photo by Okko Sorma
Finnish progressive death metal veterans CONVULSE are pleased to unveil their new lyric video for the track “Deathstar.” Now playing at New Noise Magazine, the song appears on the record of the same name, set for release October 30th via Transcending Records.
A near forty-one-minute masterwork, Deathstar delivers nine tracks that transcend the boundaries of standard death metal. Fusing the prime tenets of death metal, heavy rock, and prog into something innovative and enticing, the record arguably picks up where the band’s underrated 1994 gem Reflections full-length left off adopting a similar genre-bending approach and modernizing it.
Notes guitarist/vocalist Rami Jämsä of the title track, “For the song ‘Deathstar,’ I wrote about my frustration towards the growth of human greed, extinction, and hatred. It feels like we are living in a doomed planet called ‘Deathstar’ and I am worried about humanity and our future. This song was composed coequally with the band. The main riff came when we jammed together freely, a very common way for us to compose songs. I come very often to the rehearsal studio with only with one riff or song idea and then we start to jam it together and see where it leads to. Sometimes good ideas lead to finished songs, but we also have a lot of unfinished ideas. The main riff on ‘Deathstar’ reminds me a little bit Sepultura and on the chorus there is some ‘King Crimson’ influences.”
View “Deathstar,” now playing at New Noise, at THIS LOCATION.
View the band’s previously released video for “The Summoning” at THIS LOCATION.
Deathstar will be released on CD, limited-edition deluxe CD, digital, cassette, and vinyl formats. For physical preorders in North America, go to THIS LOCATION, for European orders, go to THIS LOCATION and for digital orders, go HERE.
Deathstar was recorded and mixed in analog at JJ-studio with Juuso Nordlund and comes swathed in the art of Jan Yrlund, based on the painting Strangled by Minna Mead. Elaborates guitarist/vocalist Rami Jämsä of the offering, “Deathstar will be an interesting experience for those who listen to music with an open mind. We’ve not forgotten our roots of old-school death metal, but for me, it’s very natural to evolve musically and write music free of any boundaries. You can perhaps hear some echoes from the Reflections album. We recorded Deathstar during the Summer/Fall of 2019 in the same twenty-four-track reel-to-reel analog studio with the same producer as the Evil Prevails album back in 2013 (JJ-studio/Juuso Nordlund). The sound of the album is timeless. It will be difficult to figure out which decade it has been written and recorded. We wrote and rehearsed the album material for almost three years.”
When Finland’s first death metal boom started in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s, among the first of its troops on the frontlines was CONVULSE. Like many of their comrades, the band churned out that dark, brutal, uncompromising style of death metal for which the scene had become notorious, culminating in the band’s 1991 debut, World Without God, released on now-defunct French label Thrash Records. Shortly after, CONVULSE followed in the footsteps of many of their contemporaries and began flirting with progressive rock elements as was evinced on their 1992 EP Lost Equilibrium and then fully refined on second full-length Reflections, both of which were released via Relapse Records. The band called it quits in 1994.
CONVULSE returned in 2012, ready to tread the path they helped pave decades prior. The band released their Inner Evil EP followed by and their comeback album, Evil Prevails. Brutal, menacing Finnish death metal was the name of the game here, lacking in any other unnecessary gimmicks or modern trends. History would partially repeat itself in 2016 when the band revisited the prog infused death ’n’ roll leanings on their fourth studio album, Cycle Of Revenge. It was on this album where they would reach their full potential manifesting an unique and engaging sound, one they’ve been cultivating ever since.
Deathstar finds the band at their most ambitious. A very different band than the one that marched in the first wave decades ago, as the only real holdover of their original sound is the iconic deep grunts of Rami Jämsä. Their ability to bridge the gap between hard rock grooves and airy melodic sections drenched in atmosphere is nothing short of astounding, and even experienced ears will find some new twists and turns to marvel at. Their influences are numerous; their sound varied. Deathstar will take its listeners on a soothing journey to beautiful and unknown places whose nuance and depth will make parting a sweet sorrow and each return all the more rewarding. [words by Luxi Lahtinen]
“Deathstar continues to go above and beyond the parameters of “standard” death metal, melding goosebump-inducing DM growls and gurgles with music that’s jammier and more freewheeling, if no less expertly composed. Trust us: Deathstar was worth the wait.” — MetalSucks
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