Ace Frehley releases “I’m Down” single ahead of ‘Origins Vol. 2’

by Tess Casto, posted in News

Founding KISS guitarist and Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame member Ace Frehleyshared the second single from his highly-anticipated second collection of eleven rock ‘n’ roll covers titled, Origins Vol. 2, in the form of The Beatles’ 1965 b-side, “I’m Down”. Featuring John 5, the cover kicks the classic track into high gear with shredding solos and Frehley’s on-point vocals, sounding at the top of his game. Due out on September 18, 2020 via Entertainment One (eOne), Origins Vol. 2 continues Frehley’s reflections on a lifetime in music and inspiration. No stranger to cover versions throughout his musical history — having recorded, rebranded, and repossessed such notable nuggets as “New York Groove,” “Do Ya” and “I Wanna Go Back” throughout his eight previous studio efforts — this new collection presents a thoughtful and exciting selection of songs that inspired and helped shape the legendary guitarist. That spirit of fun is carried through with exquisite execution, and guitar aficionados will enjoy Frehley’s fresh interpretations of these classic songs.

Origins Vol. 2 features some extraordinary guests, including Robin Zander of Cheap Trick on Humble Pie’s “30 Days In The Hole,” and former KISS comrade Bruce Kulick on Jimi Hendrix’s “Manic Depression.” Origins Vol. 1 alumnus John5 also returns, playing on Cream’s “Politician,” and The Beatles’ “I’m Down.” Finally, the exquisite Lita Ford returns on vocals, this time on The Rolling Stones’ 1968 hit “Jumpin’ Jack Flash.” Origins Vol. 2 will be the followup to 2016’s Origins Vol. 1, which hit #23 on the Billboard Top 200 chart, and was his second highest-charting solo album and his 4th Top 40 album. 

Watch “I’m Down” visualizer here!

BLEEDING OUT: Toronto Deathgrind Outfit With Members Of Endless Blockade, Fuck The Facts, Column Of Heaven, And Abyss To Release Lifelong Death Fantasy LP Via Profound Lore Records; “Realm Of Silence” Now Playing

by Tess Casto, posted in News

Profound Lore presents the debut full-length release from Canadian deathgrind quartet, BLEEDING OUT. Lifelong Death Fantasy will be issued in late October, and today, the album’s relentless pummel is proven with an advance stream of its lead single, “Realm Of Silence.”
 
BLEEDING OUT is a deathgrind band from Toronto, Ontario. And yet behind this seemingly banal statement lurks a far more seething and violent musical truth. Yes, BLEEDING OUT is a band with a relentless array of face-melting riffs; everything from blasting early-Earache buzzsaws to reptile brain, slow-motion skull smashers. A band that is possessed by power, fury, and a violent need to explode on stage and on record rather than wallow in tepid genre identification and weak posturing. Utilizing grindcore and death metal as a musical lens to stare long and hard at this pus filled, ingrown world as it burns and falls apart, worldview begets musical conviction, and this ouroboros of violent sounds and negative outlook exists at the very heart of the band. 
 
Lifelong Death Fantasy represents the next logical step in BLEEDING OUT‘s symbiotic storm of deadly riffing and innermost world decay. The eight songs on this release represent an evolved, confident follow-up to their 2019-released split with Skullshitter on Nerve Altar Records. This crew of scene veterans offers a fluid, violent, musical vocabulary that shifts seamlessly between primordial grindcore, Japanese hardcore, and the bottomless death metal of old. These are the scorching, blinding screams of a world marked by unprecedented suffering. This is the soundtrack to a world that is somehow calmly repeating the atrocities of the past while we collectively look forward in fear. These eight songs represent a jagged, grinding assault of bleak inward vision coupled with unrelenting riffcraft.
 
Lifelong Death Fantasy was recorded and mixed by Sean Pearson at Boxcar Sound in Hamilton, Ontario, mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege (Obituary, Nails, Dropdead), and is completed with cover artwork by Arthur Mills of Wartooth Tattoo. 
 
Let the harsh reality of BLEEDING OUT’s “Realm Of Silence” hit you RIGHT HERE.
 
Profound Lore will release Lifelong Death Fantasy on LP, CD, and digital formats on October 30th.Watch for additional advance audio, preorders, and more from the album to be disseminated over the weeks ahead.

SOUTH OF EDEN RELEASES OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO FOR “THE TALK;” ‘THE TALK’ EP OUT NOW!

by Tess Casto, posted in News, Uncategorized

NEW YORK, NY (September 1, 2020) – After releasing their debut The Talk EP, buzzing Columbus, OH rock band SOUTH OF EDEN have unleashed the official music video for the EP’s title track!

Stream “The Talk” here.

On the video, which was premiered by Rolling Stone, the band said: “This video ties all the ideas from the record together. Distorted views, unclear agendas, the masses following along and a sense of unsettling tension. All accompanied by a mixture of emotions, moods and lights. ‘The Talk’ was a lot of fun to shoot and quite a strange experience! The pandemic has changed a lot all over the world, and here in Ohio the laws are very strict on social distancing. When it was time to start planning a video, we knew a lot of work and research had to be done to ensure the video came out exactly how we envisioned it and that all of the guidelines were met. Temperature on arrival, masks, social distancing, the whole 9-yards. Kinda hard to read the cameraman’s face when you can’t see it! The craziest part was the director was monitoring on a zoom call from a different state! Everyone did such an awesome job and were so professional about it, it ended being an awesome experience. I’m interested to see what the world looks like when it opens back up again.”

KRANTZ Release Animated Music Video for Uplifting New Single, “Try Living Every Day”

by Tess Casto, posted in News

Nashville, TN based Indie singer-songwriter KRANTZ has released the official music video for their inspiring new single, “Try Living Every Day.” Originally premiered on mxdwn, “Try Living Every Day” tells a poignant story of positivity and encouragement.

Stream “Try Living Every Day” here

“I wrote this about a buddy at first, but ended up feeling like I was singing about myself,” said Krantz. “I’ve missed a lot of fun trips, big events, or even just get togethers with friends because I was afraid to take the day off from working. I just thought I had to make money and that was the most important thing, but came to realize I was missing what would have been great times in my life just to have more in my bank account. I’m not saying don’t work a job or anything like that, just don’t become a slave to it and make sure ya live everyday to the fullest. Pep talk over…” – KRANTZ

“The song opens with a dramatic hip-hop style beat and a simple piano figure, though as the synths enter it takes a bit of a swing into more left-field, psychedelic sounds not unlike The Flaming Lips. The song is told in a narrative style, describing “He came into the world / With vision quite obscured / His childhood was kind.”

The animated video follows the events of the song, featuring a pregnant woman, a newborn baby and a preschool age child watching television. Eventually he grows into a man who’s first priority is money and stability, something that’s hammered into us from a young age but in an age of increasing wealth disparity, becomes a life and soul-sucking mission for everyone but the richest of the rich.” – MATT MATASCI – mxdwn

After leaving his home state of Iowa, traveling the world, touring over 200 days per year with a band called The Effects* and opening for acts such as the Kings of Leon, Shinedown, Foreigner, and the Toadies, Jeffrey Krantz made the decision to “live the dream” and eventually landed in Nashville. There, he recorded his first self-produced solo album titled “KRANTZ” in between tapings of MTV’s music competition, American Supergroup, where he eventually became a finalist in the competition. While working nonstop at the Honky Tonks of Music City to reach his musical dream, Jeffrey Krantz kept writing, touring, and released “The Pennock Tapes” (2017) and his second album, “Misty Morning Dew.” The band “Krantz” brings a psychedelic/pop/rock edge equipped with an in-your-face attitude, intertwining meaningful lyrics, and authentic, no-holds rock and roll. As an alternative rock band in a land of country music, Krantz embraces a refreshing take on golden age rock acts, combining classic musical elements of The Beatles and T. Rex with more modern sounds of bands like Weezer and Green Day, creating whimsical and catchy melodies that are certain make your feet dance and heart throb.

HADEES MARKET Releases Third Single Off of Upcoming ‘To the Island, from the Lake,’ “Another Way”

by Tess Casto, posted in News

Rosedale, WA based Alternative Rock band HADEES MARKEThas released the third single, “Another Way,” off of their upcoming EP, To the Island, From the Lake, “Another Way” features Williamson on vocals and acoustic guitars, with bass, percussion, and sonic textures provided by Don Farwell.

” ‘Another Way’ was the first song I wrote when I began to live alone in a cabin on Olympia’s Pattison Lake in 2013. It marks the beginning of a five-year period of growth and renewal, during which the importance of friends, family, self-assessment, and self-development took the spotlight. I look back now to the recording of this song as a roadside marker.

“When I moved to the lake, I got a Tascam 8 track digital recorder that reminded me of the 4 track I’d had back in the ‘80’s. Page One of the instruction book said “plug in your guitar to track one, flip the knob this way, and play your guitar part.” Page Two helped me record the solo guitar part. Page Three said “sing your song.” So I did. And ‘Another Way’ is the result. It’s a song that has come to mean very different things to me today than when I wrote it, and I expect to get new things from it in another five years. I hope it reaches something similar in listeners.” – HADEES MARKET

To the Island, from the Lake, was engineered and co-produced by the Don Farwell at Earwig Studio in Seattle. It includes six new songs: “Hesitate,” released to streaming sites in June of 2020, “Gibraltar,” released in July, “Another Way,” released at the end of August, and three more songs which will be released over the next three months. The EP showcases Greg Williamson on guitar and vocals, with drums and percussion by Jen Gilleran, bass by Tony “AMP” Peterson, Don Farwell, and Chris Livesay from The Civilians on bass, and Sharon Chang on piano.

The individual songs and EP as a whole have been recorded by Don Farwell (check out Don’s band, Suitcase), mastered by Levi Seitz at Black Belt Mastering, with design work done by Steve Bergstrom at Octopus Farm (check out Steve’s band The Finger Guns), from photographs taken by Greg Williamson.

Stream “Another Way” here.

BLEAKHEART: Denver Doomgaze Unit Featuring Members Of Vermin Womb, In The Company Of Serpents, Dreadnought, And More To Release Dream Griever Debut; New Track Streaming + Preorders Available

by Tess Casto, posted in News

Denver doomgaze unit BLEAKHEART will release their stunning debut full-length, Dream Griever, October 23rd.
 
A haunting eclipse of sorrow and desire, BLEAKHEART weaves their longing psychedelia into a crushing mass of melancholic wonder. Drawing influences from indie rock, shoegaze, psych rock, doom metal, and goth/darkwave, the collective manifests an emotionally lush atmosphere of rich guitars, haunting synths, and dynamic vocals.
 
BLEAKHEART was initially the solo project of JP Damron (Vermin Womb, In The Company Of Serpents) who soon recruited friend Kelly Schilling (Dreadnought) to contribute her voice to the venture. Following the release of their first demo, the dreamy-dreary duo was joined by Mark Chronister and Josh Kauffman to fully realize their distinct downtrodden, mournful resonance.    
  
By juxtaposing somber, low-fi, guitar-driven soundscapes with shimmering, ethereal vocals and keys, Dream Griever seeks to reflect on the absurdity of the human condition. “The album explores the patterns of destruction and turmoil created within ourselves, and the time we lose within those fleeting cycles,” says Schilling. Through anger, deception, loss, and wanting, Dream Griever presents a vulnerable and beautiful atmosphere of introspection around the pitfalls of human experience. “The record goes to all of those places – the acknowledgement, the attempted escape, and the inevitable missteps into the depths of our own machinations.”
 
Dream Griever was produced, recorded, mixed, and mastered by Pete DeBoer (Blood Incantation, Dreadnought) at World Famous Studios in February/March 2020 and comes swathed in the art of Brian D’Agosta (Gostworks Art). In advance of the record’s official unveiling, the band is pleased to release first single “The Visitor” commenting of the stunning hymn, “‘The Visitor’ paints the atmosphere of our ephemeral reality and the anguish felt from repeating our past mistakes.”
 
Stream BLEAKHEART’s “The Visitor” at THIS LOCATION. 
 
BLEAKHEART‘s Dream Griever will see release independently on CD, cassette, and digitally with Sailor Records handling the vinyl edition. For preorders, visit the band’s Bandcamp page at THIS LOCATION.

BANGLADEAFY: Decibel Magazine Premieres “Lifeforms” From NYC Avant-Metal Duo; Housefly Album Nears September Release Through Nefarious Industries

by Tess Casto, posted in News

New York City hyper-avant metal duo BANGLADEAFY presents the new single “Lifeforms,” as the release of their new Housefly full-length grows ever closer through Nefarious Industries. Decibel Magazine is hosting the exclusive advance stream of the new track. Marking a development in the band’s philosophy and approach to songwriting, particularly in the vocal department, Housefly embraces more personal lyricism and an uncharacteristically up-front vocal presence.

In 2020, BANGLADEAFY have freed themselves of all expectation and restraint – now, anything goes. With the drums recorded and mixed by Mike Gatto of Gatto Records, Housefly was engineered, mixed, and mastered by Jonathan Vergara of Pancake Studios, and completed with artwork by Bryan Elkins. With the “Lifeforms” premiere, BANGLADEAFY‘s Jon Ehlers reveals, “Musically, this song was an experiment in chromatic movements. I was trying to compose a Shepard tone type thing but ended up with something different. Lyrically, this song addresses the notion about our existence being a phenomenon in our immediate universe. Yet, we’re dismantling our own natural existence despite being provided the tools to be fantastic life forms. We have more control over our fate than we give ourselves credit for, but we continue on this path of self-destruction. Let it motivate or discourage you.” Decibel writes, “Check out ‘Lifeforms,’ a new track from Housefly that filters the band’s ear for riffy, off-the-wall compositions through Skinny Puppy, Nine Inch Nails, and Devo. It has both a cinematic and tribal feeling…” 

Hear BANGLADEAFY’s “Lifeforms” early via Decibel Magazine at THIS LOCATION.

Nefarious Industries will release Housefly on all digital platforms on September 18th. Find preorders at the label shop HERE and Bandcamp where “Harvest” is playing HERE. 

The limitless and ever-evolving duo BANGLADEAFY – drummer Atif Haq and bassist/pianist/vocalist Jon Ehlers – comes slamming back with a new beast. Housefly brings you thirteen anxiety-ridden compositions performed live on hardware synths, sample pads, and acoustic drums, and entirely abandons the electric bass acrobatics the tag team has become known for. Inspired by the human manipulation of electronic sounds, Housefly sees BANGLADEAFY revisiting influences of their youth such as Skinny Puppy, Nine Inch Nails, and Devo. 

Watch for several official videos and more on BANGLADEAFY‘s Housefly to be issued over the weeks ahead.

SPOOK THE HORSES: Empty Body Full-Length From New Zealand Post-Metal Unit Out NOW And Streaming Via Pelagic Records

by Tess Casto, posted in News

Empty Body, the crushing new full-length from Wellington, New Zealand-based post-metal unit SPOOK THE HORSES is out now via Pelagic Records.  Following the calm and sublime People Used To Live Here, Empty Body rears its head with distortion levels cranked up, tempos sped up, and songs condensed and stripped down to the bare, ugly essentials. Indeed, Empty Body comes as a brutal wake-up call within the rampant COVID-19 fatigue and an unexpected surprise in almost every regard. “We’ve always been both a heavy and a quiet band. An entire album of our prettier, more bittersweet inclinations demands a reply of our most aggressive and confrontational. The pendulum must swing back the other way,” comments multi-instrumentalist Callum Gay. Stream Empty Body at THIS LOCATION.

View the band’s previously released videos for “Inheritance” and “Cell Death” HERE.Empty Body is available on CD, LP, and digital formats HERE. Fans of Breach, Cult Of Luna, Converge, Trap Them, Old Man Gloom, and Baptists, pay heed.  Imagine a band where members can rotate between instruments, because every band member can play every instrument. SPOOK THE HORSES are such a band. And it is perhaps this multi-instrumentalism and virtuosity that explains the vast musical territory that is explored across the band’s four albums. While 2011’s debut album Brighter was defined by sweet post-rock crescendos, 2015’s Rainmaker was a much heavier affair. People Used To Live Here (2017) created an atmosphere of quiet desolation, raw and real, desperate and unsettling: the post-apocalyptic soundtrack to abandoned places, where people used to live, at one point in time, long ago.”Since we started work on People Used To Live Here years ago we knew the album would need a follow-up that was radically different – almost spitefully different – if only to utterly refuse any trite suggestion that we might be “maturing” or mellowing out with time,” Gay explains. “We’d written the song ‘Self Destroyer’ (off Empty Body) somehow concurrently with the early People Used To Live Heredemos and it had a sense of momentum to it that immediately engaged us. Once that energy was there it was an obvious choice for the next record, compressing our intuitive emotive peaks into raw forward motion. We all wrote collectively with the new focus in mind.”

DRAGONFORCE To Kick Off US Headlining Tour This Week

by Tess Casto, posted in News

DRAGONFORCE by Vince Edwards

Extreme power metal unit DRAGONFORCE will kick off their anticipated US headlining tour this week! Slated to commence on March 5th in Mesa, Arizona, the journey winds its way through over two dozen cities upon its conclusion March 21st in Brooklyn, New York. Support will be provided by Unleash The Archers and Visions Of Atlantis.
The journey will see Alicia Vigil (Vigil Of War) handling bass and backing vocals for the band while Aquiles Priester (Angra, Tony MacAlpine) will temporarily take over drum duties for Gee Anzalone, who was recently hospitalized for Myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle. Comments guitarist Herman, “We will miss our brother Gee on the upcoming US tour, but health is most important. We wish Gee a speedy recovery and we know he will be back on tour with us soon. We want to thank our friend Aquiles for stepping up and helping us out on short notice.”
DRAGONFORCE will be streaming their tour live on twitch.tv/hermanli. Livestreams will include performances, backstage footage, and special guest appearances. See all confirmed dates below.
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DRAGONFORCE w/ Unleash The Archers, Visions Of Atlantis: 
3/05/2020 Club Red – Mesa, AZ
3/06/2020 The Regent – Los Angeles, CA
3/08/2020 The Regency Theater – San Francisco, CA
3/10/2020 Metro Music Hall – Salt Lake City, UT
3/11/2020 Oriental Theater – Denver, CO
3/13/2020 Fine Line – Minneapolis, MN **
3/14/2020 Red Flag – St. Louis, MO **
3/15/2020 House Of Blues – Chicago, IL
3/17/2020 The Agora – Cleveland, OH
3/18/2020 St. Andrews Hall – Detroit, MI
3/19/2020 Roxian Theatre – Pittsburgh, PA
3/20/2020 The Palladium – Worcester, MA
3/21/2020 Warsaw – Brooklyn, NY
** No Visions Of Atlantis
DRAGONFORCE continues to tour in support of their eighth full-length, Extreme Power Metal, released last Fall via Metal Blade Records. Produced in Los Angeles, California by Damien Rainaud at Mix Unlimited, Extreme Power Metal was also recorded, in part, on guitarist Herman Li’s livestream channel on Twitch (twitch.tv/hermanli) with participation from the fans.
Known as the fastest band in the world, the Grammy-nominated collective is based in London, England. Their platinum-selling record, Through The Fire And Flames, brought them international acclaim and was featured as the most-challenging song on Guitar Hero III. Their energetic and humorous live performances have won them fans on every continent.
The group is known for their long, complex, and fast guitar solos performed by Herman Li and Sam Totman, who founded the band after meeting through a classified ad in 1999. Since then, the band has released seven studio albums, including Valley Of The Damned (2003), Sonic Firestorm (2004), Inhuman Rampage (2006), Ultra Beatdown (2008), The Power Within (2012), Maximum Overload(2014), and Reaching Into Infinity (2017). 2019 ushered in the next chapter in DRAGONFORCE history with Extreme Power Metal.
Regarding Extreme Power Metal, Li says, “This album again combines the best of DRAGONFORCE in an even bigger, more epic way than we have ever done before.” The keyboards of the album were performed by Coen Janssen of symphonic metal titan Epica, adding a new dimension to the album. Notes Totman, “We worked really closely with Coen on this new album. We are so happy with what he has brought into this album.”
Drawing from a wide range of influences, the band’s sound combines the sing-a-long choruses of classic ’80s rock with triumphant, uplifting melodies and fantasy-themed power-metal-inspired lyrics. As a nod to their passion for all things video-game related, the band frequently incorporates retro game sounds and melodies into their recordings and live shows.
 
To preview and purchase Extreme Power Metal visit metalblade.com/dragonforce.

Artist Spotlight: JJ Wilde

by Tess Casto, posted in News

This week’s featured artist is JJ Wilde. Hailing from Canada, this powerhouse of talent is an individual that should not be overlooked. In 2018 the young singer decided to fulfill her passion by pursuing music.  Wilde, knowing she was at a crossroads with her life, took the plunge into the unknown. Such an endeavor has been surely paying off. Recently she has toured with “The Struts” and “The Blue Stones”. Serenading audiences with her raw songs makes for an impactful performance and thus gaining her new life long fans along the way. 

Check out her EP “Wilde Eyes and Steady Hands”. The EP is an unfiltered story from a young woman who’s putting her experiences and emotions into music. 

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