Фирма Nuclear Blast

Double CD in Digipak 32-page Digibook inlcuding Bonus Accoustic-CD

IT IS NOT ABOUT AVOIDING FEAR OF THE PITCH-BLACK DARKNESS, BUT TO GO INTO THE DARKNESS ITSELF. Even in the most primeval stages of their storied career, ENSLAVED was so much more than just music. Born on the outskirts of the infamous upheaval of teenage arsonists more commonly associated with a genre called Norwegian Black Metal, the Bergen based Vikings shared the inspiration and production ideals – yet steered clear of the non-musical dramas that have overshadowed so much of the artistic value from this movement. Shaking the very foundations of the young scene as early as 1993 with their iconic split release alongside fellow black wizards EMPEROR, they positively invented the term and art form Viking Metal with their icy monuments “Vikingligr Veldi” and, of course, the immortal splendor that is “Frost” and “Eld”. Never a sucker for stagnation, ENSLAVED explored uncharted progressive and psychedelic territories even back in the “grim nineties” – placing them in a unique position of both bearers of tradition as well as explorers into the unknown. Now, almost 30 years after changing the name of their adolescent death metal combo PHOBIA and advancing towards a more frostbitten and pagan black metal dirge, ENSLAVED has become a worldwide phenomenon, enthralling their listeners with music at once grim and sublime, effortlessly proving that it is indeed not a problem at all to sound like the sophisticated love child of KING CRIMSON and BATHORY. With the nucleus of the band still and forever consisting of childhood companions Ivar Bjørnson (guitars) and Grutle Kjellson (vocals), ENSLAVED have perennially and carefully reinvented, refined and progressed their highly inventive brand of extreme metal to a wholly unique level, fluently combining blistering black metal with warm prog rock and archaic folklore with psychedelic thrall. “E”, their fourteenth album, released back in 2017, proved their worth by bringing a certain metaphysical plane to their very own interpretation of Nordic mythology, runes and the sacredness in profanity. “The album cycle for ‘E’ was the most intense we did so far,” an enthusiastic Bjørnson exclaims. “We covered more territory than ever before and gladly realized we got noticed more outside the extreme metal scene.” It was a thrilling but weird time, he recalls, when one day they were playing their groundbreaking “Frost” in its entirety only to churn out their more psychedelic, soothing tunes the next day at a prog festival. Only now it becomes apparent that this was only the beginning of yet another journey. Enter “Utgard”. Enter a record brimful with northern magic. Let all those other bands sing about Thor’s mighty hammer and poor Odin hanging from that tree in miserable weather conditions. ENSLAVED are looking behind the mirror, tracing the origins of the well-known fables of the northern world back into each and every one of us. “Utgard can be countless things,” Grutle Kjellson states. “An image, a metaphor, an esoteric location. From Norse mythology we know it as a landscape where the giants dwell, where the gods of Asgard have no control. On a psychological level it can represent the spheres of sleep, dreams or lucid dreams; the outer borders of your own consciousness and what lies beyond them in the subconsciousness. Utgard represents something that is hard to master completely, perhaps impossible. This something it dangerous, chaotic, uncontrollable. Yet there is something enchanting about a place like this. It is where madness, creativity, humor and chaos dwell.” Their new album is a journey into and through scary Utgard. Sounds dark? You betcha! “Utgard” shows ENSLAVED both unleashed and thought-through, a lethal combination unfurling a potential that’s easily rekindling the furor of their early works while dancing gracefully through their most ambitious, most haunting and most musical tunes yet. A contradiction? Life itself is a contradiction. And yet we all live to prove it wrong. “Utgard can be a very scary place, but that’s exactly what this album is about,” Grutle says. “Conquering fear and living with the beings found in this place.” Work on “Utgard” commenced in the dying weeks of 2018, fueled by a sudden onslaught of the northern muses. “I sat down in my living room with my acoustic guitar and suddenly it happened all at once”, an almost bewildered Bjørnson remembers. “I couldn’t believe it at first, it was like all the noise in the world had followed me home. After only two nights in my living room already the first songs had taken shape. That was amazing but at the same time, I almost didn’t trust myself because it happened so fast. I took a break before I went back to it but again, it all happened pretty fast. And as soon as I took the songs to Grutle, things really took up.” After being friends for more than three decades, things between them happen naturally. “Friendship is what makes this band so strong”, Bjørnson nods. “We both are loyal to the idea and stick to our vision, come what may.” In a way, that’s true for the rest of the gang as well. The solid base of guitar pro Arve “Ice Dale” Isdal since 2002 and Håkon Vinje as keyboardist and remarkable clean vocalist, the arrival of new drumming talent extraordinaire, their former co-producer and mate Iver Sandøy, really spiced things up. “2019 went by in a creative blur, and that’s also thanks to Iver,” Bjørnson stresses. “We’re in a really good place right now.” His brother-in-arms Grutle adds with a grin: “Plus, Håkon’s the only guy in the world who actually wanted to become a keyboard player instead of guitarist or vocalist. That alone is pretty remarkable.” ENSLAVED in 2020 is a band in stellar form, a band at its most existentialist and self-conscious, proud Bergeners bearing the torch of their hometowns’ extraordinary musical history. “Utgard” shows them at a stage where simply everything they touch turns to gold. Icy black metal anthems walk hand in hand with refined prog rock gems and primordial, dark folk sorcery. It’s ENSLAVED to the bone. And yet again a band that cast off its old skin, delivering some of their shortest songs in years while still packing them with glimmering detail. Bjørnson nods his head reverentially. “Creating this album was truly special. We almost felt we were in Utgard all the time, we were so invested in this concept. Plus, we got a lot of help from the weather gods. We started recording in October 2019 and were finished with mastering on the morning of Christmas eve – or Grutle’s eve, given that this is his birthday. In that whole period, I don’t think I experienced more than five minutes of bright light outside.” Even while mixing this sublime effort with Jens Bogren in his Fascination Street Studios in Sweden, they found themselves in a snowstorm raging through the Swedish woods. Still, fun was had, as Grutle puts it: “Everybody was pulling into the same direction and really wanted to achieve something great here. I think we never had better recording sessions!” The unusually rollicking rock’n’roll touch of ‘Urjotun’ or the archaic voice from the deep that is ‘Utgardr’, the raging force of ‘Flight Of Thought And Memory’ or the elegiac final curtain ‘Distant Seasons’ show ENSLAVED more open, more focused and simply more brilliant than ever. Also to Bjørnson, “Utgard” is truly special. “We have albums that are steps and we have some that are milestones,” he says and Grutle nods in agreement. “I personally think ‘Utgard’ is a milestone along the lines of “Frost” or “Below The Lights”.” Time will tell, of course, but hearing a 42 year old veteran of the Norwegian metal scene talk that fondly and enthused about his 15th studio record is restoring a lot of faith in the concept of long-running bands. Maybe that’s why even after 30 years, ENSLAVED still refuse to lower their standards. Quite the contrary, in fact: They always find new ways to surpass themselves by looking back at their career. “During the recordings I had to think of the time when we went to the studio with only 25,000 Norwegian kroner to record “Frost”,” Bjørnson fondly remembers. “We had like five days to record it all. And we did it. Maybe I needed that reminder think too much and just play the best you can.” Boy, it sure helped! 01. Fires In The Dark 02. Jettegryta 03. Sequence 04. Homebound 05. Utgarðr 06. Urjotun 07. Flight Of Thought And Memory 08. Storms Of Utgard 09. Distant Seasons

Swedish heavy metal commando ENFORCER proudly presents its second live album, “Live by Fire II”, which will be released through Nuclear Blast Records on March 19th, 2021. “Live ByFire II” offers an intense and passionate performance captured in front of a truly dedicated and wild audience in Mexico City, 2019. “Live by Fire II” lets you experience ENFORCER at the top of their game and marks an outstanding live record documenting the group’s steady path to global recognition in recent years. It also serves as a stunning reminder of how many heavy metal anthems ENFORCER have crafted on their total of five studio albums so far! From the speedy metal attack of ‘Destroyer’, ‘Searching For You’, ‘Midnight Vice’ to perfect sing-alongs like ‘From Beyond’, ‘One Thousand Years In Darkness’and ‘Take Me Out Of This Nightmare’, the enthusiastic crowd and powerful sound of “Live By Fire II” result in a captivating and extremely entertaining listen. Physical formats of the release will be including extensive booklets containing a tour program, liner notes and tons of photos compiled and designed by vocalist/ guitarist Olof Wikstrand recapturing ENFORCER’s touring cycle for the albums “From Beyond” and “Zenith” during the years 2015-2020. “Live By Fire II” will be released as Gatefold 2LP with 16-LP sized booklet, CD with 28-page booklet, and digital album. CD: 01. Die For The Devil (Live) 02. Searching For You (Live) 03. Undying Evil (Live) 04. From Beyond (Live) 05. Bells Of Hades/Death Rides This Night (Live) 06. Zenith Of The Black Sun (Live) 07. Live For The Night (Live) 08. Mesmerized By Fire (Live) 09. One Thousand Years Of Darkness (Live) 10. Guitar Solo / City Lights Jam (Live) 11. Scream Of The Savage (Live) 12. Drum Solo (Live) 13. Run For Your Life (Live) 14. Take Me Out Of This Nightmare (Live) 15. Destroyer (Live) 16. Katana (Live) 17. Midnight Vice (Live)

“Only the sky catching fire may give a visual to match the scale of the soundtrack ... this was the kind of gig that changed lives.” - Kerrang! Magazine DEVIL SOLD HIS SOUL (London, UK) blend huge soundscapes, earth-shattering riffs and soaring melodies. DEVIL SOLD HIS SOUL begin a new chapter in their highly-acclaimed career, signing to metal heavyweights Nuclear Blast Records. 2021 will see the band release their fourth studio album ‘Loss’, their first with the dual vocal attack of Ed Gibbs and Paul Green. DEVIL SOLD HIS SOUL burst onto the UK underground metal and hardcore scene in 2004 growing a cult following from their first record, ‘Darkness Prevails’ EP released through Visible Noise (BRING ME THE HORIZON) in 2005. Their debut album, ‘A Fragile Hope’ saw the band take their position as one of the most respected underground bands in the UK with their visceral and captivating live shows. DEVIL SOLD HIS SOUL’s sophomore album, ‘Blessed and Cursed’, elevated their sound and audience to new heights, voted into RockSound Magazine’s top 10 albums of 2010. In 2012 the band unleashed their self-produced third album, ‘Empire Of Light’. Received to critical acclaim across the board, the album cemented their position as one of the UK’s most respected and revered metal acts. With Ed Gibbs departing the band early in the year, 2013 saw the first new material featuring singer Paul Green with single ‘Time’, followed by 2014’s ‘Belong Betray’ EP and 2016’s ‘The Reckoning’. After welcoming Gibbs back to sing on the 2017 ‘A Fragile Hope’ anniversary tour, the band asked Gibbs to continue the dual vocals with Green for the remaining festivals and tours that year, with the line-up then becoming a permanent fixture. 2018 saw the band travel beyond Europe with their first touring in Asia, they also began to put the foundations down on what would become their new record ‘Loss’. Written about the grief and struggles faced in recent years, ‘Loss’ treads old ground and explores exciting new territories for DEVIL SOLD HIS SOUL, including for the first time the dual vocals of Gibbs and Green on record. Recorded, engineered and mixed by guitarist Jonny Renshaw at his UK based Bandit Studios, DEVIL SOLD HIS SOUL have poured heart and sincerity into every atom of this their fourth album, with songwriting elevated to new levels. Having toured with the likes of CULT OF LUNA, ARCHITECTS, NORMA JEAN, BRING ME THE HORIZON, UNDEROATH, GALLOWS, ENVY and EMMURE, as well as headlining a stage at DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL l (UK) and numerous European festival appearances including SUMMER BREEZE and WITH FULL FORCE (Germany) and PUKKELPOP (Belgium), DEVIL SOLD HIS SOUL have built a huge reputation for their captivating live shows, over 16 years. CD: 01. Ardour 02. Witness Marks 03. Burdened 04. Tateishi 05. The Narcissist 06. Beyond Reach 07. Signal Fire 08. Acrimony 09. But Not Forgotten 10. Loss

We originally composed this album 1998-1999, tracking and releasing in 2000. Former guitarist Sigurd (1993-2006) who marched with me around the globe wrote three songs on this monster. Session drums were handled by Manfred Man Gandler (Mastic Scum) and ba

Music has become more important than ever in recent times. As a result, the triumphant return of AMARANTHE feels particularly timely. The Swedish six-piece have spent the last decade establishing themselves as a formidable, positive and fervently melodic force for metallic good. Not just a glorious return but a wholesale upgrade for their exuberant sound, Manifest is simply the most daring, dynamic and unforgettable album that AMARANTHE have released to date. The perfect antidote to the nagging anxieties plaguing us all in these troubled times, it’s a Technicolor celebration of metal’s ageless power, blazing with all of life’s colours and chaos, but delivered with utmost artistry and skill. As Olof concludes, it’s one exceptional reason to be cheerful. Recorded in Denmark with long-time collaborator Jacob Hansen, Manifest is an album of multiple moods and textures, of immense power and aggression, and of exquisite beauty. That bold blending of disparate elements has always been part of the AMARANTHE ethos, but on their sixth album, the band exhibit an enhanced sense of lyrical and conceptual substance. With songs touching upon everything from looming climate disaster to theistic mythology, Olof and Elize have truly blossomed as commentators on mankind’s trials and tribulations. These are exciting, meticulously crafted future-metal anthems, custom-built to make heads bang, but underpinned by a profound sense of humanity and emotional honesty. As with preview single Do Or Die – released on Valentine’s Day this year, and featuring the legendary Angela Gossow – Manifest is a record that owes as much to the real world as it does to fantasy and escapism.

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Limited "Shrimp pink" vinyl in gatefold cover, limited to 800 copies!! Flying high like an eagle in the sky – JACK SLAMER are back with a bang! «Keep Your Love Loud» marks the band’s third release - and it surely packs a punch. This time around, walls of guitars, endless riffs and high soaring vocals are joined by disco drums and Darbukas. Once the needle touches the vinyl, you can almost hear your feet shout out “Holy Moly” in ecstasy! You’ll be blasted with fresh and almost frivolous soundscapes, yet they continue to be grounded in a deeply rooted taste for tradition. The first grade production value is one of the album’s major features and it is instantly recognizable: Punchy drums, a gnarly bass sound and intricate guitar lines weave into a dense sonic fabric that can easily keep up with the great records of rock n roll’s past! Musical degrees, carpentry, medical expertise and rocket science form their background and pour into their music and their lyrics. Their songs talk of letting go and coming home, guilt and inner demons, Mother Nature and the beauty of the ever-changing thing that we call life. «Keep Your Love Loud» wants to enchant you and take you on a trip like an eagle flying across the planes of the American wilderness - a feeling only true rock’n’roll can conjure

With unflinching tenacity, the impenetrable heavy metal hardcore factory that is HATEBREED has brought forth yet another iron cast, sonic weapon with Weight Of The False Self. It comes as no surprise that their eighth, full length album is the result of the usual sweat and blood that have cemented HATEBREED’s unique niche in the world of music for over two decades. Renowned for their ability to provide an intense and cathartic release for their fans, HATEBREED challenged their writing style through this album cycle in order to produce material that is exceptionally relatable in a contemporary world flooded with overstimulation, emotional dampening, and lack of social patience. “Weight Of The False Self’ is a perfect representation of HATEBREED in 2020, a fresh onslaught of soon to be classics with all the elements that led you here since day one,” explains guitarist Frank Novinec. A metaphorical weight is carried by almost every individual in regards to their emotional construct. Our experiences shape who we become and over time, gradually produce a heavy burden that we continue to lug along. For many of us, the weight becomes so much that we struggle to get out from underneath, let alone move.

Flying high like an eagle in the sky – JACK SLAMER are back with a bang! «Keep Your Love Loud» marks the band’s third release - and it surely packs a punch. This time around, walls of guitars, endless riffs and high soaring vocals are joined by disco drums and Darbukas. Once the needle touches the vinyl, you can almost hear your feet shout out “Holy Moly” in ecstasy! You’ll be blasted with fresh and almost frivolous soundscapes, yet they continue to be grounded in a deeply rooted taste for tradition. The first grade production value is one of the album’s major features and it is instantly recognizable: Punchy drums, a gnarly bass sound and intricate guitar lines weave into a dense sonic fabric that can easily keep up with the great records of rock n roll’s past! Musical degrees, carpentry, medical expertise and rocket science form their background and pour into their music and their lyrics. Their songs talk of letting go and coming home, guilt and inner demons, Mother Nature and the beauty of the ever-changing thing that we call life. «Keep Your Love Loud» wants to enchant you and take you on a trip like an eagle flying across the planes of the American wilderness - a feeling only true rock’n’roll can conjure

Back with a vengeance and hell-bent on destruction, CADAVER are back in business and ready to reign. Edder & Bile – the first full length from this band’s new incarnation of Anders Odden’s original, extreme metal vision. Brimming with the same primal, primitive spirit that drove the band’s early works, the likes of Morgue Ritual and Let Me Burn are also full of fresh perversity and evidence of the same contrary instincts that always set Cadaver apart from their supposed peers. Vocal cameos from death metal icons Kam Lee (MASSACRE) and Jeff Becerra (POSSESSED) ensure that this crushing rebirth has underground credentials to spare.

PHIL CAMPBELL AND THE BASTARD SONS, the band featuring MOTÖRHEAD guitarist Phil Campbell alongside his sons Todd, Dane and Tyla, plus vocalist Neil Starr, will release its new album, "We're The Bastards", on November 13 via Nuclear Blast. Starr says: "It's definitely great to know that we have an audience now. We know there are people that want to hear it, but the truth is that we just had fun with it. Once again, we made the record we wanted to make and it's been really exciting. It was awesome to take our minds off everything and just concentrate on recording a kick ass album for the fans to enjoy" Phil Campbell states: "We're really excited to announce the release of our new single, 'Son Of A Gun'. It will blow your head off!" The album is available as CD, limited digipack including four bonus tracks, 2 LP orange/black splatter and 2LP black.

Mini-LP. No rest for one of Britain’s most melancholic exports: Just half a year after MY DYING BRIDE returned from their break with their haunting and successful (German Album Charts #12) masterpiece »The Ghost Of Orion«, the sons of Halifax raise the curtains to the »Macabre Cabaret«. The new EP of the band offers three new songs – dark luscious Death Doom ear candies that will dive their victim into a sensual world of darkness and temptation and conceal the borders between sweet pain and destructive illusion. The EP was produced mixed and mastered by maestro Mark Mynett and crowned with a beautiful and sinister artwork from Bunker Artworks

Come one! Come all, to the demented, heinous bloodbath of a murder metal circus that declares MACABRE’s return; Carnival of Killers. As MACABRE’s first full length album in almost 10 years since the release of Grim’s Scary Tales in 2011, and just in time for their 35th anniversary as a band, this latest installment to the catalogue will butcher your ears and derange your psyche as to be expected! Judging by the title, one can positively assume Carnival of Killers contains stories of your favorite murderous psychos: Bundy, Speck, Gacy, Ramirez, and a slew of heinous killers never sung about by MACABRE, before now. The album artwork, designed by Corporate Death (Lead Singer Lance Lencioni) and artist Laz Gein presents a “Where’s Waldo” style illustration of a colorful carnival filled with jovial children on rides, all amidst a slew of the album’s most memorable references: Bundy waving a woman over to his Beetle with his cast, H.H. Holmes displaying medical skeletons to passers by, Bittaker and Norris hammering their latest victim in the face in public instead of in front of a camera… a touching, family oriented, thrill filled weekend!

KILLER BE KILLED will release its sophomore album, "Reluctant Hero", on November 20 via Nuclear Blast. The supergroup, which is comprised of Max Cavalera (SOULFLY, ex-SEPULTURA), Troy Sanders (MASTODON) Greg Puciato (THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN), and drummer Ben Koller (CONVERGE, ALL PIGS MUST DIE, MUTOID MAN), released its self-titled debut album in 2014 via Nuclear Blast Entertainment. "Deconstructing Self-Destruction" highlights the outfit's unique approach to vocals, with Cavalera, Puciato and Sanders all lending their voices to not only the single but all of the tracks on "Reluctant Hero".

A storm is brewing. A rebirth is on its way. Prepare for the triumphant arrival of HJELVIK Formerly known as frontman, lyricist, and co-founder of the Norwegian party-rockers Kvelertak, Erlend Hjelvik parted ways with his bandmates in 2018 and has spent the last two years biding his time and plotting a return to action. Today, he is a rejuvenated and newly inspired metal warrior, primed and ready to launch his own solo band, HJELVIK, and their thunderous and life-affirming debut album, Welcome to Hel.

PHIL CAMPBELL AND THE BASTARD SONS, the band featuring MOTÖRHEAD guitarist Phil Campbell alongside his sons Todd, Dane and Tyla, plus vocalist Neil Starr, will release its new album, "We're The Bastards", on November 13 via Nuclear Blast. Starr says: "It's definitely great to know that we have an audience now. We know there are people that want to hear it, but the truth is that we just had fun with it. Once again, we made the record we wanted to make and it's been really exciting. It was awesome to take our minds off everything and just concentrate on recording a kick ass album for the fans to enjoy" Phil Campbell states: "We're really excited to announce the release of our new single, 'Son Of A Gun'. It will blow your head off!" The album is available as CD, limited digipack including four bonus tracks, 2 LP orange/black splatter and 2LP black.

Come one! Come all, to the demented, heinous bloodbath of a murder metal circus that declares MACABRE’s return; Carnival of Killers. As MACABRE’s first full length album in almost 10 years since the release of Grim’s Scary Tales in 2011, and just in time for their 35th anniversary as a band, this latest installment to the catalogue will butcher your ears and derange your psyche as to be expected! Judging by the title, one can positively assume Carnival of Killers contains stories of your favorite murderous psychos: Bundy, Speck, Gacy, Ramirez, and a slew of heinous killers never sung about by MACABRE, before now. The album artwork, designed by Corporate Death (Lead Singer Lance Lencioni) and artist Laz Gein presents a “Where’s Waldo” style illustration of a colorful carnival filled with jovial children on rides, all amidst a slew of the album’s most memorable references: Bundy waving a woman over to his Beetle with his cast, H.H. Holmes displaying medical skeletons to passers by, Bittaker and Norris hammering their latest victim in the face in public instead of in front of a camera… a touching, family oriented, thrill filled weekend!