Death Metal defenders of the old, GRUESOME, has completed their second full-length album and follow-up their 2015 debut full-length, Savage Land. Their latest studio offering, titled Twisted Prayers, was recorded with producer Jarrett Pritchard (Exhumed, 1349, Goatwhore, Wolvhammer) at New Constellation Studios in Orlando, Florida. Twisted Prayers follows Death’s paradigm shift during the Spiritual Healing era, incorporating more cerebral, melodic instrumentation with elements of thrash and thought-provoking, socially conscious lyrics. The record once again features artwork from the legendary Ed Repka (Death, Megadeth, Venom) and is expected to be released this summer via Relapse Records. Stay tuned for more info to be announced in the coming weeks.
Additionally, GRUESOME will kick off a European headlining tour this summer. Beginning July 19th, the trek will travel through two dozen cities and includes appearances at Obscene Extreme 2018, Wacken Open Air, Free & Easy Festival, Stonehenge Festival and more. See all confirmed dates below.
Bay Area Melodic Death Metal outfit LIGHT THIS CITY issues a new teaser video for the band’s first new album in ten years. Having completed the new LP in recent days, the trailer shows the reactivated outfit in the studio, leaking the very first traces of the anxiously awaited record.
After a decade of silence between albums, LIGHT THIS CITY has returned with ten blazing tracks that capture the band’s tendency towards extreme melody and intensity, honoring the Swedish sound of the ’90s. Having spent the past decade performing and touring in numerous other bands, the five members of LIGHT THIS CITY have only honed and shaped their skills and musicianship since their 2008-released Stormchaser. The album was recorded from December 2017 through February 2018 with Zack Ohren, who handled the band’s previous four full length albums, at Castle Ultimate Studios in Oakland, California, and features artwork by Tony Midi.
See the new LIGHT THIS CITY teaser video RIGHT HERE or below:
The new record will be released in CD, LP, and digital formats on May 25th; watch for the title, artwork, track listing, preorder links, audio samples, and more to be issued in the days ahead.
LIGHT THIS CITY began in 2002, when best friends Laura Nichol and Ben Murray decided to start a melodic death metal project in the vein of At the Gates, Carcass, In Flames, and all the Scandinavian bands that inspired them to play fast, melodic, crushing music, largely untouched by the American population of metalcore, deathcore, and numerous other subgenres of heavy metal that were ignoring the monstrous influences of the ’90s. After the sparks were lit, Nichol and Murray soon wrote their debut 2003 full-length, The Hero Cycle, which quickly landed them a deal with Prosthetic Records, who would go on to release the band’s following three albums.
As Murray and Nichol neared the end of high-school, LIGHT THIS CITY released 2005’s Remains Of The Gods, which sparked the rest of the band’s trajectory on Prosthetic Records, and saw the band touring heavily in support of their Bay Area brand of melodic-death metal infused thrash. Remains Of The Gods gained favorable reviews and it seemed as if the metal press knew what was in store for LIGHT THIS CITY.
Next came the band’s undeniably most popular album, Facing The Thousand. By the time Nichol and Murray had arrived into 2006, they were out of high-school, on the road full-time, with Steve Hoffman on guitar, Ryan “Hollywood” Hansen on lead guitar, and Jon Frost on bass. Facing The Thousand saw the band supporting a multitude of metal acts such as Death Angel, Vader, Malevolent Creation, Edguy, Into Eternity, All That Remains, Chimaira, Soilent Green, Darkest Hour, Suicide Silence, Misery Signals, and many more, gaining the band a rapid exposure into the metal mainstream.
After a three-year touring cycle the band retreated to Oakland to record their fourth album, Stormchaser, which saw a guest vocal appearance by Chuck Billy of Testament. Before the official release of the album, LIGHT THIS CITY disbanded before even having the chance to tour on their fourth and final effort.
In 2010, LIGHT THIS CITY played five final shows, dubbed The Final Thrash Attack, in which the band was able to celebrate the songs of Stormchaser, and give the fans a bit of closure that they never received with the band’s sudden disappearance from the world of heavy metal. In September of 2015, Darkest Hour requested that LIGHT THIS CITY play the San Francisco date of their twentieth anniversary tour. LIGHT THIS CITY quickly reunited within a few months to rehearse one final set that would celebrate the band’s four-album career. The show was absolutely one for the books, sparking the flame which lead the band to reunite, ten years later.
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