Sonic Perspectives

The multi-talented Snowy Shaw has been called a “worldwide underground superstar.” After more than 30 years of touring the world, he has earned himself a rock-solid reputation as one of the most hard-working, multifaceted “art-ist” with loads of groundbreaking creativity and integrity. In 2018, his highly acclaimed solo debut “White Is The New Black” received [...] The post SNOWY SHAW Reflects on “The Book of Heavy Metal” Autobiography: “In Order To Get It Right, I Needed To Relive The Whole Thing: Dark Periods, Joyous Moments – It Was A Cathartic Experience” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

In 2013 a brand-new progressive rock band named Sound of Contact released the fastest selling debut album ever on the Inside Out Music label: “Dimensionaut”. Their lead singer and drummer, Simon Collins, had a familiar surname to fans of prog-rock and they soon came to discover that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. [...] The post SIMON COLLINS Talks New Album “Becoming Human” and Inspiration Behind it: “I’m Writing Songs About Who I’m Striving to Be, Not Just Writing Songs About Who I Am” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

The Ocean, the progressive and post-metal band, is set to release their new album “Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic | Cenozoic” on September 25th through Metal Balde Records (CD / digital) and the band´s Pelagic Records (vinyl). Such album will conclude the Phanerozoic journey initiated by the band’s previous record, with a bolder, more experimental, darker, and more progressive musical direction.  The result [...] The post ROBIN STAPS of THE OCEAN discusses new album “Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic | Cenozoic”: ‘Everybody Has to Find Relevance In Music, Art, Lyrics, Find Relevance To Their Own Lives.’ appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

From his beginning as part of the Shrapnel Records cast to his explorations into hard rock with “Howe II”, and playing with artists such as Enrique Iglesias, Michael Jackson and N’Sync, Greg Howe seems determined to challenge the norm and to take roads less traveled. His unique style separated him from the usual “endless shredding” [...] The post Legendary Guitarist GREG HOWE Reflects About His Career and Inspiration: “The Compositions Mean a Lot More to Me Than the Solos When I Write an Album” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

A name eponymous with the dawn of extreme folk metal itself, Finntroll are poised to impress with their return album “Vredesvävd.” Seven years of studio silence were offset by filling those years with intensive touring, including top festival placements across Europe with folk metal compatriots including Korpiklaani, Ensiferum, and Turisas. Headlining tours celebrated both their [...] The post FINNTROLL Vocalist VRETH On Upcoming Album “Vredesvavd”: “FINNTROLL Has Always Been About Doing Exactly What We Want… To Go Beyond What Is Accepted By The Genre” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Death metal band Kataklysm will be releasing their fourteenth studio album “Unconquered” on September 25th, following two years after their prior album “Meditations.” With the band’s 30th anniversary just around the corner in 2021, “Unconquered” brings a greater sense of aggression than the band’s prior work while maintaining their unmistakable signatures. Still retaining two of [...] The post KATAKLYSM Vocalist MAURIZIO IACONO Talks Creation of “Unconquered” Upcoming Album: ‘It’s More About Challenging Ourselves Now and Doing Better and Better” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Having first emerged from the Bay Area thrash scene in 1984 alongside the likes of Exodus and Testament, Heathen is preparing to release their fourth full-length album “Empire of the Blind” on September 18th through Nuclear Blast Records, following more than ten years after their third album “The Evolution of Chaos.” Heathen is no stranger [...] The post HEATHEN Guitarist KRAGEN LUM Talks Writing For Upcoming “Empire of the Blind”Album: “That Bay Area Thrash Sound is Part of My DNA at This Point” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

“It’s black, it’s death… and it’s incredible,” Cammie Gilbert tells me from somewhere in the city of my birth. You might think she’s describing her band, Oceans of Slumber, or their upcoming eponymous album, or a particular cut on the record. But you’d only be partially correct. She’s actually telling me about the controlled burns prescribed in the [...] The post OCEANS OF SLUMBER Front-woman CAMMIE GILBERT: “I’d Rather Leave a World to No One Than Let These Oppressors Win and Leave a World That’s Corroding.” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

It’s no secret that we at Sonic Perspectives are big fans of keyboardist extraordinaire Derek Sherinian. He was kind enough to give us the details of the first Sons of Apollo album when it came out, and also spoke at length with us during an interview addressing all of his career. Known by his versatility, and [...] The post DEREK SHERINIAN Reflects on His New Solo Album “The Phoenix” and The Philosophy Behind it: “We Kept Things Very Vintage Throughout the Recording Process” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

The Tangent, the progressive group, led by Andy Tillison, is set to release their 11th studio album called “Auto Reconnaissance” on August 21st, 2020 through Inside Out. With their new record, the band continues to demonstrate that there are no limits to its progressive rock cocktail. With an astonishing fluidity, it mixes a plethora of musical ingredients that includes [...] The post ANDY TILLISON of THE TANGENT Discusses “Auto Reconnaissance” Upcoming Album: “I Am Really Writing Musical Questions and Hoping They Will Reach People Who Might Begin to Have Some of the Answers.” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Coming seven years after their last full-length release, thrash metal legends Onslaught will be releasing their seventh studio album on August 7th through AFM Records. “Generation Antichrist” is one of the band’s most brutal offerings yet, inspired by their old-school sound while drawing on the benefits of modern production. Stripped-back and overflowing with aggression, “Generation [...] The post ONSLAUGHT Guitarist NIGE ROCKETT Speaks About Upcoming “Generation Antichrist” Album: “It’s Got A Modern, Very Brutal Production – It’s 1986 Onslaught Meets 2020” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Bassist/vocalist Marcel ‘Schmier’ Schirmer co-founded thrash legends Destruction in Weil am Rhein, Germany, in 1984. Albums such as 1985’s “Infernal Overkill”, 1986’s “Eternal Devastation” and 1987’s “Mad Butcher” EP secured Destruction’s place in the German Big Four alongside countrymen Kreator, Tankard and Sodom. Their latest album “Born To Perish” was released in 2019, and received [...] The post DESTRUCTION Main-man SCHMIER Reflects on Live Album and Band 4-Piece Line-up: “There’s Much More Power In Our Sound Now, And We Have a More Dynamic Stage Presence” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

On June 26th, acclaimed symphonic black metal band Carach Angren released their sixth full-length album “Franckensteina Strataemontanus” to eagerly awaiting fans of horror and extreme metal alike. With their own unique twist on the popular lore of Frankenstein, the Dutch duo step back from the bleak narratives which fueled 2017’s “Dance and Laugh Amongst the [...] The post ARDEK of CARACH ANGREN Chats About New Album “Franckensteina Strataemontanus”: “Hopefully This Will Appeal to More People Outside Our Normal Fanbase” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

The debut release of super-duo Marco Minnemann and Randy McStine offers a densely crafted, hard-hitting album which takes listeners through a range of unexpected directions. When not recording and touring with his main band The Aristocrats or on solo albums, Minnemann is one of the most in-demand drummers in the rock, prog-rock and metal world. [...] The post RANDY MCSTINE and MARCO MINNEMANN Talk New Duo Project: “This Feels Like a True Collaboration, It’s Great to Have a Partner In Crime, to Send Ideas Out and Then It’s Like Waiting For Christmas that Something Comes Back” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Within Temptation has always been a mutant musical entity. From their early material, which had gothic elements, through the incorporation of symphonic metal influences, to the dramatic shift on their latest album “Resist” – read our review here – they never made the same album twice. This formula – or the lack of one thereof [...] The post WITHIN TEMPTATION Singer SHARON DEN ADEL Reflects On Band’s Latest Single and Musical Direction: “Part of Our Fan-base Was Surprised with It, But It Was Logical for Us That We Needed to Change and Evolve” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

After seven full-length albums, Lamb of God has titled their eighth studio record with their own name, suggesting that “Lamb of God” is the statement of a band prepared to fully embrace their place as a veteran metal act. This definitive moment for the group comes in the wake of longtime drummer Chris Adler leaving [...] The post MARK MORTON of LAMB OF GOD Discusses Self-Titled Album: “We Feel Like We Are Still Making Relevant and Inspired Music” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Best known for his longtime role as the lead guitarist and backing vocalist for American metal band Sevendust, 2020 saw Clint Lowery embark on his career as a solo artist with the release of his first album in January. Having previously released solo material under the project Hello Demons Meet Skeletons, “God Bless the Renegades” [...] The post SEVENDUST’s Guitarist CLINT LOWERY Discusses Surprise New EP and Future Solo Career: “I Would Love to Produce Records, to Collaborate with Other Musicians – That’s Where I See Myself Going.” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

June 12th brings another release from Frontiers Records. Magnus Karlsson’s Free Fall the third one under this moniker, is another evidence that Magnus‘ creative well seems endless. Just like the band’s other two releases, it features a long list of special guests on vocals: Ronnie Romero, Dino Jelusick, Noora Louhimo and many others help Magnus [...] The post MAGNUS KARLSSON Reflects About Upcoming Solo Project Album “We Are the Night”: “I Chose Singers That I Truly Love to Sing On This Record” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

With tried and tested metal anthems like “Rebellion (The Clans Are Marching)”, “Excalibur” and many more, Grave Digger are one of the most influential and pioneering bands of the German heavy metal scene since their inception. 2020 brings a relevant milestone in the career of these Teutonic metal masters, as they celebrate their 40th year [...]

For over 25 years California-born but Indiana-based drummer, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Nick D’Virgilio (NDV) has been delighting music fans, first and foremost through his drumming. Having recorded with Genesis, Big Big Train, The Fringe and hundreds of other artists, toured extensively with Tears for Fears, played with Peter Gabriel, and been featured drummer in well [...] The post NICK D’VIRGILIO Talks Upcoming Solo Album “Invisible” and Future Plans: “You’re Going to See and Hear a Lot More of My Own Music in The Next 5 to 10 Years” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.