ADAMANTIS Release “Storm The Walls” first single off ‘The Daemon’s Strain’ EP out in Spring 2022

November 10, 2021November 9, 2021 Enrico

Hot off the heels of their 2020 “Far Flung Realm” full-length, emerging Massachusetts power metallers ADAMANTIS will release the four-song “The Daemon’s Strain” EP next spring via Cruz Del Sur Music.

And as today the band premieres “Storm The Walls”, the EP’s opening track on New Wave Of Traditional Heavy Metal You Tube channel:

ADAMANTIS started work on “The Daemon’s Strain” in late 2020 when all live activity was on hold due to the global pandemic. The unplanned break from shows afforded the band additional time to compose and fine-tune the material, which finds ADAMANTIS hitting their full Euro power metal-influenced stride, replete with anthemic choruses, melodic interplay and epic, gallant song constructs.

“We had one song recorded during the ‘Far Flung Realm’ sessions that did not make it to the album,” says the band. “So, we decided to start from scratch and rework the song completely. Jeff Taft re-worked the riffs and, on a stormy night, the lyrics came together and here is how ‘Storm the Walls’ was born. We believe this is a fantastic metal anthem and will be part of all our live performances. ‘Dark Moon Goddess’ is completely new. ‘Thundermark ‘is the oldest song we composed and was originally included in our self-released debut EP with our former vocalist Ashley Caval at the lead. We decided to re-record it with Jeff Stark and give it a fresh approach. Finally, ‘House Carpenter’, while a cover, is really the centerpiece of ‘The Daemon’s Strain’. It’s the song we worked most of the time on and thought more about, with the intention to create an epic metal take on this ancient Scottish song.’”

Drums and vocals for “The Daemon’s Strain” were tracked at Kennedy Studios in Burlington, Massachusetts with producer/engineer Steve Aliperta; all instruments were laid down at the respective home studios of Pelchat, Estrada and Taft. The making of “The Daemon’s Strain” EP marked new territory for the band — the EP was created not only behind the momentum of “Far Flung Realm”, but also with the support of Cruz Del Sur Music.

“‘Far Flung Realm’ opened us to a wide audience, but we have a lot more to offer!” says the band. “While ‘Far Flung Realm’ was originally written as a self-release, ‘The Daemon’s Strain’ was conceived and created completely under the label’s wing, which allowed us to focus our efforts on further developing our sound. We believe that listeners will hear many more epic elements here than in ‘Far Flung Realm’, as well as some interesting excursions into dark, atmospheric passages.”

Pelchat and Taft left the band and are now focused on their other projects. Cody has reactivated his CURSE GUARD project and begun the writing process for their debut, while Taft will soon be releasing his first LP with his newly formed band. In spite of these changes, the waning months of 2021 will find ADAMANTIS continuing live show activity in support of “Far Flung Realm” with the new lineup that includes the super talented Teddy Shao on guitar. To go one better, the band has already started thinking about songwriting for the second LP.

“We have a nice set of performances lined up, including support to national touring acts like UNTO OTHERS, live streaming events and appearances at U.S.-based festivals,” concludes the band. “We also hope to bring our live set to Europe at some point and are discussing options. On the creative side, we are working on new material for a full-length album with the new input Teddy brings. We will probably spend 2022 writing and polishing this third release while delivering the best cuts out of ‘Far Flung Realm’ and ‘The Daemon’s Strain’ on stage.”

“The Daemon’s Strain” track listing:

Storm The Walls
Dark Moon Goddess
Thundermark
The Daemon’s Strain (House Carpenter)

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

December 3, 2020December 3, 2020 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.

“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:

Into the Realm
Unbound Souls
Misbegotten Dream
Puppeteer’s Bane
Fire and Brimstone
Imagination
Journey’s End
The Oracle’s Philosophy
Second Sight
The Siege of Arkona
Voron (The Ravensong)

HAMMER KING To Release ‘Poseidon Will Carry Us Home’ In October

August 3, 2018August 1, 2018 Enrico

German true metal ensemble HAMMER KING will release their third full-length, “Poseidon Will Carry Us Home”, on October 5 via Cruz Del Sur Music.
Recorded at Studio Greywolf with POWERWOLF bassist Charles Greywolf at the helm, “Poseidon Will Carry Us Home” is an unabashed bow to classic, anthemic, hook-laden metal, proving HAMMER KING was more than up to the task of meeting the often-high expectations that come with a band’s third album.

“If you haven’t found your own identity by the time your third album comes out, you might probably never find it,” says vocalist/guitarist Titan Fox V. I know that we have felt that our third album feels like ‘we are’ now, compared to ‘we want to be’ in the past. Not taking away anything from our previous albums at all, but when you start going on a mission, you begin with searching and trying. After a while you know the task, you know the way and you know about your strengths. Maybe that’s what the magical third album is about.”

Variety abounds on “Poseidon”, with HAMMER KING engaging in strident, call-to-arms jaunts like the opening title track and “Battle Of Wars”. Twin guitar harmonies and fierce gallops highlight “7 Days And 7 Kings” and “Where The Hammer Hangs”, while the true metal call is heeded on the mid-tempo “Warriors Of Angelhill” and “Glorious Nights Of Glory”.

“‘Poseidon’ sounds more organic, more open, warmer,” notes Fox V. “I like the sound of the drums especially, they have a sort of an ’80s vibe to them. Of course, the songwriting has also taken a step forward, if you like. We still have the typical HAMMER KING songs, such as ‘The King Is A Deadly Machine’ or ‘Battle Of Wars’, but there are some songs we have not made before like the ‘Nautical Trilogy’, which includes the title track, ‘At The Mercy Of The Waves’ and ‘We Sail Cape Horn’.”

HAMMER KING’s progression is best exemplified on album standout “We Sail Cape Horn”. An adventurous, sea-faring number that is equal nods to classic IRON MAIDEN and progressive rock, “We Sail Cape Horn” ended up being the most difficult number on “Poseidon” to pull together. According to Fox V., the end result was more than worth the work that went into creating the song.

“Writing ‘We Sail Cape Horn’ was a bit of a lengthy process. Many parts came in and out of the song over some months. I basically made a demo of it alone and then showed it to the band. They questioned everything after the middle part, so I changed that all over again. In the end, we had a really big song with a real progression in it: Beginning with the protagonist feeling the desire, the urge to go to sea on a huge sailing ship — then actually sailing on the ship, experiencing the loneliness aboard with only strangers around and finally sailing Cape Horn with its horrifying waves and storms. They sail in the name of the King, so what gets them through the horrors of Cape Horn is singing and praising ‘Thine is the Reich and the kingdom eternally, God bless the King’. It is a proud song closing a proud album.”

An album stocked with future anthems at every corner, “Poseidon Will Carry Us Home” is representative of a band now hitting its creative stride — and fully realizing it. “The studio work with Charles Greywolf is a time of sheer joy and fun, but also a highly relaxed time where everyone constantly gains power and self-confidence,” finishes Fox V. “I have never sung more relaxed, we have never shot more from the hip when it came to playing. But certainly, it is a very fulfilling progression starting with no songs at all and ending up with a mixed and mastered album sporting massive artwork!”

“Poseidon Will Carry Us Home” track listing: