Tag: Bathory

FER DE LANCE To Release “The Hyperborean” This April

Enrico

On April 22, FER DE LANCE will release their debut full-length album “The Hyperborean” via Cruz Del Sur Music. The follow-up to their 2020 “Colossus” EP was again produced and engineered by Matt Russell at Altered States Studio in Chicago.

Occupying the hard-to-find place between “Hammerheart”-era BATHORY, and Rainbow’s “Rising”, FER DE LANCE have expanded upon “Colossus” with seven new compositions that are rife with intricate and melodic guitar riffs, powerful and soaring vocals, and crisp acoustic guitar arrangements. The band has also expanded their lineup, bringing on the talents of former SEPT OF MEMNON drummer, Scud, and Mandy Martillo of MIDNIGHT DICE and SATAN’s HALLOW on acoustic guitars and vocals. MP again played electric and acoustic guitars in addition to lead vocals and tin whistle. Now with a full-time drummer in the band, Rusty focuses solely on bass. All joined in on background vocals and choirs.

“The goal is always artistic progression,” comments the band. “We wanted to keep the atmosphere established on Colossus, but we were determined to expand on that statement with our debut album. The album is venomous, yet also melancholic. In addition to incorporating more diverse soundscapes and dynamics, the songs are heavier, more complex and have a deeper underlying meaning.”

“The Hyperborean” title means “one beyond the north wind.” According to the band, it combines classical myth with more modern ideas regarding the “idealized” North. The cover artwork represents the album’s journey from the Mediterranean Sea to the Arctic North and was painted by Adam Burke with the layout elegantly designed by Annick Giroux.

“The album tells the story of a mariner,” says the band. “Leaving behind the depravity and injustice of the “civilized” world, the mariner travels north in search of a land devoid of pain and suffering. At the forefront of the artwork, the temple represents both the starting place and the civilization that the mariner aims to leave behind. The aurora borealis and the mountain of ice represent the desolate destination and the stars above, the guide.” The band continues, “The mariner and his crew follow the stars in the hope of salvation. However, what they find is not what they expect and those left unburied never cross Acheron.”

In addition to already working on material for further releases, FER DE LANCE is currently slated to perform at the prestigious Keep It True festival in Germany this April. Additional live performances in the USA are also in the works.



“The Hyperborean” track listing:
1. Aurora Borealis
2. The Mariner
3. Ad Bestias
4. Sirens
5. Northern Skies
6. Arctic Winds
7. The Hyperborean

ADAMANTIS Signs With Cruz Del Sur Music; Re-Release Of ‘Far Flung Realm’ Debut Coming In March 2021

Enrico

Cruz Del Sur Music is proud to announce the signing of Massachusetts based power metallers ADAMANTIS. The label will re-release the band’s “Far Flung Realm” debut on a limited edition Compact Disc and Vinyl (Gatefold LP + 7’’) in March 2021.

PHOTO BY EVIL ROBB

“We are eternally grateful to Anderson Tiago from [YouTube channel] NWOTHM Full Albums,” says the band. “He helped us first with finding our audience, and then  later on by reaching out to Cruz Del Sur on our behalf. Anderson is a fantastic person to work with and one is very respected in the scene. We can’t be happier about our continued collaboration with him.”

ADAMANTIS formed in 2016 when drummer Evgeny Gromovoy and guitarist Javier Estrada moved to Boston for work where they met guitarist Jeff Taft and former singer Ashley Caval via an internet post calling for musicians sharing similar influences to start a band. The band played across New England and culminated their run with the release of “Thundermark” EP. Soon after the release, Ashley and original bassist Liz Cleary left and the trio continued working on new material, eventually adding bassist Cody Pelchat and vocalist Jeff Stark to complete the lineup.

The resultant “Far Flung Realm” full-length immediately earned high marks for its take on 1990s era European power metal. The members of ADAMANTIS cite the likes of GAMMA RAY, RUNNING WILD, BLIND GUARDIAN and early NOCTURNAL RITES as key influences as well as early MANOWAR and Viking-era BATHORY. The key, however, to the band’s sound is their democratic writing process — all members of ADAMANTIS contributed across the 10 songs that would comprise the finished product.

“Though the songs are conceived initially by a single member, every member has contributed in some way to every song,” comments the band. “After Ashley and Liz left, we kept writing songs but stopped playing shows, which allowed us to work more on our initial ideas and give them time to evolve, whereas the previous EP was primarily a way to release in a physical medium the songs we had been playing live for over a year. With ‘Far Flung Realm’ we also were fortunate to work with experienced producer Christian ‘Moschus’ Moos, who also helped shape our sound and added some light string and flute arrangements.”

“Far Flung Realm” track listing:

  1. Into the Realm
  2. Unbound Souls
  3. Misbegotten Dream
  4. Puppeteer’s Bane
  5. Fire and Brimstone
  6. Imagination
  7. Journey’s End
  8. The Oracle’s Philosophy
  9. Second Sight
  10. The Siege of Arkona
  11. Voron (The Ravensong)

CARDINALS FOLLY & LUCIFER’S FALL Bring The Doom Via A Split Release Due In March

Enrico

On March 22, Cruz Del Sur Music will pair Finland’s CARDINALS FOLLY and Australia’s LUCIFER’S FALL together for a split of monolithic proportions.

Formed in 2007 in Helsinki, CARDINALS FOLLY has four full-lengths to its credit, including their most recent effort, 2017’s “Deranged Pagan Sons”. Releasing the split on vinyl was their primary reason for signing with Cruz Del Sur, not to mention their affinity for the label’s previous output. CARDINALS FOLLY’s three-song contribution features songs that expand upon the undeniably heavy and dark feel found on “Deranged Pagan Sons”.

“This time it felt inspiring to create a smaller release of just three song with a singular theme that remains basically the same throughout the release,” says bassist/vocalist Count Karnstein. It also features the Nordic mysticism in our music. We’ve had it before on few songs of our catalogue, but this time, it was given priority which was the knot we used to tie it all together. So, in a way, it came naturally through some of the stuff you hear on ‘Deranged Pagan Sons’, especially the last songs of that album, but I don’t see it as a new direction, but rather feeding more influence from a certain side of our music that was always there, but not so much present before.”

One of the secrets to CARDINALS FOLLY’s sound is their ability to avoid the traditional trappings of doom metal. The Finns, who played major festivals like Doom Over Vienna and Doom & Bloom in addition to trekking over to America for an appearance at the Doomed And Stoned festival, aren’t interested in long, laborious songs, nor are they afraid to incorporate influences from other forms of metal, in particular black metal, which Count Karnstein cites as a spiritual influence.

“We rely on showmanship, catchy songs, fearlessness a and ride-or-die attitude,” he says. “I am merely following the path set out to me by the bands that I used to look up to as a very young man and that doesn’t just include legends from the genre known as doom metal, but also BATHORY, VENOM, MERCYFUL FATE, IRON MAIDEN and JUDAS PRIEST. NWOBHM is a very important influence in our riffs, even if we don’t play that fast. I’m doing heavy metal in a way I see as true, and that doesn’t just mean the music, but also how to perform it and carry it forward. And that’s all you need, in my opinion.”

Hailing from Adelaide, LUCIFER’s FALL was formed in 2013 and have been prolific ever since. The band has released two full-lengths in addition to numerous demos, singles and splits, and were brought to the attention of Cruz Del Sur by CARDINALS FOLLY’s Count Karnstein. The band’s most recent album is 2016’s “II: “Cursed & Damned”.

According to vocalist Deceiver, the three songs LUCIFER’s FALL provided for the split were born out of simple band rehearsals, reflecting the lively and dynamic sound. “Heavy metal is just as important to us as doom,” he says. “This release leans more to the metal than the doom. There’s nothing really that slow this time around. We didn’t think too much. We just wanted to write some simple aggressive, catchy headbanging tunes.

“‘Die Witch Die’ is an anti-stoner rock song written in a stoner rock language. ‘Call Of The Wild’ is about a beast/man who escapes his tormentor, wreaks havoc on the moors and also on his master. ‘The Gates Of Hell’ is about an escaped lunatic searching for the gates of hell in the nearby woods. He rides through the imaginary gates and then hangs himself in disappointment.”

The band’s split with CARDINALS FOLLY will be preceded by demo compilation that includes rehearsals and live recordings that is due this December. They have also started writing for their third full-length album, “III: From The Deep”.

CARDINALS FOLLY/LUCIFER’s FALL split release track listing:

CARDINALS FOLLY:

  1. Walvater Proclaimed
  2. Spiritual North
  3. Sworn Through Odin And Satan’s Blood

LUCIFER’s FALL:

  1. Die Witch Die
  2. Call Of The Wild
  3. The Gates Of Hell