Bedlight for Blue Eyes Re-Release "Life on Life's Terms" on Vinyl via Smartpunk Records 💿

In a world where emo anthems ruled the airwaves and MySpace profiles were the epitome of cool, Trustkill Records had released Bedlight For Blue Eyes' 2007 record Life on Life's Terms, which helped define a genre and became the soundtrack to a tumultuous era. With songs like "Michael" and "Walk With Me," this album, produced by Kenneth Mount and Zack Odom (Cartel, Mayday Parade,) is a time capsule of emotion and melody.

It is available on vinyl for the first time via Smartpunk Records here.

"I'm really excited about the release of Life on Life's Terms' on vinyl for the first time ever. This album means a lot to us and our fans. It's great to see these songs getting played again after so many years. A big thank you to everyone who helped make this record and especially to our fans for all their support," says vocalist Daniel Rinaldi.

"It's always so awesome to work with people that I looked up to growing up going to shows and playing music, and Trustkill is no different! When the opportunity to press this Bedlight record came up, I knew this would be an exciting one to bring to life! I remember when the album initially came out, I was BLOWN away by the songs and Daniel's voice especially. Always exciting to add awesome records like this one to the Smartpunk family," says Matt Burns, Label Manager of Smartpunk Records

ABOUT SMARTPUNK RECORDS:
Smartpunk has been a recognizable name in the scene for a long time (Remember that sponsored Warped Tour stage?!). After exchanging several hands and countless ideas of what it could and should be, they decided to start a record label in 2016 with the main idea of focusing solely on reissuing records that have been out of print or never on vinyl. After all, they're a label of vinyl dorks themselves! After releasing Set Your Goals' Mutiny and Gameface's Good, they started to venture into signing newer bands. They actively balance in between many worlds — putting out amazing music from friends and bands that rock, reissuing older titles, and partnering with other incredible labels in our scene and doing exclusive color variants of their releases.

"Since forming the record label, Smartpunk Records has released timeless albums such as Less Than Jake's Anthem, Nominee's Lowlife, RIVALS' Sad Looks Pretty on Me, Virginity's POPMORTEM, and melodic skate punkers The Swellers' My Everest.

SKELETAL REMAINS Shares Instrumental Play-Through for "Verminous Embodiment," New Album 'Fragments of the Ageless' Out NOW

SHOP // STREAM // DOWNLOAD

American death metal purveyors SKELETAL REMAINS are now celebrating the release of their latest opus, 'Fragments of the Ageless,' with a searing instrumental play-through for the single, "Verminous Embodiment." The clip can be found below.

The band explains that instrumental version is going back to the original idea of the song, “With ‘Verminous Embodiment,’ we originally wanted to do something a little more chaotic and over the top with the original intentions for the song to be an instrumental. But, as the writing process continued, we kept hearing a vocal pattern being sung over the groovy verse riff, so the inspiration for lyrics soon followed after. Heavily inspired by an episode of 'The X-Files' entitled ‘Home.'"

"Verminous Embodiment" is taken from the band's latest opus, 'Fragments of the Ageless,' which has just arrived today, March 8, via Century Media Records! The album is now available HERE.

In addition, SKELETAL REMAINS is currently on the road in the states for a special West Coast run of album release shows! The trek arrive in Los Angeles, CA tonight for a very a special homecoming celebration! The trek will then conclude on March 10 in Las Vegas, NV. The full itinerary can be found below while tickets are available HERE.

"'Fragments Of The Ageless' is a gargantuan effort that is bound to spur gatekeeping purists to uncross their arms and start banging their heads like it's 1993." - Blabbermouth

"The record is sonically incredible, and I don’t believe that there’s a weak track in the bunch." - Decibel Magazine

"...dragging their collective caskets through the underworld, before barnburners of a guitar solo bring the songs to epic climaxes, returning to their flesh-ripping sonic assault without taking a breath." - Heavy Music HQ

"...this is some maximalist ass-kick metal born from the tropes of a genre older than I am and yet Skeletal Remains is proof positive of what’s still possible after these four-ish decades, after refining and polishing, cutting to form and sharpening to a honed edge." - Lambgoat

"With plenty of dense blasting, killer solos, and just the right amount of melodic leads, Skeletal Remains has a little bit of everything for the death metal fan." - Metal Trenches

Photo by Allen Falcon

Skeletal Remains’s ultra-brutal new album, Fragments of the Ageless, is upon us! The Americans—featuring Mike De La O (guitars), Chris Monroy (guitars/vocals), Pierce Williams (drums), and newcomer Brian Rush (bass)—kept busy after their much-hailed The Entombment of Chaos landed into a chaotic world in 2020. Rather than sit idle, the re-energized quartet crafted their penultimate statement. Tracks like “Void of Despair,” which Monroy describes as “aggressive and spastic,” “To Conquer the Devout,” “Relentless Appetite,” and “Verminous Embodiment” are death metal manifested in sound fundamentals, killer musicianship, and the right attitude. While Skeletal Remains have had four full-lengths since forming in 2011, Fragments of the Ageless is the band in their highest grotesque gear yet.

“With every record, we try to push ourselves to make a better record,” Monroy says. “We don’t get into, ‘We need to sound more like this or that.’ What comes out of us is natural. Actually, that’s how it’s been since the first record [Beyond the Flesh]. As death metal fans, we write what we enjoy and want to listen to. Having Pierce and Brian join the band played a big part in the new album. They live in Portland, and the rest of the band is in Los Angeles, so there’s a bit of a gap, but we use technology a lot when we write. They gave us a fresh set of ears.”

The principal songwriting for Fragments of the Ageless started during the pandemic but picked up considerable steam once the band were back on the road in 2022, where they played countless shows and festivals in the U.S., Europe, South America, Central America, and Australia. With Pierce and Brian fully in the fold, Monroy and De La O found themselves, in a way, back to square one, namely the “entire band effort” that comprised their 2012 debut, Beyond the Flesh. The savage DNA of Skeletal Remains is intact, but it’s been altered—no, improved!—iteratively to attack more, devour absolutely, and technically inspire. Tracks like video singles “Void of Despair,” “To Conquer the Devout,” “Relentless Appetite,” as well as deeper album cuts “Forever in Sufferance,” “Verminous Embodiment,” and “Unmerciful” are ravenous.

“It’s more brutal than the last one,” says Monroy. “We were pushing ourselves to be more extreme—vibing on that as much as possible. Obviously, we’re not tech-death now, but I think we took inspiration from the techier side of things. We took things up a notch and dialed in on the technicality and ever-increasing intensity while maintaining catchiness. We still have songs like ‘Eternal Hatred’ [from The Entombment of Chaos]. There’s always room for super-simple mid-paced songs in Skeletal Remains. On one end, we’ve increased in density and brutality; on the other, we wrote a few songs with longer and more ‘epic’ structures. 'Fragments' is simply the next evolutionary step in our sound.”

Lyrically, Skeletal Remains took the left-hand path. Rather than topics and themes inspiring the cover art, Dan Seagrave’s (Suffocation, Entombed, et al.) famously atramentous detail conversely informed the lyrics and album title. Monroy says they had working titles that they conveyed to Seagrave, but the final painting sparked the title, Fragments of the Ageless. Of course, the usual influx of sci-fi, historical, personal struggles, and fantastical also played a part.

“Seagrave completed the cover art before we had a title,” Monroy says. “That was kind of weird, but it worked in our favor. The cover art directly inspired a few of the lyrics and musical themes, tying multiple pieces together, which is a first for us. We did show him different pieces of art—10 in all, I think—that we liked, so there was direction. We wanted a mixture of things, with the final idea being a creature being taken apart and its DNA extracted. Seagrave’s crazy brain made it all come to life.”

Skeletal Remains recorded Fragments of the Ageless at various home and professional studios. Most of the guitars, bass, and solos were tracked DIY. The band wanted the drums to sound as imposing as possible, so they booked Trench Studios (Intronaut, Hirax) with John Haddad, while the vocals were cut at Birdcage Studios with Allen Falcon (Pestilent Death). Once the album’s core had been recorded, Monroy and the team sent their sick slab to Swedish studio ace Dan Swanö (Asphyx, Incantation) for mixing and mastering. If the blistering leads of “Void of Despair” and “Verminous Embodiment” don’t impress, then check out the blasting drums of “Cybernetic Harvest” and “Relentless Appetite.”

“Dan really gets it,” says Monroy. “He’ll send us mixes, and he’ll automatically add stuff like effects and little details throughout the back and forth. He knows what we want before we can tell him. Dan understands what we’re going for. There’s mutual understanding and respect. Of course, he’s been mixing and mastering for a long time and has made a name for himself, but we’re really happy with the production on 'Fragments.' It jumps out at you.”

Monroy says the band’s goal with Fragments of the Ageless is to continue death metal’s lineage—to honor the past and present. The future, however, is lined with more touring and festivals. Having just come off a stateside run with Suffocation and Incantation late last year, Skeletal Remains are poised to ravage more of the world, with high-profile slots at Wacken (Germany) and Alcatraz (Belgium) festivals already secured.

Death… Is just the beginning with Skeletal Remains’s Fragments of the Ageless.

Line-up:

Chris Monroy - guitars/vocals

Mike De La O - guitars

Pierce Williams - drums

Brian Rush - bass

Album Art:

Dan Seagrave

Album Title Logo:

Kyle Bowen

Bio:

Chris Dick

'Fragments of the Ageless' Formats:

Ltd. CD Digipak

Ltd. Gatefold transp. magenta LP

Ltd. Gatefold lemon colored LP (300x) available at cmdistro.de and Evil Greed

Ltd. Gatefold transp. light blue LP (300x) available at cmdistro.de and various other retailers

Ltd. Gatefold Opaque Spring Green LP (US version)

Ltd. Gatefold Sunspot LP (500x) available from US Indie outlets and SKELETAL REMAINS

Digital album

Follow:

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

INSTAGRAM

FACEBOOK

STREAM // DOWNLOAD

THE MOODY BLUES’ JOHN LODGE RELEASES 'DAYS OF FUTURE PASSED – MY SOJOURN' ON VINYL AND CD WITH RESCHEDULED JULY TOUR

John Lodge, legendary bass player, songwriter and vocalist of The Moody Blues, and inductee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, is to release his latest studio album Days of Future Passed – My Sojourn on CD, with a special Limited Edition 180gram Platinum Vinyl to follow on April 12th. Special autographed bundles will also be available.

Over the last year John has been performing his version of this groundbreaking album, lovingly recreating it in full symphonic glory, and the reaction from audiences then led naturally to a studio recording. It was originally released in the UK, but following critical and fan acclaim, and John’s passion around the release, he is delighted to finally be releasing the album in the USA. The recording tells the story of ‘a day in the life’, and includes “Nights in White Satin”, “Tuesday Afternoon”, and “Peak Hour”, together with a very special recording of “Late Lament” by the late Graeme Edge and performances by Jon Davison of YES.

“This is an album that will reach into your heart with its gentleness and beauty and will refresh your soul as its hidden depths are re-discovered. I urge you to hear this masterpiece as a balm for modern times, it is most highly recommended” Progradar-October 5, 2023

The release will be followed by John’s USA tour in July – rescheduled from February/March due to a medical issue.

View “Peak Hour” video below:

Lodge had this to say about the new release, “When I decided to call my album ‘Days of Future Passed - My Sojourn’, it was about this incredible album, but sitting here today, it feels very poignant that I’ve had my own ‘sojourn' over the last couple of months... I’ve embraced this quiet time, been surrounded by the loving support of family and friends, and taken time to be thankful. However, I'm delighted to be able to bring this album to you in the USA, and be back on the road where I love!

So, thank you to all the fans, the venues, the promoters, and my agent, for being so patient and working so hard to reschedule these dates.

But most importantly, I’m so happy to announce that my album is being released in the USA. I loved seeing it released in the UK, but knew it needed to be available in the USA too!

This journey began following conversations with Graeme as I wanted to continue to bring our music to the fans. Modern technology gives us great tools to recreate what we did in 1967, hopefully bringing out nuances or new emphases that weren’t there before, but what is at the heart of it is an incredible album. I will always be grateful to Graeme, Justin, Mike and Ray, we created some wonderful music together, and for now, I’m grateful to Alan, Billy, Duffy and Jason, and of course Jon, for helping me continue on the path I love. Thank you to all for keeping the faith.”

Listen here to “Nights in White Satin” featuring Jon Davison on lead vocals: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEGDTv5RIYA

John will be back on tour in July, with his rescheduled dates, where you will be taken back in time as you experience the album live, in its entirety, together with a set of Moody Blues classic hits.

John Lodge is bass guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for the iconic Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame 2018 inductees, The Moody Blues. Songwriter of such mega Moody Blues hits from “Ride My SeeSaw,” to “I’m Just A Singer (In A Rock and Roll Band),” “Isn’t Life Strange?” and many more. Lodge has been performing and recording with The Moody Blues for more than five decades, selling in excess of 70 million albums. He has been voted one of the “10 most influential bass players on the planet,” and has been the recipient of many awards, including ASCAP (American Society of Composers and Publishers), an Ivor Novello Award, a Lifetime Achievement Award from Prog Magazine, to name just a few. With the Moody Blues now no longer touring, John is passionate about “Keeping the Moody Blues Music Alive”, and John and his 10,000 Light Years Band provide a unique opportunity to continue to experience the magic of the Moody Blues.

John Lodge ‘Performs Days of Future Passed’ July Tour
Tickets on sale now at: www.johnlodge.com/tour

July 9 Capitol Theatre, Clearwater, FL
July 12 Keswick Theatre, Glenside, PA
July 13 State Theatre, New Brunswick, NJ
July 15 Ocean City Music Pier, Ocean City, NJ
July 17 Patchogue Theatre, Patchogue, NY
July 18 The Warehouse, Fairfield, CT
July 20 Tarrytown Music Hall, Tarrytown, NY
July 21 Memorial Hall, Plymouth, MA
July 23 Nashua Center for the Arts, Nashua, NH
July 24 The Colonial Theatre, Laconia, NH
July 26 The Wilbur, Boston, MA
July 27 Infinity Hall, Hartford, CT
July 29 Bardavon Opera House, Poughkeepsie, NY
Aug 2 Seminole Casino Hotel, Immokalee, FL (on sale March 12th)
Aug 3 Amaturo Theater, Fort Lauderdale, FL (on sale March 15th)

The full album contains all the tracks from the original Moody Blues release and there are a limited number of autographed bundles available while supplies last: https://www.dekoentertainment.com/john-lodge

For more information, visit
www.dekoentertainment.com/john-lodge
https://www.johnlodge.com/

Deko Entertainment–Art Has Value

Brantley Gilbert Previews Forthcoming Album with "Off The Rails"

Following his sixth studio album So Help Me God, Brantley Gilbert readies a forthcoming project and delivers a preview with the revelry inducing anthem “Off The Rails” via The Valory Music Co. The track embodies the brand of high energy live show the multi-Platinum country rocker will bring to the Off The Rails Tour this spring and summer. Listen to “Off The Rails” Below.
 
“We’ve got some big plans for the Off The Rails Tour,” shares Gilbert. “Not only will we be sprinkling in some new tracks, but we’ve found a way to add even more songs into the setlist, so you’ll be hearing a good mix of longtime favorites, deep cuts and unreleased material. We’re really looking forward to giving BG Nation the first taste of what we have in store for the next album…it’s going to be a wild ride.”
 
Kicking off tomorrow, March 9 in Alabama, the Off The Rails Tour will also feature special guests Dylan Marlowe, Struggle Jennings and Demun Jones. For tickets and additional information, visit BrantleyGilbert.com.
 
Since wrapping the Get Rollin’ Tour with Nickelback featuring numerous sold-out shows across North America last year, the Georgia native has been back in the studio, teasing collaborations with Kid Rock and Gary LeVox on social media.
 
“I’ve really enjoyed writing for this new album, and it’s been an absolute blast to toy around with a few different sounds in the studio,” Gilbert reveals. “I think we’re focusing a bit more on instrumentation and leaning even further into some of my roots and early influences.”
 
In addition to being a 14x Platinum-selling artist, Gilbert earns another RIAA Gold-certified track with fan-favorite “Welcome to Hazeville” featuring Colt Ford, Lukas Nelson and Willie Nelson, bringing his tally to eight Gold-certified songs.
 
Gilbert recently partnered with Roush Performance for a one-of-a-kind F-350 build. Gilbert and Roush Performance have been getting loud and going fast since 2021 and sought to create a one-off dually in collaboration with other premium, American-rooted brands. Standout upgrades on Gilbert’s 2023 F-350 farm truck include various Roush Performance components, a 5-inch BDS lift with radius arms, upgraded shocks, and oversized tires wrapped around American Force 24-inch rims. Watch the behind-the-scenes video HERE for additional details.

Off The Rails Tour Dates:
 
March 9 // Wind Creek Casino & Hotel // Wetumpka, AL
March 10 // Seminole Hard Rock Tampa // Tampa, FL
March 21 // Canton Memorial Civic Center // Canton, OH
March 22 // Dow Event Center // Saginaw, MI
March 23 // La Crosse Center // La Crosse, WI
April 4 // Arizona Bike Week // Scottsdale, AZ
April 11 // F&M Bank Arena // Clarksville, TN
April 12 // Huntington Center // Toledo, OH
April 13 // UPMC Events Center // Moon Township, PA
April 18 // Erie Insurance Arena // Johnstown, PA
April 19 // 1st Summit Arena // Johnstown, PA
April 20 // Rock the Country // Ashland, KY*
April 25 // The Monument // Rapid City, SD
April 26 // Scheels Arena // Fargo, ND
April 27 // Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center // Mankato, MN
May 4 // FireKeepers Casino Hotel // Battle Creek, MI
May 9 // The Cove at River Spirit Casino Resort // Tulsa, OK
May 10 // Riverwind Casino // Norman, OK
May 11 // Billy Bob’s Texas // Fort Worth, TX
May 16 // Yaamava’ Resort & Casino // Highland, CA
May 17 // KNCI Country in the Park // East Sacramento, CA*
May 18 // Rio Vista Outdoor Amphitheater at Harrah’s Laughlin // Laughlin, NV
June 1 // Finger Lakes Country Music Festival // Palmyra, NY*
June 2 // Cape Cod Melody Tent // Hyannis, MA
June 8 // Rock the Country // Reddick, FL*
June 15 // Shoshone Bannock Casino Hotel // Pocatello, ID
June 22 // Rock the Country // Mobile, AL*
June 28 // Buckeye Motorcycle & Music Rally // Columbus, OH
June 29 // After Hours Concert Series at Meadow Event Park // Doswell, VA
July 11 // Field Daze at Water Works Park // Des Moines, IA
July 12 // Delaware County Fair // Manchester, IA
July 13 // Morgan County Fair // Jacksonville, IL
July 18 // Bayfront Festival Park // Duluth, MN
July 19 // Harrah’s Council Bluffs Casino & Hotel  // Council Bluffs, IA
July 20 // Dam Jam Music Festival // Goddard, KS*
July 22 // Elkhart County 4-H Fair // Goshen, IN
July 24 // Delaware State Fair // Harrington, DE
July 26 // Rock the Country // Anderson, SC*
Aug. 3 // Nugget Event Center // Sparks, NV
 
* Festival Date
 
About Brantley Gilbert
With a grassroots following millions strong, multi-Platinum country rocker Brantley Gilbert has mined a rich vein of conflict between the party and the pew on all his albums, with his music being adopted as the soundtrack to both Saturday night and Sunday morning by audiences around the world. Instead of toiling in limbo, unable to enjoy good times for fear of Judgment Day, Gilbert fully lives––rowdy friend, man of faith, devoted husband, smitten father––just as he is. Following his sixth studio album So Help Me God, Gilbert readies a forthcoming project, giving BG Nation the first taste with “Off The Rails,” a revelry inducing anthem that embodies the kind of high energy live show the Georgia native will bring to the Off The Rails Tour this spring and summer. Along with the new track, he’ll perform songs across his discography, which includes back-to-back Platinum albums and seven No. 1 hits: RIAA 7x Platinum-certified “Bottoms Up,” 2x Platinum “Country Must Be Country Wide,” 2x Platinum “You Don’t Know Her Like I Do,” 2x Platinum “One Hell of An Amen,” Platinum-certified collaboration with Lindsay Ell “What Happens In A Small Town,” and two chart-toppers as a songwriter with CMA Song of the Year nominee “Dirt Road Anthem” and “My Kinda Party.” For additional information, visit BrantleyGilbert.com  or follow him on Instagram, TikTok and Twitter @BrantleyGilbert and Facebook.com/BrantleyGilbertMusic.

JUDAS PRIEST RELEASE NEW ALBUM 'INVINCIBLE SHIELD' TODAY!

The wait is finally over. Today, Judas Priest release their hugely anticipated new studio album Invincible Shield, out via Epic Records. Get it HERE.

The album is a raging slab of electrifying metal, brought to you by one of the most iconic bands in the world. Tracks released so far have amassed a whopping 15 million streams and created a phenomenal global buzz of excitement from their loyal fanbase. Not only that, but the critics are raving about Invincible Shield, with universal acclaim pouring for the body of work. The 11 tracks highlight exactly how the band, 50-plus years in, is at the height of their powers in 2024.

The Associated Press has stated that Invincible Shield finds Judas Priest“rocking faster and harder than ever before” while Blabbermouth said it “could be the most consistent and flawless album this band have made in decades.” Metal Injection has declared it “the best record of 2024 thus far,” while Stereogum proclaimed that it “feels like a victory lap for the band.” As Ultimate Classic Rock put it, “this is Judas Priest operating at near hall-of-fame levels."

In honor of the legendary band’s 19th studio album, Judas Priest will embark on a world tour this year, the European leg kicks off in Glasgow next Monday, March 11th before taking on North America in April and May. See below for full North American tour routing and head to http://judaspriestinvincibleshield.com/ for tickets.

Over the past 50 years Judas Priest have sold over 50 million albums worldwide and headlined the world’s biggest stages. With their evolving music and live performances also came a powerful unique identity, a look which has both defined the group and influenced future generations of metal bands the world over. With each year the Judas Priest legend continues to grow; 2022 saw them inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and complete a sold-out rescheduled world tour in support of their 50th Anniversary. As we continue to roll into 2024, Judas Priest continue to retain their crown as one of the biggest and best British bands in the world.

JUDAS PRIEST: INVINCIBLE SHIELD TOUR DATES:
Thu Apr 18 – Wallingford, CT – Toyota Oakdale Theatre
Fri Apr 19 – Newark, NJ – Prudential Center
Sun Apr 21 – Reading, PA – Santander Arena
Wed Apr 24 – Bangor, ME – Cross Insurance Center
Thu Apr 25 – Boston, MA – MGM Music Hall at Fenway
Sat Apr 27 - Youngstown, OH - Covelli Center*
Sun Apr 28 – Indianapolis, IN – Everwise Amphitheater at White River
Wed May 01 – Rosemont, IL – Rosemont Theatre
Thu May 02 – Minneapolis, MN – The Armory
Sat May 4 - Kalamazoo, MI - Wings Event Center*
Sun May 05 – Maryland Heights, MO – St Louis Music Park
Tue May 07 - Huntsville, AL - VBC Propst Arena*
Thu May 09 - Daytona, FL - Welcome to Rockville^
Sat May 11 – Alpharetta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
Sun May 12 - Mobile, AL - Mobile Civic Center Arena*
Tue May 14 – Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion
Thu, May 16 - Columbus OH - Historic Crew Stadium ^
Fri May 17 - Evansville, IN - Ford Center*
Sun May 19 – Washington, DC –The Theater at MGM National Harbor
Tue May 21 – Albany, NY – MVP Arena
Wed May 22 – Syracuse, NY – Empower Federal Credit Union Amphitheater at Lakeview
*Not a Live Nation Date
^Festival Performance

Instagram | TikTok | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube

Extraordinary Berlin post-punk - CIRCOLO VIZIOSO presents violin-driven debut 'Verrückt' album

"From Sonic Youth, The Black Angels to Fugazi and Nirvana, this is a band who wears their inspirations on their sleeves, blending these in a fascinating way. Raw and visceral, Circolo Vizioso makes for a highly recommended listen, presenting groundbreaking music with a signature sound" ~ The Spill Magazine

"Hailstorm distortion... that great feel like it has its own time signature; speeding up and slowing down depending on their anger levels or the nervous urgency that bubbles to the surface. It sounds fresh and in the moment, in part due to it being written in a little over an hour" ~ Joyzine

"Cathartic, a taste of the actual sound of the grassroots music makers, a reminder of just how false the world we are offered through advertising, media, marketing, branding... A timely, sonic wake-up call" ~ Big Takeover Magazine


Kraut-inspired punk rock duo Circolo Vizioso presents their debut album 'Verrückt', an invigorating collection of tracks that channel a dystopian feeling of being stir crazy amidst an unjust society. Arriving four years after their 5-track 'Isolation' EP (2020), 'Verrückt' offers a powerful taste of high-intensity, lyric-driven post-punk, created mainly with electric violin, guitar and drums.

Hailing from Berlin, Circolo Vizioso is made up of Tony Scafidi (guitar, bass, drum, hi-hat, vocals) and Paul Geigerzaehler (violin, snare drum, vocals). The band plays abrasive, groovy punk music that is influenced, on the one hand, by the sound of 1990s New York, Chicago and Washington embodied in such bands as Fugazi, Blonde Redhead and Sonic Youth, and by the sound of early 80's and 90's Eastern German and Eastern European punk bands like Dezerter, Sandow and Schleimkeim on the other.

Earlier, the band presented the singles 'Walls', written in outrage over the Russian invasion in Ukraine, and 'Choppy', a high-octane song spawned from a bout of depression brought on by a failed love story.

"On 'Verrückt', we wanted to stretch the potential of the bass drum, the high hat, the snare and the tambourine to the utmost. As two people having to sing, play guitar and violin and drums at the same time makes it challenging to come up with refined and intricate drumming. But it does give us an interesting opportunity to exert a furious, instinctively ancestral and liberating beat on a few drums," says Tony Scafidi.

Paul Geigerzaehler adds, "We wanted to make an album that could express anger, frustration and disaffection against an unfair world and all the discomfort entwined therein. And we wanted to do it with direct and bare lyrics abrasive violin lines, fat distorted guitar solos and big fuzzy riffs. Yet we wanted people to let go of this batshit crazy world in a sort of self-exorcising dance, where one can go to sleep with the illusion of having sweat their demons off at least for the night."

Formed in March 2020 on a balcony in Friedrichshain, Berlin during the first Covid-19 lock-down, Circolo Vizioso was born as an attempt to keep art and music alive and to provide support to their neighbours during a time when no concerts were happening and no cinemas, museums or galleries were open. Circolo Vizioso is these artists' attempt to resist the isolation and the lack of social and human contact, as well as the hunger for music and art during this unusual time.
:
As of March 1, the full 'Verrückt' album is available via Bandcamp, and from other fine music platforms, including Apple Music and Spotify. Circolo Vizioso's Paul Geigerzaehler has also just released his solo album 'KAPUTT' as a Bandcamp exclusive.

CREDITS
Music and Lyrics by Paul Geigerzaehler and Tony Scafidi
Tony Scafidi - guitar, bass, drum, hi-hat, vocals
Paul Geigerzaehler - violin, snare drum, vocals
Audrey Quillons - backing vocals on 'Walls' and 'Verrückt'
Produced by Paul Geigerzaehler and Tony Scafidi
Sound Engineer - Smail Shock Production at B Studio in Berlin
Mixed and Mastered by Sacha Tilotta in Catania, Italy
Publicity by Shameless Promotion PR


Keep up with Circolo Vizioso
Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram | Twitter | Soundcloud | YouTube | Apple Music | Spotify | Press contact

Keep up with Shameless Promotion PR
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | Instagram | LinkedIn | Email

Ace Frehley's '10,000 Volts' Debuts at #1 on Current Hard Music, Rock Charts; #2 Independent

“'10,000 Volts, [is] a new solo album that’s crackling with energy and personality." -- Associated Press
"'10,000 Volts,' in its own time, in its own way, is similarly staggering – quite simply, OVERWHELMING. 10,000/10 -- Ghost Cult Magazine

RRHOF-inductee and guitar legend Ace Frehley has topped both the Hard Music and  Rock Album Charts with his new album, 10,000 Volts.  Additionally, the album comes in at #2 on the Independent Chart, #3 on the Internet Albums Charts, and #4 on the Vinyl, Album Sales, and Current Album Sales Charts.  The album has also charted internationally, debuting at #1 on the Sweden physical album chart, #13 in Switzerland, #13 on the UK Independent Album Breakers Chart, and #21 on the German album chart, with more to come. 10,000 Volts was released on February 23, 2024 via MNRK Heavy, and has sold more in the first week of release than his last studio album, 2018's Spaceman.

10,000 Volts was produced and co-written by Ace and Steve Brown, and the uncontainable energy on the 11 tracks showcases some of Ace's best works since his '78 solo album.

There were 20 vinyl variants available for this project, in addition to the CD and digital versions. Due to overwhelming demand from Ace's fans stateside, European vinyl variants are also now available in the American market. The variants feature unique and visually stunning vinyl colors, including "Metal Gym Locker Splatter," "Dragons Den," and "Orange Tabby." This move directly responds to Ace's audience's requests, showcasing MNRK's commitment to delivering what fans truly desire.

Ace released three videos for the project: "10,000 Volts," "Walkin' on the Moon," and, most recently, "Cherry Medicine."

10,000 Volts upholds an incredible legacy for Frehley, spanning 50-plus years in the limelight. Back in 1978, he delivered his solo debut, Ace Frehley. It reached platinum status and exploded as “the highest-selling of the four Kiss solo albums in the Soundscan era.” Pitchfork even retrospectively rated it a rare “8.5” score. In 1987, he dropped Frehley’s Comet. Following Anomaly in 2009, he went on to make history once again. His 2014 Space Invader LP captured #9 on the Billboard 200 and emerged as “The only solo album by a past or current Kiss member to reach the Top 10 on the chart.” 2016’s Origins Vol. 1, bowed at #1 on the Billboard Top Hard Rock Albums Chart and in the Top 5 of the Billboard Top Rock Albums Chart. He notably maintained his momentum with Spaceman [2018]. 

Stream / Get 10,000 Volts here:

Connect with Ace:
Website
Facebook
Instagram
TikTok

Toronto-based The Shadow Majlis debuts album 'The Departure'

"A powerful achievement... I believe that there are certain tracks and moments that act as portals into another dimension - I'm not being fanciful here!" ~ David J (Bauhaus, Love and Rockets)

"With Ali Jafri at the helm on vocals, guitars, bass, electric sitar, synths, programming, this debut offering from The Shadow Majlis is diverse and stunning, involving a dream-team – not only in terms of production, but also collaborators, ranging from true music legends of our generation and top-notch artists from around the world" ~ The Spill Magazine

Toronto-based artist The Shadow Majlis presents their debut album 'The Departure', 10 tracks that showcase genre-fluid excellence and a wealth of raw emotional experience, fusing elements of Eastern modes with post-punk and immerses listeners in an alternative neo-global style that transcends borders. Just as the album's title suggests, this is a departure from the norm, a journey into something other, where there are no limits. 

Revolving around Ali Jafri, whose reputation as a formidable and versatile multi-instrumentalist has led to involvement in various projects over the years. Whether as a member of David J's live band, playing rock-sitar for Pigface (or through his other projects ARIEL, The Gotham City Drugstore, Saintfield or his solo work), Ali Jafri has cultivated a multi-cultural artistic and musical vision. Now, he's bringing that vision further to fruition via The Shadow Majlis.

Produced and mixed by three-time Grammy Award winning producer David Bottrill (Peter Gabriel, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Tool, David Sylvian, Mastodon, Smashing Pumpkins, Muse, Real World Studios), with Darren McGill engineering the album. Mastered by Noah Mintz, the cover art was created by Stephen Seto (Splintercage).

With Ali Jafri at the helm on vocals, guitars, bass, electric sitar, synths, programming, the debut album features the legendary David J (Bauhaus, Love & Rockets) on bass and drummer-percussionist Rakesh Tewari (Jaffa Road, The Special Interest Group). Adding colour and depth are various guest performers, including vocalist Olena Tsybulska (DakhaBrakha), guitarist Mark Gemini Thwaite (The Mission, Peter Murphy, MGT, Tricky, Gary Numan), cellist Anne Bourne (Loreena McKennitt, Jane Siberry), Tuvan throat singer Soriah, Ravi Naimpally (Niyaz, Constantinople) on tabla, Pankaj Mishra on sarangi, Selmanpak Ayduz on ney, Kerem Koktas on kemanche, and Sasha Singer-Wilson on backing vocals.

Blending alternative music with the rich, diverse instrumentation and rhythms of world music, The Shadow Majlis leaves a distinct imprint on the ever-evolving soundscape. Recorded in Toronto, LA, Portland, Istanbul, Kyiv and Iceland, this is truly an international affair, with languages such as Urdu, Farsi, Arabic, Icelandic and Ukrainian woven with English throughout this album.

The most poignant and powerful artistic output stems from tragedy, and The Shadow Majlis is no exception. Amid a deluge of personal upheaval, this album has been Jafri's means to address his grief over losing his seven-year-old son Oisín, who passed away in September 2022 after a nine-month battle with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (a highly aggressive form of brain cancer), the dissolution of his conjugal relationship, and a year-long state of temporary homelessness. Recovering from such devastation is no simple task, but The Shadow Majlis has offered Jafri medicine for his soul, while presenting us an alternative sonic reality in which we can all find solace and relief.

"With the inspiration of his son's passing, he told me he wanted to create something to honor Oisín as well as cathartically express his experience. It was not to be traditional but experimental, incorporating his industrial sensibility, but also with an international flavor... The emotion was all Ali, and with his raw lyrics and strong melodies over the top of dark and beautifully gut-wrenching tracks, we hope we have created something both passionate and heartfelt that can reach others either suffering loss or grief, or conversely experiencing elation or euphoria as we believe it can touch either," says David Bottrill.

Calling the album a powerful achievement, David J adds, "I believe that there are certain tracks and moments that act as portals into another dimension - I'm not being fanciful here!"

As of February 27, 'The Departure' album will be available exclusively from the artist via Bandcamp. That evening, Ali Jafri will be holding an album listening and viewing party at Ground Control in Toronto. Made possible through funding received from FACTOR, the album will be released on other platforms in early March and then in physical format this spring.

ALBUM CREDITS
Ali Jafri - vocals, guitars, bass VI, electric sitar, percussion, programming, synthesizers, electronics, solfeggio pipes
David Bottrill - backing vocals, electronics, synthesizers
David J (Bauhaus, Love and Rockets) - bass
Rakesh Tewari (Jaffa Road, The Special Interest Group) - drums, percussion
Olena Tsybulska (DakhaBrakha) - vocals
Mark Gemini Thwaite (Peter Murphy, Tricky, The Mission) - guitars
Anne Bourne (Loreena McKennit, Jane Siberry) - cello
Sasha Singer-Wilson - backing vocals
Soriah - Tuvan Throat Singing, Flute
Ravi Naimpally (Niyaz, Constantinople) - tabla
Pankaj Mishra - sarangi
Selmanpak Ayduz - ney
Kerem Koktas - kemancheh
Oisin Adams-Jafri - vocals, percussion, solfeggio pipes
Zayn Jafri - piano
Oscar Adams-Jafri - solfeggio pipes

All songs written by Ali Jafri and David Bottrill, except 'Elliðakot' (written by Ali Jafri) and 'The Departure (Kolyskova)' (written by Ali Jafri, David Bottrill and Olena Tsybulska)
Produced & Mixed by David Bottrill
Engineering by Darren McGill at Union Sound Company & David Bottrill at at Mainstatiion Music and Imagine Sound
Mastered by Noah Mintz at Lacquer Channel
Graphic Design & Illustration by Stephen Seto
Photography by Justin Minister @secondhand_daylight
For Oisín...

Keep up with The Shadow Majlis
Website | Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | TikTok | YouTube | Spotify | Apple Music | Press contact

Keep up with Shameless Promotion PR
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | Instagram | LinkedIn | Email

Morgan Wallen Commemorates 'One Thing At A Time’s' 1 Year w/ “Abbey Road Sessions” Release

One year ago today, on 3/3/23, Morgan Wallen released One Thing At A Time, an album that went on to top the Billboard Top 200 chart for 18-non-consecutive weeks, tying Garth Brooks’ 1991 Ropin’ the Wind record with the most weeks at No. 1 for a Country album and becoming the most-streamed album of the year, all genres, on Spotify. To commemorate its one-year anniversary, Wallen surprised-released his Abbey Road Sessions this afternoon (3/3/24). Songs were recorded in London in the iconic Studio Two at the world-renowned Abbey Road Studios on December 5, 2023. Watch/listen HERE. 

“Playing the O2 in London last fall and getting to record at Abbey Road, where so much iconic music has been made, was legendary for me and my band. We will never forget it," shares Wallen of his trip overseas that included a sold-out show at the O2 for his first-time playing London. “I’m so excited to release these Abbey Road Sessions for my fans on the one-year anniversary of One Thing At A Time. They make all this possible.”
 
The digital series includes five live recordings from One Thing At A Time, an unreleased fan-favorite, “Lies Lies Lies,” and a never-before-recorded cover of Nothing But Thieves’ “Graveyard Whistling.”
 
With over 2.4 million ticket holders attending his current One Night At A Time World Tour, Wallen continues to prioritize his fans and his live show experience as the place to see and hear the Pollstar and Billboard Music Awards’ Top Country Tour winner. 
 
Visit MorganWallen.com for more information and full tour details. 

About Morgan Wallen
When 11-time 2023 Billboard Music Awards-winner and Top Male Artist Morgan Wallen released his third studio albumOne Thing At A Time in 2023, its instant success left The New York Times proclaiming Wallen as “one of the biggest stars in pop, period.” One Thing At A Time has remained atop the all-genre Billboard 200 chart for 18 non-consecutive weeks, tying Garth Brooks’ Ropin’ the Wind with the most weeks at No. 1 for a Country album, and was the most-streamed album of the year on Spotify. The album’s 6x-Platinum single “Last Night” reeled in over 1.5 billion streams globally, becoming the most-streamed song of any genre in the U.S. across Apple Music and Spotify, and the longest running No. 1 solo song in Hot 100 history (16 weeks total).
 
With 11 chart-toppers at Country radio, Wallen recently wrapped his 5 countries/3 continents 57-show One Night At A Time World Tour stadium tour. Playing to over 1 million fans in 2023, Wallen’s One Night At A Time World Tour was named Pollstar's Country Tour of the Year, surpassing attendance records in numerous stops; including Ohio Stadium, where Wallen became the largest weekend ever for the venue, shattering records previously held by George Strait and Taylor Swift. Resuming this April in Indianapolis, Indiana, the 2024 extension of One Night At A Time takes Wallen to 29 additional stadium-plays. Wallen donates $3 from every U.S. ticket sold to his Morgan Wallen Foundation.

Contracult Release New EP 'The Process' via Art is War Records!

Gothic sensation Contracult has just unveiled their latest EP, The Process, now available on all major platforms courtesy of the renowned Art is War Records.

In addition, the band has been added to the lineup for Maneframe Festival that is hosted by Ghostemane.
Tickets are available at https://brutalassault.cz/en/maneframe

Gothic sensation Contracult has just unveiled their latest EP, The Process, now available on all major platforms courtesy of the renowned Art is War Records.

In addition, the band has been added to the lineup for Maneframe Festival that is hosted by Ghostemane.
Tickets are available at https://brutalassault.cz/en/maneframe

This is the all-encompassing motive behind the 2-piece industrial metal band Contracult. Comprised of the scorching stylings of Travis Bacon and Nicholas Emde, the Los Angeles-based goth outfit has become a beacon for dark culture, creating a safe and reliable space for fellow outcasts.

Discussing themes of pain, mental health, kink/BDSM, queerness, and the discontent of artistry in the modern world, Contracult takes pride in offering something different, fresh, and hot to the touch. Having found themselves playing in a metal band dubbed White Widows Pact, Bacon and Emde realized their shared interest in industrial music's big hooks and fierce guitars.

Although it wasn't necessarily a popular sound, it fueled their fire. "Be the band you want to hear even if it's contrary to what's popular at the time. Be the contrary, contradict, Contracult," notes the band. Today, Contracult has amassed thousands of monthly listeners across streaming platforms while exploding stages at Welcome to Rockville 2021, Louder Than Life 2021, and Aftershock 2021.

Smashing racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, and xenophobia along the way, Contracult is currently cleaning its slate, releasing a series of remixes on their popularsongs for the rest of 2023. But what should we expect in the new year? A focused, darker, and evolved sound with inspiration from acts like NIN, Fear Factory, Ghostmane, Front Line Assembly, Ministry, Paradise Lost, and Type O Negative.

Contracult:
Vocals/Production: Travis Bacon
Guitar: Nick Emde

For More Information Please Visit:

Official Website

Instagram

YouTube

TikTok

BandCamp

Shopify

Art is War Records

DORO - Digital EP "Conqueress - Extended" Out Now

DORO is celebrating her digital EP release, Conqueress - Extended, featuring the single ´Horns Up High,´ this EP brings together six exclusive tracks previously available only on physical versions of her latest album, Conqueress - Forever Strong and Proud.
Experience DORO's signature powerhouse vocals and fierce guitar riffs in this epic collection, celebrating the spirit of metal.

Listen to the EP on all platforms: https://doro.bfan.link/conqueress-extended

Follow DORO on social media:
www.doro.us
 www.doromusic.com
www.instagram.com/dorometalqueen
www.facebook.com/DoroPeschOfficial
www.patreon.com/doropesch
www.tiktok.com/@doropeschofficial
www.twitter.com/DoroOfficial

Chicago rocker LEON FREAR releases debut 'Wild Rice' album, a survivor's tale of life-altering experiences and the aftermath

"Frear has a voice which somewhat recalls Marty Willson-Piper of The Church fame and his side project Nocturum... This is something for fans of Nick Cave and related"~ Side-Line Magazine

"Frear has a way of telling stories that draw you in, bringing to the surface a multitude of common points, memories and feelings that resonate with the listener... Leon Frear lives to tell a resounding tale through gifted songwriting and clever story-telling" ~ The Spill Magazine

"Track of the Day. The way he tells the story makes it seem like he and the listener are commiserating together... great story" ~ Chasing Destino

"With a unmistakeable voice deserving of becoming a regular fixture in the mind-memory of music lovers everywhere... catchy and contemplative, showcasing clever lyrics channeled through his smooth and deep timbre... an invested labor of love" ~ Rock n Roll Biz

"The combination of evocative lyrics and a dynamic musical backdrop creates an immersive experience, inviting listeners to delve into the complexities of love, longing, and self-discovery" ~ Skylight Webzine

Chicago-based rocker/ songwriter Leon Frear presents his debut album 'Wild Rice', a powerful 10-track offering that reflects a dramatic period in which he experienced a life-altering love affair, its implosion and aftermath, followed by a decade of reflection and changes.

His first release under this moniker, exemplified by focus track 'She Fed Me Water', this represents a new start for Frear since relocating from the south. Informed by his own experience, Frear's music speaks of love, lust, broken promises, miscommunication, and incinerated bridges.

This collection sees Frear playing every instrument and capturing every breath to tape during a recording process that took years to complete. A guitar-based post-punk / indie rock album at its core, 'Wild Rice' has a gentle soul - one could even call it “post-alternative”.

Earlier, Frear released the singles 'A Morning House' (about regret and hope), 'A Town Called Chapel' (a poison pen love letter to an historically musical time and place, ruined plans and lost relationships", and his first single 'Secret Second Moon' with a fantastic animated video by French artist Ronald Grandpey.

Laced with hints of sadness and regret, anger and remorse, the lyrics are tempered with sardonic wit that leaves the listener wondering if Frear doesn’t secretly savor feeling bad. If there’s an opportunity to mock an uncaring universe, this is an opportunity Frear doesn’t let go to waste.  

Dubbing his brand of post-alternative music “vocabulary rock”, Frear aims to shift the emphasis away from the man and towards the music and lyrics, while inviting the listener to commiserate together through this exploration of grief, depression and sadness.

"I try to put less emphasis on sticking to one type of music and more emphasis on crafting songs with strong lyrics. So I’m really just trying to write in a way that the music compliments the lyrical meaning. And I think that can make pinning down my musical style a little more difficult. Broadly speaking, I cut my teeth on the post-punk guitar records of the late 90’s and early aughts and I think those influences still come through in the way I write music," says Leon Frear.

"Musically, I grew up listening to a lot of punk and indie bands. And the biggest influences for me are people I can admire for the way they behave and the way they treat people. Vanessa from Pylon, punk icons like Roger Miller and Patti Smith. Or bands who have had honorable careers like Fugazi or REM. These are the artists who I strive the most to be like."

On March 1, the 'Wild Rice' album was released on vinyl and will be available digitally from fine music platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music and Bandcamp.

CREDITS
Music and lyrics written by Leon Frear
Recorded by Leon Frear in his Chicago home studio
Mastering by Adam Boose at Cauliflower Studios
Vocals and instruments performed by Leon, except
Faye Whitt - backup vocals on 'Murder of Crows'
Front cover collage by Faye Whitt
Ronald Grandpey - Director / animator for  'Secret Second Moon' video
Artist photos by Jeremy Glickstein

Keep up with Leon Frear
Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram | Soundcloud | YouTube | Spotify | Apple Music | Press contact

Keep up with Shameless Promotion PR
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | Instagram | LinkedIn | Email

Jenna Paulette Releases Debut Single on Leo33, “Darlin’”

With the release of her debut album The Girl I Was last March, Lewisville, Texas native Jenna Paulette detailed her journey overcoming the heartbreak of a toxic relationship and rediscovering her identity – ultimately returning to the girl she was prior. Emerging stronger than ever, Paulette is now turning toward a chapter of redemption and newfound love with “Darlin,’” her first release on Leo33, available now.
 
Reflecting on her personal journey of healing, Paulette shares, “It’s easy when you’re young to meet someone who tells you things that aren’t true about yourself and to believe him until, slowly, he chips away at who you are. If that’s you, I hope this song provides comfort knowing you’re not alone, stirs the courage inside of you to walk away, and offers the reassurance that something better awaits you.” 
 
Written by Paulette alongside Jess Cayne and Matthew Morrisey, “Darlin’” juxtaposes the manipulation of a past relationship with the restored confidence that comes with true love.
 
        He calls me pretty
        And I believe him
        Tells me he loves me
        And God, I can feel it
        His prayer that was answered
        When I was your problem
        Yeah it’s really something
        The way I keep fallin’
        When he calls me darlin’
 
“Darlin’” offers the first taste of new music to come from Paulette on the heels of her record deal with Leo33, as she returns to the studio to prepare her sophomore record for 2024. Paulette’s musical journey has been defined by impactful storytelling, exemplified most recently in the official music video for “You Ain’t No Cowboy” which was released on World Mental Health Day. The video, inspired by the true story of her own cowboy, Ross, challenges mental health stigma in the agricultural community and has over 177,000 views.
 
Paulette’s debut album, The Girl I Was, was released in March 2023 and has amassed over 30M on-demand streams. She swiftly earned her critical acclaim including media coverage from People Magazine, Grammy.com, and more. Additionally, Paulette has been named an Apple Music Country Riser of the Month as well as one of CMT’s Next Women of Country.
 
Paulette is currently on the road with Aaron Watson as part of his The Armadillo Dance Hall Tour, and recently performed to a packed crowd at the Mercury Lounge in New York City. Additional upcoming shows include a performance of the National Anthem at The American Rodeo on March 9 and her return to the Grand Ole Opry on March 20. For more information, visit jennapaulette.com or follow @JennaPaulette on all social platforms.

Jenna Paulette Upcoming Performances:
March 9 // Arlington, TX // The American Rodeo Tailgate Party
March 9 // Arlington, TX // National Anthem at The American Rodeo
March 20 // Nashville, TN // Grand Ole Opry
March 22 // Katy, TX // Mo's Place*
April 11 // Lubbock, TX // Cook's Garage*
April 12 // Midland, TX // The Tailgate*
*Dates with Aaron Watson

About Jenna Paulette:
A CMT Next Women of Country in 2022 and Apple Music’s Country Riser of the Month for March 2023, singer-songwriter Jenna Paulette — a cowgirl who came of age amid the gritty realities of ranch life — is part of Nashville’s growing wave of female artists who are rewriting the rules and charting their own paths. Paulette settled in Nashville in 2015, where she struck up a mentorship with Ashley Gorley – a veteran songwriter with 60+ No. 1 tunes under his belt – which ultimately led to her publishing deal with Sea Gayle Music in June 2021. Since collaborating with songwriters Will Bundy, Rhett Akins and Jessie Jo Dillion, as well as opening for Mason Ramsey, Parmalee, John Michael Montgomery, Clay Walker and most recently Aaron Watson, Paulette has landed brand partnerships with Justin Boots, Boot Barn, Ely Cattleman and Ranch Water.
 
Her debut album The Girl I Was, is available now, showcasing Paulette’s finely calibrated blend of toughness and sensitivity in tracks like “Country In The Girl” and “Pretty Ugly.” Wearing her heart on her sleeve, Grammy.com remarked it as “transformative,” noting “fuses the sounds of Twain and Miranda Lambert, tackling mental health with the somber ‘You Ain't No Cowboy’ and waxing philosophical on ‘Country In The Girl.’ Paulette continued to spotlight her authentic western lifestyle, performing the national anthem at the National Finals Rodeo, making her Grand Ole Opry Debut and performing in multiple festivals including CMA Fest. As Paulette readies her sophomore album in 2024, she recently signed with independent label Leo33. For more information, visit www.jennapaulette.com.

Country Star Drake Milligan Announces First-Ever UK Headline Tour and Scandinavian Shows For "Jukebox Songs World Tour"

Breakout Country star and actor, Drake Milligan has announced his return to the UK & Europe for a run of headlining shows and festival appearances this summer, following his upcoming appearances at C2C Festival. Milligan will also be returning to the United States for a string of headlining shows and as support for Cody Johnson on his “The Leather Tour.” Find tickets HERE.

Full tour dates below - tickets for all shows are on sale now:

March 2 – Berlin, DE – C2C Berlin

March 3 – Rotterdam, NL - C2C Rotterdam

March 5 – Zurich, CH – Mascotte

March 8 – Belfast, UK – C2C UK

March 9 – Glasgow, UK – C2C UK

March 10 – London, UK – C2C UK

March 10 – London, UK – C2C UK Afterparty

March 14 – Ipswich, AU - CMC Rocks – Tailgate Stage

March 16 – Ipswich, AU - CMC Rocks – Stampede Stage

March 21 – Jordan, NY – Kegs Canalside

March 22 – Worcester, MA – DCU Center*

March 23 – Baltimore, MD – CFG Bank Arena*

April 5 – Charlotte, NC – Coyote Joes

April 6 – Greenville, SC – Blind Horse Saloon

April 11 – Gainesville, GA – Boot Barn Hall

April 12 – Lexington, KY – Rupp Arena*

April 13 – Memphis, TN – Fedex Forum*

April 19 – Royse City, TX – Southern Junction

April 20 – Georgetown, TX – Two Step Inn

April 25 – Boise, ID – Extra Mile Arena*

April 26 – Spokane, WA – Spokane Arena*

April 27 – Tacoma, WA – Tacoma Dome*

May 1 – Sacramento, CA – Goldfield Trading Post

May 3 – San Diego, CA – Moonshine Beach

May 12 – Conroe, TX – Bis As Texas Festival

May 17 – Des Moines, IA – Wells Fargo Arena*

May 18 – Fargo, ND – Fargo Dome*

May 31 – New Orleans, LA – Smoothie King Arena*

July 3 – La Crosse, WI – Riverfest

July 7 - Calgary, AB - Ranchman's Cookhouse & Dancehall

July 11 – Fort Laramie, OH – Country Concert

July 12 – Bloomington, IN – The Bluebird

July 19 – London, UK – Islington Assembly Hall

July 20 – Manchester, UK – Club Academy

July 22 – Glasgow, UK – St Luke’s 

July 24 – Stockholm, SE – Grona Lund

July 25 – Helsinki, FI – On The Rocks

July 27 – Seljord, NO - COUNTRYFESTIVALEN

*Support on Cody Johnson’s “The Leather Tour” 

This news follows on the heels of his recently released and critically acclaimed EP, Jukebox Songs. A nostalgic and one-of-a-kind record rooted in timelessness, Jukebox Songs features the Texas native’s "Don’t Leave Me Loving You" and "I Got A Problem." Listen HERE.

In conjunction with the EP, Milligan also released a short film titled Drake Milligan - Girl Problems. Most recently, Milligan appeared on the finale of NBC’s America’s Got Talent: Fantasy League to perform his brand-new song, "What I Couldn’t Forget." Watch HERE. 

Photo Credit: Robby Klein

About Drake Milligan:

Drake Milligan burst onto the national music stage entering the Billboard Emerging Artists Chart at #5 after dominating iTunes with his debut album, Dallas/Fort Worth, charting back-to-back #1 hits on the iTunes Country Songs Chart, #1 on iTunes All-Genre Chart and reclaimed the #1 spot on iTunes Country Albums Chart, all while simultaneously holding positions #1, #2, #3 and #5 on iTunes Country Video Chart. In the UK, Milligan’s debut album spent 11 consecutive weeks in the Top 20 of the Official Country Artists Albums Chart. A student of classic Country music with the swagger of early Rock ‘n’ Roll, the Fort Worth, Texas native is an electrifying entertainer who cites George Strait and Elvis Presley – the King of Country and the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll – as musical heroes, and his unique twist of traditional Country has been embraced by fans, peers and the media alike. Milligan has performed on The Kelly Clarkson Show, The Grand Ole Opry, Stagecoach and CMA Music Festival, and earned high praise from People, BBC, USA Today, Parade, American Songwriter, CMT.com, Billboard, ET, Access Hollywood, Cosmopolitan, Cowgirl Magazine and Taste of Country. Following his Dallas/Fort Worth debut – named “One of the Best Country Albums of 2022” by Billboard and others – Milligan uncorked a Canadian Country Radio #1 in 2023 (“Honky Tonkin’ About” with The Reklaws), garnered 5 million views in just a few months with “Cowgirl For Christmas,” and headlined the massive New Year’s Eve celebration at the famed “World’s Largest Honky Tonk,” Billy Bob’s Texas, where he had also delivered two sold-out homecoming shows in the previous year. Looking ahead, the Stoney Creek Records phenom has dropped “Don’t Leave Me Loving You” – a timeless heartbreak ballad with a modern edge. His latest EP release titled, Jukebox Songs, features four all new tracks and was released on Friday, February 16. The acclaimed “Artist to Watch” (CMT, Pandora, etc.) also returned to his primetime TV roots for the America’s Got Talent spin-off show, America’s Got Talent: Fantasy League and hits the road alongside Cody Johnson on his 2024 U.S. arena tour.

KEEP UP WITH DRAKE MILLIGAN
WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK | TIKTOK | YOUTUBE | X

ENSLAVED | announce Jo Quail special appearance at London show + release 'Congelia' feat. Jo Quail

One year ago, cosmic pioneers Enslaved released their latest avant-garde creation Heimdal. To celebrate the studio album's first year of existence, the band announced the Heimdal (Deluxe) digital album, which is out today! As well as a UK and European tour with British post-hardcore quartet Svalbard and US metallers Wayfarer this month. 

Also today, Enslaved are thrilled to announce that internationally acclaimed composer and virtuoso cellist Jo Quail will make a special appearance at the first show of the tour, on March 6th at London's Islington Assembly Hall.

To celebrate this news, Enslaved have released an electrifying alternative version of their track 'Congelia', featuring Jo Quail, alongside a beautiful lyric video created by Kolibri Media.

Guitarist Ivar Bjørnson commented,
"London has a very special place in the history of our band, since the very first live shows we ever did outside of our home town(s) - the city has supported us through it all. We have a huge part of our extended family and tribe here; it is always like coming home. Just with better Indian food and worse traffic. This time London seems set on outdoing its welcome of us; Jo Quail will join us on stage to perform 'Congelia' with us! We are so proud and eager to show you how absolutely crushing that sounds. See you very soon. Baah!"

Jo Quail commented,
"I am thrilled to be joining forces with Enslaved once again on stage! It was such a wonderful experience in Bergen last year and I am honoured to be able to do this again in London - I hope you'll enjoy this moment as much as I will."

STREAM HEIMDAL (DELUXE): https://enslaved.bfan.link/heimdal-deluxe.ema
WATCH THE 'CONGELIA - FEAT. JO QUAIL' LYRIC VIDEO BELOW;

Heimdal (Deluxe) includes the studio album in full, as well as alternative versions of two album tracks 'Forest Dweller' and 'Congelia', both with sublime performances from renowned cellist Jo Quail, bonus track 'Gangandi', plus the entirety of 'The Otherworldly Big Band Experience' - Enslaved's stunning 2022 streaming event featuring fellow psychedelic Norwegian prog band Shaman Elephant.

Enslaved's latest studio album Heimdal (released March 2023) is both a departure and a communion with roots forged over three decades ago in the turbulent birth throes of Norway’s black metal scene. It's a record that points towards new beginnings, and a dawn that’s on the other side of the apex of the land. A psychedelic journey through arcane Norse folklore, connecting with one's ancient ancestors and our future selves.

'The Otherworldly Big Band Experience' was an Enslaved show like none other, their biggest, boldest project to date - a colossal, kaleidoscopic stage show featuring a stellar setlist covering their career, both past and present. Including some tracks never previously performed live. 

Enslaved will be touring the UK and Europe this month. The 16-date run will take the band across 10 different countries, with support coming from Svalbard and Wayfarer.

Tickets are on-sale now from https://enslaved.no/

Never faltering, Norway’s iconic Enslaved continue to exist as one of the most original and dependable components in our scene's indestructible backbone. Possessing the reputation as one of the most riveting live acts around, they never fail to offer us talent of the highest calibre, always doing justice to their signature black/progressive sound. Enslaved was formed in 1991 by Ivar Bjørnson and Grutle Kjellson, releasing their first demo Yggdrasill in the summer of 1992, their legendary mini-album Hordanes Land coming out in 1993, and with their debut full-length Vikingligr Veldi arriving in the spring of 1994.

Enslaved are a band in stellar form - a band at its most existentialist and self-conscious, proud Bergeners bearing the torch of their hometown’s extraordinary musical history. Their most recent material shows Enslaved at their most unleashed and thought-through - a lethal combination unfurling a potential that’s easily rekindling the furor of their early works while dancing gracefully through their most ambitious, most haunting and most musical tunes yet. A contradiction? Life itself is a contradiction. And yet we all live to prove it wrong.

Enslaved are:
Ivar Bjørnson | guitars 
Grutle Kjellson | vocals
Arve 'Ice Dale' Isdal | guitar
Håkon Vinje | keyboards, clean vocals
Iver Sandøy | drums

Alienist Drop Debut EP "LOVE/HATE" + Share Video For "Hypnotise"

"Many of the recent Australian metalcore releases sound very similar, but this band has forged their way on their own path" — Metal-Roos

"There's a high level of composition there, and it's all in the little nuanced details…this is a win for me" — Prymalchaos
 
Love and hate; a dichotomy as old as time, and it's this agitated balance of two cohesive yet opposing forces that ultimately strikes at the sharpened core of the debut EP Love/Hate from Alienist, out now via UNFD.

Thematically traversing themes of religion, self doubt, relationship struggles, and mental health, Love/Hate balances its searing instrumentals and dexterous layers alongside arresting and immense emotive content; a fact seen not just in the broader EP itself, but in the brand new single and video "Hypnotise" also out today.

Watch the video for "Hypnotise" below

Parting the curtain behind "Hypnotise," the band shares, "A reflection of how we, as a band, have struggled internally with mental health issues and the existence of the band and our audience has allowed us to fight through those struggles and provide us with a sense of purpose. The name 'hypnotise' explores how although an audience may feel hypnotised by us, being on the stage and performing our art, that we are truly the ones that are hypnotised by the audience that supports us."

An explosive amalgamation of rage and serenity, Love/Hate is an exciting debut collection of songs from the Wollongong five-piece. Whether battling with religious ideals alongside commanding execution (Godless), facing the crumbling world around with a flurry of distortion (Distorted Reflections), detailing a breakdown of love set to turgid guitars and torrential beats (Absent), seeking hope and purpose in creativity (Hypnotise), or serving up a biting commentary on a toxic relationship (Prisoner Of You), Love/Hate is simultaneously confronting and cathartic, with Alienist firmly at the helm of a journey that feels instantly personal yet universal.

"We explore a lot of different themes on this EP," reveals guitarist, clean vocalist and lead songwriter Damon Renes, "but obviously the entire overall theme is love/hate and the fact that there's such a big dichotomy between the two words at the same time."

"People do a lot of things that are hateful, and yet use the word that they're doing it for as 'love' and vice versa," Renes adds. "Love can make you do a lot of hateful things as well. The EP explores relationships with religion, but it also explores toxic relationships and abusive relationships and the falling apart of relationships that you think were going to be your 'forever,' and what it feels like when you realise that that's not going to be the case."

Named for an anachronistic term for psychiatry, Alienist forged from the remnants of a former covers band, with the current lineup consisting of Lachlan Forsberg (vocals), Damon Renes (guitar), Anthony Vella (guitar), Chris Olliffe (bass), and Jake Ceely (drums), convening over a shared passion for crafting meaningful and memorable music alongside influences ranging from I Prevail and Wage War, to Bring Me The Horizon, Architects, Polaris, and Northlane. 

From their debut single, 2019's "Social Faker," through to their most recent track prior to today, 2022's "Exile," Alienist relentlessly enamor with their modern flair and infectious design. And it's this heavy yet nuanced nature of glistening light and menacing shade that has seen the Wollongong five-piece previously secure airplay on triple j, perform alongside the likes of Thy Art Is Murder, Make Them Suffer, Ocean Grove, Yours Truly, and Fit For An Autopsy at UNIFY Off The Record in 2023, open for juggernauts Northlane and Gravemind, and tick off an almost sold out national headline tour — and all without breaking a sweat in an exceedingly short space of time.

ABOUT ALIENIST:
Hailing from Wollongong, Australia, metalcore five-piece Alienist relentlessly enamor with modern flair and infectious design, wielding elasticated riffs, soaring melodics, and ambient gloss offset against beast-mode breakdowns, caustic grooves, and fiery sonic chasms.

With influences spanning the likes of Wage War, I Prevail, Bring Me The Horizon, and Polaris fused with their burgeoning trademark sound, Alienist have swiftly stormed the heavy scene in a remarkably short space of time, chalking up triple j airplay, supports alongside Northlane and Gravemind, an appearance at UNIFY Off The Record and an almost sold out national headline tour in a mere two years outside of the pandemic pause.

Now with their gazes firmly fixed on 2024, prepare to witness Alienist in a whole new light. Wollongong's best-kept secret is out and ready to take on the world.

JUDAS PRIEST ANNOUNCE GLOBAL ALBUM LISTENING PARTY FOR LATEST METAL MASTERPIECE INVINCIBLE SHIELD

There will be a global album listening party for Judas Priest's latest metal masterpiece, Invincible Shield, on Thursday, March 7th at various metal bars in 30 cities around the world.  See list below - and check your local metal bar for exact time and details, many of which will also be offering giveaways and custom Judas Priest-themed cocktails for their event.
 
If you live near Daytona Beach, you will be able to experience a special Judas Priest pop-up shop on Saturday, March 9th from 3-5pm at Atlantic Sounds, which will be operating out of a custom Judas Priest military combat truck – “an invincible shield on wheels” – playing the album to the 500K+ attendees at Daytona Bike Week.  Harley Davidson will be leading a 100-biker brigade from Orlando to Daytona at 9AM ET.
 
Fans can also find the truck and brigade at the Daytona International Speedway for a special parade lap at 12PM ET before the Daytona 200.  Come celebrate the release of Invincible Shield with your fellow headbangers!

Invincible Shield listening parties happening at these fine metal bars:
AACHEN, GE - SCHLÜSSELLOCH
ATLANTA, GA - BOGGS SOCIAL
AUGSBURG, GE - SPECTRUM
AUSTIN, TX - THE LOST WELL
BANGOR, ME - GENO’S ROCK CLUB
BERLIN, GE – HALFORD
BROOKLYN, NY - ROCKA ROLLA
BUENOS AIRES, AR – STRUMMER BAR
CHICAGO, IL - LIAR’S CLUB
DENVER, CO – TRVE BREWING
HOUSTON, TX - BRASH BREWING
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - BLACK CIRCLE
LONDON, UK - THE BLACK HEART
LOS ANGELES, CA - RAINBOW BAR & GRILL
MAGDEBURG, GE - FLOWERPOWER
MEPEN, GE - ALTE WÄSCHEREI
MILAN, IT - HEADBANGER’S PUB
MONTREAL, CA - MUTOÏDE MICROBRASSERIE
NERSINGEN, GE - ROCKS
ORLANDO, FL - DIRTY LAUNDRY
PARIS, FR - DR. FEELGOOD’S
PROVIDENCE, RI - THE SCURVY DOG
RICHMOND, VA - COBRA CABANA
SAN ANTONIO, TX - BONDS 007
ST. LOUIS, MO - HEADLESS BAT
STOCKHOLM, SE - GARLIC & SHOTS
TORONTO, CA - BOVINE SEX CLUB
UETZE, GE (HANOVER) - FARMER’S INN
VIENNA, AT - U4 CLUB
WASHINGTON, DC - SLASH RUN

Instagram | TikTok | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube

Necrowretch Release Ruthless New Video

Since their creation, Necrowretch have proudly carried the mark of the beast. A decade ago, these devil worshippers emerged alongside the old school death metal revival. But their new album casts the French band in a bigger, blacker and more Satanic mold.

"Any move toward what's considered true black metal is a good thing and Necrowretch stride with furious momentum in that particular direction", writes Black Metal Terror. "These are the fabled days of world end and I can think of no finer record to track the sound of it all than Swords of Dajjal". 

Swords of Dajjal is out now. To celebrate the mass fanfare that has greeted their latest offering, today, Necrowretch are releasing a new video for one of the album's deeper cuts. 

Watch the raw and ruthless video for "Vae Victis" below.

Order: https://redirect.season-of-mist.com/NecrowretchSwords

Stream: https://orcd.co/necrowretchswordsofdajjal

While forged with newfound mysticism, Swords of Dajjal was drawn from real life experience. Living in Turkey during the tail end of the last decade inspired Necrowretch's lead swordsmith Vlad to create their new album in the splitting image of the Antichrist. Each song warns of a harrowing prophecy brought down by Dajjal, who reigns fire over "Vae Victis".

"Woe to the vanquish!" snaps Vlad, brandishing his pale but bloodied fangs.   

Indeed, "Vae Victis" is pure savagery. The blast beats waste no time, galloping ahead like the horsemen of the apocalypse through a sandstorm. But Necrowretch can slice and dice from all angles. Walls of trembling, melodic distortion close in, only for the band to sneak up and crush you with a headbanging riff that swings with all the brute force of a scepter.     
 
"Malheur aux vaincus!" Vlad says in greetings of his band's new single. "History testifies that only the strongest survive and that prophetic wisdom still continues in the world we are living in. 'Vae Victis' is based on the story of the sack of Rome in 390 BC, where the Gauls defeated the Romans and imposed their conditions on the vanquished. In torment and disgrace, only the ruthless man, the survivor, can become a king. In chaos and torment, only the lawless man, the compeller, can become the bestower of Life and Death".

The video for "Vae Victis" was filmed in Paris. It was edited and directed by Mounir Chraibi. 

Photo by Léonor Ananké

Praise for Necrowretch and Swords of Dajjal

"At times darkly oppressive and threatening, at others brutally crushing, it is a great record" - Angry Metal Guy 4/5

"A rare union of conception and achievement" - No Clean Singing. 

"The vocals are both theatric and hard-hitting. The drumming is insane. A great mix between tremolo riffs and chugs". - Thralls of Metal (4.5 stars) 

"A banger of a release...expertly straddles along the lines of black and death metal" - The Metal Pit (9/10)

"Turns out they're not actually your regular blackened death band after all, but something even more sinister" - Metal Storm

"Dynamic blackened death metal...embraces melody and blends it with pure savagery" - Teeth of the Divine

"A raw, primitive and relentless sound with absolutely manical percussion and possessed singer Vlad's beastial screams" - Kerrang! 

"They charge blastbeats and hurl guitars and the kitchen sink at listeners, and that is almost always certain to attract fans of kvtl metal" - Echoes and Dust

"Speedy, razor-sharp display of blackened death metal mayhem that is as entertaining on a tenth listen as it is on the first" - Heavy Blog is Heavy 

"Filled with enough hate, putrefaction and sorrow to fill a deep inferno of black, deathly abyss" - V13

"They approach their ghoulish task with considerably more gusto (and know-how) than many of their peers" - Pitchfork

Now entering their fifteenth year as a band, France’s Necrowretchare about to open the most ambitious chapter of their career with Swords Of Dajjal, their three-years-in-the-making fifth album.

Initially the sole work of multi-instrument and vision leader Vlad, the band was - for better and for worse - lumped in the ‘old school deathmetal revival’ of the early 10’s. Yet while their debut Putrid Death Sorcery did indeed  bear all the usual suspects of said genre, it nevertheless already had that extra, raw-as-fuck and just plain vicious element that really set them apart from the rest of the pack. Conforming to the norm was never in question and instead of selling out or trying to slow things down, as true misfits as they are, they went the exact opposite direction, first with 2015’sWith Serpents Scourge, only to be vigorously confirmed by its furiousfollow-up, and their first for Season Of Mist, 2017’s Satanic Slavery. To the point where once the touring cycle was over for the latter, Vlad himself felt he had explored this direction as far as he could have and that changes were on the horizon.

“On Satanic Slavery we on purpose took things as far as we could, as our goal was to deliver the most bestial album possible. But once we achieved that goal, I knew we had to take a slightly different if still as uncompromised direction.” Incidentally, that’s when Wenceslas Carrieu from Cadaveric FUMES entered the picture, first as a momentary live session on bass. But when second stringer Kev Desecrator vowed to amicably part way with the band to focus on DESTRÖYER 666, he switched to six-strings and proved to be the valuable songwriting partner Vlad had been looking for since thedeparture of the band original bass player Amphycion in 2015. “Heimmediately came up with lots of ideas and thanks to him, we now have a whole new dynamic: a bit like Sepultura had back in the days in between Max Cavalera and Andreas Kisser, with me focusing now on my vocals and playing rhythm guitars while Wenceslas takes care of all the solos, the starting riffs and the off-the-map bits.

With their fourth album, and first with Wencelas, The Ones From Hell was only one month old when Necrowretch was about to tour Europe with both Kampfar and Taake for three weeks. A tour bus was booked, the set was well-rehearsed, everything was ready and then... disaster struck. “Six days before we were due to play our first show, the whole thing was cancelled. Then COVID hit us and the world was basically shut down. We were numbfor a couple of days but soon realized that the best way to bounce back was to move forward so we instantly started working on new songs.” The result is Swords Of Dajjal by far, their biggest, boldest and most ambitious production ever.

“We spent no less than three years working on the songs, demoeing them and fine-tuning the details and rehearsing them as a three-piece and six weeks in the studio with Francis Caste (Hangman's Chair, REGARDE LES HOMMES TOMBER, Svart Crown etc.). Prior to that, we used to be a pure product of the underground, with albums done in just a couple of days whom were never 100% satisfied with in the end as we had to rush everything. We’re still very underground, mind you. But this time around, we knew we had to give it all, no matter what. So we started by changing our gear, our sound and our tuning. And once we entered the studio, we forinstance spent a whole day just testing different amps just to get the right sound and crunch we were looking for. I even took some singing lessons to gain more depth and power. In a way, it almost feels like a whole new band.”

The whole record was written on purpose mostly on acoustic twelve-string guitars (“the idea was that if it sounds good and catchy that way, it’d be even better with distortion”) and as a three-piece, “something we hadn’t done in a long time” with their new drummer Nicolas Ferrero, not exactly a newcomer as he’s been playing on and off live with them since 2018. The result is, according to Vlad, “our most black metal record, with splashes of death metal here and there. Whereas on the previous album all tempos were pushed to the extreme, there’s far more variety here to be found. It also gave us free reins to reach a more mystical, Biblical if you will vibe” fed by his experience living in Turkey in the late 10’s. “We choose to focus onthe Dajjal character, basically the antichrist in the Muslim religion. The Coran says that he’ll appear as a false prophet only to bring doom to this world, with an army of demons coming from the east.” Represented on the cover of the album with his double edged sword and bathed in the same kind of reddish and orangey mesmerizing lights one can experience when the sun sets on wind-beaten deserts, all eight songs on the album are prophecies, past and future, where Dajjal plays the leading role.

Now completed on bass by R. Cadaver (former Cadaveric Fumes vocalist) who officially joined once the recording was done after playing as a live session member for the last two years, and armed with their biggest, most complex and intense album of their career, Necrowretch are about to yield their sword of destruction and exterminate everything in sight.

Lineup
Vlad - Vocals, Guitars
W. Cadaver - Lead Guitars
R. Cadaver (Live) - Bass
N. Destroyer - Drums

Recording Studio       
Studio Sainte Marthe, Paris

Sound, Mixing & Mastering Engineer
Francis Caste

Cover Art
Stefan Thanneur / Manifeste

Photography
Léonor Ananké

Biography
​​​​​Olivier Zoltar Badin

Stream: https://orcd.co/necrowretchswordsofdajjal

Order: https://redirect.season-of-mist.com/NecrowretchSwords
Booking
necrowretch@gmail.com

Links:
Official Website: https://necrowretch.net/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Necrowretch
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/necrowretch
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/intl-fr/artist/0cIx910hgtpgvicBJv3ybq
Bandcamp: https://necrowretch.bandcamp.com/

Available Formats:
CD Digipak
CD Digipak + Exclusive Woven Patch w/ Red Merrow Border
Digital Download
12" Vinyl Gatefold - Black
12" Coloured Vinyl Gatefold - Transparent Yellow
12" Coloured Vinyl Gatefold - Crystal Clear, Yellow & Black Marbled

ARCHSPIRE Announce North American Tour

Does checking apps on your phone feel like you're opening and closing an empty fridge 100 times a day?
 
Do the terms “Wellness” and “Self-Care” make you feel so sick that you just wanna barf all over yourself?
 
Are you drowning in booze every night just to forget about the grim reality of your own fleeting existence?
 
Well, guess what? Archspire have absolutely no remedy for any of that. But this summer, the fastest, sharpest and craziest tech-death band on planet Earth are distracting North America from just how much everything totally f#*!ng sucks.   

Joining forces with Archspire on this rescue mission are Belgium death metal vets Aborted, Canadian deathcore hotshots Carcosa and Atlanta's grim and gloomy Alluvial. 

"We're joining forces with these three elite squads to strategically infiltrate major North American cities", Archspire says. "We're on a mission to provide you with a brain-numbing, eardrum-puncturing, nuclear strike that is guaranteed to melt away all those incessant pestering thoughts for at least one night of your dwindling life so that you can completely forget that everything's f#*!@D and TRULY. F#!@NG. PARTY".

The pre-sale for this tour begins tomorrow, February 29 at 10 a.m. Eastern Time. Use the password: STAYTECH

Tickets will go on sale to the general public this Friday, March 1 at 10 a.m. local time. 

Get tickets: www.archspiretickets.com

The Everything's F#*!@D Tour
May 31st - Edmonton, AB @ Midway Music Hall
June 1st - Calgary, AB @ The Palace Theatre
June 2nd - Saskatoon, SK @ Coors Event Centre
June 3rd - Winnipeg, MB @ Park Theatre
June 5th - Minneapolis, MN @ Varsity Theater
June 6th - Chicago, IL @ Metro
June 7th - Detroit, MI @ The Majestic Theatre
June 8th - Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theatre
June 9th - Montreal, QC @ Club Soda
June 10th - Quebec City, QC @ Théâtre Capitole
June 11th - Boston, MA @ Royale
June 12th - Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw
June 13th - Baltimore, MD @ Baltimore Soundstage
June 14th - Charlotte, NC @ Neighborhood Theatre
June 15th - Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade - Heaven
June 16th - Tampa, FL @ The Orpheum
June 17th - Fort Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution Live
June 18th - Orlando, FL @ The Abbey
June 20th - Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
June 21st - Dallas, TX @ Studio at The Factory
June 22nd - Austin, TX @ Come and Take It Live
June 24th - Phoenix, AZ @ The Nile Theater
June 25th - Santa Ana, CA @ The Observatory
June 26th - Sacramento, CA @ Ace of Spades
June 28th - Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
June 29th - Seattle, WA @ El Corazon
June 30th - Vancouver, BC @ The Vogue Theatre

Archspire will be playing songs off their latest album, Bleed the Future, which is available now.

Order: https://redirect.season-of-mist.com/ArchspireBleed
Stream: https://archspire.bandcamp.com/album/bleed-the-future

Archspire are hella famous now. You can find them in the club, popping bottles and showing off their JUNO award.

In true rock star fashion, instead of paying off their massive gambling debts, the Canadian band decided to take everyone's Kickstarter money and record the most disgusting, uproarious, and out-of-this world expensive music video in the history of technical death metal. 

Watch the video for "Bleed the Future": https://youtu.be/_VOUyfPjxOk

Get your official "Bleed the Future" t-shirt: https://www.indiemerch.com/archspire/item/138025

Archspire’s 2017 Relentless Mutation was a cavalcade of speed and extremity — blasting, accelerating and, in partial reference to its title, “mutating” as each song unfolded, all the while rapid-fire, shotgun vocals blurred the lines between a man’s throat and additional instrument. It was, unquestionably, an innovation of sound and technique — Archspire had broken the speed barrier while creating songs memorable as they were unabashedly extreme for extreme metal. Thus, the pressure was already there to top Relentless Mutation when the band started to compile new songs in 2018. The global pandemic heightened the situation (read: no touring, expanded free time) and caused Archspire to turn inward and apply additional rigor to their songwriting process, albeit painstakingly so. But by the end of the fraught calendar year that was 2020, the band emerged with their fourth studio album, Bleed the Future.

According to the members of Archspire — vocalist Oli Aleron, guitarists Dean Lamb and Tobi Morelli, bassist Jared Smith and drummer Spencer Prewett — they originally went into the making of Bleed the Future under the idea they would finish the album in between the various tours scheduled for 2020. Of course, none of that happened, prompting the band to do more pre-production than at any time in their career. Archspire then subjected the album’s eight songs to near-constant critiquing that ensured they came away with a product, that in their estimation, is their best to date.

“The benefit we had was that Relentless came out in 2017,” says Lamb. “Since then, we toured more than we ever did before. We had the viewpoint of ‘What do crowds like? What parts should we write more of? What parts do people give us good feedback on?’ We wanted to expand and write those parts more consistently — there are more hooks and when we do have hooks, we wanted to repeat those parts so people will know that this is the catchy part of the song.”

“The most important thing was that we had clever songwriting,” adds Prewett. “We wanted the album to be more accessible to more people but still keep it extreme, fast and technical. So, we changed our process this time. We recorded rehearsal every day and listened to what we did afterward. We’d then come back to the jam spot and change riffs and ideas based on what everyone was thinking about during the week. It resulted in an album that everyone was happier with.”

Archspire also had the stated goal for Bleed the Future that they wanted to get faster. While such a feat may defy reason given their previous output, the band wrote their fastest song to date — the album-closing “AUM,” a cut that opens up with an audio recording of a German friend of Prewett’s who, according to the drummer, enjoys ragging on Archspire. Comedic clips aside, “AUM,” caps off an album that pushes the boundaries of speed but also is textured — Smith’s ethereal basslines often serve as mid-song interludes, while Lamb and Morelli weave melodic, spiraling guitar lines that annihilate the fretboard during “Abandon the Linear,” “Bleed the Future” and “Acrid Canon.” Accordingly, the members of Archspire were keenly aware of the expectations placed upon them after the success of Relentless Mutation. The online comments regarding whether they could top Relentless Mutation was also occasionally on their minds when composing Bleed the Future and prompted the band to ensure that all five members were happy with everything — down to the last riff, vocal line, bass run and drum pattern. “Audience expectation is really important,” says Lamb. “If we leave the jam spot and everyone is stoked on a song, it’s pretty likely that the audience will be stoked. We have the expectation of the audience, but we also have to be pumped on the music. I feel the proudest of the music. We spent more time on the songs and got better at writing. I feel it’s better music.”

“It’s an extremely tedious writing process,” adds Smith. “If anyone isn’t feeling a riff, we scrap it and have to find something we’re all happy with. It can be super-frustrating in the moment, but in the end, we have something better. We want everything we write to be a step up and I think we achieved that with Bleed the Future.”

The album is accompanied by a concept developed by Aleron that begs the question: What happens when humans start giving birth to non-humans? Born from a weird dream the vocalist had, Bleed the Future’s concept does not have finality or a conclusion. It does, however, posit a few ethical dilemmas to ties into Archspire’s long-running science fiction themes.

“I thought about what if those things they were giving birth to could actually benefit them in the future so they wouldn’t want to reject them,” says Aleron. “What would happen to the humans that weren’t born? Would they go to a different dimension? I played with that whole idea because I hadn’t seen a horror movie where that was the theme. It worked for all the songs. The only social commentary is that people don’t know what they’re giving birth to — if you put someone on this planet, you don’t know whether they’re going to be good or evil.”

Bleed the Future was recorded in October and November 2020 at Flatline Audio in Colorado with producer/engineer Dave Otero. This was the second consecutive album the band worked with Otero. According to Morelli, the recording process was seamless. “Dave was already familiar with what we each can do individually,” he says. “This time, he was more prepared to tackle those elements. How he tracks was more focused on what we were capable of and I think it really shows here.”

As live show activity for 2021 hangs in the balance (Archspire currently has dates lined up for November), the pandemic has prompted many bands to re-think their new album release dates as well as how to stay visible in a world currently without touring. But, with a fanbase that has embraced the band’s online presence that includes playthroughs, tutorials and now, cooking shows (!), Archspire heads into the Bleed the Future album cycle the benefactors of their commitment to touring and, most of all, position as one of death metal’s most forward-thinking bands.

“We have a lot of awesome fans, so I think they’ll be there to support us and pick up the album because they like the music,” says Lamb. “We’re a self-managed band; we’ve been working with the same label for ten years and I think the outcome will be good. Would it had been better if we had been on a full North American tour starting a week before the album release? Sure, but I think people will come out and support us through other means. As soon as we’re ready to go back on tour and everybody is safe to do so, we’ll be out there.”
 
Lineup:
Oliver Rae Aleron: vocals
Spencer Prewett: drums
Dean Lamb: guitars
Tobi Morelli: guitars
Jared Smith: bass
 
Recording Studio: Flatline Audio (Denver, CO, USA)
Producer/mixing/mastering/engineer: Dave Otero
 
Cover art: Eliran Kantor
Bio: David E. Gehlke

Order: https://redirect.season-of-mist.com/ArchspireBleed
Stream: https://archspire.bandcamp.com/album/bleed-the-future

Links:
www.archspire.bandcamp.com
www.facebook.com/Archspireband
www.twitter.com/Archspireband
www.instagram.com/archspireofficial
www.youtube.com/user/Archspiremetal

The Shadow Majlis presents debut album 'The Departure' featuring guests from Bauhaus, The Mission, DakhaBrakha & more

A powerful achievement... I believe that there are certain tracks and moments that act as portals into another dimension - I'm not being fanciful here!" ~ David J (Bauhaus, Love and Rockets)

"With Ali Jafri at the helm on vocals, guitars, bass, electric sitar, synths, programming, this debut offering from The Shadow Majlis is diverse and stunning, involving a dream-team – not only in terms of production, but also collaborators, ranging from true music legends of our generation and top-notch artists from around the world" ~ The Spill Magazine


Toronto-based artist The Shadow Majlis presents their debut album 'The Departure', 10 tracks that showcase genre-fluid excellence and a wealth of raw emotional experience, fusing elements of Eastern modes with post-punk and immerses listeners in an alternative neo-global style that transcends borders. Just as the album's title suggests, this is a departure from the norm, a journey into something other, where there are no limits. 

Revolving around Ali Jafri, whose reputation as a formidable and versatile multi-instrumentalist has led to involvement in various projects over the years. Whether as a member of David J's live band, playing rock-sitar for Pigface (or through his other projects ARIEL, The Gotham City Drugstore, Saintfield or his solo work), Ali Jafri has cultivated a multi-cultural artistic and musical vision. Now, he's bringing that vision further to fruition via The Shadow Majlis.

Produced and mixed by three-time Grammy Award winning producer David Bottrill (Peter Gabriel, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Tool, David Sylvian, Mastodon, Smashing Pumpkins, Muse, Real World Studios), with Darren McGillengineering the album. Mastered by Noah Mintz, the cover art was created by Stephen Seto (Splintercage).

With Ali Jafri at the helm on vocals, guitars, bass, electric sitar, synths, programming, the debut album features the legendary David J (Bauhaus, Love & Rockets) on bass and drummer-percussionist Rakesh Tewari (Jaffa Road, The Special Interest Group). Adding colour and depth are various guest performers, including vocalist Olena Tsybulska (DakhaBrakha), guitarist Mark Gemini Thwaite (The Mission, Peter Murphy, MGT, Tricky, Gary Numan), cellist Anne Bourne (Loreena McKennitt, Jane Siberry), Tuvan throat singer Soriah, Ravi Naimpally (Niyaz, Constantinople) on tabla, Pankaj Mishra on sarangi, Selmanpak Ayduz on ney, Kerem Koktas on kemanche, and Sasha Singer-Wilson on backing vocals.

Blending alternative music with the rich, diverse instrumentation and rhythms of world music, The Shadow Majlis leaves a distinct imprint on the ever-evolving soundscape. Recorded in Toronto, LA, Portland, Istanbul, Kyiv and Iceland, this is truly an international affair, with languages such as Urdu, Farsi, Arabic, Icelandic and Ukrainian woven with English throughout this album.

The most poignant and powerful artistic output stems from tragedy, and The Shadow Majlis is no exception. Amid a deluge of personal upheaval, this album has been Jafri's means to address his grief over losing his seven-year-old son Oisín, who passed away in September 2022 after a nine-month battle with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (a highly aggressive form of brain cancer), the dissolution of his conjugal relationship, and a year-long state of temporary homelessness. Recovering from such devastation is no simple task, but The Shadow Majlis has offered Jafri medicine for his soul, while presenting us an alternative sonic reality in which we can all find solace and relief.

"With the inspiration of his son's passing, he told me he wanted to create something to honor Oisín as well as cathartically express his experience. It was not to be traditional but experimental, incorporating his industrial sensibility, but also with an international flavor... The emotion was all Ali, and with his raw lyrics and strong melodies over the top of dark and beautifully gut-wrenching tracks, we hope we have created something both passionate and heartfelt that can reach others either suffering loss or grief, or conversely experiencing elation or euphoria as we believe it can touch either," says David Bottrill.

Calling the album a powerful achievement, David J adds, "I believe that there are certain tracks and moments that act as portals into another dimension - I'm not being fanciful here!"

As of February 27, 'The Departure' album will be available exclusively from the artist via Bandcamp. That evening, Ali Jafri will be holding an album listening and viewing party at Ground Control in Toronto. The album will be released on other platforms in early March and then in physical format this spring.

Album order  https://theshadowmajlis.com
Bandcamp  https://theshadowmajlis. bandcamp.com/album/the- departure

ALBUM CREDITS
Ali Jafri - vocals, guitars, bass VI, electric sitar, percussion, programming, synthesizers, electronics, solfeggio pipes
David Bottrill - backing vocals, electronics, synthesizers
David J (Bauhaus, Love and Rockets) - bass
Rakesh Tewari (Jaffa Road, The Special Interest Group) - drums, percussion
Olena Tsybulska (DakhaBrakha) - vocals
Mark Gemini Thwaite (Peter Murphy, Tricky, The Mission) - guitars
Anne Bourne (Loreena McKennit, Jane Siberry) - cello
Sasha Singer-Wilson - backing vocals
Soriah - Tuvan Throat Singing, Flute
Ravi Naimpally (Niyaz, Constantinople) - tabla
Pankaj Mishra - sarangi
Selmanpak Ayduz - ney
Kerem Koktas - kemancheh
Oisin Adams-Jafri - vocals, percussion, solfeggio pipes
Zayn Jafri - piano
Oscar Adams-Jafri - solfeggio pipes

All songs written by Ali Jafri and David Bottrill, except 'Elliðakot' (written by Ali Jafri) and 'The Departure (Kolyskova)' (written by Ali Jafri, David Bottrill and Olena Tsybulska)
Produced & Mixed by David Bottrill
Engineering by Darren McGill at Union Sound Company & David Bottrill at at Mainstatiion Music and Imagine Sound
Mastered by Noah Mintz at Lacquer Channel
Graphic Design & Illustration by Stephen Seto
Photography by Justin Minister @secondhand_daylight
For Oisín...

Keep up with The Shadow Majlis
Website | Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | TikTok | YouTube | Press contact

Keep up with Shameless Promotion PR
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | Instagram | LinkedIn | Email