US blackened-death metal hottest newcomers WYTHERSAKE have revealed the details of their debut album ‘Antiquity’, set to be released on March 26, 2021 on Scarlet Records. The tracklist is as follows:
1 Prediluvian 2 Antiquity 3 The Advent 4 From a Serpent Spoken 5 Iniquity 6 Through Ritual We Manifest 7 Lamentations 8 Feast Upon the Seraph Within 9 Unto Light 10 My Profane Goddess
Combining the sophisticated and progressive/melodic side of the 90’s Scandinavian death-black masters with sheer American fierceness and frenzy, Wythersake is the band that the extreme metal scene was craving from a long time. Formed in 2016, the Washington D.C. quartet quickly developed a unique style and released a couple of acclaimed singles online. Now, the secret ingredient of their astonishing debut album is the fact that they allowed themselves the freedom and time to explore different sounds, layers and dynamics, all pushed to the limit. Lyrically, the concept of ‘Antiquity’ revolves around apostasy and Gnosticism: in the early Middle Ages, personal spiritual growth and knowledge and the eradication of ignorance became considered heretical and were replaced by salvation through unquestioning faith and piety and a focus on eradication of sin (by any means necessary). Wythersake is the much-needed antidote: an exhilarating symphony of destruction that will elevate your soul.
The evocative artwork by Alvaro Valverde (Unanimated) beautifully depicts the themes of the album, which will be released in a 4-panel digipack.
Internationally renowned Renaissance folk rock band BLACKMORE’S NIGHT have released their new single ‘Four Winds’. It is the second song taken from their highly anticipated new studio album “Nature’s Light”, the first in six years, and eleventh studio album overall.
Blackmore’s Night have crafted a 20+ year legacy of merging medieval melodies with rock elements. Singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Candice Night seamlessly blends her ethereal vocals and lyrics, along with a command of numerous classic woodwinds. With Ritchie Blackmore traversing all matter of six-string instruments, from acoustic and electric guitar to mandola, hurdy-gurdy and nyckelharpa and their wonderful band of minstrels, the result is a truly unique listening experience.
Their new single is another remarkable song and foretaste of their forthcoming album. “‘Four Winds’ is the story of two girls, actually inspired by two of my oldest friendships”, says Candice Night. “One who left Long Island and moved to California and one who left to move to Virginia. Going to across the country to California and living on the water was where the first girl felt the call to her soul, being able to watch the dolphins in the water and living the life by the ocean, while the other one took a very different path and felt the call to the woods inspired by wolves and other woodland creatures. They both have equal importance in this storyline and are ultimately a part of me and perhaps of everyone, being pulled away from the stress of their current surroundings and looking for escape. If you feel stagnant or repressed in your surroundings, it’s important to take a break from the mundane and go where your heart leads you. It allows you to recharge and begin again with fresh and renewed energy. For some it is the ocean, for some the woods, for some feeling the sun on your face, others need to immerse in moonlight. Ultimately, we are all a part of the same story, the same picture and as the song says, “we’re all part of the trees and part of the seas and ready to start again…”.
LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT, the legendary supergroup comprised of Mike Portnoy (Transatlantic, Sons of Apollo), John Petrucci (Dream Theater), Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater), and Tony Levin (King Crimson, Peter Gabriel) recently announced their return with a new album titled ‘LTE3’, due to be released March 26th, 2021 via InsideOutMusic, twenty-two years after the bands’ last studio album.
Today, the band are pleased to share the first video from the album for the single “The Passage of Time”. You can watch the video, created by Christian Rios, here:
“’The Passage of Time’ was the very first song we composed together when we reunited this past summer. It was so exciting to be back in a room creating together again after so long (22 years for all 4 of us and over 10 years for the 3 of us since being together in DT). This serves as a great first taste for the listeners as it combines so many of the musical elements that makes LTE unique” -Mike Portnoy
“This was the first song we worked on and when it was done, we all knew once again how amazing it was to be working together. We knew we were on to something and that this was going to be a really amazing album. Nothing about the passage of over two decades could’ve done anything to change that. To me this song truly reflects the collaborative songwriting efforts of all four of us.” -John Petrucci
“There is an undeniable chemistry that happens when the four of us are together. Entering the studio and starting work on ‘The Passage of Time’ after 22 years literally gave me a whole new perspective on these important musical (and personal) relationships and the way time is so relative. We just jumped right in, it was like no time had passed at all, and we created a song that has so many of the elements that make LTE unique. Not a day has gone by since our last release when I wasn’t asked, ‘When is LTE getting back together again?’ Now we can finally deliver, and I can’t wait for everybody to hear our creation.” -Jordan Rudess
“From the murky depths of the lockdown, LTE has re-emerged, galvanized, dripping with ideas, and taking no prisoners. ‘The Passage of Time’ is just the beginning.” -Tony Levin
Tracklisting: 1. Hypersonic (8:22) 2. Beating The Odds (6:09) 3. Liquid Evolution (3:23) 4. The Passage Of Time (7:32) 5. Chris & Kevin’s Amazing Odyssey (5:04) 6. Rhapsody In Blue (13:16) 7. Shades Of Hope (4:42) 8. Key To The Imagination (13:14)
Bonus Disc: Includes almost an hour of improvised jams.
In 1997, Mike Portnoy, John Petrucci, Jordan Rudess, and Tony Levin, joined forces to create Liquid Tension Experiment. The foursome would release their iconic, self-titled debut album in 1998 and the dazzling follow-up, LTE2 in 1999, creating a dynamic, frantic, and inventive sound all their own. The incredible creativity between the collective would prompt Petrucci and Portnoy to invite Rudess to join Dream Theater, effectively marking the end of this side project. However, since that time, there have been few reunions more in demand. Now, with the world in lockdown and calendars unexpectedly aligned, the inconceivable has finally happened… a new Liquid Tension Experiment album.
NÚMENOR‘s ‘Make The Stand’ EP is out today on Elevate Records in all digital stores. This EP also paves the way for the full length album ‘DRACONIAN TIME’ scheduled for March.
In the EP, in addition to the song of the same name in which Marko duets with Hansi Kursch, the singer of Blind Guardian, we find three other songs: ‘Where the Battle Rages On’ which will also be included in the EP , a remix of ‘Dragon of Erebor’ originally contained in the album ‘Sword And Sorcery’, and a powerful cover of ‘Valhalla’ by Blind Guardian to close the circle.
The sound of Númenor is quite particular between a classic power metal and a melodic death metal of Scandinavian 90s extraction. Reference groups Iron Maiden, Rhapsody / Luca Turilli, Blind Guardian, Bal-Sagoth, Covenant, Arcturus, Dimmu Borgir.
The cover of the DRACONIAN AGE album was made by the famous Serbian artist: Dobrosav “Bob” Živković originally appeared for the Serbian edition “The Lord of the Rings” from 1984.
DRACONIAN AGE tracklisting Make the Stand (feat. Hansi Kürsch) Hall of the Mountain King Fëanor Mirror Mirror (A Robe of Stars) Arkenstone Where the Battle Rages On Twilight of the Gods The Days of Final Frost The Last of Wizards Númenor
Finnish Helsinki-based symphonic death/black metal band ABSTRAKT released their second single Etherstorms from an upcoming second studio album Uncreation. The album is set to be released on February 25th 2021 via Inverse Records.
The band comments:“Even though Radiant Darkness left you missing some teeth and with blackened eyes it was just a calm before the storm. The esoteric rage of Etherstorms, massive choirs and overwhelming orchestrations will expand the listener’s mind and open a portal to another dimension.”
Abstrakt was formed by Nightderanger and Azul Corax in spring of 2008. Abstrakt was a two-man project and our first demo was recorded with session musicians in February 2011. Progress was slow but steady and after two more demos, we began to create our first album, Obsidian and to recruit more musicians. Obsidian was published in November 2013 and finally in spring of 2014 it was time for our first gig. Shortly after our first gigs, we were again without a drummer and bassist. Nightderanger, Azul Corax and Apostate continued composing new material. In August 2016 we recorded our last demo so far which included three songs which all are included in our second album. We regained a full line-up and some gigs were played. In January 2019 the final recordings of our second album had begun, slowly but surely and the recordings were completed in October 2020. Now our second album, UNCREATION, is finished and Abstrakt is in its best shape ever, hungrier, angrier and better than ever before.
On February 11th, Dutch metal veterans COUNTESS will release their long-awaited new full-length album, entitled ‘Banners Of Blood’.
‘Banners Of Blood’ is the band’s sixteenth full-length and features twelve tracks of uncompromising metal music, blending first wave Black Metal and traditional Heavy Metal in a way only Countess can.
The albums features two songs in Dutch and, for the first time, a song in Russian: ‘Ledovoye Poboishche’ (‘Battle On The Ice’) tells the story of Alexander Nevsky’s great victory over the crusader knights in 1242 CE.
The new album also marks the first appearance on a Countess full-length of guitarist Valgard and keyboardist Häxa.
Fans can get a first taste of the new album as of today. A digital single has been released for the song ‘Last Man Of Honour’. This song was inspired by the life of Saigo Takamori, who is often considered to have been the last true samurai and who was born on this day in 1828 CE. The single is available on all major platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music and Deezer and as well as a free download on the band’s official Bandcamp site.
The album’s full track list:
Sword Of The Millennia
Below The Sky
Wall Of The North
Ledovoye Poboishche
Night Of The Fallen
Banners Of Blood
Pagan Man
Fall Of The Achaemenid Empire
Slachting Der Saksen
Last Man Of Honour
Toortsen Uit Het Verleden
Sword Symphony
Countess is a Dutch band that has been unleashing metal music upon the world since 1992, releasing sixteen full-length albums along the way. Countess’ unique style of metal is characterized by an uncompromising loyalty to the old Heavy Metal and Black Metal traditions. The most important influences of Countess are the old Black Metal legends like Venom, Bathory and Hellhammer and traditional Heavy Metal bands like Manowar and Manilla Road. In 2014 the band returned to the stage after a long absence, delivering impressive performances at a selection of prestigious metal festivals in the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and Finland. Countess currently consists of Orlok (vocals and bass), Valgard (guitars), Mortüüm (drums) and Häxa (keyboards).
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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 ) 