“Pyrogenesis”, the new album by the exceptional Tyrolean black metallers ASPHAGOR, will be released on 10 March! As of now, “The Great Erosion” is available as a first taste of the upcoming longplayer as a lyric video on the MDD Youtube channel, as well as a single on all common streaming platforms.
“Pyrogenesis” will be released as CD and double vinyl, as well as in a strictly limited edition as DigiPak. The latter is part of a limited box set, which also includes a high-quality pin, cork coaster, autograph card, plec and a bottle opener with logo design. Pre-orders are available now in the MDD Shop and will also prepared on Bandcamp.
March 24th will see the release of “The Loss of Beauty”, the brand new full-length record by Italian doom metal outfit Shores Of Null. “The Loss of Beauty” is Shores Of Null’s fourth album and follows the acclaimed “Beyond The Shores (On Death And Dying)”, unanimously considered by fans and critics as one of the doom metal gems of recent years. Both albums were recorded between 2019 and early 2020, and although “The Loss of Beauty” was initially conceived as the band’s third album, “Beyond The Shores” took its place as it better reflected the doom and gloom sentiment of the “annus horribilis” 2020.
Across 11 tracks (plus two bonus tracks), Shores Of Null once again submerges listeners with tempestuous and turbulent riffs. The band continues to hone its sound and take its melancholic dark metal to new heights by mastering an assorted palette of genres with inbred poignancy. The lyrics celebrate beauty in imperfection and transience and are meant to be an invitation to seek beauty in little things, especially those unexpected and ephemeral.
The band’s brand new single ‘My Darkest Years’ is the third extract from Shores Of Null‘s upcoming album. The single comes with a music video, which has been crafted by Underroom Studio and is an emotional homage to stories told to guitarist Raffaele Colace by his grandfather, a WWII veteran.
He shares the details:“He was taken prisoner in Russia, but he managed to escape and he traveled all the way to Greece, where he hid for a few years in the countryside, in a swamp between the trees, sometimes in a pigpen. In his stories, he told of a woman that brought him a piece of bread every now and then, thus saving him from hunger. Although he managed to escape and survive the war and return to his family in Italy, sorrow never left him for the rest of his life. Whenever he recalled these memories, his eyes were full of tears, and we know for sure that the horrors he saw were way bigger than anything he was able to tell.”
“The Loss of Beauty” is dark and heavy, tinged with feelings of despair and melancholy. An album not to be missed and highly recommended for all fans of Amorphis, Enslaved, and Paradise Lost.
The album was recorded by Marco “Cinghio” Mastrobuono at Kick Recording Studio (Hour Of Penance, Inno, Fleshgod Apocalypse). Cover artwork by Sabrina Caramanico.
Following their latest, third studio album Chaos (2021, AFM Records), German dark rock and industrial metal act SCHATTENMANN has unleashed a brand new track entitled “Hände Hoch”!
Chaos already seen the band unmistakably showcase: SCHATTENMANN‘s sound became heavier, more metallic, more multifaceted and uncompromising in terms of content. Channelling the flavour of groups such as Rammstein, Oomph! and beyond, the four-piece has taken a decisive step and moved the essence of new songs with relentless consistency into the focus of an uncompromising sound. With Chaos, SCHATTENMANN has purposefully expanded their sound to include modern and enthralling elements through the influences of metal and industrial.
After the band just recently premiered their single, “Menschenhasser”, by the end of last year, today, they have shared a music video for brand new song “Hände Hoch” ( engl.: Hands Up )! In a world, where we get more bad than good news, SCHATTENMANN frontman Frank Herzig comments on the new song:
“There are always events that change or affect our lives. You have two options to deal with it: Bust your head in the sand and see everything as black, or try to make the best of every situation and not let the joy of life take away from you. That’s what “Hände Hoch” is all about, no matter what, how bad it goes, we just make the best of it “We turn shit into gold”.”
Finnish 2017 founded heavy metallers WOUNDSTRIPE have released their debut EP “Primis”.
The mini album was recorded at Kuopio Rock Academy studios by Tupi Tuomainen who has worked also with bands like Tarot, Wintersun and Sonata Arctica. It is produced by Sakari Hietala from Tarot and Euge Valovirta from Cyhra. Valovirta also mastered the EP.
Woundstripe doesn’t like to categorize their sound too strictly but their music has been compared to bands like Alice in Chains, Thin Lizzy and Pantera. From this background the band creates their hard grooving heavy metal sound. “The EP has some raw sounds and catchy rhythms” the band describes their debut EP. “Lyrics leads the listener towards some quite gloomy state of mind.”
The current line-up was formed in 2019. Woundstripe has played live shows in Finnish festivals like Kuopio Rock and Metallivuori. And they have also toured in Russia. “Our objective is to go as far as it’s possible and of course: play as much live shows as it’s possible!” the band tells about their future plans.
LINE-UP Jalmari Salmela – Vocals Aleksi Korhonen – Guitar, Backing Vocals Miro Paasineva – Guitar Roope Kajaan – Bass Jukka Huotari – Drums
California rockers ALO have shared a track “Sparrow” out everywhere now ahead of the release of their ninth studio album, SilverSaturdays due out March 3, including a limited run of clear 180g vinyl, via BrushfireRecords andavailable for pre-order now. All orders through this weekend will include an autographed four postcard set from the band. Get an exclusive look at the making of the forthcoming album as the band brings listeners behind the scenes here.
Alongside the track, the band shares an accompanying animated visual that becomes increasingly more detailed as it develops. Plus, ALO will hit the road this spring on the Tour d’Amour XVI around the Western U.S. with support from Rainbow Girls on several dates, and other dates featuring HotButteredRum, ORGŌNE, RonArtisII and TheMooreBrothers. Tickets are on sale now.
“Sparrow,” out today, celebrates the power music has to make one feel understood and its ability to carry one through a difficult time. Explaining the meaning behind the track, Dan “Lebo” Lebowitz shares, “Who amongst us has not been knocked to the floor, or lifted to the clouds by the power of a song that hit them at just the right moment in their life? ‘Sparrow’ is an ode to this goddess of music. She is not bound by time or space, and she always shows up right on time… but only if you let her.”
The latest visual sees the band reunite with animator and director Deren Ney (Tom Petty, Grace Potter, Marcus King) who was behind the previously released “HotDamn” video. Ney explains, “Lebo had the idea of this amorphous, eternal power that can materialize as a sparrow, an arrow, or a musical goddess, but it’s always this propulsive energy that keeps moving forward and affecting things along the way.”
Adding more context behind the video, Ney adds, “The video is a creation myth for the record, starting at the inception of the universe — ‘A Brief History of Silver Saturdays.’ The animation design evolves along with the story, starting very minimalist and building until it’s a full-on cosmic freakout.”
The forthcoming album Silver Saturdays celebrates an ongoing journey that began in Saratoga, California in the late eighties when Dan “Lebo” Lebowitz (guitar/vocals), ZachGill (keyboards/vocals) and SteveAdams (bass/vocals) met in grade school. It stands out as the first full-length studio release featuring drummer/vocalist EzraLipp—a fixture in the Northern California creative scene where he cut his teeth with the likes of PhilLesh, SeanHayes and countless others. Meanwhile, the title nods to the band’s recent penchant for silver attire at their Saturday shows, which became a costume theme amongst their fan base and an acknowledgment of their silver “25th” anniversary.
Today’s release follows the previously shared, irresistible “HotDamn,” a feel-good track that alternates between moments of lush instrumentation, fluid fret-simmering guitar leads, and a hypnotic high register-inflected hook perfect to sing along to with the windows down (and funkified enough to move and groove to!). It highlights both their musical intricacies and downright undeniable knack for a chorus. Keyboardist and vocalist Zach Gill explains, “‘Hot Damn’ is the eureka moment, the soulful epiphany, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. As we behold our respective treasures, be they love, wisdom or an actual chest full of gold, we say to ourselves “Hot Damn!” Animator and director Deren Ney delivered a video to accompany the song’s release and adds, “The song explores the theme of digging around for the good stuff in life, so we reimagined the ALO origin story as a Goonies-style suburban adventure where the kids discover the greatest treasure of all: the power of rock and roll.”
Recorded at Sun Machine studio—nestled in the hills of northern Marin County, CA—the album is a fully collaborative effort written by the band and co-produced alongside longtime engineer David Simon Baker. For Gill, Lebo, Adams and Lipp the session was both a return to their roots and a new beginning – a chance to reconnect and immerse themselves in the creative process.
“There’s always a moment in the making of an ALO record when we ask ourselves, “Why make another record?” Gill reflects, “For me, the answer comes in waves over time. It has to do with the spirit of musical adventure and the rhythms of laughter. It’s about the sweet release of a Lebo guitar lead over an Ezra drum beat as Steve and I weave the bass and keys around each other. Call it a jam, call it a song, call it a feeling, but it has to do with connection. For me, it feels like coming home.”
Lebo adds, “It’s a palpable feeling when the four of us are in a room together creating music—having our individual sound waves collide as they transform and morph into one before even getting captured by the microphones. My hope for the listeners of ALO’s ‘Silver Saturdays’ is that they get to experience a bit of this invigorating feeling—and better yet, that it stirs up some inspiration of their own!”
The result is ten new original songs, recorded mostly live, that pay direct homage to the journey and the artistic process and further refine ALO’s singular and self-ascribed “jam-pop” genre—which Lebo fondly describes as “human music for humans.”
The sounds captured on Silver Saturdays are fresh and mercurial, but they are also fun, thoughtful, dreamy and articulate. All four members lend their distinctive lead and background vocals throughout. Their concise, meticulously-crafted songwriting and storytelling is interwoven with Lebo’s soaring, seemingly effortless leads as he draws impossible, ever-evolving tones from his signature acoustic-electric guitar. Gill’s tasty comping on keys and Adams’ bass groove perfection provide deep pockets sewn by a lifetime of mutual experience, and Lipp’s jam-informed rhythmic flourishes breathe new energy into the mix while also maintaining stylistic continuity with ALO’s earlier body of work.
Following the album’s arrival, the band dons their best silver and sets out on the Tour d’Amour XVI – to support the release and celebrate 25 years together – with good friends Rainbow Girls, Hot Buttered Rum, ORGŌNE, Ron Artis II and The Moore Brothers joining on various dates.
The Tour d’Amour XVI kicks off on March 10 & 11th with two consecutive dates at Crystal Bay Club in Crystal Bay, NV. The band will then make its way through California for six dates including Belly Up in Solana Beach and The Fillmore in San Francisco. At the end of March, the band will play Portland, OR’s Doug Fir and complete the tour in Seattle, WA on April 1st. Tickets are on sale now via alomusic.com/#tour.
“Sparrow,” and its accompanying visual, isout everywhere now, sees ALO embrace the power that music has to heal, uplift and propel one forward. Silver Saturdays, the ninth studio album from the band, is due out March 3, along with a limited run of clear 180g vinyl, and isavailable for pre-order now via Brushfire Records. All orders through this weekend will include an autographed four postcard set from the band. Watch the making of Silver Saturdays with an exclusive behind the scenes look here. Hear the new music and longtime fan favorites as ALO put on their best silver suits and celebrate 25 years on the Tour d’Amour XVI across the West Coast this spring with ticketson sale now. Find ALO onInstagram,Facebook, and YouTube to stay up-to-date with much more to come.
Silver Saturdays (LP) Tracklisting 01. Make It Back Home 02. Oil 03. Sparrow 04. Hot Damn 05. Keep On Giving Jane 06. Growing Your Hands Back 07. Rewind 08. Rare Air 09. Divine Fall 10. Goodnight Song
ALO Live on Tour West Coast Spring 2023
Mar. 10 – Crystal Bay, NV – Crystal Bay Casino* Mar. 11 – Crystal Bay, NV – Crystal Bay Casino** Mar. 12 – Grass Valley, CA – Center For The Arts*** Mar. 15 – Carmel, CA – Folktake Winery # Mar. 16 – Santa Barbara, CA – Soho # Mar. 17 – Venice, CA – Venice West # Mar. 18 – Solana Beach, CA – Belly Up # Mar. 25 – San Francisco, CA – The Fillmore ## Mar. 31 – Portland, OR – Doug Fir # Apr. 01- Seattle, WA – Nectar Lounge #
*w/ Hot Buttered Rum **w/ Orgone ***w/ The Moore Brothers #w/ Rainbow Girls ##w/ Ron Artis II
left to right: Michael Devin, Michael Staertow, Leonard Shaw, Derek Sharp, Garry Peterson
THE GUESS WHO is a legendary Canadian band who enjoyed chart topping hits in the late 60s and early 70s with an impressive catalogue of songs including “American Woman,” “These Eyes,” and “No Time.” During the course of its career, the band has released 11 studio albums, all of which charted in Canada and the United States. The Guess Who is best known internationally for its 1970 album, American Woman, which hit number one in Canada and number nine in the United States, with five other albums also hitting the top ten in Canada. All in all, the Guess Who boasts 14 top-40 singles in the United States and more than 30 in Canada.
Following its critically acclaimed 2018 recording, The Future IS What It Used to Be, the band is currently gearing up to release its latest creation,Plein D’Amour. Band members Derek Sharp, Michael Staertow, Leonard Shaw, Michael Devin, and founding member, Garry Peterson have crafted a collection of songs that raises the bar and continues to take things up a notch both musically and sonically.
The Guess Who is primed to take its stunning new music to even greater heights with its spectacular live show. The band is ready to start the newest chapter of its illustrious career in partnership with Deko Entertainment (ADA/Warner Music Group) commencing with the forthcoming release of Plein D’Amour. Bandmate Michael Staertow expressed it best when he said, “We couldn’t think of a better time to introduce the world to an exceptional collection of songs that exude positivity and cohesive energy, a much needed cultural antidote. Now we ARE love — Plein D’Amour!”. Founding member, Garry Peterson continues, “After recording this album, and living with it for a while, I believe this is the best album that I have played on.” Deko Entertainment president, Bruce Pucciarello, comments on the new album, “This new song collection is a progressive-pop blend of well-written material and the musicianship is over the top. Decades later, this band still blows me away!”
Derek Sharp, songwriter and lead vocalist, says, “The King” is a nod to ‘all the king’s horses and all the king’s men, couldn’t put Humpty together again’ … however, loving kindness is a universal balm, which can not only put Humpty together again, but turn him into a Prince!
In addition to the first single “The King” the album Plein D’Amour includes seven more new tracks. The album Plein D’Amour was recorded at Villa Sound in Singhampton, Ontario, Canada, with Adam Fair.
Stay tuned for more details coming soon–and be sure to catch the Guess Who when it gets to a city near you!
2023 Tour Dates Feb 17, 2023 – Bally’s Twin River Casino – Lincoln City, RI Feb 18, 2023 – The Carolina Opry Theater – Myrtle Beach, SC Feb 21, 2023 – Bologna Performing Arts Center – Cleveland, MS Feb 23, 2023 – Oxford Performing Arts Center – Oxford, AL Mar 11, 2023 – Riverside Casino and Golf Resort – Riverside, IA Mar 17, 2023 – Golden Nugget Casino – Las Vegas, NV Mar 21, 2023 – The King Center – Melbourne, FL Mar 22, 2023 – RP Funding Center/Youkey Theatre – Lakeland, FL Mar 24, 2023 – Alan Jay Wildstein Center for the Performing Arts – Avon Park, FL Mar 25, 2023 – Mahaffey Theater – St. Petersburg, FL Mar 26, 2023 – The Parker Playhouse – Ft. Lauderdale, FL Mar 28, 2023 – Barbara Mann Performing Arts Hall – Ft. Myers, FL Mar 30, 2023 – Peabody Auditorium – Daytona Beach, FL Mar 31, 2023 – Viterbo University – La Crosse, WI Apr 02, 2023 – The Arcada Theatre – St. Charles, IL Apr 13, 2023 – The Hettenhausen Center for the Arts – Lebanon, IL Apr 14, 2023 – Newlin Hall – Danville, KY Apr 15, 2023 – The Ritz Theatre – Tiffin, OH May 12, 2023 – Admiral Theatre – Bremerton, WA May 14,2023 – Pantages Theater – Tacoma, WA May 18, 2023 – Blue Ocean Music Hall – Salisbury, MA May 19, 2023 – Tilles Center/Long Island University – Brookville, NY May 20, 2023 – American Music Theatre – Lancaster, PA Jun 02, 2023 – Osage Casino Hotel – Tulsa, OK Jun 28, 2023 – The Kenley Amphitheater – Layton, UT Jun 30, 2023 – The DECC – Duluth, MN Jul 01, 2023 – The Wade Davis Estate – Hastings, MN Aug 17, 2023 – Erie County Fair Grandstand – Hamburg, NY Oct 07, 2023 – Grand Casino Mille Lacs – Onamia, MN Oct 12, 2023 – Egyptian Theatre – Park City, UT Oct 20, 2023 – Golden Nugget Casino – Las Vegas, NV Oct 21, 2023 – Ameristar Casino – Kansas City, MO Oct 27, 2023 – Andiamo Celebrity Show Room – Warren, MI Oct 28, 2023 – The Arcada Theatre – Des Plaines, IL
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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
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