Aikaintaite, the incredible debut album from SYVEN, is out now via Vendlus Records. The opus bears over an hour of invigorating soundscapes which have been drawing incredibly detailed reviews from journalists who are simply floored by the album’s organic darkness and organic beauty. In honor of its release this week, Aikaintaite can now be streamed in its entirety.
SYVEN is the output of Aslak Tolonen (Nest) and Andy Koski-Semmens (Ereipia), the two Finland-based musicians fusing their insight into heavy folk-based themes, driven by shamanistic chanting and choirs, primordial rhythms in the atmospheric compositions created on Aikaintaite. Their stunning, heartfelt hymns bring to life the comprehensive themes of nature and the struggles of reality and the brutality of survival, as well as the wonderment and the solemn fulfillment that lies therein.
Handmade instruments form the cornerstones of SYVEN’s sound, A.T. having built the 15-string acoustic kanteles, 12-string electric kanteles, Lapland drums and synthetic soundscapes himself. The production, recording, mixing, digital manipulation and hand-drawn artwork of Aikaintaite, was all handled by the duo themselves, wholly expressing the album in the full proper experience.
“…this is music unbound from stylistic borders and floating from deeper wells than the common ‘dark’ sounds.” – Avantgarde Metal
“As picturesque and vivid as it is haunting and desolate, the seemingly perfect artistic union between A.T. and A. K.-S. has taken the worlds of folk and ritual-based ambient music to new, personal heights which will be exceedingly difficult to meet, let alone approach.” – The Inarguable
“There is a solemn quality to this album – the sense of great strength carefully curbed and leashed. For those looking for a release that can become a ritual, for music that doubles as a pagan ceremony, Aikaintaite is perfect.” – Exclaim!
“I put the album on and was blown away by the rich density and otherworldliness of the soundscapes on offer… it is a deep expression of elemental power that should be part of every music lover’s collection.” – Alternative Matter
“..pure perfection, on every level. And it has already joined that small and exclusive list of records I hold to be truly remarkable and unparalleled, past or future.” – Transylvanianhungerrr
“It’s slow and purposeful; it’s heavy, dark and mournful, but lacks that amphetamine-urgency that seems to drive most other metal. 4/5″ – MuzikReviews
“…gives me chills and it should do the very same to you if you have any kind of humanity left in you.” – Absolute Zero Media
Finally “A Disease for the Ages” on double vinyl. Limited to 500 and issued in a very noble Gatefold sleeve with silver scripture and noble rough material. No extra tracks, no splatter versions, no clear versions just black and silver. The new artwork is minimalist and bleak and compliments Mourning Beloveth’s darkest album yet . The 4th album on vinyl is printed through their label Grau Records. The second album “The Sullen Sulcus” will be released on DLP this year, on it’s tenth anniversary
For any other infos or demands contact : Darren@mourningbeloveth.com
Also Mourning Beloveth will be headlining the Into the Void anniversary show on February 11th in The Pint, Dublin
Not long before bands like SKEPTICISM, BEHERIT, WINTER, DISEMBOWELEMENT, SADNESS, THERGOTHON, PAN-THY-MONIUM, KATATONIA surfaced, UNHOLY had already recorded a demo, back in 1989. That was a year after they started the band under the name HOLY HELL. They then changed it to UNHOLY (www.unholy.fi) and suddenly people started talking more and more about this Avant-garde Black Doom Death Metal entity. Then the British wave came along and bands like PARADISE LOST, MY DYING BRIDE and ANATHEMA added Gothic touches to the mixture. The Slow Doom Death Metal spread into different ramifications like Drone, Funeral, Psychedelic, Stoner or Sludge. Yet we can still state that UNHOLY remain pioneers of this darkened musical style and can be considered a pillar of the genre. I don’t think there’s a Death Metal band today who hasn’t drawn its inspirations from albums “From the Shadows” or “The Second Ring of Power”, albums birthed in the second half of the 90s. After that UNHOLY became silent for the next 12 years. Some rumors and some interviews with the band members surfaced in the last years, and they spread the word about intention of reuniting the band for a couple of rehearsals and maybe some concerts during this summer, but nothing was certain.
DonisArt‘s wish to see this band alive and playing on stage after so many yeas of failed attempts of resurrection will become reality. Even if the band might be an unknown entity for those who are young of age, the importance of the band in music history should not be disconsidered. Their four albums are regarded as cult in the whole Avant-garde Black Doom Metal scene. The Finns are coming to DBE 4 on the evening of the 17th August to play an almost forbidden and impossible ritual. Let’s check out their inner spirits during this cold frosty season.
Hi, Ismo. How is winter in Finland? Here we have around -25 degrees…
“Same here, minus 20-25… fucking awful!”
UNHOLY is one of my favorite Underground Metal bands from all times… Why you decided to stop the activity a few years ago?
“Few years ago? In fact it’s 10 years ago. Well, we were kind of stuck in position where we couldn’t get more famous, to get tours and gigs abroad and to conquer the world really. We could have been able to continue as ‘nameless legend’ but we already seen that life. That’s what we were the whole time Unholy existed. So it was no point to continue, because we were suffering from lack of motivation.”
Who had the idea to restart again to work to the band? Have you kept the contact between all of your members in these years?
“No, we haven’t been in contact a lot, except with Pasi who is as the matter of fact, my brother-in-law. We got the idea of reborn when Rusty Crowbar contacted us and wanted to release our demos. When that project went forward, and same time our albums got reissued, things began to seem quite auspicious for comeback. But this is just a project, so we’re not going to be alive with Unholy for next 10 years. This may end already after this summer, if we feel that we’ve made everything that had to be done. So this summer is for sure the last possible chance to see Unholy alive. We may release something new if it feels good, but gigs will not happen after this summer touring.”
Are you listening to Metal music? What old albums are you prefer? How about from the new ones?
“No, I listen more like rock and progressive stuff, and some other stuff not so easy to categorize. I like very much the band called Alamaailman Vasarat. Very interesting music! Could be good visitor to DBE also.”
Going back to the state of the band… Are you intending to create a new album? If yes, what kind of musical direction will be? Your 4 albums are really masterpieces. How do you see these albums today?
“We don’t know. The style will be pure raw, ‘old-schoolish’ and not overproduced. That’s the vision we have, because nowadays there’s too much overproduced music that sound nice and clean, but lacks the feeling and presence. It’s a long story to detailed describe every album, but I’ll put it this way: every album has its own feeling and style, and so it’s really hard to put any album before the other.”
Tell me a few things about the current line-up. The rest of the guys play also in other bands, maybe?
“We’ll do this the old fashioned way, with 2 guitars. No keyboards, female vocals. Just pure, aggressive, ultra heavy Doom for doomers.”
You have more than 12 years of no live activities. What are you expectations from your upcoming shows? Have you decided where you will play this year, maybe?
“We have no touring manager or anyone to organize gigs. And we don’t know any organizers. So we basically cannot get any gigs by ourselves. We just have to wait is someone asks us to play. That’s why I’m not waiting for any world tours.”
You will come in Romania in August. What do you know about my country?
“Honestly, I don’t know anything about Romania. Except, when I was a kid, my second violin teacher was Romanian. I remember him as very demanding man. Romanian and Hungarian classical musicians have always been highly respected in Finland.”
DBE 4 is a platform where will play a lot of bands with different musical roots… Do you know some bands that will play in the same edition with you?
“I haven’t looked at the list in detail. But I will.”
What tracks you will play in August here and how will be the show in comparison with your past gigs?
“The track list is under construction, it’s too early to say. But as we will play with two guitars, most of songs will be from demos and first couple of albums. (keyboards are in too big role in last two albums to leave off).”
Thank you. See you in a few months. Do you believe in some sort of religion?
“Thanks to you too, friend! I hope we get lots of fans in there. I’m an atheist. I am a believer in physics.”
Ea as usual bring us something new. The album doesn’t sounds like first one or second, It sounds like fourth . This time no pauses between tracks just a long 50 minutes monolith journey…
Evadne – The Shortest Way
Evadne is a band from Spain who shows incredible growth with the second full length album. Very catchy, very well done album. One of the main candidates for the doom death album of the 2012!
When Nothing Remains – As All Torn Asunder
When Nothing Remains was formed in early 2010 by Peter Laustsen (Nox Aurea, The Cold Existence, Rimfrost) and Jan Sallander (The Cold Existence).
After writing music together in The Cold Existence for many years they wanted to try something new, darker and more experimental from ideas they both have for years. The result turned out to be very good after a couple of songs and they felt that this is something they really want to do.
Peter Laustsen felt that after his work with Nox Aurea he wanted to add something extra to this style of music and invited a couple of guest artists to patificate with clean vocals duties on some of the tracks. Johan Ericson was an obvius choice as Peter know him for years and he have very interessting ideas and feelings for this style of music. In middle 2011 first album “As All Torn Asunder” was recorded in Massive Assault studios and mixed/mastered in Dead Dog Farm studios with producer Johan Ericson (Draconian, Doom:VS, Shadowgarden) to get the perfect sound and feeling for the music. Release is sheduled for spring 2012 on Solitude Productions. As for Nox Aurea they once again used mastermind Zoltan Horvath to paint the artwork.
Obsidian Sea – Between Two Deserts
Obsidian Sea is the young Bulgarian band with the strong traditional doom metal roots. Higly recommended to all fans of classic epic doom genre. The powerful sound of the album also makes this recording interesting for the doom death fans.
Les Discrets finished their very first video clip and it’s a clip made for the song “Ariettes Oubliées”, the title track of their upcoming second album, one that will be released on February 13.
Fursy Teyssier on the video: “We’re very happy and proud to share the very first LES DISCRETS music video with you. It was such a pleasure to make it. Audrey Hadorn wrote and directed it, and it is the first music video she did. We really hope you’ll like it as much as we do…”
Les Discrets – Ariettes oubliees (promo clip)
Les Discrets: “Ariettes Oubliées…” sound samples
Today 03.02.2012 in one week “Ariettes Oubliées…”, the successor of the highly acclaimed Les Discrets debut album “Septembre Et Ses Dernières Pensées”, will be released. Here are some sound samples to get an impression of what to expect from Fursy Teyssier’s new work:
Mourning Lenore are a melting pot of atmospheric rock and metal music influences. Doom metal, progressive rock, post rock, psychedelic, just to name a few. Chords of melancholy, riffs evoking landscapes and atmospheres of bleakness…
After an injection of new blood and renewed hopes, Mourning Lenore are now preparing a whole new set to return to stage and by the fall some new material should be available.
The doomsters announced the release of a new song with their new line-up. The song is entitled “Shortcut To Nowhere” and you can listen to it on High Definition below.
French black/doom metal band Mourning Dawn is currently working on 8-9 songs which will make up their upcoming album scheduled to be released at a later date. The band posted the following on their Facebook page: “As some of you may know, we are just fucking late due to various reasons. Truth is we had to face some internal problems we are trying to solve right now.”
“You know, it can be really tiring to handle a band like this one when people don’t really feel like it, and you have to work 50 hours/week, only for the passion of it. Worse, the actual musical business is just totally falling down. Labels don’t sign any new bands (by the way, are they still useful?) Everything’s changing these days, and I feel like an old dinosaur still buying CDs and stuff…”
“Question would be then: what should we do? Is music free? If you want to get a chance for your band to grow, do we have to suck some dicks to get gigs? Do we have to spam the whole web for us to be known? Do we have to pay for everything for our album to be released? Furthermore, is music condemned to be out of the physical world and have to stay in that digital prison?”
“Anyway, we hope to have pre-production songs ready in the next weeks. There will be like 8-9 songs, which means way more songs than expected for one album.”
Solitude Productions / BadMoodMan Music and Slow Burn Records presents new 2011 promo compilations. Each compilation – is a label’s summary for a 2011 year. All presented tracks are FULL no cuts this time.
Compilations won’t be released on CD format and only available as a FREE digital download. However we’ll make a 1 CD short promo compilation which will be included for free in each order made in January.
Solitude Productions Compilation 2011
01. Mare Infinitum – Sea Of Infinity (9:47)
02. Funeral – Your Pain Is Mine (7:47)
03. Heavy Lord – Fear The Beard (7:53)
04. Stangala – Al Lidou Esoterik An Dolmen Hud (7:36)
05. Fangtooth – Father (5:53)
06. Night Of Suicide – Desire (11:05)
07. Abstract Spirit – Post Mortem (11:20)
08. Comatose Vigil – Autophobia (23:15)
09. The Undergrave Experience – Mater Mortalis Tenebrarum (24:21)
10. Septic Mind – Doomed To Sin (18:43) FREE Download here: http://solitudeproductions.bandcamp.com/album/solitude-productions-compilation-2011
BadMoodMan Music Compilation 2011
01. In Loving Memory – Even A God Can Die (6:43)
02. (Echo) – The Coldest Land (9:09)
03. Raventale – These Days Of Sorrow (5:50)
04. Kamlath – One Tired Wise (6:45)
05. The Sullen Route – Hysteria (5:37)
06. Tears Of Mankind – So Long And Recently (8:22)
07. Benighted In Sodom – Chains Of Bliss (7:30)
08. The Morningside – The Trees: Part One (12:38)
FREE Download here: http://badmoodmanmusic.bandcamp.com/album/badmoodman-music-compilation-2011
“Autre Temps” is the first single of Alcest‘s third album, “Les Voyages De L’Âme”. The single is out now as limited etched vinyl 7″ (http://shop.prophecy.de/product_info.php?info=p1259_ALCEST—Autre-Temps–ltd–7–Etched-Vinyl-Single-.html) and digital download.
The album will be out on January 6, 2012.
“Autre temps” lyrics:
Une prière lointaine que porte le vent du soir
Anime les feuilles dans leur danse alanguie.
C’est le chant des vieux arbres entonné pour toi,
Pour ces bois obscurs maintenant endormis.
Sans nous attendre tant de saisons ont passé;
Les feuilles dorées s’en allant mourir à terre
Renaîtront un jour sous un ciel radieux,
Mais notre monde érodé restera le même
Et demain toi et moi serons partis.
——————
English translation:
Another Time
A distant prayer, carried by the evening wind
Enlivens leaves in their languid dance.
Hear the song of the old trees, singing for you
For the dark, resting woods.
So many seasons have passed; they did not wait.
The golden leaves dying on the ground
Will be reborn under bright skies
As this weatherworn world remains the same,
And tomorrow, you and I will be gone.
BadMoodManMusic/SolitudeProductions presents the debut album by an Italian band (EchO)!
Outstanding music which cannot be limited by the frames of a certain style combines heavy guitars with atmospheric keyboards, deep growling and clean male vocals while the music varies from extreme death doom metal to aerial post rock. «DevoidOfIllusions» is based on perfect performance and intent attention to details such as arrangement or CD artwork.
The album was recorded in UK at PrioryRecordingStudios (SuttonColdfield) and CMATStudios (Birmingham) and produced by Greg Chandler (vocals and guitars in Esoteric) who also appeared as vocalist at the final track!
Format: CD Release Date: 11.11.2011 Country: Italy Genre: Dark Metal / Doom Death
Tracklist:
1. Intro
2. Summoning The Crimson Soul
3. Unforgiven March
4. The Coldest Land
5. Internal Morphosis
6. Omnivoid
7. Disclaiming My Faullts
8. Once Was A Man
9. Sounds From Out Of Space
The fourth long-awaited album from a Russian one-man-band Tears Of Mankind.
As always, the band presents diverse material which not focuses at some exact style, but skillfully fuses various directions basing on dark metal and doom death metal. The new project work “Memoria” can be considered as a conceptual album whose tracks are united by the idea of personal experience and memories connected with it. The album is divided into two essential parts: the first one presents heavier material with English lyrics while the second one is more lyric and features Russian texts and more atmospheric music which, nevertheless, stays in the frames of metal style. The strongest and most essential features of the album are typical for Tears of Mankind sensuality and melodies.
Format: CD Release Date: 31.10.2011 Country: Russia Genre: Dark Metal / Doom Death
Tracklist:
1. Intro
2. In The Embrace Of Eternal Sunshine
3. Deadly Desire
4. Passion Blackfathom Deeps
5. Under The Great Dome
6. So Long And So Recently
7. Pamyat’
8. Mayatnik
9. Requiem
10. Wino Pamyaty
The second album from a Russian band Septic mind. “The True Call” consists of three long tracks and continues the evolution of musical ideas established at their previous album, “The Beginning”. The musicians still stand at positions of extremal doom metal, but they are moving away from the influence of Esoteric forming their own sound. This time Septic Mind music with typical cosmic psychedelic interludes features elements of sludge doom metal. “The True Call” is the next chapter of the gloomy and insane tale of Septic Mind covered with cold, despair and misanthropy.
Format: CD Release Date: 24.10.2011 Country: Russia Genre: Extreme Funeral Doom
Tracklist:
1. The True Call
2. Doomed To Sin
3. Planet Is Sick
