Archive for the ‘OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASES’ Category

MISANTROF ANTIRECORDS RELEASES PLAAG DEBUT ALBUM

Posted: January 30, 2011 in OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASES
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The 30th January sees the release on Norway’s MisantrofANTIRecords of the debut album from Belgian self-styled Hell Rock’n Rollers PLAAG.  The album, titled “UGH!” was recorded during 2009 and 2010, and was engineered and produced by PLAAG founder and front man Somber, whilst mastering was carried out by CARPATHIAN FOREST bassist Daniel Vrangsinn.  “UGH!”, which is described by Somber as a “a piece of pure, get down and have a good time Black ‘n Roll”,  is available both in CD format,  and, in keeping with Misantrof’s policy, is also available for free download in high quality MP3 with complete artwork at http://plaag.misantrof.net/ whilst the CD is available for purchase directly from the band at http://plaag.bigcartel.com/

Originally formed as a one man project in 2009 by Somber, who performs vocals and plays all the instruments on the album, PLAAG is inspired by early black metal, but with a touch of twisted humour.  A live line up featuring Razend on Drums, Triest & Mist on Guitars and Lava on Bass came together in 2010, and will make its live debut during 2011.

Although “UGH!” is the first full length release from the band, it is not the first time that PLAAG has appeared on Misantrof, having contributed tracks to the label’s tongue in cheek annual “Holy Fucking ANTIChristmas” albums in both 2009 and 2010. Misantrof ANTIRecords is home to bands like EPISODE 13, NIERTY, PROFANE PRAYER, as well as releasing archive material from some of the cult bands and musicians from the Norwegian Black Metal scene.  The label, headed by Daniel Vrangsinn, and which recently celebrated its fourth anniversary, is a 100% non-profit organisation, allowing all its artists to maintain complete control of their material and their earnings.

Below you can see a promo video of the unmastered version of “Silently Beaten to Death” from PLAAG’s “UGH!”

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Official website: http://www.plaag.net/
Album download page: http://plaag.misantrof.net/
Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/PLAAGofficial
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/somber_plaag
ReverbNation: http://www.reverbnation.com/plaagblackheartedrocknroll
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/Somberbmpainter
Band Contact & Booking: plaagofficial@gmail.com

MISANTROF ANTIRECORDS
http://www.misantrof.net
email: info@misantrof.net

BLACKENED THRASHERS BYFROST SIGN WITH AFM RECORDS

Posted: January 25, 2011 in BYFROST, OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASES
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BYFROST photo by Øystein Riise

Norwegian blackened thrashers BYFROST have inked a deal with Germany’s AFM Records, who are set to release the band’s sophomore album before the summer.  “Of Death'”, will be recorded at the Conclave and Earshot Studios in the band’s home town of Bergen, and will be produced by ENSLAVED’s Herbrand Larsen and VULTURE INDUSTRIES’ Bjornar Nilsen, who had also produced BYFROST’s debut album.  Mastering will be carried out by Knut Fug Prytz at Magica Mastering.

Formed in 2007 by guitarists HeavyHarms and R.I.P Meister, BYFROST originally started life as a four-piece, before settling as a power-house trio composed of HeavyHarms on guitars and vocals, R.I.P Meister on five-string bass and HELLISH OUTCAST’s Alkolust on drums.   The band’s first album “Black Earth”, which included a guest appearance by ENSLAVED’s Arve Isdal,  was released to much critical acclaim in April 2010, and demonstrated the band’s ability to skillfully merge cold, dark, riffs with a touch of the melodic. BYFROST’s reputation as skilled musicians coupled with a dynamic stage presence was consolidated by a series of live dates that included appearances at the Hole in the Sky and Karmoygeddon Festivals, the launch of Terrorizer Magazine’s Norwegian Grindhouse venture, and, along with ENSLAVED, at a special concert to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Garage, Bergen’s foremost venue.

More information about the band can be found at http://www.myspace.com/byfrostmetal

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

MySpace: www.myspace.com/byfrostmetal
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/BYFROST
Twitter: www.twitter.com/byfrostmetal
ReverbNation: http://www.reverbnation.com/byfrost
Band Contact: byfrost@live.no
Management: patriciathomas@btinternet.com
AFM Records: http://www.afm-records.de

TAAKE SET TO PLAY THREE DATES IN MEXICO

Posted: January 20, 2011 in DARK ESSENCE RECORDS, OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASES
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Norwegian Black Metallers TAAKE are set to play in Central America for the first time in the band’s 18 year career, with three appearances in Mexico scheduled for February.  Joining TAAKE for two of the shows will be fellow Norwegians URGEHAL, whilst German Thrashers DESTRUCTION and DESASTER will join the two Norwegian bands for one of the dates. Itinerary as follows:

Fri Feb 4th – Theatre Espacio 1900, Puebla (with URGEHAL and local support)
Sat Feb 5th – Circo Volador,  Mexico City (with DESTRUCTION, URGEHAL and DESASTER)
Sun Feb 6th – Cadena del Rock , Leon (with local support)

One of the iconic bands of the Norwegian Black Metal scene, TAAKE is fronted by founder Hoest, whose intense and mesmerising stage performances, coupled with icy Nordic riffs, have come to exemplify the meaning of the term True Norwegian Black Metal.  Aside from Hoest himself, TAAKE’s live line up of skilled and vastly experienced musicians includes Tundra and Aindiachai on guitars, V’Gandr on bass, and Thurzur on drums.

TAAKE has so far been confirmed to appear at several European Festivals this year including MetalCamp in Slovenia, Party.San and Kings of Black Metal in Germany, Heidens Geweld in the Netherlands and Menhir Chevelu in France, as well as the Hammerslag Vinterblot in their home country of Norway.  More information about TAAKE can be found at http://www.myspace.com/taakeofficial

Below you can see the official video for the track “Umenneske” from the album “Taake”

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Taake on MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/taakeofficial
Taake Website: http://taake.svartekunst.no/
Taake Management & Booking: Propulsion Music http://www.propulsionmusic.no/
email: bjornar.erevik.nilsen@gmail.com
Dark Essence Records: http://www.karismarecords.no

TROLLFEST SIGNS WITH NOISEART RECORDS AND ROCK THE NATION BOOKING AGENCY

Posted: January 14, 2011 in OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASES, TROLLFEST
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“True Norwegian Balkan Metallers”  TROLLFEST have inked a deal with NoiseArt Records as well as the booking agency Rock The Nation. The band’s new album, “En Kvest For Den Hellige Gral”, will be released on April 29.

Commented the band: “TROLLFEST is massively pleased to be signing with NoiseArt Records for the release of our upcoming album, and with Rock the Nation as our worldwide booking agent.

“Since the very first moment they approached us, everyone at NoiseArt and Rock the Nation have shown an enthusiasm for the band that went beyond our expectations, and their plans to work together as a team to bring TROLLFEST to its full potential both as a studio and live band is something we are very enthusiastic about.

“You can’t imagine how much we are looking forward to the release of the album, and even more so bringing the TROLLFEST ethos of great music and good fun to even more fans in a live setting.

“We raise our tankards to NoiseArt, Rock the Nation and all our fans, and look forward to embarking on the next stage of the TROLLFEST adventure together.”

Photos by Polina “Helvete” Kulikovskikh

Web Site: http://www.trollfest.com/
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/trollfest
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/trollfestofficial
ReverbNation: http://www.reverbnation.com/trollfest
Band Contact: trollfest_@hotmail.com
Management: patriciathomas@btinternet.com
NoiseArt Records: http://www.noiseart.cc/
Booking: http://www.rockthenation.eu

NORWEGIAN VIKING METALLERS HELHEIM RELEASE DUALITET OG ULVER VIDEO

Posted: January 3, 2011 in DARK ESSENCE RECORDS, HELHEIM, OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASES
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Following the release in November of “Åsgards Fall”, Norwegian Viking Metallers HELHEIM have released a video for a track taken from the MCD.  “Dualitet og Ulver”,  which features a guest appearance by TAAKE’s Hoest, both on the track itself and on the video, was filmed in the mountains surrounding the band’s home town of Bergen.  The video can be seen on HELHEIM’s YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_fw_nsSHeA

Always a band that celebrates and respects its ancient Nordic heritage, HELHEIM has taken the story of two wolves, Hati and Skoll, for “Dualitet og Ulver”, which translated means “Duality and Wolves”.  Legend has it that the two wolves tried swallow the sun and the moon, and the song uses this imagery to illustrate that there can be no light without darkness and no day without night. If either is destroyed, be it by natural catastrophe, or human actions, only primordial chaos will remain.  Both are hanging by a fragile thread that can easily be torn apart by the wolf, which is one of earth’s natural predators.  The duality of light and darkness must therefore be preserved and balanced not only by nature, but also my humans.

The six-track “Åsgards Fall” MCD, which was released on Dark Essence Records, contains two epic new tracks, written especially for this release, as well as a new recording of the HELLHEIM classic “Jernskogen”, originally found on the “Blod & Ild” album. “Dualitet og Ulver” itself is the video-mix of the track that will appear on the band’s forthcoming full-length release “Heiðenðomr ok Motgangr”, due out at the beginning of 2011.  Recorded at the Conclave and Earshot studios in Bergen, “Åsgards Fall” was produced by HELHEIM and Bjornar Nilsen (VULTURE INDUSTRIES, BLACK HOLE GENERATOR), and was mastered by Herbrand Larsen (ENSLAVED, AUDREY HORNE).

The next live appearance by HELHEIM will be at the launch of “Heiðenðomr ok Motgangr” at Kvarteret, Bergen.  More information about the band can be found on MySpace at http://www.myspace.com/helheimnorway

Below you can see the video of HELHEIM’s “Dualitet og Ulver”

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Helheim MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/helheimnorway
Helheim Website: http://www.helheim.com
Helheim Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/helheimnorway
Band Contact: helheim@helheim.com
Promo & Additional Info: post@karismarecords.no

FORMER ABSU GUITARIST AETHYRIS McKAY JOINS NORWEGIAN EXTREME METALLERS PANTHEON I

Posted: November 22, 2010 in OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASES, PANTHEON I
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Norwegian Extreme Metallers Pantheon I announced today that guitarist AETHYRIS McKAY, who recently quit the Texas-based mythological occult metal band ABSU, will be joining the line up as guitarist.  This is a surprise move from the band who recently announced a search for a new vocalist to give front man ANDRE KVEBEK a chance to concentrate more on guitars and leave the vocalist to range free on stage.  However, as PANTHEON I’s manager explains “We received a big response from musicians all over Europe and auditioned vocalists of exceptional ability, all of whom we would have been proud to have front the band, however, it quickly became clear that we had overlooked the obvious, which was that KVEBEK’s voice is a defining aspect of PANTHEON I’s music, and that to replace it with someone else would have altered the whole dynamic of the band”.

PANTHEON I and AETHYRIS first met when the band supported ABSU on their European tour at the end of 2009.  AETHYRIS joined PANTHEON I on stage for a song during the tour, and forged a strong relationship with the band’s music and the musicians themselves.  Commenting on his new role the American guitarist, who has now relocated to Norway, said: “Joining PANTHEON I has been outstanding thus far. I feel as though I fit right in here and I love the passion and conviction that encompasses the material. This is an incredible arrangement of musicians and people that I can’t wait to assault the world with!”  Regarding his departure from ABSU, AETHYRIS commented:  “There aren’t words enough to say what being a part of ABSU has meant to me. Working with a great friend and talented individual such as PROSCRIPTOR McGOVERN, was an experience only to be described as Magical! The entire cult of ABSU will always hold a special place with me and I wish them all the best in their future endeavours.”

Whilst KVEBEK (ex 1349) will concentrate on vocals on stage and leave the live guitar work to Sagstad (TROLLFEST, SARKOM, METAL MILITIA) and AETHYRIS,  he will continue to write for PANTHEON I  and will record guitars along with the band’s two guitarists.   Other members of the line up include classically trained cellist LIVE JULIANNE COSTOL, TRS (1349, TYRANN) on bass and MADS G (THE ALLSEEING I) on drums. AETHYRIS will also be bringing an additional perspective to PANTHEON I by performing clean vocals both live and in the studio.

PANTHEON I are currently in the pre production stage of their fourth full length album, which will be a follow up to the critically acclaimed “Worlds I Create” and which will include guest appearances from several well known artists from the Extreme metal scene.  The band will play two dates in Norway in November, which will mark AETHYRIS’ live debut, and is also due to embark on a tour of Germany in December, along with fellow Norwegians TROLLFEST and the German bands FINSTERFORST and UNLIGHT.

Upcoming live dates as follows:
November – Norway
Thu 25, RockIn Metal Bar, Oslo
Fri 26, Hjornet, Kristiansand
December – Ende Der Zeit Tour, Germany
Fri 17, Klangstation, Bonn
Sat 18, Black Troll Winterfest,Eisenberg
Sun 19, HSK, Cottbus
Mon 20, K17, Berlin
Tue 21, Traincontrol, Freiberg
Wed 22,  Schwarzer Adler, Egelsee

More information about PANTHEON I can be found on the band’s MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/pantheoni

Below you can see the official video for the track “Serpent Christ” from the PANTHEON I album “Worlds I Create”

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/pantheoni
Website: http://www.pantheon-i.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pantheoni
ReverbNation: http://www.reverbnation.com/pantheoni
Band Contact & Booking: pantheon@hotmail.com
Management & Booking: patriciathomas@btinternet.com

GERMAN THRASH METALLERS NECRONOMICON RELEASE LIMITED EDITION DOUBLE VINYLS

Posted: October 25, 2010 in NECRONOMICON, OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASES
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German Thrash Metallers NECRONOMICON have released a special edition vinyl of the band’s first album on High Roller Records.  The self-titled album was first released on CD in 1986, and the vinyl release includes not only the original 8 tracks, but also NECRONOMICON’s 1985 “Blind Destruction” demo and two additional tracks that have appeared on different compilations.  The double LP comes in a heavy gatefold cover, embossed with the band logo, and with a cardboard lyric insert.  It is limited to 666 copies, with the first 100 copies on gold vinyl and including a free woven patch, while the next 200 are on a silver/black “blend” vinyl, and the remaining 366 copies on black vinyl.  Full track listing as follows:

Side 1
1. Dark Land
2. Possessed By Evil
3. Bloody Revenge
4. Insanity
Side 2
5. Blind Destruction
6. Hades Invasion
7. Magic Forest
8. Iron Charm
Side 3
9. Intro / Iron Charm
10. Possessed By Evil
11. Insanity
12. Blind Destruction
Side 4
13. Bloody Revenge
14. Possessed By Evil
15. Blind Destruction

Formed in Southern Germany in 1983 by front man Freddy, and then members Axel and Lala, NECRONOMICON is one of Germany’s longest running Thrash Metal bands, whose founder members started out on the Punk scene, but who developed a love of Thrash Metal and steered the band in a completely new direction.  Since then NECRONOMICON has garnered a strong following both in Europe and world-wide.  The band is currently in the studio working on their seventh album, which will be a double CD and will include both live tracks and acoustic songs.

More information about NECRONOMICON can be found on the band’s MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/possessedbythrash

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/possessedbythrash
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/necronomiconofficial
ReverbNation: http://www.reverbnation.com/necronomicon
Band Contact & Booking: freddy@necronomicon-online.de
Management & Booking: Patricia Thomas Band Management – patriciathomas@btinternet.com
High Roller Records: http://www.hrrecords.de
Info and Promos: info@high-roller-records.de

EPISODE 13’s “DEATH RECLAIMS THE EARTH” RELEASED ON DANIEL VRANGSINN’S MISANTROF ANTIRECORDS

Posted: October 3, 2010 in EPISODE 13, OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASES
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The 3rd October sees the release of “Death Reclaims the Earth”, by Black Metallers EPISODE 13, on Norway’s Misantrof ANTIRecords label.  The seven- track albums is the third full length release from EPISODE 13, and, as with all releases on Misantrof, it is available for free download at http://episode13.misantrof.net/

Cover art for “Death Reclaims the Earth” is by the US artists Seraph + Splendor, who specialise in portraying darker, more sinister subjects, and who have used blood to create the eerie image for the album.  Track listing for “Death Reclaims the Earth” as follows:

1 – Ars Moriendi
2 – Physical Comatose & Mental Overdose
3 – Unmensch
4 – Ignorance Is Bliss
5 – Ultimate Sterilization
6 – Worthless
7 – Spread His Word

Founded in 2001 by frontman Ozan Aklol, guitarist Murat and drummer Nursuz (ZIFIR), and with a line up that also includes Serkan Zengin on guitars and Sermet Durusan on bass, EPISODE 13 is one of only a very small handful of Turkish bands of any genre, let alone Black Metal, that has not only gained acceptance, but also found a large audience, outside of its own country.  The band regularly appears at festivals such as Norway’s Inferno Festival and London’s Infernal Damnation Fest, and has tours in Russia, Finland and Denmark already under its belt.

Regarding the decision to sign with Misantrof, the label headed by CARPATHIAN FOREST bassist Daniel Vrangsinn which offers all its releases for free download and allows all the artists themselves to retain complete control of all aspects of their work, as opposed to signing with one of the mainstream labels, drummer Nursuz had this to say: “Death Reclaims the Earth” very much defines the direction EPISODE 13 is taking, and we wanted to get it released as quickly as possible.  We already have a lot of new music we are working on, and we didn’t want to find ourselves in limbo while we waited to release and promote “Death Reclaims the Earth”.  Our manager Patricia Thomas also manages Vrangsinn, and she had introduced us to him when we were playing in Oslo, so we asked her to send him the album to get his opinion.  All the other offers we had gave us vague dates such as “sometime late this year or early next year”, but Vrangsinn heard the album and straight away said “name the date you want it released”.   CARPATHIAN FOREST is a band that has been inspirational to the formation of a whole generation of Black Metal bands and the chance to work with Vrangsinn, who we have admired  as a musician and producer since we started out,  was really too good an opportunity to turn down”.

More information about EPISODE 13 can be found on the band’s MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/episode13

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
“Death Reclaims the Earth” free download: http://episode13.misantrof.net/
Episode 13 on MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/episode13
Episode 13 on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com /episode13official
Episode 13 on ReverbNation: http://www.reverbnation.com/episode13
Management & Booking: patriciathomas@btinternet.com
Misantrof ANTIRecords: http://www.misantrof.net
Misantrof Contact: vrangsinn@misantrof.net
Seraph + Splendor http://www.myspace.com/seraphsplendor

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