Blood Ceremony "The Eldritch Dark"

Country: Canada
Sub Genre: Psychedelic, Doom, Prog Folk
Label: Rise Above Records / Metal Blade
Release date: May 27/28, 2013
Tracklist: 
1 Witchwood
2 Goodbye Gemini
3 Lord Summerisle
4 Ballad of the Weird Sisters
5 Eldritch Dark
6 Drawing Down the Moon
7 Faunus
8 The Magician

Line-up: 
Alia O'Brien - Vocals, Flute, Organ
Sean Kennedy - Guitars
Lucas Gadke - Bass
Michael Carrillo - Drums

Description/Reviews: 

The Eldritch Dark is a full-length paean to the darker corners of folklore and legend. Containing eight tracks of black magic rock ‘n’ roll, the album crackles with the excitement of a nocturnal ritual.
Tales of witch-cult gatherings in wooded glens, pacts made in torch-lit abbeys and Victorian magic are accompanied by vintage-style hard rock riffs, snaking bass lines and stirring flute melodies. The Eldritch Dark also sees the band exploring a more folksier side of their sound; most evident in the hymn-like “Lord Summerisle” and the murderous folk-rock epic, “Ballad of the Weird Sisters”. Nineteenth century sorcerer, Oliver Haddo, makes a return appearance in the riff-hypnotic album closer, “The Magician”.

Media/Samples 
Goodbye Gemini

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Purson "The Circle and The Blue Door"

Country: UK
Sub Genre: Psychedelic
Label: Rise Above Records/ Metal Blade
Release date: April 29, 2013
Tracklist: 

1. Wake Up Sleepy Head 2:06
2. The Contract 4:11
3. Spiderwood Farm 5:09
4. Sailor's Wife's Lament 3:59
5. Leaning on a Bear 3:27
6. Tempest and the Tide 5:06
7. Mavericks and Mystics 3:48
8. Well Spoiled Machine 5:09
9. Sapphire Ward 5:02
10. Rocking Horse 4:25
11. Tragic Catastrophe 5:21

Line-up: 
Rosalie Cunningham - Vocals, lead guitar
George Hudson - Guitars, backing vocals
Samuel Shove - Organ, mellotron, wurlitzer
Barnaby Maddick - Bass, backing vocals
Jack Hobbs - Drums

Description/Reviews: 

There is a magic place where folky warmth meets lurid technicolour horror, where prog complexity and all out skull-crushing doom combines with classic songwriting to flesh out a sinister but romantic vision of twisted dreams and lurking threats hidden just out of view. That place is the debut album by Purson, which finds the missing link between Pentangle and Pentagram, by way of David Bowie’s dream reality and The Beatles’ feel for the perfect melody. And while it owes a debt to front woman Rosie Cunningham’s clear love of the late 60s and the early 70s, it is her poetic, evocative lyricism, tight song craft, sonorous vocal style and dedication to deep musicality that takes this album far beyond the waters of pastiche.

Media/Samples 
Leaning On A Bear
Entire album online

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Diagonal "The Second Mechanism"

Country: UK
Sub Genre: Instrumental Psychedelic, Space Rock, Jazz-Rock/Fusion
Label: Rise Above Records
Release date: November 5, 2012
Tracklist: 

1. Voyage/Paralysis (6:12)
2. These Yellow Sands (7:59)
3. Mitochondria (9:41)
4. Hulks (10:46)
5. Capsizing (9:10)

Line-up: 
- Luke Foster / drums, percussion, piano, backing vocals
- Ross Hossack / synthesisers, harmonium, backing vocals
- Nicholas Richards / electric bass, mellotron, synthesiser, backing vocals
- Nicholas Whittaker / alto saxophone, clarinet, lead and backing vocals
- David Wileman / electric guitars, backing vocals
      featuring
- Alex Crispin / synthesisers, backing vocals
- Robbie Wilson / trumpet, flugelhorn, backing vocals

Description/Reviews: 

Opening cut "Voyage/Paralysis" is like a meeting of Pink Floyd, Eloy, and Soft Machine, while the more aggressive "These Yellow Sands" sees space rock guitars, analog keyboards, and Passport styled sax lines collide for an exciting prog brew. "Mitochondria" contains some furious jazz-fusion passages mixing with Tangerine Dream styled electronics (the unison guitar/keyboard/sax lines are outstanding), which will appeal to any fan of classic Soft Machine, and "Hulks" sees the first appearance of vocals in what is otherwise a dense mix of dark prog & jazz, complete with some searing guitar solos and stabbing sax that culminate in an almost free-jazz finale. Closer "Capsizing" is a soaring jazz-fusion meets space rock jam with scattered sax, guitar, and keyboard melodies fluttering about the mix, with some nice heavy rock guitar riffs and leads towards the back end of the song. Space rock, prog, jazz-fusion, and Canterbury fans will most certainly want to investigate this one. (Pete Pardo at seaoftranquility.org)

Media/Samples 
Voyage/Paralysis

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