French melodic metallers Alwaid have confirmed the new run of UK dates with London-based goths Orpheum and Spanish tragic metallers Suddenlash, following a series of set backs. The tour is still set to take place in April and will begin in Birmingham and end in Oxford, with Northern Symphony Festival still part of the tour. The dates are as follow:
14th April - Birmingham - Scurffy Murphy's 15th April - Manchester - Rebellion 16th April - Selby - Northern Symphony Festival 17th April - Oxford - The Cellar
Following the release for their second full-length album, A New Dawn, Birmingham pro-power metallers Dakesis have announced dates for their upcoming UK tour in support of the new album. Tour dates are as follow:
27th March - Birmingham - Quinphonic Festival 1st April - Camden - The Black Heart 21st April - Wakefield - The Snooty Fox* 22nd April - Bridlington - The Londesborough* 23rd April - Newcastle - Head Of Steam* 24th April - Sheffield - South Sea Live* 28th April – Leicester - Victoria Biker’s Pub 29th April – Cardiff - Fuel 30th April – Grantham - Grantham College 7th May – Keele - Muses of Metal Festival
*With Sellsword
Dakesis will also be embarking on additional three UK dates at the end of May with Finnish metal lords Thunderstone. Dates are as follow:
26th May – Camden - The Black Heart 27th May – Brimingham - The Asylum 2 28th May – Sheffield - The Corporation
Theatres Des Vampires - Italy's leading metal band for all things vampyric - are set to return to the UK in April 2016 for their first UK show in five years. The vampire metal coven, fronted by Sonya Scarlett, have been announced to headline the Midnight Waltz at the Northern Symphony Festival, where they will join the likes of Alwaid, Suddenlash and Orpheum plus a whole range of bands that are still to be announced.
Formed in 1994 by former vocalist Lord Vampyr, Theatres Des Vampires have rose through the ranks of Europe's metal scene and have gone onto release several studio albums with another currently in the works.
The line-up for Northern Symphony Festival is currently as follows:
Midnight Waltz Stage: Theatres Des Vampires Alwaid (Special guest appearance) Orpheum Suddenlash (UK festival debut)
Infernal Orchestra Stage:
TBA
Further bands are still to be announced.
A limited number of early bird tickets are still available for £10 from this location. Tickets will be priced at the full price of £15 at midnight 15th November or when all early bird tickets sell out.
Northern Symphony Festival is the UK's only symphonic metal festival and will take place on Saturday 16th April 2016 at The Venue and The Riverside in Selby, North Yorkshire.
The event is 14+. Further details can be found at the festivals Facebook page.
Dutch metal band Delain have announced that Merel Bechtold is now a permanent and additional member of the band. In their announcement, the band stated that they decided to adopt Merel into the family and use double guitar power. This will no doubt add a heavier dynamic to Delain's sound.
Merel commented, saying:
I'm excited to become a permanent Delain member and hugely looking forward to the upcoming tours and albums. See you on the road!
Delain start their European tour later this month. Further details at this location.
Leaves' Eyes have been a power house on the global symphonic metal scene for more than a decade now. The majority of their discography takes its influence - at least lyrically - from the old stories and history of the Nordic nations, with Symphonies of the Night being an exception to that. To any Leaves' Eyes fan, it will come at no surprise that King of Kings is based around the history of Harald Fairhair, the first King of Norway, though my thoughts on the album will be reserved for another day. For now, I'm focusing on the band's latest single from the album, Halvdan The Black - who is best known as the father of the good king Harald Fairhair.
The song begins with the haunting sound of ritualistic tribal drums and chanting before the two shieldwalls of metal instrumentation and choir vocals clash on the proverbial battleground. Liv's vocals soar majestically throughout the song, like valkyries riding towards Valhalla whilst Alex's voice provides that thunderous savagery one would imagine a Norseman's voice to be like when screaming awe-inspiring battle cries. The guitar passages are memorable and lay down the backbone of this song alongside the drums. The orchestration and choirs weave a cold atmosphere of northern tragedy into the song, adding emphasis to the emotions in the music and Liv's voice.
From the sounds of this one track, Leaves' Eyes are still travelling forth with their new sound but are conjuring up spirits of their old sound in their everlasting journey to new musical horizons. Hopefully the album lives upto the expectations that have been made by this one single.
If you've never had the pleasure of listening to Powerwolf, then you are missing out. The band stray from the standard norms of power metal, focusing on darker lyrical subjects and painting their faces with corpsepaint. Blessed & Possessed is their sixth studio album.
The album opens up with the gothically tragic sounding title track, mixing a flurry of guitars, haunting organs and soaring vocals into song. The chorus hooks you, leaving you wanting to hear more of the song. Dead Until Dark greets you with an assault of melodic passages and poignant vocal melodies though the lyrics are predictably Powerwolf's. The varying instrumentation in Army of the Night make for perfect dance partners, as if the song itself were a grand-yet-crepuscular ball with music all of its own.
Armata Strigoi (allegedly Romanian for Undead Army) weaves together a tale of vampires as the instruments parallel one another following its grandiose opening. We Are The Wild comes across as a reworking of Sacred & Wild in places and in other sections, as a completely different song all together. The vocals and music travel at different paces but this works out well as both reach their intended destination. The highlight of the song is the august guitar solo that is followed by emotive orchestration.
Higher Than Heaven races forth with galloping organ steps and jumping guitars, both of which are backed up by the hefty sounding drums. Where as Christ & Combat is a well-planned battle strategy, commandeered by the authoritative vocals that lead the guitars and organs into a bloody foray with reinforcements provided by the drums and bass. Sanctus Dominus (Latin for Holy Lord) is very much like a hymn in the chorus but ignoring that one flaw with the track, the guitar flesh out a very NWOBHMesque approach to their sound and the vocals display a dynamic range.
Sacramental Sister begins like a guitar passage from Iron Maiden's Hallowed Be Thy Name and provides some energetic moments and really demonstrates the talents of each member. All You Can Bleed is a very poetic track, offering little nibbles of darkness before the dusk-tinted sobriety of Let There Be Night closes the album with atmospheric orchestration and twilit vocals.
Blessed & Possessed is just the latest chapter in Powerwolf's ever-darkening saga and it shows that they have no intention of slowing down and letting a younger pack take their place just yet. With a combination of old and new influences alike, this is one of the best power metal albums of the decade.
Midlands gothic power band Aonia have been confirmed to support Red Rum at Valkyrian Festival in November. The news comes following the recent announcement of Aonia postponing their European dates which were originally scheduled for later this month.
Valkyrian Festival will take place on Saturday 21st November at The Venue and The Riverside in Selby, North Yorkshire. Tickets are £10 and are available from this location.
Northern Symphony Festival has announced the first two bands for the 2016 edition of the festival.
Spanish theatrical metallers Suddenlash have been confirmed to their UK festival debut at Northern Symphony Festival. With a sense of tragedy that laments through their music and a strong sense of talent, Suddenlash are one band that must be seen live.
You can read my thoughts on their latest single at this location.
Joining the line-up as special guests are none other than the mystifying French melodic metal band Alwaid. Already with two UK tours under their belts and an appearance at Valkyrian Festival 2014, Alwaid are becoming recognised as one of France's finest musicial exports! The band comments:
It's both an honour and a great pleasure for Alwaid to be part of the next Northern Symphony Fest edition! The projet is young but has gained an immediate success showing that symphonic metal (in the widest sense of the genre!) has not overstayed its welcome yet. We know we'll get to share the stage with amazingly talented bands and meet with a madly enthusiastic audience, can't wait!
Midlands-based metal septet Aonia have announced that they're postponing their upcoming European dates with Alwaid following the recent development of illness with one of the members' partners. Alwaid will still be playing the advertised dates, which can be found below. In their announcement, Aonia said:
With heavy hearts, we must announce that we have to postpone the planned European tour this July with our good friends Alwaid. Sadly, the partner of one of our members has been diagnosed with a cancerous lymphoma. The doctors have begun treatment, and - as anyone who has undergone chemotherapy can attest - the side effects have left them extremely weak and ill. Our member feels unable to leave the country while their partner is so ill, a decision which we all agree with 100%. We also feel that embarking on our first foray into Europe with one member missing would be the wrong thing to do – and so, the only right thing to do in this circumstance is to withdraw. Alwaid and their support acts will still be appearing at the shows as planned, and we are extremely grateful to Alwaid for the support and understanding that they have shown. We thank you in advance, our friends and fans – the Aonia family – for your support while we help our bandmate through this horrible time.
As stated above, Alwaid will still be playing the European shows. Dates are as follow:
24th July - Rock Classic, Brussels (B) 25th July - De Verlichte Geest, Roselare (B) 26th July - The Pit, Antwerp (B) 27th July - The Sound Dog, Breda (NL) 28th July - Le Midland, Lille (F)
Dutch metal sextet Seventh Sin have decided to call it a day after 12 years. The announcement was made via Facebook only moments ago. The announcement reads as follow:
After 12 years Seventh Sin have decided to call it a day. The band will split up after doing another 4 shows in The Netherlands and Belgium in July and September. After that, all band members will go their own way.
We feel sad about splitting up, but we are looking back on great times and awesome memories, things we will be talking to our grandchildren about. About having the nerve to talk to a promotor about wanting to get on stage and ending up with a support show for Kamelot, about sharing stage with awesome bands like Epica, Delain, Leaves' Eyes, ReVamp, Xandria and Stream of Passion, about touring the UK with Edenbridge, about meeting people, making new friends, sharing a passion, enjoying every single minute of a gig….. Etc.
We want to thank all fans, promotors, DJ's, reviewers, editors of magazines, sound and light crews, all bands we had the privilege to share the stage with, all stagehands and everyone else who made it possible for us to live our dream.
We will be thankful forever.
Please know that we are saying goodbye with pain in our hearts and we will not leave you without a proper farewell show. We will keep you posted on everything that is to come.
The band's final shows are as follow:
18th July - Babes of Metal - Jan Hertog - Eisden - Maasmechelen (B) with Nightqueen and Valkyre
25th July – Chopperclub Run – Maaseik (B) (Private gig)
5th September – Uitmarkt – Tuchthuis – Eindhoven (NL)
- T.B.A. - Seventh Sin farewell show – NL
Dutch-Mexican metal band Stream of Passion have been confirmed to join Anneke Van Giersbergen's The Gentle Storm at three shows in October as support. Dates are as follow:
3rd October - Breda, Mezz 9th October - Groningen, Vera 10th October - Ulft, DRU Cultuurfabriek
Dutch metal titans Epica have announced their first show in Calgary in five years. The event will take place on 20th September at MacEwan Hall with support from Eluveitie and special guests The Agonist. Tickets are available from this location.
Wolfish power metallers Powerwolf have recently unveiled the official video for their single, Army of the Night, taken from their upcoming album Blessed & Possessed. The album will be released via Napalm Records in July. The video can be viewed below.
The band commented on the video, saying:
Army Of The Night is one of the many songs of Blessed & Possessed we can't wait to perform live.
Already the very first time we played that song during the songwriting, the energy and dynamics literally blew us away and we felt like this is going to be a must-play. While many of the songs on Blessed & Possessed are very detailed and elaborated, this one is probably one of straightest and most compact Powerwolf songs to date.
Blessed & Possessed track listing:
01. Blessed & Possessed 02. Dead Until Dark 03. Army Of The Night 04. Armata Strigoi 05. We Are The Wild 06. Higher Than Heaven 07. Christ & Combat 08. Sanctus Dominus 09. Sacramental Sister 10. All You Can Bleed 11. Let There Be Night
You can also expect to see our review of Army of the Night in the next couple of days.
Finnish melodic metal quintet Crimson Sun are known for their in your face style of playing and attitude. Recently, the band signed to Canadian label Maple Metal Records and will release their debut album, Towards The Light, worldwide on 3rd August. As part of the deal Maple Metal Records will re-release the band’s 2013 EP The Border, recorded with the same line up as the new album.
Towards the Light was recorded last Fall at Deep Noise Studios, Kouvola, Fi with Saku Moilanen, and the mastering was done by Jacob Hansen (Epica, Volbeat, Amaranthe, Primal Fear) in Denmark. The album cover art is by renowned Serbian artist Slobicus Doomicus. An official video for the title track Towards the Light will be streamed online to coincide with the album's release.
Track listing for Towards the Light:
1. The Storm2. Eye of the Beholder3. Awaken4. Towards the Light5. The Herald6. Portrait of a Ghost7. Enter the Silence8. The Spark9. Clockwork Heart10. Memories Burning
Crimson Sun was founded in 2001 by guitarist Joni Junnila, and the band went through various member changes before settling down with the quintet that recorded their EP The Border in 2013. Crimson Sun will be supporting Finnish metallers Poisonblack on a mini-tour in August, with some Fall dates to be announced soon with other artists. Dates are as follow:
14/8 - Dark River Festival 2015, Honkala, Fi w/ Poisonblack, Shear, Ranger, Ghost Brigade 14/8 - Virgin Oil, Helsinki w/ Poisonblack
Mainland Europe is home to many talented bands, be it the big hitters of the scene such as Epica or Nightwish to the lesser known forces such as Alwaid and Hydra. It is also home to one band in particular, a band with such an enthralling sound, it's hard to break away from the hypnosis of their music. I am of course, referring to Spanish metal band Suddenlash.
Shelter was released as a single last month (May 2015) and it's taken from the band's album Soul's Revenge. The song begins with the emotive ballad of piano keys before the tragic waltz of orchestration leads the dance towards the blazing vocals and sharp guitar riffs. The vocals and music make for perfect dance partners, each changing with the tempo and atmosphere of the composition. The orchestration that shimmers throughout the track bolsters the emotion and sense of foreboding tragedy, allowing for the heavier elements of the song to go about their business, carefully yet fiercely stepping with the august vocals.
While I have yet to hear the whole album, Shelter is a captivating piece of music and strongly portrays the essence and talents of Suddenlash. I will be very surprised if they're not touring Europe and playing major festivals by this time next year.
French melodic metallers Heonia have been confirmed, alongside Birmingham based progressive power metal quartet Dakesis, to appear on the Valhalla Stage at the final edition of Valkyrian Festival. Heonia and Dakesis will be playing alongside the likes of blackened doom tyrants Severed Heaven as well as Victorian-styled steam punks A Clockwork Opera and dark power metal unit Winter Storm.
Heonia and Dakesis are also in the process of organising a few UK dates around the time of the festival.
Valkyrian Festival will take place on 21st November at The Venue and The Riverside in Selby. The event is sponsored by Femetalism.co.uk. Advance tickets are a mere £10 and can be purchased here. Further details can be found at this location.
Liverpuddlian folk metallers Cathar have recently announced that they will be supporting NWOBHM legends Diamond Head at the Live Rooms in Chester. The show will take place on 25th June. Tickets are priced at £15 and can be purchased from this location.
Cathar released their debut EP The Grimoire earlier this year. You can read our review of it here.
Finland's premier metal outfit Nightwish have announced a 26 date headlining tour of North America in 2016. The tour will start on 19th February in Sayreville, New Jersey and is scheduled to hit six Canadian cities plus Pittsburgh, Anaheim and New Orleans before finishing up in Tampa, Florida on 23rd March. Joining Nightwish again on the North American continent will be Dutch metallers Delain, who have just been on tour with Nightwish around North America.
Advance tickets for the confirmed tour dates are now on sale exclusively at EnterTheVault.com. A limited number of VIP meet-and-greet tickets (which include a poster signed by the band and a tour program) are available for each show for purchase. Tickets will go on sale 6th June at all other outlets.
Tour dates are as follow:
19th Feb - Starland Ballroom - Sayreville, NJ 20th Feb - Webster Theater - Hartford, CT 21st Feb - Metropolis - Montreal, QC 22nd Feb - Music Hall - London, ON 24th Feb - Carnegie Music Hall - Pittsburgh, PA 25th Feb - LC Pavilion - Columbus, OH 26th Feb - Royal Oak Music Theatre - Royal Oak, MI 27th Feb - Rave - Milwaukee, WI 29th Feb - First Avenue - Minneapolis, MN 1st Mar - Burton Cummings Theatre - Winnipeg, MB 2nd Mar - O'Briens Events Center - Saskatoon, SK 3rd Mar - Winspear Center - Edmonton AB 5th Mar - MacEwan Hall Ballroom - Calgary, AB 6th Mar - Wilma Theatre -Missoula, MT 7th Mar - Showbox SoDo - Seattle, WA 08th Mar - Knitting Factory - Boise, ID 10th Mar - Knitting Factory - Reno, NV 11th Mar - City National Civic of San Jose - San Jose, CA 12th Mar - The Grove - Anaheim, CA 14th Mar - Rialto Theatre - Tucson, AZ 15th Mar - City Auditorium - Colorado Springs, CO 16th Mar - Uptown Theater - Kansas City, MO 18th Mar - Diamond Ballroom - Oklahoma City, OK 19th Mar - Aztec Music Hall - San Antonio, TX 20th Mar - New Orleans Civic Theatre - New Orleans, LA 21th Mar - Iron City Live - Birmingham, AL 23th Mar - The Ritz - Tampa, FL
Midlands and Yorkshire based Gothic power septet Aonia have been announce to support Norwegian-German metal titans Leaves' Eyes at The Corporation in Sheffield on 6th November. Also on the bill are Battlebeast and Dynosis.
Tickets for the show are £13 in advance and are available from all the usual outlets as well as The Corporation's website.
Commenting on the announcement, Aonia co-vocalist Melissa comments:
This is a huge honour for us to be supporting one of the best symphonic metal bands on the planet. We're massive fans of the band are are really looking forward to playing with Leaves' Eyes!
With a recent appearance at The Dames of Darkness with Sirenia and many more, Aonia are becoming a recongised name on the British metal scene. The band will also embark on a UK tour next week with Lost Effect and Alwaid. Dates are as follow:
27th May - HULL - O'Rileys 28th May - LEICESTER - The Shed 29th May - DUDLEY - Rock Zombie 30th May - LEEDS - Temple of Boom (Lost Effect will not be at this show) 31st May - SHEFFIELD - South Sea Live
Norwegian-German metallers Leaves' Eyes have recently announced that they'll be working with the London Voices choir for their upcoming album. The announcement came as a post on the band's official Facebook page and reads as follows:
Dear Fans & Friends, fantastic news! We proudly announce the collaboration with choir ensemble London Voices for the upcoming Leaves' Eyes album! Choir master, Terry Edwards, and the superb London Voices choir have been been working on blockbuster movies e.g. "Lord of the Rings", "Star Wars", "The Hobbit", "Harry Potter" or "Interstellar". Moreover, they added the perfect epic strength and spirit to our music! The recordings took place at the famous Angel Studios in London. Stay tuned for more details of the upcoming Leaves' Eyes album!
Leaves' Eyes recently headlined The Dames of Darkness Festival in Bilston and will return to the UK in November. Further details about the tour can be found at this location.
