Heavy Metal band Baroness returns with their
fifth studio album titled “Gold & Grey”. The album which was released on
June 14th is the follow to the bands popular 2015 release “Purple”. Featuring
17 brand new tracks from the Georgia based group and produced by David Fridmann
“Gold & Grey” is the first release via the bands own Abraxan Hymns label. The
release is also the first to feature guitarist Gina Gleason who joined the
group in 2017 after the departure of Peter Adams.
Right from the start “Gold & Grey”
showcases why Baroness is at the fore front of progressive heavy metal. With
tracks like “Front Toward Enemy” and “I’m Already Gone” laying the foundation
in the albums opening minutes with thick over driven guitars and singer John
Baizley’s signature soaring vocals listeners are quickly immersed in a bevy of
sonic goodness. As the album progresses so does the diverseness of texture and
tones. Tracks like “Tourniquet” and “Blankets of Ash” feature spacey vocals and
layered acoustic guitars while the songs “I’d Do Anything” and “Emmett-Radiating
Light” feature piano rich sound scapes which seep deep in to your inner core
making for a nice mixture of dark and light.
The latest offering from Baroness takes
listeners on a musical vacation that some may never want to come back from. Brimming
over with emotional subject matter and robust instrumentation “Gold & Grey”
is another notch in Baroness’s musical belt. The addition of guitarist Gina
Gleason I feel has really taken the band to the next level. Not only does
Gleason’s playing compliment the band nicely but so do her backing vocals which
compliment Baizley’s leads. Despite “Gold & Grey” having a few too many
slow moments for my liking the songs that weren’t balls to the wall rockers
were still enjoyable making this an album I would certainly recommend checking
out.
The 17-track release which arrives this Friday is described by NPR as “…Baroness has redigested every sound of the band’s career thus far and synthesized it into something greater. Gold & Grey is the sound of a band becoming a universe unto itself.” Mojodubbed the album “an epic beast,” Stereogum referred to it as “anthemic” and MetalSuckssaid the collection “perfectly encapsulates how Baroness excel at reaching shining peaks and descending into gloomy valleys.” Baroness have recently been featured on the covers of Decibel Magazine, Kerrang! and Loud!, while Revolver will debut a series of collectible covers later this month.
“This is the most clear representation of the artistic vision I have for the band that we’ve ever done,” explains singer/guitar player John Baizley. “Where Purple was me lyrically trying to work out how to adjust to a new normal, I think Gold & Grey is a more grown-up and more subtle collection of words that reflect how I am trying to deal with the longer term effects of having experienced so many terrible things. I choose to use the band as a place where I can take all of this stress, pain, anxiety, all these realities, and make them something good.”
Baroness is in the midst of a tour of Northeastern U.S. independent record stores, performing acoustically this evening at Philadelphia’s Creep Records, with a full band performance slated for Brooklyn’s Rough Trade on release date. A South American tour is slated for later this month, followed by both North American and European treks.
Tour dates:
June 10 Philadelphia, PA Creep Records
June 11 Fords, NJ Vintage Vinyl
June 12 Babylon, NY Looney Tunes
June 14 Brooklyn, NY Rough Trade
June 15 Poughkeepsie, NY Darkside Records
June 16 Boston, MA ONCE/Newbury Comics
June 19 Mexico City, Mexico MX at Lunario
June 21 Santiago, Chile Blondie
June 22 Buenos Aires, Argentina Uniclub
June 23 São Paulo, Brazil Fabrique Club
July 11 Lancaster, PA The Chameleon
July 12 Poughkeepsie, NY The Chance
July 13 Huntington, NY The Paramount
July 14 Hartford, CT Webster Theatre
July 16 Buffalo, NY Town Ballroom
July 17 Pittsburgh, PA Mr. Smalls Theatre
July 19 Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall
July 20 Detroit, MI The Majestic
July 21 Indianapolis, IN Deluxe at Old National Centre
July 23 Palatine, IL Durty Nellie’s
July 24 Des Moines, IA Wooly’s
July 26 Omaha, NE The Waiting Room
July 27 Lawrence, KS The Granada
July 28 St. Louis MO The Ready Room
July 30 Nashville, TN Cannery Ballroom
July 31 Birmingham, AL Saturn
August 4 Baton Rouge, LA The Varsity Theatre
August 5 Atlanta, GA Buckhead Theatre
August 6 Tampa, FL The Orpheum
August 7 Ft. Lauderdale, FL Culture Room
August 9 Orlando, FL Plaza Live
August 10 Jacksonville, FL 1904 Music Hall
August 11 Charleston, SC The Music Farm
August 13 Charlotte, NC The Underground
August 14 Asheville, NC The Orange Peel
August 16 Richmond, VA The National
August 17 Baltimore, MD Baltimore Sound Stage
September 23 Newcastle, UK O2 Academy
September 24 Glasgow, UK O2 Academy
September 26 London, UK O2 Academy Brixton
September 28 Bristol, UK O2 Academy
September 30 Birmingham, UK O2 Academy
October 1 Manchester, UK O2 Apollo
October 3 Belfast, UK Ulster Hall
October 4 Dublin, IE Olympia Theatre
October 6 Paris, FR L’Olympia
October 7 Luxembourg, LU Rockhal
October 9 Madrid, ES La Riviera
October 10 Lisbon, PT Coliseum
October 12 Barcelona, ES Razzmatazz
October 14 Milan, IT Fabrique
October 29 Warsaw, PL Torwar Arena
October 31 Prague, CZ O2 Universum
November 1 Berlin, DE Mercedes-Benz Arena
November 3 Stuttgart, DE Schleyerhalle
November 5 Zurich, CH Hallenstadion
November 7 Frankfurt, DE Festhalle
November 8 Munich, DE Olympiahalle
November 10 Leipzig, DE Arena Leipzig
November 11 Hamburg, DE Barclaycard Arena
November 14 Cologne, DE Lanxess Arena
November 17 Vienna, AT Stadhalle
November 19 Amsterdam, NL Ziggo Dome
November 21 Antwerp, BE Lotto Arena
November 27 Helsinki, FI Hartwall Arena
November 29 Stockholm, SE Tele2 Arena
Photo courtesy of Baroness
Baroness is John Baizley (vocals/guitar), Gina Gleason (guitar), Nick Jost (bass) and Sebastian Thomson (drums). Baroness received a GRAMMY® Award nomination for the song “Shock Me” (from the 2015 album, Purple) in the “Best Metal Performance” category. Purple saw worldwide praise with Pitchfork saying it features “some of the biggest, strongest songs Baroness has ever written” and Mojo proclaiming “Baroness have delivered their masterpiece.” The album received numerous year end accolades including “Shock Me” at #10 on Entertainment Weekly’s Top 40 Songs of 2015, #6 on Pitchfork’sBest Metal Albums of 2015 and #7 on Rolling Stone’s 20 Best Metal Albums of 2015. The band’s catalog of studio recordings is: Gold & Grey (2019), Purple (2015), Yellow & Green(2012), Blue Record (2009), Red Album (2007), A Grey Sigh in a Flower Husk (Split LP, 2007), Second (EP, 2004) and First (EP, 2004).
Gold & Grey album cover; original painting by John Baizley
Baroness release their eagerly-awaited new album, Gold & Grey, on June 14 via Abraxan Hymns.
The band has simultaneously released a video for the song “Borderlines” (https://youtu.be/tQX_oVVORFU), which saw its live performance debut at Baroness’s tour kick off last Friday in Houston.
“Our goal is, was, and will always be to write increasingly superior, more honest and compelling songs, and to develop a more unique and challenging sound,” offered Baroness founder, guitar player and vocalist John Baizley. “I’m sure we have just finished our best, most adventurous album to date. We dug incredibly deep, challenged ourselves and recorded a record I’m positive we could never again replicate. I consider myself incredibly fortunate to know Sebastian, Nick and Gina as both my bandmates and my friends. They have pushed me to become a better songwriter, musician and vocalist. We’re all extremely excited for this release, which includes quite a few ‘firsts’ for the band, and we’re thrilled to be back on tour to play these psychotic songs for our fans. Expect some surprises.”
While Gold & Grey found the outfit once again working with Purple producer Dave Fridmann (The Flaming Lips, Mogwai), sequestering themselves at Fridmann’s remote upstate New York Tarbox Road Studio, the 17-track album ushered in two significant changes: a decidedly different recording process and guitar player Gina Gleason’s debut on a Baroness recording. The band, who tracked portions of the vocals, guitars and overdubs in Baizley’s home-basement studio, another first for the band, eschewed their normal routine of entering the studio with meticulously detailed plans and instead opted for a looser, more improvisational approach that resulted in the band’s most collaborative and emotionally evocative release to date.
“On Gold & Grey we have taken some unexpected paths on a labyrinthine sonic adventure. We accepted sounds and styles that have not appeared on previous Baroness albums, and I’m excited to welcome our fans into our new lair,” added drummer Sebastian Thomson. “Having the chance to create music without any preconceived boundaries was both liberating and intimidating,” explains guitar player Gina Gleason. “As we pushed past our fear and comfort zone, the four of us connected in a way that allowed us to create freely, uplift one another and build the unique sonic world that is Gold & Grey. As a longtime Baroness listener, it is exciting to have created something new while still maintaining a deep love and understanding of the band’s roots. To say that the making of this record was quite a journey would be an understatement. We are beyond excited to share this experience and music with everyone!”
Baroness tour dates (co-headline w/Deafheaven; Zeal & Ardor open on all dates):
March 14 Anaheim, CA House of Blues Anaheim
March 16 Berkeley, CA The UC Theatre
March 18 Portland, OR Roseland Theater
March 19 Seattle, WA The Showbox
March 20 Vancouver, BC Vogue Theatre
March 22 Edmonton, AB Union Hall
March 23 Calgary, AB The Palace Theatre
March 24 Spokane, WA Knitting Factory
March 26 Salt Lake City, UT The Complex
March 27 Denver, CO The Ogden Theater
March 29 Minneapolis, MN Skyway Theatre
March 30 Madison, WI The Sylvee
March 31 Chicago, IL Riviera Theatre
April 2 Toronto, ON Danforth Music Hall
April 3 Montreal, QC Corona Theatre
April 5 Sayreville, NJ Starland Ballroom
April 6 Worcester, MA The Palladium
April 7 Albany, NY Upstate Concert Hall
April 9 Cleveland, OH Agora Theater
April 10 Silver Spring, MD The Fillmore
April 12 New York, NY Terminal 5
April 13 Philadelphia, PA Decibel Metal & Beer Fest (The Fillmore Philadelphia)
Photo credit: Pam Strohm
Gold & Grey track list:
Front Toward Enemy
I’m Already Gone
Seasons
Sevens
Tourniquet
Anchor’s Lament
Throw Me An Anchor
I’d Do Anything
Blankets of Ash
Emmett-Radiating Light
Cold Blooded Angels
Crooked Mile
Broken Halo
Can Oscura
Borderlines
Assault on East Falls
Pale Sun
Album pre-orders (http://smarturl.it/baroness-goldandgrey) are available now with various limited-edition vinyl and merch bundles available as well as digital pre-orders that include an instant download of “Borderlines.”
