IDES OF GEMINI: Exclusive Track Premiere Brought To You By The Obelisk; Band To Play Scion Rock Fest; Exclusive Pre-Order Packages Now Available

Today heavy riff portal The Obelisk offers up a stream of "Slain In Spirit" from mystical doom conjurers IDES OF GEMINI. The song comes off of the West Coast trio’s forthcoming new studio offering, Constantinople, set for North American release via Neurot Recordings on May 29, 2012.

Notes guitarist/backing vocalist J. Bennett of the track: “‘Slain In Spirit’ might be the only IDES OF GEMINI song -- so far -- that actually addresses lyrically what we try to accomplish sonically: The trance state. The state of being neither here nor there. If that's not pretentious enough for you, try this: Idris Parry, the late, great scholar of German literature, once pointed out that just as there are gaps between the fingers, there are gaps between the senses. ‘In these gaps,’ he said, ‘is the darkness which hides the connection between all things.’ As much as ‘Slain In Spirit’ is a song easily and obviously discernible by the human ear, it very much aspires to create something that at least hints at that intangible darkness.”

Turn up and tune out at THIS LOCATION.

Exclusive pre-orders of Constantinople are currently available through the IDES OF GEMINI blog. Limited to just 33 CDs, each pre-order will be bundled with stickers and a handmade candle made by vocalist Sera Timms, meant to be burned while the album plays for maximum atmosphere. In three of those candles will be a crystal that can be retrieved by burning the candle most of the way down. The crystal can then be mailed back to the band and exchanged for a Disruption Writ EP, cassette and one other exclusive item still to be announced.

IDES OF GEMINI will take their brooding hymns to the stage to the stage tomorrow on the Los Angeles stop of the long-anticipated Decibel Magazine Tour with Behemoth, Watain, The Devil’s Blood and In Solitude. In addition, the band has been officially added to this year’s edition of the Scion Rock Fest, set to take place at the Ritz Theatre in Tampa, Florida.IDES OF GEMINI will appear alongside the likes of Sleep, Merzbow, Church of Misery, All Pigs Must Die and more!

IDES OF GEMINI 2012:
4/25/2012 House Of Blues - Hollywood, CA w/ Behemoth, Watain, The Devil's Blood, In Solitude
5/29/2012 Bootleg Theatre - Los Angeles, CA *record release show w/ VUM, The Nocturnes [more info]
6/2/2012 Scion Rock Fest @ The Ritz Theatre – Tampa, FL

“…darkly beautiful…” -- Pitchfork

 “Sera Timms’ voice is a national treasure. It’s a reverb-soaked choir of 4AD ghosts floating over scratchy guitars. Burzum scoring a spaghetti western. This stuff gives me chills.” – Decibel

“Their accretion of small musical gestures inverts metal’s normal use of space. They imply terror without ever exposing it. Each song is an accumulation of outlines, a sort of sonic daguerreotype.” – MetalSucks

“…music that calls to mind deserts and tundras, angry ghosts emerging from the ether.” – RVA Mag

“Whereas Black Math Horseman makes you feel as if you’ve taken a wrong turn into a desolate medieval village, illuminated by the flicker of mere lanterns, IDES OF GEMINI hovers above complete darkness in a realm that can only be felt by those who welcome it.” – This Is Not A Scene

http://idesofgemini.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/IdesofgeminI
http://idesofgemini.bandcamp.com
For review copies of Constantinople, interviews or
guest list requests, contact EarsplitPR.

STEVE VON TILL, SCOTT KELLY & WINO Confirm Townes Van Zandt Tribute; Album To See US Release Via Neurot In June

This June Neurot Recordings will issue a special three-way split CD in tribute to late American folk music hero Townes Van Zandt, bearing contributions from SCOTT KELLY (Neurosis, Shrinebuilder, Tribes of Neurot, solo artist, etc.), STEVE VON TILL (Neurosis, Tribes of Neurot, Harvestman, solo artist, etc.) and SCOTT “WINO” WEINRICH (Saint Vitus, The Obsessed, The Hidden Hand, Shrinebuilder, solo artist, etc.).

After having performed material by Van Zandt solo and through various collaborations on stage over recent years, on solo releases and on random live collaborations, the aptly entitled Songs of Townes Van Zandt brings several songs each from KELLY, VON TILL and WEINRICH together in praise of his deep musical influence on them all. Through a personal contact of the artists, newly-formed label My Proud Mountain was founded specially in order to release this tribute, with Neurot Recordings handling the North American release of the album on June 12th.

Download Scott Kelly’s rendition of “St. John The Gambler” for free RIGHT HERE.

Songs of Townes Van Zandt Track Listing:
1. If I Needed You [Steve Von Till]
2. St. John The Gambler [Scott Kelly]
3. Black Crow Blues [Steve Von Till]
4. Lungs [Scott Kelly]
5. Rake [Wino]
6. The Snake Song [Steve Von Till]
7. Nothing [Wino]
8. Tecumseh Valley [Scott Kelly]
9. A Song For [Wino]

Townes Van Zandt never reached significant fame during his lifetime. Although highly respected by his peers and other songwriters, the mood and atmosphere of his music, coupled with his sometimes dark and sarcastic nature, was not suitable for the commercial country-industry of Nashville. Van Zandt’s songs did, however, reach popularity in his day, through artists such as Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, and Emmylou Harris. Within his circle of outsider singer-songwriters, he was adored, though ultimately it would be depression and alcoholism that would overshadow his life. Townes’ friend, singer Steve Earle, has been quoted as saying, “Townes Van Zandt is the best songwriter in the whole world and I’ll stand on Bob Dylan’s coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that.” After Townes’ death in 1997, the fact that artists as diverse as Robert Plant, Mudhoney, Norah Jones, Lyle Lovett, and Bob Dylan himself have kept his songs alive and vital, is a testament to the influence and impact of his music.

So now do STEVE VON TILL, SCOTT KELLY and WINO stand and sing his tribute, each focusing on the essence of Van Zandt’s music and lyrics in his own personal way. The result is a great homage, whose intensity lies in fragility and elementary human truths. Townes Van Zandt’s broken-hearted love songs and gloom-ridden tales are most deserving of this tribute and praise.

Stated SCOTT KELLY “Townes Van Zandt’s music has had a profound effect on me as a man and as a musician. I discovered his songs 13 years ago at the same time as I had already began following a new path for myself as musician, seeking to express myself through a more direct, stripped down acoustic approach. Townes Van Zandts music is not only brutally honest, he has an ability to paint a picture with his words that is so far beyond the reach and depth of anyone else I have heard to this day. I am honored to be a part of this record and get the opportunity to bring his music to people who are fans of what I have been doing, and I am humbled to be in the presence of my two brothers Steve Von Till and Wino.”

Steve Von Till added: “To be able to honor the music of Townes Van Zandt with this project is a true gift. His songs have had a profound influence on me as a songwriter and have been a constant sonic companion since first hearing them. Sharing this tribute with Wino and Scott Kelly, both of whom I admire as human beings and fellow travelers on this journey of songcraft makes it even that much more important to me. I hope that it may bring the soul purifying, down to earth truths of Townes to others who may not have discovered him yet, and that those who already recognize his contribution to the world will appreciate this small offering.“

And affirmed Wino: “Circumstance and adventure lead me down the road of playing and writing solely on the acoustic guitar. Born And Raised on CSN, Neil Young amongst others I still ignored the Americana folk scene. Until Kenny Wagner turned me on to Townes Van Zant. I was still absorbing listening to Scott and Steves various renditions of his songs when Mr. Connie Ochs gave me Abnormal. It was this that crystallized my endearment to this music; this man, this story, this passion and emotion that has enriched our lives. So I am proud to be a part of this tribute.”

UFOMAMMUT Release Second Video Track From Forthcoming LP

The second full track from UFOMAMMUT’s forthcoming Oro: Opus Primum LP has been released today, as the band unveil each of the five opuses on the album preceding its release. Chronologically following the first track/video for “Empireum” recently premiered via American portal THE OBELISK, the album’s second track “Aureum” continues the story of Oro, and is now streaming via Germany-based VISIONS MAGAZINE.

Stay tuned for further installments, as each track from both LPs in UFOMAMMUT’s double album Oro lineage are released over the coming months. Opus Primum will see North American release on CD and LP this April 17th and the second installment of Oro, Opus Alter, will see release in September. The full visual adaptation of both Opus Primum and later Opus Alter will be available as DVD installments which will accompany the limited edition LP versions of each chapter, hand-build by Malleus Rock Art Labs and released on the band’s own Supernatural Cat Records.

Preorders for the limited vinyl version of Opus Primum can now be placed RIGHT HERE for North American residents, and HERE for Europe and beyond.