DARK FOREST Debut "Penda's Fen" with PureGrainAudio.com

PureGrainAudio.com has posted the exclusive worldwide premiere of "Penda's Fen," from UK-based traditional metallers DARK FOREST. To listen to the brand new track off the band's forthcoming album, The Awakening, visit this location. 

The Awakening is set for North American release on March 11 on Cruz Del Sur Music. 

A previously released album track, "Sacred Signs," is now available for free download. 

To access the MP3, follow the link below. (subscription to Cruz Del Sur Music's email newsletter required): http://cruzdelsurmusic.bandcamp.com/track/sacred-signs

DARK FOREST was forged in the Black Country, England by guitarist Christian Horton. For just over a decade they have been delivering their uniquely rousing, defiant heavy metal to the world. With the release of their self-made EPs in 2007, the band quickly gained the attention and support of the heavy metal underground, both in England and abroad, and then went from strength to strength, gigging across Europe and the UK and releasing their self titled debut album in 2009, then Dawn of Infinity in 2011.

In 2012 DARK FOREST recruited the outstanding vocalist Josh Winnard as their new front man and shortly afterwards also gained the incredible talents of guitarist Pat Jenkins. With this new line up, the band immediately began writing fresh material and entered the recording studio in June 2013 to produce their third album The Awakening.

The album is recorded in 444hz instead of the standardized 440hz tuning. The decision was based by studying the lost "Solfeggio frequencies", original sound frequencies which were apparently used in Ancient Gregorian Chants and were believed to impart "spiritual blessings when sung in harmony"* and also by studying the nefarious origins of 440hz. Tuning to 444hz corresponds to a "C" of 528hz on the Solfeggio Frequency Scale, the exact frequency used by genetic biochemists to repair broken DNA.  This frequency is also believed to encourage "Transformation and Miracles."

DARK FOREST's innate sense of melody remains intact on The Awakening, as well as the band's trademarked epic twin-guitar dueling, but this time the album is permeated by a general sense of oppression and sorrow and sounds much more reflective than their previous works. Not by coincidence, The Awakening opens with the ending lines of Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem " The Mask of Anarchy" and ends with the anthem "Sons of England".  The awakening must be both spiritual and intellectual and through the rediscovery of our roots and a connection to nature, must lead all humanity to remember the truth - that we are infinite consciousness and we are one. This is the realization that will defeat the global control system of the elite and set humanity free.

www.facebook.com/Darkforestuk

www.cruzdelsurmusic.com

BENEDICTUM w/ Special Guest LEATHER LEONE Confirmed for Warriors Of Metal Fest VII

February 14, 2014  Cincinnati, Ohio --The Warriors of Metal, Inc. non-profit organization is honored to welcome back Arizona's female-fronted heavy metal act BENEDICTUM, along with their special guest,US female metal matriarch LEATHER LEONE (CHASTAIN) for her exclusive Midwest metalfest performance at the 7th annual Warriors Of Metal Festival. 

Benedictum vocalist, Veronica "The V" Freeman states: "We are so damned excited to play at the Warriors Of Metal Fest VII this year. It was a blast for me to be part of the crowd and announce a few bands last year as co-host of the event and be a part of that metal community, but it will be even better to actually play. Now, top that off with the fact that we will be bringing with us the talented and crazy Leather Leone of Chastain to jam some old and new Chastain tunes! I encourage everyone to come out and support metal and have a kickass time with us and all the great bands performing. We love ya! The V, Benedictum"

Leather Leone also comments: "I am stoked, not only to be getting much wanted stage time, but to be able to share it with Columbus, Ohio, not to mention with my friend, the powerhouse, Miss V herself! I will be ready; I will metal your brains out!"

The official video for BENEDICTUM's "Scream," taken from their 2013 Frontier Records release Obey, is now playing at this location. 

www.benedictum.net

www.facebook.com/Benedictum.Official

www.facebook.com/LeatherLeone

Bands confirmed for Pre-Fest Showcase on Thursday, June 26 at O'Sheckeys Live Bar & Grill include:  ETERNAL LEGACY (headliner) AUTOMATON, DEADIRON, LOWER 13, DETHRATS, GRAVE ROBBER, SPLIT THE ABYSS and WINTERHYMN. 

Warriors Of Metal Fest VII confirmed bands thus far for the main Fest on Friday, June 27 & Saturday June 28 include: ARMORY, A SOUND OF THUNDER, A TORTURED SOUL, BENEDICTUM w/ special guest LEATHER LEONE, BEYOND FALLEN, BURNING SHADOWS, CELLADOR, CRUSADER, FLESH ENGINE, LORDS OF THE TRIDENT, MITHRIDIUM, RESISTANCE,  RESTLESS BREED, and SHALLOW GROUND.

Keep up-to-date with all of the developments such as band announcements and ticket information for next year's show through the Warrior's of Metal Fest's Facebook page: www.facebook.com/warriorsofmetal

SAVAGE MESSIAH CONFIRMED FOR HARD ROCK HELL ROAD TRIP IN IBIZA

London's SAVAGE MESSIAH have been confirmed for this year's Hard Rock Hell Road Trip in Ibiza, following the release of their upcoming new album, THE FATEFUL DARK.

The festival's final year visiting the party island of Ibiza is due to take place from May 14th to May 21st and also features the likes of THE QUIREBOYS, VARGAS BLUES BAND, EVIL SCARECROW and more.

SAVAGE MESSIAH lead guitarist JOFF BAILEY comments:

"We're pleased to announce that we'll be slammin' down our heavy metal stamp on the shores of Ibiza as part of the Hard Rock Hell Road Trip!  As it's the last one to be held there before it changes location, we promise to smash your heads even harder!  Sun, sand, sea… and Savage Messiah!  Gonna be mental!  See all you sun-soaked Savages there!!"

For tickets and more information about Hard Rock Hell, go to http://www.hrhroadtrip.com

See SAVAGE MESSIAH on tour at the following shows:

Mar. 02 - London, UK - Barfly
Mar. 05 - York, UK - Fibbers
Mar. 06 - Glasgow, UK - Audio
Mar. 07 - Manchester, UK - Sound Control
Mar. 08 - Wolverhampton, UK - Slade Rooms
Mar. 13 - Pwllheli, UK - Hammerfest
Apr. 19 - Norwich, UK - Thrashersaurus Festival
May 14-21 - San Antonio, Ibiza - Hard Rock Hell Road Trip

THE FATEFUL DARK, is due to be released on March 10th in Europe and March 18th in the USA.  The album is available to pre-order now from the Earache Webstore on CD with an exclusive bonus disc featuring three cover tracks, and is also available on limited edition coloured vinyl LP including a bonus 10" vinyl featuring four cover tracks.

Pre-order the album now from the Earache Webstore in Europe at http://webstore.earache.com/savage-messiah or in North America at http://uswebstore.earache.com/savage-messiah

THE FATEFUL DARK is also available to pre-order now on iTunes, including three bonus cover tracks and three instant grat tracks, at http://bit.ly/fatefuldarkitunes

Listen to two new SAVAGE MESSIAH tracks from the upcoming album:

"Minority of One" - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCLbE-cfkrg
"Cross of Babylon" - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rj5Ts57_U24

SAVAGE MESSIAH recently took part in a photoshoot in London with renowned photographer PETER BESTE, famous for his photos of the early black metal scene in Norway.  View some photos from the shoot:

http://earacherecords.com/myspace/sm_peterbeste1.jpg
http://earacherecords.com/myspace/sm_peterbeste2.jpg

Get more SAVAGE MESSIAH news and info at:

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/SavageMessiahMetal
Twitter - http://twitter.com/savagemessiah

Shadow Kingdom Records Announce Special 2 CD Reissue of Pale Divine's "Cemetery Earth"

Shadow Kingdom Records is proud to announce a special double-CD reissue of PALE DIVINE's 2007 release Cemetery Earth on February 18 .The fully remastered Cemetery Earth album is contained on disc one, while disc two contains Demo 2006, as well as live and rehearsal material. 

  

Shadow Kingdom owner Tim McGrogran had this to say about the reissue:

"The third Pale Divine album is probably right where the band envisioned their sound to be when they first started their career. They are the masters at blending 70s psychedelic blues jamming with sinister dark heavy traditional doom metal. There are not too many bands that are able to do what they can do which makes them the big fish in a small pond if you're into Psych/Doom. The guitar leads sweep you away, but also gently bring you back to the heart of the song. The addition of John Gaffney (songwriter for Sinister Realm) on bass added different dimension to this album that helped them grow as a band."

Stream selections from Cemetery Earth at shadowkingdomrecords.bandcamp.com.

A CD/shirt/button/patch bundle is now available for order at store.shadowkingdomrecords.com.

Follow PALE DIVINE on FACEBOOK www.shadowkingdomrecords.com  shadowkingdomrecords.bandcamp.com  www.facebook.com/ShadowKingdomRecords

Feedback Matters

   As part of rolling out these Strange Highways episodes I've always e-mailed the links for each new one posted to everyone we interviewed. Sure we want to promote the show, I mean it would be silly not to. Also over time I got a feeling that everyone we talked to looked back fondly on that period. Sure the album didn't do as well as expected but their shared experiences were good. A little part of me was curious if the participants listened to any of the episodes so far and if so what did they think of them. I understand they are under no obligation to do this, heck they made my year by just saying yes and talking to us. Well I got an e-mail last night from guitarist Tracy G who said that he had listened and so far they were all "fucking great and kickass". Any feedback is appreciated but when someone from the actual band who played on the album comes back positively it makes it extra special.

Richie.

A SOUND OF THUNDER Confirmed for Warriors Of Metal Fest VII

If you were still undecided about going to Warriors of Metal this year this single announcement should make the decision for you.

February 11, 2014  Cincinnati, Ohio --The Warriors of Metal, Inc. non-profit organization is happy to announce that one of the most active Washington DC area female-fronted powerm etal bands, A SOUND OF THUNDER, has been confirmed to give an exclusive  Midwest performance at the 7th annual Warriors Of Metal Fest to be held at O'Sheckys LIVE Bar & Grill on June 27th and 28th in Columbus, Ohio.

Band vocalist Nina Osegueda states: "Playing at Warriors of Metal is a dream come true! I've wanted to play this fest for years, so I'm hella-excited to finally be able to not just play with these bands, but see them too!"

The song "My Disease," featuring Blaze Bayley, from their last release Times Arrow has been posted at this location. 

Bands confirmed for Pre-Fest Showcase on Thursday, June 26 at O'Sheckeys Live Bar & Grill include:  ETERNAL LEGACY (headliner) AUTOMATON, DEADIRON, LOWER 13, DETHRATS, , GRAVE ROBBER,  SPLIT THE ABYSS and WINTERHYMN. 

Warriors Of Metal Fest VII confirmed bands thus far for the main Fest on Friday, June 27 & Saturday June 28 include: ARMORY, A SOUND OF THUNDER, A TORTURED SOUL, BEYOND FALLEN, BURNING SHADOWS, CELLADOR, CRUSADER, FLESH ENGINE, LORDS OF THE TRIDENT, MITHRIDIUM, RESISTANCE,  RESTLESS BREED, and SHALLOW GROUND.

Keep up-to-date with all of the developments such as band announcements and ticket information for next year's show through the Warrior's of Metal Fest's Facebook page: www.facebook.com/warriorsofmetal

MASS INFECTION Return with "For I Am Genocide" April 1 on Comatose Music

Greek death dealers MASS INFECTION prepares to dominate the death metal scene in 2014 with their new, highly-anticipated full-length album, For I Am Genocide. This is the follow up to their 2009 release The Age of Recreation. 

MASS INFECTION has crushed skulls with their precision brutality since 2003. They have certainly proven to be a supreme force with their skillful and technical style of catchy death metal. Mass Infection is strongly influenced by bands like Deeds of Flesh, Hate Eternal and Severe Torture... so you can expect a blistering assault of barbaric insanity!

Album track "Praised by all the Entities" is now streaming at www.comatosemusic.com.

(Alternate YouTube link - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33OScqE0X-w)

1. Praised By All the Entities

2. The Scourge of Living Forms

3. Hierarchy of the Highest Abomination

4. Beholding the Throne

5. Unearthly Legion

6. Maelstrom of Endless Suffering

7. Beyond Perpetuation

8. Nihilism Reigns

9. The Genocide Revealed

MASS INFECTION on Facebook

twitter.com/mass_infection

Check out the COMATOSE MUSIC webstore for a huge selection of brutality on CD and vinyl. Buy 3 CDs, get 1 free, buy 6, get 2; buy 9 get 3! Tons of merch, specials, pre-orders and more also available.  www.comatosemusic.com   www.facebook.com/comatosemusiclabel

Nice Start To The Day

   My first interview of 2014 today and I'm in total fan boy mode. It's with Ty Tabor from Kings X and a discussion about all their studio releases in chronological order. We spent over 90 minutes talking to him. That will be up at a later date. Great guy.

Richie

HELLION ‘To Hellion And Back’ The Anthology- 2CD Anthology 1983-2014 due Tuesday, April, 1st 2014

Los Angeles-based female-fronted metallers HELLION have inked a contract with London-based HNE/CHERRY RED RECORDS.  The first of three HELLION albums set for release this year is a 2-disc anthology entitled TO HELLION AND BACK, which will be released on April 1, 2014, and the first 1,000 copies will be autographed by the band's singer, ANN BOLEYN.

TO HELLION AND BACK chronicles the band’s beginnings from 1982, to the present, and features new music from Hellion.  In 1983, when the term “female metal singer” did not exist, HELLION’s demo recordings (released as a self-titled Mini-LP) climbed to Number 6 in England’s rock charts.  In America, HELLION however was regarded by the corporate music world as “too heavy” for a band with a female singer.  Despite never releasing an album on a major record label, Hellion was the first female-fronted metal band to be featured on MTV and VH-1 and was also the first U.S. metal band to perform in the former-Soviet Union on a MONSTERS OF ROCK festival. 

TO HELLION AND BACK features a collection of fan-favourites, hard-to-find recordings, and previously unreleased tracks.  Among the collection are also two songs that were produced by RONNIE JAMES DIO at the legendary SOUND CITY recording studio.

The musicians enlisted by powerhouse vocalist Ann Boleyn for the new HELLION include drummer Simon Wright (AC/DC, QUEENSRŸCHE, DIO, DIO DISCIPLES), keyboardist Scott Warren (DIO, HEAVEN & HELL), Swedish import bassist Bjorn Englen (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, DIO DISCIPLES), and up-and-coming lead guitarist Maxxxwell Carlisle. 

HELLION’s new tracks were produced by legendary British studio icon Ken Scott, who has produced iconic albums, including DAVID BOWIE's "Hunky Dory", "The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars", "Aladdin Sane" and "Pinups". A top producer at Abbey Road Studios, Scott is also acknowledged as one of the five principal engineers for THE BEATLES.  He has engineered countless classic works, including GEORGE HARRISON's "All Things Must Pass", ELTON JOHN's "Madman Across The Water", "Honky Chateau" and "Don't Shoot Me I'm Only The Piano Player."  Other credits include gold and platinum albums by SUPERTRAMP, DAVID BOWIE, MISSING PERSONS, KANSAS, and more. Scott recently said of the comparison between working with David Bowie and Ann Boleyn: "Working with Bowie or working with Ann of HELLION, you've got sheer talent.” Acknowledging Boleyn as the driving force propelling the band, Scott notes: "Over the years, the musicians have changed. The one musician that has always been the same is Ann. So once again, it's new musicians. The one constant thing about HELLION is Ann, and her incredible voice."

Says Wright of working with Boleyn and HELLION: "She's tried to stay true to that heaviness and a certain darkness. She's sticking to the same formula, just different musicians though."

HELLION will tour in Europe, and the UK in 2014 and are expected to appear on a number of major festivals. The cover artwork was designed by Italian artist Gaetano Di Falco and inspired by the photography of P.G. Brunelli.

TRACK LISTING

DISC ONE 1. Backstabber 2. Driving Hard 3. Don’t Take No For An Answer 4. Break The Spell 5. Up From The Depths 6. Run For Your Life 7. Get Ready 8. Witching Hour 9. Screams In The Night 10. Upside Down Guitar Solo/ 11. The Hand 12. Bad Attitude 13. Tower Of Air

DISC TWO 1. Nevermore 2. Exciter 3. The Evil One 4. Breakdown 5. The Black Book 6. Living In Hell 7. Stormrider 8. Demon Attack 9. Resurrection/Will Not Go Quietly 10. Shit (Is Gonna Hit The Fan) 11. Dead and Gone 12. Dream Deceiver 13. Hell Has No Fury

The TO HELLION AND BACK CD will be available through The Omega Order for pre order, by visiting here:  

http://www.theomegaorder.com/hellion

To view HELLION's video blog, visit here: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGIUpBo7ZzE&feature=youtu.be

Left to right:  Maxxxwell Carlisle (guitar), Simon Wright (drums), Bjorn Englen (bass), and Ann Boleyn (vocals).  Not pictured Scott Warren (keyboards).

SHROUD OF DESPONDENCY to Release 'Tied to a Dying Animal' February 12

Milwaukee, Wisc., extreme metal entity SHROUD OF DESPONDENCY will self-release a double-album journey into the abyss called Tied to a Dying Animal on February 12.

Always prolific, creative, and fiercely independent, SHROUD OF DESPONDENCY have outdone themselves this time. While 2012's Pine and 2011's Dark Meditations in Monastic Seclusion were very well received as black metal albums, Tied to a Dying Animal is a more expansive beast. The heavy metal songs are heavier and more violent while the acoustic songs are more dramatic and enveloping. Tied to a Dying Animal was born out of the desire to find commonality in these seemingly different styles of music.  

What better way to exaggerate that commonality than with an absorbing double album, inclusive of four bonus tracks?

Guitarist Rory Heikkila tells the two-part tale as follows:

Part 1: "For Innocence, Beauty, and Those Who Defile" is the metal portion recorded at Howl Street Recordings by Shane Hochstetler. Here a variety of metal sub-genres can be heard. Influences of Black Metal (EMPEROR and ENSLAVED), Death Metal (IMMOLATION, MORBID ANGEL, and BOLT THROWER), Thrash Metal (SLAYER, MEGADETH) can be heard alongside MERCYFUL FATE or ROOT. Some KING CRIMSON influence can even be heard.  

Part 2: "For Those Who Leave and Find Better Devils", is an acoustic affair recorded across three studios. Neo Classical acoustic guitar instrumentals and American Folk music are both on display along with a variety of percussive instruments, vocals, synths, and even a Theremin. The only rule that applies to both albums is that they explore the despair and alienation of city life. Each set of lyrics has a character struggling to reconcile moral urges with the natural savagery of human existence, a conflict exasperated by the constant motion of civilization. Each song pits the individual against the group.

For a more intimate exploration of lyrical themes and inspiration, a detailed explanation of all the friends and musicians who helped with the effort, and to stream Parts 1 and 2 of Tied to a Dying Animal in full please visit shroudofdespondency.bandcamp.com.

shroudofdespondency.bandcamp.com

www.facebook.com/shroudofdespondency

twitter.com/sodespondency

https://plus.google.com/101738077564515060943