Casandra’s Crossing, the new musical alliance of guitar legend George Lynch and powerhouse singer Casandra Carson shares ‘Closer to Heaven,’ the third single from their forthcoming album, Garden of Earthly Delights, out October 25 via Frontiers Music Srl. Casandra comments on ‘Closer to Heaven’: “To me, ‘Closer to Heaven’ is a prayer. I likened my experience in the music industry to the story of Jack and the Beanstalk. I put my faith in these magic beans (my songs), hoping they will grow to be fruitful and provide shelter and nourishment for me and my family. Of course, that comes with people thinking you’re crazy, too! Ultimately, I feel that I’m on the right path, so this song was like a cry out to God for some kind of miracle to happen in my career to take me to the next level.”
The first single and title track from Flummox‘s new album, ‘Southern Progress,’ is out npw via Needlejuice Records. Their sound often described as genrefluid, Flummox runs metal’s sonic gamut, blending prog, doom, thrash, symphonic thrash, mathcore and blackened death metal with a healthy dose of Mr. Bungle-style eccentricity. New single ‘Southern Progress’—the title track from the queer / transfemme Nashville band’s forthcoming album (out spring 2025 on Needlejuice Records)—follows suit as a jaw-dropping mission statement, taking everything Flummox does well, smashing it together in a particle collider and cranking the volume. “I usually work on my songs for months, even years before completion,” says bassist / lead singer Alyson Blake Dellinger. “But with ‘Southern Progress’ I wrote the majority of the arrangement in half an hour. Sonically, it encompasses the entire new album in the way we shift genres, and how intense and in-your-face the music is, while also being subtle where it needs to be.” “It’s very bombastic,” says guitarist Max Mobarry. “This song was our clear choice for a lead single. It just lays waste to everything; it’s a portent of the madness to come as the record unfolds—four solid minutes that represent how far we’ve come as a band.” Lyrically, ‘Southern Progress’ is a scathing, autobiographical song about personal development and musical & spiritual growth. “The song plays into this rock-star trope,” Dellinger says, “while also pointing the finger back at myself and asking, ‘Don’t you think it’s a little cringe, the way you represent yourself?’ A lot of what we do is very queer and, unfortunately, autobiographical. Southern progress is a flip on the fact that I’m from the South, that this is a Southern band, and we’re progressing not just musically, but also spiritually and within our own character development.”
AD INFINITUM have released a new music video. The new music video, for the track ‘Follow Me Down’, is taken from the Swiss/German symphonic metal band’s upcoming new album, Abyss, which is scheduled to be released tomorrow, via Napalm Records. Speaking about the new song, the band shares, “Abyss is just around the corner, and we’ve got one more treat before the big day, which we are excited to share: ‘Follow Me Down’ – an energetic song that will have its debut on stage tomorrow!” [via Distorted Sound]
ELEINE have released a new music video. The new music video, for the track ‘Never Forget’, is taken from the Swedish symphonic metal band’s latest studio album, We Shall Remain, which was released in July last year, via Atomic Fire Records. Speaking about the new music video, frontwoman Madeleine Liljestam and guitarist/vocalist Rikard Ekberg says, “after the latest album We Shall Remain was released and we have been touring, it became clear to us that we wanted a proper music video for the song ‘Never Forget’ that is a powerhouse itself. We are celebrating 10 years as a band this year, and we have just started our first own headliner tour that is going better than our expectations – so why not celebrate this with an epic music video in the spirit of ELEINE? We hope our fans enjoy it and feel the empowerment we want to bring with this song!” [via Distorted Sound]
M-Theory Audio has announced the signing of gothic extreme metal band Aversed, an artist the label has monitored in recent years as a potential candidate to join their roster. “Upon hearing an early preview of their latest album, we knew the time was now as the Massachusetts based band has captured their best sounding, most mature, technical, catchiest and uniquely their own material to date,” says M-Theory. “We are excited to officially announce our partnership with the M-Theory Records team! With ‘Cross To Bear’, we begin our journey leading up to the release of our new album, Erasure Of Color on March 21, 2025,” states drummer Jeff Saltzman. “Thanks to everyone who has supported up to this point and for joining us in these next steps!” Aversed and M-Theory Audio now present you with new music in the form of first single ‘Cross To Bear’, and its accompanying music video. Aversed weave wondrous awe with righteous anger across ‘Cross To Bear’, see for yourself. “Navigating the hurt, loss and betrayal of life’s trials and tribulations is our ‘Cross To Bear’. There are so many people we’ve hurt (or vice versa), whether intentional or not,” explains guitarist and songwriter Sungwoo Jeong. “We must always reflect on the consequences of our own actions as they affect those around us, and ourselves. You can die tomorrow and it can be too late to right your wrongs.” [via Brave New Words]
French heavy metal act MYSTERY BLUE has announced their brand new album, Night Demon, for a release on December 6 via Massacre Records. Listen to a first song appetizer, the rousing ‘Skulls From Hell’. [via Metal Shock Finland]
