Jethro Tull’s relationship with the Christmas season goes all the way back to the legendary band’s early days. Now it’s to be renewed for modern-day admirers and longtime fans alike, with the release of an expanded and remixed edition of 2003’s The Jethro Tull Christmas Album via InsideOutMusic on December 6th, 2024.
With the release just around the corner, the 2024 remix of the track ‘Jack Frost and Hooded Crow’ has been launched on digital services. Newly mixed by Bruce Soord (The Pineapple Thief), you can listen to it now here:
Under the title ‘The Jethro Tull Christmas Album – Fresh Snow At Christmas’, the bands 21st studio album has been remixed from the original masters by Bruce Soord (The Pineapple Thief), as well as being given the surround sound treatment in both Dolby Atmos & 5.1. The limited deluxe 4CD + Blu-ray book-set collection features all-new artwork, as well as live material, and includes the following across its 5 discs.
CD1: Original Album Mixes CD2: 2024 Remixes by Bruce Soord CD3: Christmas Live At St. Bride’s 2008 (newly remixed by Bruce Soord) CD4: The Ian Anderson Band Live At St. Bride’s 2006 (previously unreleased) Blu-ray: Dolby Atmos, 5.1 Surround Sound & High Resolution Stereo Mixes of The Jethro Tull Christmas Album, as well as High Resolution Stereo Mixes of both live recordings
As well as this, the album will be released on vinyl for the very first time, as a Gatefold 180g 2LP featuring the 2024 remixes. Pre-orders are available now here: https://jethrotullband.lnk.to/JethroTullChristmasAlbum
The Jethro Tull Christmas Album was much praised on first release, with Rolling Stone noting admiringly: “The originals simmer with eccentric, eclectic, folky energy, rocking ditties threaded through with Celtic stylings, jazzy undercurrents, Ian Anderson’s distinctive flute and wry humour.” Allmusic called it “perhaps the most satisfying Tull releases in 25 years.”
It included new interpretations of no fewer than seven Tull songs, including their first to be inspired by the holiday, 1968’s much-loved ‘A Christmas Song.’ That Anderson composition, which opened with lyrics interpolated from ‘Once in Royal David’s City,’ was the B-side of the band’s first UK chart single, ‘Love Story.’
“Some of the tracks are not necessarily Christmas songs; they’re more seasonal so that gives a broader window,” says Ian. “And then there are a couple of them that I quite often play in the middle of summer and say, ‘It’ll soon be Christmas – it’s in the diary. So let’s kick it off now.’ And that’s part of what I’ve done over the years since October of 1968 when I went into record ‘A Christmas Song. ‘So, yes – it goes back a long way.”
‘A Christmas Song’ was joined on the album by reworkings of such pieces as Tull’s 1976 festive hit ‘Ring Out Solstice Bells’; ‘Weathercock,’ first heard on 1978’s Heavy Horses; and ‘Another Christmas Song,’ from 1989’s Rock Island. Also among the re-recordings was J.S. Bach’s ‘Bourrée”, another longtime live favourite, inimitably imagined by Ian.
“Part of the joy of redoing those things,” he says, “is that you can…not necessarily recreate, but you can keep all the essential elements of the song and maybe declutter it a little bit and give it a fresh look, but essentially still staying faithful to the original arrangements.”
The Jethro Tull Christmas Album was their last studio set to feature longtime guitarist Martin Barre, who composed its pretty closing instrumental ‘A Winter Snowscape.’ Also featured on the album were keyboard and accordion player Andrew Giddings, bassist Jonathan Noyce and drummers Doane Perry and James Duncan. Anderson compositions making their debut included the opening ‘Birthday Card At Christmas’ and ‘First Snow On Brooklyn,’ while traditional pieces such as ‘God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen’ and ‘We Five Kings’ were interpreted alongside Fauré’s ‘Pavane.’
The song “LOVE CRAFT” is track 10 of 10 stellar compositions on CLOUD OVER JUPITER’s fourth studio release, Atomic Jupiter, out now via Melodic Revolution Records. Led by multi-instrumentalist Jerry King and featuring long-time Jupiter member Michele King, the music boldly explores the future of progressive rock, moving from lush orchestrations to unveiling a mesmerizing sonic world filled with Lovecraftian horrors.
Production Notes: The album was arranged and written by Jerry King, with this track co-written by Jerry King, Michele King, and Dave Newhouse. Performers include Fred Hodshon on bass and synth bass, George Newhouse on drums and percussion, Michele King on vocals, Dave Newhouse on lyrics, vocals, keys, horns, and synths, and Jerry King on all guitars.
Produced and arranged by Jerry King, Atomic Jupiter was mixed and mastered at The Rec. Room by Ian Beabout. The album features striking artwork by Dan Sauer Design and is dedicated to the memory of Ric Parnell, who passed away in May 2022.
{The video, created by Thornswrath, utilizes NASA imagery through their Creative Commons distribution. All still images are courtesy of NASA/public domain/Creative Commons license, with animated sequences generated on DDG by Shaun Lawton’s Deep Dreamer. Special thanks to Jerry King for the opportunity to create a video that elevates the music to a new dimension. Stay tuned for the next video!}
Jainism’ is taken from the upcoming new album ‘PowerNerd’ by Devin Townsend – ‘
Devin Townsend’s career is one of many distinct eras. He’s been the leader of Strapping Young Lad, the lynchpin of the Devin Townsend Project and the co-architect of country duo Casualties of Cool, all while maintaining his prolific and lauded solo project. Now, the polymath’s newest era starts with PowerNerd: a succinct but still progressive record that pulls from its mastermind’s childhood love of vintage rock.
From the moment the title track ignites the record with a roar of “PowerNerd!”, Devin’s 28th studio project is a gallop of melody, noise and emotion. The opener and “Knuckledragger” are all-out, high-speed rampages, their impact intensified by their central figure’s signature ‘wall of sound’ production style. However, that aggression is far from the only thing to come from Powernerd’s 11 episodic tracks. “Dreams of Light”, by comparison, is an evocative and dynamic four-minute ballad. “Younger Lover” calms down from an explosive opening to lush verses of synths and singing, whereas “Falling Apart” and “Jainism” add texture after texture on top of dulcet, acoustic introductions. With each song also having an irresistible hook at its heart, Devin has undeniably crafted a soulful instant classic of a rock record.
Track listing:
PowerNerd
Falling Apart
Knuckledragger
Gratitude
Dreams of Light
Ubelia
Jainism
Younger Lover
Glacier
Goodbye
Ruby Quaker
‘PowerNerd’ is available as a Limited 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook (incl. bonus tracks, Dolby Atmos & High-Resolution Stereo Mixes), Ltd 2CD Digipak in O-Card (incl. bonus tracks), Standard CD Jewelcase & Gatefold 180g LP + LP-booklet, as well as digitally in stereo & Dolby Atmos.
‘PowerNerd’ will be available in several different formats, including a Limited 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook (featuring the album, bonus tracks and Devin’s first-ever Dolby Atmos mix), Limited 2CD Digipak in O-card, Standard CD, Gatefold 2LP & Digital Album.
PowerNerd’ will be available in several different formats, including a Limited 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook (featuring the album, bonus tracks and Devin’s first-ever Dolby Atmos mix), Limited 2CD Digipak in O-card, Standard CD, Gatefold 2LP & Digital Album.
Swedish metal veterans EVERGREY, known for their dark and profound compositions, have unveiled a haunting new video for their captivating song “Ominous”. The song is cut from their latest and highly acclaimed chart-topping opus, ‘A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament)’, which entered the charts worldwide at #3 in Sweden (Metal), #5 in the United States (Top New Artist Albums), #7 in Finland, and #12 in Germany. The gripping new visual for “Ominous” marks the closure of this chapter, while EVERGREY is more than ready to head into new sonic adventures.
EVERGREY’s journey shows no sign of slowing down – their new album will be released this year. Stay tuned for more exciting news coming soon!
Throughout over 30 years of existence, Gothenburg’s finest export of darkness has gathered numerous worldwide chart positions with thirteen studio albums in total and has enthralled fans around the globe. The band, centered around mastermind Tom S. Englund, has been a consistent presence in the metal scene, leaving an indelible mark with their powerful performances, also appearing at renowned festivals such as Wacken Open Air, Bloodstock, Summer Breeze, and Graspop.
EVERGREY states:
“This is the last song to be released as a stunning feature film-like video from the ‘Heartless Portrait‘ album, however, it is at the same time also the beginning. This will become much clearer VERY soon! Stay excited! :D”
Watch the enchanting official video for “Ominous”
‘A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament)’, the follow-up to the unit’s highly successful 2021 full-length, ‘Escape of the Phoenix’ (which landed at numerous chart positions worldwide), reveals a 10 track mélange of which every note, every riff and every word seeps pure poetry – creating a ceaseless intensity that mesmerizes from the very first second.
‘A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament)’ was recorded at Top Floor Studios Gothenburg, engineered by Jakob Herrman, and produced by Tom S. Englund and Jonas Ekdahl, with mixing and mastering by Jacob Hansen at Hansen Studios (Volbeat, Destruction, Epica and many more), whereas the hauntingly beautiful album artwork was conjured by Giannis Nakos at Remedy Art Design. Nakos is known for creating artworks for acts like Oceans Of Slumber, Amaranthe, The Agonist, and The Crown as well as merchandise for Morbid Angel, Suffocation, and Cryptopsy – just to name a few.
Artwork by Giannis Nakos, Remedy Art Design
‘A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament)’ is a striking testament to the fact that while the Swedish five-piece doesn’t need to prove anything to anyone at this phase, they still impressively showcase that their creativity sees no bounds – dropping yet another sensation within their impressive catalog!
‘A Heartless Portrait(The Orphean Testament)’Track List:
The band originally began developing “Your Song” during the making of their award-winning debut, “The Sky Is Falling,” but the song wasn’t completed in time for the making of that record. Hardcore fans of the band may notice that the ballad actually carries forward a musical theme from the first album to the next, as the intention was for the ballad to connect musically with the former record’s instrumental piece, “In the Air.” Today, Days Before Tomorrow performs those two musical pieces together, live in concert.
Lyrically, “Your Song” was born out of a snarky comment made to Scott by a girlfriend many years ago: “Why don’t you write any songs for me?” Thus was born the idea to write her a love song, but since she enjoyed ribbing Scott about it, he decided to have some fun and turn it into a song for world peace as well. Why should she have the entire song to herself, after all?
“Your Song” can be found on the band’s latest release Now and Then Part II: Stories and Dreams which was released on 10/20/2023 and is available on CD, Digital, and streaming.
All Music By Days Before Tomorrow All Lyrics Eric Klein except “Your Song” by Scott Kahn Mastered By: George Keller
Mixed by James Linton (Bobby Kimball).
Days Before Tomorrow Eric Klein: vocals Scott Kahn: guitars, backing vocals Derek Davodowich: guitars, backing vocals John Gale: keyboards, backing vocals Matt Maldonado: drums Jacob Asbury: bass, vocals
Previous Releases
The Sky Is Falling (2009) Days Before Tomorrow (2006)
Massimo Pieretti’s new single “Creatures of the Night, part.2” will be released on Monday 12 February 2024.
The single will pave the way for the new album by the Roman multi-instrumentalist and composer entitled “The Next Dream” a concept album set in the world of dreams, of the creatures that inhabit them, and with imaginary connections with current society. Prestigious Italian and international guests will be part of the project including John Hackett, Rob Townsend, Laura Piazzai, Attilio Virgilio, Simone Cozzetto, Nick Fletcher, Jean Luc Payssan, Mattias Olsson, and all the members of Noage.
Listen here
Featuring Laura Piazzai – Lead Vocals, Claudio Milano – Background vocals Nick Fletcher, Attilio Virgilio – El.Guitars Lisa Green – Violin, Gianni Pieri – Cello Billy Allen – El. Bass Mattias Olsson – Drums and percussions Massimo Pieretti – El.piano, Hammond organ & Synths
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