Release:
Label: Gates Of Hell Records
14.04.2023
Info:
The highly-anticipated sophomore album from Philadelphia true metal warriors! BLAZON RITE returns with "Wild Rites and Ancient Songs", a highly memorable, melody-laden, anthem-rousing display of classic metal!
The dust hadn’t even settled on the recording process for BLAZON RITE’s "Endless Halls of Golden Totem" debut album when the band decided to keep writing. The reasoning was simple: Founding member and guitarist James Kirn obsesses over song ideas. Once an idea is formulated in his head, seeing it all the way through is paramount, no matter the proximity to completing a previous studio album. Therefore, the ideas came quickly and fast for Kirn and lead guitarist Pierson Roe for what eventually became their sophomore full-length, "Wild Rites and Ancient Songs". But make no mistake — this is not "Endless Halls" redux, but a more direct and catchy offering of classic metal.
Kirn wanted to write a more concise album to balance something new while maintaining the sonic trademarks that won so many over on "Endless Halls". The ultimate goal, Kirn explains, is to “produce an album that stands the test of time.” "Wild Rites and Ancient Songs" should do just that. It’s buoyed by the band’s now-patented array of twin guitar harmonies and the identifiable vocals of Johnny Halladay. This recipe reaps immediate rewards, whether on the boundless opener “Autumn Fear Brings Winter Doom,” the soft touch employed on “The Fall of a Once Great House” or the speedy “Troubadours of the Final Quarter".
While a staple of BLAZON RITE’s sound, the dueling guitar harmonies are used tastefully across "Wild Rites and Ancient Songs". Kirn says the band is always mindful of the matter and is often tempted to overdo them, but common sense usually prevails. On the same level, Halladay’s emergence as a singular vocal force couldn’t be more evident. Halladay isn’t a basic run-of-the-mill classic metal vocalist. His personality and swagger — best exemplified on “Salvage What You Can of the Night” and “Mark of the Stormborn Riders” — is yet another identifier for BLAZON RITE that sets the band apart.
The lyrical themes on "Wild Rites and Ancient Songs" provide an escape from the real world. For the second consecutive album, BLAZON RITE has created moods and landscapes that the listener can use to their imagination. (The band even did their own rendition of a Christmas song, “The Coming Tide of Yule.”) And BLAZON RITE again tapped Matt Stikker for the cover art to properly visualize their world.
Whatever expectations heaped upon BLAZON RITE after the success of "Endless Halls" are boiled down to the main reason why Kirn and his bandmates write and record heavy metal music. There are no ulterior motives, just allowing listeners to bask in the time-honored tradition of listening to a killer metal album, something Kirn stridently believes in: “We want people to drop the needle, head-bang, look at the cool artwork and be immersed in a metal fantasy for the duration of the record. People should be able to listen to this album again and again, knowing we tried our best to defend the faith.”
"Salvage What You Can of the Night" - Official Track Stream: https://youtu.be/Nori5AQzqjQ
Tracklist:
1. Autumn Fear Brings Winter Doom
2. Salvage What You Can of the Night
3. The Fall of a Once Great House
4. Mark of the Stormborn Raiders
5. Wild Rites and Ancient Songs
6. Troubadours of the Final Quarrel
7. The Coming Tide of Yule
Line-up:
Johnny Halladay – Vocals
James Kirn – Guitar
Pierson Roe –Lead guitar
Devin Graham - Bass
Ryan Haley - Drums
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