PATRICIA THOMAS BAND MANAGEMENT

Following the inevitable delays that the past few years have wrought on new releases, LETHE are finally back with their third full-length album, scheduled for release on Dark Essence Records on the 24th April. 

Titled “Alienation” the album continues to explore LETHE’s  idiosyncratic soundscapes, described variously as “genre-bending”, “style-bastardization”, “eclectic”, and even “just plain weird”.  However, this time the Swiss/Norwegian duo of Tor-Helge Skei (MANES, MANII etc.) and Anna Murphy (CELLAR DARLING, ex-ELUVEITIE) also dip their toes into new territories.

And, whilst waiting for the release date to arrive, Dark Essence Records have today released “Erosion” a track taken from the album, and about which LETHE had this to say:

It’s hard to pick out one song to represent the album, but ‘Erosion’ might give a little clue about what you can expect from the “Alienation”.  Or not.. Joining us on the song are Tor Arne Helgesen on drums, Eivind Fjøseide on guitars and Marita Hellem on vocals.

“Erosion” can be downloaded or streamed on various services at:

https://link.darkessencerecords.no/Lethe_Erosion

Accompanying the single is a video comprised of clips taken from  ‘Point of Return’ (University of Oklahoma), which can be seen below:

Formed in 2012, and taking their name from one of the five rivers in Hades in Greek mythology, LETHE was originally created as a home for Anna and Tor-Helge’s musical and artistic experimentation. And, right from the start, the duo made it very clear that the only rule is that there are no rules, no expectations and no compromises.   

This has resulted in the band being able to experiment on every level, whilst being absolutely unafraid of  incorporating melody and catchiness into their sound.  LETHE’s music is therefore  quite personal and different.  A unique melting pot of dark rock, pop, electronic, experimentation and metal, filled with an atmosphere that is cold and harsh and interwoven with beautiful melodies and mesmerizing grooves.

With artwork by Tom Korsvold “Alienation” will be available in CD, Digital and Limited Edition Purple Vinyl, and track listing is as follows:

1. Anhedonia
2. Brighter
3. When it’s Over
4. Éternel
5. Crossroads
6. Sedator
7. Erosion
8. Worm

“Alienation” is now available to pre-order from:

Webshop: https://darkessencerecords.no/shop/
Bandcamp:  https://lethemetal.bandcamp.com/album/alienation
US Webshop: https://darkessence.indiemerch.com

Commenting on the album, LETHE explained that: 

“Alienation”  took years longer than planned, because of a lot of things, circumstances far beyond our control, but it’s finally here! The 3rd chapter of the Lethe saga! As always, it’s an eclectic blend of expressions and atmospheres and moods, and not many defined borders, styles or rules.. Lyrically it’s about being outsiders, outcasts, and alienated in various forms, mentally, physically, ideologic(ally).. and musically.. (hence the album title).. So, join us on another journey, a personal and alternate one..

More information about LETHE can be found on the band’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/LetheProject or on their website at https://torhelgeskei.com/lethe/

Additional Information
LETHE
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/LetheProject
Website:   https://torhelgeskei.com/lethe/
Band Contact:  tor.helge.skei@gmail.com
DARK ESSENCE RECORDS
Dark Essence contact: post@karismarecords.no 
Dark Essence Records: www.darkessencerecords.no
Dark Essence on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/darkessencerecords
Dark Essence Records Bandcamp:  http://karismarecords.bandcamp.com/
Dark Essence Records YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/DarkEssenceRecords
Dark Essence Records Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/darkessencerecords/
Dark Essence Records Twitter: https://twitter.com/DarkEssenceRec
Dark Essence SoundCloud: http://soundcloud.com/dark-essence-records
Dark Essence Records Webshop: https://www.darkessencerecords.no
Dark Essence Records North American Webshop:  https://darkessence.indiemerch.com
Dark Essence Records Australian Webshop:  https://www.heavymetalmerchant.com/bands/d/dark-essence-records/

You can try and define LETHE and their music, but the probability that you will fall wide of the mark is pretty much guaranteed, because this duo don’t care about genre expectations or boundaries.  What they do care about, deeply, is that there should be no rules, no expectations and no compromises.

Formed at the end of 2012 by Tor-Helge Skei (MANES, MANII etc.) and Anna Murphy (CELLAR DARLING, ex-ELUVEITIE), LETHE is a “home” for Anna and Tor-Helge’s musical and artistic experiments,  which have developed into something personal and unique, and quite “different”. 

Both lyrically and conceptually LETHE is, according to the band:

Like a journey through the ‘back alleys of the human mind/psyche’, through dreams and nightmares, paranoia, mental breakdown, inner darkness.. No religion, fantasy, or pretend play.. Real life, real experiences, real horror.

In an attempt to categorise LETHE’s heady brew of metal / triphop / electronic / pop / experimental sounds,  terms such as “genre-bending”, “style-bastardization”, “eclectic”, and even “just plain weird”  have been bandied around. But none of these can encompass what the duo, along with a long list of external contributors, have produced on  their first two full-length albums:  2014’s “When Dreams Become Nightmares” and 2017’s “The First Corpse on the Moon”. 

What LETHE’s third full-length album will produce will become clear later this year when it is set to be released on Dark Essence Records.  Delayed due to the pandemic, the band are currently mixing,  mastering and putting the finishing touches on the album,  and all anyone will say about it is that fans should  “Expect the unexpected”

More information about LETHE can be found on the band’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/LetheProject or on their website at https://torhelgeskei.com/lethe/

A video for the LETHE’s 2020 single “Gamma”  can be seen below and at https://youtu.be/RbRs3l5EXZY

Additional Information
LETHE
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/LetheProject
Website:   https://torhelgeskei.com/lethe/
Band Contact:  tor.helge.skei@gmail.com
DARK ESSENCE RECORDS
Dark Essence contact: post@karismarecords.no 
Dark Essence Records: www.darkessencerecords.no
Dark Essence on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/darkessencerecords
Dark Essence Records Bandcamp:  http://karismarecords.bandcamp.com/
Dark Essence Records YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/DarkEssenceRecords
Dark Essence Records Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/darkessencerecords/
Dark Essence Records Twitter: https://twitter.com/DarkEssenceRec
Dark Essence SoundCloud: http://soundcloud.com/dark-essence-records
Dark Essence Records Webshop: https://www.darkessencerecords.no
Dark Essence Records North American Webshop:  https://darkessence.indiemerch.com
Dark Essence Records Australian Webshop:  https://www.heavymetalmerchant.com/bands/d/dark-essence-records/