Swedish forest rockers Besvärjelsen have released their second full-length "Atlas" on Friday, May 27th. 'Atlas' is now streaming in full at this link: https://youtu.be/bHqMVItfo2Q?list=PLQt8FdY4rmOsFtbZCLlaPhYeaOW4zntyk Besvärjelsen have previously released a three-part 'The Making of Atlas' that is also available for publication:
Besvärjelsen comment: "27th May we celebrate the release of 'Atlas'! Singer Lea Amling Alazam enthuses:- "We would like to use this opportunity to give very big thanks to everyone who helped make this beautiful piece of music come together. We also send huge thanks to our label Magnetic Eye Records and its manager Jadd as well as to Studio Gröndahl and Karl Daniel Lidén for the great sound. And last but never least, we would like to thank everybody from the bottom of our hearts who is listening to 'Atlas' and has given us their support! See you all on the road!"
What to do when you like rock and doom born from the desert but your surroundings offer anything but arid lands? Besvärjelsen found an impressive answer in the grim forests of their homeland in Dalarna, Sweden. Having grown up in the far north at the meeting grounds of ancient Norse and Finnish cultures amongst echoes of runes and gods, shamans and spirits, the spellbinding five-piece crafted their name from the Swedish word for "conjuring" while drawing heavy inspiration from local lore, mysticism, and the dark, old musical traditions. Yet Besvärjelsen are anything but another "pagan" outfit longing for a time that never was. On their sophomore full-length "Atlas", aptly named after the mythical Greek titan who literally carries the weight of the world on his shoulders, the Swedes take a huge step toward the perfect wedding of melodic doom with subtle touches of prog as well as punk, folk, and classic rock. The distinctly urban component in the sound of these rockers is very much amplified by the outstanding vocals of Lea Amling Alazam. The charismatic singer took a fresh approach by embracing melodies and phrases of the grunge and emo sounds that defined her youth as well as African and Middle Eastern music – while keeping her characteristic bluesy undertones. With its wistful melodies and towering riff-power, "Atlas" represents a logical progression along the course that Besvärjelsen charted from the start. The band was co-founded by guitarists and vocalists Andreas Baier and Staffan Stensland Vinrot in 2014 with a clear vision to channel the spirit and traditions of the vast Dalarna forests, a region otherwise famous for its painted wooden horses, into contemporary heavy music. Andreas, coming from a background in punk and hardcore, had realised that by slowing things down, the music of Besvärjelsen would gain in depth while allowing haunting melodies to exist alongside a cathartic heaviness. Once vocalist Lea Amling Alazam arrived with a fiery passion for punk and stoner rock that had begun at the local skate park when she was just counting 13 years, Andreas and Staffan happily relegated their shared vocal duties to a supporting role – an easy choice as Lea's distinctive voice summoned the intimacy and charisma of singers like Nina Simone or Amy Winehouse. Besvärjelsen released their debut EP "Villfarelser" a year later in 2015, which was followed quickly by the "Exil" EP in 2016. Around this time, former Dozer and Greenleaf drummer Erik Bäckwall joined the line-up as a permanent member. Both EPs, though self-financed and released with minimal promotion, were well-received and even gained airplay on Swedish national radio. The Swedes' debut full-length "Vallmo" hit the streets of Stockholm and elsewhere in 2018, shortly after Erik had convinced his Dozer and Greenleaf bandmate Johan Rockner to join Besvärjelsen on bass. "Vallmo" merged crushing riffs and storming drums with increasingly sophisticated melodies and thoughtful themes, which even earned the band a festival slot opening for Deep Purple. With the mini-album "Frost", Besvärjelsen intended to crush stages all over Europe in 2019, before being compelled into involuntary live performance hibernation (like every other band around the globe) for two years. Although forced to write separately, the band used the spare time to compile a wealth of ideas, amassed remotely and shared across the miles and months of relative solitude, which would finally result in the recording of "Atlas" with producer Karl Daniel Lidén in 2021. Re-purposing melancholic harmonies that could have been derived from the playbook of Alice In Chains, adding gravity that would make Windhand proud, and topping their upgraded sound with exciting yet intimate vocal lines, Besvärjelsen have carved a towering monolith from solid rock and planted it firmly into the magical woods of their homeland to send its heavy lay-lines around the globe. Line-up
Available formats "Atlas" is available as blue and curacao marble vinyl LP and as Digisleeve CD. Shop: http://lnk.spkr.media/besvarjelsen-atlas
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Season of Mist are proud to announce the signing of Stoned Jesus, a psychedelic rock band forged in Kyiv in 2009. This Ukrainian trio consists of Igor, Sergii and Dmytro and together they already have a few albums under their belts. Musically, Stoned Jesus submerge themselves in the world of doom, grunge and prog, while maintaining their own recognizable way. Their upcoming album will be the fifth in line and the first to be released through Season Of Mist. Lead vocalist and guitarist Igor comments: "I've always been a huge fan of progressive music - progressive not in the number of notes played per second, but progressive in terms of song writing, concept and attitude. And I rarely saw rock and metal labels encouraging this deeper approach, until I discovered Season Of Mist. This is the label that I can describe with one word: 'eclectic'. And this is the label that not only approves the idea of artistic freedom but openly indulges in it! So we're extremely happy that these exact people are going to help us share our creative vision with the whole world from now on". For frequent updates on the recordings and the band in general, check out Stoned Jesus below:- Line-up:
Russian electronic music wizard Helmynthe signed a distribution deal with Epictronic for the release of the album "Sklony Otchayaniya", due for digital release on 15 05 2020 worldwide. "Sklony Otchayaniya" is the quintessence of long cold Siberian evenings spent in hang-over existential thoughts, trip-hop/downtempo stuff, diluted with a dark soundscapes and some nihilistic lyrics. "Helmynthe" - is one-man band project of Russian railway engineer Dmitriy Gavenko from Novosibirsk, established in 2013. Concept of the project influenced on Russian symbolism of early 20th century (D.Burluk, I.Ignatyev, N.Gumilev etc) and based on existential themes about human nature through abstract symbolic things (space, city and nature landscapes), without love and political references. Musical component contents elements of EBM, trip-hop, downtempo; also you can hear influence of doom and dark ambient, performed by analogue synths, semi-acoustic instruments, cassette recorders, clean and distorted vocals. vk.com/helmynthe soundcloud.com/helmynthe |
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