MYTHOSPHERE Feat. PALE DIVINE and Ex-FATES WARNING Members Signs With CRUZ DEL SUR MUSIC; Debut Live Appearance Scheduled for MARYLAND DOOM FEST

Enrico

Cruz Del Sur Music is proud to announce the signing of MYTHOSPHERE, the band founded by PALE DIVINE guitarist/vocalist Dana Ortt and drummer Darin McCloskey. The pair are joined by their PALE DIVINE bandmate Ron McGinnis (bass) and none other than former FATES WARNING guitarist Victor Arduini. Their debut album will be released in 2023.


MYTHOSPHERE’s origins began in 2020 when Ortt and McCloskey started working on material intended to be the continuation of BEELZEFUZZ. Their songs came to fruition in 2021 once the pandemic subsided, prompting Ortt to reach out to Arduini to lend his identifiable brand of lead guitar playing. McGinnis was the natural choice for bass, thus completing MYTHOSPHERE, an outfit steeped in traditional metal and doom history that promises to live up to its lofty billing.

“I see it as Dana’s project,” says Arduini. “He is the primary songwriter and instrumentalist. I get to interpret the songs and come up with my own ideas and sounds. It’s great to see the merging of our two unique playing styles and how it forms something new. I’ve learned that when you do a project on your own, it will only represent your musical approach which is cool for a solo project. But Dana allowed an outside influence and I think we are both very pleased with how this came out. I can’t say enough about the band. Darin and Ron are both very passionate and committed to the music. They are very involved in the writing process and are great musicians.

It allows me to focus on what I enjoy doing and not have to put the weight of the entire project on my shoulders.”

“From my perspective, I’m just reacting to what Dana presents,” adds McCloskey. “We will work off the basic ideas he presents and sometimes work out the arrangements together. Other times, Dana will have everything pretty well mapped out. I think there’s a bit of nuance from previous bands, but there’s also a progression into some uncharted territory which makes things really exciting!”

MYTHOSPHERE recorded their as-yet-titled debut album at Tiny Castle Studio in Towson, Maryland, with producer/engineer Noel Mueller. Arduini tracked at his home studio and delivered his parts to the rest of the band. “The music would be best described as an expansion of where BEELZEFUZZ left off,” says McCloskey. “A bit less doom as the songs have deeper progressions with soundscapes and melodic overtones which were brought into the mix by Victor creating a whole new vibe and listening experience.”

For the here and now, MYTHOSPHERE will make its live debut on June 24 at the Maryland Doom Fest. That gig will be followed by an appearance at the New England Stoner and Doom Fest on October 7. Fans will be given a sneak preview of MYTHOSPHERE’s debut album and will also be treated to some surprises from their past.

“We’ll be playing the songs we’ve recently recorded for the album and experimenting with the setlist and finding out what songs will go over the best in a live setting,” closes McCloskey. “We are also looking to include a bit of BEELZEFUZZ into the set that matches the vibe of our new music and Victor’s signature guitar playing. He brings a new element of depth and color to the songs.”

DARK FOREST To Release ‘Ridge & Furrow’ EP In October

Enrico

Heralded British traditional metallers DARK FOREST will release the five-song “Ridge & Furrow” EP this October via Cruz Del Sur Music. The follow-up to 2020’s “Oak, Ash & Thorn” was recorded at Hellfire Studios in the Midlands of England with producer Ajeet Gill.

Founding DARK FOREST member, guitarist and primary songwriter Christian Horton used his pandemic downtime wisely. The extra, unexpected free time allowed him to craft new DARK FOREST material between full-length releases. Horton’s burst of creativity coincided with the eventual (and much-needed) re-opening of pubs across England that led to the band resuming live activity. But the immediate future brings “Ridge & Furrow”, a project that has taken on special meaning for Horton that offers the perfect segue to the band’s next full-length album.

“As I began to write new material during 2020, it occurred to me that if we could get enough songs to form an EP and have it recorded and released by 2022, it would be the perfect thing to mark the occasion of the band’s 20th anniversary,” says Horton. “This is one reason why the project began to take on a personal significance. As the founder of DARK FOREST, it would serve as a milestone on the band’s journey and is why I decided to handle a lot of aspects of the record myself, including the artwork. The EP became a project that was close to my heart and I also wanted to bring back something of the early DARK FOREST atmosphere, as I used to do the art back then too, to create a kind of symmetry between points in time.”

The five songs contained herein are classic DARK FOREST. Josh Winnard’s effortless vocal delivery rouses the band’s impenetrable wall of melody and might. The EP format also allowed Horton and the rest of DARK FOREST (completed by second guitarist Patrick Jenkins and drummer Adam Sidaway) to spread the creative wings a bit — and include a fan favorite from their past.

“The music is still very melodic and lead guitar-driven, but there’s a good mixture of material for a short record,” says Horton. “Each song has a different mood and feeling. There’s high-octane, up-tempo and there’s stoic and reflective. We also decided to include a re-recording of an old DARK FOREST classic ‘Under The Greenwood Tree’, which was always a live favorite and befitting an EP that marks an anniversary. It felt like the song which truly encapsulates the spirit of DARK FOREST.”

“Ridge & Furrow” track listing:

  1. Skylark
  2. The Golden Acre
  3. Ridge & Furrow
  4. Meadowland
  5. Under The Greenwood Tree

CRUZ DEL SUR MUSIC To Reissue Early Demos And EP Of Legendary Italian Metal Band ASTAROTH

Enrico

A special thank you to Saverio Principini, Bob Cattani and Jack Haustinx (Rave On Records) for making it possible!

Cruz Del Sur Music is proud to announce the reissue of legendary Italian metal band ASTAROTH’s cherished and highly-influential early demo recordings, including a vinyl edition of the long out-of-print “The Long Loud Silence” EP. The reissue campaign will kick off in 2023.

Formed in 1982 in Rome by drummer John Panko Onofri and original guitarist Steve Lenti, ASTAROTH became Italy’s answer to the great American and British bands of the time, diving headlong into a mix of speed and thrash, all with a distinct sense of melody. Rounded out by vocalist Bob Cattani, second guitarist Simone Triscari and bassist Saverio “Sage” Principini, “The Long Loud Silence” became a watershed moment for many Italian metallers. The group disbanded in 1988 but reformed in 2005 and released “The End Of Silence” LP in 2012.

ASTAROTH fans have been clamoring for the band’s old recordings to be brought back to life. Cruz Del Sur has gone to great lengths to secure the rights from Rave-On Records, the label that originally released “The Long Loud Silence”. Cruz Del Sur and the band also tracked down many hard-to-find demos and photos to complete the package.

“Cruz Del Sur got in touch with us via Facebook,” says Principini. “Max Cipicchia [guitar] has been keeping alive a Facebook page as a tribute and to reconnect with some old fans. I’m not too ‘social,’ so I didn’t take much interest in the beginning. But eventually, Max put me in touch with the label and they explained to me the project. I totally flipped out! I think it’s amazing the work they are doing.

“I think they are dope for investing time and energy into giving poetic and historical justice to bands that were largely ignored in their time,” he continues. “See, back then, we didn’t have all the media tools bands have now. There was no internet, no cell phones — we hardly ever had the chance to record or videotape anything. The only memory of our gigantic efforts is from the people who saw us onstage. What Cruz Del Sur is doing is remarkable.”

The ASTAROTH reissue campaign should prompt renewed interest in the 1980s Italian metal scene. While it never received the same attention as its British and German counterparts, the Italian metal scene was filled with hardworking bands and devoted fans who never passed up an opportunity to bang their heads.

“It was a relatively small scene, but the bands were intense,” notes Principini. “We all took it very seriously. We were committed to be great and so most bands went to great sacrifices to get the right equipment, practice as much as possible and play live. We loved our fans — the real headbangers — those kids were wild and committed. They would travel by train and pack the small theatres we would play. An ASTAROTH concert was like a function in some way. I know it transformed me and I know it transformed the lives of many kids who found purpose and strength at the concerts and friends and a way to escape the everyday conflicts some were living at home. There were bands in all of Italy, even in small towns. Metal was infectious, metal was a faith, metal was a real way of life!”

Principini’s enthusiasm is easy to detect now that ASTAROTH’s early recordings and images will be available for the entire metal world to see. It’s all being done 40 years after their formation. “I’m more than excited!” he exclaims. “There are live demo recordings that hardly anyone has ever heard and pictures few have seen. I look back at those times and, man, we were the real thing. I think it will give an opportunity to the new metal fans to know what we did. You know, in some way, we were precursors and contributed to the development of the metal scene in Europe in the 1980s. It’s about time before we die of old age!”