ARTOFFACT RECORDS || RELEASES

» aof079 - xandria - kill the sun

Xandria - Kill The Sun

1. Kill the Sun
2. Mermaids
3. Ginger
4. She’s Nirvana
5. Forever Yours
6. Casablanca
7. So You Disappear
8. Wisdom
9. Isis / Osiris
10. Calyx Virago

Buy XANDRIA - KILL THE SUN here. Digital download links to hi-res files will be emailed to customers within 48 hours of receiving and confirming payment.

By reflex action, you could award Xandria a label like “Germany’s answer to Lacuna Coil, Nightwish, After Forever and Within Temptation”, but these comparisons don’t do justice to the material’s diversity. Xandria know how do deal with influences in our age of post-modernism: in precisely the same measure that band names become synonymous with certain atmospheres and emotions that due to their complexity would otherwise be difficult to put into adequate words, quotation becomes a legitimate medium for musicians that refuse to be held back by the stylistic catalogue of the contemporary gothic scene, but consciously orientate themselves to its sound range. Xandria quote easily and without any inhibition, at the same time they submit all references to other artists to their own creative process, using them, as it were, in virtuoso style as abstract instruments.

This album is one of the most delightful debuts in ages – because it catches the essence of modern gothic metal: elegant, emotional and moving. Released on Artoffact and available December 8th, 2009.

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» aof078 - xandria - india

Xandria - India

1. India
2. Now & Forever
3. In Love With The Darkness
4. Fight Me
5. Black & Silver
6. Like A Rose On The Grave Of Love
7. Widescreen
8. The End Of Every Story
9. Chapter IV, Who We Are
10. Dancer
11. Winterhearted
12. Return To India

Buy XANDRIA - INDIA here. Digital download links to hi-res files will be emailed to customers within 48 hours of receiving and confirming payment.

XANDRIA have returned! The most successful German goth rock act featuring a “female voice” are back with a vengeance, following the reissue of their bestseller Ravenheart. Entitled India, the recording was again produced by Jose Alvarez-Brill (Wolfsheim, among others), and even though XANDRIA aficionados are getting what they expect, some things are “different”. The songwriting on India is a lot more “contemporary”, the guitars, still gently emphasized on Ravenheart, have undeniably gained significance. India pushes ahead and explodes, epic bombast rock meeting metal guitars and vocalist Lisa’s irresistible charm.

Although the title, India, implies that what we have here is a concept album with an oriental leitmotif, this is in fact not quite the case. Basically, India is a synonym for the quest for meaning and the great aims of life, a theme which runs throughout the whole album. “As a result of his search for India, Columbus achieved something very different to what he expected,” explains band founder, Marco. “That’s the way things frequently are. Going through life, you have a lot of goals, and on your path to achieving these goals you encounter things that may turn out to be much more important and greater than your original goal.”

Next to numerous crushers like the title track India with its Nightwish leanings, or the almost frighteningly oppressive Widescreen, XANDRIA’s single release In Love with the Darkness proves that they have held on to their feel for great melodies. In Love with the Darkness is an anthem for the constantly growing gothic community and impresses with catchy hooklines and a considerable amount of hit appeal. On India, the five musicians from Bielefeld rock for all they’re worth, letting their bombastic sound run free and even enlisting a real string section this time around, instead of relying on taped material. Numerous string passages feature the renowned Deutsches Filmorchester Babelsberg, who also contributed the music to the blockbuster movie, Schindler’s List, and have worked with other top acts like Rammstein and Rosenstolz. Released on Artoffact and available December 8th, 2009.

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» aof077 - haggard - tales of ithiria

Haggard - Tales Of Ithiria

1. The Origin
2. Chapter I, Tales of Ithiria
3. Chapter I, From Deep Within
4. Chapter II, Upon Fallen Autumn Leaves
5. Chapter II, In des Königs Hallen (Allegretto Siciliano)
6. Chapter III, La Terra Santa
7. Chapter III, Vor dem Sturme
8. Chapter IV, The Sleeping Child
9. Chapter IV, Hijo De La Luna
10. Chapter IV, On These Endless Fields
11. Chapter V, The Hidden Sign
12. Final Victory (Live - Bonus Track)

Buy HAGGARD - TALES OF ITHIRIA here. Digital download links to hi-res files will be emailed to customers within 48 hours of receiving and confirming payment.

The eternal battle of good against evil is a recurring universal theme in the history of mankind, spanning the most diverse forms of art throughout the centuries. Frequently, these concepts have been marked by clichéd thought patterns, but the thin line between light and darkness is rarely easy to define or recognise. “Tales Of Ithiria” is Haggard’s very own saga about this eternal battle and takes place in the fantastic world of “Ithiria”.

The album sees the German classic metal act leave the path of human history for the first time since they got together in 1991 to devote themselves to the realm of fantasy. A reorientation and reclamation of virgin soil which doesn’t come as a total surprise, seeing that all the great authors of the fantasy genre have a history background, finding their inspiration in mankind’s real past. And for Asis Nasseri, creative mastermind of this sizeable chamber orchestra which has come together under the name of Haggard, the journey into fictitious spheres is an expansion of his own horizons which allows plenty of room for new possibilities. “I have to admit that I left the field of real history with a heavy heart,” he recalls the early days of his work on “Tales Of Ithiria”. “I’m very interested in history, and there was a variety of themes that I would like to have written about – but this history thing has become almost normal for Haggard, and I consciously wanted to leave that familiar path.”

So enter the halls of the king and allow yourselves to be enchanted by the stories of Ithiria! Released on Artoffact and available December 1st, 2009.

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» aof081 - v01d - this is not a false alarm anymore

v01d - This Is Not A False Alarm Anymore

1. Holding Pattern
2. Weakener
3. Shake The Sleep
4. Gods Look Down
5. You Won’t Feel A Thing
6. Carte Blanche
7. Burnt Upon Re-Entry
8. Resurrected Upon Landing
9. Beautiful Plague
10. Feel Me Fade
11. This Moment Is Over

The 2CD Limited Edition includes the bonus disc Burnt Upon Re-Entry.

Buy THIS IS NOT A FALSE ALARM LIMITED EDITION here. Digital download links to hi-res files will be emailed to customers within 48 hours of receiving and confirming payment.

After debuting this Fall with a well-received single collaboration with Ayria, Toronto’s own v01d is set to launch his debut double-CD on Artoffact Records. Entitled This Is Not A False Alarm Anymore, v01d’s debut is a sonic riddle without any easy-access key. The album is dense and cerebral, veering into strange territory for industrial, including off-time drumming, live guitars, and very well-written lyrics. Not your usual fodder. Of course, v01d shows his roots on every track, meshing elements of Haujobb, Boards of Canada, Pop Will Eat Itself, Faith No More, and Underworld into a slick and surprising release. This Is Not A False Alarm Anymore is yet another quality release to come out on the Artoffact label and firmly places v01d as a new and innovative artist to watch!

♫ 2CD limited edition: 2 Discs. Disc 2 details are below: “Burnt Upon Re-Entry”. 320 kbps download while-you-wait including embedded track-art.
♫ 1 Digital download from Artoffact: embedded track-art.
♫ 2 Digital downloads on iTunes: bonus PDF booklets included.

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