Saturday, October 2, 2010

Where Are The New Albums? October Update

Well guys, the wait continues for a bunch of upcoming local metal and hard rock albums, and like we've done the last two months, it's time to ask a question I'm sure many of you have right now: Where are the new albums? Like before, I'll try to answer the question of where exactly these albums are by using sources and known information that is online. And like last month, we'll go in alphabetical order.

Seven of the albums have newly added information, those being the ones with the album title in italics. Note that this still doesn't include albums that are just announced without recording started, or are just planned for down the road. And, information is as best as I can determine, but if something's wrong or lacking details, let me know! So let's begin our update of last month's post, and we'll find out where exactly these new albums are right now! (UPDATED: Sunday at 12:51 PM)
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Bring The Fallen's debut EP

Rumoured Songs: "Defiling Despondence", "Exposed Embankment", "Stand Before", "Night Riders"

Background: Possibly from the studio time earned at some of the battles of the bands they won, Bring The Fallen had announced plans for a debut EP last year, recording it in September 2009 with producer (and SBD bassist) Brad Griffith. The band posted unmastered mixes of three original songs onto their MySpace page, and had publicly announced that it would be out in "Winter 2010". However, since then, all traces of an imminent EP release have disappeared from their internet pages, and nothing has came of it in a few months.

Current Release Status: Unknown, but the band haven't shut the door on releasing it, as they confirmed that it was waiting to be mastered in their interview from the fall 2010 issue of The Fresh Magazine. However, I can't verify if it ever will be, as discussion of releasing these recordings did vanish from their pages for a reason. Hopefully it comes out, but you can check out three of the unmastered studio recordings at this location! Very promising stuff, nice and brutal, though it does need to be refined.
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Frightlight - It's A... Live!!*

Rumoured Songs: "Fright Night", "Dead Town", "Scream", "C.H.U.D.", "They All Float"

Background: The local horror influenced punk/metal band took a unique approach to the recording sessions of their first album, opting to record it LIVE at one of their concerts! This took place at their July 10th show at Coch's Corner, with local progressive rock musician Nick Jackson behind the controls for the recordings. The album is currently being produced and mixed by Nick at Spacehouse Studios in London, England. Frontman J.D. "Johnny Pints" Pearce told me that "Fright Night" would be the likely first single at a recent show as well. The TENTATIVE TITLE was announced to be "It's A... Live!!", on August 6th, which fits their theme and the live nature of the album. An album cover contest was also announced on their Facebook group, with a $100 cash prize and credit in the liner notes for their winner!

Current Release Status: Unknown, but I've heard nothing out of the ordinary concerning a possible complication. And no, the band's recent drummer switch won't impact the release, as Jeff "Shrek Ogre" Richards recorded all of his drum tracks at the July 10th concert. A release near Halloween would be fitting, given the band's theme, but with a month to go from their Halloween weekend show at Coch's Corner and no firm details announced yet, it looks unlikely. We likely won't see it til November at the earliest, but in the meantime, live jam session audio recordings of some of Frightlight's original songs are featured on their Reverbnation page!
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Garden of Bedlam - "Everything Will Die"*

Rumoured Songs: "New Rain", "Against The Grain", "Everything Will Die", "Torment", "Your Disgrace", "Three Days", "Around The Bend"

Background: Sessions for Garden of Bedlam's debut full length album (TENTATIVELY titled "Everything Will Die") began in early June at Stereo Soul Studios with producer Miguel Gauthier, who has kept fans up to date on the recording sessions at his Facebook page. Only stepping out from the studio to headline The Rotaryfest Second Stage and to open for Kiss, recording for the album wrapped up on September 9th! Miguel's page and Garden of Bedlam's Facebook group have done a good job of keeping fans posted on the sessions, head there to check out updates! Select fans heard their first taste of unmixed tracks from the CD at Garden of Bedlam's Kiss afterparty on August 10th at The Rockstar Bar. As of September 27th, Miguel was still working on mixing the recordings, with it being sent to press following that, so be on the lookout!

Current Release Status: It will definitely be out this fall, although a rough estimate of exactly when isn't known. The mixing needs to wrap up, and sending an album away for mastering and press isn't a quick process, so I wouldn't hold my breath for it to be out quickly. A November release is looking likely at this stage, but I'm not positive. In the meantime, search for Garden of Bedlam on YouTube to hear live versions of their newest originals, while we wait for more sneak peeks at the finished studio material!
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Gates of Winter's second full length album

Rumoured Songs: "The Stars Call My True Name", "Edin Na Zu", "Dimensions", "Time Warp", "From Nothingness" (leftover song from 2008 sessions)

Background: Despite an almost two year long hiatus from live performances, Gates of Winter never broke up, and are slowly working on their follow-up to 2008's "Lux Aeterna". The first glimpse of the new album was unveiled in February, when frontman and producer Lee Maines uploaded a snippet of their new song "The Stars Call My True Name" onto his YouTube channel, and he followed that up with two more demo clips in June. The band launched a new Facebook page in August to keep fans updated on the sessions, including the unveiling of a new song title, "Time Warp". Not much else has surfaced, but work on the album is ongoing, and it sure sounds like their heaviest and darkest yet, which should get any Gates of Winter fan excited!

Current Release Status: I have absolutely no idea. The band have openly admitted that the recording sessions for this album have been a slow and steady process due to ongoing work and education, as stated on their Facebook page. Plus, bassist Steve Furgiuele lives out of town now, and that can't help either. But don't worry, the album is still in progress, and when updates come out, we'll know! I'd say don't expect the album to come out until early 2011, but that's a complete and utter guess. For now though, check out Gates of Winter's posted demos by clicking here!
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Lion Ride's first full length album

Rumoured Songs: "Stick It In", "Snail Trail"

Background: Lion Ride entered the studio for the first sessions of their upcoming full length CD in late April at Toronto's BWC Studios with producer Greg Dawson, same as when current and ex-members of the band recorded Detroit's newest album last year. The band recorded four songs at those sessions, including "Stick It In", which was uploaded onto their MySpace page in early May as a preview. They also played another new song, "Snail Trail", at their local show on May 22nd, and the studio version was later posted on BWC Studios' MySpace page. However, band activity has slowed since June, which guitarist/studio bassist Marky Lion confirmed was due to drummer Iron Mike Bison being on the road with Toronto pop rock band The Envy, who he's managing. You'll recognize The Envy as one of the opening bands at Kiss' show at The Essar Center on August 10th! The above information comes from a posting on the band's MySpace blog.

Current Release Status: According to Marky in the above blog posting, they're saying it will be out in the fall, and new graphics on their MySpace page back this up. Mike's touring with The Envy has wrapped up, and the band are playing a Toronto show on October 24th, so I figure the band will re-assemble in the near future. My educated guess for a release is November, but we'll have to see. However, you can get a preview of the CD by checking out "Stick It In" at this location and "Snail Trail" by clicking here!
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No Arrow - "Souls For Sale"

Rumoured Songs: "Genocyde Revealing Pt. 1", "Sikkha", "Lighter", "Delayed Reaction", "Souls For Sale", "One On The Line", "Most Of All", "Substitute Victim", "The Pissing Song", "Genocyde Revealing Pt. 2", "Colderside Of The Sun", "Cuts"

Background: Self produced, recorded, and mixed at Organized Rhyme Records from 2007-2009 and mastered by Chris Daniels at Brighton Recording/Mastering House in the United Kingdom, "Souls For Sale" is completely finished with album artwork and liner notes completed as well. So why hasn't it been released? Well, from conversations I've had with frontman Dann Pichette, the gist of it is that he wants to wait to book a CD release show before sending it to press, but hasn't been able to wrangle together the members of the band to reunite yet. Dann has kept fans posted here and there with commercials for the album and some new jam videos on his YouTube channel, but nothing finite about a "Souls For Sale" CD release has came up at all, even though it's been THREE YEARS since recording began.

Current Release Status: I have no idea. We've heard rumours of it coming out soon for a few years now, and each time we got excited, nothing came of it. However, you CAN hear the entire album for free, all you have to do is ask the band to send you the mp3s and artwork by e-mailing their MySpace page! Also, I have uploaded (with Dann's blessing) the entire album onto the SMS YouTube channel, so check it out there too! The hopes of an official "Souls For Sale" release are NOT dead yet, so stay tuned in case something pops up!
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Riverin's self-titled debut EP

Rumoured Songs: "Attitude", "They Lost You", "A Cold Wind", "Deflower", "Valentine", "Raining In December"

Background: The new industrial hard rock project from former Dirty Virgin and Silver Dream bandmates Matt Hicks and Matt Clement, Riverin have slowly been working on their debut EP for much of 2010. It's being self-recorded and mastered at Matt Hicks' Quartertone Studios. As of late July, it was almost finished and was said to be released "soon", according to their MySpace page, which also has the six planned tracks for the EP posted, three of which were just uploaded last month. Note that Riverin haven't played live yet, partly due to not having other band members to play all instruments at live shows.

Current Release Status: Not sure, but I believe them when they say it's almost finished. The two Matts have put in a lot of work getting Riverin ready behind the scenes before going public in July, and all six of the songs for the EP are now available to check out. This could be out at any point, but updates from the band don't tend to be very frequent, so remember that. I'll keep you posted!
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Sense of Truth's debut EP

Rumoured Songs: "Push & Pull", "Crawling", "Land of Greed", "Pieces of a Mirror"

Background: Sense of Truth began work on their debut EP in early February with Miguel Gauthier at Stereo Soul Studios, wrapping up the recording sessions in March. Again, Miguel kept fans up to date on the sessions at his Facebook page, with some updates on Sense of Truth's Facebook group as well. The songs were sent off to be mastered in late March, and it was announced that the EP would be sent off to print "very shortly" as of June 30th. The band originally hyped an "early summer 2010" release for the album, but we're obviously past that point. Songs from the EP are on rotation on Energy Rock Radio, numerous originals have been played at their concerts, and samples of three songs are posted on their MySpace page, but we haven't heard much from the band since their last concert on May 22nd, partly due to drummer Ryan Haryett's out of town work commitments. Bassist Curtis Beauchamp also told me that it was delayed partly by some issues with the album artwork, with Miguel confirming on September 9th that the artwork needed to be finished before sending it to press.

Current Release Status: I'd originally guessed that we would see this before Garden of Bedlam's album as it was recorded earlier and was shorter as a whole, but I'm starting to second guess that. I'm thinking we might not see their EP until maybe December, if we're being honest. No matter what, when it comes out, it will deliver lots of great hard rock, and will be well worth the wait! Remember to hear previews of three songs at their MySpace page, and listen to Energy Rock Radio for your first taste of full songs from the EP!
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Silver Dream's debut album

Rumoured Songs: "My Heart Stops", "Evangeline", "Sunshine", "Every Minute", "Baby I Love", "Talk To Me"

Background: Not a lot was known about the recording sessions and progress of Silver Dream's debut album, but what we did know was that they wanted to record the majority of their first album before playing live, instead of typically doing it the other way around. Former frontman Matthew Silver kept fans updated on his now-deactivated Facebook page through image files as to progress of recording. We did see one taste of their sessions, a YouTube upload of "My Heart Stops", in June. The quality of the recording wasn't bad either, so they knew what they were doing! Other songs were confirmed through image files and some solo performance videos on YouTube. However, since Matthew left the band in July to follow a religious path, most traces of Silver Dream vanished from the internet, and their debut show was cancelled, leaving their future in doubt.

Current Release Status: Personally, it doesn't look good. With Silver Dream's frontman, namesake, and driving force gone, I can't see the remaining members doing much with what was recorded. Matthew did announce that the band would still be active, with bassist Mike LaRue looking for a new singer, but what that means for the recordings is unknown at best. I'd like to see what was finished come out at some point, but if I were you, I wouldn't hold your breath for an official CD release, at least not in the form we heard earlier this summer.
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Sykotyk Rampage - "Genius Mushrooms With Thoughts Of Intellect" and "Genius Mushrooms With Thoughts Of Stupidity"

Rumoured Songs (for 1st album): "Parked", "Fear", "Sicked", "Text", "Sky", "Underhead", "Bubblie", "GDS", "Twisted", "Manure", "NT22PSDB", "Nobody"

Rumoured Songs (for 2nd album): "Running", "Legend, "Garden", "Metal", "Rain", "Parley", "Wait", "Shrooms", "Dynamite", "Acreage", "McDonalds", "Alright"

Background: Originally announced in their "Attack Of The Garage Bands" profile on The Barking Eye in June, "Genius Mushrooms With Thoughts Of Intellect" will be Sykotyk Rampage's 24th album. It was later announced in August that the album, originally a double release with 25 songs, would be split into two 12 song albums, with one song, "Silence", removed from the track listing that makes up the second album, "Genius Mushrooms With Thoughts Of Stupidity". Details on both albums, including songs and album covers, can be viewed at this location. Once again, Sykotyk Rampage recorded these new albums at River Front Recreation Studios, the sessions taking place last year and early this year. These albums are part of the conceptual "Genius Mushroom" series which delves "into the realm of hallucinogenic musical brainscans." Note that bassist Brian Cattapan's move to Sudbury will not affect either album's release, as all of his parts were completely recorded beforehand.

Current Release Status: I'd like to say that both of these albums will be out on December 1st like what is said on Facebook, but considering the delays that postponed their last two albums, I'm not sold on this being concrete yet. Then again, their albums are known for being recorded and released pretty quickly. 2009's "Moments of Misery" came out just 3 months after their album prior to that, and they've released as many as SIX albums in a calendar year, like in 2006. If I was gonna bet, I'd bet on a January or February release for both, but who knows, maybe things will line up so they do get a December release. You never know!
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Woods of Ypres - "Woods V"*

Rumoured Songs: None known yet

Background: Recording for Woods of Ypres' fifth and final album began on August 8th and continued until August 22nd. The band's second album featuring the Madden brothers and only album with Joel Violette, it was recorded with Miguel Gauthier at Stereo Soul Studios once again, and will feature five long tracks, so it won't be released as an EP. Miguel's Facebook page kept fans updated on the sessions, along with Woods of Ypres' Facebook page, and a topic on Woods of Ypres' official forum. With frontman David Gold's move to Kuwait in August, the next steps concerning "Woods V" aren't 100% known, but he revealed in the above forum topic that he'd ideally want to release it in a limited release of 500 12" vinyl records with download cards, and on iTunes, with a CD pressing not guaranteed. Merchandise related to "Woods V" could also be released as well. Miguel was close to finishing editing and mixing the "Woods V" material as of September 17th, but we've heard little since.

Current Release Status: I don't have a reasonable guess, but my bet's on a possible release in November or December, given what I expect to be a longer wait period due to David's big move. Then again, with his announced plans for a limited pressing of an otherwise iTunes-only release, it could be quicker. Time will tell though, but hopefully the album sends Woods of Ypres out with a bang!
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There, hopefully this serves as an informative refresher to you metalheads still waiting on these albums to find their way to stores, online outlets, and most importantly, in your hands! I will say this: If none of the above albums are out by October 13th, our next CD review on the SMS will be of Kiss' "The Hottest Show On Earth: Live In Sault Ste. Marie", which was the live album from our Kiss concert! But if a new local band's album is released before then, they'll absolutely be next, so stay tuned on that front! I can't wait for these to come out, hopefully you guys agree!

That's all for today, stay tuned for more news and updates very soon! Thanks everyone!

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