras, bound together by a thematical line of endings and loss in various aspects, topped with Lovecraftian imagery. It is an eclectic serving of melodic heavy metal, moving from NWOBHM to occult rock and deeper into the gloomy depths of darker metal and back to stoner and doom, offering a sensation of beautifulness in decay, a beginning in every end. An evangelion of rebirth; of Alpha in Omega.
Johannes aka Byron V. says: “I'm extremely happy and excited with the collaboration of Byron and Goatmancer Records. To finally be able to release the debut album through a trustworthy and respectful label elevates this band again into a new level and into the reach of wider audience it deserves. Working this together with professionals like Gero from Argonauta (caring all marketing and distribution) and Oleksander from Grand Sounds, I cannot expect more than quality service and dedication in pushing the band and its career onwards. Releasing “The Omega Evangelion” and hopefully get to play the songs live is a perfect start for the new year.”
The band released previously this year a first single from the album:
Sliptrick Records Welcome Latvian Pagan Metal Group VARANG NORD
Joining the ranks at Sliptrick Records:
Varang Nord (LV) Folk Metal | Pagan Metal | Viking Metal
Varang Nord is a folk metal band from the cold woodlands of Latvia. Their songs praise mighty battles, bloody sacrifices to the Old Gods and joyful northern feasts with endless mugs of ale. They combine harsh death metal riffs with epic accordion chants, creating a unique blend of northern pagan/folk metal.
The group was founded in 2014 by Max “Wolf” Popovs and Artems “Khurr” Kuricins and since then Varang Nord have released three studio albums: Fire Of The North (2014), Master Of The Forest (2015), Call Of Battle (2017), official music videos and played a lot of shows across the Baltic States, Germany, France, Spain, Belarus and Russia. Their crowning achievement thus far was winning the Wacken Metal Battle in 2019.
For 2021, Varang Nord plans to release a fourth studio album, Pārķiuņa Uomurs, worldwide via Sliptrick Records, to play a great bunch of live shows to support the record, to take a part in the Heathen Heroes European Tour with such a bands TYR and Arkona and participate at the legendary Wacken Open Air. For all this and much, much more, join Varang Nord on their journey.
In times of doom, EVANGELIST returns with songs of death and destruction. The band was first started in the spring of 2008, with inspiration mainly coming from the obscure epic metal scene in the U.S., epic doom metal pioneers and metal classics in general. Major lyrical inspiration came from the twisted minds of R.E. Howard, H.P. Lovecraft, history, religion and spirituality of the ages gone by.
Their debut album, In Partibus Infidelium, was recorded between 2009 and 2011 and released in June 2011 by PsycheDOOMelic Records. Their sophomore record, Doominicanes, was recorded between 2012 and 2013 and released in May 2013 by Doomentia Records. In October 2014, a collaboration with CAPILLA ARDIENTE troops was revealed in the form of the infamous Capilla Ardiente/Evangelist 12” split on which EVANGELIST delivered their own version of MAYHEM’S classic “Freezing Moon." In December 2018, after a short hiatus, their third album, Deus Vult, was released by Nine Records.
Almost one year later, recording sessions began on two new songs, as well as a rendition of one of MANILLA ROAD'S finest tracks, "Mystification." These three songs were paired with another three tracks recorded during the Deus Vult recording sessions, and resulting in the Ad Mortem Festimaus EP.
Stream the band's cover of MANILLA ROAD classic "Mystification" (a tribute to the late Mark Shelton) at youtu.be/2xMH14LSAiw.
Track List:
1. Perceval
2. Anubis (On the Onyx Throne of Death)
3. The Puritan
4. Pale Lady of Mercy
5. Towards the End
6. Mystification (Manilla Road cover)
Album Credits:
Recorded, mixed and mastered at JRStudio between Anno Domini 2016-2018 (tracks 3-5) and 2019-2020 (tracks 1,2 and 6) in two separate recording sessions by Jacek "Racek" Gruszka. Cover art drawing by Diego Spezzoni. Cover layout and packaging design by Xaay.
Strega Nona is a four piece band from New York City, blending shoegaze, black metal, and post-rock into a coalescence of blast beats, distorted guitars, and overwheling melodies. This wall of sound provides the backdrop for ethereal vocals that imbues the music with an atmosphere of despair for the modern world while simulatenously offering an air of hope for a better future.
Recorded and mixed by Scot Moriarty at Backroom Studios, and mastered by Jack Shirley, their debut album Mirrored Pink was self -released October 2, 2020.
A Pretext to Human Suffering (hereafter “APTHS“) are a relatively new force for destruction in the extreme metal scene. They are an international band consisting of Chris Mathis (Defleshed and Gutted), who writes all the music and performs guitars and vocals, Lord Marco (Rings of Saturn, ex-Braindrill) on drums, Wes Van Hook (Sold Soul) on guitar, Beto Vipe (Devour the Unborn) on guitar, and Spencer Atkinson (Cryptic Enslavement) on bass. They’ve just released their RealityFade Records debut EP, "Rotting Sanctum“.
As you’ll discover through this new EP, APTHS occupy an intersection where different traditions of death metal meet. The music could be considered part slam, part brutal death metal, and part technical death metal. It metes out ferocious punishment, the kind that will get your motor running in a damned hurry, but will also give your head a swift and bewildering spin, and as icing on the cake it generates an atmosphere of ghastly horror.
California Geek Metal Squad REPAID IN BLOOD has released the official video for "Molotov Circumcision," a track from forthcoming album Reflective Duality. The song features guest vocalist Michael Alvarez (Flub, ex-Alterbeast) and guest guitarist Cameron Losch (Born Of Osiris). Check out the video at youtu.be/18xK9ELmM_E
REPAID IN BLOOD is gearing up for the release of their second full-length album, Reflective Duality. The finds REPAID IN BLOOD maniacally bulldozing its way through eight tracks of pit-inducing fury. Featuring guest appearances from members of THREAT SIGNAL, ALLEGAEON, BORN OF OSIRIS and FLUB, Reflective Duality is the album metal fans need to kick off 2021 properly.
Reflective Duality will be out on January 21. Pre-order the album at:
The band comments on the album, “We have always been a fun going band, writing about the things we love and care about, metal, comics, movies, all around geek stuff. Well this time around we also wrote about what we care about, this time it’s people! You, and everyone else, are created equal. This isn’t an album about hate, it’s about our love for our country and what it should stand for. This isn’t a political album, it’s about human rights. All humans are created equal, women, children and men. Metal IS Family. We should support each other, as well as everyone that needs help in our communities. If you have a problem with our views, kindly see yourself out of our socials. We thank you for your time.”
REPAID IN BLOOD previously released the official music video for album track “Rebel Scum,” featuring Greg Brugess (ALLEGAEON). Watch it now at youtu.be/cNLwNBkbbSQ.
“Rebel Scum” is also available on Bandcamp. Stream and download the song at this location.
Reflective Duality Track Listing:
1) Intro
2) Wake Up, Time To Die
3) Thots & Purveyors (Feat. Jon Howard)
4) He's No Good To Me Dead
5) Ritualistic Stoning (Feat. Travis Montgomery)
6) Rebel Scum (Feat. Greg Burgess)
7) Dave's Not Here Man
8) Molotov Circumcision (Feat. Michael Alvarez & Cameron Losch)
Reflective Duality was recorded, produced, mixed and mastered by Eric Hill at The Blue Room Recording Studio. All drums by Juan Galvez, all rhythm guitar, some leads and bass by Jake Burrmann. Vocals by Darrell Durham. Lead guitar by Patrick Small. Guest vocals on Thots & Purveyors by Jon Howard (Threat Signal). Guest guitars on Ritualistic Stoning by Travis Montgomery (Threat Signal). Guest guitars on Rebel Scum by Greg Burgess (Allegaeon). Guest vocals on Molotov Circumcision by Michael Alvarez (Flub, ex-Alterbeast) and guest guitars by Cameron Losch (Born Of Osiris).
REPAID IN BLOOD mixes the best of Death Metal and Metal-core creating their own unique genre: Geek Metal! Which blends crushing riffs, searing solos, ball shattering breakdowns with a variety of pop culture, movies, games and geekdom samples into their performances that always gets the crowd going and shouting the lines and samples during the show!
REPAID IN BLOOD is a metal band that started in 2006 in Sunnyvale, CA. The name was taken from a lyric off The Black Dahlia Murder’s first full length album, Unhallowed. The name is an expression of violence in its truest form, vengeance. Victor Hernandez and Jake Burrmann formed a band in high school, with different members coming and going along the way, eventually turning into what became REPAID IN BLOOD. Jake Burrmann and Juan Galvez are the last of the founding members, and yet, with the powerful vocals and live performances of Darrell Durham, along with the blistering leads of Patrick Small, REPAID IN BLOOD is a strong cohesive family.
REPAID IN BLOOD has worked the local scene with a strong fan base, played in three showcases at South By Southwest, numerous West Coast and Southwest tours and US tours. REPAID IN BLOOD are serious about the music they create, but always have fun doing so. From the "I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus" Xmas parody to a Lego stop motion, Clerks inspired, Jaws parody video, to a full puppet band video for a parody of Salt N Peppa’s “Push It”, releasing tour and behind the scenes blooper videos, using Archer or Stranger Things for a live opening, kid’s cereal, zombies, pop culture, comic books, Game Of Thrones, to peeing on you, you are guaranteed to take something away from REPAID IN BLOOD musically and live.
REPAID IN BLOOD has one full-length album, Born In A Lazarus Pit, which was released June 2014, with music videos released, national promotion, and press as well. REPAID IN BLOOD also has an earlier EP One Bullet Shy Of A Solution released August 2008 and more recently a second EP Terra Mourning in May 2017.
REPAID IN BLOOD have done full US tours: East Bound And Death Tour with thrashers Apothesary, The Repaid In Death Tour with Australian Death Metalers In Death..., The Split Personality Tour with Death Will Tremble, The Danger Zone Tour with Casket Robbery, and the massive No One Gets Out Alive Tour with In Death..., Casket Robbery and Bury The Rod which was a great success. REPAID IN BLOOD has shared the stage with All Shall Perish, Allegaeon, Betraying The Martyrs, Embryonic Devourment, Forbidden, Incite, Morta Skuld, Voices Of Ruin, Sacrificial Slaughter as well as so many others on the road.
Blighted Eye began as a simple creative outlet for guitarist Christopher Jones in 2018. Over the course of the subsequent year, Christopher further refined the direction and musical focus of the project, recruiting long time friend Kyle Chapman of Aethereus (The Artisan Era) to perform vocals and guitar. In 2020, the lineup was rounded out with the addition of drummer John Devos who plays in Mesmur (Solitude Productions), Comatose Vigil A. K (Non Serviam Records), etc. The group's debut four-song EP, Wretched was recently released on October 30th. Cover art for Wretched was created by Samuel Nelson (Stigma Art) known for his work with Allegaeon, Vale of Pnath, Virvum, First Fragment, and many more.
Hailing from Seattle, Washington, Blighted Eye serves up dense and mercurial progressive death metal driven by all things mournful and bleak. As founding member Christopher Jones states, "I’d say the overall sound is a death metal style that’s drawing from places like Opeth, Morbid Angel and Death while also striving for a dark/melancholy atmosphere."
The group's primary influences include Opeth, Dissection, Enslaved, Death, Megadeth, Katatonia, Slumber, and Agalloch. Slivers of which at a minimum are present throughout Wretched while the bulk of the group's style calls to mind Opeth, Death, and Dissection most of all. With their ambitious EP now released, the group is hard at work crafting what will become their first full-length album sometime in the future.
Blighted Eye - Wretched Band Statement
"The Blighted Eye experience is an introspective one that focuses on the perception of oneself, which in turn affects how one perceives the world. Even the band name is a reference to the mind’s eye so to speak. The lyrical themes on Wretched are very much about the destructive capacities of depression and feelings of isolation, anger, and nihility they create in spite of how much a person tries to fight against it. The music is meant to accompany the lyrical themes. Taking you through a range of emotions, but with a persistently dark undercurrent. So even a faster more upbeat track like Contempt has a certain melancholy to it. There are instances of riffs or motifs in songs that resurface, but shift in how they are played or are in a different context, which is keeping with the theme of perception and how that can change."
Blighted Eye is:
Christopher Jones - Guitars, Bass
Kyle Chapman - Guitars, Vocals (Aethereus)
John Devos - Drums and Percussion (Dalla Nebbia, Mesmur, Comatose Vigil A.K.)
