Posts Tagged ‘Thrash Metal’

Norway’s NOCTURNAL BREED is a band that has never been afraid to show its influences and wears them proudly on its sleeves, and never more so than in the track “Knights of Denim” which Dark Essence Records has chosen to release as a single from the upcoming album “Carry the Beast”.

“Knights of Denim” hits you right out of the gate, its devastating riff transporting the listener back to the glorious heyday of British Heavy Metal. Galloping Iron Maiden riffs, melodic dual guitar solos and thundering drums merge with a delicate synth work that enhances that 80’s heavy metal feeling. 

Layered into the mix, and delivered with true passion and feeling, are Destroyer’s snarled, aggressive vocals, and what you get is a NOCTURNAL BREED track “par excellence” which can be streamed or downloaded from a variety of services at

https://link.darkessencerecords.no/Nocturnal-Breed_Knights-of-Denim

Accompanying the “Knights of Denim” single is a lyric video by Temira de Temirin that acts as the perfect foil for the track, and which can be seen at https://youtu.be/3dJGaIbZSkQ

With Front Cover & Logo Adaption by Andrej ‘Maggot Meister’ Bartulovic & All Things Rotten., track listing for “Carry the Beast” is as follows:

  1. Carry the Beast                                                                
  2. Thrash Metal Hate Saw (The Last Act of Terror)
  3. Knights of Denim
  4. Salt the Wounds
  5. Atomic Cruiser
  6. Raise the Flag…And the Hordes will Follow
  7. Nosferata
  8. Lady Vampire
  9. I Ain’t Marching Anymore
  10. I Felt Nothing (CD bonus track)
  11. Trench Fever (CD bonus track)
  12. Blitzhammer (CD bonus track)

Recorded at the Necrolab Studios and at NOCTURNAL BREED’s private “Bunker Studios” “Carry the Beast” will be available in CD, Digital, Vinyl and Limited Edition Transparent Red vinyl and Cassette on the 23rd of June, and can now be pre-ordered from the following:

BandCamp: https://nocturnalbreedofficial.bandcamp.com/album/carry-the-beast
Webshop: https://darkessencerecords.no/shop/
US Webshop: https://darkessence.indiemerch.com/

Formed in 1996 by S.A. Destroyer (aka Svartalv – ex. GEHENNA, SATYRICON) NOCTURNAL BREED was, for him, not just an homage to the Thrash, Speed and Heavy Metal waves of the 80’s, it was also an antidote against the softening of attitudes within the Metal genre, and the growing commercialisation of the Black Metal scene.

Twenty-seven years later, and now a formidable trio, age has not softened NOCTURNAL BREED in the slightest. Together, S.A. Destroyer on Vocals and Bass, T. Terror on Drums and Vocals and I. Maztor on Guitars, serve up some fearsome shredding with a large helping of outstanding old-school heavy metal, in what will be the band’s seventh full-length studio album.  

“Carry the Beast” reflects on a lot of those darker aspects of humanity that have crept to the forefront of society over the past 2-3 years. It is an album in which the intensity of its compositions is apparent throughout, creating a work that is so full of unbridled hate that it feels as raw as an open wound. 

Recorded without the use of modern equipment “Carry the Beast”, is effectively a wholehearted look back at what inspired the band and the original extreme metal scene, evoking in the listener all those emotions that come with the time-honoured traditions of Metal.

More information about NOCTURNAL BRED can be found on the band’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Thrashiac777NocturnalBreed

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
NOCTURNAL BREED
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Thrashiac777NocturnalBreed
YouTube: https://youtube.com/user/777VIRUSLORD777
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nocturnal_breed_official/
Email: cmachine777@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/

When S.A. Destroyer (aka Svartalv – ex. GEHENNA, SATYRICON)  formed NOCTURNAL BREED in 1996 he saw the band as  both an homage to the Thrash, Speed and Heavy Metal waves of the 80’s, as well as a reaction against the softening of attitudes within Metal in general, and the growing  commercialisation of the Black Metal scene.

What followed was plethora of releases, culminating with the band marking its 25th Anniversary in 2021 with the release of their “Face Your Aggressor” double album.

Today NOCTURNAL BREED continues to spread terror and destruction in its wake, but this time in the form of a trio, which, aside from S.A. Destroyer on Vocals and Bass, includes T. Terror on Drums and Vocals and I. Maztor on Guitars. And you can rest assured that their shredding is pure, fearsome, NOCTURNAL BREED, with some outstanding old-school heavy metal thrown into the mix.

And with the new lineup comes a brand new album, the band’s seventh to be precise, which will hit the streets on Dark Essence Records on the 23 June. Titled  “Carry the Beast”, the album is a  wholehearted look back at what inspired the band and the extreme metal scene. The  fact that it was recorded without the use of modern equipment evokes in the listener all those emotions that come with the time-honoured traditions of Metal.

Reflecting a lot of the darker aspects of humanity that have crept to the forefront of society over the past 2-3 years, the fearsome intensity of the compositions tears its way mercilessly through “Carry the Beast”, creating an album full of unbridled hate that feels as raw as a war wound. 

“Carry the Beast” was recorded at the Necrolab Studios and at NOCTURNAL BREED’s private “Bunker Studios”. 

With Front Cover & Logo Adaption by Andrej ‘Maggot Meister’ Bartulovic & All Things Rotten., track listing for “Carry the Beast” is as follows:

  1. Carry the Beast                                                                
  2. Thrash Metal Hate Saw (The Last Act of Terror)
  3. Knights of Denim
  4. Salt the Wounds
  5. Atomic Cruiser
  6. Raise the Flag…And the Hordes will Follow
  7. Nosferata
  8. Lady Vampire
  9. I Ain’t Marching Anymore
  10. I Felt Nothing (CD bonus track)
  11. Trench Fever (CD bonus track)
  12. Blitzhammer (CD bonus track)

“Carry the Beast” will be available in CD, Digital, Vinyl and Limited Edition Transparent Red vinyl and can now be pre-ordered from the following:

BandCamp: https://nocturnalbreedofficial.bandcamp.com/album/carry-the-beast
Webshop: https://darkessencerecords.no/shop/
US Webshop: https://darkessence.indiemerch.com/

As ever, NOCTURNAL BREED would like the last word:

Give’em Hell, take no shit from anyone, and Carry the Beast with splendour your own way!

METAL TO THE BONE!

More information about NOCTURNAL BRED can be found on the band’s  Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Thrashiac777NocturnalBreed

NOCTURNAL BREED’s 15th Year Anniversary video for the track “Resistance is Futile” can be seen below and at https://youtu.be/DRzu4haJyeI

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Thrashiac777NocturnalBreed
YouTube: https://youtube.com/user/777VIRUSLORD777
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nocturnal_breed_official/
Email: cmachine777@gmail.com
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/

After a long search to find a label to suit their exacting requirements, Norwegian Thrashers NOCTURNAL BREED have described their upcoming collaboration with Dark Essence Records as “Monumental and Trench-Altering”, as the band explains:

It has been an ever-occurring dream for the band to gather the forces at home in Norway. And this March 18th saw this come to pass, as hoof-marks were carved in ink, and a final deal with Dark Essence Records was signed and agreed upon.

The last two decades have been spent looking for a label and a ‘safe haven’, one that allows bands to  focus on ‘the music’ and the integrity of the product. “Quality, Dedication and Knowhow” in perfect unison is what we set out to find. And this is what we get with Dark Essence Records.  It may sound like a cliché but honestly it feels like coming home.

It is an honour to serve side by side on the battlefield, with such epic bands and old friends, such as can be found on Dark Essence’s  roster. As well as having the opportunity to work with the genuinely professional, to the bone, and utterly dedicated people as the ones at Dark Essence. It has resulted in a long-awaited refuelling and re-fusing of the bands inner workings.

And so, we raise the iron-flag here in the bunker.  The knives are out and sharpened.  A new album is on the way and new nuclear fuel is pumping through our  veins…

 This will be a good one Thrashiacs!

S.A. Destroyer

Bunker Norvegicus

NOCTURNAL BREED was formed in Oslo in 1996 by S.A. Destroyer (aka Svartalv – ex. GEHENNA, SATYRICON) both as an homage to the old waves of Thrash, Speed and Heavy Metal of the 80’s and as a reaction against the growing commercialisation of the Black Metal scene that plagued the mid 90’s with its ever increasing ‘polished’ sound, along with the softening of attitudes in Metal in general.

The decades that followed saw NOCTURNAL BREED undergo the inevitable lineup changes and hiatuses that bands are subjected to during their careers, all the while producing a plethora of releases, which, aside from the obvious early demos and studio albums, include EP’s, Boxed Sets, and Compilations, culminating in the 2021 release of the “Face Your Aggressor” double album which marked the band’s 25th Anniversary.

Which brings us to the present day and finds NOCTURNAL BREED in their private “Bunker Studios” working on the final stages of their seventh full-length album, set to be released on Dark Essence Records later this year.

More information about the band can be found on their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Thrashiac777NocturnalBreed

NOCTURNAL BREED’s 15th Year Anniversary video for the track “Resistance is Futile” can be seen at https://youtu.be/DRzu4haJyeI

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Thrashiac777NocturnalBreed
YouTube: https://youtube.com/user/777VIRUSLORD777
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nocturnal_breed_official/
Email: cmachine777@gmail.com
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/

Black Magic PR

It’s not often that you get one signing announcement from two separate labels, but in this case it’s not so surprising since Dark Essence Records and Karisma Records are sister labels, and on this occasion are joining forces to release both old, and new material from BLACK MAGIC.

Kicking things off will be Dark Essence Records, who on April 12th will re-release BLACK MAGIC’s classic “Wizard’s Spell” EP, widely regarded as one of Norway’s finest underground metal releases of modern times, and long-unavailable.

Rooted in the speed/heavy metal traditions of the mid 1980’s, “Wizard’s Spell” was originally recorded during 2009/10, and released at the start of 2014. Rather than just being a retro- pastiche, “Wizard’s Spell” succeeds in sounding like a studio album that had actually recorded during the early eighties. Or, as one reviewer put it:

“For all intents and purposes this album could have been reissued from a 1981 release from a failing record company and no one would have questioned it. The band not only nails the sound but they create something so believable, I am hard pressed to find any flaws in it.”

In addition to the five-track “Wizard’s Spell”, the record will also include the demo “Reap of Evil”

Tracklisting as follows:

Wizard’s Spell
1. Black Magic
2. Rite of the Wizard
3. Voodoo Curse
4. Thunder
5. Death Militia

Reap Of Evil Demo
6. The Ritual
7. Night of Mayhem
8. Possessed
9. Embraced by the Occult

Black Magic Album Art PR

With the cover-art having been re-drawn from scratch by Linda K. Røed, “Wizard’s Spell” will be available in CD, Digital and Limited Edition yellow/orange “Fire”  coloured vinyl, and can now be pre-ordered from the following:

All Formats:  https://blackmagicnorway.bandcamp.com/album/wizards-spell-2
CD & Vinyl:  https://www.darkessencerecords.no/webshop/

BLACK MAGIC had already disbanded by the time “Wizard’s Spell” was originally released, but a new line-up soon emerged, playing more blues-based late 60s/early 70s rock, but still with a hint of the occult.

Their debut full-length album will be released on Karisma Records either late this year, or sometime next year. And the wait will definitely be worth it.

More information about BLACK MAGIC can be found on the band’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/blackmagicnorway/

Black Magic Vinyl Art PR

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blackmagicnorway/
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:  http://darkessence.aisamerch.com/

 

When CARPATHIAN FOREST guitarists Tchort and BloodPervertor announced last year that they were leaving to set up a new band, THE 3rd ATTEMPT, they knew that they were leaving behind them the security of  one of the most iconic Norwegian Black Metal bands of all time, and one with a huge following, to start something completely new and unproven,  at a time when labels are reluctant to dip their toes into uncharted territories and new bands emerge  in their hundreds every week, only to disappear into nothingness.   But when you have two musicians with the skill and experience of Tchort (GREEN CARNATION, ex-CARPATHIAN FOREST, ex EMPEROR, ex BLOOD RED THRONE) and BloodPervertor (APOSTASY, ex-CARPATHIAN FOREST, ex NEONGOD) who have the desire to work in an environment that could re-ignite the enthusiasm and creativity they felt they had lost, then a move was inevitable.  Interest from various labels was certainly not slow in materialising and today the band are pleased to be able to announce that they have inked a deal with one of Norway’s foremost labels, Dark Essence Records.

Commenting on their decision to sign with Dark Essence, the band had this to say: “Dark Essence signalled their interest in the possibility of working together as soon as we announced THE 3rd ATTEMPT, even before they had heard anything,  and they have kept in close touch, actually making the effort to attend rehearsals and get to know our new members.  In the end, it came down to a decision as to whether we wanted to sign with a large label and,  as a new band,  risk disappearing in the depth of their rosters, or whether we wanted to work with a label who was genuinely interested in us as a band, and who would be with us every step of the way, in all aspects.  We also heard many good things about Dark Essence from the musicians already signed to them, so, Dark Essence it is!  We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us with preparing and rehearsing the new material ready to enter the studio,  and we are excited to see what the future will bring”.

Dark Essence Records commented on the signing: “It takes a substantial label to be able to afford to sign a band like CARPATHIAN FOREST,  so when it was announced that Tchort and BloodPervertor were leaving and starting again from scratch with THE 3rd ATTEMPT, we were immediately interested in seeing what direction they would take, and opened a dialogue with them . We already knew what formidable musicians they were and what they were capable of, so Dark  Essence’s Kristine Knapskog went along to rehearsals to check out their new material.  She very much liked their enthusiasm and attitude, and their desire to work closely with a label and  we are very happy to welcome them to the Dark Essence family “.

The 3rd Attempt celebrating with Dark Essence Records’ Kristine Knapskog

Aside from Tchort and BloodPervertor, THE 3rd ATTEMPT’s lineup includes frontman Kaahrl Ødemark (ex- MIDNATTSVREDE, ex-NECROCAVE) who was selected following online auditions that drew in submissions from all over the world, and drummer Tybalt (FORTID, DEN SAAKALDTE, ETHEREAL FOREST, ex- HEATHEN DEITY, ex-PANTHEON I) who was originally slated to join the band as session live drummer for an upcoming appearance, but after taking part in rehearsals, it was decided that he would become a full-time member.

The 3rd ATTEMPT’s debut live  appearance will be at Blastfest, in Bergen,  Norway, on  the 18th February on  board the boat “Showline”, which will take fans on a 5 hour cruise of Bergen’s spectacular fjord,  and which kicks off the 4 day festival.

THE 3rd ATTEMPT recently debuted a demo track “The Beast Within”, which also features CARPATHIAN FOREST’s Daniel Vrangsinn on bass and Anders Kobro on drums, and which was  used in a shortened form for the  vocalist auditions.  It is not a “finished”  track.  “The Beast Within” can be heard below and on THE 3rd ATTEMPT’s SoundCloud page at   https://soundcloud.com/the-3rd-attempt/the-3rd-attempt-the-beast-within-demo-track

 

More information about THE 3rd ATTEMPT can be found on the official Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/the3rdattemptofficial

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/the3rdattemptofficial
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/the-3rd-attempt
Band contact: tchort@online.no
Management & PR: patriciathomas@btinternet.com
Dark Essence contact: post@karismarecords.no
Dark Essence Records: www.darkessencerecords.no
Dark Essence SoundCloud: http://soundcloud.com/dark-essence-records
Dark Essence Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/darkessencerecords
Dark Essence Webshop: http://karismarecords.bigcartel.com/
Dark Essence Records KlickTrack: shop.klicktrack.com/karismadarkessencerecords