NEWS : Italian Heavy Metal cult band HURTFUL WITCH re-release 1985′s “Spectra” DEMO (ITA/ENG version) (
Opera di recupero per il demo “Spectra” datato 1985 di Hurtful Witch, band di culto antesignana del metal occulto ed estremo, capitanata dalla singer torinese Roberta “Morgana” Delaude. La data prevista per l’uscita è gennaio 2013 in solo vinile e tiratura limitata.
I tre pezzi originali “We’re fire”, “Lost Angel” e “Behind my eyes” sono stati remasterizzati mantenendo però il fascino ruvido di quegli anni che hanno segnato la storia del metal underground.
Contatti e ordini:
https://www.facebook.com/HurftfulWitch
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In order to recover the debut demo Hurtful Witch’s “Spectra” dated 1985, Italian cult band precursor of an occult, extreme metal, fronted by Roberta “Morgana” Delaude” on January 2013 will released on vinyl only and in a limited press.
The three original songs containted in the demo “We’re fire”, ”Lost Angel” e “Behind my eyes” have been remastered but preserving that rough sound that have marked the history of Italian metal underground.
Here below the trailer
Orders and infos:
https://www.facebook.com/HurftfulWitch
NEWS : LACUNA COIL Premieres New Music Video for “End Of Time” with XL Magazine Italy
December 12, 2012 (Los Angeles, CA) - As special holiday treat for fans, Italy’s LACUNA COIL has released their new music video for “End Of Time.” The video was produced by K48 and directed by the Italian director Saku, who had worked with the band for previous videos such as “Spellbound” and “I Won’t Tell You”. He also directed the mini-movies that were featured on the bonus-DVD included on the limited editions of the band’s current album DARK ADRENALINE.
For the premiere of the clip LACUNA COIL and Century Media Records has teamed up with the online outlet of the Italy’s XL Magazine, the biggest monthly magazine for music and entertainment in Italy. Check out the music video for “End Of Time” by clicking here: http://videodrome-xl.blogautore.repubblica.it/2012/12/12/esclusiva-xl-lacuna-coil-end-of-time/
LACUNA COIL recently announced that they will be touring the US in February 2013 with SEVENDUST. A full list of dates can be seen below.
The band has spent the past year touring the world in support of their new album, DARK ADRENALINE. Released earlier this year via Century Media Records, the album debuted at #15 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart, selling nearly 20,000 units in its first week, and spawned the crushing first single “Trip The Darkness.” The band has sold upwards of 800,000 units in the US alone and with six full-length albums, two EPs, various singles and a DVD under their belt; LACUNA COIL maintains their prominent role in the modern rock scene.
Tour Dates with Sevendust:
02/02/13 – Winston-Salem, NC @ Ziggy’s
02/03/13 – Jacksonville, NC @ Hooligans
02/05/13 – Lancaster, PA @ Chameleon Club
02/06/13 – Clifton Park, NY @ Upstate Concert Hall
02/07/13 – Portland, ME @ The Asylum
02/08/13 – Allentown, PA @ Crocodile Rock
02/09/13 – Lynchburg, VA @ Phase 2
02/10/13 – Nashville, TN @ Marathon Music Works
02/12/13 – Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic Lounge
02/14/13 – Biloxi, MS @ Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
02/15/13 – Broussard, LA @ The Station
02/16/13 – Beaumont, TX @ Dixie Dance Hall
02/17/13 – Little Rock, AR @ Revolution! Music Room
02/19/13 – Springfield, IL @ Boondocks
02/21/13 – Bloomington, IL @ The Castle Theatre
02/22/13 – South Bend, IN @ Club Fever
02/23/13 – Cedar Falls, IA @ Pepsi Pavilion
For more information on LACUNA COIL visit:
http://www.facebook.com/lacunacoil
Lycanthia – “Oligarchy” (2012)
Label : Hypnotic Dirge Records
Review by Vard Aman
“The want to flee consumes me,
The urge to succumb eats its way,
Through a brawn weakened by seclusion”
Doom Metal is one of the most, if not the most varied and extreme forms of metal. When played badly, or is recorded badly, it can be abysmally bad (in a bad way); but when it is played well, there are few forms of music more powerful and more stirring than Doom Metal. Doom Metal is usually associated with scenarios of despair, depression, emptiness and, well, doom; but, when played well, I’ve always found it to be uplifting – a way to expose, revel in and release “the doom” through dramatization in a powerful extended aural climax. If you want to depress me, play me Justin Bieber, if you want to make me happy, play me some good Doom Metal. If Doom Metal conjures images of emptiness, then it’s an epic; a passionate; and a dramatic emptiness, a drama that plays on, and plays out the extremes of our imaginations and our imagined (or real) fears, losses and sorrows.
Well, good Doom Metal does anyway; bad Doom Metal, it is fair to say, can often spell instant boredom. Lycanthia, fortunately, are good Doom Metal. No, they’re more than that; they’re VERY good Doom Metal, and that means that everything in my somewhat purple-prosy description of good Doom Metal applies to them, and in great abundance! Lycanthia are from Sydney, Australia, and formed in 1996. In 1999 they released their debut “Myriad”, followed by lineup changes, an EP in 2006 called “Within the Walls”, more lineup changes, and now, in 2012, their second full length, “Oligarchy”. This band has staying power, and this is reflected not just in their continuing determination, but in their sound as well. Their sound is a Death Doom/Gothic Doom combo, nothing groundbreaking in that, but it’s the way they play what they play that makes Lycanthia the standout band they are and “Oligarchy” the standout album it is. Take the best parts of the harsher side of My Dying Bride mixed with the best parts of “Velvet Darkness They Fear”-era Theatre of Tragedy mixed with a bit of Draconian and you have Lycanthia. Are you drooling yet? No? OK, then add not one, but two extremely talented female vocalists (Vanessa Black and Megan Tassaker – also in Avrigus) whose wistful and melodic vocals are contrasted by a male vocalist (Lee Tassaker) whose raw, plaintive growls and shrieks would make most Death/Black Doom Metal vocalists proud. Now are you drooling? Still not? OK, go and listen to some Justin Bieber then… The heaviness, the power and the emotion is almost relentless throughout “Oligarchy”, further emphasized by the somber melodies. Likewise the contrast between the power of Lee’s growls and the melodic vocals of Vanessa and Megan (solo and harmonizing) serve to emphasize both.
On top of that, Vanessa and Megan contrast each other vocally too, and to the music itself they add violins and keyboards respectively. Stylistically, most of the songs on “Oligarchy” are fairly similar to each other, which is a good thing when you can’t get enough of this band and their musical creations. “Forgone” was the first song to be released, a single if you like. It’s a good summary of what this album is about, and when you get this album you can expect much more of this. “Hair of the Beast” is somewhat different to the other tracks, and this one takes a few more listens to get into than the others, perhaps for that reason. Lyrically, Lycanthia are as good as they are musically. They have all the poetic doom, emptiness, sorrow and despair that one would expect from this kind of music, but there is an additional element: a fantasy story-telling element – most prominently highlighted by the song “Forgone” which is a tale of a young god who falls in love with a mortal, enraging the other gods who strip him of his immortality as a consequence (a Lycanthia creation that sounds like it could be based on actual mythology, and there probably are many parallels) – just when you thought it couldn’t get more epic. But this is “epic” in the Doom Metal sense, so don’t expect any happy stories with happy endings – expect some very powerful stuff. Highlights off the album? All of them, although “Forgone” and “Despondency in Crescendo” are particular standouts and “Time Feeds These Wounds” and “Hair of the Beast” (as I’ve already mentioned) take a few listens to get into. So how highly do I rate this album against the many Doom Metal albums I’ve heard and own? As I am writing this review, I have been listening to this album for about a week and it’s still growing on me (“Forgone” since it was first released on YouTube). There have been some fantastic albums released by some fantastic bands, but if anyone breaks into my house right now (beating all my booby traps… just in case the thought crosses anyone’s mind… I am a Saffer after all), holds me at gunpoint and steals my collection, Lycanthia’s “Oligarchy” is the one they will have to prize out of my cold, dead hands. Or, maybe, considering that Lycanthia is not the biggest name out there they might be a bit more reluctant to fight over it and perhaps they might let me keep it… hehe, their loss if they do! But if they do take it, I’ll give them these bits of advice: listen to it loud and with the lights out (seriously, try it); and if for some reason they’re trying to maintain a tough-guy-who-doesn’t-blub-to-music image, they might want to listen to it alone – just in case they can’t handle the powerful and extended aural climax of one of best representatives and examples of one the ultimate forms of music. And then give it back, dammit!
Rating – 98/100
Tracklist
- The Essential Components of Misery
- Eternity…
- Forgone
- Ablaze the Wheel Turns
- Despondency in Crescendo
- Time Feeds These Wounds
- Hair of the Beast
- From Ancestral Lands
Line Up
- Lee Tassaker – Vocals & Bass
- Megan Tassaker – Vocals & Keyboards
- Vanessa Black – Vocals & Violin
- Stephen Mikulic – Guitars
- Giovanni Gariano – Guitars
- Andrew Craig – Drums
Links
MySpace * ReverbNation * Facebook * Twitter * Site
Comus – “East of Sweden – Live at The Melloboat Festival 2008″ (2011)
Label : Gnostic Dirt
Review by Luisa Mercier
I did not know much about Comus before listening to this live album. I have came to know that it is a sort of reunion album after a long period of time (since 1972 they say in the live recording). As soon as I started listening, I understood that they are a worthy band anyway. They play a kind of progressive rock highly influenced by folk music with the addition of various instruments, flute above all. They have a ’70s flavor that is missing in contemporary music which sounds completely fresh to me since I had not the chance to live the period in which this kind of music was more popular. Musically they’re still perfect, and vocally Roger Wootton is obviously aged, but he still sounds good and the live recording is good. Someone complained about the fact that the crowd was barely audible, but for me it is better this way since I want to focus on the music not the audience. For lovers of prog rock, old flavors and moods this is a release they will enjoy for sure.
Rating – 75/100
Tracklist
- Song to Comus
- Diana
- The Herald
- Drip, Drip
- The Prisoner
- Venus in Furs
- Song to Comus
Line Up
- Roger Wootton – Guitar & Vocals
- Bobbie Watson – Vocals & Percussion
- Glenn Goring – 6 String, 12 String Guitar & Bongos
- Andy Hellaby – Bass
- Jon Seagroatt – Flute & Percussion
- Colin Pearson -Violin & Viola
Links
Indie Zone Reviews : Rebekka Karijord – “We Became Ourselves” (2012)
Label : Sony Music Norway
Review by Luisa Mercier
Rebekka Karijord is a Norwegian singer-songwriter, score composer, actress and “We Become Ourselves” is her fourth record. Since I am not familiar with her previous efforts, I will just analyze this album as a work by itself. What attracted me the most was the elegant gothic-tinged image that has been used as cover artwork that perfectly fits the music contained in the album. I read that “The Noble Art of Letting Go”, her previous album focused on love relationships, while this one explores more themes. They always deal with her relationship with men, but this time they are not only lovers, but also friends, brothers (the touching ballad “Oh Brother”) and fathers. Musically speaking is quite simple, music never overcomes her haunting vocals: piano, percussions, electronic beats are the thick envelope that contain her vocal lines. Contrary to most of indie music, Rebekka tunes are also very accessible, listen for example to the single “Use My Body While It’s Still Young”. I challenge yourself not to be fascinated by the syncopated rythm and the catchy chorus. “Your Love” is another refined yet pop song. Strings, piano and vocals make way for a melody that recalls me Florence Welch. Another vocal bit I love is the bridge of “Multicolored Hummingbird” where she literally soars over the music. More acoustic is “You Make Me Real”, really romantic, melancholic, a bit sad, but really it moved me so much. The album is closed by the anthemic “Ode to What Was Lost” and “Bandages”, another skinny music piece where her voice stands out. I am loving this album, hope you do the same.
Rating – 80/100
Tracklist
- Prayer
- Use My Body While It’s Still Young
- We Become Ourselves
- Oh Brother
- Your Love
- Multicolored Hummingbird
- Save Yourself
- You Make Me Real
- Ode to What Was Lost
- Bandages
Line Up
- Rebekka Karijord – Vocals, Songwriting & Piano.
Links
Style switcher only on this demo version. Theme styles can be changed from Options page.
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