In late 2017, Dream Theater signed with Sony Music’s progressive imprint InsideOutMusic. Now, in preparation for the band’s fourteenth studio album and their first album ever produced in collaboration with this leading worldwide label, they are pleased to announce that they have entered the studio to begin the writing process. Recently, John Petrucci and James LaBrie shared a quick video update from the writing sessions on the band’s official Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/dreamtheater
James comments: “We’ve been here for one week and it is going sensational. Everybody is in the one room…and I gotta tell you, if the first week is any indication of where this album is going, you’re in for a treat.”
John adds: “There’s a lot of ideas flowing, and it’s already been really productive after only a week in. So far the music is heavy, progressive, melodic, shredding and it’s epic.”
The band will hold a live Facebook Q&A with fans during their time in the studio on June 28th at 3PM Eastern Time / 8pm UK time. Make sure to tune in!
Dream Theater is:
James LaBrie – Lead Vocals
John Petrucci – Guitars, Backing Vocals
Jordan Rudess – Keyboards
John Myung – Bass Guitars
Mike Mangini – Drums, Percussion
The Pineapple Thief have revealed their first single, entitled “Far Below” from forthcoming new studio album Dissolution. The highly anticipated follow up to 2015’s Your Wilderness, is the band’s second album to feature King Crimson and Porcupine Tree virtuoso drummer Gavin Harrison.
Vocalist, songwriter and guitarist Bruce Soord explains the song’s evolution:
“‘Far Below’ began life as a bit of a jam session between myself and Gavin. Gavin had this distinctive 6/8 rhythm going and it didn’t take long for me to find the melodies. And so, a song was born. Is it my favourite track from the album? Impossible to judge as the album covers so much ground. But it does showcase what the four of us want The Pineapple Thief to be about and I for one can’t wait to play this one live.”
Bruce Soord reveals more about the themes within Dissolution “broadly speaking the title reflects the disintegration of relationships and the undoing of our social fabric. We’re living in a time when supposedly we are more connected than ever before, but, I personally am at my happiest when I unplug that connection.”
Bruce Soord elaborates on the writing and recording process with “We’ve once again been joined by Gavin Harrison. It’s been a real collaborative journey between the 4 of us writing and recording this record, with the songs taking on a life of their own. When everyone pulls in the same direction, amazing things can happen.The Pineapple Thief is a different proposition with Gavin. This time he was with me from the inception of ‘Dissolution’ and together we took the songs into territory I wouldn’t have found on my own. We found ourselves pushing each other so much further, both technically and artistically. There were times in the depths of the writing and recording process, which took 6 months, that I felt so exhilarated but at the same time exhausted and overwhelmed, that I couldn’t imagine us ever finishing the record. Every day we found ourselves finding that extra something we didn’t know we had. None of us would let anyone or anything get in the way of what we felt the album should become. I look back on the process with immense pride”
Gavin Harrison stated “It’s been fantastic to collaborate with these guys again – especially as this time I’ve been involved from the ground up. It’s been a most inspiring effort and I think it will prove to be the best yet.”
Dissolutionwas recorded across the UK at the band member’s various studios, Bruce explains “The drums were recorded and mixed by Gavin at his studio, ‘Bourne Place’ in London. He has the best sounding live room I have heard and gets an incredible drum mix. Gavin would send me a stereo drum mix that he would constantly tweak as the songs progressed. Jon records his bass at his studio north of Leicester. Steve records his keyboards at his mastering studio in Exeter and I record and mix the rest here in my studio (Soord Studios) in Yeovil, Somerset. It may seem odd that we were able to create something as ‘a band’ when we are so far apart. But we talked almost daily. Technology means ideas can be shared instantly. We were effectively jamming a lot of the time. Just a bit further apart.”
Dissolutionfeatures cover art artwork from iconic design agency Stylorouge, who have produced artwork for the likes of Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Blur and the British film Trainspotting.
The Pineapple Thief have grown to become one of the leading lights of Europe’s experimental rock domain, Your Wilderness produced 4m+ album streams, a #7 in the UK Independent Charts and two extensive headline European tours culminating at London’s Islington Assembly Hall where the concert was recorded for the live release Where We Stood.
Dissolution will be released in the following formats – all available to pre-order nowHERE
CD
Black LP –pressed to audiophile 180g vinyl Limited Edition Crystal Clear LP edition – pressed to audiophile 180g vinyl
Blu-ray – features a 16-page booklet, the album plus bonus music in a 24/96 DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound mix and 24/96 hi-res stereo audio
Deluxe 4 disc edition – features 52 pages containing exclusive additional artwork, the original album on CD plus a second CD of bonus music, and is topped off with a DVD and Blu-ray featuring the album and bonus material in a 24/96 DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound mix and 24/96 hi-res stereo audio.
All digital & streaming platforms.
The Pineapple Thief will be taking Dissolution on the road starting in September 2018, with new dates added for March 2019. This tour includes their biggest show to date at London’s prestigious O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire – tickets are on sale now and selling fast: http://www.pineapplethief.com/tour/
Canadian progressive sci-fi metal innovators VOIVOD are not only celebrating their 35th band-anniversary, but have also just wrapped up studio-work for their upcoming new studio album entitled “The Wake”. Expected for a late September worldwide release via Century Media Records, “The Wake” is the highly anticipated successor to 2013’s “Target Earth” album and the 2016 mini-album “Post Society”
VOIVOD drummer Michel “Away” Langevin checked in with the following comment:
“We are thrilled to let you know that our new album, “The Wake”, is completed! The music is like a futuristic prog thrash metal trek with many twists and turns, and the story involves the usual Voivodian topics: disasters, chaos, conflicts, strange plots and alternate consciousness. We are excited with the result and can’t wait to get the material out to you this fall!
Also, try to catch us when we tour Europe in September and October. It will be a great opportunity for the band to test some songs from our upcoming album.”
Here is a list of the comprehensive European run, which will feature the following rotating support acts: Maggot Heart (from 7th until 16th Sept), Nightrage (from 18th until 26th Sept) and Bio-Cancer (from 28th Sept until 20th Oct):
VOIVOD – European Tour 2018:
07.09.2018 Prague (Czech Republic) – Futurum *
08.09.2018 Poznan (Poland) – U Bazyla *
09.09.2018 Warsaw (Poland) – Hydrozagadka *
10.09.2018 Krakow (Poland) – Kwadrat *
11.09.2018 Bratislava (Slovakia) – Randal Club *
13.09.2018 Cluj-Napoca (Romania) – Flying Circus Pub *
14.09.2018 Belgrade (Serbia) – Elektropionir *
15.09.2018 Budapest (Hungary) – Durer Kert *
16.09.2018 Vienna (Austria) – Szene *
18.09.2018 Bologna (Italy) – Locomotiv **
19.09.2018 Rome (Italy) – Largo **
20.09.2018 Milan (Italy) – Santeria **
21.09.2018 Winterthur (Switzerland) – Gaswerk **
22.09.2018 Seyssinet Pariset (France) – Ilyade **
24.09.2018 Barcelona (Spain) – Boveda **
25.09.2018 Madrid (Spain) – Nazca **
26.09.2018 Porto (Portugal) – Hard Club **
28.09.2018 Marseille (France) – Jas’ Rod ***
29.09.2018 Paris (France) – Petit Bain ***
30.09.2018 Nantes (France) – Ferrailleur ***
02.10.2018 Southampton (UK) – The Joiners ***
03.10.2018 Cardiff (UK) – The Globe ***
04.10.2018 Leeds (UK) – Temple Of Boom ***
05.10.2018 Glasgow (UK) – Cathouse ***
06.10.2018 Manchester (UK) – Rebellion ***
07.10.2018 London (UK) – Underworld ***
09.10.2018 Brussels (Belgium) – Magasin 4 ***
10.10.2018 Amstelveen (The Netherlands) – P60 ***
11.10.2018 Eindhoven (The Netherlands) – Dynamo ***
12.10.2018 Cologne (Germany) – Luxor ***
13.10.2018 Hamburg (Germany) – Logo ***
14.10.2018 Copenhagen (Denmark) – Pumpehuset ***
15.10.2018 Stockholm (Sweden) – Klubb Nalen ***
17.10.2018 Helsinki (Finland) – Tavastia ***
18.10.2018 Tampere (Finland) – Klubi ***
20.10.2018 Oslo (Norway) – John Dee ***
Support bands:
* Maggot Heart (from 7th until 16th Sept)
** Nightrage (from 18th until 26th Sept)
*** Bio-Cancer (from 28th Sept until 20th Oct)
Previously, VOIVOD will also appear at selected festivals in North America as follows:
LOS ANGELES, CA – June, 2018 – Progressive rock trio Alizarin, featuring Josh Kay on guitar, Jon Damon on drums, and Steve Ostaszewski on bass, have announced their debut album ‘Cast Zenith’ and revealed the cover art, along with the track listing. The album is set to be released June 27th, 2018 in both CD and digital formats.
‘Cast Zenith’ was tracked both at Big Scary Tree Studios in Sunland, CA and at the Alizarin home studio in May, 2018. The seven tracks cover a wide spectrum of instrumental sonic landscapes and emphasize the melodic journey over intense technique (though the album does offer plenty of head-imploding technical jargon for the speed fiends). Consider if King Crimson and Opeth had a baby but were forced to raise it outside the city, due to an overabundance of djentrification. This may be a place to start but Alizarin is a group that strives to create compelling music that defies rock conventions.
Midlands prog rockers Encircled will release ‘The Universal Mirth’ on August 4th.
‘The Universal Mirth’ is their third album, a follow up to the bands critically acclaimed 2017 album ‘The Monkey Jamboree’.
“We have gone a bit darker on this album”, says Bass/keyboard player Scott Evans. “The music came first and we had a lot written whilst we were promoting the last album, it maintains some of the song writing elements of ‘The Monkey Jamboree’ that people latched onto but more complex and layered. Busby (vocalist – Mark ‘Busby’ Burrows) has taken his lyric writing to a new level and really explored darker themes, all relevant to today’s cyber security paranoid nation”
Guesting on the album is Prog legend Peter Jones (Tiger Moth Tales, Red Bazar, Camel). “Pete contributed a 3 minute keyboard solo on the closing 13 minute track Log Out that is one of the finest things I have ever heard, a goose bumps moment for the band”, says Scott.
Pre-orders for the Digipack cd and digital album go live at the start of July on the bands site https://encircled.bandcamp.com
Track listing:
Log In – The Mystical Way
The Obsession
Past Times
This Is Goodbye
Smiling On The Inside
22 Likes
Fantastic Souvenir
Log Out – The Universal Mirth
Band: Gareth Evans – Lead Guitar Mark Busby Burrows – Vocals & Guitar Scott Evans – Bass, Keyboards & Programming
Kym Hart – Guest Vocals Peter Jones – Keyboards on Log Out – The Universal Mirth Shaun Lowe – Producer and additional drums
Following on from his hugely successful UK tour earlier this year where he performed songs from Mansun’sAttack Of The Grey Lantern,Paul Draper has confirmed that in September 2018 he will be celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the release of Mansun’s second album SIX, by performing tracks from the iconic album at this year’s Festival Number 6 (www.festivalnumber6.com ) in Portmeirion, Wales.
Paul has also announced that he’ll be playing a warm up show ahead of the festival at the Trades Club in Hebden Bridge, and a chance for fans to hear a preview of the songs from SIX, performed by Paul, solo, for the first time – Paul comments “It’s a really exciting challenge to be playing tracks from the Six album for the first time as a solo artist on the 20th Anniversary of the album’s release, really looking forward to this at Festival No.6 and the special warm up show at Trades Club, Hebden Bridge beforehand.’”
6th September – Trades Club, Hebden Bridge
6-9tth September – Festival Number 6 – Portmeirion
Kscope, who released Draper’s high anticipated debut solo album Spooky Action last year have acquired the rights to Mansun’s back catalogue. The ground-breaking label will roll out a reissue campaign over eighteen months that will cover the band’s entire history and enhance their reputation as one of the most iconic and innovative bands of the 90s.
The campaign begins on 8th June with the release of Attack of theGreyLantern (1997) and will be followed by Six (1998), Little Kix (2000) and the compilation Kleptomania (2004). The Kscope reissues will bring these classic records into the modern age by delving into a treasure trove of previously unreleased audio and visual material while fully remastering the original recordings for 5.1 and deluxe 180gm vinyl.
The new starfish64 album “TheFuture In Reverse” will be released digitally on 2018-05-18. It will be available through Bandcamp, iTunes and several other download services. For physical formats the band have just started a crowdfunding campaign to realize a proper release on CD and, if possible, also on Vinyl.
“The Future In Reverse” is the most ambitious and diverse album in the band’s history. It goes from catchy pop-influenced tunes to spacey psychedelic epics and also includes a long-form suite in classic progressive rock style. As 90 minutes worth of material have been recorded during the sessions, it will be followed by a sister-album entitled “The Present Upside-Down” later this year.
The Tracklisting is as follows:
• Yesterdays Favourite Smile
• Tomorrow In Dark Water
• Determination(a.Mankind, b. At Lightspeed, c. Infinite Space)
• Molehills
• Charting An Abyss(a.Recurring Dreams, b. Framework, c. Dominos, d. At Peace)
Running time approx. 46 min.
Yesterday’s Favorite Smilehas beenreleased as a video on Youtube:
Legendary British rock band Magnum celebrated the release of their 20th Studio album ‘Lost On The Road To Eternity’ with a multi-date European tour and they have announced a further seven dates in November 2018.
Scottish post-rock duo Midas Fall, who release their new album ‘Evaporate’ on 27th April, have shared a stunning animated video for ‘Glue’.
Directed and produced by Stefano Bertelli, with the set design by Riccardo Orlandi, the band describe the track as,’a song that exists in 4 parts and goes on a journey. Over the years time starts to blur the edges of the situation you are in up to the point that this becomes your normality and impossible to see an outside perspective. As the track unfolds the realisation is made and leads to further realisation of the difficulties associated with breaking free. Ultimately ending in chaos. The song gives a little nod to Ravels “Gaspard de la nuit” at the start before going in a more electronic direction, utilising sparseness, beats and synths.’
With this new album, Midas Fall have carved a distinctive and captivating sound, creating taut, shimmering soundscapes led by the hauntingly melancholic vocals of Elizabeth Heaton – a sound described as “powerful yet fragile, devastatingly beautiful and beautifully devastating” (The Founder Magazine).
Extremely emotive and vivid, ‘Evaporate’ is a deeply beautiful record – from the desperate, savage cacophony of ‘Bruise Pusher’ to the elegant ascension of ‘Sword to Shield’ – it conjures stunning soundscapes at every turn.
The album will be released worldwide by Monotreme Records on 27 April 2018 on CD and digital formats, as well as a limited pressing of 500 LPs on 180 g vinyl (200 black and 300 clear blue / black).
HAKEN are extremely pleased to announce the release of their first ever live album, titled ‘L-1VE’ and scheduled for release on June 22nd, 2018. Following the release of the bands much-acclaimed fourth studio album ‘Affinity’, they embarked upon their 10th anniversary tour across Europe & North America. Recorded and filmed on April 13th, 2017, at the legendary Melkweg venue on the Amsterdam stop of that tour, this represents the band’s first ever live document with tracks from across the bands discography.
“The release of official live material is a project that is long overdue and we know our existing fans have been crying out for this for some time now. Whilst we have filmed and recorded many shows in the past we have always felt there were elements of our shows that could be improved ‘visually’ before we documented and immortalised this for the world to see and that the timing for a live release never felt right for us. This is just our nature as creative people to be so extremely self-critical and constantly strive for perfection. It is largely due to the will of the people that the idea of this project became a reality. Both the band and the label were inundated with emails requesting a live release in some shape or form, and it was actually rather flattering, so giving the people what they wanted just felt like the right thing to do.”
‘L-1VE’ will be released as a 2CD/2DVD Digipak package & as digital download. The DVD will include 4 bonus tracks filmed at ProgPower USA 2016 that also includes Mike Portnoy’s cameo appearance on gong, as well as all of the official videos from the ‘Affinity’ album. The main show and the bonus material on the DVD are also mixed in 5.1 surround sound.
1.affinity.exe/Initiate
2.In Memoriam
3.1985
4.Red Giant
5.Aquamedley
6.As Death Embraces
7.Atlas Stone
8.Cockroach King
9.The Architect
10.The Endless Knot
11.Visions
DVD Bonus Material
1.Falling Back to Earth
2.Earthrise
3.Pareidolia
4.Crystallised
Also includes music videos for Initiate, Earthrise & Lapse
Artwork was once again produced by long-time collaborators Blacklake, who continued the love of 80’s culture that they demonstrated on artwork for ‘Affinity’. The live audio was mixed by Neal Morse & Winery Dogs alumni Jerry Guidroz.
The band have also revealed they have started work on their fifth studio album. They comment: “We’re currently getting our teeth stuck into the writing process for Album 5 and great ideas are forming and evolving as we speak. It’s still early days but there is a sense among us that Haken may take a darker path with this one. However, the playing field is still wide open and the direction this record takes could alter at any point. One thing is certain: We will endeavour to stick to our mandate of strong melodies and Killer riffs! ”
