Season of Mist is proud to announce the signing of blackened heavy metal band NITE! The San Francisco outfit will be releasing its second full-length via the label at a later date. Stay tuned for more!
NITE comments, “All of us in the circle of NITE are very excited to announce our signing with Season of Mist. We look forward to working with their talented and experienced team to bring our music to the unsuspecting masses. We are thrilled to join the label’s echelon of innovative artists whose legacy looms large over the history of modern heavy music.”
For a glimpse of what’s to come, check out NITE‘s Bandcamp and stream their 2020 debut album, ‘Darkness Silence Mirror Flame,’ HERE.
The San Francisco Bay Area has a history steeped in forward-thinking, technically dazzling metal, and NITE carries that torch with pride. Founded in 2018, their blackened heavy metal brand barrels towards the peril of an unknown future, while keeping one eye on the days when blistering leads once ruled the land. Guitarists Van Labrakis (Satan’s Wrath, Mencea) and Scott Hoffman (Dawnbringer, High Spirits) let loose galloping riffs and harmonies that evoke the classic sounds of the N.W.O.B.H.M., with Labrakis’ grizzled voice driving their dark, melodic metal into the modern era.
With Avinash Mittur (Wild Hunt) replacing founding bassist Bryan Coons in early 2021, he and drummer Patrick Crawford (Serpents of Dawn, Older Sun) make up a rhythm section that’s fierce yet breathlessly precise: a freewheel pounding reminiscent of the early days of heavy metal, with a Rickenbacker-powered roar fueling the low end. NITE’s debut full-length Darkness Silence Mirror Flame, released in March 2020 by Creator-Destructor Records, earned widespread praise. It showcased their fist-raising classic heavy metal that nearly every fan of the genre once fell in love with, but with a twisted and shadowy edge that the titans of old could never imagine. NITE is the flame of the past illuminating the darkness of tomorrow.
Last year when COVID-19 put the live touring industry on hold, guitar hero JOE BONAMASSA did something unprecedented for his fans – he put together a one-night-only show at the iconic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN to be livestreamed for fans everywhere. That night he united people across 44 countries worldwide for a phenomenal live music presentation of his brand-new album “Royal Tea” before it was even released. The concert was re-mixed and mastered for physical release as “Now Serving: Royal Tea Live From The Ryman” on June 11th and will be available to own on CD, DVD, Blu-Ray and Double LP. The DVD will include a film introduction narrated by actor Jeff Daniels. The stellar performance includes 12 incredible live tracks, featuring the best from his latest studio release Royal Tea, Joe’s 24th #1 record on the Billboard Blues chart, which was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London. It also includes 3 electrifying tracks from his 20th anniversary album A New Day Now. Get your serving and relive the excitement time and time again with this once-in-a-lifetime release from one of the most celebrated Blues Rock entertainers!
Recalling the magical night, Bonamassa shares, “I have always wanted to film a show at the legendary Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. Our band has had the honor of playing there now 8 1/2 times over the past 10 years. The audience is always alive and electric, hanging on every word and phrase. It feels like the greatest, most intimate gig you will ever do but there are 2,300 people sharing this joy and musical journey. I love the place as it is a national treasure and selfishly close to my house. Here’s where I get to the 1/2 part. We missed you. As great as it is to be on that stage in any capacity, YOU the fans make it special. You are part of the show and a big part of it. As this show was being filmed live, almost 100,000 eyes were on us in various forms around the world in front of TVs and computers alike. But you were not in the room with us.”
In normal times, the legendary venue typically seats 2,300, but for one night only, the real crowd was the size of a major stadium, and in-house nearly every seat was filled with a custom cardboard cutout of a fan. The event sold over 17,000 tickets, reaching a global audience and bringing people of all different cultures together during a time when it often felt like the world was falling apart. Considering the number of households watching concerts together from home, one ticket could actually account for an entire family, so the true number of viewers would likely skyrocket.
Joe continues, “We played as good as we could in front of those 1700 cardboard cut outs of your faces and tried to imagine you there. For split seconds I would catch a glimpse of the room and it almost felt normal. Then the song would end and there would be dead silence. Only the footsteps of our crew could be heard. With all of that said, this DVD is a snapshot of a concert performance within the confines a vast sea change of the world. A world that had temporarily deemed us unnecessary. Nobody knows when I will ever get back to this stage in front of a full house again, but I sure do know that I do love it and miss you greatly. This show counts as a 1/2.”
The night at the Ryman should also be celebrated as an event that brought the music industry together. Between ticket sales and donations during his After Party Showcase, the event raised $32,000 for Bonamassa’s Fueling Musicians program, presented by his non-profit Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation (KTBA). Supporting artists for over a year amid the pandemic, to date the program has secured $460,000 in funding for qualifying touring musicians who are suffering financial hardship since their careers have been put on hold. The program provides immediate $1,500 cash payments for essential living expenses to help musicians stay afloat until they can get back out on the road. This past weekend Joe hosted his 2nd Annual Stream-A-Thon event, featuring over 35 stunning performances and 3+ hours of music to continue raising money for the cause. The event featured a star-studded lineup including Bonamassa, Toto, Dion, Ana Popovic, Warren Haynes, Bobby Rush, Jared James Nichols, Emily Wolfe and many more.
As for the amazing set list for “Now Serving: Royal Tea Live From The Ryman”, Bonamassa has made a career out of taking risks and venturing into uncharted territory throughout his wide-ranging career and outstanding live shows, and the delivery at Ryman Auditorium was nothing short of perfection. Bonamassa shines brighter than ever, always adding new genre-bending flavor in his guitar playing and his trademark spin on the vocals. It’s no wonder he’s often praised for bringing new audiences to the Blues Rock universe. Bonamassa already has an incredible catalogue of live and studio releases that continue to evolve over the years and catch the ears of music critics far and wide. “Now Serving: Royal Tea Live From The Ryman” provides much needed invigoration for live music fans and will give them back the unbelievable feeling of being at a live concert event. With the audio/visual experience they’ll get with this release, they’ll get front row seats for one of the best touring acts around!
The three founding members of legendary New York hard rock/proto-punk rockers THE DICTATORS – singer/bassist/songwriter Andy Shernoff, rhythm guitarist Scott Kempner, and lead guitarist/Manowar icon Ross the Boss – are back, with legendary Blue Oyster Cult drummer Albert Bouchard on board! New single “God Damn New York” out now!
Called by critic John Dougan as “one of the finest and most influential proto-punk bands to walk the earth.” the Dictators are releasing their first new music in 20 years. The groups’ three founding members, Andy Shernoff, Ross Friedman and Scott Kempner are joined on drums by founding Blue Öyster Cult member Albert Bouchard, the man who played the infamous cowbell on ”Don’t Fear The Reaper”. The Dictators and the Blue Öyster Cult have known each other since the early days when they both shared the patronage of producer/manager Sandy Pearlman.
“Scott and I had lost touch with Ross but we were brought together by some Dictators business”, explains Andy. “Once it was settled, Ross suggested we play together again. It was literally the last thing on my mind, but Scott was enthusiastic, so I sat on it and eventually said ok and damn, I am so glad I did as it’s kept me busy during the pandemic”.
“I wrote ‘God Damn New York’ with my wife before we got married for a video that never got made. When I was presenting new song ideas to everybody, this one got a thumbs up. So I changed the key, re-wrote the lyrics to give it some Dictators swagger, and voila, the first new Dictators song in 20 years. It’s sort of a love/hate letter to New York City”.
And the band’s next single will be released on April 21st (with a music video for the track here:
“My buddy Jesse Bates had a song called ‘Let’s Get The Band Back Together.’ I thought it was really clever and funny so I asked him if I could fool around with it and put my spin on it. He said go for it, so I made few changes and recorded it on my own a few years ago but it was just so perfect for the Dictators that we couldn’t resist.”
“For me, ‘Let’s Get the Band Back Together’ has the same exuberance and joy ‘Go Girl Crazy’ has!” adds Ross.
Known for their sarcastic lyrics and aggressive sound, The Dictators released what Uncut Magazine called “the first punk rock album”, The Dictators Go Girl Crazy, in 1975 – a full year before The Ramones. Having played shows early on with the Stooges and New York Dolls, they became regulars at CBGB’s, while influencing bands around the world.
The Dictators released 2 more records (Manifest Destiny and Bloodbrothers) in the 70’s before breaking up. Ross went on to found heavy metal overlords Manowar, while Scott started roots rock pioneers The Del Lords. Andy worked as a producer and songwriter while also performing with Joey Ramone and The Fleshtones.
An early ‘80s get-together produced the classic live album Fuck ‘em If They Can’t Take a Joke, and the band performed sporadically until 1995 when, realizing the extent of its fan base and influence, once again reformed full time. Numerous international tours culminated in 2001’s D.F.F.D., the band’s last studio album. After playing the final weekend of CBGB’s in 2006, they once again went their separate ways.
It took a worldwide pandemic to once again unite the band. After a socially distanced recording session, the band finished the new recordings by trading files over the internet. The first release is “God Damn New York” – a love/hate song to the band’s home town. The reunited Dictators’ second single release, “Let’s Get The Band back Together”, had its debut on Little Steven’s Underground Garage Radio show on April 12. More music will come out later in 2021 and the band looks forward to touring in 2022!
“We have a song ready to be released in July and a special seasonal song about the holidays set up for December. We hope to record 4 more tracks in June and just keep on releasing cool new tunes and videos, until things are completely open.”
Escapeis a tribute to AC / DC and Deep Purple from THE TØLKS. The dynamics of the song are reminiscent of the golden age songs of those bands, where a motorcycle crashes through a scorching desert. The song scrapes a memorable riff on the side of nowadays such a smooth rockenroll. The song confuses the listener, as the initial assumption of a criminal fleeing a crime scene changes from a side to side as the singer goes through an inner Inferno. The end result remains to be guessed by the listener. Despite the darkness of the words, the song proclaims “only the riff matters”.
Finland Power Prog Metal band ULTIMATIUM share “Digital Tower” track off their latest album “Virtuality”.
Band comments “Digital Tower is a very aggressive, but low-tempo song, the heaviest and most symphonic song we’ve ever made. Song is heavily influenced by these three songs: Rainbow – Stargazer / Stratovarius – Season of Change / Black Sabbath – Heaven & hell. And shows the full potential of character sang by Jukka Nummi. As seen on the video, this song has very special meaning for Jukka since Matti gave him full artistic freedom to use his Ronnie James Dio-vocaling style at full strength”
The premise behind “Virtuality” is an introduction of a storyline of four gamers getting stuck in a virtual reality game in a near-future setting. Packed with five amazing lead vocalists, Peter James Goodman (Conquest, ex-Virtuocity), Jukka Nummi (ex-Myon), Emily Leone, Tomi Viiltola (ex-Dreamtale, Perpetual Rage, Viilto) and Matti Auerkallio (Katra, Manzana, SoulFallen), “Virtuality” is a unique storyline about the virtual world, and the dangers of sharing everything in social media, along with up-tempo power metal songs combined with darker elements.
The story album is backed up with lots of background vocals, sound effects and a “narrator”/system voice synthesized with Amazon’s Alexa.
The album introduces the best parts of power and progressive metal combined, including easier up-tempo songs, but also long, progressive mid-tempo tracks. The songs take influence from such bands as Stratovarius, Dream Theater, Symphony X and Rainbow.
