With their forthcoming 13th studio album, Portuguese dark metal giants Moonspell are approaching their 30th anniversary as a band more ambitiously and stronger than ever. Hermitage will see the light of day on February 26, 2021 via Napalm Records, and invites us on an entertaining and revolutionary journey through the darkest days of human existence.
“Hermitage is an open-hearted invitation to simplicity. To be humble. To be thankful. To serve you solace. Provide you comfort, entertainment,” vocalist Fernando Ribeiro recently said. “We sincerely hope this call reaches you. That you kindly accept what we offer. That you take our music with you to the place you must feel as yours. To your secret place, to your hermitage.”
Both beautifully crafted songs, previously released singles such as “The Greater Good” show us the modernity of the wolves in 2021, while “Common Prayers“ embraces the Moonspell tradition of writing a dark, gothic metal track like no other band can. Now, the band is presenting us a third single ahead of the album release. “All Or Nothing“ brings back the ethereal and melodic sounds of Moonspell served by a beautiful musical landscape, and makes it most likely one of the deepest and most sincerely heart-breaking tunes the Portuguese dark metal titans have ever written.
“The video for ‘All Or Nothing’ was recorded in an empty theatre in Portugal and it’s symbolic of our days,” Ribeiro tells us. “Solitude dominates our lives and we divide our attentions and heartbeats at the groove of darkness and hope. At the mercy of all that can be and the nothing that we have to deal with right now. It’s a song that relies on a more intimate melodic frame, emotional, autobiographic almost, about the joy and the sorrow that is being in a band.”
He continues: “Life is a game you cannot win. You just have to play. Our job is done, we brought you joy. Every now and then.”
Watch the incredible new clip for “All Or Nothing“, directed by Guilherme Henriques and shot at the historical 1908- theatre Chaby Pinheiro in Nazaré, HERE:
Moonspell’s upcoming album Hermitage was recorded, mixed and mastered by Jaime Gomez Arellano (Paradise Lost, Primordial, Ghost, Sólstafir & many more) at the Orgone Studios in the UK. Building upon the album’s dark, revolutionary and sensitive facets, it’s a wonderfully intuitive and epic ride by one of the most distinctive dark metal bands of all time, and a testament to what they’ve always loved the most: Honest, emotional metal that binds us even in the darkest times.
Pre-Order Hermitage HERE!
Hermitage will be available in several highly limited and collectible Deluxe and Die-Hard Editions, Mediabook and Cassette formats – all including the Candlemass cover “Darkness in Paradise” – and also in Jewelcase and Digital formats. The Deluxe Box will also include an etched 7’’ Vinyl with another special bonus track, “The Great Leap Forward”, as well as additional exciting collectible items!
Hermitage tracklisting:
01. The Greater Good
02. Common Prayers
03. All or Nothing
04. Hermitage
05. Entitlement
06. Solitarian
07. The Hermit Saints
08. Apophthegmata
09. Without Rule
10. City Quitter (Outro)
Bonus Tracks:
11. Darkness in Paradise (Candlemass Cover – LP, Box, MC + Mediabook)
12. The Great Leap Forward (7″ Vinyl – Deluxe Box)
Moonspell is:
Fernando Ribeiro – Vocals
Ricardo Amorim – Guitar, Backing Vocals
Pedro Paixão – Keys, Guitar
Aires Pereira – Bass
Hugo Ribeiro – Drums
Artist photo by Rui Vasco
Press release courtesy of Freeman Promotions / Napalm Records
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