Denovali Records announced the release of two new albums, of Oneirogen and Switchblade.
ONEIROGEN (US) "CONVIVIUM"
[CD|LP|Digital],
RD: June 3rd, 2016
"Convivium" is Mario Diaz de Leon's third album under his ONEIROGEN alias, and follows the "Plenitude" EP, released in 2015. It was developed over a period of two and a half years, primarily through live performance in the metal and noise underground of NYC. Like its predecessor, the album's core instrumentation is an array of hypnotic synthesizer riffs, pummeling percussion, distorted vocals, and surging noise. With "Convivum", Diaz de Leon has crafted a powerful and singular work of heavy electronic music.
A charged sense of anticipation permeates the music, sustaining tension and mystery through spans of repetition and moments of rupture. The songs build towards hedonistic climaxes, which yield to sparse, expansive passages in which every sonic detail is vividly heard. Inspired in part by Bataille's "Erotism", which connects the "rupture of boundaries" common to sex, mystical ecstasy and ritual sacrifice, as well as the work of psychologist Stanislov Grof on the impacts of birth trauma on the human psyche, "Convivium" is an incantatory journey through primal and dark creative forces.
The artistic output of Mario Diaz de Leon spans a wide range. In addition to his work as Oneirogen, he is highly active as a composer of modern classical music (with a 2016 commission from the LA Philharmonic and releases on Tzadik and Denovali), and is the frontman of Luminous Vault, his recently formed death metal band. Envisioning all of his activity as part of a spiritual practice, he considers Oneirogen to be the most personal side of his work.
"It's just me producing everything, and of course I perform it alone as well." he explains. "Each album is a kind of personal trial or rite of passage. As someone who also works in the classical tradition, I think of them as my symphonies. Its a project where i'm open to all my influences, and i'm entering into mystery and the unknown, battling to carve essences out of formlessness."
Stream/Buy/Download || Facebook
ON TOUR
23.06.16 Brooklyn (usa) - Trans Pecos
SWITCHBLADE (SE) "[2016]"
[CD|LP|Digital],
RD: June 3rd, 2016
"[2016]"is the follow-up to Switchblade's Swedish Grammy Award nominated and critically acclaimed "[2012]" album. On "[2016]", the 7th album, the band has once again taken one step forward and two steps back with a slightly different approach to their minimalistic doom by turning up the tempo, adding more melodies and a lot more textures.
In its nineteenth year of existence, Swedish band Switchblade is ready to unleash its brand new album [2016]. Core duo Tim Bertilsson (drums) and Johan Folkesson (guitars) once again teamed up with sound wizard Karl Daniel Lidén — whose services already have been used by The Ocean, Katatonia, Greenleaf and many more — to create yet another 40 minute slab of their unique proggy doom. Switchblade’s last effort, [2012], included guest appearances by Kongh frontman David Johansson, keyboardist Per Wiberg who has played with bands like Opeth and Candlemass, and Katatonia vocalist Jonas Renkse. The outcome was an album that not only received rave reviews, but also earned nominations for a Swedish Grammy and a Manifestgalan prize, annually presented by SOM (Svenska oberoende musikproducenter), the world’s oldest indie label association. During the past 4 years the band has played a decent number of special gigs - including performances at the legendary Roadburn Festival in Holland, as well as several support concerts for worldwide favorites Ghost.
[2016] serves up three brand new, lengthy tracks, and finishes off with a blinding cover of legendary British progressive rockers Atomic Rooster’s classic ”Death Walks Behind You”. The album sees the return of both Johansson and Wiberg, with an even more remarkable result — those who appreciated [2012] will love [2016]. The new album is by no means just a repetition of a previously successful recipe. With its classic yet new take on the band’s trademark sound, [2016] will appeal also to those who enjoyed the band’s earlier work, as well as a brand new audience.
Stream/Buy/Download || Facebook
Switchblade [2016]:
· Johan Folkesson - guitar
· Tim Bertilsson - drums
with
· Per Wiberg - hammond, mellotron, piano
· David Johansson - vocals
ONEIROGEN (US) "CONVIVIUM"
[CD|LP|Digital],
RD: June 3rd, 2016
"Convivium" is Mario Diaz de Leon's third album under his ONEIROGEN alias, and follows the "Plenitude" EP, released in 2015. It was developed over a period of two and a half years, primarily through live performance in the metal and noise underground of NYC. Like its predecessor, the album's core instrumentation is an array of hypnotic synthesizer riffs, pummeling percussion, distorted vocals, and surging noise. With "Convivum", Diaz de Leon has crafted a powerful and singular work of heavy electronic music.
A charged sense of anticipation permeates the music, sustaining tension and mystery through spans of repetition and moments of rupture. The songs build towards hedonistic climaxes, which yield to sparse, expansive passages in which every sonic detail is vividly heard. Inspired in part by Bataille's "Erotism", which connects the "rupture of boundaries" common to sex, mystical ecstasy and ritual sacrifice, as well as the work of psychologist Stanislov Grof on the impacts of birth trauma on the human psyche, "Convivium" is an incantatory journey through primal and dark creative forces.
The artistic output of Mario Diaz de Leon spans a wide range. In addition to his work as Oneirogen, he is highly active as a composer of modern classical music (with a 2016 commission from the LA Philharmonic and releases on Tzadik and Denovali), and is the frontman of Luminous Vault, his recently formed death metal band. Envisioning all of his activity as part of a spiritual practice, he considers Oneirogen to be the most personal side of his work.
"It's just me producing everything, and of course I perform it alone as well." he explains. "Each album is a kind of personal trial or rite of passage. As someone who also works in the classical tradition, I think of them as my symphonies. Its a project where i'm open to all my influences, and i'm entering into mystery and the unknown, battling to carve essences out of formlessness."
Stream/Buy/Download || Facebook
ON TOUR
23.06.16 Brooklyn (usa) - Trans Pecos
SWITCHBLADE (SE) "[2016]"
[CD|LP|Digital],
RD: June 3rd, 2016
"[2016]"is the follow-up to Switchblade's Swedish Grammy Award nominated and critically acclaimed "[2012]" album. On "[2016]", the 7th album, the band has once again taken one step forward and two steps back with a slightly different approach to their minimalistic doom by turning up the tempo, adding more melodies and a lot more textures.
In its nineteenth year of existence, Swedish band Switchblade is ready to unleash its brand new album [2016]. Core duo Tim Bertilsson (drums) and Johan Folkesson (guitars) once again teamed up with sound wizard Karl Daniel Lidén — whose services already have been used by The Ocean, Katatonia, Greenleaf and many more — to create yet another 40 minute slab of their unique proggy doom. Switchblade’s last effort, [2012], included guest appearances by Kongh frontman David Johansson, keyboardist Per Wiberg who has played with bands like Opeth and Candlemass, and Katatonia vocalist Jonas Renkse. The outcome was an album that not only received rave reviews, but also earned nominations for a Swedish Grammy and a Manifestgalan prize, annually presented by SOM (Svenska oberoende musikproducenter), the world’s oldest indie label association. During the past 4 years the band has played a decent number of special gigs - including performances at the legendary Roadburn Festival in Holland, as well as several support concerts for worldwide favorites Ghost.
[2016] serves up three brand new, lengthy tracks, and finishes off with a blinding cover of legendary British progressive rockers Atomic Rooster’s classic ”Death Walks Behind You”. The album sees the return of both Johansson and Wiberg, with an even more remarkable result — those who appreciated [2012] will love [2016]. The new album is by no means just a repetition of a previously successful recipe. With its classic yet new take on the band’s trademark sound, [2016] will appeal also to those who enjoyed the band’s earlier work, as well as a brand new audience.
Stream/Buy/Download || Facebook
Switchblade [2016]:
· Johan Folkesson - guitar
· Tim Bertilsson - drums
with
· Per Wiberg - hammond, mellotron, piano
· David Johansson - vocals
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