North American hardcore collective SECT surprises fans today with the release of their new album Blood Of The Beasts, available now via Southern Lord. The entire record is now streaming in its entirety. SECT also today issues a video for the track “Like Animals” in conjunction with the album’s release.

Comprised of hardcore acts from across the US and Canada dating back to the early 1990s, the members of SECT are life-long committed scene veterans, including vocalist Chris Colohan (Cursed, Burning Love, Left For Dead), guitarists James Chang (Catharsis, Undying) and Scott Crouse (Earth Crisis, The Path Of Resistance), bassist Steve Hart (Day Of Suffering), and drummer Andy Hurley (Racetraitor, The Damned Things). The band coalesces their influences into a gnarled, caustic, metallic alloy of pulverizing hardcore intensity.

As with their previous album, No Cure For Death, SECT‘s Blood Of The Beasts LP was recorded at GodCity with Kurt Ballou (Converge, Nails, All Pigs Must Die) who also performed clean guitar on the song “Skies Wide Shut.” The infamous Dre Black also provides guest vocals on the song “Cirrhosis Of Youth.”

Stream SECT’s Blood Of The Beasts in its entirety at Bandcamp HERE and see the Reid Haithcock-directed “Like Animals” video HERE.

With the release of Blood Of The Beasts, vocalist Chris Colohan calls the album, “ten reflections on the myth of progress, the new old tribalism, the single face of all subjugations, the broken promise of automation, love, loss and obsolescence, set against the dying light of a better tomorrow.”

Blood Of The Beasts is out now on CD, LP, and all digital platforms through Southern Lord. Find options at the US label webshop HERE, European webshop HERE, and Bandcamp HERE.

Blood Of The Beasts Track Listing:

1. Like Animals
2. You Too Will Scatter
3. Wait
4. Domestic
5. Terminus
6. Redundant Gods
7. Broken & Untenable
8. The Blankest Cheque
9. Cirrhosis Of Youth
10. Skies Wide Shut

SECT has confirmed two East Coast shows directly in conjunction with the album’s release. This weekend they play Brooklyn tomorrow, Saturday, August 31st, followed by a show in the nation’s capital Sunday, September 1st. SECT has also announced a trio of California shows in San Diego, Fullerton, and Berkeley October 11th through 13th. Watch for additional tour actions to be announced in the weeks ahead.

SECT Tour Dates:
8/31/2019 Saint Vitus Bar – Brooklyn, NY
9/01/2019 The Pinch – Washington, DC
10/11/2019 Che Café – San Diego, CA
10/12/2019 Programme Skate & Sound – Fullerton, CA
10/13/2019 924 Gilman – Berkeley, CA

For review copies of Blood Of The Beasts and all coverage/interviews with SECT in North America contact dave@earsplitcompound.com and internationally contact lauren@rarelyunable.com.

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SUNN O))) will release Pyroclasts through Southern Lord on October 25th. The album’s cover art, track listing, and a trailer have been issued.

The Pyroclasts album is the result of a daily practice which was regularly performed each morning, or evening during the two week Life Metal sessions at Electrical Audio during July 2018, when all of the days musical participants would gather and work through a twelve-minute improvised modal drone at the start and or end of the day’s work. The piece performed was timed with a stopwatch and tracked to two-inch tape, it was an exercise and a chance to dig into a deep opening or closing of the day’s session in a deep musical way with all of the participants. To connect/reconnect, liberate the creative mind a bit and greet each other and the space through the practice of sound immersion. The players across the four pieces of Pyroclasts are Tim Midyett, Tos Nieuwenhuizen, Hildur Guðnadóttir, and as always, SUNN O)) founders Stephen O’Malley and Greg Anderson.

The music on Pyroclasts is inextricably woven to Life Metal. It exists on the very same tape reels, was explicitly recorded by Steve Albini. The brightness and vividness of that glorious session glares through these four tracks, the precision and radiance, prismatic lustrousness of the saturation, the elemental sculptural shapes, the abstract renderings. It is a sister, or perhaps a shadow album. Or perhaps the now apparent miasma or aether. But it also exists in a form of a pause, a time space which exist in between and around the compositional structures of SUNN O)))‘s titanic works.

For the listener or recipient/participant there are deep rewards within the patience of pulling down the walls and letting the music feel and feel the music. To be immersed will reveal great detail and color, clarify image, encourage a depth of focus and stillness which may lead to a quite profound experience. Sitting inside the space of time. A deep form of elementalism, even atomism, and connection with presence moment, time and reality.

SUNN O))) would invite our audience to consider these points of perception when experiencing and listening to Pyroclasts. SUNN O))) would also invite and encourage their audience to use Pyroclastsasa lens to review and re-experience the complexity of the Life Metal album, and even to interrupt its sequence with Pyroclasts. This elaboration can bring the astute listener both abyssal, hallowed rewards.

Pyroclasts was recorded and mixed by Steve Albini at Electrical Audio on two-inch tape July 2018 and mastered by Matt Colton through all analogue AAA process at Metropolis July 2019. Four of Samantha Keely Smith’s incredible consciousness memory landscapes grace the album sleeve artwork.

Stephen O’Malley and Greg Anderson would like to dedicate this album to the memories of Ron Guardipee, Kerstin Daley, and Scott Walker.

View the trailer for SUNN O)))’s Pyroclasts at THIS LOCATION.

Pyroclasts Track Listing:
SIDE A:
Frost (C)
Kingdoms (G)
SIDE B:
Ampliphædies (E)
Ascension (A)

SUNN O))) Tour Dates:
September 2019 – Western U.S
9/01/2019 Granada – Dallas, TX w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/02/2019 Emo’s – Austin, TX w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/04/2019 The Gothic – Denver, CO w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/06/2019 Metro Music Hall – Salt Lake City, UTw/ Papa M, Big|Brave, Eagle Twin [tickets]
9/07/2019 Arcosanti – Phoenix AZ w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/08/2019 Mayan – Los Angeles, CA w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/09/2019 The Fillmore – San Francisco, CA w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/11/2019 The Showbox – Seattle, WA w/ Papa M [tickets]
9/12/2019 Revolution Hall – Portland, OR w/ Papa M [tickets]
9/15/2019 Hollywood Forever – Los Angeles, CA [Shoshin (初心) Duo] [tickets]
Let There Be Drone (Multiple Gains Stages) October 2019
10/07/2019 Backstage – Munich, DE w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/08/2019 HfG / ZKM – Karlsruhe, DE w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/09/2019 Kaserne Basel – Basel, CH w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/10/2019 Felsenkeller – Leipzig, DE w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/11/2019 Unsound Festival – Krakow, PL
10/13/2019 Kablys – Vilnius, LT w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/14/2019 Vene Teater – Tallinn, EE w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/15/2019 Kulttuuritalo – Helsinki, FI w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/17/2019 Kraken Sthlm – Stockholm, SE w/ Carl Michael Von Hausswolff [tickets]
10/18/2018 Kulturkirchen Jakob – Oslo, NO w/ Runhild Gammelsæter & Lass Marhaug Duo [tickets]
10/19/2019 BLA – Oslo, NO [Shoshin (初心) Duo] w/ Runhild Gammelsæter & Lass Marhaug Duo DJ set [tickets]
10/21/2019 Koncerthuset – Copenhagen, DK w/ Puce Mary [tickets]
10/22/2019 Doornroosje – Nijmegen, NL [tickets]
10/24/2019 SWX – Bristol, UK w/ Anna Von Hausswolff [tickets]
10/25/2019 QMU – Glasgow, UK w/ Anna Von Hausswolff [tickets]
10/26/2019 The Crossing – Birmingham, UK w/ Anna Von Hausswolff [tickets]
10/27/2019 Albert Hall – Manchester, UK w/ Anna Von Hausswolff [tickets]
10/28/2019 Roundhouse – London, UK w/ Anna Von Hausswolff [tickets]

INCOMING IN 2020…La Gaîté Lyrique presents:
SUNN O))) – Let There Be Drone / One Residence, Two Concepts, Three Concerts
1/30/2020 / Life Metal
2/01/2019 / Life Metal
2/02/2020 / Shoshin (初心)

Review copies of Pyroclasts will be released in the weeks ahead. For coverage of SUNN O))) in The Americas contact dave@earsplitcompound.com, all others contact lauren@rarelyunable.com.

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For those who may have missed out on the first edition in the collaboration between Akron-based effects shamans EarthQuaker Devices and sonic druids’ SUNN O))), never fear: there’s a second chance at a Life Pedal on its way. When initially released last June, the first limited-edition run of 1,000 Life Pedals-an octave distortion and booster-sold out within just a few hours.

Today, another opportunity to immerse yourself in the full spectrum overdriven sonic palette as used on SUNN O)))‘s universally acclaimed Life Metal album, released April 26th through Southern Lord, reveals itself. The circuitry remains the same as the first round, with a coveted LM308 chip helping to capture the same rich, deeply saturated tones of the band’s sessions with the legendary Steve Albini during the creation of Life Metal. Custom folded aluminum enclosure, Analog octave blending, Hand-picked components, and three clipping options are some of the features of this saturation monster. 100 of the Life Pedals available on Reverb will be paired with the namesake LP.

Order the Life Pedal on August 22nd at 11am EST at THIS LOCATION.

Life Pedal is restricted to only 500 units – 300 sold exclusively through Reverb while the remaining 200 will be sold by Sunn O))) directly on the road in the coming weeks (tour dates below).

Chasms are cleared, mountains sheared, glaciers calved, novæ birthed. Transcend to complete saturation enlightenment.

SUNN O)))’s Life Metal is available at the North American outlets HERE and HERE, in Europe HERE, and via Bandcamp HERE.

SUNN O))) Tour Dates:
9/01/2019 Granada – Dallas, TX w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/02/2019 Emo’s – Austin, TX w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/04/2019 The Gothic – Denver, CO w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/06/2019 Metro Music Hall – Salt Lake City, UTw/ Papa M, Big|Brave, Eagle Twin [tickets]
9/07/2019 Arcosanti – Phoenix AZ w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/08/2019 Mayan – Los Angeles, CA w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/09/2019 The Fillmore – San Francisco, CA w/ Papa M, Big|Brave [tickets]
9/11/2019 The Showbox – Seattle, WA w/ Papa M [tickets]
9/12/2019 Revolution Hall – Portland, OR w/ Papa M [tickets]
9/15/2019 Hollywood Forever – Los Angeles, CA [Shoshin (初心) Duo] [tickets]
10/07/2019 Backstage – Munich, DE w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/08/2019 HfG / ZKM – Karlsruhe, DE w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/09/2019 Kaserne Basel – Basel, CH w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/10/2019 Felsenkeller – Leipzig, DE w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/11/2019 Unsound Festival – Krakow, PL
10/13/2019 Kablys – Vilnius, LT w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/14/2019 Vene Teater – Tallinn, EE w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/15/2019 Kulttuuritalo – Helsinki, FI w/ Caspar Brötzmann Bass Totem [tickets]
10/17/2019 Kraken Sthlm – Stockholm, SE w/ Carl Michael Von Hausswolff [tickets]
10/18/2018 Kulturkirchen Jakob – Oslo, NO w/ Runhild Gammelsæter & Lass Marhaug Duo [tickets]
10/19/2019 BLA – Oslo, NO [Shoshin (初心) Duo] w/ Runhild Gammelsæter & Lass Marhaug Duo DJ set [tickets]
10/21/2019 Koncerthuset – Copenhagen, DK w/ Puce Mary [tickets]
10/22/2019 Doornroosje – Nijmegen, NL [tickets]
10/24/2019 SWX – Bristol, UK w/ Anna Von Hausswolff [tickets]
10/25/2019 QMU – Glasgow, UK w/ Anna Von Hausswolff [tickets]
10/26/2019 The Crossing – Birmingham, UK w/ Anna Von Hausswolff [tickets]
10/27/2019 Albert Hall – Manchester, UK w/ Anna Von Hausswolff [tickets]
10/28/2019 Roundhouse – London, UK w/ Anna Von Hausswolff [tickets]

For review copies of Life Metal and coverage of SUNN O))) in The Americas contact dave@earsplitcompound.com, all others contact lauren@rarelyunable.com.

https://sunn.southernlord.com
https://www.instagram.com/sunnofficial
https://www.facebook.com/SUNNthebandOfficial
https://sunn.bandcamp.com
https://sunn-live.bandcamp.com
http://www.southernlord.com
http://southernlord.bandcamp.com

Worcester, Massachusetts-based crossover outfit HIGH COMMAND set out on a warpath to create the heaviest work they have produced yet on their debut full-length and Southern Lord debut, Beyond The Wall Of Desolation, now confirmed for release on September 27th.

HIGH COMMAND is, in their own words, “five friends coming together to create the sonic equivalent of a barbarian horde.” The band’s lyrical world, created by vocalist Kevin Fitzgerald, is steeped in lore and savagery, heavily inspired by fantasy-based warfare, and in the band’s words, “boundless quests frozen in the aeons of time and space hacked out of ice and transcribed in lightning. Beyond the thin vail of sanity lies the forgotten age of mysticism and heroes.”

Their studio choice for such proceedings was the legendary Machines With Magnets in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, constantly challenging the boundaries of what is possible in the realm of recorded media. From hearing previous projects recorded there (Daughters, The Body, Lingua Ignota, and Churchburn to name a few) it was apparent to the band that this was a studio that had a focus on the unique and the organic. Seth Manchester, the head engineer, worked tirelessly for the week HIGH COMMAND was there, sculpting a record with a healthy respect to the Old Gods of metal they admire while at the same time, sonically speaking, also carving a realm of its own.

The eight bludgeoning tracks on Beyond The Wall Of Desolation cleave the tender cranium of the listener asunder across their forty-three-minute running time. Bringing forth the undeniable heft in their self-proclaimed New Wave Of Worcester Heavy Metal, the heaviest of armament is advised against the flail.

Stream HIGH COMMAND’s “Visions From The Blade” RIGHT HERE.

Southern Lord will release Beyond The Wall Of Desolation on September 27th. Find digital preorders HERE and watch for physical preorder options and additional audio samples to be posted in the days ahead.

Following their extensive tour with Spirit Adrift in recent weeks, watch for HIGH COMMAND to declare new waves of touring throughout the year in support of Beyond The Wall Of Desolation.

HIGH COMMAND:
Kevin Fitzgerald: Vocals
Ryan McArdle: Guitar
Mike Bonetti: Guitar
Chris Berg: Bass
Ryan Pitz: Drums

Beyond The Wall Of Desolation Track Listing:

1. Inexorable Darkness
2. Merciless Steel
3. Impaled Upon The Gates
4. Devoid Of Reality
5. The Commander’s Code
6. Visions From The Blade
7. Forged To Kill
8. Beyond The Wall Of Desolation

Review copies of Beyond The Wall Of Desolation will be issued in the days ahead. For coverage of HIGH COMMAND in The Americas contact dave@earsplitcompoud.com and all others contact lauren@rarelyunable.com.

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https://www.facebook.com/HighCommand
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