“Exploring Echo US’ deep and ethereal past uncovers an ‘Inland Empire’…”
Echo Us is a musical concept project active since the turn of the century. Begun by American composer and multi-instrumentalist Ethan J. Matthews, “Echo Us” literally means “to answer”, or “to connect”. The current format of the project began in 2001. Echo Us would become a vehicle for Matthew’s forays into the world of metaphysics, as much as it was a continuation of his musical and creative world that had begun a decade earlier.
“I certainly believe in going within to find a connection with the outer world. To find the ‘child’ within where everything is open to speculation and wonder…it’s a sort of ‘psychic’ connection for me, and music is simply part of the process.”
‘Inland Empire’ is Echo Us’ seventh full length studio album, and 2023’s epilogue to the original trilogy that ran from 2009-2014. The music compiles almost everything that didn’t fit onto the trilogy – comprising material from ‘The Tide Decides’ (2009), ‘Tomorrow Will Tell The Story’ (2012) and ‘II:XII, A Prior Memoriae’ (2014).
If you’re a fan of ambient, flowing, introspective music along the lines of MikeOldfield, David Sylvian, Brian Eno and Robert Fripp then Echo Us’ gorgeous ethereal soundscapes will delight you. Deep and meaningful with music that will touch your very soul, the ten tracks on this release all combine to deliver a compelling, cinematic musical journey that you must consume in one sitting. Like the parts of those infernal puzzles that must all be solved before enlightenment reveals itself, these delicate pieces fit together perfectly to give an hour of amazing peace and wistful solitude.
When I normally review an album I will take particular tracks and describe what they mean to me and how they make me feel but, if I tried that approach with this release, I would be doing it a huge disservice. Geddy Lee once sang on Rush’s track Prime Mover, “The point of the journey is not to arrive..” and I feel that is wholly pertinent to ‘Inland Empire’, it’s not where this album takes you, it is what happens to you while you are listening to it. I feel that I’m transported to another place, a wistful, alien land where all is calm, collected and we are one with nature.
Every note and every gossamer thin vocal has a place and they combine perfectly to give us something that is almost alive, sentient and aware of its own existence. I would go so far as to say that I actually stopped living for sixty minutes and just existed in my most natural form.
Echo Us create something that isn’t just music but also some sort of metaphysical experience and a shelter from the harsh realities of life. Yes, we will have to come out into the real world at some point but, until then, I couldn’t think of many better places to be.
Jethro Tull are pleased to announce their 23rd studio album, ‘RökFlöte’, which is set for release on the 21st April 2023 via InsideOutMusic. Following 2022’s ‘The Zealot Gene’, the band’s first album in two decades, Ian Anderson and the band are returning with a 12-track record based on the characters and roles of some of the principle gods of the old Norse paganism, and at the same time exploring the ‘RökFlöte’ – rock flute – which Jethro Tull has made iconic.
Today also sees the launch of the first single from the album, and you can watch the stunning animated video for ‘Ginnungagap’ (created by Costin Chioreanu) here:
The track takes inspiration from the god Ymir, the proto-being, a primeval being, who was born from venom that dripped from the icy rivers called the Élivágar, and lived in the grassless void of Ginnungagap.
‘RökFlöte’ will be available on several different formats, including two limited deluxe formats that include bonus demo material, extensive liner notes & a blu-ray featuring Dolby Atmos, 5.1 surround sound, alternative stereo mixes by Bruce Soord (The Pineapple Thief), as well as a bonus track and in-depth interview with Ian Anderson. The album will also be available digitally in the spatial audio formats Dolby Atmos & Sony 360 RA. The full list of formats are below:
Ltd Deluxe Dark Red 2LP+2CD+Blu-ray Artbook incl. 2 x art-prints
Ian explains the album’s title & theme in more detail: “The title of this offering went through a little change or two along the way. I started with the idea of a predominantly instrumental album for rock flute – as in rock music. When the subject material of the album presented itself, I was drawn to the term Ragnarök from Norse mythology – their version of apocalyptic end times or Biblical Armageddon. The “final showdown” scenario is ubiquitous and inherent in Hinduism, Christianity and Islam, for example. Ragnarök translates as “destiny of the Gods”, the rök part meaning destiny, course, direction. With umlaut firmly in place, courtesy of the Germanic origins of Old Norse, Flute became Flöte in keeping with the spelling. With me so far? I just can’t miss the glorious opportunity for a good and legitimate umlaut.”
Jethro Tull continue live dates this year, with shows in mainland Europe. Find the full list of shows here: https://jethrotull.com/tour-dates/
‘The Zealot Gene’, released in January 2022, was Jethro Tull’s 22nd studio album and it garnered critical acclaim across the board. Reaching #9 in the UK album charts, a feat the band hadn’t reached since 1972, it also debuted at #4 in Germany, #3 in Switzerland, #5 in Austria, #8 in Finland, as well as top 10 in the US Album Charts, Current Album Charts and Rock Album Charts.
With more than 30 albums to their credit and sales totalling more than 50 million, Jethro Tull are one of the most successful rock bands of all-time with a catalogue that contains classics that still resonate today. Led by Ian Anderson, Tull continue to tour throughout the world, entertaining audiences of all ages.
The band consists of:
Ian Anderson – Concert and Alto flutes, Flute d’Amour,
Irish whistle and vocals
David Goodier – Bass guitar
John O’Hara – Piano, keyboards and Hammond Organ
Scott Hammond – Drums.
Joe Parrish-James – Electric and acoustic guitars, mandolin
“Music, once admitted to the soul, becomes a sort of spirit and never dies.” – Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Music has always had the power to move me and the grace to touch my soul profoundly. Certain types of music can bring a calming influence and an ethereal tranquility to proceedings and also give you the ability to step aside from the hectic lives we lead and the turmoil going on around us.
The beautiful, wistful and charming ‘Still’ by Glen Brielle is most definitely one of those albums and this is probably due to it being a lengthy labour of love from the main person behind the music, Hugh Carter. Founder member of Scottish ‘prog’ legends Abel Ganz, Hugh writes from the heart and is inspired mostly by personal experiences and nature around him. ‘Still’ is the resulting album from his personal journey.
If you ever want to listen to a record that really emphasises that which you cannot hear along with the perfect space between the notes then you can’t go wrong with the charming beauty of ‘Still’, an utterly wondrous collection of tracks, or should I call it Hugh’s lifelong musical journey?
The calm, beatific mood of Dawn, accentuated by the lovely birdsong, Thatcher with it’s elegant flute and sparse, pared back feel and Hugh’s beguiling, faltered vocal open the album with a wistful, almost melancholic note and immediately bring a contemplative feel of longing. The gently plucked strings that herald Mr Valentine and the jaunty fiddle solo from Fiona Cuthill that adds mischief and intrigue to the song both touch on your heartstrings with an almost spiritual note. Thankful is a wonderful, heartfelt song that shows the benefits of simplicity and gorgeous vocals. The violin on Crowsley Park Wood brings a folky nostalgia with amazing atmospheric harmonics from the delightful harpist Pippa Reid-Foster. Hugh’s halting vocals give the songs serious gravitas, his performance is brilliant and leaves you waiting for every word. The Hammond organ part delivered by ex Abel Ganz band mate Jack Webb is just stunning and Hugh says that Jack just strode into the studio one one Saturday afternoon and “just knocked it dead in no time at all!”. On Heart Lies Hugh wanted to take it back to it’s original feel of acoustic guitar and cello, rather than the synth based arrangement which ended up on the Abel Ganz‘Shooting Albatros’ album. Unfortunately he couldn’t get hold of original cellist Wendy Wetherby but as luck would have it an old cricketing colleague Hugh Bell suggested his wife Ruth Rowlands, a professional cellist with The RSNO and Scottish Opera. Ruth’s cello playing is consummately outstanding as she weaves a sense of wonder through Hugh’s delicate acoustic guitar to give us another beuatiful song that’s all about innocence and integrity.
The Cat That Played With the Wind is an engaging , guileless instrumental that seems to dance across your senses leaving little notes of wonder and lead perfectly into the twelve minute spectacle of Slumber Sweetly with its almost far-east opening. The song came about during lockdown when Hugh’s daughter, Bee, suggested writing a song together for which she wrote all the lyrics and sang beautifully. There’s a feel of early Abel Ganz to my mind about this impressive piece and it draws you into its warm embrace and you become fully immersed in its spiritual enlightenment. Bee’s sister even joins her to create a heavenly choir accompaniment in what Hugh calls, “a fit of crazed creativity.” When he started recording Slumber Sweetly Hugh had numerous attempts to do it myself, but no matter how I tried it just didn’t sound right. So eventually I decided the only way to get it to flow and sound good was to get a band together. So one weekend the “power trio” of Malky McNiven, Deepak Bahl and Denis Smith convened at The Audio Lounge to tackle Hugh’s meandering 12 minute love song and all three are utterly amazing. That eastern wonder returns tenfold on the mysteriously seductive The Cat ThatWalked By Herself, another entrancing instrumental and the nostalgic, mournful violin and acoustic guitar of Moving On is emotionally touching and gives a thoughtful sincerity to the album. And so we come to the end of the album with the serene tranquility of Dusk, a perfect ending to a particularly intimate musical release.
There’s a lifetime of reflection, understanding and wisdom that has gone into ‘Still’ and it has been a privilege to be invited to join Hugh on this musical journey, one that has been an utterly compelling soul searching experience, dear listener please admit this music into your soul.
Progressive rockers HAKEN recently announced their seventh studio album ‘Fauna’, the group’s most genre-busting and conceptually fascinating album to date, will be released on the 3rd March 2023.
Today, the band are pleased to release “Taurus” the 3rd single from the album.
You can watch the video, produced by Crystal Spotlight, here:
Pre-order the album or stream the track here:
https://haken.lnk.to/Fauna
Ross Jennings says this about the track:
“With such a diverse and eclectic array of material on ‘Fauna’, it was important for us to include a piece of music that represented the metallic edge of our sound which was exploited predominantly on ‘Vector’ & ‘Virus’, with our focus being on hard hitting riffs in odd time signatures.”
“The song’s lyrics were written roughly at the same time we all started hearing about the devastation and crisis happening in Ukraine. I was already writing the piece based on the annual migration of the wildebeests with strong references to people travelling in herds and strength in numbers. Suddenly I realised I had an anchor for what the song could be about and knowing this gives it all the more emotional weight; We’re all on some sort of journey towards salvation or enlightenment. Sometimes out of choice or not, we need to leave the past behind us and make new beginnings. We only have each other, and belief and hope are our strongest allies.”
Watch the video for the previously single ‘The Alphabet of Me’ here:
Watch “Nightingale” here:
The tracklisting is as follows:
1. Taurus 04:49
2. Nightingale 07:24
3. The Alphabet of Me 05:33
4. Sempiternal Beings 08:23
5. Beneath The White Rainbow 06:45
6. Island In The Clouds 05:45
7. Lovebite 03:49
8. Elephants Never Forget 11:07
9. Eyes Of Ebony 08:32
‘Fauna’ will be available on several formats, including Ltd 2CD (incl. instrumentals), Standard CD, Gatefold 2LP & as Digital Album. The albums stunningly detailed artwork was created by Dan Goldsworthy (Charlie Griffiths, Sylosis)
‘Fauna’ sees the band exploring new ideas conceptually as Ross continues. “The premise of the album when we started writing it was that every song would have an animal assigned to it. They all have something related to the animal kingdom that we could write about, but they also connect to the human world. Each track has layers, and some of them are more obvious than others.”
“It reminds me of The Mountain,” adds guitarist and fellow founder Richard Henshall. “There, we had the idea of not really a narrative-based album, but more the concept of climbing a mountain and overcoming the obstacles along the way. Then we took that and thought about how it could relate to our everyday lives. All of Fauna’s animals relate to us, personally.”
‘Fauna’ also marks the return of keyboard player Peter Jones, whose sounds can be heard permeating the entire album. “What Pete’s brought sonically to the band has played a massive role in why we do have a lot of new sounds on this record,” says Ross. “It’s always a new dynamic when there’s a change in personnel, and this is a fresh and reviving one. It’s certainly helped proximity-wise, with Pete being in the country: Pete and Ray [Hearne, Haken’s drummer] would be at Rich’s place and they’d just start jamming. That’s really key to how the songs start.”
The band have announced tour dates for North America and Europe.
Multi-platinum selling English supergroup ASIA announce they are to release for the first time ever on vinyl ASIA ‘FANTASIA, LIVE IN TOKYO 2007’ as a 3LP set. Recorded on Asia’s 25th anniversary 2007 world tour, and featuring the reformed original line-up, FANTASIA, LIVE IN TOKYO 2007 is to be issued on vinyl as a 3LP set with booklet, including band photos, and sleeve notes through BMG Records on 24th February 2023.
Celebrating the 25th anniversary of ASIA’s formation, this exciting 18-track live show from their 2007 world tour features the reformed original line-up pooling the talents of lead vocalist/bassist John Wetton (King Crimson), Steve Howe (guitars, Yes), Geoff Downes (keyboards, Yes and Buggles) and drummer Carl Palmer from Emerson, Lake & Palmer.
The setlist focusses on their globally successful 1982 debut album Asia and features key tracks Only Time Will Tell, Sole Survivor and their worldwide anthem Heat Of The Moment along with select tracks from their second LP Alpha and one song each from the band members’ previous bands – Video Killed The Radio Star,Roundabout, Fanfare For The Common Man and The Court Of The Crimson King.
Album artwork is by legendary designer Roger Dean, who produced all the ASIA original albums covers.
By simultaneously celebrating their debut album alongside the legacy of their foundational bands, the four band members crafted a standing testament to their collective impact on the world of music. Fantasia is a clear reminder of the majestic legacy of this incredible band and to the artistic pedigree of the four original members of ASIA.
For ASIA fans, this exciting live show is an indispensable set.
Pooling the talents of bassist/vocalist John Wetton, drummer Carl Palmer, keyboardist Geoff Downes and guitarist Steve Howe, ASIA immediately became the epitome of a supergroup of rock aristocracy and the natural heir to its members’ legendary bands of the 70s – King Crimson, Emerson Lake & Palmer, The Buggles and Yes.
Leaving behind their progressive roots, ASIA embraced the commercial FM rock sound that dominated US airwaves and took that, and the new MTV video channel, by storm. The single Heat Of The Moment was a world-wide monster smash and their eponymous 1982 debut album spent an incredible 9 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard chart as Asia became the biggest selling album of the year and world tour dates sold out.
A second album, Alpha, was released in 1983. The four original members reconvened in 2006 for a world tour, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of that incredible success, and the album Phoenix followed.
While the members were still heavily involved in other projects, they came together again to record Omega in 2010 and XXX in 2012, both albums were acclaimed by their faithful fans and supported by more world tours.
Steve Howe stepped back from ASIA to concentrate on his work with YES and was absent for 2014’s Gravitas. Following this tour came the news of John Wetton’s treatment for cancer, a fight he sadly lost in 2017.
ASIA – FANTASIA LIVE IN TOKYO 2007 – 3 LP SET – out 24th February 2023
Who are you in these strange times? Are you still yourself or have you started playing the role of someone else? Or maybe you’re living a double life and HERE you are someone completely different than THERE? Certainly, the concept of “Identity” is multifaceted and it would be impossible to fit all of its aspects in a 53-minute-long story. On their new album ‘ID.Entity’, Riverside are trying to answer some of these questions beginning with the one about… their own identity.
“Before we started working on the new album, I asked myself a few questions,” says Mariusz Duda, the leader of the band. “Some personal ones, some about the current times, but most of all, questions about the band, for instance, ‘What is our strongest suit?’ There were two answers: ‘Melodies and… live performances!’ ‘What is the most comfortable setting for Riverside?’ Again, the answer was pretty obvious: ‘the stage’. Ironically, we haven’t really spoilt our fans with live releases, so I thought perhaps it was time to record a studio album which would musically reflect the character and dynamic of our live shows. Especially that we really wanted to say goodbye to the decade of sadness and melancholy, which dominated our recent releases.”
So, that’s the publicity blurb about this stunning new album from Poland’s premier prog-metal band Riverside and, after the ‘sadness and melancholy’ of their previous three releases, ‘ID.Entity’ hoves into view like a welcome dose of lightness and fresh air. Don’t get me wrong, there is no such thing as even an average Riverside release (and ‘Love, Fear and the Time Machine’ is still my favourite release from the band) but the darkness and heartache felt since the tragic loss of original guitarist Piotr Grudziński has finally cleared and enabled the band to return with one of their most uplifting albums. It is still a cutting diatribe about lack of trust, social divisions, uncertainty, lies, propaganda and invigilation and a world full of anger and helplessness but there’s an upbeat drama to the music.
The album consists of seven cleverly woven tracks that detail Mariusz opening up to social problems: Big Techs, populists,conspiracy theories, hatred, greedy corporations causing the planet and the human nature to die at an accelerated speed. The opening track Friend or Foe is dominated by the sublime keyboards of Michał Łapaj, who gives the song a real 80’s feel that combines with the grinding riffs of Maciej Meller and Mariusz’s Morten Harket-esque vocals to create a darkly contorted version of a-ha lost in a time warp. It’s a magnificent track full of vigour and vitriol and gives a flying start to this sublime record. Landmine Blast is a wonderfully dynamic song where the guitar is central to proceedings, fiery and compelling with a uniquely edgy feel thanks to the vibrant drumming of Piotr Kozieradzki. The staccato beat adds a real sense of urgency and mystery to things and Mariusz lends a flowing vocal to add ebullience and energy, this is classic Riverside in the vein of ‘Anno Domini High Definition’. I know a lot of people are not convinced by the artificial voice that opens Big Tech Brother and, yes, it is a bit corny but it doesn’t spoil what is another powerfully compelling piece of music. The funky keyboards and pounding drums add focus before some mountain sized riffs deliver a primeval dominance to the song. Mariusz interjects a sense of calm with his elegant vocal delivery but this track is a dark leviathan at heart.
The Riverside of the class of ‘Shrine Of New Generation Slaves’ then deliver an authoritative demonstration of intent with the all-powerful techno-metal of the catchy Post-Truth. Another finely crafted piece of music that I found rapidly became a quite addictive listening experience that ebbs and flows with a life force all of its own, Maciej’s guitar playing on this track is just sublime. This album will rapidly become part of your life and on constant replay and one of the reasons for that is the utterly brilliant The Place Where I Belong, the longest track on the album and one where Mariusz is at his songwriting best. Thirteen minutes of compelling, spellbinding music that fascinates and enthrals you in a irresistible manner. Perfectly constructed, both musically and lyrically and delivered by musicians at the height of their considerable powers, it is a landmark song in a stellar career and has something for every Riverside fan.
Anarchic and in your face, I’m Done With You is a metaphorical sucker punch to the gut that grabs your attention with its electronic edginess and in your face attitude. Vibrant keyboards, forceful drums and rabid riffs combine with Mariusz angry vocal to deliver the most incendiary track on the album and one that leaves you edgy and restless. The helter-skelter fast-paced intensity and magnetism of the fantastic Self-Aware is almost something new from Riverside, more reminiscent of 90’s hard rock and grunge than the intellectual prog-metal usually associated with the band and I absolutely love it. A sign that the band have shed any self-imposed shackles and feel free to do whatever they want with no fear of repercussions, it’s melodic, upbeat and just a little bit in your face and I’d love to hear more of it. A new direction? Why not when it’s this good!
Riverside are a band who have always gone their own way and been proud to defy convention and after the dark melancholy and sadness of recent releases, the band have returned with a brightly shining beacon of light. ‘ID.Entity’ is a generally uplifting album that puts a huge smile on my face every time I hear it and one that, I’m sure, will still be lighting up people’s lives for years to come.
Shadows On Mercury is a Prog Rock studio project, based in West Yorkshire with Scott Owens, Charlie Bramald & Tim Lofthouse.
It all began during the Summer of 2020 whilst the world was in lockdown, prior to the formation of Scott’s current band, Ghost Of The Machine.
Unable to rehearse or play live, Scott began work in his home studio, writing and recording an album of demo tracks, that had been weaving their way around his head for months.
After laying down the guitar and bass tracks, basic synths and drum programming, he asked his good friend Tim, from The Lowells, if he would like to put the keyboards and synths down for the project. Tim was onboard immediately, and his ideas and keyboard wizardry carried these songs, to another level completely.
After a few months of fine tuning the tracks, Scott knew he needed a vocalist/lyricist to complete his vision for this project. Enter Charlie, lead singer, and Scott’s bandmate in Ghost Of The Machine. Charlie instantly gripped the direction Scott wanted to go with the music, and crafted stunning lyrics that brought both the music and concept of the project to life.
The two tracks, The Silence and The Flood, are the results. The plan is to release a few more songs throughout the year, but Scott’s main priority is getting the 2nd Ghost album completed.
Now, as most of you know, I’m not one for reviewing single tracks but the strength of these two songs, and the fact that they are from the core of one of my favourite new bands of recent years, made me change my mind for once…
Charlie had this to say about The Silence, “I wrote the lyrics to The Silence based around the idea that the human race is utterly complacent about the end of the world. Nobody wants to talk about it, think about it, deal with it… as a population we’re avoiding grappling with those big concepts and questions. It’s much more comfortable to keep our attentions trained on trivial and more immediate concerns. I imagined it staying that way right up to the point that the sky is falling in above us! No panic, just… silence. Will we get what we deserve?”
Wow, what a track, the music is a perfect accompaniment to Charlie’s meaningful lyrics, it’s a dark, brooding song full of a pensive and thoughtful quality. The vocals have a musing and contemplative touch and Tim’s elegant keys and synthesisers add a questioning feel. It’s totally different to what the guys deliver in Ghost Of The Machine, more an elegant rock vibe than the harder edge progressive rock of GOTM and the amazing interplay between Scott’s guitar and Tim’s keyboards that closes out the track has to be heard to be believed, an utter monster of a track!
“The Flood is a reflection on struggling to process the guilt that led to a heartbreak, infused with bitterness and the destructive imagery of water – a recurring theme in this EP.”, says Charlie, “This person is succumbing to the flood of negative emotions but clearly they have played their own part in what happened. Perhaps with a degree more self-acceptance they’ll be able to tread water, or even reach dry land.”
The Flood is almost balladesque in its feel, a heartfelt piece of music with a wistful and sombre touch. The floating, ethereal synths work perfectly in unison with Charlie’s passionate and ardent vocal delivery. Tim’s brilliant keyboards blend some Neo-prog with Scott’s expressive & profound guitar playing. It’s a beautiful track that took me back to the heydays of sumptuous and insightful songwriting and music that actually had meaning.
On the strength of these two tracks, Shadows On Mercury have a very bright future in front of them, this is music of the very highest quality and I cannot wait to hear more!
You can pre-save The Silence here ahead of it’s 13th January, 2023 release:
The Tangent recently announced the release of ‘Pyramids, Stars & Other Stories: The Tangent Live Recordings 2004-2017’ on the 27th January 2023 via InsideOutMusic. Collecting together tracks from 3 line-ups of The Tangent, this 2CD & 3LP album collects together show recordings from 2004, 2011 & 2017. Band leader Andy Tillison comments: “A Triple Live LP is the stuff of Bucket Lists, dreamed of doing one of these since I was a kid”.
Listen to the band performing ‘A Crisis In Mid Life’ live in the UK in 2012, featuring the line-up of Andy Tillison, Luke Machin, Dan Mash & Tony ‘Funkytoe’ Latham, here:
Included in its entirety is the 2004 ‘Pyramids And Stars’ concert in Germany featuring the “Roine Stolt” lineup of The Tangent playing its way through the majority of the debut ‘Music That Died Alone’ album along with (then) new material from their second album ‘The World That We Drive Through’.
Added to that, there are tracks from the COMM era line-up of the band at a concert in the UK – plus music recorded in the USA in 2017 by the band’s current line-up. These originally appeared on the ‘Southend On Sea’ and ‘Hotel Cantaffordit’ fan releases respectively.
All is presented inside a re-imagined Ed Unitsky sleeve, to create a package that fans are sure to love.
“This is a real, proper, live album” says Tillison. “It’s candid, it’s spontaneous, it has mistakes and things that are a bit too loud and things that are a bit too quiet. It’s what happened on stage at three gigs at which “making a live album” never crossed our minds.”
The full tracklisting is below:
Side One
1. The World We Drive Though
Side Two
3. The Canterbury Sequence
4. The Winning Game
Side Three
5. In Darkest Dreams
Side Four
6. The Music That Died Alone
7. Lucky Man
Side Five
8. A Spark In The Aether
9. A Sale Of Two Souls
10. Perdu Dans Paris
Side Six
11. A Crisis In Mid Life
12. Doctor Livingstone (I Presume)
The CD’s (included with the vinyl edition) also include all of the above with the addition of:
13. Titanic Calls Carpathia
14. Two Rope Swings
Andy Tillison – Keyboards & Vocals (all tracks)
Jonas Reingold – Bass Guitar (all tracks except 9,10,11,13)
Check out the album’s opening track “Friend or Foe?” in its ‘Single Edit’ and with a video clip animated and directed by Thomas Hicks / http://www.thomashicks.co.uk here:
RIVERSIDE’s Mariusz Duda checked in with the following comment about the new single:
“’Friend or Foe?’ is one of the key songs on the new RIVERSIDE album. Not only is it the opening track but, musically, it is possibly also the most courageous and intriguing one.
One of its strong points is the lyrics which talk about how we’re perceived by others, especially these days, when pretending to be someone you’re not on social media has become the norm. Can we still be ourselves or do we have to keep adapting to the requirements of new algorithms? Perhaps we’ve already lost our identities and we’re only waiting for instructions from a Siri or Alexa?
“Who do you pretend to be?” are the first words of the song and the listener has already started searching for that 80s band it reminds them of. Is this a mere inspiration or is it provocation? Is the writer of the song pretending to be someone else or is this who he really is? Who is behind it all? The artist himself or a producer churning out music for many other artists? Is what I’m writing now a reflection of what I’m feeling or am I writing it because I want to put the song on a higher recommended playlist? And if we apply it to politics, who are the candidates? Are they credible? Trustworthy? Will they keep their promises? And finally, will we be able to trust each other one day, hear each other out and understand, or will we still keep our distance and suspicions?
Perhaps there is a chance to build a better world, but how to recognise who is a friend and who is a foe?”
“ID.Entity”, the group’s 8th studio album was recorded and mixed in two studios – The Boogie Town Studio in Otwock with Paweł Marciniak and in Serakos studio in Warsaw with Magda and Robert Srzedniccy -, mastered by Robert Szydło and produced by RIVERSIDE’s Mariusz Duda himself. The “ID.Entity” artwork was created by Polish artist Jarek Kubicki.
Previously released singles/videos off “ID.Entity” can still be checked out here:
RIVERSIDE have also launched a “Riverside Heavy” playlist featuring “I’m Done With You” as well as many other heavier tracks from the band’s comprehensive catalogue, which you can check out here:
Here is the standard track-listing for the album:
RIVERSIDE – “ID.Entity” (53:11)
Tracklist:
1. Friend or Foe? (07:29)
2. Landmine Blast (04:50)
3. Big Tech Brother (07:24)
4. Post-Truth (05:37)
5. The Place Where I Belong (13:16)
6. I’m Done With You (05:52)
7. Self-Aware (8:43)
The bonus material appearing on “ID.Entity” includes the instrumental tracks “Age of Anger” (11:56) and “Together Again” (06:29) as well as “Friend or Foe? (Single Edit)” (05:59) and “Self-Aware (Single Edit)” (05:29).
“ID.Entity” will be available in the following formats:
– Ltd. Deluxe 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook (Disc 1: Album, Disc 2: All 4 bonus tracks, Blu-ray: All main 9 album tracks in Dolby Atmos, 5.1 and 24bit HighRes Audio mix versions) -> Pictured above!
– Ltd. 2CD Mediabook (Disc 1: Album, Disc 2: All 4 bonus tracks) -> Pictured above!
– CD Jewelcase
– Deluxe Digital Album (Including all 4 bonus tracks)
– Digital album
The album’s vinyl version comes as Gatefold 2LP (With the bonus tracks “Age of Anger” and “Together Again” on Side D) in the following variants: – Black vinyl: All outlets – Orange vinyl: All outlets
– White vinyl: 500x copies via JPC & Burning Shed – Yellow vinyl: 500x copies via EMP & Just For Kicks – Sky Blue vinyl: 600x copies via Laser’s Edge & CM Distro/Webshop Europe
“ID.Entity”, an album that extends and expands RIVERSIDE’s characteristic sound, but all in a revamped and more dynamic formula, follows 2018’s widely acclaimed ‘Wasteland’ album, which entered the charts in Germany at # 13, The Netherlands at # 28, Switzerland at # 23, Austria at # 39, UK at # 83, Finland at # 30, France at # 97, Czech Republic at # 59 and Poland at # 1.
Next to their return to North America in February/March, RIVERSIDE have recently also announced their “Spring Edition” European Tour, a first of three European touring legs across this year. Check out the band’s upcoming confirmed live-dates here:
RIVERSIDE – “ID.Entity” – Live 2023:
North American Tour: 17.02.2023 Tampa, FL – The Orpheum
18.02.2023 Orlando, FL – The Abbey
19.02.2023 Atlanta, GA – Hell At The Masquerade
21.02.2023 Dallas, TX – Amplified Live
22.02.2023 Austin, TX – Come And Take It Live
24.02.2023 Mesa, AZ – The Nile Theater
25.02.2023 Pomona, CA – The Glass House
26.02.2023 Berkeley, CA – Cornerstone
28.02.2023 Vancouver, BC – The Rickshaw Theatre
01.03.2023 Seattle, WA – Neumos
03.03.2023 Salt Lake City, UT – The State Room
04.03.2023 Boulder, CO – Fox Theatre
07.03.2023 St. Paul, MN – Amsterdam Bar And Hall
08.03.2023 Chicago, IL – Bottom Lounge
10.03.2023 Toronto, ON – Lee’s Palace
11.03.2023 Montreal, QC – Corona Theatre
12.03.2023 Quebec City, QC – Imperial Bell
14.03.2023 Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall
16.03.2023 New York, NY – Sony Hall
17.03.2023 Philadelphia, PA – Underground Arts
18.03.2023 Pittsburgh, PA – Thunderbird Music Hall
19.03.2023 Washington, DC – Black Cat
21.03.2023 Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
European Tour – Spring Edition:
16.04.2023 Eindhoven (The Netherlands) – Effenaar / Prognosis Festival 18.04.2023 Dublin (Ireland) – Button Factory 20.04.2023 Glasgow (UK) – Garage 21.04.2023 Birmingham (UK) – O2 Institute 2 22.04.2023 Manchester (UK) – Academy 2 23.04.2023 London (UK) – Indigo O2 / Prognosis Festival
25.04.2023 Copenhagen (Denmark) – Amager Bio 26.04.2023 Gothenburg (Sweden) – Pustervik 27.04.2023 Oslo (Norway) – Cosmopolite 28.04.2023 Stockholm (Sweden) – Lilla Cirkus 30.04.2023 Tampere (Finland) – Olympia 01.05.2023 Helsinki (Finland) – Tavastia
Dark, emotive and brooding One Sided Horse (Mark Whiteside) and noted Icelandic musician Kalli have joined forces to deliver ‘The First EP’, a Double ‘A’ side single & download with two instrumental versions and an acoustic demo, which will be released on the 27th of this month.
The two tracks consist of Paint The One Star with OSH on vocals and Kalli providing backing vocals and additional instruments and Coming Down where roles are reversed.
Fans of Mark will know his pained, touching vocals from One Sided Horse and his other projects Desks and The Opening Song and he delivers once again with the moving, sparse beauty of Paint The One Star. His voice has a quality all of its own, one that really touches your heart with its plaintive and melancholy tone. MarkBarlow’s piano provides a gloriously wistful feel and the strings from Arnar Gudjonsson on both tracks are just sublime. It’s a beautiful piece of music imbued with a fragile grace that brings to mind Bowie’s ‘Blackstar’ and will leave you visibly moved.
Kalli is the former singer & songwriter of Reykjavik’s Without Gravity and Mark has long been a fan. Coming Down is another wonderfully low key, understated piece of music that showcases the dramatic cinematic soundscapes of his homeland, infused with some whimsical Americana that gives it a bewitchingly nostalgic atmosphere and one where the space between the notes matters just as much. Once again, the graceful strings add a real polish to this excellent song.
Great music always has the capacity to move you and to give life new meaning, it can lift you up when you are down and help you celebrate the highs. These two fantastic musicians have combined to deliver something rather special, broody and dramatic in parts but, ultimately, this is a joyful and uplifting EP that will leave you in a much better place.
