ALASE Release New Single + Music Video ‘Love Crime’, Ft. RIOGHAN as Duet Partner

Posted by tarjavirmakari on January 12, 2024
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: . Leave a comment
Photo by Mikko Parkkonen / Aarni Visuals

Finnish atmospheric progressive metal band Alase released a new single Love Crime. This track features a stunning Rioghan as female vocals for this duet where Alase’s mastermind Janne Lunnas handles male vocals. The track is taken from the upcoming Beyond Our Imagination EP which is set to be released on February 23rd 2024 via Inverse Records. 

LISTEN to Love Crime single on streaming services: https://push.fm/fl/alase-rioghan-love – Artwork by Mikko Parkkonen / Aarni Visuals

Guitarist Janne Lunnas comments Love Crime:
“The upcoming four-track EP “Beyond Our Imagination” had two songs, of which either one would have worked well as a single. However, “Love Crime” was chosen as the single because it presents many new aspects of our music. It was such an honour to have Rioghan Darcy of the band Rioghan as the female voice in this duet. This time I was responsible for the male voice myself.

Love Crime is a story of tormenting love. The song came together pretty quickly as I knew it was a duet and that the other vocalist was Rioghan. That led to me composing what I thought was a bit of “Rioghan-style” stuff, like the electronic drums and synths in the early parts. At that point, I could not guess that I would end up singing the final male parts of the song.

Our lyricist Ninni Swan had a vision of how the music video for Love Crime should look like. Mikko Parkkonen from Aarni Visuals picked up the ideas and created a mystical garden in his studio with very extraordinary plants. Both Alase and Rioghan have worked closely with Aarni Visuals before, so it was clear that the video would be shot at Aarni’s studio in Seinäjoki.” 

Beyond Our Imagination Track list:

  1. Broken Pendulum
  2. Love Crime
  3. When?
  4. A Night to Remember

Alase is an atmospheric progressive metal/rock band from Finland. Their music is a melting pot of various genres, but the main focus is on the melody and atmosphere. There are a lot of influences outside metal music as well. Musically, Alase has similarities with bands like Katatonia, A Perfect Circle, The Ocean, Textures and Tesseract, just to name a few. Band’s second album “A Matter of Time” was released in April 2023. A four song EP “Beyond Our Imagination” is to be released in early 2024.

Artwork by Ninni Swan

Current Line-up:
Guitars: Janne Lunnas
Bass: Ari Miettinen
Drums: Ville Aatsinki
Lyrics: Ninni Swan

http://www.alaseband.com
https://www.facebook.com/alaseband
https://www.instagram.com/alaseband
https://www.youtube.com/alaseband
https://alase.bandcamp.com
https://spoti.fi/2YYPrkj

STEVE HACKETT Launches Second Track + Video ‘Wherever You Are’ from Upcoming Studio Album

Posted by tarjavirmakari on January 12, 2024
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: . Leave a comment
Photo credit : Tina Korhonen

Legendary rock guitarist Steve Hackett is set to release his new studio album ‘The Circus And The Nightwhale’ on 16th February 2024, via InsideOut Music. A rite-of-passage concept album with a young character called Travla at the centre of it, ‘The Circus And The Nightwhale’s’ 13 tracks have an autobiographical angle for the musician who says about his 30th solo release: “I love this album. It says the things I’ve been wanting to say for a very long time.”

Today a brand new track is revealed, titled ‘Wherever You Are’, and you can watch the video now here:

Of the track, Steve comments: “’Wherever You Are’ is a song of love winning through, shattering the chains of the physical world… Light obliterating darkness. A new universe has opened up with the hope that such a strong love could even survive death. The dreams of childhood realised, there is a sense of everything coming around full circle… Even the three part harmony guitar at the end of Genesis’ The Musical Box is revisited in spirit with the joy of celebration during this song.”

The albums opening track ‘People of the Smoke’ was released in December. Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_iujNWzPL0

The new album is available to pre-order on several different formats, including a Limited CD+Blu-ray mediabook (including 5.1 Surround Sound & 24bit high resolution stereo mixes), Standard CD Jewelcase, Gatefold 180g Vinyl LP & as Digital Album. All feature the stunning cover painting by Denise Marsh. Pre-order now here: https://stevehackett.lnk.to/TheCircusAndTheNightwhale

Steve will celebrate the release of his new album with two HMV in-store events in London & Birmingham, where he will be taking part in a Q&A and signing albums. Find out more details on those here: https://ow.ly/HUaT50Q7paJ

‘The Circus And The Nightwhale’ is Steve’s first new music in over two years. Recorded between tours in 2022 and 2023 at Siren studio in the UK – with guest parts beamed in from Sweden, Austria, the US, Azerbaijan and Denmark, the line-up for ‘The Circus And The Nightwhale’ includes some familiar faces alongside Steve on electric and acoustic guitars, 12-string, mandolin, harmonica, percussion, bass and vocals. Roger King (keyboards, programming and orchestral arrangements), Rob Townsend (sax), Jonas Reingold (bass), Nad Sylvan (vocals), Craig Blundell (drums) and Amanda Lehmann on vocals. Nick D’Virgilio and Hugo Degenhardt return as guests on the drumstool, engineer extraordinaire Benedict Fenner appears on keyboards and Malik Mansurov is back with the tar. Finally, Steve’s brother John Hackett is present once more on flute.

The full track-listing is as follows:

  1. People Of The Smoke
  2. These Passing Clouds
  3. Taking You Down
  4. Found And Lost
  5. Enter The Ring
  6. Get Me Out!
  7. Ghost Moon and Living Love
  8. Circo Inferno
  9. Breakout
  10. All At Sea
  11. Into The Nightwhale
  12. Wherever You Are
  13. White Dove

Summing up ‘The Circus And The Nightwhale’, Steve says: “It’s a lovely journey that starts dirty, scratchy and smoky and becomes heavenly and divine. How can you resist it?”

Steve Hackett & band will tour the world extensively in 2024, including a brand new UK tour ‘Genesis Greats, Lamb Highlights & Solo,’ which will see him return to the legendary Royal Albert Hall. He will also return to North America early this year, with European shows booked in for the Summer.

For the full list of dates, head to: http://hackettsongs.com/tour.html

STEVE HACKETT Online:
http://www.hackettsongs.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Steve-Hackett/123101228589
http://www.twitter.com/HackettOfficial
http://hackettsongs.com/tour.html

ORIGIN Announce European Tour With MARDUK

Posted by tarjavirmakari on January 12, 2024
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: , . Leave a comment
Photo credit: Rodrigo Fredes

U.S. Tech-death masters ORIGIN will return to Europe on April 2nd as direct support to Sweden’s legendary black metal group Marduk. The tour will run through May 5th, visiting Poland, Czech Republic, Germany, Holland, UK, Ireland, France, Italy, Switzerland and Austria (scroll down for full routing). Doodswens & guests will be opening the bill. 

“Memento Mori Tour 2024”
Marduk, Origin, Doodswens + guests
02.04.2024 POL Warszawa / Proxima
03.04.2024 POL Kraków / Kwadrat
04.04.2024 CZ Praha / Futurum
05.04.2024 GER Mannheim / MS Connexion Complex
06.04.2024 GER Lichtenfels / Stadthalle
07.04.2024 NED Drachten / Iduna
10.04.2024 NED Alkmaar / Victorie
11.04.2024 NED Helmond / Cacaofabriek
12.04.2024 UK London / Underworld
13.04.2024 IRE Dublin / Opium
14.04.2024 UK Glasgow / Slay
16.04.2024 UK Manchester / Club Academy
17.04.2024 UK Birmingham / The Castle and Falcon
18.04.2024 UK Bristol / The Fleece
19.04.2024 GER Bad Oeynhausen / Alte Druckerei
20.04.2024 GER Oberhausen / Resonanzwerk
21.04.2024 FR Paris / La Machine du Moulin Rouge
23.04.2024 GER Munich / Backstage
24.04.2024 ITA San Dona di Piave / Revolver
25.04.2024 ITA Moncalieri (TI) / Audiodrome
26.04.2024 CH Lucern / Schuur
27.04.2024 ITA Ranica (BG) / Druso
28.04.2024 A Graz / Explosiv
30.04.2024 A Wien / Szene
01.05.2024 CZ Uherske Hradiste / MiR
02.05.2024 GER Leipzig / Hellraiser
03.05.2024 GER Berlin / ORWOhaus
04.05.2024 POL Wrocław / A2
05.05.2024 POL Poznań / Tama 

Formed in Kansas (North America) in 1997, ORIGIN is one of the top, most intense and most brutal technical death metal forces to be reckoned with.  For more than 20 years, the band have engaged a full-blown sensory assault of tight & taut tech-death, amplified by flashes of grindcore and groove. Their most recent album, the Billboard-charting “Chaosmos”, was released to critical acclaim in 2022 on Agonia records in Europe (and Nuclear Blast Records elsewhere).

ORIGIN emerged on over 100 highly-energetic tours across the globe, including both Americas, Europe, Asia, New Zealand and Australia. In 2007, the band reached Europe for the first time in career (with Misery Index and Necrophagist), and, since then, reclaimed The Old Continent several times over, with Suffocation, Aborted, Exhumed, Immolation and Rings Of Saturn to name a few. Their 2024 tour marks a triumphant and full-scale return & reunion with Marduk, with whom the band already toured in 2016.

“The music of Origin is a fusion of order and disorder; it’s viewed as a meaningless assemblage of infinite perspectives,” posits guitarist, vocalist and founding member Paul Ryan. Aside from Ryan, the band consists of Mike Flores (bass/backing vocals), John Longstreth (drums) and Jason Keyser (lead vocals).

More on “Chaosmos”:
https://www.origin-chaosmos.com
https://www.originofficial.com/chaosmos

ORIGIN on-line:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Origin
Twitter: https://twitter.com/OriginBand
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/originband/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/OriginOfficial

I AM MORBID to Perform “Altars of Madness” in Full at Milwaukee Metal Fest 2024

Posted by tarjavirmakari on January 12, 2024
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: , . Leave a comment
Photo courtesy of https://www.facebook.com/IAMMORBIDBand

After a successful return of Milwaukee Metal Festival in 2023, the iconic midwestern, multi-day event is now revealing 11 more bands and daily schedules for the highly anticipated 2024 edition, with more TBA! The festival is now welcoming I AM MORBID, who will be performing the iconic Morbid Angel record, ‘Altars of Madness,’ in its entirety on Sunday, May 19!

In addition, fans can use code DEATH5 to save $5 on single day tickets at therave.com/metalfest.

The daily lineup is now as follows:

Friday, May 17:

Blind Guardian
Kamelot
Symphony X
Destruction
Marduk
Hammerfall
Metal Church
Incantation
Eternal Champion
Profanatica
Visigoth
UADA
Belushi Speed Ball
Night Demon
Necrofier
Hellwitch
Silva
Ancient Entities
Illusion of Fate
& more

Saturday, May 18:

Mr. Bungle
Testament
Hatebreed
Katatonia
Death to All (Unique set #1)
Deicide
Possessed
The Red Chord
Soilent Green (Reunion)
Skinless
Martyr AD
Heathen
Devourment
Internal Bleeding
Cenotaph
Cloak
Embryonic Autopsy
Eyes of the Living
& more

Sunday, May 19:

Slaughter To Prevail
Avatar
In Flames
I Am Morbid (‘Altars of Madness’ set)
Death to All (Unique Set #2)
Lacuna Coil
Paleface Swiss
Bleed From Within
Exhumed
It Dies Today
Alluvial
Casket Robbery
Viogression
Errors of Humanity
Amerakin Overdose
Beyond Threshold
& more

The festivities will kick off with a pre-party on May 16 while the main festival will run May 17 – 19 at The Rave/Eagles Club in Milwaukee, WI and is promised to have bigger headliners, more food, vendors, live podcasts and other surprises!

The festival returned to prominence in 2023 under the watchful eye of Hatebreed frontman and podcaster Jamey Jasta and Sound Talent Group’s Tim Borror, as well as the team at The Rave / Eagles Club, where so many of the original festivals took place.

Single day tickets and passes are available at Etix.com.

Fans can visit the official Milwaukee Metal Fest site and sign up for the mailing list for first access to information and exclusive content HERE.

Follow Milwaukee Metal Fest: Website – Facebook – Instagram – X

IGNITE Release New Single + Video ‘Done Digging The Grave’ Feat. Andrew Neufeld

Posted by tarjavirmakari on January 12, 2024
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: . Leave a comment

Orange County melodic hardcore five-piece IGNITE are starting the new year with “Done Digging the Grave”, a brand new single and video that also offers a first in the band’s long career: a guest vocalist.

“’Done Digging the Grave’ was written about the difficulty to find optimism in a world where the hardest working do not receive the rewards they deserve and where kindness is only celebrated when it benefits us monetarily”, says Nik Hill (guitar), who wrote the lyrics, on the purpose of the song. “Being hopeless together is the best medicine for a world set on keeping us apart. This song’s negative energy burns clean and leaves nothing but positivity in its wake.”

Brett Rasmussen (bass) comments on working with Andrew Neufeld (Comeback Kid/Sights and Sounds): “This song was specifically written with having a guest vocalist in mind. When we heard the vocal tracks that Andrew added to the music we were completely blown away and in love with how the intensity of his screaming fit perfectly into the track next to Eli’s voice. This is the first time IGNITE has ever had a guest vocalist on any song.”

The video was directed by Rob Wallace.

After playing a South American tour at the end of 2023 the band is looking forward to kickstarting the new year with plenty of shows including an Australian and a recently announced European tour that is mainly dedicated to the UK and Spain / Portugal. Brett Rasmussen on the upcoming European tour: “We are very excited to play multiple shows in UK, Spain and France on this upcoming Spring Tour. It’s been a while since we have done a week of UK dates and we are really stoked to get back to Spain and Portugal again!”

IGNITE Spring Europe Tour:
14.03.24 (DE) ESSEN – TUROCK
15.03.24 (UK) LEEDS – BOOM
16.03.24 (UK) GLASGOW – SLAY *
17.03.24 (UK) NEWCASTLE – ANARCHY BREW CO
18.03.24 (UK) MANCHESTER – REBELLION
20.03.24 (UK) LONDON – THE BLACK HEART
21.03.24 (BE) MALLE – KEMPHE ONDESTROOM
22.03.24 (FR) CARQUEFOU – BLACK SHELTER
23.03.24 (ES) BADALONA – ESTRAPERLO
24.03.24 (ES) VALENCIA – 16 TONELADAS ROCK
25.03.24 (ES) MADRID – SALA NAZCA
26.03.24 (PT) LISBON – RCA CLUB
27.03.24 (ES) A CORUNA – SALA PLAYA
28.03.24 (ES) OVIEDO – GONG GALAXY CLUB
29.03.24 (ES) BILBAO – SALA ZORROTZAKO GAZTETEA
30.03.24 (FR) MARSEILLE – LE MOLOTOV
31.03.24 (DE) OBERNDORF AM NECKAR – EASTER CROSS FESTIVAL
https://mad-tourbooking.de/ignite-tourdates/

US Dates:
19.01.24 Tempe, AZ – Yucca Trap Room
20.01.24 San Diego, CA – The Holding Company
21.01.24 Murrieta, CA – Solaris Beer & Blending

Australia Tour:
21.02.24 (AUS) Newcastle, NSW – The Newcastle Hotel
22.02.24 (AUS) Canberrga, ACT – The Basement
23.02.24 (AUS) Marrickville, NSW – Marrickville Bowlo
24.02.24 (AUS) Richmond, VIC -The Leadbeater
25.02.24 Fortitude Valley, OLD – Soapbox
https://www.thesyndicatetouring.com/#

IGNITE line-up:
Brett Rasmussen – bass
Kevin Kilkenny – guiat
Eli Santana – vocals
Nik Hill – guitar
Craig Anderson – drums

IGNITE online:
https://www.instagram.com/igniteband
https://www.facebook.com/igniteband/
https://www.ignitebandofficial.com/

SLOPE Release New Single + Video ‘Why Sad’

Posted by tarjavirmakari on January 12, 2024
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: . Leave a comment

Three weeks before their album release, German crossover outfit SLOPE present the 4th single and video, “WHY SAD”, from their highly anticipated upcoming album Freak Dreams, which is set for a release on February 2nd, 2024, via Century Media Records.

Check out the vibrant video for “WHY SAD”, that was concept by Simon Blümel & Philipp Jeske and directed by Robin Hückstädt, below.

“WHY SAD” is described by the band as “a raw fusion of grunge’s energy and various crossover vibes, making it one of the more experimental and thus excitingly enjoyable tracks on our upcoming album Freak Dreams. Exploring new avenues and trying different approaches feels invigorating for us, all while maintaining our distinctive style in songwriting”.

Pre-order and stream Freak Dreams here: https://slope.lnk.to/FreakDreams-Bio

In 2023, the band released 3 singles and videos in anticipation of their new album, called “It’s Tickin’”, “True Blue” and “Freak Dreams”.

In support of their album release, the band will be playing live in Germany and the Netherlands. The Freak Dreams 2024 Tour kicks off in Berlin on Feb 1st. Wanna see SLOPE live? Buy your ticket here: https://slope-gang.com/#live

SLOPE are a German based hardcore band drawing inspiration from the likes of Beastie Boys, Rage Against The Machine and early Red Hot Chili Peppers, SLOPE infuses their music with infectious energy, irresistible hooks, and thought-provoking lyrics.

Their lyrics delve into the personal struggles and unsatisfying situations that many face in today’s world, particularly the feeling of being deceived by the system. Their music serves as a powerful medium to address these issues, resonating with audiences who can relate to their messages.

SLOPE ONLINE:
SLOPE-GANG
INSTAGRAM
SPOTIFY