Heart Through Sacrifice - Pride and Honour / Him

Time for some great Heavy Metal ! 

Prog metal story weavers, Heart Through Sacrifice, unveil their 4th single entitled:‘Pride and Honour / Him’. Continuing the dark fantasy tale of Heart Through Sacrifice, this chapter fleshes out the beast and showcases her power in true form.

This 4th release brings together the elements of the first 3 singles to make a full on intense experience, complete with guitar solos, melodic parts and a pounding pace!

The full Heart Through Sacrifice album is made up of 10 epic tracks and is laden with heavy guitars, frantic drums and electronic synths all which underpin powerful vocals courtesy of Corinne Cooper who narrates the story with beautiful melodies and vocal harmonies. Final mixing and mastering duties were carried out by Matt Bew (Whitehouse Studios, Reading, UK). 

The album is currently only available in physical form at gigs or from the band directly. A full digital release will follow in 2020. A graphic novel is also in the works and will accompany a wider release of the album with artwork by Bec Dennison of Bullet on a String who also designed the Heart Through Sacrifice logos and album design.

Heart Through Sacrifice is the project of NZ born, London based musician, producer and creative, Doug Rimington (ex Voodoo Diamond, Hold The Dawn, The Superhelix), who has combined his musicianship with his passion for storytelling and burgeoning flair for production. Performing all parts on the recording apart from vocals, he has created a cinematic prog metal adventure he hopes all will enjoy.

Speaking on the album and project as a whole, Doug explains, ‘I finally have something I am truly proud of, something that represents my creative career so far, that I feel is really special and I cannot wait to share it with everyone!’ 

The singles ‘Blood Stained Stone / The Boy’, ‘Born from Sin / The Beast’, ‘Eyes Of Gold / The Warrior’ and now ‘Pride and Honour / Him’ are out now on all digital platforms, instrumental versions are included with each track on Spotify and iTunes/ Apple Music.




Follow Heart Through Sacrifice on​ :​
https://www.instagram.com/heartthroughsacrifice/
https://www.facebook.com/heartthroughsacrifice
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCedjSEmySDX-7WePYJsJcwQ/videos

The Great Dictators - Killing Fields

Killing Fields is the new single from the Copenhagen-based indie rock trio The Great Dictators. It's an offbeat piece of electronic indie rock. Here we have influences from Leonard Cohen, The Psychedelic Furs and Kraftwerk. There’s a melancholic yet uplifting vibe to it - also when lead singer Dragut Lugalzagosi croons his lungs out: “In between your gutted dreams, turn to me.”

The song comes with a music video with old fuzzy footage from the first half of the 20th century. The clips might seem like distant memories and also tell us about today in the West. Auto Slug Lizard Gag the director of the video says: “We’ve just entered The Roaring Twenties 2.0 so we thought it was appropriate to put together pieces from the past and Western culture.”

The Great Dictators will release their new album ‘One Eye Opener’ April 17th via Celebration Records.

Links:
https://www.facebook.com/thegreatdictators
https://www.thegreatdictators.com
https://www.instagram.com/thegreatdictators
https://www.soundcloud.com/the-great-dictators
https://twitter.com/great_dictators
https://spoti.fi/2ZFMfen

Electric High - Harder To Justify

ELECTRIC HIGH is a brand new, high voltage, rock band from Bergen, Norway. Their first single 'Harder To Justify' is all you can expect from this band : pure rock'n'roll energy ! A great mix of hard and stoner rock with memorable riffs,exceptional guitar work, rhythm section as heavy as it gets and outstanding vocals, reveal the influences by bands like Wolfmother, Aerosmith and Black Sabbath.

The music video is unlike anything you have seen before. The video was filmed by a concert audience on their cell-phones, which gave some unique, bad-ass, and radically authentic footage — as seen through the eyes of the crowd.

Band Members:

THE MEMBERS are a driven bunch of rockers who also play in bands like Sahg and Emmerhoff & The Melancholy Babies.

PV Staff (Vocals)
Olav Iversen (Vocals)
Marius Mørch (Guitars)
Einride Torvik (Bass)
Tor Bjarne Bjelland (Drums)

Electric High is charged’n’ready with pure rock’n’roll power. GET ELECTRIFIED!

 

Links:

https://www.electrichighband.com/

https://www.facebook.com/ElectricHighBand/

https://www.instagram.com/electrichighband/

https://twitter.com/ELECTRICHIGH1

https://soundcloud.com/electrichigh

Prince of Sweden - Cabaret

Prince of Sweden is a singer-songwriter from South London. 

He learned guitar from a neighbour who lived opposite his house. His main musical education came, however, from his dad's one-man a capella rendition of Led Zeppelin's Black Dog.
 
His main influences are Arctic Monkeys, Leonard Cohen and Tom Waits.
 
Cabaret is a melodic pop rock song, with a riff that reminds of  Leonard Cohen's "Dance me to the end of love", smooth vocals and intricate lyricism. The track brings a retro feeling which is, at the same time, deeply personal.

Lyrically is about of trying to escape from something (or someone) but never quite managing. Prince of Sweden states that he's "taken an interest in permanently changing my address" but in the end he'd just "long for home". Instead he finds himself "in a quiet corner trying to unwind from your residency on the back of his mind".



Links:
https://princeofsweden.com
https://www.instagram.com/jamesphippen_/
https://www.facebook.com/princeofswedenmusic
https://soundcloud.com/user-801833827
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzJKV529_-jHJp7CRpYLR_Q
 

Dead Marthas - The Wildabeast

Dead Marthas is a power trio created in the Black Hills of South Dakota that plays original music. Inspired by the bands that are fueled by raw energy and emotion the band writes music with the intention of it being played live in front of a wild crowd.

Being a fairly new band together but not new to writing or playing in front of crowds, they make a hairy statement right out of the gates with their debut song The Wildabeast. The fuzzy distorted bass riff along with the howls and chaotic vocals of a band with nothing to lose makes you want to push the pedal to the floor and take the corner at full speed. The precise drums and the familiar rock 'n' roll guitar sound pumping out of the Orange Amplifiers and a 70’s Fender Bassman amp makes it pretty obvious who they grew up listening to and how it's only Rock 'n' Roll but they like it. 

The band was started for one purpose, to leave all the perfection at the door and instead make real music made by real people with real feelings and emotions. Recorded live together in the same room while trying to trap the spirit of a wild animal we give you:

Dead Marthas.
 
Band Members:
 

Vocals, Guitar / Scott Miller
Bass / Russ Hadden
Drums / Trevor Stine

 

Links:

https://www.deadmarthas.com/

https://www.facebook.com/deadmarthasofficial/

https://www.instagram.com/deadmarthasofficial/

WD-HAN - Icarus

Icarus is the perfect new-decade resolution to challenge the heights and reach for the sun, no matter what. 


Summertime Star Sign in November, saying goodbye to the past in haunting lyrics and deep, deep harmonics. Spaceman in December, disdaining the present in sharp angry rhythm. Now in January, Icarus, proclaiming the future in a driving, rocking, invincible message: no one can stop you. WD-HAN closed out one decade and opened the next with a triumvirate of songs celebrating life, all of it. Life isn’t always easy, but it’s yours to make better, and WD-HAN is right there with you through it all.
  
Versatile and creative lead guitar Cal, super-talented drummer Lea, and gritty-smooth singer Spencer meld almost-psychic synergy into original songs that dig into the heart and don’t let go.
Icarus is the perfect new-decade resolution to challenge the heights and reach for the sun, no matter what. They don’t get it? They don’t get you? Doesn’t matter. You’re the one flying. 

Starting the year at the Springboard West Festival in their California debut, WD-HAN has plans for tours in various parts of the US in 2020, while releasing a new song every 4-6 weeks. This is their year, their decade, and they want it to be your decade also.

“With a prelude offering reminiscences to Daughter, the sudden switch to anthemic Alt Rock in Icarus will have you on the edge of your proverbial seat. When in full swing, Icarus is a monster of a track full of rhythmic sultry Blues, yet those bluesy licks come with plenty of bite.” - Amelia Vandergast, A&R Factory Blog
 
“The energy is raw, tight and heavy crafting a young fresh new sound.” Mel, Foolish Dreams Music Blog



CONNECT WITH WD-HAN:
Website: www.wdhan.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/wdhanmusic
Instagram: www.instagram.com/wdhanband
Twitter: https://twitter.com/wdhan 

September Mourning - Volume III (EP 2020)

September Mourning are giving their fans a New Year's treat with the release of an animated video for "Overdose" as they simultaneously launch their new "Volume III" EP. The collection also includes an additional new song "Madness".  Rounding out the EP are an uncensored version of "Unholy" and "Hiding From Heaven".  The band has just announced a new round of tour dates that start in February (see below).

September says of "Overdose": "This is a song about falling in love with someone or something so hard that it consumes you...and that the process of being consumed is actually a beautiful thing.   In reference to another person, it mentions a certain uncertainty in the second verse, of that other person's view on life, love and having the courage to be deep in it.  The song reminds us that our views of life and love are our own and may not necessarily be shared by everyone and that's ok.  If you stay true to your heart and beliefs, eventually those with similar views find each other”.

She continues “The video is an extension of the same animated universe we created with "Hiding From Heaven", based on the September Mourning Graphic Novel. It takes place after Claire has finished playing the video game in the arcade. As Claire accepts September’s defeat in the “Hiding From Heaven” video game, a mystical flash of light appears and transports her to a world within the game.  The world is Mortem, the land of the dead.  Upon her arrival, she meets a shadowy figure that sets her on a quest into the Hotel Sanctuary to find 4 travelers and 3 artifacts”.

“Entering the Hotel Sanctuary Claire gets an uneasy feeling that there is more to the story than she has been told… Armed with the 3 artifacts and joined by her otherworldly compatriots, Claire finds the final obstacle to her return home is Fate…. We hope everyone likes the continuing saga of Claire, September and The Reapers”!

September Mourning released the "Volume 1" EP in 2015, and the full-length album "Volume 2" in 2016 - with singles "20 Below" and "Eye of the Storm" both reaching the Top 40 at Active Rock radio. The band released 2 singles in 2018: "Empire" and "Glass Animals".  Their "Unholy" and "Hiding From Heaven" singles, released earlier this year, were featured on key Hard Rock playlists on all major streaming services.  The band has amassed more than 5 million plays of their songs @ Spotify; and more than 6.8 million overall worldwide.  Their videos have been viewed more than 6.6 million times on YouTube, with 21,500+ subscribers to their Youtube channel. The songs on the new “Volume III” EP were produced by 5-time Grammy Award winning Chris Lord-Alge; along with Josh Napert, & Nick Scott. "Unholy" was produced by Sahaj Tictotin (Motley Crue, Otherwise, Starset, RA).

The band's striking visuals and dynamic, immersive stage show have helped propel them into a national touring act that has performed at Download (UK), Rock on the Range (Columbus, OH), Aftershock (Sacramento, CA), Comicpalooza (Houston, TX), Anime Midwest (Chicago, IL), as well as opening for Rob Zombie and other notable acts. They are already booked for the Incarceration Festival in 2020, with more to come.  

September Mourning is:
Emily Lazar (September) - Lead vocals
Rich Juzwick (Riven) - Lead Guitars, Backing vocals
Aaron Hoover (Wraith) - Guitars, Backing vocals
Kyle Mayer (Stitch) - Drums

“Volume III” - Track listing
 1). Unholy (Explicit)
 2). Hiding From Heaven
 3). Madness (Explicit)
 4). Overdose

Links:
Official website: http://www.septembermourning.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/septembermourning 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/septmbrmourning
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/septembermourning/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theseptembermourning
Spotify:  https://open.spotify.com/artist/3u6jopsj6GeZAHJAmfUxk1
Apple Music/iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/album/id/1486198302
Physical store: https://september-mourning-merch.myshopify.com/products/volume-iii
Bands In Town: https://www.bandsintown.com/a/241760 

The Curbside Choir - Prostitutes are people too

Alternative rock band. Guitar-driven songs with sometimes crazy lyrics. Somewhere between pop-punk and rock.



Links:
http://thecurbsidechoir.com/
https://soundcloud.com/user-245129104

Mallet - Rock n' Roll Heroes (2020)

In 2019 MALLET celebrated their 40^th anniversary. The album’s title track “Rock`n´Roll Hero”  is a tribute to the 80’s and thus to their own past, with a slight wink.

The album contains 14 original songs in which the band demonstrates their versatility.Once again, MALLET proof that you can find a home in many diverse styles without losing your own identity. MALLET still stands for melodic, dynamic Classic Rock.

“Rock´n´Roll Heroes” was recorded by Arne Neurand in the famous Horus Sound Studio in Hanover, Germany and mastered by Grammy nominated Mastering Guru Robin Schmidt at 24-96 Mastering Karlsruhe, Germany.
 

Links:
www.mallet.de

Hugh Morrison - The Other Side (2020)

A definite New Orleans vibe can be heard throughout this new release from Hugh Morrison. The title track 'The Other Side' features New Orleans Second Line rhythm along with distinctive brass instruments. Added to his usual folk-rock style!

Scottish-born singer/songwriter, Hugh Morrison is based in Houston,Texas. He plays and sings in a range of musical styles, but primarily Celtic/Rock. His main gig is lead singer with Murder the Stout who tour and perform at many festivals across the USA. Also, Morrison plays many solo gigs and guests with touring bands when his schedule allows. His main instruments are guitar and squeezebox.

Links:
https://touch.facebook.com/hughmorrisonmusic/?__tn__=C-R
http://www.twitter.com/hughmorrison
https://hughmorrison.bandcamp.com/album/the-other-side
https://www.reverbnation.com/hughmorrison
https://www.instagram.com/shuggieo/?hl=en 

Carnival Kid - We Used To Shout At You

We Used To Shout At You is the new single by Christian Stezycki's solo project Carnival Kid. It is full of energy and catchy song. The weird beat followed by the loud drums and the exquisite guitars, but also the expressive and clear vocals, give the song a unique character. The sound production is excellent and makes the track so impressive and so unpredictable that you never get bored. 

Lyrically, the song is about the lack of perspective in the songwriter's hometown. Christian Stezycki says about :"It's a nervous song, full of anger and desperation based on the feeling of seeing your hometown slowly die. And while my family was trying their best to make me stay or at least come back, everything else around almost violently seemed to push me away. There were no jobs, no shops, no perspective for my children and only radical or old people. And while everyone is singing about the clubs in Berlin, this is basically happening everywhere else around."

He also explains how the name of  Carnival Kid came out : "The 11th of November, eleven minutes past 11 o’clock in the morning, sees the beginning of carnival season in Germany. Many people, including myself, don’t really care about this. But  the 11th of November 2009, at 9 past 11 A.M., my son saw the light of day. Children born on this day are called “Faschingskinder” in Germany - carnival kids. And since this event changed basically every aspect of my life, including my perception, writing and interpretation of music, I felt it to be a pretty perfect name for a solo project.
Carnival also includes the idea of hiding behind a mask, which I am kind of doing in a linguistic sense when I am writing and singing in English (or when I’m writing this pseudo-international text). The kid-part of the name might give a hint to all the struggles you go through in your thirties, but I guess I better leave that to interpretation. And if this description made you laugh your ass off since it’s so cheesy, then that’s also some kind of carnival I suppose…"

The first two songs in 2020, "We Used To Shout At You" and "We Were The Shadows", have actually been written at around 2009, when his previous band Jovernanté decided to part ways and lots of great material got lost on the working bench. He recorded them again, changed them and now they are finally seeing the light of day.



Social:
www.Instagram.com/carnival_kid
www.Facebook.com/carnivalkid
www.Twitter.com/carnivalkid1111
https://carnivalkid.bandcamp.com/
https://soundcloud.com/carnival_kid
https://open.spotify.com/artist/2eKByeyzXiENWd2pswsOQf?si=amUHHgbDSsqqawCFZEb3KQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxEmf10IVM8
 

Miles Grindey - Make Up Your Mind

Miles Grindey is a guitarist from Southampton who, last year, released his first album “Caught in a Storm” and donated all the proceeds to the mental health charity, Mind. Miles was born in Southampton on January 11th 1995. From the age of nine, he began playing the guitar. During his time at school he discovered the music of Van Halen which inspired him to keep going. In March 2016, Miles performed with The Bones and Arrows on their only release “The Bones and Arrows EP” writing the chorus riff and solos for “Muddy Sunshine” and “Slow Light”. After that he pursued a solo career  releasing an EP 'Keeping My Sanity' in 2017 and a full album 'Caught in a Storm' in 2018.

Now, he is working on his upcoming second album and released the first single out of it entitled 'Make Up Your Mind' . It's a blues rock song with a great guitar work, clear vocals, melodic and catchy melodies.The sound production is very clear and professional. The track features Ian Michael Bruh on vocals, Wayne Viar on drums, Enrico Galetta on bass and Bill Hart on keys and the result of their great work is that it has achieved over 5000 streams on Spotify alone, proving to be popular with fans both new and old. Writing songs like 'Make Up Your Mind', Miles Grindey has the potential to become a big name in the guitar rock scene.

Miles says about the song:“It’s hard to believe that this song was born from my dodgy flat in Brighton during my final years of University. If you had told me that I was gonna be working with world class musicians in Atlanta I’d have fainted. Such a journey I’ve been on to record this and I can’t get over the quality of it, so many people to thank! The response to the song has been really mind-blowing to say the least!”

'Make Up Your Mind' released on all online platforms including iTunes, Spotify, Google Play and Amazon Music.

Links:

https://milesgrindey.com
https://facebook.com/GoGreenGoGrindey
https://twitter.com/MilesGrindey
https://instagram.com/MilesGrindey

Megan Black - Wooden Woman

A great female voice here. Wooden Woman is the second single from Scottish singer/songwriter Megan Black. It is a blues song with moody atmosphere which highlights the singer's unbelievable vocal abilities and her obvious influences from great artists such as Janis Joplin. 

Wooden Woman explores the disconnect we feel with mental health. Megan describes this as: “The helplessness of barely feeling human and becoming disassociated with your own emotions.” 

The lyrics are about someone else being present in the mind and body and controlling the person’s ability to connect fully with themselves and how they feel they should be. 

The song is in a minor key emphasising a sense of fear for the wooden woman returning however, there is also a sense of comfort within the steady flow of the song; always returning back to a certain point – the same way we become comfortable with a sense of misery or anxiety being present in our lives.

Links:
http://www.meganblackmusic.com
https://www.facebook.com/meganblackmusic/
https://twitter.com/MeganBlackMusic
https://www.instagram.com/meganblackmusic/
https://open.spotify.com/artist/3MqAu6C6vzxvdO1ezB1R46

Bungee - Studio Session (EP)

Studio Session is the new EP by the 5-piece rock band Bangee from Upper Austria. It contains five tracks in sound that combines rock, pop and funk. 

With an emphasis on the vocals of the singer, they build their music around it. The more rock tracks on the EP are Not Anymore, Tick Tack and Go Ways, which has a lot of funk influences. In contrast, Possibilities and Fighting Fights are calmer with more melodic guitars and softer tones.

In general, both the guitar work and the rhythm section do a very good job, while the vocals are very clear and expressive. The effect is a full sound that gives the impression that it is a live production. For me, listening to Studio Session  is a  very enjoyble experience.

Band Members:

Joy Mader (leadsinger)

Samuel Stöchers (drums)

Gerhard Pably (bass)

Thomas Pramberger (guitars)

Harald Edelsbacher (guitars)

Links

https://www.instagram.com/bungee.band/

https://www.facebook.com/bungeemusic/

https://twitter.com/BungeeRockBand

https://bungeemusic.bandcamp.com/

https://www.bungee.band/

Blue Statue - E.P. 1

Blue Statue, an Alt-Indie/Post-Punk band based in North London, is amongst the most exciting new bands on the London rock scene today.
Featured recently on Steve Lamacq’s BBC 6 Music Recommends, and having previously worked with the likes of legendary producer Joe Foster, Blue Statue raises the bar with an E.P. and live show that seamlessly blend beautiful melodies with the spirit of punk rock.While heavily influenced by great bands of the garage-rock, post-punk and noise-rock persuasion, inspiration is also drawn from looking out into a world of art and philosophical enquiry to bring eternal themes such as existence, trust and freedom into the context of modern life.

Their self-titled E.P. is a gorgeous display of the deep passion Blue Statue apply to their craft, and adds songs such as The Scent Has the Air, Womb Wave, The Screen and Vixen's Wedding to the plethora of great alternative indie rock music we've all enjoyed.

The Scent Has the Air is the first track and is a post-punk song with strong vocals combined with the fierce guitar sound. It's one of the best of its genre I've listened recently. 

Vixens Wedding is a Nirvana-style hard grunge song. Melodic and screaming vocals combine to give us an excellent result.

The third track is The Screen. An excellent job by the rhythm section which gives a very catchy and fast pace to this melodic indie rock song. My favourite track from the EP.

The band lower their speed in the next piece Won't You. Τhe slow sound creeps in as it leads to the final outburst.

Womb Wave is another song with fierce guitar sound and vocals that range from melodic to screaming, bringing as a result an indie rock-grunge sound.

The last track is Out of a Picture. A very catchy rock song where the singer does a great job by alternating between pure and wild vocals while the guitars and rhythm section are on fire.

My opinion is that E.P. 1 is a very good work, which is highly recommended to fans of both the post punk scene and independent rock. It is composed of high-quality tracks, in which the band showcases its unique musical character combined with the diverse influences from a wide range of rock music.

The video for the snappy post-punk track The Screen, directed by the band along with Berlin artist Lydia Milkereit, lays mysterious surrealistic visuals over dark urban scenery to illustrate the dichotomy of 'in here' and 'out there' that runs through Blue Statue's work.
Double A-Side single ‘So to Speak / V.F.’ will be released soon and available from all outlets. 

Band Members:

Brothers Hayden and Aaron Brown (songwriters, guitars and lead vocals)

João Cardoso (drums) 

Ben Jasper (bass)

 

Links:
Website: bluestatuemusic.com
Facebook: Facebook.com/bluestatuemusic
Twitter: twitter.com/BlueStatueMusic
Instagram: Instagram.com/bluestatuemusic
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/1X511IzfGjpBSrp4KUUbbV

 

The Modern World - Late November

It's New Year's Eve. I sit by the fireplace and enjoy a hot coffee listening to this gorgeous song from The Modern World. A 6/8 ballad that is reminiscent of the good old days with very good production, strong rhythm section and great saxophone. Definitely the best way to start the new year.

Late November is the sixth single by London based guitar-pop band The Modern World. Lyrically, the song is about isolation, loss and the healing power of time. The song came from a period of intense productivity for lead songwriter Oli James, writing amidst a backdrop of personal loss and a country in political turmoil. Despite this, the song is anything but an act of despair, offering instead the promise that all things shall pass. 

Oli James began writing songs when he was just ten years old. He honed his craft whilst studying English at University College London, and after a two-year stint playing the blues scene in Moscow, Russia, Oli returned to London, where he was joined on stage and on record by a crew of misfits and musical prodigies that make up The Modern World. 

Often producing music alone at home or in snatches of late-night studio time across London, The Modern World have been recognised for their exhilarating fusion of guitar-pop, soul and jazz, gripping live shows and distinctive visual identity. You will find influences from The War On Drugs and The Alabama Shakes in their music. 

Late November was recorded in studios across London, produced by Oli James and close collaborator Alex Lindner. Mixed by Alex Lindner.  

 


Links:
http://themodernworldband.com/ 
https://www.facebook.com/themodernworldband 
https://www.instagram.com/themodernworldband/