\m/ Rock Hard Italy December 2021 \m/ #albumreviews Param-Nesia, In Solastalgia, EitherWay. https://www.rockharditaly.com/shop/en/arretrati/255-rock-hard-dicembre-2021.html
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0 \m/ Rock Hard Italy December 2021 \m/ #albumreviews Param-Nesia, In Solastalgia, EitherWay.
0 Dec 2021 / Jan 2022 – ERB Magazine – Sinful Ways , Thirty Fates (Rockshots Records)
0 December 2021 – Rock Hard Italy – Param-Nesia, In Solastalgia Either Way
0 Dec 2021 / Jan 2022 – Absolute Underground Mag – Depleted Uranium, Hammerdrone, Thrash La Reine, TYMO, Varius
0 Nov – Dec 2021 – Metallian Magazine – Varius, Anarcheon, Sinful Ways, Nova Spei, Sun Below
0 Out Now! Toronto’s PRIMALFROST’s New Album “Lost Elegies”
NEWS RELEASE
Montreal, QC – December 28, 2021
For fans of Wintersun, Wolfheart, Stormlord, Kalmah, Insomnium
Out Now! Toronto’s PRIMALFROST’s New Album “Lost Elegies”
Primalfrost, the one-man melodic death shredding unit created by Canadian guitarist Dean Paul Arnold (Belphegor touring guitarist, Operus, ex-Vital Remains) first full-length in seven years is now available as of December 28th. Entitled “Lost Elegies”, this third album follows 2014’s “Prosperous Visions” and features eight tracks packing their own punch.
“I’m sure it will be received very well, it’s definitely a solid continuation of the band’s sound, but definitely in a matured/refined way. I’ve had plenty of time to really hone and refine every aspect of the sound, and to make sure it has the production quality/performance on my end to meet those requirements. If you’ve heard Primalfrost before it’s quite obvious there’s the influence of bands like Wintersun, Ensiferum, Kalmah, etc. My goal is to take influence from those sounds but add elements of grit, intensity, speed, & heaviness found in the more extreme genre” says Arnold.
As the sole composer/multi-instrumentalist, Arnold had songs composed solely on guitar pro, as well as written and arranged in an actual recorded pre-production setting. There are songs on “Lost Elegies” that are both years old and completely new, as well as material hashed together from both old/new ideas.
For the album’s recording, Arnold teamed up with Jonathan Lefrancois-Leduc (Blackguard, Ex-Deo) for mixing & mastering as well as Jan Yrlund (Manowar, Tyr, Korpiklaani) for artwork. A powerhouse of melodic metal with blistering riffs, guitar solos, orchestration, & more, this new offering is sure to be enjoyed by many.
“Lost Elegies” is available on the following platforms:
Primalfrost.bandcamp.com (CD, Digital)
Digital – Spotify, Apple Music
Music Video – Stormbearer – https://youtu.be/tVGP5mrZ480
Track Listing:
1. Maelstrom (5:11)
2. Bringer of Immensity (4:36)
3. Nomad (3:38)
4. Stormbearer (4:16)
5. Voyage Into Ruin (9:06)
6. Solace Kingdom (5:59)
7. As Embers Wane (1:57)
8. Tenebrous Skies (10:59)
Album Length: 45:47
Album Credits:
Dean Arnold – All Instruments, Vocals, & Orchestration
Recorded by Dean Arnold in Toronto, Canada
Mixed & Mastered by Jonathan Lefrancois-Leduc of Silverwings Studios in Montreal, Canada
Additional Orchestration by Jonathan Lefrancois-Leduc
For more info:
Facebook.com/Primalfrost
Instagram.com/Primalfrostofficial
About:
Primalfrost was formed in 2012 by Canadian musician Dean Paul Arnold when he was 15 years old. Dean is the sole composer, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist behind the band since its inception. Primalfrost’s sound combines melodicism/lush symphonic with the grit/power of extreme metal, taking influence from bands like Wintersun, Wolfheart, Stormlord, Septicflesh, & more.
Primarily a guitarist, Dean has performed hundreds of shows in 30+ countries across four continents. Primarily touring with American Death Metal band Vital Remains, and now Toronto’s own Operus, Dean has acquired hard-touring experience in a vast variety of settings. Dean has had dozens of guitar solo appearances on a wide variety of metal albums, including Polish death metal band Hate’s 2017 album “Tremendum” (Napalm Records) and for Colorado’s Buried Realm, alongside players like Teemu Mäntysaari (Wintersun) and Brandon Ellis (Black Dahlia Murder).
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“Epic Metal, in the veins of the Folky, the Black, and the Melodic Death, is a sound that is dominated almost entirely by WINTERSUN, who arguably created and dominated a scene all on their own. Up until now, I believed that no other band who attempted this style of music would be able to live up to them, but Canadian Epic Metallers PRIMALFROST do more than that, having created a seamless symphony of melody, heaviness, speed, story-telling, crunch and atmospherics, embellished by perfect mixing.” – 10/10 Metal-Temple (Prosperous Visions Review 2014)
“There seems to be something in Canadian waters that produces high quality one-man projects, especially in the viking/black/folk metal areas…. Brainchild of Dean Arnold, Prosperous Visions is his full-length debut after the EP Chapters of Time two years ago and it has turned out to be a nice slab piece of epic black/power/folk metal… Prosperous Visions is pretty impressive for a 17 year old! And the album is not that easy to pigeonhole, since Arnold manages to layer the songs well and almost constantly shifting tempo without losing focus or flow.” 9/10 – Metal-Observer (Prosperous Visions Review 2014)
“Music wise, the riffs and symphonic orchestrations take on a Scandinavian flavor reminiscent of legendary Bathory and Immortal, as well as touches of Ensiferum. The record’s blackened power/folk metal sound has a frosty, Nordic battle warrior vibe… Fans of this style of metal will be ecstatic over Prosperous Visions. It’s not as top-shelf as the previously-mentioned bands, but for a debut, Primalfrost shows heaps of promise.” – Bravewords (Prosperous Visions Review 2014)
“Prosperous Visions is 55 minutes of prime-time Melodic Black Metal. If you want the epic, fantastical grandeur of Power Metal with the rougher, more aggressive delivery of Black Metal then this is for you. An ambitious album and well worth adding to your collection. May they prosper for many years to come.” – Wonderbox Metal (Prosperous Visions Review 2014)
“there are no parts of the album that can be considered disappointing in any way, as Primalfrost provides plenty of great riffs, brutal moments, and glorious sounds.” Skull Fracturing Metal (Prosperous Visions Review 2014)
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0 Metal Temple Ravenous E.H “Not only is this a fantastic Power Metal album, but a thoroughly outstanding metal album, period. There are colourful solos, tight drumming and all the atmosphere and layers one would want from the very best this genre has to offer. A genuine triumph, with hopefully more output of this quality to follow from these Canadian heavyweights.”
Metal Temple Ravenous E.H “Not only is this a fantastic Power Metal album, but a thoroughly outstanding metal album, period. There are colourful solos, tight drumming and all the atmosphere and layers one would want from the very best this genre has to offer. A genuine triumph, with hopefully more output of this quality to follow from these Canadian heavyweights.” http://www.metal-temple.com/site/catalogues/entry/reviews/cd_3/r_2/ravenous-hubris.htm
0 PLANESWALKER (ft. members of Helion Prime, Gloryhammer) Unveil Music Video “The Spark”; Debut Album “Tales of Magic” Out Jan 21st
NEWS RELEASE
Montreal, QC – December 24, 2021
Magic The Gathering Inspired Power Metal PLANESWALKER (ft. members of Helion Prime, Gloryhammer) Unveil New Single “The Spark”
Debut Album “Tales of Magic” Out January 21, 2022
Inspired by the Magic The Gathering card game, Planeswalker is the new power metal band founded by Helion Prime guitarist Jason Ashcraft and newly added Gloryhammer vocalist Sozos Michael.
Today, the duo is unveiling the music video for their second single “The Spark” from their forthcoming debut album “Tales of Magic” due out on January 21, 2022.
Watch at https://youtu.be/RkuuZjpvdzs
“Tales of Magic” includes guest performances from Brittney Slayes (Unleash the Archers), Heather Michele (ex-Helion Prime), Taylor Washington (Paladin), R.A. Voltaire (Ravenous), and more!
Album pre-order available at the following links:
Big Cartel Pre-Order (Shirts and Physical Copies): https://planeswalkerpreorder.bigcartel.com
Bandcamp Pre-Order: https://planeswalkersozjas.bandcamp.com/album/tales-of-magic
First single and album title track – Tales of Magic – Lyric Video – https://youtu.be/-xsmtpXXzVU
Track Listing:
1. Tales of Magic
2. The Spark
3. Shadow of Emeria
4. Blackblade
5. The Forever Serpent
6. Oath of the Gatewatch
7. A Million to One (Kiss Cover)
For more info:
Facebook.com/planeswalkermetal
Instagram.com/planeswalkermetal
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ASHER MEDIA RELATIONS
Jon Asher – Music Publicist
#.514.581.5780
jon[@]ashermediarelations[.]com
Facebook @AsherMediaRelations
Instagram @AsherMedia
Tweet @AsherMedia
0 Metal Epidemic – Primalfrost – Lost Elegies – “Primalfrost is in a league all its own. This will easily go down as a favourite of mine in 2021. To simply put it, though, this album fucking jams!”
Metal Epidemic – Primalfrost
“Lost Elegies feels massive. Lush melodies, grandiose keyboard orchestrations, blistering metallic guitars and aggressive vocals form a memorable Cacophony of Extreme Metal. The ambitious fusing of Death, Power, Black and Folk Metal successfully composes a divergent whole. Primalfrost is in a league all its own. This will easily go down as a favourite of mine in 2021. To simply put it, though, this album fucking jams!”
0 PESTILENCE’s Joost van der Graaf Explores Medieval Dancing Plagues w/ Experimental Prog/Funk Project CHOREOMANIC
NEWS RELEASE
Montreal, QC – December 23, 2021
PESTILENCE’s Joost van der Graaf Explores Medieval Dancing Plagues w/ Experimental Prog/Funk Project CHOREOMANIC
Streaming First Single “Time To Let It Out”
Self-Titled Debut Out February 18, 2022
CHOREOMANIC saw the light when the world came to a halt in spring 2020 due to the Covid pandemic. With canceled tours and no local gigs, musician Joost van der Graaf (Pestilence, Dew-Scented, I CHAOS) started writing music in which different influences from his past came together.
“I had just joined Pestilence and was busy with the material, preparing for a beautiful US tour with Possessed. Then the pandemic struck. Tour canceled everything on hold. I suddenly had a lot of time on my hands with all the other work canceled as well (music school closed, no more local gigs) so I decided to record a punk album to get rid of some of the frustration and anger that had built up inside. What I started writing had little to do with punk though… It was pretty spontaneous from the start and all I knew was that I wanted to create heaviness without any guitars.” says Graaf.
Somewhere halfway through the material, Graaf got the crazy idea to incorporate horns. He had never written music for horns ever before so he started experimenting with that.
“That’s probably the greatest joy when creating music: having no idea what you’re doing! Being pleasantly surprised by the total sound, I decided to stay on this path. It resulted in something I never thought I would ever do, but apparently, I just did…. Why not go all the way then? Honestly? I’m not even sure there ARE any fans for this, but I do know that listeners of Pestilence for instance, or of one of the other death metal bands I was part of, will probably be a bit surprised at least. I like to think that crazy people (like myself) will appreciate this.” adds Graaf.
As soon as the material was ready to record, Graaf reached out to some great musicians friends to help him complete the project. He recruited drummer Koen Herfst (VandenBerg, I CHAOS, Dew-Scented), keyboardist Thijs Ronteltap (Disuse, Epistulum), saxophonist Tommie Freke (Gallow Street), trombonist Jeroen Verberne (Sjef’s Special) along with trumpeter and bugler Gidon Nunes Vaz. Once the full-length was mixed and mastered at Nutsville Noiselab, The Hague, the self-titled debut “CHOREOMANIC” was a fact and ready to take on the world.
The album features twelve bass-orientated tracks experimenting in realms of prog, funk, and everything else on the planet that has musically inspired Graaf over his thirty-plus year career. The full length’s lyrical concept explores Choreomania, an uncontrollable urge to dance, especially in a frenzied, convulsive manner also known as the Medieval Dancing plagues. Graaf explains in further detail:
“In 2019, I became pretty obsessed by the mysterious dancing plagues of the middle-ages. I started reading different studies, learning about the different theories about the cause. It’s still one of the biggest unsolved mysteries in history! One of the theories that made the most sense to me is that people had been suppressed by the ruling class (church, inquisition) for generations. There was collective fear of God and let’s not forget about the black plague! So there was this anxiety relief at a certain point that became infectious and caused convulsions and psychotic dancing, resulting in exhaustion, dehydration, and even death. It spread across Europe and there were large gatherings in towns and villages with frantically dancing people, accompanied by traveling musicians and all kinds of interested parties. These things sometimes became true festivals with people selling food, etc. With today’s reality, the phenomenon seems to have become relevant once again! This project is not only a musical statement, but also a call to action against (cultural) oppression. May everyone move and create in freedom!”
Recommended for fans of Mr. Bungle, Zappa, John Zorn, Infectious Grooves, and Brian Setzer Orchestra, CHOREOMANIC is due out February 18, 2022.
Digital pre-save is available at https://emubands.ffm.to/choreomanic and limited edition CD pre-order at https://choreomanic.bandcamp.com.
CHOREOMANIC‘s debut single “Time To Let It Out” can be heard and viewed via Graaf’s bass playthrough video at https://youtu.be/VZpFI2A9yoU
Track Listing:
1. This Is Not A Drill (3:50)
2. Spun Sugar (2:45)
3. What You Get (3:26)
4. Red Flags (2:26)
5. Choreomanic (2:17)
6. Walk With Urgency (2:33)
7. Off With The Figurehead (2:18)
8. Time To Let It Out (2:08)
9. Calling God (4:28)
10. Take The Money Give It To Me Now (2:31)
11. Story About The Moon (2:46)
12. Away From The Sun (5:52)
Album Length: 37:25
Album Recording Credits:
• All songs performed by: CHOREOMANIC
• All songs written by: Joost van der Graaf
• Produced by: Michiel Eilbracht & Joost van der Graaf
• Mixed by: Michiel Eilbracht
• Mastered by: Michiel Eilbracht
• Album Artwork by: Yvo Sprey
Album Recording Band Line Up:
Thijs Ronteltap – Keys
Jeroen Verberne – Trombone
Tommie Freke – Saxophone
Gidon Nunes Vaz – Trumpet & Bugle
Koen Herfst – Drums
Joost van der Graaf – Bass, Sampling, Voice & Percussion
For more info:
Choreomanic.com
Facebook.com/choreomanic
Instagram.com/choreomanic
About:
Dutch bassist Joost van der Graaf (1973) has been active in music since he was fourteen years old. In the early 90’s he toured Europe for the first time, as a bass player/ vocalist in Creepmime (Mascot Records), to promote the album ‘Chiaroscuro’. After Creepmime he studied music in Amsterdam and became a working musician, performing and teaching.
In the new millennium, Joost co-formed I CHAOS (RITF records, Suburban distr.) The band released two albums: ‘The Human Repellent’ and ‘Masterbleeder’. In this period he was also a stand-in bassist for Sinister, touring Russia.
In 2012, he became a permanent member of GermanThrashers Dew-Scented (Metalblade), releasing three full-lengths with them up to 2018: ‘Icarus’, ‘Insurgent’ & ‘Intermination’. The band toured extensively through Europe but also in Japan, together with renowned bands from the international metal scene (Testament, Exodus, Death Angel, and others).
Joost teaches ‘Bass Skills’ and ‘Band Development’ at The Metal Factory in Eindhoven, The Netherlands. Since 2019 he proudly plays with Dutch iconic act Pestilence (Agonia Records) appearing on the album ‘Exitivm’.
In 2020, he started working on his own project CHOREOMANIC, in which different musical influences from his past come together. Obviously one of these influences is metal, but also other styles like funk & prog.
His self-titled debut album CHOREOMANIC will be out on February 18, 2022.
Joost van der Graaf’s Discography:
2022 – Choreomanic – Self-Titled (Self-Release)
2021 – Pestilence – Exitivm (Agonia Records)
2015 – Dew-Scented – Intermination (Metal Blade Records)
2015 – Dew-Scented – Immersed – 7#split EP (Metal Blade Records)
2015 – I Chaos – Masterbleeder (RITF Records/Suburban Distribution)
2013 – Dew-Scented – Insurgent (Metal Blade Records)
2012 – Dew-Scented – Icarus (Metal Blade Records)
2011 – I Chaos – The Human Repellent (RITF Records/Suburban Distribution)
2009 – I Chaos – Self-Titled – EP (Self-Release)
2008 – Cypher – MMVIII – EP (Self-Release)
1995 – Creepmime – Chiaroscuro (Mascot Records)
Endorsed by:
Ibanez , Peavey, Tech 21, DR Strings, Rock n Soul
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