Southern California progressive metal quintet SORIZON has revealed a new video for the gut-punching title track from their upcoming third full-length album, “Thanatos Rising.” Watch “Thanatos Rising” below.
“‘Thanatos Rising’ is about fixation with death, it overtaking your thoughts and not being able to escape the worry and fear of the unknown,” says vocalist Keith McIntosh.
Adds guitarist and video director Dr. Danny Mann, “There is tension and pain in the sound, so my working titles were ‘Torture’ and ‘Third Circle of Hell’. I wanted the chugs to be extra powerful, taking some inspiration from Opeth and Gojira.”
Though SORIZON’s music has a definite progressive metal bent, the band aims to break down subgenres to bring metalheads together. SORIZON‘s previous releases have garnered overwhelmingly positive reviews, including proclamations that they “rival the better work of Symphony X” and “the guitarists complement each other like not many bands have done; Maiden and Priest come to mind.”
The themes of “Thanatos Rising“ resonate with the state of the world: death, fear of the unknown and the hope of renewal. “Thanatos Rising“ brings SORIZON‘s peak of songwriting and critically acclaimed production. Sorizon began building momentum for “Thanatos Rising“ throughout 2020 by releasing eight singles from the upcoming album on all major online music platforms. Check out the sci-fi inspired video for “Imminent Contact” below.
“Thanatos Rising“, featuring powerful artwork painted by Eliran Kantor (Testament, Sodom, Havok), is scheduled for release digitally and on limited edition blood red and black galaxy vinyl on February 26. Music samples and pre-orders are available via SORIZON’s Bandcamp page at this location.
During lockdown, SORIZON continued to stay connected with fans through regular livestreams where the whole band partied with the audience by playing interactive games, giving away free prizes, sharing exclusive previews of new music and answering crazy questions. They also have been bringing their local metal community together by inviting special guests from other bands to the livestreams and promoting a Spotify playlist featuring some of the best underground metal in California.
Keith McIntosh (vocals), Dr. Danny Mann (guitar) and Sean Elston (drums) began making metal in the band Joust in 2006. After a short but successful run, they decided to get heavier and more progressive, thus spawning SORIZON in 2008. After a few lineup changes, SORIZON now rocks an undeniable chemistry with Tim Hall on guitar (since 2011) and Kevin Vickers on bass (since 2012).
At the close of 2009, SORIZON released their debut full-length album “Behind the Emerald Starscape.” The album was mastered in Finland at the famous Finnvox Studios by Mika Jussila. (Children of Bodom, Dragonforce, Nightwish). The fall 2013 release of the second album, “Somnus,” marked an enormous leap forward for the SORIZON sound. The combination of musical maturity and extensive collaboration within the lineup led to this classic album. “Somnus” is a themed album based on sleep and dreams, and song inspirations ranged from personal dreams, insomnia, the Greek gods of sleep and more. The cover art by Dennis Hamilton is a graphic depiction of a post-apocalyptic dream Mann had, which also inspired the music for the song “Illusions.” The album was professionally mastered by Tony Lindgren at Fascination St. studios in Sweden (Opeth, Amon Amarth, Kreator, Symphony X).
In 2016, SORIZON unveiled their third independent release titled “End of Entrapment.” The title not only relates to the lyrical theme of the EP, but it also represents breaking any musical chains that had bound the band to any specific sound. This six-song, high-energy, rock ‘n’ roll release was a departure from what most SORIZON fans were used to but also featured their fastest song ever, “Lay to Waste,” as well as their shortest song, “Minutemen” and even an acoustic version of the fan-favorite “Cosmic Eden” from the first album.
