» News Archive April 2004
Northern Quebec’s NECRONOMICON are planning some North American touring for later this year, in support of their newest release, "The Sacred Medicines", the long awaited follow-up to "Pharaoh Of Gods" and debut for Skyscraper Records. In related news, Necronomicon are still searching for a full time female vocalist. Interested parties may get in touch at: necronomicon@angelfire.com
DISBELIEF has signed a new contract with Nuclear Blast. The band will record their new album, due out through the label in spring, 2005, this fall with producer Tue Madsen (DIE HAPPY, MNEMIC, THE HAUNTED).
According to Nuclear Blast’s official website, SOILWORK have extended their contract with the label. It’s expected the band will write a new album in the vein of "Natural Born Chaos" or "Figure Number Five", but before that the band is going to shoot a video clip for the track ‘Departure Plan’ and play at some summer open air festivals across Europe.
The first edition of MY DARKEST HATE‘s new album, "At War", will include a bonus-DVD featuring the video clip ‘Catch The Bullet’, live clips from the PartySan OpenAir, a "Making Of" studio-report, and a history of the band.
According to TSJUDER‘s official website (www.tsjuder.com), the band have inked a new deal with Season Of Mist. The band will enter the studio in July to record their third album, "Desert Northern Hell". In related news, the Drakkar label will repress Tsjuder’s "Kill For Satan" and "Demonic Possession" albums (limited to 3,000 copies).
According to a post on Scream Magazine’s Forums by the band’s webmaster, GORGOROTH have finished co-operation with their label, Nuclear Blast. The band’s drummer, Kvitrafn, has apparently also quit the band, with the infamous Frost (SATYRICON, 1349, KEEP OF KALLESIN) agreeing to join. This information has been confirmed by the website administration. An official news update will be posted on the band’s website shortly.
MAYHEM‘s brand new release, "Chimera", entered the Norwegian charts in the 28th position during ist first week.
As the first Danish Metal band, EXMORTEM will release a DVD later in the year. Exmortem will record the entire show at the Fee Festival, plus make footage in the studio and other clips. The Release date of the MCD " Pest Campaign" has been delayed again. It is supposed to be out at the Rotterdam Death Fest (May 8, 2004) now. The "Live Pest Campaign" 10" vinyl is out through Osmose Productions now. The band will enter Antfarm Studio, with engineer Tue Madsen , in mid May, to record their fifth album. www.exmortem.com
AD NOCTUM has recorded the drums for their upcoming debut album. The rest of the album will be recorded during June with a release scheduled for August this year. A pro printed CD with their demo material will soon be available through Ancient Darkness and through www.pestifer.com
Sad news for all fans of Swedish old school Death Metal: REPUGNANT no longer exists! According to guitar player Sid E Burns, who’s also playing guitar and screaming in SCURVY "Repugnant is dead, the album is mixed and will hopefully be mastered and released during this year. Our recent Finland tour was the last shows and overall activity we did. Repugnant wishes you all a bad life in hell." Nevertheless, the new 7” EP and the album still shall see the light of the day and the band’s website address is also still the same: www.repugnant.fr.st
Sweden’s brutal Death Metal horde INSISION recently finished the recordings for their next album "Revealed And Worshipped". The album was produced by Mieszko from Nasum at Soundlab Studios in Sweden and features the following tracks: ‘No Belief’, ‘The Foul Smell Of Humans’, ‘Imminent Vision’, ‘In The Gallows’, ‘The Cleansing’, ‘Revealed And Worshipped’, ‘The Unrest’, ‘Grotesque Plague Mass’, ‘We Did Not Come To Heal’, ‘Havoc’ and ‘The Ideas Of Revolution’. For all further info check out: www.insision.com
MORBID ANGEL and UNEARTH have scheduled in-store appearances at the Relapse Records Retail store (608 South 4th in Philadelphia, PA) on Tuesday, April 20th. Unearth will appear at 4:00 PM while Morbid Angel will follow at 4:30 PM.
CHILDREN OF BODOM has recently recorded new stuff for the upcoming EP-release. The recording was done in Astia Studio with Anssi Kippo, and Mixed by Mikko Karmila in Finnvox Studios. The "Trashed, Lost & Strungout" – EP is planned to be in stores in summer and it’s gonna include two new songs and a couple of cover versions and a lot of extra stuff too.
According to a recent update, AETERNUS are currently working on the preproduction for their new album. The band hope to record during the summer. AETERNUS recently performed at this year’s Inferno Festival in Oslo, Norway last weekend.
According to a recent update from Bart Frydrychowicz (vocals / guitar), the new QUO VADIS album is "finished and just final mix tweaking needs to be done." This is the first new music from the band since 2001’s "Passage In Time". As previously reported, in light of bassist Remy Beauchamp’s departure last August, QUO VADIS enlisted session bassist Steve DiGiorgio (DEATH, CONTROL DENIED, ICED EARTH, SADUS). Expect the as-yet-untitled record this summer through Skyscraper.
According to Napalm Records, Mario Klausner has announced his departure, due to time constraints, from PUNGENT STENCH, in order to fully concentrate on his own band, COLLAPSE 7. The split was amicable and Mario will continue to perform live with the band until a suitable replacement is found. COLLAPSE 7’s debut album, "In Deep Silence", will be released on May 3rd, 2004. The band describes their sound as "Apocalyptic Death Metal". The album was produced by Martin Schirenc (HOLLENTHON, PUNGENT STENCH) in the Vato Loco Studio, Vienna.
Putting an end to a six year break, German bashers HATE SQUAD are making a rousing return. The band recently finished recording ten new songs with Hermann Frank (ACCEPT / VICTORY) at Horus Studios in Hannover, Germany, and the material is said to be as intense and brutal as ever. The new album, due out this summer, is called "H8 For the Masses". The band will be headlining the Himmel Open Air in Kassel, Germany on July 31st.
UNHOLY GHOST, the new band featuring DIABOLIC founding members Aantar Lee Coates (drums), Paul Ouellette (bass / vox), Jerry Mortellaro (guitars), and PESSIMIST founder / guitarist Kelly McLauchlin have set the release date for their debut CD "Torrential Reign" for April 20, 2004 through Olympic / Century Media Records. "Torrential Reign" was recorded at D.O.W. (Diet Of Worms) studios in Seffner, Florida with producer Juan "Punchy" Gonzalez (MORBID ANGEL, DIABOLIC, etc). Cover art and layout was done by artist Mattias Noren, of Sweden. To see the cover art, click here (www.pessimist.com/unholy_ghost/images/torrential_reign.jpg) The US release of "Torrential Reign" will be released in a special 2-CD jewel case. CD 1 will include "Torrential Reign" in its entirety, while CD 2 will include 13 audio tracks and two video tracks from various Olympic Records artists, including IMMOLATION, VITAL REMAINS, FLESHGRIND and BEHEMOTH. The European CD release of "Torrential Reign" will include a bonus video for the band’s highly controversial ‘Under Existence’ video, shot in Tampa, FL along with a 20-minute video documentary outlining the history of the band.
In an online studio diary at their official website (www.carnalforge.com), CARNAL FORGE have revealed the tracklisting for their forthcoming new album, "Aren’t You Dead Yet", due out through Century Media this June, and through Soundholic in Japan. Tracks to appear on the release include: ‘Decades Of Despair’, ‘My Suicide’, ‘Burn Them Alive’, ‘Waiting For Sundown’, ‘Exploding Veins’, ‘Sacred Flame’, ‘Inhuman’, ‘The Final Hour’, ‘Totally Worthless’, ‘The Strength Of Misery’, ‘Ruler Of Your Blood’ (Japan only).
The upcoming album by Swedish thrashers IMPIOUS will be called "Hellucinations". The recording of the album will begin in Studio Mega in Suresnes, France on April 30th. Some song titles are: ‘Inject’, ‘Hellucinations’, ‘Infernique’, ‘Death_Wish_Scar’, ‘Toxic Paranoia’, ‘Show Me Your God!’, ‘SuicidePark’ and ‘Bloodspill Revelation’. "Hellucinations" will be out through Metal Blade on October 4th and Thomas Ewerhard has been hired for the artwork. As previously reported, the band will tour Europe in October as support for label mates AMON AMARTH.
Featuring SOILWORK / TERROR 2000 singer Bjorn Strid on vocals, DISARMONIA MUNDI are ready to release their second album, "Fragments Of D-Generation", through Scarlet. The album is due out on May 17th Japanese label Soundholic has offered a priority-deal for this upcoming release, the first time for a Death Metal oriented band from Italy. "Fragments Of D-Generation" features the following tracklisting: ‘Common State Of Inner Violence’, ‘Morgue Of Centuries’, ‘Red Clouds’, ‘Quicksand Simmetry’, ‘Swallow The Flames’, ‘OceanGrave’, ‘A Mirror Behind’, ‘Come Forth My Dreadful One’, ‘Shattered Lives And Broken Dreams’ and ‘Colors Of A New Era’.
SUFFOCATION have completed their first proper video for the song ‘Surgery Of Impalement’. The track is pulled from the band’s forthcoming album, "Souls To Deny", due out in North America on April 27th through Relapse, and May 17th overseas. Other tracks to appear on "Souls To Deny" include: ‘Souls To Deny’, ‘Deceit’, ‘Subconsciously Enslaved’, ‘Tomes Of Atrimony’, ‘Immortally Condemned’, ‘Demise Of The Clone’ and ‘To Weep Once More’.
Swedish melodic Death Metallers SKYFIRE will release their third album entitled "Spectral" in May. The drums of the album were recorded at Los Angered Studios under supervision of producer Andy LaRoque (KING DIAMOND), the rest of the production was done at Underground Studios and the album was mastered by Peter In De Betou (HYPOCRISY, AMON AMARTH). The album has the following tracklisting: ‘Conjuring The Thoughts’, Effusion Of Strength’, ‘Shivering Shade’, ‘Cursed By Belief’, ‘Awake’, ‘Void Of Hope’, ‘A Dead Mans Race’, ‘Shadow Creator’ and ‘Tranquillity’s Maze’.
DEICIDE are no longer part of the upcoming SUPERJOINT RITUAL tour (also featuring ZEKE). Although a reason for the drop has not yet been announced, all of the dates previously listed on Deicide’s website have been removed. More info as it becomes available.
The old EXMORTEM drummer Reno Kiilerich is the new drummer of DIMMU BORGIR.
The last album of LOST SOULS "Ubermensch" was voted best Metal album of 2003 in Poland.
HIDDEN IN THE FOG have been signed by the German company Twilight-Vertrieb GbR (www.twilight-vertrieb.com). The CD "Abstract Maelstrom Paragon" will be released worldwide via Twilight on May 03, 2004. The completely new-composed debut album is scheduled for next winter. For more info go to: www.hiddeninthefog.com
According to the official club website (www.thefrontline.be) INCANTATION and FUNERUS will be playing a show at the Frontline in Gent, Belgium on May 18, 2004.
DESTRUCTION‘s official website (www.destruction.de) reports that the limited edition digipak version of the band’s "Live Discharge – 20 Years Of Total Destruction DVD" has sold out in Europe after only 10 days in release. A second pressing (including the bonus "Alive Devastation" CD) is in stores now. The DVD will be released in North America on May 4th, while a South American release is expected on April 26th.
DHG‘s Mr Fixit and DARKTHRONE‘s Fenriz will be featured in a ‘Black Metal – 10 years later’ article in the forthcoming issue of UK’s magazine, "Bizarre" where current managing editor, Matt Potter traces the development of the genre. Whilst DHG are still busy recording the follow up to 1999’s ‘666 International’, Darkthrone are getting themselves ready to enter the studio and start on their new album, ‘Sardonic Wrath’. "I’m currently under a lot of stress with all my DJing jobs, including Inferno next week", blurts out Fenriz during a quick telephone conversation. "But that’s our 12th album, you know. It’s another breakfast. We are not changing anything drastically music-wise but we are changing the studio this time. We are changing the studio like people change underwear." What, once a year? "I hope not", he chuckles. "I have written three songs and Nocturno Culto has four. It will be another Darkthrone album, you know?" ‘Sardonic Wrath’ is out in September.
THORNS‘ video, for the track ‘Vortex’, taken from the band’s self-titled debut album, is one of the most voted music videos on Norwegian national TV station, NRK’s Metal show, SVISJ (every Tue from midnight till 3am). Nr. 18 to be precise, against a total of 78 other visual offerings. Produced and directed by acclaimed multimedia artist, Halvor Bodin, the video features a professional male dancer (Kyrre Texnæs) doing naughty things to himself. Is it a figment of the viewer’s imagination? "The subject of the video only appears to be having sex with himself", confirms Bodin. "For me, it is an image of the limit for the human power and spirit…" Screened at a variety of exhibitions, including ‘Visueltdagene’ in Oslo (NOR), ‘Interface To God’ in Kiel (GER), ‘Norsk Form’ in Oslo in 2002 and ‘Clash Of Clans Film and Kultur’ festival in Berlin (GER) the following year, ‘Vortex’ won a prize at the Norwegian Animation Awards, ‘Visuelt’ in 2003.
Necroharmonic Records would like to announce the following upcoming releases: ABSCESS – "Thirst For Blood… Hunger For Flesh" (Demos, EPs compilation), FATAL – Demos / EP CD, GOREMENT – Discography CD, ROTTREVORE – Demos / EPs CD, CORPSE MOLESTATION – Demos / Unreleased stuff CD, CREMATORY (SWE) – Demos CD… A lot of great shit from the old school crypt.