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Friday, March 24, 2017

Pallbearer "Heartless"


Country: USA
Genre(s): Progressive Doom Rock/Metal
Label: Nuclear Blast, Profound Lore Records
Format: CD, vinyl, digital
Release date: March 24, 2017
Tracklist: 
1. I Saw The End (6:21)
2. Thorns (5:24)
3. Lie Of Survival (8:25)
4. Dancing In Madness (11:47)
5. Cruel Road (7:13)
6. Heartless (8:09)
7. A Plea For Understanding (12:40)

Total time 59:59

Line-up: 
Joseph D. Rowland - Bass, Vocals, Synthesizers
Devin Holt - Guitars, Vocals
Brett Campbell - Guitars, Vocals, Synthesizers
Mark Lierly - Drums

Description/Reviews: 
Pallbearer’s third album, Heartless, is an inspired collection of monumental rock music. The band offers a complex sonic architecture that weaves together the spacious exploratory elements of classic prog, the raw anthemics of 90’s alt-rock, and stretches of black-lit proto-metal. From the gloriously complex, sky-lit opener “I Saw the End” to the earth-shaking (and heartbreaking) 13-minute closer “A Plea for Understanding,” the entire group puts forth the full realization of their vision: More than a doom band, Pallbearer is a rock group with a singular songwriting talent and emotional capacity. Heartless finds the group putting forth their strongest individual efforts to date: Campbell and Rowland, along with guitarist/vocalist Devin Holt and drummer Mark Lierly, turn in peak marathon performances. Both Campbell and Rowland also handle synthesizers alongside their normal duties, and there are plenty of gently strummed acoustic guitars amid the crunchy electric ones, adding a moody, ethereal spareness to the towering metal. The almost 12-minute “Dancing in Madness” opens with dark post-rock ambience and moves toward emotional blues before exploding into a sludgy psychedelic anthem. A number of the seven songs feature a humid rock swagger.

By fusing their widest musical palette to date, Pallbearer make the kind of heavy rock (the heavy moments are *heavy*) that will appeal to diehards, but could also find the group crossing over into newer territories and fanbases. After having helped revitalize doom metal, it almost feels like they’ve gone and set their sights on rock and roll itself. Which doesn’t seem at all impossible on the back of a record like Heartless.
Media/Samples 
Bandcamp

Links:
Web page
Facebook

Moonloop "Devocean"


Country: Spain
Genre(s): Progressive Death Metal
Label: Listenable Records
Format: CD, vinyl
Release date: March 24, 2017 (vinyl), April 7, 2017 (CD)
Tracklist: 
1. Megalodon
2. Nightmare gallery
3. Zeal
4. Expired kings
5. Medusa
6. Oceans
7. Interglacial
8. Origin

Line-up: 
Eric Baulenas: vocals, rhythm & lead guitars, acoustic & classical guitar, keyboards
Juanjo Martin: rhythm guitars & backing vocals
Raul Payan: drums
Vic A. Granell: fretted & fretless electric bass

Description/Reviews: 
Stylistically, Moonloop are rooted in the old school Opethian prog metal with a more modern Gojira slant as well. Baulenas’s death vocals are possibly more brutal sounding that Mikael at his peak.
Read the full review by  Rob Pociluk at progressivemusicplanet.com

Media/Samples 
Bandcamp
Zeal
Medusa  

Links:
Web page
Facebook
Progarchives

Damnations Day "A World Awakens"


Country: Australia
Genre(s): Progressive Power Metal
Label: Sensory Records
Format: CD, digital
Release date: March 24, 2017
Tracklist: 
    1.The Witness
    2.Dissecting The Soul
    3.Colours Of Darkness
    4.I Pray
    5.Into Black
    6.To Begin Again
    7.The Idol Counterfeit
    8.A World Awakens
    9.Diagnose

Line-up: 
Mark Kennedy - Vocals and Guitar
Jon King - Guitar
Dean Kennedy - Drums

Media/Samples 
Colours of Darkness

Links:
Web page  
Facebook 

Wednesday, March 22, 2017

Kulak "Sign"


Country: Russia
Genre(s): Progressive Metal
Format: CD, digital
Release date: March 22, 2017
Tracklist: 
  1.     Nakipello
  2.     BearRumba
  3.     Sands of Time
  4.     GravitZappa
  5.     Sign
  6.     Sing
  7.     Sing & Fly
  8.     The Power of Thought
  9.     The Mistery of Tayga
  10.     Ashes in the Wind (Bonus Track)
Line-up: 
Alexander Kulak (AzaZello) - acoustic, electric, bass gutars, vocals, keys, flute, percussion
Alexander Dyachenko - drums
Alexey Kulak - flute (5), reed (pipe) (9)
Arina Kiryushina - voice (5)
Maria Ignatova - piano (5, 9)
Yann Zhenchak - vocals (10)
Anastasija Jojishvily - drums, percussion (8, 9)
Vladimir Kulak - piano (3)
Vladimir Demakov - drums (10)

Description/Reviews: 
First track ''Nakipello'', an instrumental, puts us pretty much in the Prog Metal genre with Dream Theater being the main influence. I must admit that the DT reference is reductionist even for that first piece, because Kulak's music takes its inspiration from a great number of sources, and not exclusively from Metal. The second track ''BearRumba'', another instrumental, continues the heavy moods but with more of a Porcupine Tree feel to it (circa ''Anesthetize'').
Read the full review by Marc at proggnosis.com

Media/Samples 
Sign
Stream

Links:
Facebook
Proggnosis

CantinaSociale "Caosfera"


Country: Italy
Genre(s): Progressive Rock
Label: Electromantic Music (EMC 1702)
Format: CD
Release date: March 21, 2017
Tracklist: 
1. Graffiti (5:10)
2. Temporali Nascosti (8:36)
3. Dune (7:39)
4. Scrupolosamente Arioso (8:38)
5. Pietre (3:53)
6. Caosfera (7:35)
7. Verso Sera (3:49)

Total time 45:20

Line-up: 
Elio Sesia - guitar
Rosalba Gentile - piano, keyboards
Marina Gentile - guitar
Filippo Piccinetti - bass
Massimiliano Monteleone - drums

Links:
Web page
Facebook
Progarchives
Proggnosis

JPL "Le Livre Blanc"


Country: France
Genre(s): Progressive Rock/Metal
Label: Quadrifonic 
Format: CD, digital
Release date: March 21, 2017
Tracklist: 
1. Un livre ouvert
2. L'ermite
3. Joker
4. Trompe la mort
5. L'étoile du nord
6. Convoléances
7. La peste et le choléra
8. Jehanne
9. Le livre blanc

Line-up: 
Jean-Pierre Louveton (Nemo, Wolfspring): Guitar, Bass, Vocals, Keyboard, Programming, Percussions
   With
Jean Baptiste Itier (Nemo): Drums
Ludovic Moro: Drums
Guillaume Fontaine (Nemo): Piano
Steph Honde: Lead Vocals
Dominique Leonetti (Lazuli): Backing Vocals
Sebastien Delestienne: Bass

Media/Samples 
L'étoile du Nord 
La peste et le choléra / l'antidote  
Samples

Links:
Web page
Facebook
Progarchives
Proggnosis

Monday, March 20, 2017

Ghost of Echoes "Fusion"


Country: UK
Genre(s): Progressive Metal
Label: ZiggyMugs Records
Format: CD, digital
Release date: March 20, 2017
Tracklist: 
1. The Earthkeeper's Embrace (1:55)
2. Conscious (8:18)
3. Ai No Ken (4:07)
4. Fragments Of Existence (9:18)
5. The Earthkeeper's Puzzle (5:14)
6. Divine Culmination (7:58)
7. Undergrowth (6:12)
8. Calibration Of Ascension (10:19)
9. Hesitation (4:22)

Total time 57:43

Line-up: 
Michael Trunks - Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Sequencing
    With
Aidan Pouncy - Guitar Solos
Louise Body - Vocals
Joe Edwards - Vocals
Pete Izzard - Vocals, Guitar Solos
Ethan Proctor - Vocals

Media/Samples 
Bandcamp

Links:
Facebook

Barock Project "Detachment"


Country: Italy
Genre(s): Symphonic, Neo-Prog
Label: Artalia
Format: CD, digital
Release date: March 20, 2017
Tracklist: 
1. Promises (5:05)
2. Happy to See You (7:37)
3. One Day (7:23)
4. Secret Therapy (5:37)
5. Broken (9:10)
6. Old Ghosts (4:07)
7. Alone (3:14)
8. Rescue Me (4:55)
9. Twenty Years (6:06)
10. Waiting (5:43)
11. A New Tomorrow (7:39)
12. Spies (7:23)

Total Time 74:59

Line-up: 
Luca Zabbini - piano, keyboards, acoustic guitar, lead vocals
Francesco Caliendo - bass
Marco Mazzuoccolo - electric guitar
Eric Ombelli - drums, percussion
        With:
Peter Jones (Tiger Moth Tales, Red Bazar) - vocals (5,7)

Media/Samples 
Trailer at pledgemusic.com

Links:
Web page
Facebook
Progarchives
Proggnosis

Birzer Bandana "Becoming One"


Country: UK/USA
Genre(s): Progressive Rock
Format: digital
Release date: March 19, 2017
Tracklist: 
1. Awash (5:26)
2. The Dance (7:48)
3. 3 To 1 (8:02)
4. Wretched (Part One) (8:26)
5. Scenes (6:26)
6. Wretched (Part Two) (3:46)
7. Imcarnate (7:18)

Total Time 47:12

Line-up: 
Dave Bandana - vocals, bass, guitars, drums, drum programming, synths, piano, organ, mellotron
Brad Birzer - concept and lyrics
   With
Olga Kent - violin (1, 2)
Mick Bennett - guitar (3)

Media/Samples 
Bandcamp (name your price)

Links:
Web page (Brad Birzer)
Facebook (Brad Birzer)
Facebook (Dave Bandana)
Progarchives

Sunday, March 19, 2017

Time Collapse "Night To Day"


Country: Greece
Genre(s): Progressive Rock/Metal
Format: CD, digital
Release date: March 18, 2017
Tracklist: 
1. Time Bound (2:13)
2. Time Collapse (5:17)
3. Reflecting Lies (4:51)
4. Night To Day (7:37)
5. Messiah Complex Pt. I (Projected Perfection) (6:30)
6. Messiah Complex Pt. II (Cracked Delusion) (7:25)
7. Messiah Complex Pt. III (Redemption) (4:16)

Total Time 38:07

Line-up: 
Chris Cahill: Vocals, guitars
Giannis Kiousis: Bass
Nikos Lekanis: Guitars
Stavros Marinos: Keyboards
Babis Amoiridis: Drums
   With
Illias Papadopoulos: Clarinet (4)
Georgia Christina Alexopoulou: Soprano Vocals (5)

Description/Reviews: 
Their music is heavily influenced by modern Prog /Metal Bands (Tool, Opeth, Porcupine Tree) while still holding true to the classic bands of the 70's (Rush, King Crimson) resulting in a sound that is a blend of chilling atmosphere, soulful melodies and metal riffs accompanied with complex drum rhythms and patterns
Media/Samples 
Bandcamp (name your price)

Links:
Facebook
Progarchives