Legendary Bulgarian dark avant-garde metal act, EMBRACE BY DARK, has inked a deal with Wormholedeath Record for their upcoming album, “Extrasensory,” scheduled for a cosmic landing on October 25th, 2024.
Founded in 1995, Embrace By Dark has carved a unique path in the extreme metal scene, transcending genre limitations with their audacious sonic explorations. Their debut album, “Inlaid Dark Arches,” remains a coveted relic for its profound impact, while their sophomore effort, “Sculpture of the Godforsaken Aeons,” solidified their reputation as innovators. Recorded at Bulgarian GRAFFITTI studio and mastered at the UK’s Steelcagesounds with the masterful touch of ex-Cradle of Filth member Stuart Ansits, it cemented their status as a force to be reckoned with.
Embrace By Dark’s landmark moment came in 2009 when they shared the stage with Moonspell during their first Bulgarian concert. This pivotal performance fueled their dedication, leading to the meticulous creation of their upcoming masterpiece, “Extrasensory.”
Brace yourselves for a sonic odyssey. Imagine a vortex of ferocious guitars, anguished screams, atmospheric synths, and captivating melodies. The lyrics act as a portal, transporting the listener beyond the shackles of the material plane. “Extrasensory” is an inward introspective journey, urging us to explore the boundless depths of our infinity and eternity.
CRASHDÏET has gone through turbulence several times in their career, with deaths, line-up changes, and a history of abuse but have become known for picking up the pieces and returning to the scene, every time they crash. Their undeniable flirt with the 80s big arena rock bands like Guns N’ Roses, Kiss, Skid Row combined with a notable element of punk, has made them a significant name in the revival of the sleaze and glam (or hair metal) genre. CRASHDÏET released their critically acclaimed debut album “Rest in Sleaze” in the fall of 2005 through Universal Music, giving them a spring of success in their home country. But shortly after, in January of 2006, their frontman Dave Lepard, was found dead in his home after committing suicide. The surviving members have carried the torch ever since, recruiting new frontmen, touring the world, and releasing six studio albums for their widespread fans. The band has collaborated with superstars such as Mick Mars from Mötley Crüe and Michael Starr from Steel Panther.
CRASHDÏET is on the road again with a solid new line-up, still holding original members Peter London and Martin Sweet. Maybe not as decadent as in the early days, but always bringing on a high-octane live show that few people forget!
Upcoming shows Aug 30 Rethymno Rocks GREECE Sep 5 Tampere FINLAND Sep 6 Turko FINLAND Sep 7 Helsinki FINLAND Sep 13 SINNER Rock GERMANY Sep 14 Ålvik Rock NORWAY Nov 30 Encore, Stockholm SWEDEN
Line-up : John Elliot – Lead Vocals Martin Sweet – Guitar Peter London – Bass Michael Sweet – Drums
Australia’s Head-banging rock‘n’roll powerhouse Emergency Rule are stoked to announce that they will be touring Japan in November. The tour signals the first time the Aussie rockers are heading out on an international tour.
Their debut album was released in February to rave reviews, followed by a June release in Japan. Starting in Tokyo on November 5th, they will play five shows across Japan.
November 5th – Tokyo – Moonstep November 6th – Tokyo – The Wall November 7th – Nagoya – Huck Finn November 8th – Osaka – Hokage November 9th – Kobe – Blueport
To celebrate the occasion, Emergency Rule unleashed their new lyric video for the powerful track “From the Grave “:
Emerging from the pulsating heart of the Aussie rock scene, Emergency Rule has shattered genre boundaries, forging a unique sound that weaves together rock, stoner, and metal influences into a sonic tapestry of raw power and innovation.
Skid Row releases ‘Piece of Me’ as a second single and video through earMUSIC.
‘Piece of Me’ (Live in London) is a fiery rendition of a standout track from Skid Row’s multi-platinum debut album. Captured in front of an electrified, sold-out audience. This blazing performance is just one track from the live album that Skid Row fans—both old and new—have been waiting over 35 years for, and this show, in this instant, is exactly what they’ve delivered.
‘Like our heroes before us, Skid Row has always taken great pride in delivering a high energy, in your face live show. We’re very excited to finally have a live album as a snapshot of that approach to performing, and we couldn’t think of a better place than London! Cheers to all our fans who help create these shows with us!’– Rob Hammersmith –
When Skid Row took to the stage that night, they captured lightning in a bottle. Live in London, the album and film showcase unforgettable, definitive performances of their timeless classics, including ’18 and Life,’ ‘Monkey Business,’ and ‘I Remember You,’ as well as new fan favorites like ‘Time Bomb’ and ‘Tear It Down’ from their critically acclaimed Nick Raskulinecz produced album The Gang’s All Here.
Skid Row crossed the Atlantic to find a fierce crowd awaiting the the power of a band truly committed to rock ‘n’ roll, past present and future. ‘Live In London’ is a classic live album from a band that continues to innovate, grow and fire up audiences around the globe.
Progressive alternative rockers Pure Reason Revolution return with their sixth studio album ‘Coming Up To Consciousness’, released on the 6th September 2024 via InsideOutMusic. Betrayal, deception, fear, grief, mortality, and questions of sanity: heady and primordial themes animate the latest conceptual LP from Pure Reason Revolution. Indeed, the new single from the band is titled ‘Betrayal’, and you can watch the video now below.
Jon Courtney comments: “My daughter says whenever we see a white butterfly it’s Dennis visiting us, ‘and your soul it passes by still’. I felt such guilt after having him put down, it’s taken two years to accept it was the right thing to do at that time. ‘not built to feel you death’, highlights how one can think you’re prepared for such an event but then you’re floored in the aftermath. Greg & I began this track in Portland, I brought it back to Berlin & pulled it into shape. Guy does a fab bassline, which might even see me dancing or prancing across the stage when we do it live! Hope you enjoy this one.”
‘Coming Up To Consciousness’ is the third of its post-hiatus renaissance records that began with 2020’s ‘Eupnea’ and continued in 2022’s ‘Above Cirrus’. Like those two predecessors, the new record is intensely personal. Its eight tracks are all between four and seven minutes long – concise by PRR standards – and they grapple with darkness of various kinds.
Courtney, who lives in Berlin, shared writing duties on several tracks with US-based Greg Jong. The pair formed Pure Reason Revolution together in the early 00s at the University of Westminster, creating breakout hit ‘The Bright Ambassadors of Morning’ as their third year project. They reconnected during the creation of ‘Eupnea’ and have continued the partnership since then both in the studio and on stage. Legendary session musician Guy Pratt, who has worked with Pink Floyd among myriad iconic acts, provided bass guitar on seven of the eight tracks, resulting in more ambitious bass lines than any of Pure Reason Revolution’s previous records. Meanwhile, Ravi Kesavaram, of My Vitriol fame, returns to the drums on this record after touring with the band in 2022.
Another newcomer on this record is vocalist Annicke Shireen, known for her work with Shireen and Heilung, as well as her solo project. Shireen stepped in after original PRR member and fan favourite Chloe Alper was unavailable for recent live shows. With Alper’s schedule remaining packed for the foreseeable future, she has been unable to rejoin the lineup. She and Courtney agreed it made more sense for Shireen to sing on the record if she was going to continue appearing in shows. Both Courtney and Jong have nothing but enthusiasm for working with her:
“They’re impossible shoes to fill in a lot of ways,” Greg Jong says. “But we were just blown away with how good she is. We were really excited by the fact that vocally she does have a similar tone to Chloe, and yet she definitely holds her own.”
The band was equally thrilled to work with multiple members of prog icon The Pineapple Thief; the record was mixed by Bruce Soord, mastered by Steve Kitch, and sees Jon Sykes playing bass on one track. ‘Coming Up To Consciousness’ is also the third PRR album to feature cover art by Jill Tegan Doherty, who Courtney originally met in Berlin on a German language course.
The album will be available as a Limited CD+DVD Digipak (featuring 5.1 Surround Sound & High Resolution Stereo Mixes), Standard CD Jewelcase, as well as a Gatefold ReVinyl LP (Recycled Vinyl), and digitally in both stereo and Dolby Atmos. Pre-order now here: https://purereasonrevolution.lnk.to/ComingUpToConsciousness
The band have also confirmed their first tour dates in support of the album, playing in Europe alongside Lesoir in September & October, before a headline tour of the UK in December.
27th September – Be Prog! My Friend, Barcelona, Spain* 29th September – Stummsche Reithalle, Neunkirchen, Germany 30th September – Backstage By The Mill, Paris, France 1st October – Colos-Saal, Aschaffenburg, Germany 3rd October – Cpunt, Hoofddorp, Netherlands 4th October – Progpower Europe, Baarlo, Netherlands* 5th October – 013, Tilburg, Netherlands *No Lesoir
3rd December – The 1865, Southampton 4th December – Thekla, Bristol 5th December – Club Academy, Manchester 6th December – O2 Academy 2, Birmingham 8th December – Islington Assembly Hall, London
The band will also make their first appearance on Cruise To The Edge in 2025, alongside Steve Hackett, Riverside, Haken, Big Big Train, Robert Fripp & many more.
POWERNERD – noun 1. A person of any gender who has, through tenacity and perseverance, turned what society may deem as a ‘weakness’ into a superpower. 2. A total fucking badass. 3. You.
Devin Townsend is pleased to announce the release of his forthcoming new studio album ‘PowerNerd’ on the 25thOctober 2024. Devin Townsend’s career is one of many distinct eras. He’s been the leader of Strapping Young Lad, the lynchpin of the Devin Townsend Project and the co-architect of country duo Casualties of Cool, all while maintaining his prolific and lauded solo project. Now, the polymath’s newest era starts with ‘PowerNerd’.
“It was a conscious thing,” Devin says of his brand-new album, the music on which he wrote in just 11 days. “I thought, ‘I’ve spent so much time overthinking every aspect of my work – what would happen if I didn’t?’ Maybe I would have the opportunity to be a bit more direct with what it is that I’m trying to do. I really wanted to see if I could cut through some of the meandering.”
A song that embodies that, is the album’s title track (which features a guest spot from Jamey Jasta), and you can watch the video for that high-speed rampage of a song here:
However, that aggression is far from the only thing to come from PowerNerd’s 11 episodic tracks. ‘Dreams of Light’, by comparison, is an evocative and dynamic four-minute ballad. ‘Younger Lover’ calms down from an explosive opening to lush verses of synths and singing, whereas ‘Falling Apart’ and ‘Jainism’ add texture after texture on top of dulcet, acoustic introductions.
Where PowerNerd’s music was written in less than a fortnight, its lyrics were refined over a far longer period of time into a narrative about strength and healing. On ‘Falling Apart’, Devin commands himself to “keep the tension under control”. “You’ve got to believe that things will only get better,” subsequent song “Gratitude” powerfully declares. These uplifting messages even play into the record’s title.
Devin offers as a definition: “I would say that a powernerd would be somebody that has a tendency that society has deemed weak or not valuable, whether that’s empathy or being an insular person or an introvert, and turns that into a type of personal power. It’s like, ‘OK, yeah, I’m sensitive to this, that and the other thing, but man, I am going to pull through! I am going to do things with that sensitivity that are rooted in strength.’”
‘PowerNerd’ will be available on several different formats, including a Limited 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook (featuring the album, bonus tracks and Devin’s first ever Dolby Atmos mix), Limited 2CD Digipak in O-card, Standard CD, Gatefold 2LP & Digital Album. The full tracklisting for the main album is as follows:
The album’s artwork was created by longtime collaborator Travis Smith.
As well as express strength through adversity, PowerNerd will open the door to Devin’s immediate future. Its positivity and succinctness will soon be contrasted by follow-up The Moth – self-described as “orchestral, over-the-top, dark and uncomfortable” – and the “alien weirdness” of finale Axolotl. Both efforts have already been written, and together the trilogy will express the mind-boggling range of this man’s musical talent.
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
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video
Ads
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
Click image to watch the video
Metal Shock Finland (World Assault ) 