SERPENTS is a band playing modern/post-metalcore with a touch of electronic music, formed in 2023 in Szczecin (PL), consisting of five members. The band is distinguished by its professional approach to music, creating a unique sound in which aggressive guitars harmonize with pulsating electronic elements.
Within few last months band published songs “The Void“, “Hourglass“, “Self-Made Suffering“, “Tangled“, “Walking Disaster” which are going to be released as EP. In their music, the quartet tries to cross artistic boundaries and the music, combined with an extremely expressive voice, shows a rich palette of emotions.
Few days ago, Serpents presented brand new song “The Signal” with video done by Anna Pomierczyk-Wiechnik from rock-it.tv. Vocal in this single was engineered by Wiktor Pieńkosz at Seeker Studio (Netherless, Drakwald), while track was mixed and mastered by Waldemar Jędruszak at Nailbomb Audio (Konstelacje, The Sixpounder, Scylla). Live band photo by Lesław Kopecki.
It’s been 17 long years since RITUAL released their last album, but finally there’s a new one on the way. It will be here on the 16 August 2024 to be precise, which is when Karisma Records will release “The Story of Mr. Bogd – Part 1”, the long-awaited sixth full-length album from the legendary Swedish Prog Rockers.
And fans need wait no longer to find out what the album has in store for them because Karisma Records have released the track “Chichikov Bogd”.
Here is what the band had to say about it:
What is Chichikov Bogd? Well, that’s the name of the protagonist in Ritual’s upcoming musical epic “The Story of Mr. Bogd, part 1”. It is also the name of one of the songs on the album, and tells a bit about the main character’s background. The song was previously released on the 2020 EP “Glimpses” but here it comes in a thunderous, remixed and remastered single version. Mr. Bogd has arrived!
With “The Story of Mr. Bogd – Part 1” RITUAL has created a blissful blend of road movie, classic fairytale, buddy movie and adventure epic, set in an imaginary land and era reminiscent of late 19th century Europe. All delivered with music that covers a large amount of stylistic ground, ranging from intense and powerful rock, to musically elaborate and intricate tracks, along with some odd and even quirky moments, and of course some acoustic, folky songs.
Tracklisting on “The Story of Mr. Bogd – Part 1”, which features artwork by Javier “Canelita” Herbozo, is as follows:
01. A Hasty Departure 02. The Inn of the Haunted Owl 03. Dreams in a Brougham 04. Chichikov Bogd 05. Mr. Tilly and his Gang 06. Through a Rural Landscape 07. The Feline Companion 08. Read all about it! 09. Forgotten Qualities 10. The Three Heads of the Well
No strangers to the art of the “concept” album, indeed they have often been inspired by Tove Jansson’s novels about the Moomins, RITUAL’s new album forms the first part of the story of Mr Bogd, the oddly named protagonist who, as an established member of society and an affluent individual, realises that the life he is living is deeply unsatisfactory. The result of this revelation is that our Mr. Bogd suffers a mid-life crisis so deep that he sees no other alternative than to leave his job and his comfortable urban lifestyle.
It is an act of pure desperation – a decision taken without having any clear idea of what it is he is actually looking for. He therefore frequently falls prey to moments of doubt, yet, deep inside of him, there are insistent memories and strong sensations that constantly drive him forward on a journey that, together with coachman Parkhurst, leads Mr. Bogd through an increasingly wild, imaginative and dangerous environment.
In short, it’s a story about forsaking what we know, what is safe, and what is all mapped out, in favour of an ideal of what constitutes the natural world. That distant, unlit, unknown, destination, whilst at the same time exploring why anyone would want to do such a thing. At its heart it is a story about maintaining your innocence, and finding sanity and self- esteem, and what one is ready to give up in order to do so.
“The Story of Mr. Bogd – Part 1” will be released in CD, Digital and Limited Edition Transparent Violet Vinyl LP formats, and is now available to pre-order from:
When they formed in 1993, RITUAL immediately established a distinct progressive style that is very much their own. Influenced by the progressive rock and hardrock of the ‘70s, as well as contemporary bands, RITUAL’s sound has always been song-based, melodic and intense, with a great stylistic variation, and plenty of folk music influences seeping in. The latter feature is not least due to the band’s frequent use of acoustic instruments like bouzouki, mandola, whistles and the Swedish nyckelharpa (a keyed fiddle).
With a lineup composed of Patrik Lundström on lead vocals and guitar, Fredrik Lindqvist on bass, mandola, dulcimer, recorder and vocals, Jon Gamble on keyboards and vocals, and Johan Nordgren on drums, nyckelharpa and vocals, RITUAL have established themselves as a confident and powerful live band through numerous tours around Europe and appearances at international festivals such as Rites Of Spring Fest in the USA and Baja Prog in Mexico.
RITUAL’s next live appearance will be on the 20th July at the Night of the Prog Festival, at the Loreley Amphitheater, in Bornich, Germany.
Soundsrock Agency is thrilled to announce that Rome’s BANG OUT have joined to their roster family.
Founded in 2010, the Italian hard’n heavy band BANG OUT has two albums; they’re style characterized by a modern sound is aggressive and powerful, keeping at the same time solid roots in music wich is influencing since the early years totally dedicated to pureblood straight hard rock, those years gave birth to the first studio album “ROTTEN ROLL” that followed them back and forth between gigs, tours and festivals.
After a period off to the point of current line up Nash (lead vocal – rhythm guitar), Fill (drums), Mäkk8 (bass – vocal), Umi, (lead guitar – vocal), the “bangers” decided to lock theirself in studio to let the band evolution come out, so there it is “PARADISE ’99” for TIME TO KILL RECORDS out on spring 2022.
The new album has its own brand new powerful style, contaminated by a spread scissor from pop to heavy.
BangOut are: NASH: LEAD VOCAL, RTM GUITAR MÄKK8: BASS, BK VOCAL UMI: LEAD GUITAR, BK VOCAL FILL: DRUMS
Legendary German heavy metal pioneers BLIND GUARDIAN have announced the release of an epic re-recorded version of their classic 1992 breakthrough album, Somewhere Far Beyond.
Somewhere Far Beyond Revisited, which was recorded in 2022 und 2023, is a refreshing and powerful tribute to one of the most influential albums in German metal history. It paved the way for BLIND GUARDIAN’s international career that is still going strong today and this re-recording impresses with all the class and quality these pioneers have been known and respected for since forming as Lucifer’s Heritage three decades ago.
Somewhere Far Beyond Revisited will be released on August 2nd, 2024 coinciding with BLIND GUARDIAN‘s triumphant return to this year’s edition of Wacken Festival, and a wide selection of physical variants can be pre-ordered as of today!
To give you a first impression of the new sound, ‘The Quest For Tanelorn (Revisited)‘ has been released as a single today. A music video by Dirk Behlau featuring historic & new studio, backstage and live footage has been released alongside. You can watch it below.
SOMEWHERE FAR BEYOND REVISITED Release Date: August 2nd, 2024 01. Time What is Time (Revisited) 05:45 02. Journey Through the Dark (Revisited) 04:49 03. Black Chamber (Revisited) 01:00 04. Theatre of Pain (Revisited) 04:18 05. The Quest for Tanelorn (Revisited) 06:06 06. Ashes to Ashes (Revisited) 06:03 07. The Bard’s Song – In the Forest (Revisited) 03:27 08. The Bard’s Song – The Hobbit (Revisited) 04:10 09. The Piper’s Calling (Revisited) 01:02 10. Somewhere Far Beyond (Revisited) 07:33
ABOUTSOMEWHERE FAR BEYOND REVISITED
Right on time with their show at 2024’s edition of Wacken Open Air, BLIND GUARDIAN proudly announce the release of Somewhere Far Beyond Revisited on August 2nd which includes a complete re-recording of this classic as well as a live celebration of 1992’s Somewhere Far Beyond, a landmark record for Germany’s heavy metal titans. After three albums on No Remorse Records, it was the band’s major label debut via Virgin Records and opened threm doors to the Japanese market resulting in a wider availability and presence on the global metal scene. After finding the right balance of speed, heaviness, melodies, drama and irresistible choruses on 1990’s Tales From The Twilight World, Somewhere Far Beyond honed this approach to perfection, evolving further on a conceptual level and increasing BLIND GUARDIAN’s sonic range. On Somewhere Far Beyond the band experimented with keyboards, orchestrations, and folk elements, the latter manifesting in the group’s best-known song and live staple, ‘The Bard’s Song (In The Forest)’, whereas other tracks like ‘Ashes to Ashes’, the rapid ‘Journey Through The Dark’ or ‘The Quest For Tanelorn’ connected well with previous mostly fast-paced albums yet offered an additional push in dynamics.
Fast forward 30 years! Prior to releasing the much lauded opus The God Machine in September 2022, BLIND GUARDIAN had been performing Somewhere Far Beyond in its entirety at Rock Hard Festival and Hellfest in Summer 2022 in front of tens of thousands of fans singing along to each track. Both shows were filmed and recorded professionally and aired via WDR and ARTE. For the limited triple-disc-edition of Somewhere Far Beyond Revisited the Hellfest material was newly edited by the band’s long-time videographer Dirk Behlau using additional multi-cam footage. The idea of re-recording the album originated from the rehearsals for these shows as Hansi Kürsch explains in the detailed liner notes: “The original idea wasn’t to do a re-recording. When rehearsing for the anniversary gigs, corona hit and we couldn’t be certain that those shows would take place. We still wanted to celebrate the anniversary of the album and if we wouldn’t be able to include a live version, we initially thought we could at least record the rehearsals.” Not 100% satisfied with those rough versions, BLIND GUARDIAN decided to go all in, knowing the risk of being frowned upon by fans who consider re-recordings utter blasphemy. “We tried to recapture what we did in 1992 but compensate youth with skilful experience, though in a hungry way. We never discussed any major changes but with over 30 years of experience, and our current line-up, those ingredients already add a new flavour to it.” With the basic tracks recorded in a live setting, Somewhere Far Beyond Revisited is leaner and more focused on impact in terms of guitar arrangements yet retains all the harmonies and melodies essential to the original. “We finally ended up with this cool hybrid version”, André adds. “We combined how we play the songs today, but at the same time, really tried to retain that speed metal spirit of the early 90s!”
Legendary metal tribe SOULFLY have announced another tour across Europe and the UK. The Summer run called ‘Superstition Tour 2024‘ kicks off in late July.
27.07. FR VITRY SUR SEINE – LE KILOWATT 28.07. NL BERGEN OP ZOOM – GEBOUW T 29.07. DE HAMBURG – KNUST 30.07. DK COPENHAGEN – PUMPEHUSET 31.07. DE BERLIN – COLUMBIA THEATRE 01.08. PL WARSAW – PROGRESJA 02.08. CZ OSTRAVA – CLUB GARAGE 03.08. DE JENA – F-HAUS 05.08. DE ASCHAFFENBURG – COLOS-SAAL 06.08. NL OSS – GROENE ENGEL 07.08. NL SITTARD – VOLT 08.08. BE LIEGE – REFLEKTOR 11.08. SK ZVOLEN – CULTURE HOUSE 12.08. DE MUNICH – BACKSTAGE 13.08. CH AARAU – KIFF 14.08. IT PINARELLA DI CERVIA – ROCK PLANET 15.08. CH MARTIGNY – SUNSET BAR 21.08. ES BILBAO – SANTANA 27 22.08. PT CAMINHA – VILAR DE MOUROS FESTIVAL 24.08. ES MADRID – MON 25.08. ES GRANADA – EL TREN 27.08. ES BARCELONA – SALAMANDRA 28.08. FR BORDEUAX – IBOAT OPEN AIR 31.08. UK BIRMINGHAM – O2 INSTITUTE 2 01.09. UK BRISTOL – MARBLE FACTORY 02.09. UK SOUTHAMPTON – 1865 03.09. UK LONDON – O2 ISLINGTON ACADEMY 05.09. UK WREXHAM – ROCKIN’ CHAIR 06.09. UK LEEDS – KEY CLUB 07.09. UK-SCT GLASGOW – GARAGE
Indiana’s WRAITH has today shared a new single, Merchant of Death, from their forthcoming album, Fueled By Fear, which is due to be released via Prosthetic Records on June 28. Merchant of Death is the third track to be taken from the blackened thrash / speed metal group’s latest full-length, and arrives ahead of WRAITH‘s upcoming summer North American tour dates in support of Exciter and Midnight this July and August.
Speaking on the single, WRAITH comments: “Clocking in at 2 minutes and 8 seconds, Merchant of Death doesn’t waste any time. This is one of the fastest songs the band has ever written. Both lyrics and music attack with an intensity not yet displayed on our previous albums.”
What started as a one-man band in 2016, WRAITH has evolved into a propulsive beast of a band. Channeling a reverence to classic metal from a bygone era, WRAITH incorporate their distinctively blistering sonic signature to create something urgent and contemporary. The band have previously described their collective mission as follows: a war of aggression on the dour confines of the modern metal scene and total sonic annihilation.
Fueled By Fear captures the raw punk edge of their previous releases; a sound that will already be familiar to converts who have caught the band live in all their full-throttled abrasive glory. The album was self-produced by the band in Griffith, Indiana, with engineering, mixing and mastering handled by CJ Rayson. Each member brings their own influences and stylistic flourishes to the table, combining to create a tightly wound, cohesive collection of scorching tracks that reflect their individual personalities and tastes.
Thematically the album explores a dystopian landscape where the boundaries between fiction and reality are blurred, and global and political tensions form in a powder keg of fraught possibilities. Whilst the tales they weave are rooted in reality and an interest in religion, history and political science, they have given themselves free reign to explore the outer reaches of nightmarish possibilities.
Fueled By Fear tracklist: 1. Asylum 2. Fueled By Fear 3. Horses and Hounds 4. Shame in Suffering 5. Code Red 6. Ice Cold Bitch 7. Warlord 8. Merchant of Death 9. Heathen’s Touch 10. Hell’s Canyon 11. Vulture 12. Shattered Sorrow 13. Truth Decay 14. The Breaking Wheel
Back firmly in the real world, WRAITH have a busy year of live shows planned and every intention of getting heads banging with their mosh-ready brand of snarling heavy metal.
Upcoming WRAITH tour dates: w/ Exciter and Midnight
18 July – The Siren – Morro Bay, CA 19 July – La Santa – Santa Ana, CA 20 July – Brick by Brick – San Diego, CA 21 July – Nile Theater – Phoenix, AZ 22 July – Launchpad – Albuquerque, NM 24 July – The Rock Box – San Antonio, TX 25 July – White Oak Music Hall – Houston, TX 26 July – Come and Take It Live – Austin, TX 27 July – Echo Lounge – Dallas, TX 29 July – Turf Club – Minneapolis, MN 30 July – Reggies – Chicago, IL 31 July – Legends – Cincinnati, OH 01 August – Meadows – Brooklyn, NY 02 August – Middle East – Boston, MA 03 August – Foufounes – Montreal, QC 04 August – Lee’s Place – Toronto, ON
WRAITH is: Chris Petkus – Bass Jason Schultz – Guitar Matt Sokol – Vocals/Guitar Mike Szymendera – Drums & Percussion
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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
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! 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
Click image to watch the video
Metal Shock Finland (World Assault ) 