Category: News

Mew Announce New Album ‘Visuals’ and European Tour Dates

Danish band Mew have announced Pre-order details for their seventh album ‘Visuals’, due to be released on April 28th.

Frontman Jonas Bjerre has worked on the projections for the band’s live shows since their early days. Usually, the Danish trio finish an album and Bjerre gets to work on the visuals. For their seventh record, though, the singer decided to turn things upside down, working on the visuals first and seeing if they informed the music. The resultant record feels like a culmination for one of rock’s most ambitious and inventive groups: Visuals is where Bjerre and his bandmates, bassist Johan Wohlert and drummer Silas Utke Graae Jørgensen, join the dots of a career that has spanned over two decades. “We do everything on this album ourselves,” says Bjerre. “We produced it ourselves, I did the artwork, I’m doing the visuals. Visuals felt like a fitting title. I like the idea that each song has a visual aspect to it somehow.”

You can pre-order the album here:

Mew – ‘Visuals’ Pre-Order

Mew have a tradition of, as Bjerre puts it, hiding away in a cave for three or four years between albums. The tour that accompanied 2015’s +- album found the band reaching a creative peak that they felt was too exhilarating to be dampened by a period of extended cave-dwelling. They arrived home with demos that had been written on the road and the spark was lit. They wanted to break the cycle and make an album quickly. “We just felt like, “if we do it the normal way, it’s gonna be another three or four years before we get to do it again’,” says Bjerre. “If you keep doing it like that, ultimately you make a handful of albums and then you’re ready for retirement.” The trio wanted to make an album spontaneously, keeping the energy they’d generated on the road going.

Listen to their new song ‘Carry Me To Safety’ here:

They set to work in Copenhagen and started knocking the demos they’d written on tourbuses and in hotel rooms into shape. At the same time, new songs were emerging in reaction to what was going on around them. Mew aren’t a political band but couldn’t help but be affected by rolling news and the death of an icon. “It was pretty dark last year, so some of the darkness in the lyrics comes from that. You definitely get the feeling that things don’t last forever when someone like David Bowie dies.” Visuals was completed in just under a year – what Bjerre describes as an “incredible” feat for a band used to periods of prolonged tinkering. “Spending less time on it, you can still maintain the feeling you had when you first wrote it,” says Bjerre.

‘Visuals’ is Mew at their most compact, their chemistry at its most potent. With only one song over five minutes, it’s their most concise album. Bjerre says there was no need for a grand, overarching concept. Each song on ‘Visuals’ represents its own little chapter and story: nothing needed to be overly long. “Each album is like a collection of thoughts and ideas that fit the time we’re in,” he says. “They’re like little diary entries, except they’re a little bit more veiled perhaps. To me, albums are memories of times in my life.”

Recorded and self-produced in Copenhagen, ‘Visuals’ was completed in under a year and sees Mew at their most concise, each song representing its own little chapter and narrative. The first taste of the album comes in the shape of the mesmerising intricacies of the album’s finale Carry Me To Safety.

Meanwhile, the slow-build euphoria of album opener, Nothingness And No Regrets, and expansive 80’s-style pop of The Wake Of Your Life countered by the discordant stomp of the intriguingly titled Candy Pieces All Smeared Out and blissful glide of In A Better Place, compete across eleven tracks that convey an irrepressible ebullience of a band on their debut album.

Many of the newer tracks evolved in light of what was happening globally. “It was pretty dark last year on many levels, so lyrically that definitely came into play, it’s an important reminder to treasure the here and now,” says Bjerre. Visuals feels like the culmination for one of rock’s most ambitious and inventive groups.

 Twenty years into their career, Visuals is the distinctive sound of Mew seizing the moment…

New European tour dates have been announced for May 2017.

Tickets will be on pre-sale from 9am local time on Jan 25th, and on general-sale 9am local time on Jan 27th.

Get tickets here:

Mew Tour Tickets

MAY 2017 EUROPEAN TOUR

May 17 – Paradiso, Amsterdam
May 19 – Point Ephemere, Paris
May 20 – Trix, Antwerp
May 21 – Trinity, Bristol
May 22 – Ritz, Manchester
May 23 – Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London
May 25 – Luxor – Köln
​May 26 – Knust – Hamburg
May 27 – Immergut Festival, Neustrelitz

More world-wide tour dates to be announced very soon.

OPETH DEBUTS NEW VIDEO FOR “ERA” AHEAD OF THEIR UPCOMING U.S SPRING TOUR

Sweden’s musical alchemists, OPETH have debuted a new video for their song “Era” today. The video’s track is featured on the band’s critically praised, 12th studio album, Sorceress, which is available now via Nuclear Blast Entertainment.

The video for “Era” comes just ahead of the band’s return to the U.S for headline spring tour with support from Gojira and Devin Townsend Project. The tour will also include a special one-off show in Philadelphia on May 6th with Mastodon, Gojira, Eagles of Death Metal, Devin Townsend Project and Russian Circles.

Watch the video here:

The beautiful shot, cinematic video was directed by Markus Hofko (www.bowbowbow.co) and features stunning visuals that perfectly sync with the band’s dynamic music.

“I have to say our involvement in the making of the ”Era” video was so minimal we can’t take credit either for or against its brilliance. We did 3D scans of our bodies (clothed) in Munich during the last European tour. I remember everyone’s extremely tired and probably slightly hungover. The director just placed us in a ice-cold room and then scanned us with something that looked like a flashing hairdryer. Done! We’ve done our part for the video. Next! During the process of finishing the piece it got clear to me that it really works with the song. That’s something I was involved in actually, picking the song. It’s extremely difficult. Which song to choose? How do I know what works best for this format? Well, I don’t. I picked a song from the record that has a strong chorus. Slightly old school way of thinking I guess, but ultimately it didn’t matter all that much to me. The video is nice. I dig it. It’s slightly on the pretentious side, but hey, works for me! And like I said, it really works with the overall vibe of the song. Lyrically and musically and definitely emotionally.” – Mikael Akerfeldt

Order “Sorceress” now:
The record will be available in an array of formats and editions including CD, 2CD Digipak, 2LP Vinyl (in various colours at 180 gram) from the Nuclear Blast Store: http://nblast.de/OpethSorceressNB and Recordstore.co.uk (orders come with signed inserts – whilst stocks last): http://nblast.de/OpethSorceressRS

Order ‘Sorceress’ digitally: http://nblast.de/OpethSorceressIT

OPETH Tour Dates:
May 4 – Nashville, TN – Nashville War Memorial (w/Gojira)
May 5 – Charlotte, NC – Carolina Rebellion Festival
May 6 – Philadelphia, PA – Electric Factory Outdoors (w/Mastodon, Gojira, Eagles of Death Metal, Devin Townsend Project, Russian Circles)
May 7 – Sayreville, NJ – Starland Ballroom (w/Gojira, Devin Townsend Project)
May 9 – Chicago, IL – The Vic Theatre (w/Gojira, Devin Townsend Project)
May 11 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre (w/Gojira, Devin Townsend Project)
May 12 – Kansas City, MO – Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland (w/Gojira, Devin Townsend Project)
May 13 – Indianapolis, IN – Egyptian Room at Old National Centre (w/Gojira, Devin Townsend Project)
May 14 – Somerset, WI – Northern Invasion Festival
yd2

 

Findlay Napier Announces Kickstarter Campaign for New Album – ‘Glasgow’

Scottish Singer-Songwriter Findlay Napier has announced details of his forthcoming new album ‘Glasgow’, which can be ordered now via his Kickstarter campaign.

Findlay describes the project:

“Just before my 18th birthday I moved from the banks of the River Spey to the 14th floor of the Red Road flats in Glasgow. I’d come to study Traditional Scottish Folk Music at what is now The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Twenty years later I want to make an album that reflects on the time I’ve spent in Glasgow making music, hanging out and growing up.

Boo Hewerdine is producing the album and we have already started recording the album in Motherlode Studio, Norfolk. We need your help to finish the recording and release the album.

Glasgow has a rich history of music and, of course, songwriting. From Adam MacNaughton‘s ‘Jeely Piece’ song to The Blue Nile‘s ‘Tinseltown in the Rain’ hundreds of songs have been written about this wonderful city. My new album will contain a mixture of some of my favourite songs, some that I’ve written especially for the project and some co-writes with Boo Hewerdine.

I’ll keep you informed all along the way either through short video blogs, blogs and sneaky listens to works in progress.

Why use Kickstarter? A few reasons for this 1) It is a simple way for you to pre-order the album. Kickstarter is a well known an trusted crowdfunding site. 2) Unless you are signed to a major label it makes more sense for a small independent act like myself to use a crowdfunding platform. 3) It’s fun to have fans involved album making process. 

What are you going to do with my money? All of the money you contribute will go straight into the project. The main areas of spending are: Recording (recording, mixing and mastering), design (Photographs & design) and promotion (Local, National and Online Press plugger and radio plugger… I do the social media stuff myself… as you may have noticed). The final major expense is duplication (‘pressing’ the CD, setting up download, liscensing fees, barcode)…. and then there’s all the little things (travel expenses, tea/coffee/food for the studio, guitar strings etc.) The more money you contribute the more I can do with the album. 

THANK YOU!”

You can check out this this exciting project here:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/findlaynapier/glasgowfindlay-napiers-new-album

There are many who find themselves described as stalwarts, some for the rugged determination to keep slogging away and others because they contribute so much to stay actively involved on a whole range of levels, keeping sharp artistically and selflessly championing others who deserve attention.

Findlay Napier is one of the most highly-regarded performers and creative forces on the Scottish music scene – thoroughly active and truly energised with a heart-warming zing.

His last album, ‘VIP: Very Interesting Persons’, contains ten songs about real life characters with interesting lives was co-written and produced by Boo Hewerdine.‘VIP’ was The Telegraph’s #2 Folk Album of the Year 2015 and was Album of the Week in The Daily Express received many excellent reviews. To coincide with his successful 2016 solo tour Napier released an EP containing 5 new VIP songs and a behind the lyrics book.

Findlay, an inaugural graduate of The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland‘s BA(Scottish Music) program, made his name touring and recording with multi-award winning traditional Scottish folk band Back of the Moon.  In his more recent projects “Queen Anne’s Revenge” and “The Bar Room Mountaineers” his song-writing took centre stage and was described by The Sunday Herald as “Genuine songcraft and wit following in the Difford & Tilbrook tradition”. Findlay is also well known as the host of Celtic Connections’ Late Night Sessions and for his Hazy Recollections concert series which showcases the very best in new roots music.

In Feb 2017 Findlay will be touring with ‘Shake the Chains’ a new touring commission of protest songs from Folk by The Oak with support from Arts Council England, Help Musicians UK and Folk Alliance International. The tour features Nancy Kerr, Hannah Martin and Tim Yates with musical director Greg Russell.

Aside from his touring commitments Findlay performs regular Stand-Up Comedy shows around Glasgow.In September he organised and sold out Glasgow Songwriting Festival.

Web: www.findlaynapier.com

FB: www.facebook.com/findlaynapiermusic

 

 

Melodic prog outfit Slyde stream new track ahead of upcoming EP Back Again

Canadian melodic proggers SLYDE have streamed another track from their upcoming EP Back Again, due February 17.

Listen to the track of the same name here:

https://soundcloud.com/slydecanada/slyde-fading

First premiered on Invisible Oranges, the track is another tantalising listen of the band’s talents ahead of their new release. For fans of Haken, Rush, Dream Theater and more, Slyde are back after a two-year hiatus and a new line-up. Driven by the clean vocals of frontman Nathan Da Silva and the powering keyboards of Sarah Westbrook, Back Again is a fitting return to form from this beguiling four-piece. 

Four tracks of virtuosic contrapuntal songwriting exploring the relationship between environmentalism and sci-fi, Back Again is a fantastically entertaining listen. Ear-catching for any fan of technically-minded melodic prog rock, Slyde are a band who before their hiatus played over 150 shows on the Eastern Canadian circuit, including shows with Protest the Hero and at Canadian Music Week (2013), IndieWeek (2011-2013), and Wacken Metal Battle (2013).

Änglagård Announce First Ever Official Live DVD Recording

IT’S TIME! After many months of non-stop work, Legendary Swedish symphonic progressive rock band ÄNGLAGÅRD are proud to present their first ever professionally filmed concert, set to be released worldwide on February 10th, 2017. Entitled “ÄNGLAGÅRD LIVE: MADE IN NORWAY”, pre-orders are open now.

Check out the promotional video below:

“Live: Made in Norway” was captured at Musikkflekken, Sandvika, Norway on February 21, 2015, marking the band’s return to Norway stages after 23 years of absence.

Edited by Martin Gustafsson, with audio production and mixing by world renowned audio engineer Alar Suurna, and art design and production by long-time collaborator Joel Barrios, the two-hour performance is a stellar capturing of live art through and through; a perfect testimony of Änglagård‘s unique take on progressive rock, showcasing their swirling, angular crescendos along with frenetic rhythms and howling mellotron, blended with truly emotional sudden softer passages.

A sonic rollercoaster of aggressive music in odd meter, subtle parts and melancholic beauty, building suspense and abrupt stops, with a wondrous interplay of sounds, this visual presentation is definitely not for the faint-hearted. Änglagård‘s extreme level of delicacy in phrasing and dynamic is a tough match to beat in progressive music and should hold up even in the face of the snootiest of music connoisseurs.

Preorders opened on January 14th 2017 at www.anglagardfanclub.com
The setlist is as follows:

1.- Introvertus Fugu Part I (Prog på Svenska, 2014)
2.- Höstsejd (Epilog, 1994)
3.- Längtans Klocka (Viljans Öga, 2012)
4.- Jordrök (Hybris, 1993)
5.- Sorgmantel (Viljans Öga, 2012)
6.- Vandringar i Vilsenhet (Hybris, 1993)
7.- El Ímpetu del Bosque
8.- Kung Bore (Hybris, 1993)
9.- Sista Somrar (Epilog, 1994)

 

SIKTH BEGIN WORK ON NEW STUDIO ALBUM & CONFIRM DETAILS OF FIRST SINGLE SIGN TO NEWLY CREATED LABEL IMPRINT MILLENNIUM NIGHT

SikTh, the UK’s progressive metal forefathers, have commenced recording their brand new studio album.  The, as yet, untitled 3rd album will be their first new full length since 2006’s ‘Death Of A Dead Day’ and follows on from last year’s acclaimed Opacities EP recorded after their reunion performance at the UK’s legendary Download Festival. The new album is scheduled for a May 2017 release, with the first single and video entitled “No Wishbones” due to be released on Friday 10th February.

Vocalist Mikee Goodman reveals how the recording sessions are progressing “We’ve started recording and it is sounding really vibey so far. This album should be a lot more aggressive than our Opacities EP on the whole. A lot of slamming grooves there, also lots of intricacy and dynamics as always”. He goes on to explain the creative process within the band “There is a formula in SikTh which works well. I always take the lead in the early stages and also I write all lyrics. But of course I am open to Joe Rosser, our new vocalist’s melodic input later on. We have not entered that stage yet. These initial steps are me laying my ideas in, since I have a great studio set up, if I do something awesome now, it goes straight on the record. That’s a great thing because as most vocalists will tell you, it’s all about the vibe and feeling. It’s all about the moment.”

The vocals are primarily being recorded at Mikee’s own studio and at Adrian Smith’s (Iron Maiden) R&R Studios; Mikee & Adrian Smith worked together previously on the Primal Rock Rebellion project. The guitars and drums will be recorded at the renowned Monkey Puzzle House studios. Dan Weller will be producing, alongside Adam “Nolly” Getgood (Periphery), handling mixing duties.

The new album is to be released via Millennium Night, the newly created imprint from Snapper Music, home of Peaceville Records & Kscope. The label imprint name, chosen by SikTh, comes from the track taken from their debut 2003 album The Trees Are Dead & Dried Out Wait for Something Wild.

Mikee explains “We have signed to Millennium Night, which is a new division of Snapper Music; they decided they would invent a new label just for us, we don’t fit in and we never felt the need to”.

Further updates from the studio will be revealed over the coming weeks.

Ahead of the release of their new studio album the band will head out on tour across the UK & Europe with Trivium.

Sikth are:

Pin – guitar

Dan Weller – guitar

Dan Foord – drums

James Leach – bass

Mikee W Goodman – vocals

Joe Rosser – Vocals

www.sikth.band

https://www.facebook.com/sikthofficial

https://twitter.com/sikthofficial

 

Steve Hackett – The Night Siren – Released 24th March Through InsideOut Music

Guitar virtuoso and rock legend, Steve Hackett (formerly of Genesis), releases his latest album The Night Siren on 24th March 2017 through InsideOut Music (Sony).  As implied in the title, The Night Siren is a wake-up call… the warning of a siren sounding in this era of strife and division.

The Night Siren showcases Steve’s incredible guitar playing as strongly as ever, along with regular Hackett collaborators and also musicians from several different countries who Steve invited to join him in celebrating multicultural diversity and unity. This includes singers from Israel and Palestine, who both actively campaign to bring Jewish and Arabic people together. There are also instrumentals from the USA and Iraq and a multiplicity of sounds, including the exotic strains of Indian sitar and Middle Eastern tar and oud, the ethnic beauty of the Peruvian charango and the haunting Celtic Uilleann pipes.

Steve is widely travelled, making friends everywhere he goes and has always embraced multicultural diversity.  In these times of unrest, he has been inspired to express his belief that the world needs more empathy and unity. His wish to involve a range of musical sounds, instruments, musicians and singers from different parts of the world is both a development of his eclectic approach to music and shows how people can be brought together, even from war torn regions.

Talking about his latest work, Steve says, “This latest waxing represents a bird’s eye view of the world of a musical migrant ignoring borders and celebrating our common ancestry with a unity of spirit, featuring musicians, singers and instruments from all over the world.  From territorial frontiers to walled-up gateways, boundaries often hold back the tide.  But while the night siren wails, music breaches all defences. To quote Plato, ‘When the music changes, the walls of the city shake’.”

The musical journey takes us from ‘Behind the Smoke’, focusing on the plight of refugees throughout the ages, to the penultimate track ‘West to East’ which reflects on the damage of war and the hope for a better world. From personal to universal, the themes celebrate the life force, breaking free from chains of repression.

The album features: Steve Hackett (guitar & vocals), Roger King (keyboards & programming), Nad Sylvan (vocals on Inca Terra), Rob Townsend (all things wind), Amanda Lehmann (vocals), Gary O’Toole (drums), and Benedict Fenner (additional keyboards & programming). Also featured are singers Kobi and Mira (Israeli and Palestinian), Nick D’Virgilio (drums) from the USA, Malik Mansurov (Tar) from Azerbaijan & Gulli Breim (drums & percussion) from Iceland. Additional musicians who add to the rich flavour of the album are Christine Townsend (violin & viola), Dick Driver (double bass), Troy Donockley (Celtic Uilleann) and Leslie Bennett (keyboards on The Gift).

Full Track Listing:

  1.      Behind the Smoke
  2.      Martian Sea
  3.      Fifty Miles from the North Pole
  4.      El Niño
  5.      Other Side of the Wall
  6.      Anything but Love
  7.      Inca Terra
  8.      In Another Life
  9.      In the Skeleton Gallery
  10.    West to East

Steve Hackett is returning with an exciting new show Genesis Revisited with Classic Hackett for a 15-date UK tour in April 2017.  Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the classic Genesis album Wind and Wuthering, Steve and his band will be performing several tracks from the album as well as fan favourites such as ‘The Musical Box’ and other Genesis numbers never performed before by Steve’s band including ‘Inside & Out,’  ‘One For The Vine’ and ‘Anyway’ as well as material from The Night Siren.

Tickets available from www.myticket.co.uk and venue box offices.   Steve onstage at 7.30pm.

www.hackettsongs.com

@hackettofficial

https://www.facebook.com/stevehackettofficial/

With Our Arms To The Sun Announce Pledge Music Campaign for New Album ‘Orenda’

Instrumental heavy rock band With Our Arms To The Sun have announced a pre-order ‘Pledge Music’ campaign for their fourth release ‘Orenda’ with a mooted release date of 21st April 2017. Pledgers can receive an immediate digital download, CD’s, Vinyl, limited edition artwork, merch, etc.

With Our Arms to the Sun is a rock band formed in the desert of Arizona. Their live shows are unique and emotional, bringing back the energy of the punk rock and grunge bands of the past who used to play to basements and art galleries packed full of kids. The music is cinematic and expressive with elements of conceptual album rock and modern electronics.

Orenda n. [aw-ren-duh]
1.           A supernatural force believed by the Iroquois Indians to be present, in varying degrees, in all objects or persons, and to be the spiritual force by which human accomplishment is attained or accounted for.

A dormant potential to create exists within all human beings. It unconsciously binds the species at large. Most people just never unlock it. With Our Arms To The Sun examine that precious and potent power on their 2016 full-length concept album, ‘Orenda’ [Fade To Silence Records]. Painting in hues of rock, alternative, and metal, their cinematic sound blankets a curious canvas of Arizona Desert, weaving together a sonic journey to self-actualization for the quartet—Josh Breckenridge [vocals, guitar], Joseph Leary [guitar, programming], Joseph Breckenridge [bass], and John McLucas [drums].

“Orenda is that hidden power inside all of us,” says Josh. “The character in the album is discovering it. You can’t really transcend your own ego, shadow, or bullshit unless you make a connection with what whatever that obstacle is inside of you, eliminate it, and move past it. That’s what the new music is about.”

The band arrived at this narrative following a whirlwind of touring behind 2014’s independently released ‘A Far Away Wonder’. Loudwire began championing the album very early on, spotlighting the underground group on an international scale. The site named ‘A Far Away Wonder’ one of the “20 Best Metal Albums of 2014” and “Tessellation” one of the “20 Best Metal Songs of 2014,” admitting to being “captivated at first listen.” As buzz grew, the group landed tours with the likes of virtuoso guitarist John 5 [Rob Zombie, Marilyn Manson] and Mushroomhead in addition to joining Tool, Primus, and Coheed & Cambria at the Monster Mash Festival in Phoenix.  In early 2016, the group retreated to Los Angeles with a batch of demos and began pre-production on what would become ‘Orenda’ with legendary The Melvins founder Buzz Osborne.

“When we sat down with Buzz, it was a lot of refinement,” recalls Josh. “Having somebody who’s made a zillion albums listen to the ideas and give suggestions was invaluable. He’s a pretty brilliant dude, and he had some really wonderful ideas. We pieced it together from there.”

“Working with With Our Arms To The Sun was refreshing,” adds Buzz. “They were receptive to my ideas, which doesn’t always happen. They were incredibly hard workers, and I think the results speaks for themselves.”

Josh and his bandmates holed up in a rental house “in the middle of nowhere Arizona” to track the music. They emerged with the 10 songs comprising ‘Orenda’. The first single “Macrocosm – Prometheus” begins with a warbling moan reminiscent of Alien before a clean guitar takes hold. Propelled by artful percussion, the hazy six-string swell rises into thunderous distortion and an overpowering chant.

“It looks at the microcosm and macrocosm dichotomy,” he explains. “If you look at the universe and how huge it is, it’s this giant macrocosm. As human beings, we are a tiny microcosm of that macrocosm. Everything repeats itself in a beautiful outward pattern. The song is about the character coming to that realization he’s a piece of something bigger.”

Opener “Disdain” outlines the protagonist’s frustration under a gust of wind, typing, and ominous riff punctuated by Josh’s screams. “This guy is referencing a lot of the stupid shit he’s seeing around him in the world,” he continues. “I thought it would set the tone perfectly for someone who feels confused, disoriented, angry, and bitter.”

Everything culminates on “Homebound.” Amidst samples of loggers chopping down trees, the soundscape converges on one final melodic catharsis.

“That’s a conclusion of transcendence,” states Josh. “He makes an exodus off this planet and out of this world. We all agreed this was the perfect ending.”

Ultimately, ‘Orenda’ hints at something universal and essential.

“We wanted to create a record that was more than just background music or a cog-in-the-machine,” he leaves off. “You can wrap your brain around it. It’s about going on that ride together.”

Full details of the pledge-music campaign can be found here:

With Our Arms To The Sun – ‘Orenda’ – Pledge-Music

Here is a live version of ‘Disdain’ from the forthcoming album ‘Orenda’.

www.withourarmstothesun.com/

 

 

Summer’s End Festival announces (almost) complete 2017 line up…

We are delighted to announce the (almost) complete line up for Summer’s End 2017, to be held at the Drill Hall, Chepstow on October 6-8 2017.

Leap of Faith tickets have now come off sale and will be replaced by standard tickets on Tuesday 17th January.

• Hero tickets (including a t shirt and our very special thanks) priced £120
• Sponsor tickets (including a T shirt) priced £105
• Standard weekend tickets priced £85

A very limited number of day tickets will be available soon. The festival sold out quickly last year and we are already 50% to sell out just with LOF tickets, so very early purchasing is recommended. With one band still to announce, we are already very proud of what is our most varied and internationally-orientated line up yet!

Here’s the line up -with one major band still to announce. Day splits will be announced soon.

FROST* (UK)
www.frost.life

Our Saturday headliners are the inimitable Frost* making their first appearance at the festival since their remarkable performance in 2008. The line up of the band – Jem Godfrey, John Mitchell, Nathan King and Craig Blundell – is now stable and playing regular live gigs in support of last years’ excellent “Falling Satellites”,

THE TANGENT (UK / Sweden)
www.thetangent.org
KARMAKANIC (Sweden / UK)
www.facebook.com/KarmakanicOfficial/

As they did in 2014, The Tangent and Sweden’s Karmakanic will be touring in 2016 as an intriguing double act, comprising of (largely) the same members playing two sets, closing the festival on Sunday 8th October. The band(s) will comprise Andy Tillison, Jonas Reingold, Luke Machin plus Marie Eve De Gaultier and other members to be announced. The Tangent will be making their third appearance at the festival and release “The Slow Rust of Forgotten Machinery” in 2017, while Karmakanic released “DOT” in 2016 and last played Summer’s End in 2010.

FRANCK CARDUCCI (France)
www.franckcarducci.com

Those that have had the pleasure of seeing Franck Carducci and his superb band perform will know that they are one of the best – and most colourfully extravagant – live acts playing today. Mixing Prog with hard rock and just a touch of psychedelia, the band are sure to be one of the bands of the weekend following a successful UK tour in late 2016.

SOUTHERN EMPIRE (Australia)
www.unitopiamusic.com

Following his performance with Damanek in 2016 (and with Unitopia in 2010), Australian keyboard wizard Sean Timms returns to the festival with his current band Southern Empire. The band are riding high following the release of their superb debut album and will be touring Europe in late 2017 with Karibow.

MASCHINE (UK)
www.maschineuk.com

Few who were there will have forgotten the performance of a young band called Concrete Lake at Summer’s End 2011. Now called Maschine, guitar wizard Luke Machin‘s brilliant young band, which also includes bassist Dan Mash, released their magnificent second album ‘Naturalis’ during 2016 to great acclaim.

KARIBOW (Germany)
www.karibow.com

This well known German band have had an award winning, 20-year history. Led by vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Oliver Rusing, their powerful, crunchy, song orientated brand of Prog is often compared to Saga and It Bites. The band will tour Europe in 2017 with Southern Empire in suport of most recent album ‘Holophinium’.

ELEPHANTS OF SCOTLAND (USA)
www.elephantsofscotland.com

Following Phideaux, K2, Discipline and 3rDegree, Elephants of Scotland will become the 5th band from the USA to play the festival. Formed in Vermont in 2010, the band have 3 studio albums under their belts and played a triumphant set at the Rosfest festival in 2014 , later released as a CD and DVD set.

MIDNIGHT SUN (UK)
www.facebook.com/midnightsunprog/

Making their first appearance at the festival, but with several members that have played for us before are Midnight Sun, which comprises various former members of Unto Us and Also Eden in a combination which moulds the progressive and melodic textures of those bands with some heaver elements. Recording of the band’s debut album will begin in early 2017.

HALF PAST FOUR (Canada)
www.halfpastfour.com

Our first participants from Canada, Half Past Four have won a deserved reputation for their quirky, jazzy, playful take on prog. So strong was their 2016 third album ‘Land of the Blind’ that we knew that it was high time they made their debut at the festival.

WEENDO (France)
www.weendo.fr

This superb band from France – fronted by vocalist and keyboard player Laetitia – mix Prog with slightly more metallic textures. The band are currently working on their second album following their excellent 2011 debut ‘You Need to Know Yourself’.

More news soon!

Best wishes

Huw and Stephen
www.summersend.co.uk

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DREAM THE ELECTRIC SLEEP ANNOUNCE FIRST EVER LONDON SHOW

Dream the Electric Sleep, who released their 3rd album ‘Beneath the Dark Wide Sky’ last year, have announced a one off UK date as part of their upcoming European tour. Taking place at the Black Heart in London on 8th February the band will be bringing their expansive electric sound to the city for the very first time. Vocalist Matt Page comments:

“It has been an extraordinary year for Dream the Electric Sleep with the release of our third album, “Beneath the Dark Wide Sky.” We have moved forward in ways we never imagined possible and with the help of our fantastic team of partners in the UK and Europe, we are thrilled to be coming to play our first show in London at the Black Heart! We have pooled all of our resources together and worked feverishly to make this happen with the hopes of showing our tremendous gratitude towards those who have helped keep this band going all these years. The music industry is tumultuous these days and we see great bands come and go too often. Making this project long lasting and sustainable has been a high priority of ours and after nine years of writing and recording albums we are finally coming over to play a show and say thank you to our supporters in the UK, face-to-face, for helping keep this ship sailing for so many enriching years. See you all soon!”

The band was formed in Lexington, KY by Matt Page (vocals/guitar), Joey Waters (drums), and Chris Tackett (bass) in 2009.  After two self-produced, independent releases, “Lost and Gone Forever” (2011) and “Heretics”(2014), Dream the Electric Sleep’s third album, “Beneath the Dark Wide Sky,” marked a clear shift in the band’s songwriting style and sonic quality which Prog Magazine hailed as ‘monumental’.
Wednesday 8th February – Black Heart, London – Free entry