Metal Blade Records is proud to announce the signing of Boston, Massachusetts’ MORNE who are adding their brand of crusty and ethereal doom to the label’s celebrated roster. The band is currently recording a new album with Kurt Ballou (Converge, Cave In, High On Fire) for release in late 2023.
“We are wrapping up the recording session at GodCity Studio with Kurt Ballou in Salem, Massachusetts. This will be our fifth studio album and we are very excited that a legendary label like Metal Blade is releasing it to the universe.” comments MORNE vocalist Milosz adding that “music and words for this album were written during stressful and challenging times and life changing moments and I hope people will find something for themselves in this album and enjoy it. I’m very grateful that Metal Blade helped us put it all together.“
Metal Blade GmbH Label Manager, Markus Grasseck, had this to say about the signing: “We’re very excited to welcome MORNE to our Metal Blade family. Being a fan of the band since their Demo 2008, it’s a great honor to finally work together for the years to come. The band’s unique blend of atmospheric Doom with Crust attitude is unparalleled and we can’t wait to get this out to as many people as possible. Brace yourself for their new album due out this fall!“
In other news, MORNE will be heading over to Hamburg, Germany to perform at this year’s Hell Over Hammaburg Festival in March. More festival details can be found here: helloverhammaburg.blogspot.com
MORNE is: Miłosz Gassan – vocals, guitars Paul Rajpal – guitars Morgan Coe – bass Billy Knockenhauer – drums
About the band: Formed in 2005, MORNE blends doom metal and classic British crust but stretches beyond those boundaries, combining a bleak lyrical style with driving riffs. Four studio albums have been released to date with the band currently recording material for their 5th studio album. Their first, Untold Wait, was on Feral Ward Records in 2009 then in 2011, the band signed with Profound Lore Records and released Asylum that same year, followed by Shadows, in 2013. Their latest, To the Night Unknown, was released in September of 2018 on Armageddon Label and the band’s own Morne Records. The band has toured the US, Canada and Europe, where they have been part of large festivals such as Roadburn, Hellfest, Quebec Deathfest, Psycho Las Vegas, Into the Void and Blow Up the Gramaphone.
Multinational All Star Death Metal Kings SIEGE OF POWER released their new album “This Is Tomorrow” yesterday, February 17th. Check out the album on all digital platforms and watch the brand new visualizer for “Zero Containment”, below.
You can listen to “This Is Tomorrow” in its entirety and order your copies at: metalblade.com/siegeofpower – the album is physically available in various formats.
Siege Of Power consists of Chris Reifert (Autopsy) on vocals, Paul Baayens (Asphyx) on guitars, Theo van Eekelen (ex-Hail Of Bullets) on bass and Bob Bagchus (ex-Asphyx) on drums.
“We still like the debut ‚Warning Blast’ a lot but after a few years we started talking about doing another album and then we realized we had to be more serious. So we started writing 11 songs – all killers, no fillers!“, comments drummer Bob Bagchus. “Most of our inspriation on this album came from old school bands like Venom, Bathory, Slayer and even Black Sabbath. Combined with our own personal style we have for decades, of course.”
“This Is Tomorrow” is a tad darker than “Warning Blast” and that’s not all. Chris Reifert’s vocals are a lot more diverse giving each song it’s own identity. It’s a straight forward, rough metal album with good, old 80s vibes and reflects the dark times we are living in these days.
The album was recorded at Toneshed studios and mixed/mastered by Erwin Hermsen. The stunning artwork was created by Roberto Toderico.
Siege Of Power started in 2013 -under the moniker First Class Elite – as a project without any expectations. Shortly after releasing a split album it was left for dead, buried and almost forgotten until the rotten corpse was exhumed in 2017. This resulted in 19 no-nonsense extreme metal tracks mixed with several doomdozers and the debut album “Warning Blast”.
“This Is Tomorrow” track listing 01. Force Fed Fear 02. Sinister Christians 03. Scavengers 04. Zero Containment 05. Ghosts of Humanity 06. As the World Crumbles 07. Oblivion 08. Deeper Wounds 09. The Devil’s Grasp 10. No Salvation 11. This Is Tomorrow
The three-time GRAMMY-nominated guitarist and 25x Billboard chart-topper Joe Bonamassa has released a mind-blowing live rendition of “Mind’s Eye,” a standout track from his most recent studio album ‘Time Clocks.’ Featured on ‘Tales Of Time,’ his sprawling and expansive live concert film and album shot at the breathtaking Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado, the psychedelic influences of the song were augmented by the stunning visual backdrop produced by the iconic Kevin Shirley, serving to highlight the beauty of the music.
The live video captures a stratospheric performance by the blues-rock titan, as his virtuoso guitar style and unique technique and flair elevate the evening to an almost heavenly high.
‘Tales Of Time’ will be released on 4/14 via Bonamassa’s J&R Adventures in CD/DVD, CD/BR, vinyl, and digital formats. For more information and to pre-order, please visit – https://lnk.to/joebonamassa (UK and Europe) and https://jbonamassa.com (North America).
The live album will be distributed in the UK and Europe by Provogue/ Mascot Label Group.
“The song has a very Pink Floyd feel,” commented Roy Weisman, CEO of Bonamassa’s J&R Adventures label, upon the song’s original release. “The whole ‘Time Clocks’ record is about a journey, and ‘Mind’s Eye’ gives you a fun glimpse of what could be swimming around inside someone’s mind.”
“This live show represents our most progressive and largest production to date, focusing on my most ambitious studio album to date,” adds Bonamassa. “My band was a force of nature on this show, and it truly was a special night.”
Cited by Guitar World as “arguably the world’s biggest blues guitarist,” Bonamassa is known for taking risks and venturing into uncharted territory throughout his wide-ranging career. ‘Time Clocks’ marked his most raw, rocking studio album yet, with American Songwriter sharing, “Bonamassa pushes into fresh territory while staying within a blues-based framework,” and “there is more than enough proof in this sprawling set that Bonamassa doesn’t intend to rest on his laurels or take his star status in the blues-rock genre for granted.”
Photo by Jenise Jensen
The release of “Mind’s Eye” coincides with the launch of Bonamassa’s U.S. Spring Tour 2023, which kicked off in Charleston, West Virginia this week. The Spring tour will conclude with Bonamassa’s Keeping The Blues Alive at Sea VIII, set for March 13-17, departing from Miami, Florida to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. The festival line-up includes legendary artists like Little Feat, Dion, Bobby Rush, Robert Randolph Band, Joanne Shaw Taylor, Jimmy Vivino, and more.
KTBA at Sea is one of the largest fundraisers for Bonamassa’s Keeping The Blues Alive Foundation, aiding in its mission to promote music education by providing grants and resources to schools and musicians in need. Bonamassa also just announced “Keeping the Blues Alive presents: Joe Bonamassa & Friends,” a special two-night performance run with Styx and Don Felder at Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater on Saturday, August 12th and Bethel Woods Center for the Arts on Sunday, August 13th.
Bonamassa and his long-time manager Roy Weisman recently launched Journeyman LLC, a full-service artist management, record label, concert promotion, and marketing company that builds awareness for independent artists worldwide. Journeyman provides the infrastructure needed to jumpstart the careers of exceptional independent artists, who are too often overlooked by the major labels or concert promoters while circumventing the resistance of typical “gatekeepers” who don’t support indie acts. “I wanted to take what I’ve had to learn the hard way to create a company that could make navigating this process a little easier,” Bonamassa explains.
For more information on ‘Tales Of Time’ and to purchase tickets to Bonamassa’s upcoming tour, please visit https://jbonamassa.com
‘Tales Of Time’ by Joe Bonamassa (CD) 1. Notches 2. The Heart That Never Waits 3. Curtain Call 4. Mind’s Eye 5. Questions And Answers 6. The Loyal Kind 7. Known Unknowns 8. Time Clocks 9. Just ‘Cos You Can Don’t Mean You Should 10. Evil Mama
‘Tales Of Time’ by Joe Bonamassa (DVD/BR) Dawn Of Time (Intro) Notches The Heart That Never Waits Curtain Call Mind’s Eye Questions And Answers The Loyal Kind Known Unknowns Time Clocks Evil Mama Midnight Blues I Didn’t Think She Would Do It Just ‘Cos You Can Don’t Mean You Should Mountain Time Times Tail (Credits) Bonus Features: Dust Bowl Band Intros The Ballad Of John Henry
‘Tales Of Time’ by Joe Bonamassa (3 LP – 180 Gram Vinyl) Side A 1. Notches 2. The Heart That Never Waits Side B 1. Curtain Call 2. Mind’s Eye 3. Questions And Answers Side C 1. The Loyal Kind 2. Known Unknowns 3. Time Clocks Side D 1. Dust Bowl 2. Evil Mama 3. Midnight Blues Side E 1. Just ‘Cos You Can Don’t Mean You Should 2. Mountain Time Side F 1. I Didn’t Think She Would Do It 2. The Ballad Of John Henry
Feb. 15 Clay Center Charleston, WV Feb. 17 Playhouse Square, Cleveland, OH Feb. 18 Riverside Theater, Milwaukee, WI Feb. 20 The Orpheum Theater, Madison, WI Feb. 22 Peoria Civic Center Theater, Peoria, IL Feb. 24 DeVos Performance Hall., Grand Rapids, MI Feb. 25 Morris Performing Arts Center, South Bend, IN Feb. 28 Shea’s Buffalo Theatre, Buffalo, NY March 1 Benedum Center, Pittsburgh, PA March 3 Ovens Auditorium, Charlotte, NC March 4 Fox Theatre, Atlanta, GA March 5 Soldiers And Sailors Memorial Auditorium, Chattanooga, TN March 7 Montgomery Performing Arts Centre, Montgomery, AL March 8 Saenger Theatre, New Orleans, LA March 10 The King Center, Melbourne, FL March 11 The St. Augustine Amphitheatre St. Augustine, FL March 13 Keeping The Blues Alive at Sea VIII Miami, FL
August 12 Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater, Wantagh, NY * August 13 Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Bethel, NY *
* Keeping the Blues Alive presents: Joe Bonamassa & Friends: Styx and Don Felder, formerly of the Eagles
Tickets available HERE May 9 Bournemouth International Centre May 10 Blackpool Opera House May 12 Leeds First Direct Arena May 13 Newcastle, Utilita Arena May 14 Birmingham, Utilita Arena
Long-running San Diego, California-based deathgrind summoners CATTLE DECAPITATION will release their tenth studio album, Terrasite, May 12th via Metal Blade Records, today unveiling the record’s first single, “We Eat Our Young.”
Though many bands have tried, no one articulates the real apocalypse humanity is facing as vividly and succinctly as CATTLE DECAPITATION. With 2019’s Death Atlas, they reached the apex of this, perhaps leading some to believe they had no place left to go beyond such an achievement, but alas, they return with Terrasite, which is as bold a statement as they have ever made.
“After a record like Death Atlas, you have to make a turn,” notes guitarist Josh Elmore. “Everything about that album – the concept, artwork, music, etc, was a final statement. The only way to move forward is rebirth. In approaching the newest record, it was not only necessary to keep the musical trajectory the band has been aiming towards since the beginning, but also to further explore the ambient/textural elements that were part of Death Atlas.“
As such, Terrasite pushes their sound further into more epic and varied territory, and in the hands of vocalist Travis Ryan the governing concept takes a new and disturbing direction. “I wanted to do the 180° opposite of Death Atlas. I already had the concept idea from years back and since Death Atlas was so dark and brooding, I wanted a completely opposite effect – I wanted this to take place in the daylight. I’ve always found daytime horror to be really unsettling so I wanted to make sure what was going on on the cover took place in the light of day, which also finds its place within the lyrics.“
The title is a word invented by Ryan that brings together “Terra-” meaning “earth” and “-site” derived from the Greek word “-sitos” which means “food.” “The combination of the two means ‘earth-eater.’ It’s a metaphor for humanity’s role in the destruction of the planet and is a play-on-words of the very fitting word ‘parasite.’“
This is vividly brought to life in the artwork by longtime collaborator Wes Benscoter (Vader, Kreator, Bloodbath, Hypocrisy). “We see the nymph stage of this human/cockroach hybrid that is more of a fully grown being that has just molted from its ootheca stage, startled, confused, frightened but also pissed off.”
The band once again worked with producer Dave Otero (Cephalic Carnage, Allegaeon), who knows the members’ individual styles and how to coax the best out of them, bringing in Tony Parker of Midnight Odyssey to handle piano and synths.
This is vividly brought to life in the artwork by longtime collaborator Wes Benscoter (Vader, Kreator, Bloodbath, Hypocrisy). “We see the nymph stage of this human/cockroach hybrid that is more of a fully grown being that has just molted from its ootheca stage, startled, confused, frightened but also pissed off.”
The band once again worked with producer Dave Otero (Cephalic Carnage, Allegaeon), who knows the members’ individual styles and how to coax the best out of them, bringing in Tony Parker of Midnight Odyssey to handle piano and synths.
Watch “We Eat Our Young,” created by Dave Brodsky and Allison Woest of MyGoodEye, below.
Terrasite Track Listing: 1. Terrasitic Adaptation 2. We Eat Our Young 3. Scourge Of The Offspring 4. The Insignificants 5. The Storm Upstairs 6. …And The World Will Go On Without You 7. A Photic Doom 8. Dead End Residents 9. Solastalgia 10. Just Another Body
Cover art by Wes Benscoter
In conjunction with the release of Terrasite, CATTLE DECAPITATION will support Dark Funeral on this year’s edition of the Decibel Magazine Tour. The journey begins on the eve of the record’s release, Thursday, May 11th in Santa Ana, California and runs through Saturday, June 10th in Los Angeles, California. Additional support will be provided by 200 Stab Wounds and Blackbraid. See all confirmed dates below.
CATTLE DECAPITATION w/ Dark Funeral, 200 Stab Wounds, Blackbraid: 5/11/2023 The Observatory – Santa Ana, CA 5/12/2023 The Nile Theater – Mesa, AZ 5/13/2023 El Rey – Albuquerque, NM 5/15/2023 Granada Theater – Dallas, TX 5/16/2023 Empire Control Room – Austin, TX 5/17/2023 The Warehouse – Houston, TX 5/19/2023 The Orpheum – Tampa, FL 5/20/2023 Variety Playhouse – Atlanta, GA 5/21/2023 The Underground – Charlotte, NC 5/23/2023 Baltimore Soundstage – Baltimore, MD 5/24/2023 Irving Plaza – New York, NY * No Blackbraid 5/26/2023 Club Soda – Montreal, QC 5/27/2023 Phoenix Concert Theatre – Toronto, ON 5/28/2023 Crofoot Ballroom – Pontiac, MI 5/30/2023 The Metro – Chicago, IL 5/31/2023 First Avenue – Minneapolis, MN 6/02/2023 The Summit – Denver, CO 6/03/2023 The Complex – Salt Lake City, UT 6/05/2023 El Corazon – Seattle, WA 6/06/2023 The Vogue Theater – Vancouver, BC 6/07/2023 The Roseland Ballroom – Portland, OR 6/09/2023 The Regency Ballroom – San Francisco, CA 6/10/2023 Regent Theater – Los Angeles, CA
Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voice spoke to Mastodon’s guitarist Bill Kelliher about the bands upcoming tour with Gojira, past tours with Metallica and Ghost and gave an update on new Mastodon music.
Watch the full interview below.
When asked if they are writing any new music “Yeah, there’s no like shut off valve for writing and riff writing and stuff like that. It’s always happening. I’m always writing, 75% of my day I’m usually playing guitar and I’m always writing stuff. I got lots of ideas. We’re trying to be ambitious enough to write a song before we leave for this next Gojira tour and have it come out at some point during the tour, before the tour, in between the two legs. I’m always assembling riffs. I’ve got a few skeleton ideas. I’m definitely eager and really ready to get started writing the next record, there’s no shortage of ideas. We still have a lot of creativity left in our band. We’re all 100 % committed to our band so as soon as we get home from this touring cycle, I’m ready to show the guys some of the stuff I got. I own a recording studio and that’s where we did our last record, so it was really easy just to book some time there and just go down, when we feel like being creative. It’s just different now that we have our own Studio you know instead of having to book time and then you’re on a schedule and it’s like you’re always looking at the clock. I feel like now we’re just we can be more creative and take our time.”
When asked about thoughts in covering new musical direction “I don’t know, I mean we’ve talked about doing like a punk rock album where it’s much quicker faster, straight to the punch kind of really fast music. I don’t know, we’ve talked about doing that. We’ve talked about rock operas, we’ve talked about soundscapes. There’s still a lot of stuff that we have to explore and there’s a lot of places in the planet we haven’t been to yet. We’re not throwing in the towel by any means we got a lot of uh stuff on the horizon and things that we need to check off the list.
MASTODON will join forces with Grammy Award-nominated French heavy metal luminaries GOJIRA for “The Mega-Monsters Tour”, a massive co-headline tour across North America in 2023 along with special guests LORNA SHORE on all dates. It finds these two juggernauts taking over arenas and amphitheaters throughout the spring and summer, alternating closing sets each night..
Leg 1:
Apr. 18 – Portland, OR – Veterans Memorial Coliseum (buy tickets) Apr. 20 – Concord, CA – Concord Pavilion (buy tickets) Apr. 21 – Los Angeles, CA – The Forum (buy tickets) Apr. 22 – Phoenix, AZ – AZ Federal Theatre (buy tickets) Apr. 23 – Las Vegas, NV – Virgin (buy tickets) Apr. 26 – Dallas, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory (buy tickets) Apr. 28 – Houston, TX – 713 Music Hall (buy tickets) Apr. 29 – Austin, TX – Moody Center (buy tickets) Apr. 30 – Oklahoma City, OK – Zoo Amphitheatre (buy tickets) May 02 – Nashville, TN – Municipal Auditorium (buy tickets) May 04 – Boca Raton, FL – Sunset Cove Amphitheater (buy tickets) May 05 – St. Augustine, FL – St. Augustine Amphitheatre (buy tickets) May 06 – Atlanta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre (buy tickets) May 07 – Asheville, NC – Harrah’s Cherokee Center (buy tickets) May 09 – Richmond, VA – Virginia Credit Union Live (buy tickets) May 10 – Baltimore, MD – Pier Six Pavilion (buy tickets) May 11 – Reading, PA – Santander Arena (buy tickets)
Leg 2:
Aug. 09 – Cincinnati, OH – MegaCorp Pavilion (buy tickets) Aug. 10 – Cleveland, OH – Jacob’s Pavilion (buy tickets) Aug. 11 – Pittsburgh, PA – Stage AE Outdoors (buy tickets) Aug. 12 – New York, NY – Coney Island Amphitheater (buy tickets) Aug. 13 – Syracuse, NY – OneCenter (buy tickets) Aug. 15 – Detroit, MI – Masonic Temple (buy tickets) Aug. 17 – Toronto, ON – RBC Echo Beach (buy tickets) Aug. 18 – Montreal, QC – Place Bell (buy tickets) Aug. 19 – Portland, ME – Cross Insurance Arena (buy tickets) Aug. 20 – Boston, MA – MGM Music Hall (buy tickets) Aug. 23 – Milwaukee, WI – BMO Pavilion (buy tickets) Aug. 25 – Hammond, IN – Horseshoe (buy tickets) Aug. 26 – Omaha, NE – Westfair Amphitheater (buy tickets) Aug. 27 – Minneapolis, MN – Waite Park Amphitheater (buy tickets) Aug. 29 – St. Louis, MO – The Factory (buy tickets) Aug. 30 – Kansas City, MO – Azura Amphitheater (buy tickets) Sep. 01 – Salt Lake City, UT – USANA Amphitheater (buy tickets) Sep. 02 – Denver, CO – Fiddler’s Green Amphitheater (buy tickets)
Swedish Power Metal legends HAMMERFALL recently announced their return to Nuclear Blast and celebrated a career milestone when it was announced that their albums Renegade, Crimson Thunder, No Sacrifice, No Victory and Chapter V: Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken had all achieved gold status in Sweden. And stoking the flames even higher – it was revealed that Crimson Thunder had surpassed 60,000 sales and hit platinum status.
Today, the band are proud to announce a special 20-year anniversary edition of Crimson Thunder, which will be released on April 28th via Nuclear Blast Records, continuing their retrospective series.
Their fourth studio album has been remixed and remastered by Fredrik Nordström and this definitive version will include previously unreleased pre-production tracks, a brand-new medley and live acoustic songs.
To give their fans a taster, here is a remixed and remastered version of their most popular song ´Hearts On Fire´.
Guitarist Oscar Dronjak comments: ”There is a lot to look forward to with this release even if you’re a die hard Templar with everything already in your collection: brand new album remix by Fredrik Nordström, never-before heard preproduction bonus tracks, exclusive acoustic live versions, this anniversary edition is packed with unique stuff that sees the light of day for the first time. This is our biggest anniversary edition yet!”
Crimson Thunder 20-Year-Anniversary Edition comes in following formats:
Digital Album
3CD Digi Box
Platinum Edition – 2LP Trifold Silver Vinyl
Crimson Edition – 2LP Trifold Marbled Red /Black Vinyl
Europe: 24.03.23 SE Örebro – Frimis Salonger 25.03.23 SE Karlstad – Nöjesfabriken 31.03.23 SE Skövde – Skövde Kulturhus 01.04.23 SE Huskvarna – Folkets Park 14.04.23 SE Sundsvall – Club Deströyer 15.04.23 SE Umeå – Nolia 20.04.23 SE Malmö – Kulturbolaget 21.04.23 SE Kalmar – Kalmar Salen 22.04.23 SE Sälen – Högfjällshotellet 27.04.23 SE Stockholm – Cirkus 05.05.23 DE Bochum – RuhrCongress *with Helloween 06.05.23 DE Hamburg – Sporthalle *with Helloween
US Tour
12.05.23 US Houston, TX – Wharehouse Live 13.05.23 US Dallas, TX – The Factory 15.05.23 US Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade 16.05.23 US St Petersburg, FL – Jannus Live 18.0523 US Silver Spring, MD – The Fillmore 19.05.23 US Philadelphia, PA – Underground Arts 20.05.23 US New York City, NY – Terminal 5 21.05.23 US Worcester, MA – Palladium 22.05.23 CAN Montreal, QC – Théâtre Fairmount 23.05.23 CAN Toronto, ON – History 24.05.23 US Royal Oak, MI – Music Theatre 25.05.23 US Columbus, OH – The King of Clubs 26.05.23 US Chicago, IL – Riviera Theatre 27.05.23 US Minneapolis, MN – Fillmore 28.05.23 US Lawrence, KS – The Granada 30.05.23 US Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre 31.05.23 US Salt Lake City, UT – Metro Music Hall 01.06.23 US Las Vegas, NV – Brooklyn Bowl 02.06.23 US Inglewood, CA – YouTube Theater 03.06.23 US San Francisco, CA – The Warfield 04.06.23 US Roseville, CA – Goldfield Trading Post
Festivals:
24.06.23 NO Oslo – Tons Of Rock 15.07.23 AU Leoben – Area 53 Festival 12.08.23 ES Villena – Leyendas Del Rock 16.-19.08.23 DE Dinkelsbuehl – SummerBreeze 17.-19.08.23 CZ -Moravsky Krumlov-Castle Garden – Rock Castle
Line-up: Joacim Cans – vocals Oscar Dronjak – guitar Fredrik Larsson – bass Pontus Norgen – guitar David Wallin – drums
Chief Shock Video
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
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Metal Shock Finland (World Assault ) 