TIMES OF GRACE, featuring Adam Dutkiewicz and Jesse Leach of KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, returns after a 10-year hiatus with its second album “Songs Of Loss And Separation”, out July 16 via the band’s own imprint label, Wicked Good Records, distributed by ADA worldwide.
The band has just shared the second single and video for “Medusa,” directed by Nick Hipa. The song originally premiered at SiriusXM‘s Octane. Watch the story-driven clip for the slow-burning track, set against the stunning and powerful backdrop of the ocean and other majestic forces of nature below.
“‘Medusa’ is one of the heavier tracks on the record,” says Dutkiewicz. “It definitely keeps within the theme of the record since it’s about a broken/abusive relationship. We hope you guys dig it.”
Leach shares that “‘Medusa’ is about betrayal, abuse, and deceit. It’s a story about the dark side of the soul and the struggle to tear away from those who feed off of your heart. When faced with these types of people and situations, there is a battle to not allow it to destroy a part of your soul and change you. This song is a testimony of that internal warfare of killing of the beast and taming the demons that remain in the aftermath. It’s about finding a way to keep your heart and your spirit alive after being broken and beaten down.”
“It almost feels strange finally releasing the songs on this record, especially this one,” says Dutkiewicz. “I started writing this song over 10 years ago, so it’s been around for quite some time. I really hope you guys dig it, and I hope we will get the opportunity to play it for you guys live someday. Thanks, everyone!”
The band’s debut album “The Hymn Of A Broken Man” arrived in 2011, nearly a decade after Leach‘s exit from KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, the pivotal New Wave Of American Heavy Metal band the duo co-founded with friends in 1999. The first music from TIMES OF GRACE materialized during Dutkiewicz‘s arduous recovery from near-crippling back surgery. A collection of songs the multi-instrumentalist and producer knew would suit his once and future bandmate. The first album earned acclaim from BBC Music, The Aquarian and Rock Sound. It willfully upended expectations, with flourishes of shoegaze and ambiance in its songs.
Now, 10 years after TIMES OF GRACE first surfaced, the eagerly awaited follow-up arrives.
Comfortably stretched beyond the parameters of what came before, without sacrificing an ounce of integrity, TIMES OF GRACE weaves between pensive, heavy, midtempo rock, riffs, and atmosphere. The pair’s vocal interplay makes for a rich, dense, and enthralling concoction, powering through various trips through dark nights of the soul and mind-expanding excursions into the wild. “Songs Of Loss And Separation” benefits wildly from the powerhouse performance of ex-ENVY ON THE COAST drummer Dan Gluszak, who toured behind the first album and is now an official member of the band.
The sprawling second album from TIMES OF GRACE, with a stunning album cover painted by John McCormack and album art layout by Tom Bejgrowicz, channels a dissonant, menacing, and unrelenting depression. Haunting romanticism and deep spiritual yearning collide in beautiful melancholy. It’s a diverse but singular statement, like the most beloved work of classic bands. “Songs Of Loss And Separation”, insistent in its bluesiness, bleeds distortion and emotion, like a nerve, exposed.
“Songs Of Loss And Separation” Album Artwork
“Songs Of Loss And Separation” track listing:
1. The Burden Of Belief
2. Mend You
3. Rescue
4. Far From Heavenless
5. Bleed Me
6. Medusa
7. Currents
8. To Carry The Weight
9. Cold
10. Forever
“The Hymn Of A Broken Man” was released in January 2011 via Roadrunner Records. The CD sold around 10,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 44 on The Billboard 200 chart.
