Back in June, US thrash metal masters, Exodus, announced that guitarist Lee Altus would not be joining the band on their current European tour.
They issued the following statement: "Family concerns dictate he remain close to home and being so far away from home is not possible. Exodus stand strong with Lee and will destroy in his behalf, and he will rejoin us for the upcoming tours such as the fall leg of The Bay Strikes Back. We stand behind our brother in everything and he will be back!
"Joining us on this trek is none other than Brandon Ellis of The Black Dahlia Murder, so let’s welcome him like one of the Exodus family! Brandon is one of the sickest guitarists alive and he is going to kill it for certain! See you soon in Europe and the UK!"
Brandon added: “I am beyond grateful for the opportunity to get on stage with the legendary dudes of Exodus and crush some open air fests and clubs this July and August. I wish Lee the best and will cover his stage right post with honor and respect!”
Fan-filmed video of Exodus performing at the Masters Of Rock Festival 2022 in Vizovice, Czech Republic with Ellis can be viewed below.
"The Beatings Will Continue (Until Morale Improves)" "A Lesson in Violence" "Blood In, Blood Out" "The Years of Death and Dying" "Clickbait" "And Then There Were None" "Deathamphetamine" "Blacklist" "Only Death Decides" "Prescribing Horror" "Bonded by Blood" "The Toxic Waltz" "Strike of the Beast"
Arch Enemy vocalist Alissa White-Gluz has released her annual Song Of The Season with accompanying video, "The Great Thief", via Patreon. Check out a teaser below.
Alissa: "This is a music video I dreamt up years ago. I have often said that I imagine the music video when I write the music and lyrics and this is a perfect example of that. Music videos are my favourite way to consume music! Writing the script, the direction, the ideas for this song and video made me feel more inspired than I had been in a long time!
I also want to say a huge thank you to the amazing people who helped me bring this idea to life!
Did you spot Oliver Palotai on guitar? I know you’re used to seeing him on the keys in Kamelot. He does a wicked solo in this song. Alex Landenburg of Kamelot also played drums here! Kile Odell is a dream to work with and helps me bring my ideas from my head out onto guitar.
I hope you love this song and video as much as I have loved making it! Special thanks to all of the Beastlings who make this kind of project doable! Enjoy!"
Os norte-americanos da Hauntress, apresentaram no último dia 1 de julho, o seu mais novo trabalho, o álbum intitulado “Open Doors”. Contando com 10 faixas, o material entrega um Doom Rock da melhor qualidade, com ótimos riffs, uma parte rítmica forte e variada, além de ótimos vocais. Com seus dois pés bem ficados na década de 1970, o álbum já se encontra disponível para audição nas principais plataformas de streaming..
First bursting out onto the metal scene in August of 2017 with their self-titled The Lovebites EP and subsequent debut album Awakening From Abyss, Japanese quintet LOVEBITES have since quickly established themselves as the latest in a long line of bands on the verge of crossing-over into worldwide attention, with a stylish, neo-classical-infused take on power metal that’s been making waves across the metal world over the last 12 months; bagging themselves festival slots at prestigious events like Bloodstock and Wacken, along with a Metal Hammer Golden Gods award nomination for Best New Band in the process. Ahead of the release of their latest EP, Battle Against Damnation, we had the opportunity to put some questions to the whole band and find out a bit more about the record, their influences and what’s coming up in their immediate future.
At the time of writing, we’re around two weeks away from the release of Battle Against Damnation – how excited are you for your fans to finally get to hear this record?
Asami (vocals): We’re so happy to finish work on this EP and to have the opportunity not only to release it overseas, but also to be able to play it live this summer at Wacken and Bloodstock!
There’s a lot of what sounds like classic British heavy metal influences on this record, particularly the likes of IRON MAIDEN on songs like The Crusade; as well as what sounds like a lot of European power metal across most of the record. Were there any particular bands you were inspired by as you went into the songwriting for this release?
Mi-Ya (guitar/keyboards): There are a lot of British, European and American metal bands we admire, but for this EP there were two particular names that I was thinking of while writing; these were Ireland’s Gary Moore and Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff. The guitar solo in the middle of Break The Wall was written with Moore in mind; when I think of a bluesy guitar sound I think of him.
Are there any tracks or specific moments on Battle Against Damnation that you’re especially proud of?
Mi-Ya: The final two songs of the EP. They are connected to each other and I wrote both as a kind of love letter to Rachmaninoff. I love his Piano Concerto No. 2 and I’ve dreamt of being able to play it on piano with the backing of a full orchestra one day, but my skill isn’t quite there yet. So instead I wanted to create a kind of ‘guitar concerto’, and this turned into the tracks Under The Red Sky and Above The Black Sea. For this reason, these two tracks are very personal and important to me.
This is obviously the band’s third proper release now, after your debut, THE LOVEBITES EP, and first album Awakening From Abyss both came out last year – how do you feel the band has progressed in the time since that first EP?
Miho (bass): Well, this is really our second proper release. THE LOVEBITES EP was more of a demo we made while trying to get signed, but the label who picked us up in Japan loved it so much they released it with proper mastering, and then we got a label overseas too who also released it. We celebrated our first-year anniversary last week, things have moved so fast in those 12 months! We never expected to be able to perform overseas so quickly, especially in London – it was a dream come true. And then being added to Wacken and Bloodstock! I’m so happy with what we could achieve in such a short time.
Obviously, one of the key things that sets LOVEBITES apart from some other Japanese bands is that your lyrics have almost always been entirely in English, with the exception of ‘Bravehearted’ from THE LOVEBITES EP – how early on in the formation of the band did you make that choice and do you think it’s helped a lot with gaining new fans around the world?
Miho: All of our favourite metal bands sing in English, it just feels natural we should sing in English too.
In the time since Awakening From Abyss came out, you’ve obviously been gaining a lot more attention from Western music press and fans, including getting nominated for “Best New Band” in Metal Hammer’s Golden Gods Awards 2018. Being quite a new band, how important is it to you that you’re already getting such recognition and high praise from critics and fans?
Miho: I’m so happy that we can be accepted by such prestigious metal institutions like Metal Hammer, Wacken and Bloodstock. Sometimes I doubted myself when creating this band, in Japan I could feel some negativity when I told people I wanted to make a proper metal band influenced by classic and modern bands. But in the end I don’t care, I love metal and this is the band I’ve always dreamed of being in. I’m so happy with others can enjoy our music too. Keep it metal!
Japanese heavy metal of all kinds always seems to have been a popular thing in Europe, first thanks to visual-kei styled acts like X JAPAN and DIR EN GREY, and more recently with heavier acts like CROSSFAITH, and even idol spinoff bands like BABYMETAL becoming hugely popular over here – what do you think it is that makes Japanese metal bands so interesting to foreign audiences around the world?
Midori (guitar): We have a lot of metal bands in Japan, but it’s only the ones at the top of their game that manage to be heard overseas, so of course they’re going to appeal to fans of the genre if the music is strong enough. Metal is metal.
In terms of live concerts, you’ve got a few shows in Japan coming up in June and July, and then you’re heading back over to Europe in August for both Bloodstock Festival here in the UK and Wacken Open Air in Germany – how does it feel to be playing at such huge festivals and what should people be expecting from a LOVEBITES live performance at those events?
Haruna (drums): We’ve come so far in just a year! It’s going to be a big challenge but I’m honoured to be in this position. I think you can expect a powerful metal performance from us with a strong stage presence.
Which of the new songs from Battle Against Damnation are you most looking forward to playing live?
Miyako: It’s gotta be The Crusade! Why? Two words; twin solos!”
Haruna: I’m looking forward to playing ‘Break The Wall’ live. It’s the most aggressive LOVEBITES song yet, and the verse is easy English to sing along with; ‘Die! By! My! Side!’, I’d be so happy to see fans sing this with their fists in the air.
What else is coming up for the band in the rest of 2018 and beyond?
Miho: We want to keep creating exciting and technically challenging music and play more and more shows!”
Is there any message you’d like to give to your fans and the readers of Distorted Sound Magazine?
Miho: Thank you Distorted Sound Magazine for being interested in writing about us, and thank you for reading the interview! We hope to see you with your fists in the air at one of our live shows someday soon.
Battle Against Damnation is set for release on June 8th via JPU Records.
O Within Temptation, desde o lançamento do seu último disco de estúdio “Resist” – lançado no ano de 2019, vem lançando alguns singles, mas sem a informação de um próximo disco de estúdio.
Nesta sexta-feira (8), os holandeses lançaram o quarto single da série de lançamentos, “Don’t Pray For Me”, em todas as plataformas digitais, se juntando as faixas: “Entertain You”, “The Purge” e “Shed My Skin”, como os singles lançados pós “Resist”. As versões instrumentais, também estão disponíveis.
Sobre a faixa, a vocalista Sharon Den Adel, comentou: “‘Don’t Pray For Me’ luta contra a imposição de crenças e medos aos outros e testemunha a aceitação da própria jornada de todos. É um hino sobre aceitar o fato de que as crenças podem ser fluidas, múltiplas ou francamente: diferentes. A música é sobre permitir que as pessoas persigam seu próprio destino.”
O guitarrista mexicano Carlos Santana passou mal e desmaiou durante apresentação nessa terça-feira, 5 de julho, no estado americano de Michigan. O lendário compositor de hits como “Samba Pa Ti” e “Europa” passa bem e já soltou um comunicado em suas redes agradecendo aos fãs e explicando a situação.
“Para todos vocês, obrigado pelas suas preciosas orações. Cindy e eu estamos bem e pegando leve. Esqueci de beber água e comer, então desidratei e desmaiei. Bençãos e milagres para todos vocês”, escreveu o guitarrista.
O site da Blabbermouth publicou vídeo em que Carlos Santana aparece em pleno palco passando mal e logo é socorrido. Um representante do músico publicou declaração dizendo que Santana foi conduzido ao hospital
Sherman, to the Wayback Machine! Set the date for '72 Britain. While Hällas are Swedish, the sight/sounds are decidedly Seventies prog and the lyrics, while in English are often as difficult to discern as some of the thick UK dialects. Usually not a fan of that pompous and pretentious sound/era, but I really enjoy Hällas (especially live), despite their proggy affinity. Perhaps it's the fact that only the disc closer exceeds seven minutes, the music never truly venturing down the rabbit hole, periodically pulled from the brink by more hard rock/metal sensibilities.
Still (sadly) a relative unknown on these shores, for the last decade, Europe, and their retro-loving homeland, have enjoyed the trio of previous releases (initial eponymous Ep and a pair of connected full-lengths), melding together synthesizers, guitar hard rock and adventurous sci-fi narrative. Must be that omnipresent ABBA influence, as the seemingly incongruous mix retains an infectious, sing-along quality.
Sounding as if an intergalactic vessel is touching down, an instrumental Moog interlude kicks off the otherwise lyrical "Birth Into Darkness", a staccato stomp (bassist Tommy Alexandersson repeatedly delivers the creepy line, "Into darkness"), until the final third, where a joyous keyboard bounce takes the melody home. It melts into more spirited "Advent Of Dawn", built around a simple, repetitive ditty. The rest is just embellishment, including a crashing guitar break. Buried within the proud strut of "Earl's Theme", the keys mimic a brass horns fanfare.
While none of the eight inclusions could be classified as speedy, the lone slow down being "The Inner Chamber", which begins like medieval madrigal, then eventually progresses to an airy/spaced out synth jam. A steady bass rumbling, guitar drive forms the backbone of "Elusion's Gate", augmented by the warm, fuzzy synth sounds. Not much elaboration in its 4:05 running time. The same is not true of "Gallivants (Of Space)" an infectious (and slightly aggressive, in terms of tempos and tones) romp, with plenty of old school keyboards (even a bit of a showcase/solo)! The slow drone of sustained organ notes backs "Stygian Depths", a quick, recurrent run of high pitched synth shattering the calm. "The Wind Carries The World" finale is all encompassing, and at 7:19, is afforded ample room to investigate all textures (timing, pace/tempo, sounds, instrumentation,etc.). However, it's not a kitchen-sink approach to songwriting. No, despite the experimentation, it retains a cohesion and the omnipresent sense of melody inherent elsewhere/throughout.
