Artist: MACHINE HEAD
Album: CATHARSIS VINYL (2LP BLACK)

Release date: 2018
EAN/UPS: 727361351915
Media type: LP

Recent years have seen MACHINE HEAD gaining momentum and confidence. The release of 2014’s universally lauded »Bloodstone And Diamonds« album and the subsequent birth of MACHINE HEAD’s “An Evening With...” shows - several hours of MACHINE HEAD, no support band, guaranteed fan satisfaction! - have all added fuel to the band’s already blazing fire, and 2018 promises to be their biggest and best year yet, starting with the release of long-awaited ninth album »Catharsis«.

A full-throttle rollercoaster through every facet of MACHINE HEAD’s increasingly diverse sound, »Catharsis« looks certain to be one of 2018’s most acclaimed metal records, not to mention one of the precious few that dare to confront the harsh realities of the world. From the explosive opening salvo of 'Volatile' (written and recorded the day of the Charlottesville, VA murders) to the soaring melodies and spine-tingling, cinematic grandeur of the title track onwards, the band’s ninth studio album lives up to its name, delivering an exhilarating tsunami of emotions, both positive and negative. “This album is like a movie... a really looong movie... »Lord Of The Rings«-type stuff!” laughs frontman Robb Flynn. “There are a lot of special songs on this record, and of course, whenever you finish an album, you always feel proud, but this time... we’ve got something really special here. We can feel it. We know it. Some people may not dig where we’re going, and that’s always the case,... who cares? We dig it. Nine albums deep, it would be really easy for us to coast and write some middle of the road shit that won’t offend anybody.”

An epic demonstration of their growing power as a band, »Catharsis« may well be the finest record MACHINE HEAD have ever made. Whatever happens next, however, the band will unquestionably continue to do things their own way, not least on stage. Having firmly established their widely praised “An Evening With…” gigs as the ultimate MACHINE HEAD live experience, Robb Flynn and his comrades will be keeping that wheel spinning as the hardest touring band of the last 25 years. “I feel like metal could really infiltrate the mainstream with this album. And it needs to... now more than ever. A lot of consideration went into making these songs more identifiable to a wider audience. Simplifying ideas, simplifying hooks, really concentrating on story-telling as opposed to ‘brutal poetry’ or whatever. And while I’d love to say it was all some grand-plan, there was no ‘plan’,” Flynn adds laughing. “You never know where you’re going to end up whenever you start writing a record... you just write... but I tell ya what... we ended up with a landmark here. An album that has the potential to be huge. If people get behind this, believe in this... »Catharsis« could really elevate our genre here.”

Right now, with an album like »Catharsis« under their collective belts, this band look, sound and feel unstoppable.

Side A:

01. Volatile
02. Catharsis
03. Beyond The Pale
04. California Bleeding

Side B:

01. Triple Beam
02. Kaleidoscope
03. Bastards
04. Hope Begets Hope

Side C:

01. Screaming At The Sun
02. Behind A Mask
03. Heavy Lies The Crown

Side D:

01. Psychotic
02. Grind You Down
03. Razorblade Smile
04. Eulogy

LINE-UP:

Robb Flynn |vocals, guitars
Phil Demmel | guitars
Jared MacEachern | bass
Dave McClain | drums