It’s been only two years, but it feels even longer since I delved into Colorado-based black metal outfit Wayfarer’s…
Music is the most immediately emotive form of art. Listeners can hear a single note of a favourite song…
The Comforting Grip of Misery is dark, poignant, yet also in the context of atmospheric black metal/DSBM, beautiful. With this record, it’s clear And Now The Owls Are Smiling has gone from strength to strength since joining Clobber Records.
Alcest’s latest offering, Spiritual Instinct (Nuclear Blast Records), is an emotional caravan through the individual psyche that will leave you spent and wanting more.
French blackgaze band Alcest is about to release their new record Spiritual Instincit on October 25th via Nuclear Blast Records. We spoke with frontman Neige about the band’s new emotional approach towards the album, and the incredible connection fans have to their music.
ISON has easily produced the celestial ambient, post-rock album of 2019 with Inner – Space (Avantgarde Music), an astral journey that begs to be grasped and experienced.
Norwegian ambient rocker Sylvaine drops a Stereo Six listing six albums that helped shape her newest record, Atoms Aligning, Coming Undone – out now via Season of Mist.
Following over twenty years of highly acclaimed success, with critically and commercially acclaimed releases from some of the most prolific artists in heavy metal, German-based Prophecy Productions is proud to announce its expansion into North America.
Amazingly, the first half of 2015 is already behind us. Over the course of the last six months, many impressive Metal albums featuring stunning cover artwork have come to light (just take glimpse at some of the graphics featured below).
2014 continues to bring us outstanding cover imagery for many Metal albums worldwide. Using all kind of techniques, from traditional painting to digital design, artists have created exceptional visual marvels that amaze thanks in large to their level of detail, careful execution and, in some cases, profound conceptual ideas. In this second part of our “Best Album Covers of 2014,” we keep exploring some of these special pieces of art. Let’s see what the people involved in the making of these images had say.
2014 is just beginning and there already are a lot of interesting artworks adorning the covers of many Metal albums. We’ve selected four of the most striking ones to-date and spoke with some of the people involved in their development who in turn revealed numerous interesting facts. We listened, learned and now, we’re sharing with you this info! Feel free to do the same…
Alcest is a band in constant evolution. Since the year 2000, this French collective, lead by singer/multi-instrumentalist, Neige, has managed to go from playing Black Metal to Indie Rock-oriented soundscapes of profound evocative power. Their recent album Shelter is a perfect example of this change. Gone are the blast beats and the screaming vocals that were so palpable in their magnificent previous album Les Voyages De L’ame. Instead, Neige, drummer Winterhalter and a selected group of guest musicians have been able to create an affecting record that has surprised fans (both positively and negatively) and opened new musical and commercial possibilities for the group. Drummer Winterhalter briefly spoke with PureGrainAudio about this brave move.
French Metallers Alcest brought their ethereal mix of Black Metal and Shoegaze to the legendary Crowbar in Tampa Bay on March 21th, 2012. It was a night filled with plenty of magical moments and an intimate atmosphere. The band focused on playing cuts from their recent, highly acclaimed album Les Voyages De L’Ame, as well as songs from all previous recordings. The night was captured using a Nikon D-90, Nikkor Lens 19-105mmm f: 3.5 and Tamron 28-75 mm f:2.5.
Traditionally, Tampa Bay’s audience doesn’t seem to be very fond of Metal bands with strong melodic leanings. Most fans (and bands) in this part of the US are still deeply rooted in the Death Metal revolution that took the underground by storm during the early 90’s. That’s probably why expectations weren’t high on the night that French metallers Alcest came to town to deliver their unique blend of ethereal Melodic Black Metal and Shoegaze. Surprisingly, all bets were wrong: a pretty decent crowd (formed mostly by 20 and 30 year olds) invaded The Crowbar, helping to create an intimate yet electrical atmosphere.