Italian progressive metallers NOVERIA have released a video for ‘Ascent’, third single taken from the new album ‘The Gates of the Underworld’ to be released on August 25th via Scarlet Records.
The modern progressive metal agenda: Noveria’s goal is to create a complete headbanging experience with a melodic twist, combining massive and heavy riffs with dark atmospheric keyboards along with technically challenging solo sections and memorable vocal lines.
‘The Gates of The Underworld’ takes things to a personal level, each song featuring real life stories from the band as well as from the fans. The human condition is ever present with all its challenges and mysteries, explored through the lens of both scientific research and lived experience.
With their new album, Noveria will take you on a wild roller-coaster ride through a psychotic break, escaping a narcissistic relationship, the aftermath of surviving a heart attack, a near death experience, and much more!
Noveria features members of DGM, Ethernity, Epysode and Paul Gilbert (live)
produced by Simone Mularoni at Domination Studio
cover & artwork by Nicolas Spreutels
NOVERIA:
Francesco Corigliano – vocals Francesco Mattei – guitar Julien Spreutels – keyboards Andrea Arcangeli – bass Davide Calabretta – drums
On the 3rd November Karisma Records will release “Ignis Fatuus” the 1995 debut album from Norwegian Prog legends WHITE WILLOW, which will be the first of six out of the band’s seven studio album back catalogue that the label will release.
WHITE WILLOW was formed in 1992 by guitarist Jacob Holm-Lupo, who at that time was a member of the POLICE/BRUCE HORNSBY-inspired pop band THE ORCHID GARDEN, and keyboard player Jan Tariq Rahman from local jazz-rock/prog rock band DUGGVÅTE DVE.
The two musicians had come together to see if they had any kind of songwriting chemistry, and, whilst sitting on the floor playing acoustic guitar and clavinet, the resultant track “Snowfall” proved that they did, indeed, have something going for them.
The band’s debut album “Ignis Fatuus” took the global progressive rock scene by storm, with 5000 copies selling out in record time, whilst stellar worldwide reviews and fan mail came pouring in and earned WHITE WILLOW the accolade as “one of the most significant progressive groups of the current era” in Billboard’s “Guide to Progressive Music”.
Indeed WHITE WILLOW’s popularity was such that when the band attended the Los Angeles’ Progfest ’95, for what would be only their second ever live performance, they found themselves playing in front of an audience that numbered in the thousands and who had come specifically to see them.
The songs on “Ignis Fatuus” range from almost pure pastoral folk-rock, as on “Snowfall” and “Till He Arrives”, to out-and-out prog rock, as on “John Dee’s Lament” and “Cryptomenysis” (the latter featuring a guest appearance from VED BUENS ENDE’S Carl Michael Eide). It also included unusual experiments like the renaissance-inspired hymn “Song”, based on the poem by Christina Rossetti.
Whilst WHITE WILLOW didn’t, at the time, consider themselves a prog-rock band, more a folk-rock band that dabbled in symphonic arrangements, “Ignis Fatuus” nevertheless became a classic amongst prog connoisseurs, and the prospect of its re-release has caused quite a buzz on the scene.
The “Ignis Fatuus” re-release has been meticulously remastered by Jacob Holm-Lupo himself, and features the original classic cover art.
Tracklisting is as follows:
1. Snowfall 2. Lord of Night 3. Song 4. Ingenting 5. The Withering of the Boughs 6. Lines on an Autumnal Evening 7. Now in these Fairy Lands 8. Piletreet 9. Till He Arrives 10. Cryptomenysis 11. Sighs 12. John Dee’s Lament
“Ignis Fatuus” will be released in CD, Digital and Limited Edition Double LP in orange/blue vinyl. It can be pre-ordered from:
Whilst WHITE WILLOW has now become exclusively a studio project, helmed by Holm-Lupo and often featuring guest appearances from prominent musicians such as Norway’s guitar hero Hedvig Mollestad, or internationally renowned klezmer clarinetist David Krakauer, the band’s history has been somewhat complicated.
Band members have come and gone over the years with only Holm-Lupo having remained with the band since its inception, whilst WOBBLERS Lars Fredrik Frøislie has been a mainstay since 2001.
WHITE WILLOW’s sound too has undergone changes, but it’s safe to say that it is frequently centered around female vocals and an expanded instrumentation that usually includes a host of analogue synthesizers, mellotron, woodwinds and strings, in addition, of course to traditional rock instrumentation.
As well as “Ignis Fatuus”, Karisma Records will also be releasing the following WHITE WILLOW albums:
Ex Tenebris – 1998 Sacrament – 2000 Storm Season – 2004 Signal to Noise – 2006 Terminal Twilight – 2011
QUADVIUM have posted online their updating on how their upcoming debut album is proceeding:
“Update from the group. We’ve been hard at work, virtually, assembling all of the songs. A full group effort is truly the band definition. Master fretless decipher’er of bass inter-play, Jeroen states: “I see all instruments and players equal. We all bring something to the table that creates the magic. That’s why it’s Quadvium. We do it together”. The quartet is regularly meeting on Zoom where the architect master Jennings unveils the latest update of each composition and then after we rehinge our jaws; offer compliments, criticisms, suggestions, ideas, or just call it ‘good’ and move on.
Master of the dual-exhaust bass tone Steve adds: “This is the most democratic process I’ve ever been a part of. It is refreshing to have each of our opinions so valued and weight-considered. I think the level of mutual respect between the four of us allows for a fun, yet no bullshit quorum. I don’t know what people are expecting, there’s enough chops in these pieces to be worthy of shred, but they’re so much more than that. I would say the emphasis we put into the song body is what’s inspiring – they’re each a mini-adventure unto themselves!”
As the master Czech mountain hiker Yuma replaces the “sketch pad” midi drum guide with his own touch on ‘real’ drums the breath of life is given into the monster that lay chained to the laboratory table and the pulses and drive comes alive! Monstrous indeed.
The group will be focused on the process it takes to get this project the level of quality control it deserves over the next few months. As we progress along, stay tuned for some in-studio photos and sound clips! Q”
Recently QUADVIUM, after a couple of years of radio silence, issued an update about the bass duo’s commencement on the debut album. The fretless bassists, Steve Di Giorgio (Testament, Death) and Jeroen Paul Thesseling (Obscura, Pestilence), announced the other musicians that completed the full band line-up, that is Jennings Smith on guitar and Yuma van Eekelen on drums. Launching a band with two predominantly fretless bass players is no common occurrence, and the duo felt they needed to take very special and deliberate time to get the right alignment with who’s participating and what will be the end result – meaning the right sound & composition to represent this rare vision.
The band has now entered the preproduction phase with some final arranging and preliminary tracking in Amsterdam. Final tracking and fine tuning will be ongoing through the rest of this year, as the band also navigate and organize around many busy touring schedules. Plans, at this point, for the album release, foreseeable in the first half of 2024!
QUADVIUM lineup: Jennings Smith – guitar Steve Di Giorgio – bass Jeroen Paul Thesseling – bass Yuma van Eekelen – drums
Please Note, STEVE DI GIORGIO is available for studio sessions as well as session bassist for tours. For further information, please contact tarja@splitscreenproduction.com.
The fretless guru, STEVE DI GIORGIO doesn’t need any longer introductions, as he is widely renowned as a pioneer on the fretless bass in heavy metal music, being the bassist of TESTAMENT, DEATH and SADUS, among others. Within his genre, STEVE DI GIORGIO is respected for his playing skills, versatility and incredible technique. He has more than 40 studio album recordings and over 30 years of touring the world.
Two years after their ferocious comeback work “Revelator“, Australian Extreme Metal innovators THE AMENTA present new EP “Plague Of Locus“. Boasting ten tracks, this ambitious 40 min+ EP features new compositions and a diverse selection of cover songs that have inspired the band’s existence.
“Plague Of Locus” contains unique takes on tracks by local Black Metal curios NAZXUL and LORD KAOS, global alternative legends DIAMANDA GALAS, ALICE IN CHAINS and KILLING JOKE, and stylistically varied artists WOLF EYES, HALO and MY DYING BRIDE.
Tracklist:
01. Intro 02. Sono l’Anticristo (DIAMANDA GALAS cover) 03. Asteroid (KILLING JOKE cover) 04. Angry Chair (ALICE IN CHAINS cover) 05. Plague Of Locus 06. A Million Years (WOLF EYES cover) 07. Crystal Lakes (LORD KAOS cover) 08. Rise (HALO cover) 09. Totem (NAZXUL cover) 10. Black God (MY DYING BRIDE cover)
The artwork for “Plague Of Locus” was created by the legendary Metastazis (PARADISE LOST, ULVER), who also provided art for both of THE AMENTA‘s 2021 releases, “Revelator” and “Solipschism“.
Mixed by the band’s very own Erik Miehs and mastered by Maor Applebaum (FAITH NO MORE, ABBATH), the EP builds on the claustrophobic heft of “Revelator“, resulting in a phenomenal sound that is heavy and crushing, yet natural and organic.
To enter the atmosphere of the forthcoming EP, THE AMENTA now unveil an eerie and obscure video clip for their self-composed title track. Check it out below:
Plague Of Locus‘ is filled with violent and hysterical Extreme Metal arrangements, intelligently combined with groovy elements, dramatic hooks, infectious vocals, and noisy soundscapes – the perfect soundtrack to all nightmares!
Composer and keyboard player Timothy Pope narrates about the new EP’s genesis:
“Listening to ‘Plague Of Locus‘ immediately triggers a nostalgic shiver. To me, it has some of the same cold bite as our material from the 2008 “n0n” album. Of course, it takes that initial familiarity and twists it beyond recognition with wailing theremin and an open, epic mid-section with an inspired vocal from Cain but the seeds of something nostalgic remained. To complement the song, we decided to surround it with covers of songs that have inspired us, particularly our 2021 album, “Revelator“. In fact, two of these tracks were recorded during the “Revelator” sessions.“
“Plague Of Locus” will be unleashed on October 19th/20th on vinyl via the band and digitally via Debemur Morti Productions. Pre-orders are possible via Direct Merch (vinyl) as well as via Bandcamp (digital).
Reveling in the moment THE AMENTA embark on a long overdue Australian headline tour, including a performance at Adelaide’s biggest and best metal festival, Froth & Fury. The Plague Of Locus 2023 Tour will see THE AMENTA‘s first headline shows in over ten years. Known for uncompromising, suffocating and overpowering performances, this boundary-pushing horde are keen to bring their full assault to all shows. THE AMENTA is thrilled to be joined by blackened sludge miscreants LO! on select dates:
THE AMENTA is ugly, dissonant, electronically-lacerated Extreme Metal from Australia, featuring the core creative line-up of Cain Cressall (Vocals), Erik Miehs (Guitars) and Timothy Pope (Keyboards, Samples & Effects) with Dan Quinlan (Bass) and drummer David Haley (PSYCROPTIC, ex-ABORTED) rounding out the lineup.
Early experiments with dissonance resulted in 2002’s “Mictlan” MCD. Two years later, the band had signed to Listenable Records who released the debut full length, “Occasus”. Next came 2008’s divisive “n0n” album. “n0n” was a dense, ugly, sprawling hymn to urban decay. A filthy paean to political manipulation. It was anti-everything.
Upon returning to Australia after extensive European and American touring THE AMENTA, recorded a free download of a huge multimedia release in 2011 entitled “V01D”. The release featured the new title track, re-recordings of tracks from the two previous albums, as well as professionally filmed and recorded live performances and film clips. The new song showcased one of many new directions THE AMENTA could take. Epic chords held in stasis by drones. Melody where before there had only been dissonance.
In 2013, THE AMENTA released “Flesh Is Heir”. The most organic and open of THE AMENTA’s releases to date, “Flesh Is Heir” built huge sculptures of sound from decayed choir loops and found percussion, the strongest riffs and guitar hooks in THE AMENTA back catalogue and an immaculate vocal performance.
After taking a hiatus from live performance in 2014, the band resumed activity in 2019. Inchoate rumblings slowly took shape. In 2020, THE AMENTA is excited to announce a partnership with Debemur Morti Productions, a label whose name is synonymous with art and with the most forward thinking bands in extreme music.
Scottish rockers SHE BURNS RED have been announced as guests on South of Salem’s U.K. tour this Halloween season. To coincide with the news, the band has premiered a colourful yet slightly chilling animated video for ‘Crosshairs’ that’s the stuff of nightmares if clowns aren’t to your liking. Previously featured on their 2020 EP, this single is a new studio recording and taken from She Burns Red’s debut album, ‘Out of Darkness’, which will be released this September.
The band says, “‘Crosshairs’ speaks of bad relationships and how they can affect you. It’s in these desperate moments that you’re looking towards hope when all around you seems lost. It is far too easy to lose sight of what you have and blame others for what is happening to you when sometimes the answer to the question of what is wrong is yourself.”
Produced by Matt Elliss (Massive Wagons/Black Spiders), ‘Crosshairs’ features on a debut album that’s set to be one of the best releases of 2023. ‘Out of Darkness’ showcases why She Burns Red have quickly made a name for themselves in a short space of time. With their captivating live performances and raw musical talent, the West Lothian group blend hard rock with an alternative vibe coupled with plenty of punk and pop smarts; She Burns Red has delivered an album that is energetic, emotional, anthemic and at all times, authentic and optimistic; even the most darkest of times.
She Burns Red has good reason for such optimism in what are ever changing and challenging times for music artists and bands. Vocalist/bassist James McCulloch was almost paralysed having suffered from Cauda Equina Syndrome in 2017 which was followed by bandmate Andy Moore (vocalist/guitarist) needing to have a brain operation in 2019 (“it made sense why he was in constant pain and almost passed out at every gig when he was singing.” says McCulloch). With the pandemic and lockdowns of 2020/2021, and changes in the group line up, for a lot of bands this might have spelled the end of the road. However, with the addition of guitarist Naz Scanferlato and drummer Scott Hanlon (ex Anchor Lane), McCulloch and Moore knew they had something extra special and needed to pursue their ambitions. Which leads us nicely to the new album.
‘Out of Darkness’ is released 15th September 2023 and available for pre-order now.
Album Tracklist:
1. Touch 2. Rise and Fall 3. Killing Time 4. Crosshairs 5. Heavy is the Head 6. Run 7. Stronger 8. Crack the Sky 9. Out of Darkness
Don’t miss the band live, go watch and see why they’ve been receiving such high praise for their forthcoming debut album.
Tour Dates:
27 Aug – Rockwich 9th Sept – GLASGOW, Audio (album launch show) 15 Sept – WOLVERHAMPTON, Giffard Arms 30 Sept – EDINBURGH, Rockin for Tots Festival
South of Salem UK Tour
26 Oct – LONDON, The Black Heart 27 Oct – TUNBRIDGE WELLS, The Forum 29 Oct – BRISTOL, The Exchange 30 Oct – GLASGOW, Attic 31 Oct – NEWCASTLE, Think Tank 01 Nov – MILTON KEYNES, Craufurd Arms 02 Nov – MANCHESTER, Rebellion 03 Nov – WOLVERHAMPTON, KK’s Steelmill
21 Oct – SWANSEA, Station 18 Festival 11 Nov – GRIMSBY, Rockmantic 27 Jan – WOLVERHAMPTON, Giffard Arms 09 Feb – CARLISLE, Rockmantic (headline slot) May 2024 – LINCOLNSHIRE SHOWGROUND, Call Of The Wild Festival
She Burns Red is:
Andy Moore – Vocals/Guitar James McCulloch – Vocals/Bass Guitar Naz Scanferlato – Guitar Scott Hanlon – Drums
Robin Trower returns with a stunningly smouldering new album ‘Joyful Sky’ featuring powerhouse vocalist, Sari Schorr. The album will be released on 27th October via Provogue/Mascot Label Group. To celebrate the announcement, they have revealed the lyric video for, Burn, which you can listen to HERE.
Always receptive to singers who can elevate his emotive guitar touch, the 78-year-old heard a quality in the smoky power of the acclaimed New Yorker Sari Schorr that made him want to tear down and rebuild his songcraft around her.
“I’ve worked with some great vocalists over the years but Sari is dynamite, just an absolute knockout,” reflects Trower. “This album really pushed me, made me write in different keys and arrange songs for her voice. I went more down the R&B route this time, because I knew she’d be great with that flavour. But the blues still underpins everything I do – and there’s definitely elements from my ’70s stuff in this new album.”
The greatest moments in Trower’s discography have become required listening for any student of rock ‘n’ roll. Don’t bet against the highlights of Joyful Sky joining the canon. “Burn is about someone who’s trying to calm down their partner,” he says of the smouldering opener, which sets up the propulsive and faintly Bond-like groove of I’ll Be Moving On. “That one gets me right where I live,” says the guitarist. “It’s soulful, has a vibe about it.”
For six decades, Robin Trower’s career has been an act of quiet rebellion. Rewind the reels of the British guitarist’s backstory and you’ll find an artist who has always rolled the dice rather than take the path of least resistance. In the early-’70s, Trower announced his fearless streak by leaving the security of Procol Harum for a gold-selling solo career whose ever-present Bridge Of Sighs – album filled the stadiums of North America. Since then, he’s flowed from his own projects to collaborations with everyone from Jack Bruce to the United State Of Mind supergroup alongside Maxi Priest and Livingstone Brown. Fast-forward to 2023 and Trower’s new studio album, Joyful Sky, represents vindication for his latest flash of artistic instinct.
While the title of last year’s No More Worlds To Conquer album could be interpreted as a coded farewell, Trower assures fans he has inspiration to burn and no intention of winding down. “If anything, recording new music is even more gratifying now. I love to play the guitar. I love to write songs. That’s what keeps me bouncing. I’ve got all these songs, so I want to get them in the can and ready to go in case my health fails.”
As the guitarist reminds us, it was the standout track from No More Worlds To Conquer that provided the segue into Joyful Sky. “The album with Sari started when Alan Robinson of Manhaton Records – who manages both of us – asked if I’d write something for her. The first thing I said to him was that I’d love to hear her sing I Will Always Be Your Shelter. It’s a really special song to me. I had to completely rearrange it for her. But I knew she’d be wonderful on that song and it all grew from there.”
Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, on her stamping ground of Brooklyn, Schorr still remembers the thrill of taking Robinson’s call. “He told me to think about it, but before he was even finished with the sentence, I’d already committed to the project,” reflects the charismatic belter whose 2018 album Never Say Never was praised for a “husk and muscle voice that demands a little elbow-room in the blues scene” (Classic Rock).
“I was already a fan of Robin, absolutely,” Schorr continues. “You don’t want to use the word ‘genius’ casually, but I believe he is a genius. The way he feels and hears music is so acute, it’s like he has superhuman powers. I had so much faith in his vision. You just grab on and hold tight.”
The pair traded demos back and forth online, but in early 2023, Schorr beat a path to Studio 91 in Newbury, where Trower has tracked his solo albums for over a decade. And while the New Yorker admits to early nerves in the presence of this architect of British blues, she fell quickly into the groove with material that felt tailor-made.
As the album gathers pace, Joyful Sky kicks out against expectations with the soulful ode to self-empowerment on Change It, the dramatic guitar effects of the title track and The Circle Is Complete’s seven-minute transition from a driving rocker to the kind of mournful extended outro solo at which Trower is untouchable.
Trower’s calling cards might be present but Joyful Sky is no throwback: take the frayed strut of penultimate track Flatter To Deceive, on which Schorr rages against the shallow end of popular culture circa 2023. “She latched onto the lyric straightaway,” nods the guitarist. “That song is a commentary on the disease of celebrity today. Joyful Sky is a little bit political, too, the things I’m complaining about. But with the chorus, I wanted to say that we have all these problems in the world but you’ve still got to stay positive.”
A literal lifetime since he first stepped onto the British blues circuit as a cub gunslinger, that fabled Trower power shows no sign of burning out. In fact, the iconic guitarist’s late-period acceleration is something to behold, sweeping up new fans alongside the hardcore who have followed his every move. “I think this record is more accessible than the stuff I’ve done over the last few years and I’ve got a feeling it’ll reach more people,” says Trower of Joyful Sky. “At my age, to still be doing it, and still turning out good stuff – you really appreciate what a blessing that is.”
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 ) 