Music
Press
Atlantic recording group Shadows Fall has announced early details of its upcoming new album, “THREADS OF LIFE.” The much anticipated collection – which features the single, “Redemption” – arrives in stores on April 3rd.
“THREADS OF LIFE” was produced by Nick Raskulinecz (Rush, Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver). The album’s first single, “Redemption,” will have its worldwide premiere later this week, Friday, February 16th, on Sirius Satellite Radio’s “Hard Attack” (Channel 27). The track will be available for purchase on iTunes, beginning on Tuesday, February 20th. Later this month, “Redemption” will then impact at Metal outlets nationwide, followed in April at Active Rock radio.
Shadows Fall will celebrate the album’s release by taking part in the upcoming Jägermeister Music Tour. One of hard rock’s most anticipated annual events, the multi-artist bill sees the critically acclaimed metal outfit sharing the stage with Stone Sour and Lacuna Coil. The Jägermeister Music Tour will kick off on March 23rd at St. Paul, Minnesota’s Myth and then travel the country through a May 4th finale at Des Moines, Iowa’s Val Air Ballroom (see attached itinerary).
“After spending most of the past year trapped in the practice space and the studio, everyone in Shadows Fall is extremely excited to finally be getting back on the road,” says vocalist Brian Fair. “We plan on releasing a year of pent-up energy on stage and unleashing a few new songs on the fans. We are really looking forward to teaming up with our good friends in Stone Sour and Lacuna Coil for an amazing tour.”
Shadows Fall is unquestionably among the most potent music forces in modern metal, melding full-on thrash power with melodic, pulverizing hooks. In its first decade in existence, the Springfield, Massachusetts-based five-piece has blazed an extraordinary trail, earning a 2006 Grammy Awards nomination for “Best Metal Performance,” reaping critical acclaim from metal mainstream and hardcore underground alike, and touring the planet nearly non-stop (including an ecstatically received mainstage run on 2005’s Ozzfest).
Shadows Fall is: Matt Bachand – guitar, vocals; Paul Romanko – bass; Brian Fair – vocals; Jason Bittner – drums; Jon Donais – lead guitar, vocals
For more information, please visit www.shadowsfall.com, www.myspace.com/shadowsfall, and www.threadsoflife2007.com.
- Press Release
Discography
1998 To Ashes 1998 Somber Eyes to the Sky 2000 Of One Blood 2001 Deadworld EP 2002 Fear Will Drag You Down 2002 The Art of Balance 2004 The War Within 2006 Fallout from the War 2007 Threads of Life
Photos
Bio
We just wanted to write a full-on metal record, says Brian Fair, lead singer of Shadows Fall. We were like, I dont care whats going on, nowadays lets write some fucking metal! I mean, thats always been our attitude, but this time we went even further into our rock and thrash roots. Threads Of Life, the new album by Shadows Fall, is a bracing blast of extreme heavy metal, a heady brew of old-school sensibilities and cutting-edge hard rock delivered with passion, precision and a refreshing lack of pretension. Dubbed the reigning purveyors of everydude metal by Revolver magazine, the hard-touring, beer-chugging Massachusetts quintet has handily surpassed the high standards set by their critically feted 2002 release, The Art Of Balance, and its even-more-acclaimed 2004 followup, The War Within the latter of which had sold over 270,000 copies to date, and received a Grammy nomination for the track What Drives The Weak, amazing feats for an independent release. One of the original forces behind the New Wave of American Heavy Metal and undisputed leaders in that scene, Shadows Fall are currently on the verge of propelling themselves into the classic metal pantheon with Threads Of Life. Produced for maximum sonic impact by Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, Stone Sour, Rush) at Studio 606 in Los Angeles, Threads Of Life is a masterful achievement by a band that continues to push the envelope artistically while remaining true to its core sound and audience. Nick was able to get performances out of us that we didnt even expect from ourselves, Fair enthuses. Structurally, we had worked out a lot of the stuff before we even got to the studio, but he really brought new life to things sonically different layering of guitars, vocal harmonies that we wouldnt have thought of, great ideas like that. For those whove already been paying attention, the bands continued musical growth wont come as much of a surprise in terms of pure musicianship, Shadows Fall has long been one of the most highly respected bands in the metal community, boasting a lineup that could easily go toe-to-toe with rocks most legendary players. Guitarists Matt Bachand and Jon Donais are former guest columnists for Guitar World magazine, and the pair recently had the honor of being included in the mags Top 100 Guitarists of All Time list. Bassist Paul Romanko is a regular contributor to Guitar Worlds Bass Guitar magazine, while drummer Jason Bittner pens a column for Modern Drummer, whose readers voted him Best Metal Drummer in year-end polls for 2005 and 2006. And with his four-foot-long dreadlocks, powerful vocals and commanding stage presence, Brian Fair a frequent guest host on MTVs Headbangers Ball is one of the most charismatic and recognizable frontmen in metal. All five members bring a wide variety of influences to the table, as well. Jonnys always been into 80s metal and 70s rock, Fair explains. Matt was really into death metal and grindcore back in the day, but he also likes all sorts of singer/songwriter stuff; Jay has a real prog background hes a huge fan of Rush and Dream Theater and Pauls the old-school punk rock and hardcore dude. I kind of came up through 70s rock, and then found the hardcore scene, but Id always been listening to a lot of jazz, reggae and spacey stuff. But as with all great bands through the ages, when Shadows Fall make music together, the disparate influences and personalities somehow coalesce into a single vision. There are really no egos in this band, affirms Fair. Were always going to have the technical aspect of our music, because these boys can play. But we want to incorporate all of that into a song framework; its all about trying to create the best song, and everyone understanding how they fit into it. Of course, he adds, when its time to let it rip, we let it rip! Redemption, Threads Of Lifes anthemic opening track and lead single, is a veritable crash course in Shadows Falls patented mixture of metallic riffage, hardcore aggression, and melodic uplift. This is the Shadows Fall sound condensed into four minutes, laughs Fair. I think its a perfect representation of what we do. And I think it really encapsulates the entire album, which is why we opened with it it has a little bit of everything youre going to get in the next 45 minutes! Final Call, the albums epic seven-minute centerpiece which includes some spectacular twin-guitar shredding from Donais and Bachand is a rallying cry for hope and togetherness in a time of cynicism and despair. So many of the ideals and goals of our government seem to be so far from what Im trying to accomplish in my life, that I feel like Ive been exiled to my own little plane of existence, says Fair. But at this point, Im fine with it, because I think there are others who feel the same way, and I think there are more of them
Links