Fall

Limited Deluxe Collector's Box Set:Artbook180g 2 LP Gatefold Vinyl w/ Exclusive Artwork and Exclusive LP Color (White)Exclusive picture disc 7"60 cm x 60 cm poster10 art cardsSlipmatPatchPinHand-numbered certificate of authenticityTwo-time Grammy-nominated and millions-selling progressive music titans Dream Theater announce the forthcoming worldwide release of their 14th studio album, ‘Distance Over Time’ on 22nd February 2019. ‘Distance Over Time’ showcases a newfound creativity for Dream Theater while maintaining the elements that have garnered them devoted fans around the globe. The album also marks the first for the band’s new label InsideOutMusic / Sony Music. The artwork was created by long-time cover collaborator Hugh Syme (Rush, Iron Maiden, Stone Sour). ‘Distance Over Time’ was produced by John Petrucci, mixed by Ben Grosse and mastered by Tom Baker.“When I listen back to the album, I can distinctly recall every moment of the writing process; where I was standing in the room, what inspired us in that instant and the meaning behind each song. As a producer, my goal was to try and create the best-sounding Dream Theater record we’ve ever made so that listeners can just be enveloped in the music. I really wanted this recording to truly reflect the spirit, joy and passion that went into making the album and for people to walk away feeling some of the organic nature, personality and raw energy that the band captured while together in the studio. For me, I think it accomplishes that and I hope that other people will feel the same way,” explains John Petrucci.In June 2018, Dream Theater secluded themselves in a private location in upstate New York to begin writing for the new record. While spending the summer living together in the property's adjacent residence, the band spent their days and nights crafting the music that would make up the new album in the ‘Yonderbarn’; a beautiful and spacious barn that had been meticulously transformed into a state-of-the art film and recording studio. Following an intense & extremely productive period of group writing sessions and wanting to retain the magic that was captured in this scenic and inspiring location, they decided to record the album in the very room they had all convened to write together in. Living together during the writing and recording for ‘Distance Over Time’ marked another first for the band’s 33-year career. The result is a heavier collection of songs that showcases the early roots of the band while exploring new territory as musicians and as friends.“It was like going back to summer camp,” adds James LaBrie. “Being around each other the whole time made it that much more of a profound experience. I think the songs reflect the energy. It was a lot of fun to have a situation so powerful at this point in our career.”It has been 3 years since Dream Theater released new music. To announce the details of the brand new album, Dream Theater enlisted the help of one lucky contest winner to break the news of the record to the loyal fans of the band. An Alternate Reality Game was launched that encompassed a “treasure hunt” whereby fans were able to search for clues hidden in various photos, videos, social media posts, and more. Ultimately, one lucky winner was given access to content before everyone else including the release date and cover artwork, and the winner would be the one to share the first taste of never before heard music. Dream Theater is also planning to hit the road in support of the new album. The ‘Distance Over Time’ Tour of North America was recently announced and kicks off on March 20, 2019 in San Diego, CA. The tour will run for seven weeks before wrapping up in Mexico City on May 4, 2019.Progressive metal pioneers Dream Theater — James LaBrie (Vocals), John Petrucci (Guitars), Jordan Rudess (Keyboards), John Myung (Bass), and Mike Mangini (Drums) — share a unique bond with one of the most passionate fan bases around the globe as evidenced by their two GRAMMY® Award nominations and 15 million records sold worldwide. The 1992 opus Images & Words received a gold certification and landed on Rolling Stone’s coveted “100 Greatest Metal Albums of All-Time.” Guitar World placed the follow-up Awake at #1 on “Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994.” 1996’s A Change of Seasons notably soundtracked NBC’s coverage of Downhill Skiing at the 2002 Winter Olympics. Fans voted the 1999 Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory the “Number One All-Time Progressive Rock Album” in a 2012 Rolling Stone poll. Not to mention, it ranked as the “15th Greatest Concept Album” by Classic Rock. 2009 saw Black Clouds & Silver Linings crash the Billboard Top 200 at #6 as A Dramatic Turn of Events [2011] and Dream Theater [2013] maintained a three-peat in the chart’s Top 10. Consequence of Sound dubbed 2016’s The Astonishing, “An absolutely unique experience.” Beyond three platinum and two gold videos, the group was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame in 2010. On its 14th full-length and first release for InsideOutMusic / Sony Music, Distance Over Time, the band recharge the brotherhood that has kept them creating music together for over 30 years. It’s Dream Theater at their most dynamic, direct, and definitive.

Originally formed on Long Island, NY, Ice Age began in 1991 when the four members clicked over a mutual passion for classic and progressive rock with a penchant for heavier music undercurrents.The band was signed by the noted progressive label Magna Carta resulting in 1999’s THE GREAT DIVIDE.  This ambitious debut stands the test of time, acclaimed and sought-after by progressive rock and metal fans alike.  2001 saw the release of the band’s sophomore record LIBERATION, pushing the boundaries even further with melodic heights and metallic crunch.  The band supported the release with festival performances and tours of Europe and the USA.  At that point the band took an extended break but the members stayed in contact.Now 22 years later Ice Age is back with their third album WAVES OF LOSS AND POWER. The material that comprises the release finds the members of Ice Age wearing their varied influences confidently on their collective sleeve.  Once again the band conjures the spirits of Kansas, Genesis, Styx, fleeting shades of Queensryche, Rush, and Fates Warning.  In the true prog tradition, Ice Age continues their epic sagas begun on their first two albums.  In all respects, WAVES is a seminal masterwork of catchy, thoughtful, progressive songwriting.The album was mixed and mastered by Rich Mouser (Transatlantic, Dream Theater, Spock’s Beard).  The cover art concept and booklet design were brought to life by Killustrations, with a fresh new band logo by Thomas Ewerhard.Ice Age will see the band returning to the US festival stage by kicking off ProgPower USA XXII on September 6, 2023 in Atlanta.

"I actually found Carving an Icon quite the retroactively blind purchase, suspiciously ironic since I had been tracking this project for quite a while and assumed I knew what to expect from Morfeus in regards to his avant-garde songwriting and abstruse, distinctive approach to the axes. From this isolated point of view, his sonic handprint is indeed all over Viper Solfa, making the unreasonably long wait for Dimension F3H’s This Mechanical World somewhat easier to mitigate since the dude has at least kept the old creative mind juiced as ever. What I wasn’t quite able to ready myself for was the remaining contributions, hardly something to just gloss over, as Viper Solfa is presented as something of a “supergroup” after all as opposed to a mere side-project.Ronny Thorsen supposedly leads Viper Solfa for all formal intents and purposes, the proclivity for many a conflagration granted by his burly speaking timbre and rousing death roars is a concerted force to be reckoned with. It can be argued that he is just another head in the pack, hardly boasting the standalone merit to turn one’s knees to jelly, but Viper Solfa isn’t done yet. The centrepiece of the band isn’t actually Thorsen, but Miriam Renvåg, whose swaying, affecting timbre opens doors unexpected for the band both conceptually and stylistically. So while I can’t feign shock now, I do recall bemused skepticism at the introduction of such audaciously disparate factors. Renvåg’s voice is very sleek and refined, with an almost pop-caliber cadre of appeals that land Viper Solfa closer to bands such as earlier Sirenia once the vocal trade-off between Thorsen is taken into account. It isn’t what I expected, having come into this project for Morfeus alone, but I certainly applaud Viper Solfa for attempting to merge sodden, opaque, death growls with avant-garde female vocal idiosyncrasy.With nearly all preconceptions espoused by this point, and with Renvåg’s quivering and psychedelic banshee wails taking their mental toll, I realized that there are plenty of parallels that can be drawn between Dimension F3H and Viper Solfa. Symphonics are used sparingly and as punctuation as opposed to the primary arsenal. Morfeus is basically the main songwriter here, and he is still shipping out crunchers of high order in the modern black/death format he began employing in earnest on Legacy of Evil during his waning years with Limbonic Art. In fact, the hard-lined, basal distortion sounds very similar to that record, and as the rollicking, flighty webbing of tremolos grow thicker and denser, Carving an Icon hammers out a welcoming mat to the most unexpected clientele.This ends up being the album’s tripping point, however, as far too much time is spent grooming vocal melodies that sound almost shoehorned in just for the sake of keeping the singers occupied. Thorsen’s petulant rasp gets one-upped by Renvåg’s (sometimes sorely overacted) caterwauling, and the end result borders on the monotonous more often than it should. The band still makes a good show of their missteps, what with a dense, abysmal grandeur pervading the nether reaches of what is honestly a relatively compact and easy listen on the whole, but these shortcomings remain. Carving an Icon may not be a masterpiece, or even the best outlet for all of the talents involved, but I can promise that it sounds like absolutely nothing you have heard lately, or likely will in the near future. At the end of the day, a neat project that delivered at least a few truly lethal numbers like “Whispers and Storms,” “Deranged” and most notably the floods of choppy, aggrandized viscera that embody the aptly-titled “Vulture Kingdom.” My expectations are not in line with the norm due to my familiarity with Morfeus’ back-catalogue, so take of this what you will, but Carving an Icon got more than a few spins out of me."

"Greetings and god Fredag. This is a journey into sound. And sounds. And time, and shifting perceptions, and journeys (journeys of journeys), and our relationship to all of these things, but mostly to sounds. And mostly to the sounds of Heimdal, the 16th full length album by the legendary Enslaved. Let’s begin by setting the stage with some blanketing statements, both of which can be true:Heimdal is handily the best album Enslaved has released in over a decade, since at least 2012’s Riitiir.It still probably won’t replace your favorites.We’ll get into the first statement in greater detail below, but first let’s tackle the latter. First of all, it’s okay for a new album to not eclipse the peaks. Have you heard Isa? It’s incredible! Have you heard Below the Lights? It’s splendiferous! The number of metal bands that have recorded albums of that quality can be counted with your combined hands and feet.Perhaps more important is your personal relationship with this band. Enslaved’s career has long been marked by eras, even if the exact time when each begins or ends is often blurred by their evolution and progression. As music fans, we go through our own eras, with any number of our innumerable experiences shaping how we perceive and appreciate things. This can be extra true for a band with as dramatic an arc as that of Enslaved’s first 15 years, where we might not appreciate a particular album, phase, or sound until our personal circumstances are just right, and even then the ones that made the biggest impression on us at that key moment in time may always be our favorites.Basically, Enslaved has an extremely high Get Out What You Bring With You factor, and while that doesn’t mean it’s completely based on circumstance, those factors can and of course will influence how much a very good new record like Heimdal will leave you ensorcelled. Enslaved is also a big Patience Will Be Rewarded band, and even for them Heimdal is a fairly deep and diverse album. In other words, your weapons (snap judgments), you will not need them.But what if you’re the type that really misses that constant Enslaved evolution? How much did you believe the statements from the band that Ivar Bjørnson was more inspired as a songwriter this time around? Here are a couple more points about Heimdal that can both be true:It does indeed sound more inspired than recent efforts, and is undeniably darker, more intense, and relatively weirder than the last few albums.Inspired is one thing, and evolution is another, and the album’s shifts are minute compared to the rapid changes the band used to exhibit from album to album.Basically, if you’re okay with Enslaved not shapeshifting faster than a T1000 dipping its little piggies in lava, you’ll be way on board, because again, this is the best set of tunes they’ve penned in a good while. After a three-album run in which they seemed to be in a holding pattern, it’s great to hear that extra touch of fire and focus on an album that features an organic but obviously well thought out flow (it feels nearly as “concept album” in structure as Isa). They might not be rapidly and restlessly moving about, but they definitely sound like they’re starting to stir from what has felt a bit like a decade-long chill sesh on the couch. Let’s dive in, yes?Opener “Behind the Mirror,” almost crucially, does not unload all the album’s intensity from the get-go, but instead begins things with a slower, slightly doomy prog riff that wouldn’t sound out of place on many a King Crimson album (that almost cheeky menace at which Fripp so excels is present). The clean vocal passages are rather communal and understated, which provides a great contrast to Grutle Kjellson’s somehow never better growl. It’s a very good, not quite amazing track, but what makes it work so well as an opener is it introduces the kind of on-the-move, traveling, journeying vibe that permeates the record, which is amplified much more on later tracks.It also sets the stage by being a bit of a stylistic deke before the band goes nuts on “Congelia,” a tune that is almost shockingly heavy and urgent, especially considering the type of material you’d expect of them these days. It spends several minutes hammering the listener with a choppy-chunky riff, Iver Sandøy’s relentless drum pattern, Grutle’s growl, and some positively killer organ warble and spaced out key parts from Håkon Vinje (who really stars throughout). All the intensity is eventually rewarded with a wicked, triumphant swell of group clean vocals in one of the album’s biggest moments, of course punctuated by a smooth and deeply narrative Ice Dale solo (the man is a marvel). It ought to be an instant Enslaved classic.The journey continues with “Forest Dweller,” which again shifts the mood into something more classically prog, with serene-but-eerie vocal melodies, simulated flute sounds, and plenty of sections that feel like blackened Deep Purple and/or later Opeth peppered with harsh rasps. It’s another track that doesn’t so much shift a paradigm as it refines the model in glorious fashion. It’s also a great diversion between the beastly track that precedes it and the wild, fun, and riffy “Kingdom,” which is fairly irresistible all the way through with its techy harmonies and spaced out keys, but really reaches another level when it pairs some serious bombast with a nice sassy hook.The journeying vibe reaches its peak with “The Eternal Sea” and “Caravans to the Outer Worlds.” The former begins with sounds of being lost at sea, framing the dominant catchy drive and clean vocal melodies with sorrow, almost a lament. It’s beautiful, simultaneously distant and immediate, and perhaps the biggest grower track of the bunch. The latter flips that feeling of trekking across great distances into something resembling a battle, with its punchy keys, twitchy riffs, and a fittingly less smooth Ice Dale solo. The track, despite being introduced through its titular EP in 2021, feels even more at home here, fitting in perfectly with the overall arc of Heimdal.Since the days of “Miðgarðs Eldar,” Enslaved has spliced their speed with slowness, and that touch of doom really helps Heimdal’s closing title track set the scene for the end. The main riff pattern of its initial passages is like a meaner and slower inversion of the riff that opens the album, and ‒ because of a somewhat unbalanced prog setting ‒ feels the tiniest bit drunk (oddball keys and Grutle’s vocals help the unsettling vibe). And then, almost out of nowhere, it suddenly becomes a completely different song, infectiously pushing forward as if driving away from destruction without a worry in mind, as if the only goal is to keep chasing the sunset.It admittedly comes off as a strange choice the first few times you hear it, but everything comes together when you remember a great truth about this band: Enslaved is best when they’re at least a little weird. Heimdal is probably only a little weird (at least to seasoned ears), but it’s certainly weirder than In Times, E, and Utgard. It isn’t just weirdness for the sake of weirdness, however, it’s the sound of a creative band feeling looser and more at home both within their songs and with each other. Heimdal is the first time that this “newer” Enslaved lineup sounds fully gelled, with all five guys turning in excellent performances that add just the right touches (and then some) to these tunes.It’s admittedly a comforting feeling to be excited about an Enslaved album again. It’s a somewhat tempered excitement, sure, but that might be less about the record (which is great and has the potential to keep growing in stature) than me, us, I, we. We ‒ meaning fans and band both ‒ are older, a little less excitable, and generally stiffer in our joints when the barometric pressure acts up. And to reiterate a big point, this band has released 16 (SIXTEEN!!!) albums! That’s a lot of records!!! And the worst you can say about their output is that a few albums feel a mite superfluous, because none are nearly bad. That they can emerge from the type of rut that is really only a rut for a band of their caliber and climb at least halfway back up their own colossal mountain of standards ought to bring a smile to many a fan’s face.Enslaved is even celebrating the record with a release event called Heimhug, which yes, translates to “homesickness” (at least according to Google), but these world travelers surely knew that putting “hug” into the name would make it seem rather affectionate to non-Norwegian-speakers. Regardless, it’s a fun thing for these joyous old vets to do with their fans, and just the latest in a great recent stretch of events and live streams and other little things that make them so relatable. They clearly want their fans to be part of their journey, and Heimdal not only feels like a big part of their story, but one of their destination albums. Give them and this great record a good squeeze, you will." - Last Rites

"Enslaved are back with their 13th studio album, In Times, marking their first album in three years. The gap between discs ties their longest since the span between Frost and Eld. A lot has changed since then as the band has been blending their fondness for ’70s progressive rock with lengthy black metal songs remaining at the core since the dawn of the new millennium.At first glance, six songs may not seem like much for a new album by the modern standard, but the Norwegians echo the sentiment of quality over quantity. Five of the six songs clock in between the eight and nine minute mark with the title track being the lone exception at nearly 11 minutes in length.The opening track “Thurisaz Dreaming” tricks the listener by fading in with a sound that seems to be setting the tone for a lengthy and progressive introduction. Instead, Enslaved go for the throat as Grutle Kjellson shreds his in a matter of seconds with shrieks that alleviate any doubts that the band has strayed far from their black metal foundation. As quickly as Grutle presents himself, he sits back resigned to his bass, content letting the soothing clean vocals take over for a bit as the band embark on another journey revering the sacred runes.With each passing album, keyboardist Herbrand Larsen has become a more integral part of the band utilizing his soothing clean vocals to contrast and compliment Grutle’s uncompromising rasp. This is true again on In Times as the duo continue to vie for center vocal spot, creating a playful atmosphere where the listener can feel fully absorbed by both the progressive and black metal facets of Enslaved.The best demonstration of this can be heard on the masterful “One Thousand Years of Rain.” A true conquest among the entirety of the band’s catalog, this song sees each member of the band contribute a performance that transcends their individual duties. This is also where Cato Bekkevold’s drumming starts to truly stand out as the kick drum anchors In Times, often stitching together the disharmony.“Nauthir Bleeding” continues the experiment of clean vocals intersecting with the blackened side of the band and vice versa with astonishing results. This ambidextrous-like quality rounds out their most progressive aspect, allowing them to excel and innovate in both genres independently.With successive listens it becomes quite evident that In Times is written to be listened to as a whole. Each song flows into the next so seamlessly that it can be easy to forget where one song ends and another begins. Certain songs will always stand out more than others, but that isn’t what this album is about. The ever-consistent Enslaved have churned out another album to cement their legendary status in a style the continue to call their own." - Loud Wire

Four years after their latest studio album, now finally "I Am The Storm" arrives - an intense slice of heavy music, evoking the presence of one's inner strength. Like a force of nature, every lover of sophisticated metal music with depth will fall in love with Englund's inspired vocals, the sheer power and exquisite arrangements.The masters of song-oriented progressive metal are back! Los Angeles- based band REDEMPTION, fronted by charismatic vocalist Tom S. Englund (also Evergrey) are one of the most respected and critically acclaimed bands, highly praised in prog- as well as melodic/power metal circles. Four years after their latest studio album, now finally "I Am The Storm" arrives - an intense slice of heavy music, evoking the presence of one's inner strength. Like a force of nature, every lover of sophisticated metal music with depth will fall in love with Englund's inspired vocals, the sheer power and exquisite arrangements.