Costa Rica-based sludge, doom and post-metal collective AGE OF THE WOLF has announced the release of a new studio album, entitled “A Pilgrimage to Nowhere”. The band’s sophomore full-length will be released on May 19, 2023 as CD/Digital via Sleeping Church Records, pre-order here, and on Tape via Three Moons Records.
AGE OF THE WOLF kicked off in 2016, with the release of their self-titled debut EP. Following their first full-length, “Ouroboric Trances” in 2019, a second EP, “Memorial“ (2020), and a split with TEL in 2021, the band pursues to enthrall with a heavy, dirty and overall big sound. “A Pilgrimage to Nowhere” is a continuation of the story from their split release with TEL, and heads into a much heavier, experimental yet raw sound territory. But give ear, as today, they have unleashed a first track taken of “A Pilgrimage to Nowhere”, listen to “Nexus Exitium (Pyrophylacriorum)” here:
Says the band about the first single: “Within is the force to create and destroy, and in this endless cycle we perpetuate our Will through Pain and Sacrifice. This song is an important point of manifestation of where we wanted to go as a band. A rawer, more grueling sound.”
“A Pilgrimage to Nowhere” was produced by AGE OF THE WOLF and Jose Rodriguez. Slated for a release on May 19, 2023, the pre-sale is now available at THIS LOCATION!
Norwegian black metal legend TSJUDERis now unveiling the album details of its god defying new creation, ‘Helvegr,’ which will be released via Season of Mist on June 23, 2023! The album artwork, tracklist, and details can be found below! To celebrate this long-awaited release, the band is now sharing brutalizing new single, “Gods of Black Blood,” along with a blistering new music video! The video, which was created by Guilherme Henriques, can be found at THIS LOCATION.
TSJUDER comments:“Today, ‘Gods of Black Blood’ from our forthcoming album ‘Helvegr’ is unleashed. This is raw Norwegian Black Metal! Choke on it!
The album will be released on various physical formats, such as cd digipack and coloured vinyl, but also limited edition clamshell box (cd) and LTD vinyl box. These limited editions come with a bonus album ‘Scandinavian Black Metal Attack,’ in which TSJUDER pays a special ode to Bathory.
Pre-orders for “Helvegr” are now available HERE while the album can be pre-saved HERE.
The cover artwork for ‘Helvegr’ was created by Jonas Svensson and Laura Nardelli.
Track-list: 1. Iron Beast (3:37) 2. Prestehammeren (4:01) 3. Surtr (6:59) 4. Gamle-Erik (3:46) 5. Chaos Fiend (4:02) 6. Gods of Black Blood (5:19) [WATCH] 7. Helvegr (7:36) 8. Faenskap og Død (3:08) 9. Hvit Død (2:52)
Since their inception in 1993, Oslo’s TSJUDER have been responsible for some of the most hate-filled ferocity perpetrated under the banner of TRUE NORWEGIAN BLACK METAL.
The band’s unholy fire was initially lit when founding members NAG (vocals/bass), BERSERK (guitar) and DRAUGLUIN (guitar) grew weary of playing death metal and sought out engorged levels of extremity to sate their increasingly profane ambitions. The time was ripe to inaugurate a ceaseless campaign committed to an uncompromising strain of brutally raw black metal, influenced by the primal thrash blasts of Sodom, Kreator, Destruction, Sarcófago and early Sepultura; black metal first wave trailblazers such as Bathory and Hellhammer; and, most vitally, Mayhem’s seminal Deathcrush, and Darkthrone’s game-changer, A Blaze in the Northern Sky.
Assuming the TSJUDER name, a moniker plundered from a mythical, murderous Northern tribe, various embryonic line-ups gathered around the all-conquering core of Nag and Draugluin, laying the fearsome foundations for what was to follow with two demos – Ved Ferdens Ende and Possessed – recorded between 1995-96. But it was with 1997’s EP, Throne of the Goat, that the black metal underground really began to sit up and take notice, the release establishing TSJUDER’s reputation as a blasphemous bulldozer hellbent on crushing the insipid and nostalgic in relentless blizzards of sub-zero riffage, punitive blast beats and blood-curdling screams.
Recordings for an inaugural full-length in 1999 were lost to a computer virus, but from the scavenged remnants of these sessions would emerge the Atum Nocturnem demo, an obnoxious foretaste of the group’s debut album, Kill For Satan, an international breakthrough slathered in slime-encrusted sacrilege. That damnable release saw the aptly-named ANTI-CHRISTIAN open his TSJUDER account, the drummer blasting a succession of gateways though the underworld, pulverising a punitive march to the band’s malevolent maelstroms.
Demonic Possession (2002) and Desert Northern Hell (2004) sustained the band’s focus on death, devils and destruction, while ratcheting up the production levels on a barbaric brace of flesh-strippers conjuring a landscape of frost-bitten wastes and foul abyssal realms. With the music press busy dishing out plaudits, the band’s burgeoning confederacy of fanatics were becoming desperate for some TSJUDER live action. Heeding the clarion, the band embarked on a full European tour with fellow countrymen Carpathian Forest. They also recorded a pair of gloriously powerful live performances in 2005, in Norway, which would subsequently be documented on the group’s NorwegianApocalypse DVD.
TSJUDER would take a deserved hiatus in 2006, with members finding other musical outlets for their creativity; Nag launching heretical black metal outfit KRYPT; Draugluin and Anti-Christian doing time with the thrashier TYRANN.
But it wouldn’t be long before the irresistible call of TSJUDER would exert itself once more. The band reconvened, reenergised and eager to make up for lost time, returning to live performances in 2010 before finally unleashing the mighty Legion Helvete (2011), a typically uncompromising comeback interspersed with pronounced Motörhead influences on punkish hyper-blasters such as ‘Slakt.’
It would be another four years before TSJUDER issued the merciless Antiliv (2015), a snarling lycanthropic howl of a record, heavy-loaded with vindictive black’n’roll swagger and lashings of buzzsaw guitar.
TSJUDER quickly set about creating the follow-up to Antiliv, but musical differences and protracted disputes led to a parting of the ways, with Anti-Christian bowing out after an impressive 20-year tenure with the group. Undaunted, Nag and Draughluin enlisted doyen tub-thumper JON RICE to provide the requisite drum artillery and continued to work on new recordings – fine-tuning guitar tones and sharpening mixes.
Then COVID-19 struck, the pandemic further stymieing the album’s release as the world tumbled from its fragile axis. But humanity is now benignly settling into its most chronic phase of perpetual abnormality and TSJUDER are steeled again to hoist their inverted cross above the barricades of conciliation. Their latest opus, Helvegr, is a devastatingly savage offering, one which fully adheres to the band’s eternal credo of “NO FUCKING COMPROMISE.”
Recording Line-up: Nag – Bass & Vocals Draugluin – Guitars & Vocals Jon Rice – Drums
Guest musicians: Guitar solo on ‘Gamle Erik’ by Pål Emanuelsen Guest vocals on ‘Gods of Black Blood’ by Seidemann (1349)
After the departure of Anti-Christian, Jon Rice and Eivin Brye have shared the drum duties on TSJUDER ‘s live performances.
International death/funeral doom metal act MESMUR will be releasing their new album “Chthonic” on April 14th 2023 via Solitude Prod. (RUS) and Aesthetic Death (UK).
Today, the band premieres a brand new single, “Refraction“, at Veil Of Sound. Stream it HERE.
The album’s title is based on the Greek word for “underworld”, and where the band’s previous albums have explored themes of cosmic entropy and earthly apocalypse, “Chthonic” looks to the spirit world for its inspiration. Formed as a collection of paranormal horror tales, it speaks of fabled entities making contact through the veil of sleep, summoning prey to subterranean depths, or haunting a post apocalyptic landscape.
Musically, the album continues the trajectory that MESMUR have established through previous works. Featuring viola and cello performances from Brianne Vieira and guest organ from Kostas Panagiotou of UK funeral doom act Pantheist (for whom Jeremy and John of Mesmur recently contributed guitars and drums on their 2021 record “Closer to God”), “Chthonic” strikes a careful balance between melody and dissonance as it displays its haunted imagery. Crushing doom riffs are overlain with ethereal synths and cavernous vocals to build a dark and vivid atmosphere, and the intricate compositions utilize a narrative approach influenced as much by 70’s progressive rock as by extreme doom metal. Like the band’s previous two releases, the album features beautifully eerie and vibrant cover art from Ukrainian painter Vladislav Cadaversky.
Working in collaboration with Solitude Prod. (RUS) and Aesthetic Death (UK), “Chthonic” will be released initially on digi CD on 14th April 2023, with plans for a vinyl release to follow later.
Initially started in 2013 as a side project of Jeremy Lewis and John Devos (of progressive black metal act Dalla Nebbia), MESMUR is an international collection of musicians with a shared artistic goal to create immersive and unpredictable death/funeral doom metal. Dense, with vivid atmosphere that carries a constant sense of foreboding and unease, and with riffs and melodies that straddle the line between accessibility and obscurity, MESMUR‘s music draws inspiration from a diverse set of influences ranging from Esoteric and Ea to King Crimson and Univers Zero.
Already a few days after the announcement of the new album “Ashes Of Doom” STORMAGE present the first “firecracker” from the new album: “Deniers Of Reality” is the name of the song and deals with missing values, selfishness, greed, war and violence and that each individual can do something against it. Don’t say we didn’t warn you: this catchy tune will make furrows in your cerebral cortex!
In the 20 years of their existence, the quartet from the German Sauerland has continuously honed their own style. For the upcoming fourth album “Ashes Of Doom” no one less than Sebastian “Seeb” Levermann (Orden Ogan) participated as co-producer. The result is a multifaceted. cleverly arranged Powermetal album, but just a touch “darker” than the rest.
Tracklist: 01 – Overture Of The Abyss (Instrumental) 02 – Beyond The Horizon 03 – Deniers Of Reality 04 – Fierce As A Dragon 05 – Slide On Your Knees 06 – Our Latest Endeavour 07 – Ashes Of My Doom 08 – The Spirit Never Dies 09 – Blood Shot Eyes 10 – Put The Hammer Down 11 – Son Of Hatred 12 – The Wind Will Take Us Home
Line-up: Heiko Heseler – Lead Vocals & Lead Guitar Tim Sonnenstuhl – Lead Guitar Dirk Heggemann – Bass Vasileios (Billy) Georgiou – Drums
Dark experimental doom band ESOTERIC have announced a new Australian tour, which will take place in during the Australian winter in June/July 2023. The ‘Maniacal Pyrrhonism’ tour will kick off at the Brightside venue in Brisbane, followed by 4 more dates throughout the country! A full list of confirmed dates can be found below. Tickets can be found HERE.
ESOTERIC comment on the trek: “We are hugely looking forward to decimating stages on our tour of Australia, along with and are currently preparing an extended set of 90 minutes for each show, featuring songs from across various albums in the bands’ history“
The band’s latest album is still available in the Season of Mist shop HERE.
ESOTERIC Australia 28 Jun 23 Brisbane (AU) The Brightside 29 Jun 23 Sydney (AU) The Lansdowne 30 Jun 23 Canberra (AU) The Basement 01 Jul 23 Melbourne (AU) Bendigo Hotel 02 Jul 23 Adelaide (AU) The Cranker
ESOTERIC 2023 27 Apr 23 Barroselas (PT) SWR Barroselas Metalfest 2023 26 May 23 Brighton (UK) Doomsday Fest – The Green Door Store
ESOTERIC will be playing in support of their latest release ‘A Pyrrhic Existence’.
Line-up Greg Chandler: Vocals, Guitars Mark Bodossian: Bass, synths Joe Fletcher: Drums Jim Nolan: Guitars Gordon Bicknell: Guitars
For more information on the band, please click HERE
Photo by Vagelis Giotopoulos – Cover artwork and layout by Christos Karietis
GEORGE GAKIS announces the release date of his new record and details of the release party! The new album is entitled “Parallel Dimensions” and will be released by ROAR! Rock Of Angels Records on May 26, 2023!
A work in music and lyrics of his own, which includes 12 songs and of which George is very proud! It has been “managed” in the best way by his super-talented little “brother” Bob Saganas who played -among others- all the guitars and bass while the drums have been taken over by the “one and only” Sotiris Gakis with his sensational playing!
Mixing and mastering was done in America under the guidance and valuable assistance of George’s dear friend C F Kip Winger!
The release party for the album and the presentation of the first video clip will take place in parallel with the celebration of the 30 years of Troublemakers (George’s band) on Saturday, May 27 in Ioannina, at the Spiritual Center of the Municipality of Ioannina!
TRACK LIST:
Insane
Everything You Want
Who Made You A Woman?
Nightmare Dreamer
Fake
Torn
Parallel Dimensions
My Daddy Said
I Love to Kiss Your Love
Some Other Man Will
Dancing with Your Demons
In the Name Of Rock ‘n’ Roll
“Parallel Dimensions” line-up: George Gakis – Vocals / Background vocals Bob Saganas – Guitars / Bass Sotiris Gakis – Drums Sylvia Soupila – Cello on “Torn” Sokratis Kiridis – Harmonica on “Nightmare Dreamer”
Group vocals on: “Parallel Dimensions” “Love To Kiss Your Love” “Dancing With Your Demons” “In The Name Of Rock ‘n’ Roll” by Sotiris Gakis, Bob Saganas, George Tzahristas, George Stergiou, George Gakis
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Kimmo Kuusniemi’s ASA unveil the long-overdue release of "Collective Failure" + first music video for title-track! Check it out and stay tuned for more news! Click image to watch the video
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Visionary artist KIMMO KUUSNIEMI's ANCIENT STREAMING ASSEMBLY (ASA) have released “Aurora Nuclearis”, a powerful 12-minute audiovisual experience, dedicated to the Late Keyboardist Esa Kotilainen. - Click image to watch the video