EPK – Eternal Closure – At the Center of It All – Chapter I (2022)
Publicist – jon[@]ashermediarelations[.]com
For fans of Killswitch Engage, As I Lay Dying, Currents, Trivium, Periphery
Album Title: At the Center of It All – Chapter I
Release Date: September 23, 2022
Label: Self-Release
Distribution: DistroKid
“We are beyond excited to present our latest work to the public. “At the Center of It All” is our most ambitious project to date. It features bigger and more intricate arrangements, a more aggressive edge as well an interplay between female and male vocals. This third album displays how our songwriting abilities have taken a whole new step. We are proud of every song on this album, which is more diverse, heavier, and more technical than anything we have done before. The lyrics come from the heart about what we stand for, how we feel about a range of subjects, and how we get mad at those who reject nuance and empathy in their lives. We want to thank Christian Donaldson, who helps us produce our records since the beginning, for once again delivering an incredible-sounding record that will blow people’s minds.
‘Practice What You Preach’ was a purposeful choice as the first single. It’s one of our most aggressive cuts and really showcases Kat as a vocalist, as well as our 3-guitarist lineup. Everybody gets a chance to shine.” – Eternal Closure
Eternalclosure.com | Facebook.com/EternalClosure | Instagram.com/eternalclosure | Youtube | Tiktok.com/@eternalclosure
Eternalclosure.bandcamp.com | Apple Music | Spotify | Amazon
“There is really only one way to listen to At the Centre of It all – Chapter 1 by Eternal Closure, and that is very loud indeed! So, turn your music listening device up to maximum volume and prepare your ears for the sweet and sour sound of modern metal at its very best. At the Centre of It All – Chapter 1 has elements of Death Metal, Melodic Metal and Nu Metal in a full-on metal cocktail that just works so well it will leave you crying out for more!” – Metal Epidemic
“Okay, color us pretty impressed by this one. If you’re unfamiliar with Eternal Closure, you won’t be for long. They’re pretty clearly a metal band that should have a lot of fans across the world, and it seems more are taking notice of their fairly unique sound. With influences ranging across the spectrums of death metal, thrash metal, metalcore, and even progressive leanings, the band’s new song “Dimensions Apart” is a good way to get acquainted.” – The New Fury
“their metalcore has been bulked up by a new vocalist and a revamped lineup that now features three guitarists and male/female vocal interplay. They take advantage of their bolstered abilities with songs that let them stand out, like the dueling harmonies from the singers on “Exiled” and a vast-sounding conclusion to “Moonrider.” … the six tracks reach across metalcore to thrash, progressive, and ambient avenues. It’s clear with this release that the behind-the-scenes shifts over the last two to three years have worked to Eternal Closure’s benefit.” – Heavy Music HQ
“Dans l’ensemble, ETERNAL CLOSURE semble plus en forme que jamais. Les combinaisons entre l’aspect très mélodique progressif et le modern metal s’agencent bien aux influences plus old-school metalcore. Je vous recommande principalement les titres « Conflict I », « Dimensions Apart » et « From One Side to Another ». À découvrir !” – Metal Universe
“Having many metalcore sympathies, I find it very difficult to critique an outstanding metalcore album. This, I can assure you, is one of the top core albums in general I have had the pleasure of listening to this year. If you like your metalcore to feel progressive without being pretentious, then check out this certified banger of tracks by ETERNAL CLOSURE.” – Female Fronted Power
“The chugging rhythmic beast of “From One Side to Another” is an absolute powerhouse that has a couple of serious gut punch moments as the band paint in colour and shade, never afraid to add melodic touches to otherwise brutal cuts and vice versa while at the same time having the musicianship to pull off those left turns with style and grace. The grand finale in “Moonrider” takes things into the epic realm, going bigger and bolder with atmospheric Metalcore and Progressive touches to create something with cinematic qualities that still retains that heavier core element as an orientation. On this evidence while you wait for the second chapter which has almost instantly become a highly anticipated one, you’ll also want to check out the previous records. That’s testament to how good this record is [8.5/10]” – Metal Noise
“Having three guitarists REALLY pays dividends with this style of songwriting. Personal standouts for me on this album were the tracks ‘Exiled’, ‘Dimensions Apart’ and ‘Moonrider’. ‘Exiled’ in particular as a melodic quality underpinned by a subdued sense of aggression that doesn’t take away from the melody. How they managed to pull off an aggressive track that doesn’t particularly feel angry is a testament to this band. The same can be said for most of this album. It is the perfect blend between beauty and beast. I had never heard of this band before and after listening to this EP I’m questioning how the hell I haven’t because this is a breath of fresh air in a world where everything, including music and arts, feels like it’s becoming homogenized. This will definitely be in rotation on my playlists going forward and I’m really looking forward to chapter two. If you can check these guys out you will not be disappointed. I know I wasn’t.” – Uber Rock
“I was greatly entertained by this album. I enjoyed every song, and when all is said and done, isn’t that the point? Similarly, I’ve enjoyed every song I’ve heard from Eternal Closure thus far – that’s impressive. Give this small band a listen today and you may leave astounded.” – Sputnik Music
“ETERNAL CLOSURE deliver a modern, powerful album. The djent-driven rhythmic pushes the songs forward, so do the three guitars with their mighty sound. As they’re alternating with more peaceful and melodious moments, the music comes along with a good variety. The mixed vocals add a wide emotional palette fitting to the personal lyrics. The decision to split “At The Center Of It All” into two chapters is welcomed here, as 30 minutes is a good, short-whiled playing time, and makes me looking forward to Part 2.” – Mostly Metal
“Ultra tight with raw energy that’s absolutely blinding, Color of our Fears crushes skulls.” – The Sounds Won’t Stop
“Eternal Closure have created an excellent piece of music that is hard, melodious, brutal and complex.” – KOBZR Magazine
“[Eternal Closure] have reminded me to want to throw my fists into the air just for the hell of it today.” – Drop the Spotlight
“Having 3 guitarists forces us to come up with more complex arrangements, which is awesome.” – Rock Monster Romania
“I feel like our sound is something that is slightly different than what everyone else is doing here.” – Ever Metal
“[People] should expect to hear modern Metalcore that also blends many different influences. There’s some prog, thrash, death, etc… We don’t really confine ourselves to one thing.” – Devils Gate Music
“The entirety of this album is a ride of emotions that flow from song to song in seamless harmony. Listening to this album was nothing short of magic. 8.5/10” – Insanity Media
Photo Credit – Sébastien-Charles Boitel
Top L-R : Marine Lacarrière (guitar), Phil Lemelin (guitar), Olivier Boitel (guitar, back vocals), Katrine Castonguay (main vocals), Philippe Boitel (drums), Jonathan Lauzon (bass, back vocals)
Eternal Closure is a six-piece, female-fronted metal band from Montreal, Quebec. They stand out from the heavy local scene with their unique blend of aggressive riffs, versatile vocals, and epic melodies. They draw inspiration from various sub-genres such as metalcore, progressive metal, and djent. Their hard work and dedication is only matched by their excessive love for cats.
The group formed by guitarist and singer Olivier Boitel, bassist Jonathan Lauzon, and drummer Philippe Boitel, was recently joined by vocalist Katrine Castonguay as well as guitarists Marine Lacarrière and Phil Lemelin, to evolve into its ultimate form.
The band has created their most ambitious record to date, “At the Center of It All”. The album will be split into two chapters, the first of which will be released in the fall of 2022. The song “Practice What You Preach” will be released as a single a few months prior.
The album was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Cryptopsy’s guitarist and sound engineer Christian Donaldson (Shadow of Intent, Beyond Creation, Despised Icon, The Agonist).
Over the past decade, the band explored what makes them unique. Their songs “I Won’t Fall” and “Defying Gravity” have become a staple in Montreal’s metal scene. They have opened for renowned bands like The Agonist, Ice Nine Kills, Beyond Creation, Obey the Brave, and Red Handed Denial.
Eternal Closure is ready to make its breakthrough in the global metal community and is eager to work relentlessly to reach as many cat-loving metalheads out there as possible!
Album and Live Band Line Up:
Katrine Castonguay – Vocals
Olivier Boitel – Guitar, Back Vocals
Jonathan Lauzon – Bass, Back vocals
Philippe Boitel – Drums
Marine Lacarrière – Guitar
Phil Lemelin – Guitar
Discography:
2022 – At the Center of It All – Chapter I
2020: Color of our Fears Rediscovered – Deluxe Edition
2019: Color of our Fears – LP
2016: Screaming in Silence -LP
2014: Ad Primum – EP
Shared Stage with:
The Agonist, Ice Nine Kills, Beyond Creation, Obey the Brave, Red Handed Denial, Saviors, Fatal Switch, Allegaeon, Becoming the Bully, Basterds, Fall of Stasis, Sirens & Sailors, Sawyer Path, Product of Hate, Shape the Above
Tours and Festivals:
2020 – Phoque-Off – Québec, QC
2019 – Indie Week – Toronto, ON
2019 – Farmfest – Vankleek Hill, ON
2019 – Breakdown Fest – Montréal, QC
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BAND STORY ANGLES / FUN FACTS:
1. We are obsessed with cats and have made them part of our brand for a long time.
2. We decided to be a female-fronted band a few years ago to help us stand out and give ourselves more opportunities as far as writing goes.
3. We once had this wonderful idea to have the crowd throw bird seeds at us during a show. We definitely didn’t think that one through. There were bird seeds all over the place, in the crowd, in our cabs, in our drums, it was a nightmare.
4. We once had a show where our old guitarist broke a string during one of the first songs and then he disappeared for most of the set. He broke another string while changing the first one, or something in that vein. He played on about 4 out of the 10 songs. It was really awkward.
5. All of our LPs have been recorded, mixed and mastered by Christian Donaldson. He’s part of the band’s sound now.
6. We aren’t afraid of using memes on our social media and our live shows. Expect to hear and see some when you follow the band.
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The album as a whole explained by Olivier Boitel (guitar, back vocals):
For the album, we wanted to show how versatile we are, but also how heavy we can be. The lyrics are darker and meaner overall, so the music had to reflect that. We’ve decided to split the album into two halves as we felt it would help give the material more chance to breathe. It’s not quite what I’d consider a concept album, but many lyrics and musical ideas are re-used throughout.
The album is divided in two parts and has 13 tracks overall (one of them being an interlude). These are the first 6 tracks aka Chapter 1. The second half should be released somewhere in 2023.
Lyrically, I (Olivier) just speak from the heart. A lot of the lyrics come from what I stand for and are rarely about a character or someone else. When they are “fictional”, they still relate to me at their core. There was a lot less storytelling on this album, if at all. It’s all about how I think and feel about different subjects. The title, At the Center of It All, gives the theme away pretty directly. It’s about seeing things from both sides and getting mad at those that don’t. I do have a relatively firm stance on many of these subjects, but I get angry when people refuse to challenge themselves, and that definitely includes me.
Track by track (LYRICALLY & MUSICALLY) explained by Olivier Boitel (guitar, back vocals):
1. Conflict I: It starts off with a false sense of warmth and security. It’s a pretty intro that is quickly thrown away for fast-paced tapping riffs, syncopated rhythmic patterns, and distorted vocals. There’s a bit of everything in this song. It’s fast, melodic, and pretty relentless once it kicks into full gear. It also gives an overview of the dynamic between Kat and I (Olivier singing. The end of the song is essentially the same heavy thrash riff with different variations to fully beat it into people’s heads. Marine helped a lot in figuring out interesting little details throughout this one. There are also many elements that are reprised in Conflict II, the song that ends the second half of the album. The lyrics deal with both sides of an argument lying or bending the truth to make their position seem like the only valid one. It’s a super destructive mindset. “What’s your message? Who are you?” at the end of the chorus is essentially me calling upon everyone to be honest with themselves and others.
2. Practice What You Preach: This song is a full-on thrash assault for most of its duration. The chorus then becomes a bit more of a heavy groove. I (Olivier) think it’s the first time we’ve had a chorus with 0 clean vocals in it when the verses do feature some. It’s definitely a showcase for Kat. The riffs then become a bit more prog in nature while retaining the thrashy aggressiveness. After the end of the bridge, we bring the song down into a soft clean bridge that slowly develops into this anthemic guitar duo section and eventually goes back to the beginning of the song with the intensity at its peak. The ambient outro then leads directly into Exiled. The lyrics deal with people who think they have it all figured out and resent other people they judge not worthy of speaking on anything.
3. Exiled: This song calms the pace down a little bit, with the emphasis being on vocal harmonies and overall melodic writing. There’s a good amount of clean guitars during the verses (mostly as back and forth with the vocals) and harsh vocals are used sparingly. There are a lot of my Killswitch Engage influences coming back in this one. The song also probably has my favorite guitar solo I’ve ever written. I’ve never been much of a lead guitar player but a big effort was made into improving that for this album. This song showcases it the best. Phil had a lot of elements to had to this song and made it what it is. Philippe also has a killer drum track on this one, one of my favorites for sure. It’s one of my favorites personally, I feel like everything is right where it should be. Lyrically, it’s a more introspective song about staying true to yourself and only changing for your own sake, not how society tells you to.
4. Dimensions Apart: This one was mainly written by Jonathan but had a bit of a different structure initially. It’s more-or-less the sequel to a song from our album Screaming In Silence called Wake Up Dead. It was also mixed with ideas Jo had for other songs that were never used. It’s a pretty straightforward banger, with me showcasing my grittier singing. I wrote and recorded the drums which was a lot of fun. I’ve always played drums and have recorded a bit of drumming on every Eternal Closure album so far. It’s also the first song in Eternal Closure history to feature 7-String guitars. Helps us give a bit it a bit of extra thickness and variety. Lyrics were also written by Jonathan, with me ironing out little things here and there. It’s about the disconnect between generations that was created in part by technology.
5. From One Side to Another: This one was the first song I ever wrote with my 7-String guitar. It’s quite different from everything we’ve done before. It’s super heavy but it’s also a bit simpler and slower than our usual sound. It was probably the hardest song to write and took quite a while to properly arrange. From the moment I started writing it a year ago to the album’s recording there was always something a bit off about the intro and the arrangement lacked finesse. I remember Phil in particular not being the biggest fan at first but growing to love it more and more as it evolved into the beast it is today.
Philippe wrote the lyrics for this one and also had a bit more to say about the writing of it than on the other songs. The drum writing in particular is quite different from what I had written for him at first. The lyrics are about knowing the path ahead but finding the strength to go through the challenge it poses.
6. Moonrider: This song is a mix between an old song from Marine and me putting a more Eternal Closure spin on it. It’s a dark and more ambient song, almost what you could consider a heavy ballad. Putting this one together came pretty seamlessly and it was a lot of fun for me to stretch my writing a little and meet Marine’s style halfway. The chorus is a callback to lyrics from Exiled. The ending minute and a half are one of my favorite moments on the record. It’s so cathartic, it gives me goosebumps every time. We thought it was a nice way to end the first half of At the Center of It All: Chapter I. Leaves you with those big emotions and makes you want more. Lyrically, it’s about feeling the weight of the world on your shoulder and finding no solutions. It’s about the want to disappear when you can’t seem to find your place in society.
[Download Album Cover | Download Album Lyrics]
Album Title: At the Center of It All – Chapter I
Release Date: September 23, 2022
Label: Self-Release
Distribution: DistroKid
Track Listing:
1. Conflict I (4:48)
2. Practice What You Preach (5:34)
3. Exiled (3:54)
4. Dimensions Apart (3:55)
5. From One Side to Another (4:43)
6. Moonrider (4:32)
Album Length: 27:28
Album Recording Credits:
• All songs performed by: Eternal Closure
• All songs written by: Olivier Boitel, Philippe Lemelin, Marine Lacarrière, Jonathan Lauzon
• All lyrics written by: Olivier Boitel, Philippe Boitel, Jonathan Lauzon, Katrine Castonguay
• Produced by: Eternal Closure, Christian Donaldson
• Mixed by: Christian Donaldson
• Mastered by: Christian Donaldson
• Album Artwork by: Pascal Marcoux, Jonathan Lauzon
• Member of SOCAN
• Canadian Content (MAPL)
Album and Live Band Line Up:
Katrine Castonguay – Vocals
Olivier Boitel – Guitar, Back Vocals
Jonathan Lauzon – Bass, Back vocals
Philippe Boitel – Drums
Marine Lacarrière – Guitar
Phil Lemelin – Guitar
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