Category: New album releases

EINAR SOLBERG launches new single “Over The Top”

First solo live performance this weekend at Prognosis Festival

EINAR SOLBERG – frontman of Norwegian rock mavericks Leprous – recently announced the release of his debut solo album ‘16’ on June 2nd, 2023. Wildly diverse, but spiritually rooted in Einar’s well-established musical world, ‘16’ is an album that brims with surprises and spinning curveballs and features a collection of intimate but extravagant collaborations.
Today, ahead of his first ever live performance of his solo material at Prognosis Festival in the Netherlands, Einar is pleased to announce his cinematic new single ‘Over The Top’.
Watch the video, directed by Elena Sihida, here:

As mentioned, Einar will be performing this material for the first time ever at Prognosis Festival in the Netherlands this weekend, with an appearance at the London edition the following weekend. For these shows he will be joined by Hrafnkell Örn Guðjónsson (Agent Fresco), Ben Levin (ex-Bent Knee), Chris Baum (Bent Knee), Ari Karason (Mezzoforte) and Ruben Aksnes (Maraton). You can find more details here: https://www.prognosis-festival.nl/

Watch the previously released videos below:
 ‘A Beautiful Life’: https://youtu.be/XAE2y2RfHtg
‘Grotto’ (feat. Magnus Børmark): https://youtu.be/r_Ol_LSma6k

‘16’ will be released on Ltd CD Digipak, Gatefold 180g 2LP + LP-booklet & Digitally, and is now available to pre-order here: https://einarsolberg-artist.lnk.to/sixteen

Einar Solberg is as renowned for the tender honesty of his lyrics as he is for the eccentric majesty of Leprous’ music. But even by his usual standards, ‘16’ is an extremely emotional and dynamic piece of work. Einar describes the record as “the closest I’ve ever come to writing a concept album” and explains that the new songs are about a very specific and transformational period in the musician’s life. This is the sound of a restless spirit in his absolute element.

“It’s called 16 because that’s when the first really, really bad things started happening to me in life. From 16 to 19, there were a lot of very life-defining moments that happened to me, and that changed me,” he says. “That’s when I kind of lost my innocence and I started realising that life is serious and bad shit can happen. A lot of pretty drastic things happened within those three years. But this album is not only about the bad things. It’s also about some of the career-defining moments, like the moment I started playing with the band and began to find a community to belong to. Emotionally, I’m a bit of everything, so it covers the entire emotional spectrum!”

’16’ finds Einar collaborating with everyone from modern prog contemporaries like Bent Knee’s Ben Levin and Agent Fresco’s Toti Gudnason, to experimental cellist (and regular Leprous live musician) Raphael Weinroth-Browne and Magnus Børmark, best known as a member of Norwegian alt-folk troupe Gåte. He also once again collaborates with Ihsahn and Star Of Ash amongst many others. The record was mixed by mixed by Adam Noble (Placebo, Biffy Clyro, Nothing But Thieves) and mastered by Robin Schmidt (The 1975, Placebo, The Gaslight Anthem, etc.). The cover artwork was designed by Elena Sihida.

The full track-listing is as follows:1. 16 (feat. Raphael Weinroth-Browne)
2.Remember Me
3.A Beautiful Life
4.Where All The Twigs Broke (feat. Star Of Ash)
5.Metacognitive (feat. Raphael Weinroth-Browne)
6.Home (feat. Ben Levin)
7.Blue Light (feat. Asger Mygind)
8.Grotto (feat. Magnus Børmark)
9.Splitting The Soul (feat. Ihsahn)
10.Over The Top
11.The Glass Is Empty (feat. Tóti Guðnason)

Einar will debut his solo material live with two exclusive shows at the Eindhoven & London editions of Prognosis Festival (15th & 22nd April respectively). You can find more details here: https://www.prognosis-festival.nl/

Danish math-stadium rock band Isbjörg release new single ‘Afterglow’ today!

Afterglow is Isbjörg’s second release from their upcoming second full-length album which is expected to be released in early 2024.

Along with the latest release ‘Ornament’, ‘Afterglow’ marks a new era for the band who, since the release of their debut album ‘Iridescent’ in 2019, have welcomed Jonathan Kjærulff Larsen as their new front figure.

‘Afterglow’ is a grand, energetic and modern rock ballad that engulfs the listener in a melancholic soundscape driven by lead
singer Jonathan Kjærulff Jensen’s powerful voice and balanced by Isbjörgs characteristic piano-centered rock sound. Lyrically, the
song is centered around two people’s loss of control, whose carelessness and unusual actions result in a negative spiral of which they can’t escape.

‘Afterglow’ is available on all major streaming services today:

Afterglow by Isbjörg (song.link)

Listen tot he track here:

Bio:
Isbjörg is a Danish math-stadium rock band centered around the piano.

The aim of the band has always been to surprise and break musical boundaries without compromising the songwriting. Odd time signatures and polyrhythms combined with catchy hooks and lush melodies captures the listener in an intense and captivating soundscape.

Following the release of two EP’s and singles, Isbjörg released their debut album ‘Iridescent’ in 2019. The album was very acclaimed by both fans and critics for its epic, piano-centered sound and the captivating songwriting.

After the release of ‘Iridescent’ Isbjörg have been touring around Denmark and played everything from small clubs to big festivals such as SmukFest in 2019. The last couple of

years Isbjörg have worked intensively on writing their follow-up album. After the departure of singer Niklas Jespersen in early 2022, Isbjörg welcomed Jonathan Kjærulff Jensen (Lara Luna) as their new lead singer and are now standing stronger and more focused than ever with a lot of single releases planned for 2023 before releasing their second full-length album in early 2024.

Website: http://isbjorg.dk

Isbjörg is:
Jonathan Kjærulff Jensen – Vocals

Mathias Bro Jørgensen – Piano, vocals

Dines Dahl Karlsen – Guitar

Lasse Gitz Thingholm – Guitar

Mathias Schouv Kjeldsen – Bass

Frederik Ølund Uglebjerg – Drums

Jethro Tull launch video for ‘Hammer On Hammer’; new studio album ‘RökFlöte’ out 21st April

Jethro Tull are set to release their 23rd studio album, ‘RökFlöte’, on the 21st April 2023 via InsideOutMusic. Following 2022’s ‘The Zealot Gene’, the band’s first album in two decades, Ian Anderson and the band are returning with a 12-track record based on the characters and roles of some of the principle gods of the old Norse paganism, and at the same time exploring the ‘RökFlöte’ – rock flute – which Jethro Tull has made iconic. 

With just over two weeks to go till release, today they are pleased to launch the third single taken from the album. Watch the video for ‘Hammer On Hammer’ (by Christian Rios) here:

The track takes inspiration from the god Thor, a loyal & honourable warrior who wears a powerful symbolic belt and wields a hammer. His mortal enemy & nemesis was Jormungand the sea-serpent.

Watch the previously released video for single ‘Ginnungagap’ here:

Watch the video for ‘The Navigators’ here: https://youtu.be/HUTtSU_6y1c

It was also recently announced that ‘RökFlöte’ would receive its premiere in Dolby Atmos immersive audio on the 17th April at Dolby Studios in London. The special event will see Ian Anderson in attendance alongside Bruce Soord who undertook the mixing for this spatial audio version.

‘RökFlöte’ will be available on several different formats, including two limited deluxe formats that include bonus demo material, extensive liner notes & a blu-ray featuring Dolby Atmos, 5.1 surround sound, alternative stereo mixes by Bruce Soord (The Pineapple Thief), as well as a bonus track and in-depth interview with Ian Anderson. The album will also be available digitally in the spatial audio formats Dolby Atmos & Sony 360 RA. The full list of formats are below:

Ltd Deluxe Dark Red 2LP+2CD+Blu-ray Artbook incl. 2 x art-prints

Ltd Deluxe 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook

Special Edition CD Digipak

Gatefold 180g LP+LP-booklet

Digital Album

Take a closer look at the deluxe formats here: https://youtu.be/Eo-c325XwgA

Pre-order now here: https://jethrotullband.lnk.to/RokFlote

1.    Voluspo

2.    Ginnungagap

3.    Allfather

4.    The Feathered Consort

5.    Hammer On Hammer

6.    Wolf Unchained

7.    The Perfect One

8.    Trickster (And The Mistletoe)

9.    Cornucopia

10. The Navigators

11. Guardian’s Watch

12. Ithavoll

Ian explains the album’s title & theme in more detail: “The title of this offering went through a little change or two along the way. I started with the idea of a predominantly instrumental album for rock flute – as in rock music. When the subject material of the album presented itself, I was drawn to the term Ragnarök from Norse mythology – their version of apocalyptic end times or Biblical Armageddon. The “final showdown” scenario is ubiquitous and inherent in Hinduism, Christianity and Islam, for example. Ragnarök translates as “destiny of the Gods”, the rök part meaning destiny, course, direction. With umlaut firmly in place, courtesy of the Germanic origins of Old Norse, Flute became Flöte in keeping with the spelling. With me so far? I just can’t miss the glorious opportunity for a good and legitimate umlaut.”

Jethro Tull continue live dates this year, with shows in mainland Europe, as well as a newly announced headline date in London on the 23rd May to celebrate the new album release. They will also return to North America later this year, with the first show in Wolf Trap confirmed and more to be announced in the coming weeks. Find the full list of shows here: https://jethrotull.com/tour-dates/

‘The Zealot Gene’, released in January 2022, was Jethro Tull’s 22nd studio album and it garnered critical acclaim across the board. Reaching #9 in the UK album charts, a feat the band hadn’t reached since 1972, it also debuted at #4 in Germany, #3 in Switzerland, #5 in Austria, #8 in Finland, as well as top 10 in the US Album Charts, Current Album Charts and Rock Album Charts.

With more than 30 albums to their credit and sales totaling more than 60 million, Jethro Tull are one of the most successful rock bands of all-time with a catalog that contains classics that still resonate today. Led by Ian Anderson, Tull still continue to tour throughout the world, entertaining audiences of all ages. 

The band consists of:

Ian Anderson – Concert and Alto flutes, Flute d’Amour,            

Irish whistle and vocals

David Goodier – Bass guitar

John O’Hara – Piano, keyboards and Hammond Organ

Scott Hammond – Drums.

Joe Parrish-James – Electric and acoustic guitars, mandolin  

Norwegian progressive rock group AVKRVST reveal details for debut album ‘The Approbation’

New video for the first single “The Pale Moon” out now.

Norwegian progressive rock group AVKRVST are pleased to reveal details on their debut album titled ‘The Approbation’, set to be released on the 16th June, 2023.  The album cover and tracklisting can be seen below.

The band are also pleased to share the new video for the album’s first single “The Pale Moon” which you can see here:

“The Pale Moon” is also available on all digital platforms here:

https://avkrvst.lnk.to/ThePaleMoon-Single

The band had this to say about the video: “The video for «The Pale Moon» is portraying a lonesome soul and his daily chores on a cabin far away from civilization – on his journey towards the end of life. All faith and hope is gone and the character is starting to lose his mind. Is he alone? Is there someone else present? Or is it just his mind playing games?”

The video was directed by AVKRVST and co-directed, shot and edited by Simen Skari.

The cover artwork for ‘The Approbation’ was created by Berlin-based artist and illustrator Eliran Kantor, who is well-known for his intriguing cover creations for metal bands.

Tracklisting:

1.Østerdalen 0:26

2.The Pale Moon 6:15

3.Isolation 5:41

4.The Great White River 6:30

5.Arcane Clouds 6:05

6.Anodyne 10:15

7.The Approbation 13:37

Earlier this year the band shared a teaser video of them working in the studio which you can see here:

At the young age of 7 years old, Martin Utby and Simon Bergseth made a pact that they would form a band when they got older. Now, 22 years later they’ve done just that. An album is ready – 55 minutes of music inspired by everything they grew up listening to – everything from Mew, Anekdoten and Porcupine Tree to Opeth, Neal Morse and King Crimson.

All the music has been written at a small cabin, deep into the Norwegian forests (Alvdal, Norway). Simon (composer, guitars, bass and vocals) and Martin (composer, drummer and synths) have later been joined by Øystein Aadland on bass/keys, Edvard Seim on guitars and Auver Gaaren on keys.

AVKRVST Online: 

www.facebook.com/avkrvst 

www.instagram.com/avkrvst

Steve Hackett – 90’s solo albums “Guitar Noir’ and Darktown’ to be released on vinyl for the very first time.

Legendary guitarist Steve Hackett is pleased to announce that two of his 90’s solo records will be released on vinyl for the first time ever in 2023, marking the beginning of a series of vinyl reissues of his solo catalogue. On the 2nd June 2023, the 1993 album ‘Guitar Noir’ & the 1999 album ‘Darktown’ will be made available as Gatefold 180g 2LP’s, each newly remastered especially for the vinyl format. Pre-order now here: 

https://stevehackett.lnk.to/GuitarNoirVinylReIssue2023

https://stevehackett.lnk.to/Darktown-VinylReIssue2023

Steve comments: “I’m thrilled that my two albums Guitar Noir and Darktown are being release on vinyl for the first time! My music took on a darker edge for both those albums, and I explored additional sounds and genres I hadn’t touched before.”

‘Guitar Noir’ (1993) saw Steve taking a darker approach to his guitar sound, and he was joined by Julian Colbeck (keys), Dave Ball (bass), Hugo Degenhardt (drums), Aron Friedman (keys), Nick Magnus (keys) & more for this record.

‘Darktown’ (1999) also saw Steve joined by Julian Colbeck (keys) & Hugo Degenhardt (drums), as well as Roger King (Keys, Bass, Drums), Jim Diamond (Vocals), John Hackett (Flute, Pan Pipes), Ian McDonald (Sax) & John Wetton (Bass Samples). This edition of the album also includes the 3 bonus tracks included on the 2013 CD reissue. 

Following the Wuppertal show with full orchestra, Steve Hackett and band will continue their Foxtrot at Fifty plus Hackett Highlights tour in Europe in April and North America in the autumn.

About Steve Hackett

Steve Hackett joined Genesis at the beginning of 1971 and gained an international reputation as the guitarist in the band’s classic line-up alongside Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins. Hackett’s intricate guitar work was a key element of Genesis’ albums from Nursery Cryme (1971) to Wind And Wuthering (1977) including the classic Selling England By The Pound.

After leaving Genesis at the end of 1977, Hackett’s solo career, which now spans more than 30 albums, has demonstrated his extraordinary versatility with both electric and acoustic guitar. Hackett is renowned as both an immensely talented and innovative rock musician and a virtuoso classical guitarist and composer and this was recognised in 2010 when he was inducted into the Rock Hall Of Fame. He has also worked alongside Steve Howe of YES in the supergroup GTR.

Hackett’s compositions take influences from many genres, including jazz, classical and blues. For his later studio works The Night Siren(2017) and At The Edge Of Light (2019) Hackett has explored the influences of world music. Recent tours have seen Hackett celebrate his time with Genesis including a spectacular 2018 tour in which he realised a long-held ambition to perform the works of Genesis live with his band and an orchestra.

The lockdown enforced by the 2020 global pandemic has proven to be a particularly creative period for Hackett. He began by releasing Selling England by the Pound & Spectral Mornings: Live at Hammersmith, a live recording of 2019’s hugely successful tour celebrating that Genesis classic together with the 40th anniversary of one of his most-loved solo albums. Lockdown also gave Hackett the opportunity to write and record two new studio albums, the UK Classical Chart hit Under A Mediterranean Sky and Surrender of Silence.

STEVE HACKETT Online:

www.hackettsongs.com

 www.facebook.com/pages/Steve-Hackett/123101228589

 www.twitter.com/HackettOfficial

http://hackettsongs.com/tour.html

Big Big Train share live performance of “The Florentine” in advance of ‘The Journey Continues’ Tour

To celebrate and promote the forthcoming ‘The Journey Continues’ Tour this August & September, Big Big Train will be sharing videos of a couple of songs filmed on tour last year. The first of these is “The Florentine” which was recorded in September 2022 at The Boerderij in The Netherlands.
You can see the video here:

Alberto Bravin says: “I was very pleased when we agreed last year that “The Florentine” should be on the set list for our shows last September. After all, what could be better for an Italian than singing about Leonardo da Vinci?! “The Florentine” is a wonderful song to sing and a perfect example of David Longdon’s songwriting genius. We’re very fortunate to have the song as part of the Big Big Train catalogue. 
 
“Duetting at the start and end of “The Florentine,” with Nick D’Virgilio coming out from behind the drum kit, was fun. It has some great opportunities for ensemble playing as well as some showcasing some terrific solos – I really enjoyed being on stage watching Oskar Holldorff playing that keyboard solo and Rikard rocking out on the guitar solo every night. For the gig at the Boerderij we thought it would be interesting to have a camera on Rikard’s guitar too. I hope we will be playing “The Florentine” live many more times in the future.”

Nick D’Virgilio adds: “I loved singing with Alberto. Seeing the live film of us playing “The Florentine” at the legendary Boerderij venue in the Netherlands is so cool. It still amazes me that this was only our third show playing together with Alberto, Oskar, Clare Lindley and Dave Foster. Our performance may not be 100% perfect but we really rocked and it was very memorable – particularly for a Monday night!”
 
“Our Boerderij show was also the first time that we had played a standing venue since our Night Of The Prog gig back in 2018. The night had a different vibe to the shows we’ve done in seated theatres on previous tours and I’m really looking forward to us playing a mix of venues when we’re back out on the road in August and September this year.”

You can see a short, recent message from Gregory Spawton about the tour and the next BBT studio album here https://youtu.be/cwbgqkjudME And a message from Alberto Bravin here https://youtu.be/_wTYlRaWdQ0

AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2023 DATES

Saturday 26th August – Cultuurpodium Boerderij, Zoetermeer, The Netherlands
Sunday 27th August – Markthalle, Hamburg, Germany
Monday 28th August – Stora Teatern, Gothenburg, Sweden
Tuesday 29th August – Cosmopolite, Oslo, Norway
Wednesday 30th August – Fryshuset Klubben, Stockholm, Sweden
Thursday 31st August – Viften, Copenhagen, Denmark

Saturday 2nd September – 2 Days + 1 Festival, Revislate, Italy
Sunday 3rd September – Z7, Pratteln (Basel), Switzerland
Tuesday 5th September – Neuberinhaus, Reichenbach, Germany
Wednesday 6th September – Carlswerk Victoria, Cologne, Germany
Thursday 7th September – Colos-Saal, Aschaffenburg, Germany
Friday 8th September – Mozart-Saal, Stuttgart, Germany

Sunday 10th September – The Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, UK
Monday 11th September – Town Hall, Birmingham, UK
Tuesday 12th September – Cadogan Hall, London, UK
Wednesday 13th September – Cadogan Hall, London, UK

Support at all shows except Wednesday 13th September comes from rising Norwegian stars Dim Gray, who feature BBT’s Oskar Holldorff. There will be no support at the Wednesday 13th September show

Please see www.bigbigtrain.com/live for ticket links to all venue box offices.

Big Big Train will release the album titled ‘Ingenious Devices’ on 30th June 2023 on CD, double vinyl (black and sky blue vinyl) and hi-resolution (24/96) Bandcamp download. ‘Ingenious Devices’ will be available on all major streaming platforms from 28th July 2023.

‘Ingenious Devices’ features 59 minutes of music, including new versions of “East Coast Racer”, “Brooklands” and “Voyager,” which prominently feature an elite 17 piece string section recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London and have been re-mixed for this release.

Additionally, ‘Ingenious Devices’ includes a previously unreleased orchestral piece called “The Book of Ingenious Devices”, which links “East Coast Racer” and “Brooklands”, as well as a live version of “Atlantic Cable”, which was recorded on the band’s tour in September 2022.

Ingenious Devices is available to pre-order here:
https://burningshed.com/store/bigbigtrain
https://thebandwagonusa.com/collections/big-big-train
https://bigbigtrain.bandcamp.com

EINAR SOLBERG launches ‘A Beautiful Life’; second single from his debut solo album ’16’

EINAR SOLBERG – frontman of Norwegian rock mavericks Leprous – is pleased to announce the release of his debut solo album ‘16’ on the 2nd June 2023. Wildly diverse, but spiritually rooted in Einar’s well-established musical world, ‘16’ is an album that brims with surprises and spinning curveballs and features a collection of intimate but extravagant collaborations. 

Today sees the launch of the second single taken from the album, and you can watch the video for ‘A Beautiful Life’, directed by Elena Sihida, here: 

Einar comments: “‘16’ is a very diverse album, and “A Beautiful Life” is probably the most accessible song of the entire record! On most songs I’ve collaborated with other composers, but this is one out of four solo songs.”

‘A Beautiful Life’ features Einar joined by Keli Guðjónsson (drums), Tor Egil Kreken (bass), Raphael Weinroth-Browne (cello), Chris Baum (violin), Ben Levin (guitar) & Magnus Børmark (guitar).

Watch the video for the previously released track ‘Grotto’ (feat. Magnus Børmark) here, also directed by Elena Sihida: https://youtu.be/r_Ol_LSma6k

‘16’ will be released on Ltd CD Digipak, Gatefold 180g 2LP + LP-booklet & Digitally, and is now available to pre-order here: https://einarsolberg-artist.lnk.to/sixteen

Einar Solberg is as renowned for the tender honesty of his lyrics as he is for the eccentric majesty of Leprous’ music. But even by his usual standards, ‘16’ is an extremely emotional and dynamic piece of work. Einar describes the record as “the closest I’ve ever come to writing a concept album” and explains that the new songs are about a very specific and transformational period in the musician’s life. This is the sound of a restless spirit in his absolute element. 

“It’s called 16 because that’s when the first really, really bad things started happening to me in life. From 16 to 19, there were a lot of very life-defining moments that happened to me, and that changed me,” he says. “That’s when I kind of lost my innocence and I started realising that life is serious and bad shit can happen. A lot of pretty drastic things happened within those three years. But this album is not only about the bad things. It’s also about some of the career-defining moments, like the moment I started playing with the band and began to find a community to belong to. Emotionally, I’m a bit of everything, so it covers the entire emotional spectrum!”

’16’ finds Einar collaborating with everyone from modern prog contemporaries like Bent Knee’s Ben Levin and Agent Fresco’s Toti Gudnason, to experimental cellist (and regular Leprous live musician) Raphael Weinroth-Browne and Magnus Børmark, best known as a member of Norwegian alt-folk troupe Gåte. He also once again collaborates with Ihsahn and Star Of Ash amongst many others. The record was mixed by mixed by Adam Noble (Placebo, Biffy Clyro, Nothing But Thieves) and mastered by Robin Schmidt (The 1975, Placebo, The Gaslight Anthem, etc.). The cover artwork was designed by Elena Sihida. 

The full track-listing is as follows:

1.     16 (feat. Raphael Weinroth-Browne)

2.     Remember Me

3.     A Beautiful Life

4.     Where All The Twigs Broke (feat. Star Of Ash)

5.     Metacognitive

6.     Home (feat. Ben Levin)

7.     Blue Light (feat. Asger Mygind)

8.     Grotto (feat. Magnus Børmark)

9.     Splitting The Soul (feat. Ihsahn)

10.  Over The Top

11.  The Glass Is Empty (feat. Tóti Guðnason)

Einar will debut his solo material live with two exclusive shows at the Eindhoven & London editions of Prognosis Festival (15th & 22nd April respectively). You can find more details here: https://www.prognosis-festival.nl/

YES announce new studio album ‘Mirror To The Sky’ for release 19th May 2023; launch first single ‘Cut From The Stars’

YES, who are Steve Howe, Geoff Downes, Jon Davison, Billy Sherwood & Jay Schellen, are pleased to announce their new studio album Mirror To The Sky on InsideOutMusic/Sony Music on the 19th May 2023. “This is a very important album for the band,” says Steve Howe, Yes’ longest serving member, master guitarist, and producer of Mirror To The Sky. “We kept the continuity in the approach we established on The Quest, but we haven’t repeated ourselves. That was the main thing. As Yes did in the seventies from one album to another, we’re growing and moving forward. In later years, Yes often got going but then didn’t do the next thing. This album is demonstrative of us growing, and building again.” For Yes, that “next thing” is a collection of high energy, intricate, lush and layered new studio songs for an album which adds to the band’s much heralded legacy, while charting a path to exciting future times ahead.

Today also sees the launch of the first track taken from the album. Listen to Cut From The Stars & watch the video here:

‘Mirror To The Sky’ will be available on several formats, all featuring artwork by longtime Yes artist & collaborator Roger Dean: 

Ltd Deluxe Electric Blue 2LP+2CD+Blu-ray Artbook with poster

Ltd Deluxe 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook

Ltd 2CD Digipak

Standard CD Jewelcase

Gatefold 2LP+LP-Booklet

Digital Album

The blu-ray editions include the album as Dolby Atmos, 5.1 Surround Sound, Instrumental Versions & Hi-Res Stereo Mixes.

Pre-order now here: https://Yes-Band.lnk.to/MirrorToTheSky

The tracklisting is as follows:

CD1:

1. Cut From The Stars 05:27

2. All Connected 09:02

3. Luminosity 09:04

4. Living Out Their Dream 04:45

5. Mirror to the Sky 13:53

6. Circles of Time 04:59

CD2:

1. Unknown Place 08:15

2. One Second Is Enough 04:04

3. Magic Potion 04:08

As they were wrapping up The Quest, Yes found themselves with song sketches, structures, and ideas that were demanding attention. Yes received unconditional support from InsideOut boss Thomas Waber, who encouraged them to keep going in the studio, months before The Quest would even go on sale. It was like throwing gasoline on their creative fire.

“When we delivered everything, and they were just getting the vinyl and everything into production for manufacturing, we were still very much in that creative zone,” explains Steve Howe. “That belief that Thomas had in us really meant a lot,” he says.

“We truly get along as people,” says Jon Davison. “I feel like everyone’s focused inward to the greater circle, concentric to the core of highest standards that define Yes. It’s a wonderful thing to witness and of which to play a part. I believe this reflects vibrantly in the music and the creative input that each one is willing to apply, not for the benefit of the individual, but for the greater whole that is Yes.”

“There was a lot of material floating around because the band hadn’t done anything in the studio for so long. Ideas were just copious,” says bassist Billy Sherwood. “The pace of it was fast. As soon as we were finished with The Quest, and the mix had come out, we took a couple of little breaks there to catch our breath. But there was still music flowing around in the loop. It was just constantly being looked at and worked on. As we were all home and in that mode, things started progressing quite swiftly. We just went one album into another without really announcing, ‘Hey, we’re working on a second record right now.’ We just continued to work on material. It came about pretty naturally, and then we refined it as the process went on. But the initial bursts — there was a lot of material around!”

Much to everyone’s delight, including that of longtime-fan Thomas Waber, Yes have pushed into territory they practically invented — the prog rock epic — albeit in a thoroughly new and modern way. “I always felt that it would be great to have stuff that’s a little bit more epic,” he says, although he resisted the temptation to push for something that would be too formatted and could come off as contrived. He just gave the band space to do what they do and let things develop. “They were so excited by The Quest and the momentum they had that they went straight back in to the studio. What they were writing, even early on, was obviously headed in that epic direction — what Yes music really is to me. It is almost a genre onto itself. It is ‘Yes Music.’ Mirror To The Sky certainly is Yes Music.”

Mirror To The Sky features not one, but four tracks clocking in at over eight minutes, with the sweeping and cinematic title track coming in just shy of fourteen minutes. What’s more, the tracks, like Yes’ best, take the listener on a wide dynamically ranging journey of soundscapes which also showcase Steve Howe’s dazzling guitars, keyboard wizard Geoff Downes’ impeccable sounds, exquisite melodies and fills, Jon Davison’s angelic, crystalline vocals, Billy Sherwood’s deftly dancing bass and Jay Schellen’s masterfully controlled explosions, on drums.

Jay Schellen, who has been touring with the band since 2016, was hand-picked to step into his mentor and friend Alan White’s role when White sadly passed away in 2022. “I had done the 2016 Topographic Drama tour on my own for Alan,” say Jay. “From late 2017 onwards, we had a partnership, and a beautiful partnership, I might add. I learned so much, and discovered so much about Alan’s style, and why it was the way it was. It fit his personality so perfectly. This album has Alan’s presence all over it. It is inside of us. So this is still, in my heart, Alan just being present and with us, and with me, in a big way.”

Prog Ensemble CAIRO To Release 2nd Album “Nemesis” on May 5, 2023

The eagerly anticipated follow up album from 5-piece award winning progressive rock band CAIRO “Nemesis” will be released on May 5th on Spirit of Unicorn Music.

This studio album, recorded with John Mitchell at Outhouse Studios, taps into contemporary global concerns and demonstrates the band’s impressive, genre-defying approach with menacing, angular riffs, pop rock hooks and electronic soundscapes that all beautifully complement powerful and emotive vocals.

In this exciting and purposefully eclectic new album, the band venture into familiar ‘CAIRO rocks’ territory with the dynamic, moving epics. There are also some exciting departures for the band venturing into more melodic rock areas with “The Love” and “Glow,” and upbeat banger “Jumping On The Moon.”

Artwork is by Paul Tippett (It Bites, Frost, Kino, Twelfth Night, Pendragon, Europe, Inglorious, Uriah Heep), with additional artwork consultancy from Andrew Wildman (Marvel Comics, Transformers, X-Men; storyboard artist for Doctor Who; Luther, Poldark).

There is also even a short keys-based orchestral instrumental, “Save The Earth,” which doffs a cap to the likes of the sadly, recently departed Vangelis, and acts as a prologue into the title track.

Track List
1. Asleep At The Wheel
2. Tripwire
3. Glow
4. Rogue
5. The Love
6. New Beauty
7. Déjà Vu
8. Jumping On The Moon
9. Save The Earth
10. Nemesis

To pre-order: https://www.cherryred.co.uk/product/cairo-nemesis-cd-edition/

For more information: https://cairorocks.com/

Norwegian progressive rock/metal group AVKRVST release debut single “The Pale Moon” 

Norwegian progressive rock/metal group AVKRVST are pleased to announce their debut single “The Pale Moon”, the first release of the band since its formation.

“The Pale Moon” is the first single of AVKRVST’s upcoming debut album, which will be out this year via InsideOutMusic/Sony Music. More information will be revealed on March 31st.

The first single from the album “The Pale Moon” is now available on all digital platforms.

Check it out here:

Avkrvst – The Pale Moon – Single (lnk.to)

Vocalist Simon Bergseth had this to say about the track: “Besides being the opening track of our forthcoming debut album, it is a piece of music that contains some of the albums sonics in general. ‘The Pale Moon’ is the beginning of something greater and gives the listener a glimpse of what’s to come.”

The cover artwork for “The Pale Moon” was created by Berlin-based artist and illustrator Eliran Kantor, who is well-known for his intriguing cover creations for metal bands. 

Earlier this year the band shared a teaser video of them working in the studio which you can see here:

At the young age of 7 years old, Martin Utby and Simon Bergseth made a pact that they would form a band when they got older. Now, 22 years later they’ve done just that. An album is ready – 55 minutes of music inspired by everything they grew up listening to – everything from Mew, Anekdoten and Porcupine Tree to Opeth, Neal Morse and King Crimson.

All the music has been written at a small cabin, deep into the Norwegian forests (Alvdal,Norway). Simon (composer, guitars, bass and vocals) and Martin (composer, drummer and synths) have later been joined by Øystein Aadland on bass/keys, Edvard Seim on guitars and Auver Gaaren on keys.

More to come. 

AVKRVST Online: www.facebook.com/avkrvst www.instagram.com/avkrvst