The band comment: “‘Soul Chasm’ illustrates the internal struggle for peace, revealing our tendency to be unkind to ourselves and how the fear of failure can dim the vibrancy of our existence.
“We are proud to announce our signing with Century Media! The label is a monumental force within the metal world, and we are honoured to now become part of such an incredible legacy. We cannot wait to see what the future holds.”
Century Media’s Mike Gitter, Vice President of A&R, states: “HERIOT are not merely a landmark band for this generation of UK metal but a benchmark for a new generation of heaviness. They meld the brutal with the cerebral in a way that’s uniquely theirs. HERIOT has carved their own path without compromise and Century Media is proud to be partners in that.”
The new single and signing continues HERIOT‘s ascendancy as the pre-eminent new force in the UK heavy scene. “Soul Chasm” is the first new material from the group since their support shows with Architects in the Summer and their mighty “Demure” single (14th February, Church Road Records).
HERIOT‘s debut EP Profound Morality (2022) catapulted the quartet into the global spotlight, with praise worldwide and a debut, sold-out, headline tour across the UK. The band have since supported Rolo Tomassi, Lamb Of God, Thy Art Is Murder, and performed to packed tents at Download Festival, 2000trees, Wacken Open Air, Bloodstock, Mystic Festival and many more, gathering a legion of fans in the process.
Fully-focused and with a razor-sharp edge, the awe-inspiring double-vocal attack of Jake Packer and Debbie Gough is all-conquering; the titanic support of Erhan Alman (guitar) and Julian Gage (drums) rock-solid.
HERIOT have deservedly been grabbing attention with all four pairs of hands, weaponizing metallic sludge and hardcore, unholy levels of distortion, speed and gut-punching talent. Elements of Nails, Knocked Loose, Code Orange, and Vein.fm combine and collide to exhilarating effect, creating a sound that is truly groundbreaking, fully worthy of the notice the band are achieving.
In their short recent history HERIOT have caught the attention of Pitchfork, Metal Hammer, Rock Sound, Brooklyn Vegan, Kerrang!, Revolver, and Knotfest, among many others, “one of the most promising young bands in modern metalcore”, and “probably the best new metal band in Britain”.
Jared James Nichols today released a video for his cover of Man In The Box by Alice in Chains. Jared’s music video for the single is released head of his UK and European tour supporting “Mr. Big“in Spring 2024.
Stream the Man In The Box single HERE. Watch JJN’s Man In The Box music video HERE.
The UK leg of the tour includes Nottingham Rock City (March 19), Manchester O2 Ritz (March 20), Wolverhampton KK’s Steel Mill (March 22), and London O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire (March 23).
Watch the music video for Jared’s Signature Epiphone Les Paul Guitar Blues PowerHERE.
“Man in the Box is one of my favourite songs ever,” says Jared. “I remember this being one of the first songs I really connected to as a child. Between the bluesy vocals and slinky guitar riff, all the way down to the sludgy overtones, it’s timeless and pure perfection. I started jamming this one at my shows because it is so much fun to play, the audience response was instant.”
Continues Jared, “Man In The Box was originally recorded just for fun at Sweetwater Studios. It turned out so well, we knew we had to share it with the world.”
“One of the foremost Gibson-toting guitar titans of his age.” – Guitar World
“Jared James Nichols is a larger-than-life guitar player.” – Music Radar
“Jared James Nichols is a blues rock powerhouse and one of the most exciting guitarists in the modern blues rock scene.” – Blues Rock Review
“Jared James Nichols is one of the hottest guitar players around.” – Guitar.com
Today marks the release of “Resist”, the latest track from HOLE IN THE FRAME. It’s available for streaming and accompanied on YouTube by a live performance video from a recent concert by the Italian groove metal band.
Hole In The Frame has been unstoppable for several months, consistently releasing singles and garnering increasing attention and interest from both the audience and industry professionals.
“Resist” is another testament to a robust group that, with this release, takes us into the purest and most essential dimension of its music through a high-class live performance. The track is part of the new EP set to be released on December 8th through Volcano Records & Promotion, which brings together a series of live-played pieces. The live dimension is undoubtedly the band’s and its audience’s favorite, recently having had the opportunity to enjoy their music in concerts alongside metal giants like Metal Church and the legendary Atroci.
Slasherwave outfit and recent Metal Blade Records signees GOST will release the thundering thirteen-track full-length, Prophecy, on March 8th, 2024, today revealing the record’s first video/single and pre-orders.
GOST exists in the dark crack between black metal and the most shadowy end of electronic music. Since the release of the Radio Macabre EP at the start of 2013, and the remorseless digital nightmare of their Skull debut album six months later, Texas-based multi-instrumentalist, producer, and main-brain James Lollar has become an increasingly singular force in music. Far more aggressive and sinister than the synthwave he’s often grouped with, GOST is a harsh and unique digital nightmare that takes the listener right into the heart of the abyss.
Now GOST returns with their sixth album, Prophecy. Unquestionably their most exhilarating and dangerous sounding work to date, Prophecy is a record that perfectly reflects the horror and grim anxieties of a world beset with religious and political overreach, and progress, “being rolled back to the fucking 1950s.”
“It’s about an imaginative fall of the Western civilization, the biblical end of the world – the rise of Satan and Armageddon,” says Lollar. “In America, there’s been a big rise of scared, reactive Christianity again, and almost like a re-emergence of the Satanic Panic. So it felt like an appropriate time to bring Satan back into things.”
Recorded alone in Texas during a burst of creativity at the end of 2022, Prophecy is the perfect vessel for such things. Following the experimentation and more melodic touches of 2019’s Valediction, Lollar says it also acts as something of a return to older roots, to recapture the spirit of GOST.
“When Valediction came out, COVID hit, and I guess people weren’t so into art while the world was on its knees,” he says. “I also wanted to reconnect with some of my older fans who maybe didn’t feel that album so much. I wanted to go back in time and bring some of the older shit back, some of the older sounds.“
In advance of the release of Prophecy, GOST has unveiled the first single, the record’s title track, and its accompanying video (which includes intro track, “Judgement“).
Elaborates Lollar, “With ‘Prophecy,’ I wanted to revisit some of the sounds of ‘Possessor.’ Rather than simply replicate those sounds I expanded upon them. I pushed the saturation and compression to their literal limits, resulting in some of the heaviest sounds I have yet to produce. I wanted to combine some classic EBM elements with my digital metal sound as well. This EBM influence can be heard throughout ‘Prophecy.’ Horror has been a huge aspect of my sound since day one and that theme is ever present on ‘Prophecy,’ through ratcheting strings and dreadful choir lines. ‘Prophecy’ expounds on the slasherwave genre I originally created with ‘Behemoth.‘”
Watch GOST‘s “Judgement / Prophecy” video below.
Prophecy will be available on CD, LP, and digital formats. Find pre-ordering options at: metalblade.com/gost
Prophecy Track Listing: 01. Judgment 02. Prophecy 03. Death in Bloom 04. Deceiver 05. Obituary 06. Temple of Tears 07. Decadent Decay 08. Widow Song 09. Golgotha 10. Digital Death 11. Shelter 12. Through the Water 13. Leviathan
GOST is currently traversing North America supporting Katatonia on their Sky Void Of Stars tour. Additional support is being provided by SOM on select dates. See all remaining dates below.
GOST w/ Katatonia, SOM [remaining dates]: 11/16/2023 Thunderbird Music Hall – Pittsburgh, PA 11/17/2023 The Roxy – Cleveland, OH 11/18/2023 The Forge – Joliet, IL 11/19/2023 Lyric Theater @ Skyway – Minneapolis, MN 11/21/2023 The O – Denver, CO 11/22/2023 Commonwealth – Salt Lake City, UT w/ Katatonia: 11/24/2023 Bossa Nova Ballroom – Portland, OR 11/25/2023 Rickshaw – Vancouver, BC 11/26/2023 Neptune Theater – Seattle WA 11/28/2023 Cornerstone – Berkeley, CA 11/29/2023 Strummer’s – Fresno, CA 11/30/2023 Echoplex – Los Angeles, CA 12/01/2023 The Glass House – Pomona, CA 12/02/2023 Crescent Ballroom – Phoenix, AZ 12/04/2023 Granada Theatre – Dallas, TX 12/05/2023 Come And Take It Live – Austin, TX 12/06/2023 Scout Bar – Houston TX 12/08/2023 Hell @ The Masquerade – Atlanta, GA 12/09/2023 Level 13 – Orlando, FL
TEMIC are just one album in, but they already boast an impressive resume. Diego Tejedia has played with Devin Townsend and Haken, but the keyboardist was touring with Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress when he first teamed up with guitarist Eric Gillette, who’s also jammed alongside Neal Morse.
Their vision for TEMIC wasn’t exactly simple: synthesize their love for high-energy electronica and flashy riffs into a killer prog-metal hybrid. But after recruiting former soccer prodigy-turned-Zildjian-endorsed drummer Simen Sandness (SHINING, Arkentype) to go along with the high-powered falsetto of Fredrik Klemp (Maraton), together, this new supergroup managed to connect all those puzzle pieces on their very first album.
“As the progressive metal scene witnesses a surge of new talent, this [album] places TEMIC in the discussion of the top new band releases of 2023”, writes The Prog Report.
‘Terror Management Theory’ comes out tomorrow, Friday, November 17. But you can make your way through the whole thrilling prog maze today. Listen to the full album stream over on our YouTube channel.
Clocking in at a few ticks shy of six minutes, lead single “Count Your Losses” gives TEMIC plenty of time to show off their deep bag of tricks. Behind Klemp’s melodic tenor, the band roll out an arena-ready guitar solo, scatting drum fills, fretless bass runs and synths that are built for a rave (and that only covers the bridge!).
“This album is as finely tuned and stately as the best passion projects”, says Distorted Sound.
“Falling Away” catches TEMIC at the peak of their superpowers, uplifted by riffs that alternate between beefy distortion and nimble fretting, while a white-hot keyboard solo blasts off just before the drums clamp down with booming finesse.
Klemp’s piercing vocal carries a hopeful message, too. “We will fight until the rays of light stand high”, he sings, backed by not one but two choirs during the seven-minute closer “Mothallah”, which never stops climbing toward the sky.
“The time is upon us! Today, the release of our debut album marks the culmination of TEMIC’s gestation phase. As this opus finally reaches the listeners’ ears, TEMIC is now fully born. Welcome, ‘Terror Management Theory,’ an album born from dark times, yet serving as a strong beacon of hope, inspiring us to look to the future to the precise moment it would see the light of day.”
TEMIC came together from across the globe, but they also share a wide variety of influences.
Check out the playlist that the prog supergroup update each month on Spotify. The November edition features Daft Punk, Animals As Leaders, Meshuggah, Car Bomb and Esbjörn Svensson Trio.
Cover artwork: Hicham Hamzi
Track list: 1. TMT (2:02) 2. Through the Sands of Time (7:00) 3. Falling Away (4:58) [WATCH VIDEO] 4. Count Your Losses (6:13) [WATCH VIDEO] 5. Skeletons (7:00) 6. Acts of Violence (5:52) 7. Friendly Fire (5:57) 8. Paradigm (6:33) 9. Once More (5:45) 10. Mothallah (7:27) [WATCH VIDEO] Total: 58:54
Introducing TEMIC—prog’s newest, most ambitious, and most adrenaline-fueled act. TEMIC melds the creative minds of keyboardist and sound designer Diego Tejeida (Devin Townsend, Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress, ex-Haken), guitarist Eric Gillette (The Neal Morse Band, Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress), drummer Simen Sandnes (SHINING, Arkentype), and vocalist Fredrik Klemp (Maraton, 22).
The origins of TEMIC date back to 2017, when Tejeida and Gillette toured the world as band members of Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress. From the very first chords they exchanged, their musical chemistry both on and off stage was undeniable, leading them to discuss the prospect of starting a new band together. Unfortunately, conflicting tour and recording commitments forced them to turn their attention elsewhere for years—that is, until the world came to a standstill in 2020, and Tejeida called Gillette to ask a fateful question: “Remember how we said we should make music together? Well, how about now?”
Thus, the first demos for what would later become TEMIC’s 2023 debut album, Terror Management Theory, began to emerge. Within a few weeks after that initial phone call, the musical vision of TEMIC had become clear: Let’s create progressive music that is heavily influenced by high-energy electronic music, but arranged and orchestrated for a 5-piece modern prog rock/metal band—where, at last, the pulse can be the focus, and the vocal melody can be king.
Eager to join forces with the very best bandmates, Tejeida and Gillette first summoned the rhythmic power of their friend and drummer Sandnes. With characteristic enthusiasm, Sandnes seized the opportunity, prepared to contribute his percussive prowess as the heartbeat of TEMIC. When it came time to find the singer that would carry TEMIC’s melodies to new heights, Sandnes recommended vocal powerhouse Klemp, whose emotive delivery and unmatched intensity left no doubt that he was destined to be the voice of TEMIC. Finally, to round out the rhythm section of Terror Management Theory, dynamic bassist Jacob Umansky (Intervals) was invited on board as a guest player, gracing the album with an unrivaled groove and a signature low-end sound.
Together, this mammoth lineup is TEMIC, a high-energy, electronic-inspired, modern melodic prog metal band for the next generation.
Line-up: Fredrik Bergersen (Maraton, 22) – Vocals Eric Gillette (The Neal Morse Band, Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress) – Guitars and Backing Vocals Simen Sandnes (Shining, Arkentype) – Drums and Percussion Diego Tejeida (Devin Townsend, Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress, ex-Haken) – Keyboards and Sound Design
Recording Studio: Drums and vocals recorded at Top Floor Studios (Gothenburg, Sweden) Producer: Produced by TEMIC. Drums and vocals engineered by Jakob Herrmann Gothenburg, Sweden) Mix/Mastering: Mixed and mastered by Rich Mouser at The Mouse House (Los Angeles, USA)
Guest musicians: Jacob Umansky (USA) – Bass guitar on the whole album Mosaic Gospel Choir (Norway) – Mothallah Garden State Threshold Choir (USA) – Mothallah
Starhunter is a 3-song EP with everything SAFFIRE is about. Groove, hard rock energy, melodies and a little bit of everything sprinkled on top. The digital EP will be released on all digital streaming/download platforms on December 1st, 2023 and includes three brand new and unreleased songs!
THE ROCK ALCHEMIST – Italian Rock Band from Turin with a strong sonic identity that blends modern rock with progressive, hard, alternative, and pop elements!
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video
Metal Shock Finland (World Assault ) 