LEVARA have released a video for the track ‘Ordinary’, taken from the band’s upcoming debut album, coming out May 14th via Mascot Records/Mascot Label Group.
Jules Galli: “There’s nothing Ordinary about this track. It’s got a bounce to it that feels different from the rest of the album in the best way. It seems we were able to express ourselves with even more freedom and got very creative since this was the last song we wrote and produced. In a way it is the culmination of all the work we’ve put in during the album sessions.”
Trev Lukather, Jules Galli and Josh Devine are LEVARA. Collectively, their musical union brings life to the individual talents of three musicians that together have enriched the aural landscape for all of us. Their songs offer an escape, as all music does, with points of reflection that relate to any listener’s life. The collective hope is simple. To be the catalyst for each and every person who comes across the music to find revelations through the experience of hearing these songs.
Their union merged in Los Angeles, one The World’s epicenters of musical creativity. Singer Jules Galli emigrated from France, while drummer Josh Devine chose L.A. as home versus his native United Kingdom following success behind the kit with One Direction. There they found common vision with Trev Lukather (guitar), son of Toto’s Steve Lukather, one of SoCal’s most successful ensembles to ever emerge from the city. On some level these three players believe the universe brought them together.
Prior to recording their debut, the band toured the United States several times and supported Toto on an arena tour in 2019. While in Europe, they staged several headline appearances across Germany and other countries, floored by the response with fans coming out at every date. In Early 2020, they began their collaboration with Producer Ethan Kaufmann at Elephant In The Room Studios in East Hollywood. The album unequivocally captured the magic they sought to see take life.
Anders “LA” Rönnblom, best known as the founder / songwriter for Killer Bee and X-Romance, and a member of Wolfpakk, has just recently launched his new project dubbed SOCIAL DISORDER. The band’s debut album, entitled Love 2 Be Hated, will be seeing the light of day on June 18, 2021 through AFM Records.
Call it a labour of love, as it features Rönnblom opening up his heart and soul: Love 2 Be Hated, takes the listener on a journey through his life including his battle with alcoholism, personal demons, and his way back, all set to a backdrop of music inspired by his earliest influences.
But Rönnblom didn’t take this journey on his own, however, chosing to enlist the help of a who’s-who of rock and metal greats, many of whom he has a personal connection to including Tracii Guns (Guns ‘n’ Roses, L.A. Guns), Rudy Sarzo (Quiet Riot, Ozzy Osbourne, Whitesnake), Jeff Duncan (Armored Saint), Dave Stone (Rainbow), Snowy Shaw (King Diamond, Dream Evil, Mercyful Fate), Shawn Duncan (DC4) and Leif Ehlin (Perfect Plan). SOCIAL DISORDER‘s voice is provided by Thomas Nordin, a previously undiscovered Swedish singer who delivers Rönnblom’s songs with power and grit that perfectly captures the era of classic no-nonsense rock!
After SOCIAL DISORDER released their first single just recently, the driving rock ballad Windy Road, today the band shared the album title track. “The struggle to get back on your feet.. the lack of trust, people misjudging your true character. Don’t be afraid and let your past be the reason for not taking control and changing your life around.. who said it would be easy!?“ Says band mastermind Rönnblom about “Love 2 Be Hated”. Watch the brand new lyric video, made by Jim Evgenidis / Icon Filmworx, here:
Love 2 Be Hated was produced by Anders LA Rönnblom and mixed by Mårten Eriksson at Fanclub Production in Stockholm, Sweden. The album was mastered by Svante Forsbäck at Chartmakers Audio Mastering in Finland (Rammstein, Entombed, Volbeat, Amaranthe).
According to Rönnblom, SOCIAL DISORDERwas never planned to be what it turned out to be. As he got deeper into the songwriting he contacted Tracii Guns, Rudy Sarzo and Killer Bee bandmate Shawn Duncan about taking part in the recordings. Even though they are his songs and it’s his story, Love 2 Be Hated is a team effort, with everyone involved adding their own touch and spice to the songs. In fact, it was important for Rönnblom that everyone involved put themselves into each song.
While Rönnblom also wrote the lyrics to capture the events of his life in music, Love 2 Be Hated is not and should not be regarded as a concept album. The goal was to have his story touch people and give the listener something they can relate to.
“The lyrics are open to interpretation,” says Rönnblom. “This is my story, sure, but if that story draws people in and makes them say ‘Hey, this could be me…’ and they take away something inspirational or positive from these songs I couldn’t be happier.”
Love 2 Be Hated is slated for a release on June 18, 2021 through AFM Records, the album pre-sale available at THIS LOCATION!
Get ready for the thrill ride of your life! SCAVENGER is a brand-new feature length film that’s being described as “Mad Max Meets Natural Born Killers.” Taking place in a post-apocalyptic world, the film follows Tisha (Sofia Lanaro/ALUVION, PARAISO) – a paid assassin and an underground organ dealer with a dark past – who seeks revenge from a horrible crime against her family that has marked her entire life. To bring the film to life and imbue with the high stakes, adrenaline-fueled energy that audiences have come to expect, the film’s soundtrack taps well-known gothic, electronic & psychobilly artists including Rosetta Stone, The Meteors, The 69 Cats featuring 69 Eyes vocalist Jyrki 69, Witch Of The Vale, and more! In addition, the film draws from an international roster of experimental bands including Mexico’s Decibel, France’s Philippe Besombes & Canadian-born Pascal Languirand!
Check out the hyper-fueled new video for the film set to the tune of Rosetta Stone’s goth rock classic “Adrenaline”:
SCAVENGER has been making the rounds and gathering rave film critic reviews after its current international film festival run as an official selection at Frightfest (UK), Mar Del Plata (ARGENTINA), Obscura (GERMANY) and San Cugat (SPAIN) where the “Best Actress Award” was taken home by Sofia Lanaro for her portrayal of the heroine Tisha. The film will be released domestically this May 11th, 2021 on VOD Platforms and also as a deluxe Home Entertainment BLU RAY/Soundtrack CD package.
TWISTED SISTER guitarist Jay Jay French will be joining on the live interview of The Metal Voice today, April 30 12pm EST, talking about Twisted Sister legacy and his new book ‘Twisted Business‘.
Join the chat today at 9am Pacific 12pm EST 5pm UK
Ljubljana’s underground legends NOCTIFERIA have teamed up with Metal Shock Finland, for the exclusive worldwide premiering of their third single ‘Tanz mit Laibach‘, Feat. Black Metal icon Attila Csihar of THE TRUE MAYHEM. The song is taken from the band’s upcoming album Reforma (tribute to Laibach), set to be released on May 28th on Blood Blast Distribution / Nika Records!
Watch the official lyric video for ‘Tanz mit Laibach’, here:
The band comments on ‘Tanz mit Laibach’: “One of the biggest Laibach songs ‘Tanz mit Laibach’ with its military beat and eerie atmosphere is a masterpiece in itself but when we added downtuned guitars and the legendary voice of Black Metal icon Attila Csihar of The True Mayhem it became a whole new beast! It was probably one of the hardest songs to remake on the album but the great guest performance and excellent final result made it pay off. Now we invite you to Tanz with Noctiferia and Attila!”
‘Reforma’ tracklist: Barbarians are coming Now You Will Pay (feat. David Vincent) No History Tanz Mit Laibach (feat. Attila Csihar) Eurovision Smrt Za Smrt Das Spiel Ist Aus Nova Akropola (feat. Jørgen Munkeby)
The band on the upcoming album: “It’s with great pleasure that we can announce the release date of our upcoming album Reforma – tribute to Laibach. It was never a secret that we are fond of Laibach, their avant-garde approach to musical and visual art. And now we finally have the the whole package ready with killer songs, amazing guest musicians, top-notch production and visual presentation!”
‘Reforma’ is new studio album by NOCTIFERIA, a tribute to the legendary and world-renowned avant-garde band Laibach featuring three big and legendary names of metal scene; David Vincent – ex Morbid Angel, Vltimas, Attila Csihar – Mayhem and Jørgen Munkeby – Shining. It was mixed and mastered by the award-winning producer Henrik Udd (Bring Me The Horizon, Architects, At The Gates, etc.). The artwork concept and design is the work of Jean-Emmanuel “Valnoir” Simoulin from French design studio Metastazis, known for their work with Ghost, Behemoth, At the Gates, Amorphis, etc. ‘Release date is set on May 28. Album will be digitally world-wide released by Blood Blast Distribution and by Nika rec. / Code7 in physical format. The album can be described as a ‘crushing sounding mix of extreme metal and avant-garde music, with some very special and legendary guests!
Ljubljana’s underground legends NOCTIFERIA, have been spreading their unique style of the Slovenian Extreme Metal Movement since the beginning. Few could predict what the band and its members would mean for the whole scene in the years to come. Today, just as it sometimes seems that the artists have drained all genres of originality and that all the new musical styles have already been discovered, here comes NOCTIFERIA, bringing something fresh, a mix of styles that is uniquely theirs. NOCTIFERIA have toured Europe and UK with bands like In Flames, Hypocrisy, Mayhem, Samael, Marduk etc. Toured China couple of times so far and performed at various European festivals (at Wacken Open Air 2015 as first Slovenian band ever, Bloodstock, etc.).
What makes them unique is the way they explore music. Band has collaborated with electronic music producers, symphony orchestra, released acoustic album and has incorporated in their music elements of black, death, industrial metal and world music with modern touch. Quality and diversity is band’s motto. Noctiferia strives to always release high quality products and to not repeat themselves artistically.
German genrefluid visionaries LORD OF THE LOST prove that they have matured both musically and lyrically, and return with their seventh studio album, JUDAS, out July 2, 2021 via Napalm Records.
With this remarkable offering, the five-piece cement their position as exceptional artists that can’t be pigeonholed once more, which their brand new harbinger and single “Priest”, out today, is already proof of. The very first song immediately unveils a leitmotif that runs through the whole record and serves as a uniting symbiosis for the double album, divided in two conceptual parts, Damnation and Salvation, with 24 songs in total.
Along with a highly sophisticated official video, the song draws the listener into a conflict that has lasted for thousands of centuries and is as old as mankind itself: The conflict between good and evil. OnJUDAS, LORD OF THE LOST tell of this conflict from the perception of the character of Judas Iscariot, known as highly diverse, and the so-called Gospel of Judas, a paper that’s said to consist of conversations between Jesus Christ and Judas Iscariot and casts a different light on religious history as it’s told in the Bible’s New Testament.
LORD OF THE LOST on the new single and video: “With ‘Priest’, we dive deep into a visual world that is meant to convey the very core emotion of the upcoming album, JUDAS, to the viewer. This comes along with a story that leaves room for many means of interpretation while keeping the purpose of the album concept. The artist XELANAH shines as the protagonist here, symbolically representing the emotional tension of the figure of Judas Iscariot. That role will also appear and continue in further videos, just like you know it from, for example, AEROSMITH. The song itself manages to unite all the emotion and soundscape that makes up the album – a cinematic trailer for the ears. And even a deliberately placed GENESIS quote from the mouth of Judas himself is suddenly seen in a completely new light.”
[directed & edited by Matteo Vdiva Fabbiani & Chiara Cerami for VDPictures]
Part of the video for “Priest” was shot in the so-called Einhornhöhle (engl. unicorn cave) in Germany back in August 2020. LORD OF THE LOST continue introducing their female protagonist and artwork model, a process that was already set free with the teaser video for “The Death Of All Colours”, and weaves the common thread of JUDAS visually as well. She represents the inner conflict of good and evil that can be interpreted in several ways.
LORD OF THE LOST on JUDAS: “Don’t judge a book by its cover. This sentence could hardly apply any better to someone in theological history than to the figure of Judas Iscariot, who represents only one thing at first glance: Betrayal. If you take a closer look, almost endless possibilities of interpretation open up here: from “Judas the murderer” to “Judas the redeemer” and “Judas the actual martyr”, who, if you believe in it, could only find room in hell for his salvific betrayal after dying for what he did, in complete contrast to Jesus Christ. This field of tension and the apocryphal writings of the “Gospel of Judas” are the basis for a double album that not only illuminates the dark and light side of history, but above all the grey areas in between, in which we move emotionally and ideologically throughout our lives and try to find our place.”
JUDAS sets off with atmospheric “Priest”, followed by “For They Know Not What They Do”, making clear right from the beginning that all the songs can be experienced the most organic and vivid way: A genuine, unique choir accompanies singer Chris Harms, whose multi-dimensional voice delivers the haunting lyrics straight into the listener’s mind more strongly than ever. Songs like “Your Star Has Led You Astray” or “Born With a Broken Heart” easily manage to keep the balance between harsh vocals, the distorted sound of fuzz guitars and an overall dark atmosphere that LORD OF THE LOST is known for, whilst “Death Is Just a Kiss Away”, “My Constellation” and closing “Work of Salvation”, for example, put grand piano tunes, authentic strings and the sound of a massive organ recorded in a church in the most suitable focus.
JUDAS marks the successor of chart-breaking Thornstar (2018, #6 GER), and again breathes the innovative spirit of five musicians who are far away from setting boundaries into their very own unique art. LORD OF THE LOST has never been that type of creative force that’s pinned to any specific genre and has succeeded in surprising fans and critics with their nonconformism repeatedly over the years. With their new album JUDAS, LORD OF THE LOST manage to thematically blur the lines between good and evil and put the so called “salvific treason” into a harmonious soundscape unlike ever heard before – truly an magnum opus!
JUDAS Tracklisting: CD1: Damnation 1. Priest 2. For They Know Not What They Do 3. Your Star Has Led You Astray 4. Born with a Broken Heart 5. The 13th 6. In the Field of Blood 7. 2000 Years a Pyre 8. Death Is Just a Kiss Away 9. The Heart Is a Traitor 10. Euphoria 11. Be Still and Know 12. The Death of All Colours
CD2: Salvation 1. The Gospel of Judas 2. Viva Vendetta 3. Argent 4. The Heartbeat of the Devil 5. And it Was Night 6. My Constellation 7. The Ashes of Flowers 8. Iskarioth 9. A War Within 10. A World where We Belong 11. Apokatastasis 12. Work of Salvation
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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 ) 