Made up of front man/guitarist Paul Bearer, drummer Chris Bassett and new addition, Clint Rater on bass, Funeral Horse return to the fold this June with a brand-new studio album; their third in the canon for the Houston-based record label, Artificial Head Records.

Catching up on almost three years in the wilderness since the release of their 2015’s stoned-opus, Divinity For The Wicked, Psalms For The Mourning finds the industrious Texan trio revamping the thunderous doom-pop and hard rock that secured their cult status amidst the current crop of underground US rock. As an aural monument for the maligned, Divinity… made several inroads into the media with positive reviews from the likes of Terrorizer and Decibel, but here on Psalms For The Mourning, Funeral Horse serve up a true rock ‘n’ roll sermon for the masses. It’s an album that’s positively waiting to be picked up and played by those that have chosen their whole lives to turn on, tune in and drop out in pursuit of volume.

Amid a mass brawl of fresh proto-metal riffs, warped vocals, neo-folk and red eyed ’80s post-hardcore punk, under the influence of bands such as The Melvins, Led Zeppelin, Kyuss and Harvey Milk, the sonic experimentation Funeral Horse found on previous albums remains, but is now deeply woven into their songs and not separated into stand-alone pieces. This is music to gouge minds to. From the seemingly/misleadingly upbeat opener ‘Better Half of Nothing’, to the brooding and bold ‘No Greater Sorrow (Than My Love)’ and outright brutality of ‘Sacrifice of A Thousand Ships’, the band opens its doors once more to an even wider world of distortions and digressions.

“We took more time writing and recording this material, taking in the turmoil from touring and personal conflicts and the loss of some good friends along the way,” explains front man Paul Bearer. “We’ve kept to the roots of who we are but the band’s tours in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and Mexico last year was another big factor in the amount of care and time we took with the album. Those tours exposed us to some amazing bands and people who have helped to share in what the band is today.”

LIVE DATES:

16/6 – RECORD RELEASE SHOW: Spruce Goose Social Flyers Club – Houston, TX
17/6 – RECORD RELEASE SHOW: Antone’s Record Shop – Austin, TX
20/6  – 524 Studios – Baton Rouge, LA
21/6 – Hops and Habanas – Jackson, MS
22/6 – Old Nicks – Birmingham, AL
23/6 – Autograph Rehearsal Studio – Murfreesboro, TN
24/6 – Hot Springs Event Centre – Hot Springs, AR
7/7 – ARTIFICIAL HEAD RECORDS SHOWCASE: The Almighty Moontower Inn – Houston, TX

Psalms For The Mourning by Funeral Horse is released worldwide on 15th June via Artificial Head Records – Pre-order now at artificialheadrecords.bandcamp.com. Stream and share new song ‘Burial Under The Sun’ below:

While still relatively new to the fold, Los Angeles-based dirt metal outfit Aboleth was founded in 2016 by guitarist Collyn McCoy (Trash Titan, The Ultra Electric Mega Galactic) and 21-year-old, whisky-throated vocalist Brigitte Roka.

The release of their debut EP that summer saw them arrive not only as a band to watch but quite simply a bande à part. As potential game changers, with an impressive, shapeshifting approach to heavy rock; sludge and swamp blues, their wide range of influences and technical diligence marked them out early on as the missing link between Acid Bath and Lightnin’ Hopkins.

“We’re metalheads who love the blues, and this band got stuck in a limbo between both,” explains Roka, who originally began working with McCoy in his previous outfit The Ultra Electric Mega Galactic. “This made writing really fun because we ended up creating a new cohesive sound that comes from many different influences. It’s heavy, it’s grungy, it’s folky, it’s even got Satan and witchcraft, and that whole ‘selling your soul at a desert crossroads’ vibe…”

As McCoy expands, “It’s on our new record where I think we really found our voice. It happened organically, too. As we were writing new songs, that was the material we connected with the most. That said it’s still very heavy, but in a way that compliments Brigitte’s natural grit and soul and reflects our love for the blues and desert rock.”

Signed and produced by the multi-platinum/Grammy-nominated producer, Ulrich Wild (Dethklok, Pantera, Deftones, Static-X) to his WURMgroup record label, two years on and Aboleth now find themselves patiently waiting in the wings with their first full-length album. Due for release this May, Benthos is a record as ambitious as it is imposing and one that makes absolutely no concessions to the casual listener. With enough power to move mountains, Roka’s striking vocals transform her into a siren in sound, and one whose hellacious wails are able to summon the sleeping spirts of Janis Joplin and Chris Cornell. While the driving hard rock tones and Tectonic-grinding riffs from McCoy and his famed “Baguitar” – a bass/guitar hybrid which offers the lows of the former and the highs of the latter – are quite simply not of this world.

“Essentially, I wanted to be Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill at the same time,” he points out. “And not just in terms of facial hair. I wanted the thick, primal sound of a swampy bass and a gritty guitar moving in lockstep.”

Without ever truly securing the services of a regular drummer, a chance meeting one night after a show in a Long Beach dive bar found them procuring the percussive talents of none other than German multi-instrumentalist Marco Minnemann (Steven Wilson, Joe Satriani, Necrophagist) whose contribution to Benthos extends from first to last beat. Going into 2018 however, with a new record and an extensive tour (which kicks off this May), Aboleth have at last welcomed into the fold an enigmatic new fixture, Boll3t, a monster drummer hailing from Brazil.

With the US tour scheduled throughout May/June (see tour dates below) in support of the new album, fans can pre-order a copy of Benthos by Aboleth ahead of its official release on 25th May 2018 via WURMgroup Records here – Digital | CD/LP

In the meantime, you can steam and share new their brand new single ‘Fork In The Road’ below:

TOUR DATES:

5/11 – Cincinnati, OH – The Venue Center
5/13 – Braidwood, IL – Top Fuel Saloon
5/14 – Des Moines, IA – Vaudeville Mews
5/15 – Minneapolis, MN – Lee’s Liquor Lounge
5/16 – Sioux Falls, SD – Bigs Bar
5/18 – Lewiston, ID – 3rd Wheel
5/19 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Loading Dock
5/20 – Denver, CO – The Roxy Theater
5/21 – Kansas City, MO – The Riot Room
5/22 – Oklahoma City, OK – Kendells
5/23 – St. Louis, MO – Fubar
5/24 – Clarksville, TN – The Warehouse
5/25 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade
5/26 – Orlando, FL – The Haven
5/27 – Margate, FL – O’Malleys
5/28 – Greenville, SC – The Radio Room
5/29 – Fayetteville, NC – Drunk Horse Pub
5/30 – Brooklyn, NY – The Kingsland
5/31 – Pittsburgh, PA – The Smiling Moose
6/1 – Toledo, OH – New Longhorn Saloon
6/3 – Westland, MI – Token Lounge