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THY CATAFALQUE Release New Single & Music Video ‘Tömbök’

Posted by tarjavirmakari on October 9, 2026

Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: THY CATAFALQUE. Leave a comment

The two-time Fonogram winner Thy Catafalque is releasing the second single from its quietly expansive thirteenth album. Both the darkest and heaviest song on XIII: Sárga erdő, “Tömbök” is centered around a natural phenomenon that’s reminiscent of daily life’s affect on the human mind.

“In English, ‘Tömbök’ means Masses”, explains Thy Catafalque visionary Tamás Kátai. “The lyrics are about the method of waste disposal by incineration and the process of how the waste is being divided into heat and slag or lifeless masses and how matter shifts its shape during different chemical and physical circumstances. You can apply the phenomenon to how the human mindset is affected by daily life, if you wish, though that’s just an idea”.

“This is Thy Catafalque’s first video with the band playing a song”, Kátai continues. “On ‘Tömbök’, we have Gábor Veres on vocals and we also have a flute”.

XIII: Sárga erdő comes out November 20, 2026 on Season of Mist.

Pre-order: https://orcd.co/thycatafalquesargaerdo
Pre-save on Spotify: https://orcd.co/thycatafalquesargaerdo

On XIII: Sárga erdő (Yellow Forest), Kátai wanders through an old, half-remembered time from a quietly expansive direction. Thy Catafalque’s new album features more than 30 collaborators, including a 20-person choir and, for the first time in the project’s history, a live drummer. However, the folk and classical elements that flooded 2024’s XII: A gyönyörű álmok ezután jönnek are handled here with a lighter touch. Just as a forest doesn’t explain its colors, the album turns inside you, until you look up to discover that you’re somewhere new.

Tracklist:

Búcsú a piros madártól (06:04)
Ég-anyám, föld-apám (04:28)
Dunnák alatt kék mező (04:04)
Szitakötő (01:10)
Suhamló éji fák (05:04)
Puszta (04:58)
Sirató (03:58)
Cseremisz (04:05)
Sárga erdő (10:15)
Tömbök (04:59)
Kút vizén nap forog (04:06)
87 tavasz, 87 ősz (10:52)
Full runtime: 01:04:03

Yellow forests don’t stay yellow for long. That’s the image Tamás Kátai keeps returning to when he talks about THY CATAFALQUE‘s thirteenth album, Sárga erdő—a title that translates plainly and then unfolds into something less settled the longer you sit with it. There’s no single story running through the record’s twelve tracks, Kátai says, only a feeling: wandering through a forest built from old time, half-remembered and already turning colour. It’s the quietest premise he’s worked from in years, and perhaps even the most honest one yet.

Thy Catafalque began in Makó, in southeastern Hungary, in 1998, when Kátai and a bandmate named János Juhász put together a black metal project with no intention of ever playing it live. The name itself—catafalque, the platform that holds a coffin during a funeral rite—told you where the mood was headed before a single note was even heard. A year later, Sublunary Tragedies arrived through the Budapest label KaOtic Productions, tremolo-picked and grim in the way most things were grim in that corner of European metal at the time, though even then the seams were showing: this was never going to stay inside the genre’s lines.

It didn’t. Microcosmos followed in 2001, restless in ways the debut hadn’t dared to be, and when KaOtic folded, Kátai self-released 2004’s Tűnő Idő Tárlat rather than wait for another label to catch up to him. These were the years the project figured out what it actually was—not black metal with detours, but something closer to a single songwriter’s imagination refusing to be filed under anything.

Signing to the avant-garde label Epidemie Records in 2009 gave that imagination its first real audience. Róka Hasa Rádió became Thy Catafalque’s breakout, and it introduced a voice that would keep returning across the decades since: Attila Bakos, whose clean vocals still surface on Kátai’s records fifteen-plus years later, most recently on XII. But the real hinge point came in 2011, with Rengeteg—the first album Kátai wrote and recorded entirely alone, and his first for Season of Mist. From here on, Thy Catafalque wasn’t a band in any conventional sense. It was Kátai’s vision, executed with the help of whoever he needed to bring it to life, a model that would eventually mean twenty, thirty, sometimes three-dozen collaborators on a single record.

Sgùrr, Meta and Geometria carried that model through the back half of the 2010s, each one pushing the genre-hopping further—prog, electronica, jazz, Hungarian folk, all folded into records that critics increasingly struggled to categorize and increasingly stopped trying to. By the time Naiv arrived in 2020, Thy Catafalque had become something like Hungary’s most singular musical export, a reputation the country’s own industry made official the following year: Vadak, released in 2021, won the Fonogram Award—the Hungarian equivalent of a Grammy—for Best Hard Rock/Metal Album. That same year, something else changed. Thy Catafalque, for the first time in over two decades of existing purely as a studio project, played live—a single performance at the Fekete Zaj festival with twenty-six musicians onstage, later released as the concert album Mezolit. The project that had never intended to leave the studio had just proven it could fill a stage.

It’s kept proving that formula ever since. Alföld, in 2023, brought Thy Catafalque a second Fonogram win and a return to the heavier, more grounded sound of the project’s earliest years. XII: A gyönyörű álmok ezután jönnek followed in 2024, Kátai’s first album made with an outside producer—Gábor Vári, a longtime live collaborator who stepped behind the desk and helped shape a record New Noise called a five-star “celebration of the powers of music.” Thy Catafalque spent 2025 making its debut at Hellfest, Rockstadt Extreme and Alcatraz, and playing its first-ever shows in Latin America. A second European headline tour, opening at Budapest’s Dürer Kert in March 2026, has carried that momentum straight into the new album cycle.

Sárga erdő, out this autumn via Season of Mist, was recorded across various locations and at Miracle Sound Szeged with Gábor Vári again handling engineering, mixing and mastering. It marks another first for the project: real drums, played rather than programmed, for the first time in Thy Catafalque’s history. Thirty-four musicians and vocalists appear across the record, along with a twenty-voice male choir, but the folk and classical textures that flooded XII—sitar, kamancheh, zither, strings—are handled with a lighter touch here, chosen with more precision for the moments that call for them. There’s no unifying story across the twelve tracks, only that same felt sense of wandering through old, half-remembered time. A forest doesn’t explain its colours—it just keeps turning them, until you look up and you’re standing somewhere new.

Line-up:
Tamás Kátai — Guitar, Bass, Keyboards & Vocals

Production Credits:
Recorded in various locations and Miracle Sound Szeged, Szeged, Hungary.
Produced by Tamás Kátai; Sound Engineer, Mixing & Mastering by Gábor Vári (Miracle Sound Szeged).

Cover Art: Tamás Kátai

Photography:
© Laszlo Horvath — Album Artwork
© Orsolya Karancz — Tamás Photos
© Katalin Hunyás — Live Band Photos

Guest Musicians:
Martina Veronika Horváth — Vocals (9, 12)
Ivett Dudás — Vocals (3, 10, 11)
Gábor Dudás — Vocals (2, 5, 11, 12)
Bálint Bokodi — Vocals (1, 8, 9)
Annamari Oláh — Vocals (6)
Lambert Lédeczy — Vocals (6)
Gergely Balla — Vocals (7)
Gábor Veres — Vocals (10)
Antal Cseh — Bass/Baritone Vocals (12)
The Male Choir of Tiszaföldvár — choir (8)
Anikó Für — Prose (5)
Árpád Szenti — Drums & Percussion
Krisztián Varga — Lead Guitar (1, 5, 6, 9, 10)
Zoltán Vigh — Lead Guitar (10)
Breno Machado — Lead Guitar (12)
Daniele Belli — Classical Guitar (12)
Anikó Barna — Citera & Koboz (8)
Chithrinie Nirupama — Sitar (4)
Peter Voronov — Violin (5)
Maria Grigoryeva — Violin (5)
Victor Morales — Violin & Piano (9)
Oleg Bezuglov — Violin (12)
Michaela Lilla Bos — Cello (9)
Francesco Pisciotta — String Arrangement (11)
Noam Dayan — Kamancheh (1)
Dmitry Karev — Accordion (8)
Dario Cei — Flute (8, 10)
Brandon Wilkins — Bassoon & Alto Flute (2)
Dan Rowland — Oboe d’Amore (7)
Kelly O’Donohue — Trumpet, Trombone & Flugelhorn (9, 11, 12)
Michele Fortunato — Trombone (12)
Patricio Böttcher — Alto Saxophone (3)
Efim Braylovskiy — Alto Saxophone (9)
Ibrahim Danbaba — Saxophone (11)

Follow Thy Catafalque
Website: https://www.thy-catafalque.hu/
Bandcamp: https://thycatafalque.bandcamp.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thycatafalque/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thy_catafalque/
X/Twitter: https://x.com/thycatafalque
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thy_catafalque
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thycatafalque
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4sgTqbA7htxYkRRJBPZIom
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/artist/thy-catafalque/372164196
Deezer: https://www.deezer.com/artist/1441022
Tidal: https://tidal.com/browse/artist/4026939

Legendary CHERIE CURRIE Returns with Dynamite Collection of Rarities “The Cleopatra Sessions”

Posted by tarjavirmakari on October 9, 2026

Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: Cherie Currie. Leave a comment

Collectors get ready! Cherie Currie, Cleopatra’s own Queen of Noise, is poised for the release of a unique new album, the strictly limited, white label vinyl The Cleopatra Sessions.

Delving deep into the original Cherry Bomb’s 30-year relationship with Cleopatra Records, this stunning purple marble LP features nine tracks, pairing Cherie’s inimitable vocals and energy with an all-star cast of superstars – Wayne Kramer (MC5), Marky Ramone (The Ramones), Rick Derringer, James Williamson (The Stooges), Tracii Guns (L.A. Guns), Mick Box (Uriah Heep) and more!

Many of these tracks are making their first ever appearance on physical media, and not only feature some of Cherie’s favorite songs, but also some of her favorite performers – among them a Made-In-Heaven partnership with the late Cheetah Chrome (Dead Boys).

Cherie recalls,“‘I Can See You’ was a tough song due to the tempo, but my saving grace was working with my cherished friend Cheetah. I even drove to Las Vegas to be with him when he did his solo.

“Cheetah and I became close friends because of Cleopatra Records, who paired us together often. I am so glad he asked me to sing on his solo album out next year on Cleopatra, which I worked on for three days free of charge just to be on my friend’s album. Cheetah made my day, everyday and he will be sorely missed.”

She was overjoyed, too, to revisit her own past with a sensational new take on The Runaways’ maiden single, “Cherry Bomb.”

“This is my favorite redo,” she says. “Working with the late, great, Bob Kulick made it so full of spunk and sass, but the extension of the song was such a great idea, I now use it live!”

A glorious version of The Shangri-Las’ deathless death song, “Leader Of The Pack” reminds her of the sheer dedication of her supporting cast. “The vocals for ‘Leader of the Pack’ were produced and engineered by Jake Hays, and he deserves credit for it. He had to shlep all the recording gear to my home, set it up and man the controls ,since this was during Covid and before I had my own recording equipment to do this myself.”

She has fond memories, also, of Debbie Harry’s “For Your Eyes Only,” recorded back in 2000, “during my early days with Cleopatra. I was thrilled to work with long time friends Lanny Lardola, Chuck Wright and Bruce Gowdy. It was a great time with a phenomenal arrangement, and it’s one of my favorite songs I’ve done for Cleopatra.” Equally excitingly, “Debbie Harry mentioned to me how she loved it!

And bringing things bang up to date, “‘When You’re Young’ was a total surprise! I had recorded the entire song with backing harmonies, like I always do as a solo artist for Cleopatra, but when the final mix was sent to me they had turned it into a duet with their new signed artist, ESSEX. It was really fun to work with him on the music video. He is such a kind and talented showman who brought excitement to the song.”

The Cleopatra Sessions is strictly limited to just 85 copies, with a maximum purchase of two per customer, as the latest in Cleopatra’s ongoing series of super-limited collectors editions – others in the series include rare tracks and unique compilations by the New York Dolls, Johnny Thunders, Angel, former Hawkwind frontman Robert Calvert and goth legends Bauhaus. With many more on the way!

Cherie Currie – The Cleopatra Sessions drops on December 4.

VINYL: https://cleorecs.com/products/cherie-currie-the-cleopatra-sessions-purple-marble-vinyl-lp

SIDE A

1. Cherry Bomb — featuring Wayne Kramer and Marky Ramone
2. When You’re Young — featuring Essex
3. I Can See You — featuring Cheetah Chrome / Dead Boys
4. Whatever You Do! Don’t! — featuring Rick Derringer

SIDE B
1. Leader of the Pack — featuring James Williamson
2. For Your Eyes Only
3. I Got You Babe
4. Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree — featuring Tracii Guns
5. Magnet and Steel — featuring Mick Box

CELESTIAL SANCTUARY to Release “Cradle of the Rotten, Shrine to Those Most Foul” Full-Length Album on January 22nd

Posted by tarjavirmakari on October 9, 2026

Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: CELESTIAL SANCTUARY. Leave a comment

There is a point in every band’s evolution when it becomes necessary to strip everything back and ask a simple question: What is it that makes us who we are? For UK death metal force, CELESTIAL SANCTUARY, that question became the foundation for Cradle Of The Rotten, Shrine To Those Most Foul, a bold and uncompromising new album that sees the band refining their identity by refusing to conform to anyone else’s expectations.

“Our intention this time around was to refine what actually this ‘CELESTIAL SANCTUARY thing’ is,” the band explains, “filtering out all the bullshit, ignoring trends and ignoring what people expect us to do, and we’re a way better band for it.”

The answer isn’t to abandon death metal, but to look beyond its boundaries. CELESTIAL SANCTUARY approached Cradle Of The Rotten, Shrine To Those Most Foul, their Metal Blade debut out January 22nd, 2027 with an organic understanding of their complete metal DNA, retaining the violence and extremity at the core of the band while allowing a much broader spectrum of influences to shape the songwriting, dynamics and production. The band describes the album as roughly 25% death metal and 75% everything else that makes up their conception of heavy metal.

Across 47 minutes, the album unfolds as a violent and expansive journey through death, folklore, and the darkest corners of the band’s home territory. The story is a bastardization of the history and legends surrounding Bury St. Edmunds, drawing from centuries of local mythology, atrocities, and executions. The piercing and beheading of King Edmund, the spectral Black Shuck, the infamous Red Barn Murders, the Witch Trials, the Sunken Bells of Dunwich, the Lantern Man, and the many brutal executions that once took place throughout the region all become raw material for CELESTIAL SANCTUARY‘s twisted narrative.

Comments CELESTIAL SANCTUARY vocalist/guitarist Tom Cronin on lead single, “Lashed By Chain,” and the accompanying video, “This was the first song to be written for this album and an immediate statement of intent for what to expect. Tight, fast riffing, a brutal slam that jumps out of the shadows to piledrive you into oblivion and a big dual guitar solo that wouldn’t sound out of place in a Maiden tune. The lyrics follow the story of a knight who has one hand crossed with gold and riches, and the other with iron symbolizing that he’s sold his destiny to fight an unwinnable war. The theme treads the line of yearning to return to the things you love, the drive to survive, and the cruelty of false hope – being driven to survive in the most hopeless of times. Don’t be fooled… there is nothing positive about this and there is no happy ending.

“Musically, we wanted to channel a tighter rhythmic sound on this record. We really wanted to push the limit of what we could do with syncopated riffs and sudden time signature changes.

“We wanted to make a video that felt real, gritty and tactile,” he continues. “As a video producer by trade, I see a lot of videos that feel like an afterthought, so we took a considered approach with every element of the video. As I was directing and producing it myself, I felt a responsibility to make this as fucking cool as I possibly could.”

“We filmed it in a 9th century, deconsecrated church that was built on a burial site in England’s first city. We composed every shot of us playing meticulously and complimented that with high contrast lighting to match the colours in the animation and album artwork. We shot, graded and edited in such a way so you can feel the energy and aggression of our performance pouring out of your screen and into your face!“

“When it came to the animation element of the video, we purposely wanted something tangible, so we worked with Ben Amos Cooper to create visuals that compliment James Bousema’s album artwork in their own way. While they each have their own identity, the two are so undeniably entwined.”

Find pre-orders at: metalblade.com/celestialsanctuary and additional merch at: celestial-sanctuary.com/store

Cradle Of The Rotten, Shrine To Those Most Foul Track Listing:
01. Where the Blood Flows
02. Bonestorm
03. They Worm Their Way In
04. Cradle of the Rotten
05. Shrine to Those Most Foul
06. Enter the Sanctuary
07. Lashed by Chain
08. A Dogged Act
09. Subhuman Scum

CELESTIAL SANCTUARY will support Khemmis on their upcoming EU/UK tour beginning this weekend. See confirmed dates below.

CELESTIAL SANCTUARY w/ Khemmis:
10/10/2026 Die Tropete – Bochum, DE
10/11/2026 Metropool – Hengelo, NL
10/13/2026 The Flapper – Birmingham, UK
10/14/2026 The Bread Shed – Manchester, UK
10/15/2026 The Underworld – London, UK
10/16/2026 Kola – Portsmouth, UK
10/17/2026 Backstage by the Mill – Paris, FR
10/18/2026 Desertfest – Liege, BE
10/19/2026 Naumanns – Leipzig, DE
10/20/2026 Subzero – Prague, CZ
10/21/2026 Cassiopeia – Berlin, DE
10/22/2026 Monkeys – Hamburg, DE

CELESTIAL SANCTUARY:
Tomás Palmer-Cronin – vocals, guitar
Matt Adnett – guitar
Jay Rutterford – bass
James Burke – drums

https://www.celestial-sanctuary.com
https://www.instagram.com/celestialsanctuarydeathmetal
https://www.facebook.com/CelestialSanctuaryDeathMetal
https://x.com/csdeathmetal
https://www.youtube.com/celestialsanctuarydeathmetal

DOWN Release Video for New Single ‘The Myth’ from Upcoming Album

Posted by tarjavirmakari on October 9, 2026

Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: Down. Leave a comment

‘The Myth‘ is the latest single from American heavy metal icons DOWN. The track comes off the band’s long-awaited new studio album, Volume V, set for release on November 20th via Nuclear Blast Records.

DOWN was never just a band. It’s a brotherhood rooted in childhood friendships that have endured for decades. It’s an homage to the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. It’s music meant for anybody who has ever headbanged, played air guitar, or worn a weathered tour t-shirt like armor. For over three decades, the quintet – Philip H. Anselmo, Pepper Keenan, Kirk Windstein, Jimmy Bower, and Pat Bruders – have quietly built a legacy like no other. When these individuals congregate, magic ensues, conjured by earthquaking grooves, bellowing straight from the soul, and riffing loud enough to awaken an ancient deity. This Fall, DOWN begins another chapter with Volume V.

Volume V opens with the blistering barnburner, ‘The Myth.’ It sets the tone with a powerhouse vocal, pummeling rhythms, and precise down-picking. “‘The Myth’ has some epic moments,” comments Anselmo. “It’s a jammer. It’s got a big nod to Trouble, but vocally I’m thinking of James Dewar, Ronnie James Dio, Ozzy Osbourne, Glenn Hughes, and many of the other greats… The track and video are both straightforward and hammering.”

“It’s a perfect example of a classic DOWN collaboration,” says Windstein. “Amazing vocals, great riffs, and it comes together in a great DOWN song!”

Keenan agrees, “‘The Myth’ is classic DOWN in all its hammer fisted glory leading into a ‘70s jam trip that’s damn well worthy of the ride. Deliberate decisions of all the things we love… Quoting my main man. ‘When times are tough, they count on us!’”

Notes Bruders, “This is one of those songs that almost wrote itself. Especially when we all got in the same room together to work it out. It stands alone like all the other songs on this album.”

“It’s one of my favorite tracks off the new record,” adds Bower. “It’s heavy hitting and has all the right moves. It’s no Myth…. This song rules!”

PRE-ORDER / PRE-SAVE VOLUME V: https://down.bfan.link/volume-v

STREAM ‘THE MYTH’: https://down.bfan.link/the-myth

DOWN – VOLUME V || TRACKLIST

01. The Myth
02. Merciful Fate
03. Turn Out The Light
04. The Message
05. Causeway Grief
06. Blood Oath
07. They Walk The Night
08. They Came From Dust
09. Ozz
10. Twice-Told Tales

DOWN’s Volume V was produced by Eddie Mapp and DOWN, mixed by Dave Fortman, and mastered by Maor Appelbaum at Maor Appelbaum Mastering in California.

DOWN’s bond runs deep. The guys initially crossed paths as teens in various local bands throughout New Orleans. Over the years, each musician went off and made a name for himself with Anselmo notably fronting Pantera, Keenan holding down guitar and vocals for Corrosion Of Conformity, Windstein leading Crowbar, and Bower slinging guitar in Eyehategod.

Two writing sessions yielded the bulk of material on Volume V. Upholding a tradition dating back to Down II, the members retreated to Anselmo’s home studio and their de facto clubhouse, Nodferatu’s Lair. Songs originated on the spot as they jammed face-to-face. Throughout 2025, the music naturally took shape. Keenan and Windstein chose to simultaneously record guitar together, giving the album a timeless punch.

“These days, there’s no pressure,” Anselmo notes. “We each showed up with what we had, and everybody added their input. It was a true band effort. Pat was coming up with incredible riffs, and he’s such a great bass player. With DOWN, I can look across from me, and I know these motherfuckers. I know their shortcomings, and I know their strengths. I also know they’re all blessed. When I see them, they bring a level of comfort. There’s zero weight on my shoulders. I just have to do what I do, and those guys make it easy.”

The record will be released on CD and digital formats as well as 2xLP in the following color variants:

Orange [World]
Yellow + Red Galaxy [Nuclear Blast US Exclusive]
Orange + Red Galaxy [Nuclear Blast EU Exclusive] – SOLD OUT
Black [Band Exclusive #1] – SOLD OUT
Clear, Black + Red Smoke [Band Exclusive #2] – SOLD OUT
Orange + Black Galaxy [Decibel Exclusive] – SOLD OUT
Smoke [Revolver Exclusive] – SOLD OUT
Transparent Neon Orange + Black Marble (Nuclear Blast Exclusive)

DOWN recently wrapped up The Strap It Down North American headlining tour which concluded with a special performance as direct support to Slayer in Shakopee, Minnesota. DOWN played Aftershock last week and will head to Fort Worth, Texas later this month for Sick New World Fest.

In November, the band’s official record release show will take place at Lakefront Arena in New Orleans, Louisiana as part of The Great NOLA Trendkill! Presented by Housecore Horror, Housecore Records, and Live Nation, the special two-day festival will take over the Crescent City on November 20th and 21st and feature a landmark performance by Pantera, marking their first show in New Orleans in 30 years, as well as performances by Black Label Society, Corrosion Of Conformity, Power Trip, Crowbar, Eyehategod, Rāde, Herakleion, and Pig Destroyer!

In December, DOWN will headline day two (December 5th) of this year’s edition of the Decibel Magazine Metal & Beer Fest Denver. The appearance marks the band’s first Denver appearance in over twelve years!

Tickets for all shows are on sale now. See confirmed dates below.

US Festival Dates:
10/24/2026 Sick New World Texas – Fort Worth, TX
11/20-21/2026 The Great NOLA Trendkill – New Orleans, LA
12/05/2026 Decibel Metal And Beer Fest – Denver, CO

More on DOWN:

In 1991, DOWN’s first impromptu jam session yielded a now-legendary demo that made its way around the world. From there, the three-song tape effectively laid the foundation for 1995’s Platinum-certified NOLA. Metal Hammer cited the latter as, “a rock classic, period,” and Stereogum professed, “Our modern understanding of what metal in the Deep South sounds like and means starts with NOLA, and we should pay our respects.” The band delivered fan favorites such as Down II: A Bustle In Your Hedgerow [2002], Down III: Over The Under [2007], Down IV – Part One [2012], and Down IV – Part Two [2014]. Each tour proved to be special in its own right. Beyond packing houses on global headline jaunts, the group shared the stage with the likes of Metallica, Heaven & Hell, Danzig, and Melvins in addition to igniting festivals such as Aftershock, Louder Than Life, Hellfest, and Sick New World. It’s no wonder Revolver christened the collective one of the “12 Greatest Supergroups in Hard Rock and Heavy Metal History.”

First reactions to previously released Volume V single, “Blood Oath”:

“‘Blood Oath’ is thick. The song begins with open-aired, waggle-heavy, melancholy guitar harmonizing from Pepper Keenan and Kirk Windstein. And it only gets heavier, the band soon lunging into a death-marching groove full of graveyard guitar hooks and midnight creepin’ lyrics… Philip Anselmo also injects a handful of references to their beloved NOLA.” – Revolver

“…a nasty doom grinder, as Philip Anselmo’s vocals evoke Matt Pike of High On Fire with the heft of the partial growl set against a riff that is pure New Orleans sludge metal. The influence of classic doom from Trouble and St. Vitus is worn plain as day by the riffs that make up ‘Blood Oath,’ underscoring why DOWN has been able to sustain such profound critical and commercial interest despite having released just three LPs and two EPs over their 35-year history.” – Consequence

“‘Blood Oath’ is undeniably a DOWN track, rife with big stomp energy, a catchy hook, and an unforgettable riff. It’s somewhat of an ode to their hometown of New Orleans, with frontman Philip Anselmo adding little Easter egg nods to the city throughout the song.” – Metal Injection

DOWN:
Philip H. Anselmo – vocals
Pepper Keenan – guitars
Jimmy Bower – drums
Kirk Windstein – guitars
Pat Bruders – bass

DOWN links
website | facebook | instagram

MOONSPELL Announce ‘God Is A Vampire Tour 2027’

Posted by tarjavirmakari on October 9, 2026

Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: MOONSPELL. Leave a comment

[Photo Credit: Chantik Photography by Sonja Schuringa]

Portuguese dark metal icons MOONSPELL are taking FAR FROM GOD on the road in spring 2027 for their most ambitious headline tour to date – and a celebration of 35 years of darkness.

Following the release of their critically acclaimed and fan-praised album, the band will bring the GOD IS A VAMPIRE TOUR to fans across Europe. And they mean ALL ACROSS EUROPE. From Germany, France, Spain and the UK through Scandinavia and Eastern Europe, the route reaches Romania, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Greece, Serbia and Croatia before returning through Central Europe. This is a tour that goes beyond the usual stops, bringing the pack together across the continent.

An exclusive new stage design, powerful lighting, immersive video and commanding sound will bring the dark atmosphere of FAR FROM GOD to life. Celebrating both a new chapter and their 35th anniversary, MOONSPELL are preparing a show worthy of the occasion.

Two handpicked special guests complete the line-up: IOTUNN, the rising progressive metal force from Denmark and the Faroe Islands, and TODOMAL, Spain’s extraordinary atmospheric doom metal outfit. Kicking off in March 2027, the GOD IS A VAMPIRE TOUR will unite three distinct visions of heavy music for an unmissable journey across Europe.

Join the pack. GOD IS A VAMPIRE.

Tickets are now on sale at: https://www.moonspell.com/tours

“FAR FROM GOD has been seen, felt and welcomed by both fans and band with an almost messianic fervour. Not that the band was facing its end, but doubt and a sense of impending doom hung over us. This album showed us wolves – and our pack – the way forward”, MOONSPELL vocalist Fernando Ribeiro reveals.

“Now we embark on our most ambitious headline tour ever. We’re bringing a new stage design, lights, sound and video production – and a hunger to make every night count. Joining us are two bands we handpicked: IOTUNN (Denmark/Faroe Islands) and TODOMAL (Spain). Together, we’ll unleash the dark, melodic, light-seeking energy that runs through all our music. Every night, a gathering of the pack. Every night, a chance to create something worth carrying home.

And what is success for Moonspell?
New memories. Full hearts. True wonder.
That’s what we promise. And, as you know, we will deliver.

See you on tour, far from God but close to you.”

With Far From God, MOONSPELL returned on July 3, 2026 via Napalm Records with an album born out of five years of creative searching, doubt and ultimate rediscovery. Far from playing it safe, MOONSPELL delivered a work that feels like a rebirth: darker, sharper and emotionally unfiltered. Rather than bending to modern trends, the band double down on identity and substance, presenting a bold and beautiful statement of Gothic Metal in its purest essence: dark, romantic, dramatic and unapologetically heavy.

Thematically, Far From God moves through Baudelairian love, existential guilt and redemption, Christlike resurrections and the quiet nobility of creatures of the night. Vampires, werewolves and sacred symbolism are not escapism here, but vehicles for genuine dark emotion: solemn, romantic and unfiltered. The album rejects artificial gloss in favour of fantasy grounded in sincerity, rediscovering the heart of Gothic Metal in its most authentic form.

Far From God – produced with Jaime Gomez Arellano (Paradise Lost, Sólstafir, Ghost among many others) – shines like a black diamond, luminous yet shadowed in texture and colour, both musically and sonically. It reconnects with the darker spirit of MOONSPELL’s classic era while sounding powerful and contemporary. Far From God is not nostalgia; it is a statement. A Gothic Metal hallelujah. MOONSPELL’s 21st century Irreligious. It’s not only a powerful reminder that MOONSPELL remain a defining force in the genre they helped shape, but an album that truly saves Gothic Metal from boredom and predictability. Far From God is available via Napalm Records here.

MOONSPELL Live:
31.10.2026 (PT) Porto – Hard Club (Halloween Show)
01.11.2026 (PT) Porto – Hard Club (Halloween Show)
09.01.2027 (PT) Figueira da Foz – CAE
14.01.2027 (US) 70000 Tons Of Metal

GOD IS A VAMPIRE TOUR 2027 // MOONSPELL with IOTUNN and TODOMAL:
04.03.2027 (DE) Langen @ Neue Stadthalle
05.03. 2027 (DE) Erfurt @ Stadtgarten
06.03. 2027 (DE) Osnabrück @ Hyde Park
07.03. 2027 (NL) Eindhoven @ Effenaar
09.03. 2027 (GB) London @ The Dome
10.03. 2027 (FR) Rennes @ L’Etage
11.03. 2027 (FR) Toulouse @ Le Bascala
12.03. 2027 (ES) Madrid @ Shoko
13.03. 2027 (ES) Valencia @ Sala Repvblicca
14.03. 2027 (ES) Barcelona @ Razzmatazz 2
16.03. 2027 (FR) Paris @ La Machine du Moulin Rouge
17.03.2027 (CH) Pratteln @ Z7
18.03.2027 (DE) Karlsruhe @ Substage
19.03.2027 (DE) Hannover @ Capitol
20.03.2027 (DE) Geiselwind @ Music Hall
21.03.2027 (DE) Berlin @ Kesselhaus
23.03.2027 (DE) Munich @ Backstage Werk
24.03.2027 (HR) Zagreb @ Boogaloo
25.03.2027 (AT) Vienna @ Simm City
26.03.2027 (RO) Cluj-Napoca @ Form Space
27.03.2027 (RO) Bucharest @ Quantic Club
28.03.2027 (BG) Sofia @ Joy Station
30.03.2027 (GR) Thessaloniki @ Prinicpal Club
31.03.2027 (GR) Athens @ Gagarin 205
01.04.2027 (MK) Skopje @ MKC
02.04.2027 (RS) Belgrade @ Zappa
03.04.2027 (HU) Budapest @ Barba Negra
04.04.2027 (PL) Katowice @ P23
06.04.2027 (PL) Gdansk @ B90
07.04.2027 (PL) Warsaw @ Progresja
08.04.2027 (PL) Wroclaw @ Zaklete Rewiry
09.04.2027 (CZ) Zlin @ Masters of Rock Cafe
10.04.2027 (DE) Leipzig @ Hellraiser
11.04.2027 (DK) Copenhagen @ Amager Bio
13.04.2027 (SE) Stockholm @ Kulturhuset Stadsteatern
14.04.2027 (NO) Oslo @ Vulkan Arena
15.04.2027 (SE) Gothenburg @ Filmstudion
16.04.2027 (DE) Hamburg @ Gruenspan
17.04.2027 (DE) Cologne @ Carlswerk Victoria
18.04.2027 (NL) Haarlem @ Patronaat

MOONSPELL is:
Fernando Ribeiro – Vocals
Ricardo Amorim – Guitars
Pedro Paixão – Keys
Aires Pereira – Bass
Hugo Ribeiro – Drums

For More Info Visit:
Website | https://www.moonspell.com
Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/moonspellband
Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/moonspellofficial
Youtube | https://www.youtube.com/user/MoonspellYT
Spotify | https://open.spotify.com/artist/17bYSQ9ZRnreVnJjE5X2x6
Napalm Records | https://label.napalmrecords.com/moonspell

IGORRR Announce European Headline Tour for March 2027

Posted by tarjavirmakari on October 9, 2026

Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: IGORRR. Leave a comment

French multi-instrumentalist and producer Gautier Serre has been operating under the name IGORRR for 20 years now, yet each new record still resounds with a startling freshness and radical vitality. Gautier’s steadfastly unclassifiable and stunning Amen full-length maintains this impact, blindsiding the listener with a new set of exploratory curveballs and continuing to surprise and unnerve even the most attuned enthusiast. The record includes guest appearances by Scott Ian (Anthrax), Trey Spruance (Mr. Bungle), and Mike Leon (CKY, ex-Soulfly).

European fans can catch IGORRR live again in March of 2027 since the band has just announced their next headline trek through the old continent.

IGORRR w/ Secret Chiefs 3 & Fange
13/03/2027 – Aix-en-Provence (FR) – Headbang Festival
14/03/2027 – Solothurn (CH) – Kofmehl
16/03/2027 – Zagreb (HR) – Boogaloo
17/03/2027 – Belgrade (RS) – Hangar
20/03/2027 – Athens (GR) – Gagarin 205
21/03/2027 – Thessaloniki (GR) – Principal Club
23/03/2027 – Istanbul (TR) – IF Beşiktaş
24/03/2027 – Sofia (BG) – Pirotska
25/03/2027 – Bucharest (RO) – Quantic Club
27/03/2027 – Kosice (SK) – Colosseum
28/03/2027 – Brno (CZ) – SONO
30/03/2027 – Leipzig (DE) – Felsenkeller
31/03/2027 – Wiesbaden (DE) – Schlachthof
01/04/2027 – Metz (FR) – La BAM
02/04/2027 – Maastricht (NL) – Muziekgieterij
03/04/2027 – Reims (FR) – La Cartonnerie
04/04/2027 – Strasbourg (FR) – La Laiterie

Since signing to Metal Blade in 2017, the IGORRR name has expanded from one man’s pseudonym to become a full group identity, but Gautier remains the project’s guiding light and mastermind, so he’s the best man to ask to describe the indescribable. “This album is definitely darker than its predecessors, it has such a very weighty and solemn vibe that has never been reached before in IGORRR,” explains Gautier. “The fact that I recorded a real choir in a church helped this a lot, but above all there has been very long and meticulous work on the sound and the choice of instruments, and deep experimental research to create a unique sound design. Of course, because it’s an IGORRR album, there are some more colorful tracks, like ‘Blastbeat Falafel,’ ‘ADHD…’ They contrast very much with the ambient heaviness. I need tracks like these on an album, it helps to really get through it fully focused, like a shot of limoncello before the next meal.”

With an urge to continually take IGORRR‘s multifaceted and challenging sound further forward with each release, Gautier has spent a lot of time cultivating multiple new modes and methods of working since 2020’s breathtaking, critically acclaimed opus Spirituality And Distortion – which even reached No. 12 on the official German album chart. Gautier has always made clear that IGORRR is as much about the influence of Bach and Chopin as it is about Cannibal Corpse, Aphex Twin, and Meshuggah, but the source of specific stimuli gets harder to ascertain as the process is refined. “It’s always difficult for me to know from where the inspiration comes,” he muses. “Music is an expression of life, and I would say everything, even what seems the most insignificant thing, can be a source of inspiration. I would say there hasn’t been one event or one experience that has led me on a creative process, it’s more like a cumulation of everything. I love making music, my brain processes music all the time. You cannot imagine the amount of albums and concertos I create during my sleep. The challenge is more how to sort these ideas to keep the ones with the best potential, the ones that I won’t get bored of, the ones that I really Love – with a big letter L.”