 Release:
Testimony Records
13.06.2025
Info:
A brutal war is raging between the forces of ancient superstition and scientific enlightenment: NIGHTBEARER are leading the charge with their crushing third full-length "Defiance". The German death dealers from the City of Paderborn in Eastern Westphalia have hammered out an album that retains their signature HM-2 chainsaw guitar sound and also maintains their unapologetic love for melodic death metal of the Swedish kind.
"Defiance" also marks another step in the careful but steady evolution of their sound by adding a black passage here and a doom-spiced moment there to their old school sound. The result is an overall much more atmospheric album, which perfectly suits its lyrical concept. The album is directly inspired by the renowned "His Dark Materials" trilogy of books by English author Sir Philip Pullman. The lyrics introduce key characters and events in the plot that revolves on a deeper level of meaning around humanity's emancipation from oppression by religion. NIGHTBEARER defiantly engage with the resistance to bring about Enlightenment 2.0.
When NIGHTBEARER were formed by vocalist Michael Torka and guitarist Dominik Hellmuth in 2017, they were driven by a fervent love for old-school death metal and its golden age in the glorious 1990s. Yet nearly two decades later, the Germans saw plenty of good reasons not to dwell too much on gore and splatter as that had already been done ad nauseam. Instead, they followed their second passion for literature, particularly of the fantasy, grimdark, and horror genres including such classic authors as J.R.R. Tolkien, H.P. Lovecraft, Robert Jordan, and Philip Pullman.
Their first public sign of live was the 5-track EP "Stories from Beyond", which was released on June 30, 2018. With a ton of positive feedback under their belts, NIGHTBEARER felt encouraged to evolve from a duo into a full band with the aid of musician friends from the wider area of their hometown Paderborn. Their debut full-length album "Tales of Sorcery and Death" (2019) immediately scored a top ten position (#8) in the soundcheck of Germany Rock Hard magazine and was generally very well received.
With their sophomore studio album "Ghosts of a Darkness to Come" (2022), NIGHTBEARER expanded their lyrical theme to conceptual size by taking their listeners on a journey into the bloody, dark, and deadly events of the late Robert Jordan's epic saga 'The Wheel of Time'. Backed by the success, the Germans began to deliver powerful performances at notable festivals such as Metal Diver Festival and Party.San Herbstoffensive.
NIGHTBEARER display a perfect sense of timing by offering their third and most complete full-length to date that is based on the "His Dark Materials" trilogy to the world right now in a death metal act of "Defiance"!
Cover artwork by Timon Kokott.
"His Dark Materials" - Official Music Video: https://youtu.be/U5Zh5HcyY1k
Tracklist:
01. Dust
02. His Dark Materials
03. Defiance
04. One Church over All
05. Dying Knows No Bounds
06. Reign Supreme
07. Under the Sun of War
08. Ascension
09. Until We Meet Again
10. Republic of Heaven
Line-up:
Michael Torka - Vocals
Dominik Hellmuth - Lead Guitar
Tristan Schubert - Rhythm Guitar
Florian Böhmfeld - Bass
Manuel Lüke - Drums
|
