A roundup of the latest news from Metal Blade Records including updates from Amon Amarth, Ensiferum, Tombs, Cripper, Byzantine, Crimfall and the release of “For the Sake of Heaviness: The History of Metal Blade Records”.
After releasing the visually stunning videos for First Kill and At Dawn’s First Light last year, in support of their latest album, Jomsviking, Amon Amarth is now ready to debut a new video from the record: “The Way Of Vikings” – which was once again directed by Grupa 13.
Watch the video – featuring the full band as Peaky Blinders inspired characters at a brutal underground gambling hall and boxing match.
As the band’s first concept record in their storied career, Jomsviking tells a tragic, original tale of conflict and revenge, backed by the Swedes’ trademark melodic, anthemic metal – which was produced and mixed once again by Andy Sneap (Megadeth, Testament, Accept).
For their efforts, Amon Amarth landed on the global charts (including a #11 spot on the USA Current Album Billboard Chart!).
Jomsviking is out now
www.nervegas.com.au/amonamarth
——————————–
On August 29th, Metal Blade Records and BMG will release For the Sake of Heaviness: The History of Metal Blade Records – written by label founder and CEO Brian Slagel with Mark Eglinton, and featuring a foreword by Metallica’s Lars Ulrich.
Celebrating the storied label’s 35th anniversary, For the Sake of Heaviness is an inside look at how Slagel built Metal Blade from a one-man operation in his mom’s non-air-conditioned garage to the preeminent international home of heavy music that it is today.
To pre-order For the Sake of Heaviness: The History of Metal Blade Records, please visit:
http://smarturl.it/mbr35th
For the Sake of Heaviness pulls back the curtain to reveal the definitive look at how Metal Blade began, what they’ve accomplished, and where they’re going. Slagel reveals the early advice he gave that helped guide Motley Crue’s career; how he helped Metallica replace their bassist – twice; his detailed work on Thin Lizzy and Alice Cooper re-issues; his behind-the-scenes role in the careers of Slayer, GWAR, Mother Love Bone, Alice in Chains, Faith No More, Goo Goo Dolls, and Lamb of God; and his unlikely ventures with kindred metal heads – from hockey star Ken Baumgartner, to celebrity chef Chris Santos, to The Howard Stern Show’s Richard Christy, to comedians Jim Florentine, Don Jamieson and Jim Breuer.
——————————–
On September 15th, Ensiferum will release their seventh full-length, Two Paths, worldwide via Metal Blade Records.
Produced by Anssi Kippo, the master was recorded on tape, for a true analog experience.
To hear the first single, “For Those About to Fight for Metal”, please visit:
metalblade.com/ensiferum
where the record can be pre-ordered in the following formats:
–Deluxe wooden box (limited to 2500 copies worldwide)
–Limited edition Digibook CD+DVD
–CD
–180g black vinyl
–blue-gray-marbled vinyl (USA exclusive – limited to 250 copies)
–forest green-marbled vinyl (USA exclusive – limited to 250 copies)
–picture disc LP (limited to 500 copies worldwide)
* exclusive bundles with a shirt, plus digital options are also available!
To view the vinyl master tape cutting, fans can watch a video by T. Ruotsalainen and A. Kippo HERE
——————————–
After recently announcing their appearance at Ozzfest on November 4th at the Glen Helen Amphitheater & Festival Grounds in San Bernardino, CA, Tombs is now premiering their new video for “Walk With Me in Nightmares” via Ozzfest’s Facebook.
Watch “Walk With Me in Nightmares” [which was directed/edited by David Brodsky (www.mgenyc.com)]
Tombs recently released their fourth full-length, The Grand Annihilation – the group’s most experimental record to-date. The blasting, scathing yet melodic black metal savagery of opener “Black Sun Horizon” and “Way Of The Storm” are very much built to destroy, while wielding a poignancy that is undeniable – both of which stand in strong contrast to the uncomfortable post-punk squall of “Underneath” that showcases front-man Mike Hill’s Nick Cave/Ian Curtis-esque singing voice, while the likes of the throbbing “Saturnalian” and unnerving tribal thunder of “Walk With Me In Nightmares” stand in categories all of their own. While every track on The Grand Annihilation stands separate from those around it, it is still a cohesive collection, and at no point do the stylistic twists and turns undermine its coherence.
To preview and purchase The Grand Annihilation, please visit:
metalblade.com/tombs
www.nervegas.com.au/tombs-grand-annihilation-cd
www.nervegas.com.au/tombs-grand-annihilation-vinyl-lp
——————————–
On September 15th, Germany’s Cripper will release their new album Follow Me: Kill! worldwide via Metal Blade Records!
To hear the first single, “Pressure”, please visit: metalblade.com/cripper – where the record can also be pre-ordered in the following formats:
–Digipak CD (EU exclusive)
–CD
–180g black vinyl (EU exclusive)
–yellow orange vinyl (limited to 200 copies)
–cool grey marbled vinyl (EU exclusive – limited to 100 copies)
Follow Me: Kill! is Cripper’s fifth album, and it adds fresh, exciting elements into their music. Still, the band never forgets where they come from and stay true to themselves within the frames of musical progression. The result is an effort that maintains the heaviness and groove the band is known for, while also containing atmospheric parts, capably realized and granting diversity.
Cripper comments: “Taking a different approach with the way of songwriting this time really paid off! The overall atmospheric curve was laid down for the whole album before we even started writing. It turned out to be a great idea – we were able to create a strong density throughout the album, while the songs are more diverse than ever. A heavy, intense piece of genre-stretching metal music!”
Follow Me: Kill! track-listing:
1. Pressure
2. Into The Fire
3. World Coming Down (limited Digipak CD only)
4. Mother
5. Shoot or Get Shot
6. Bleeding Red
7. Comatose
8. Pretty Young Thing
9. Running High
10. Menetekel
——————————–
Byzantine have just released their new album, The Cicada Tree, via Metal Blade Records.
Heralded as the most underrated band from the New Wave of American Heavy Metal Movement, Byzantine has slowly gained a cult-like following after releasing 5 genre-bending albums. 16 years underground, it’s finally time for the world to hear Byzantine!
For a preview of The Cicada Tree, a video for the new single, “Vile Maxim” (directed/edited by Holly Mollohan, and produced by Screaming Butterfly Entertainment), has been launched online:
To state that The Cicada Tree is “classic Byzantine” in no way implies that this is an album solely rooted in the band’s past. Certainly, all of the hallmarks that have made their sound so compelling for close to two decades are present and correct: muscular yet lithe riffs and fluid leads play against gripping, dynamic and at times unpredictable rhythms, while rich melodies and lyrics that are both involved and intelligent wind their way through every track. But, once more, the groove metal unit has continued their steady evolution – the interplay between their members organic and natural, imbuing the record’s sixty-two-minute running time with a freshness and urgency. Founding member Chris “OJ” Ojeda states, “The first few albums, you’re trying to find your sound, and sometimes you tend to not see the forest for the trees. Now, on album number six, it seems a calmness took hold during the songwriting process, possibly from just having more confidence in our sound. At this point, our fans expect us to experiment and push our boundaries, which is an extremely liberating feeling.”
The Cicada Tree track-listing
1. New Ways to Bear Witness
2. Vile Maxim
3. Map of the Creator
4. Dead as Autumn Leaves
5. Trapjaw
6. The Subjugated
7. Incremental
8. The Cicada Tree
9. Verses of Violence
10. Moving in Stereo (The Cars cover)
11. Servitude (Fishbone cover)
The Cicada Tree is out now
www.nervegas.com.au/tombs-grand-annihilation-vinyl-lp
www.nervegas.com.au/byzantine-cicada-tree-cd
——————————–
On August 25th, Finnish cinemascope metallers Crimfall will release their new album, Amain, worldwide via Metal Blade Records! Hear the new single, “Mother of Unbelievers”
For another preview of Amain, the album track, “The Last of Stands”, can also be heard at: metalblade.com/crimfall where the record can be pre-ordered in the following formats:
–limited Digipak CD with exclusive bonus tracks (acoustic and instrumental songs)
–180g black vinyl
* exclusive bundles with a shirt, plus digital options are also available!
Amain is Crimfall’s most ambitious album yet, combining familiar elements with fresh inspiration, and wreathed in massive crisp production from Fascination Street Studios. Featuring music that spans from monumental orchestrations to songs whispered over fading pyres, Amain contains layers upon layers of grand melodies woven between jagged shadows. On this new release, Crimfall also continues to sing the stories of wars waged in vain, advocating freedom from religious dogmas and the bloody chains of tradition.
Amain track-listing:
1. Eschaton
2. The Last of Stands
3. Ten Winters Apart – pt1. Far From Any Fate
4. Ten Winters Apart – pt2. Song of Mourn
5. Ten Winters Apart – pt3. Sunder the Seventh Seal
6. Ten Winters Apart – pt4. Dawn Without a Sun
7. Mother of Unbelievers
8. It’s a Long Road
9. Wayward Verities
10. Until Falls the Rain
