SPIRITUAL BEGGARS — the Swedish band featuring ARCH ENEMY guitarist Michael Amott and bassist Sharlee D’Angelo, along with vocalist Apollo Papathanasio (ex-FIREWIND) — will release its ninth studio album, titled “Sunrise To Sundown”, on March 18 in Europe and March 25 in North America via InsideOut Music. The CD’s cover artwork was created by Costin Chioreanu of Twilight13Media (AT THE GATES, GRAVE, ARCTURUS).
The official lyric video for the song “Diamond Under Pressure” can be seen below.
“Sunrise To Sundown” track listing:
01. Sunrise To Sundown
02. Diamond Under Pressure
03. What Doesn’t Kill You
04. Hard Road
05. Still Hunter
06. No Man’s Land
07. I Turn To Stone
08. Dark Light Child
09. Lonely Freedom
10. You’ve Been Fooled
11. Southern Star
Also available is the “Sunrise To Sundown” title track.
Said Amott: “I wrote [the] ‘Sunrise To Sundown’ [song] last year and brought into the jam room, where it very quickly went from a basic idea to a finished arrangement in something like five minutes! Some songs come fast and others take time to fully develop, you never know when inspiration hits you…and therein somewhere lies the beauty of creating music. The lyrics follow that train of thought too, talking about following your chosen path and turning your dreams into reality — two things I believe in very much.”
The album’s limited edition version will be released as two-CD mediabook with a bonus disc including seven tracks (two covers versions and five live songs) and an expanded booklet. The LP format will be on 180-gram vinyl and come in gatefold packaging with a double-sided poster as well as the full standard album on CD as bonus.
After a busy couple of last years with ARCH ENEMY, Michael Amott and his bandmates have once again found the availability and inspiration to lay down eleven dynamic and uplifting new songs, which not only easily demonstrate how much on top of their game SPIRITUAL BEGGARS still are after over twenty years of activities, but also add a fresh and spontaneous vibe to their impressive catalogue.
Speaking about how the new album came together, Amott said: “We’ve been writing the album here and there over the last couple of years when our schedules have allowed us to meet up and spend a few days jamming. A few of the songs I wrote on my own; others were written by our keyboard player Per Wiberg. Our drummer Ludwig Witt submitted two tracks that are actually his first major contributions to the band as a writer — and they’re great songs too! I also co-wrote a few tunes with Per Wiberg and that was really a lot of fun as well, it’s been a very collaborative process.”
In contrast to the often-soulless current high-tech digital cut-paste recordings, “Sunrise To Sundown” was tracked live off the floor. Amott said: “I’m super excited about how the album sounds sonically. Our engineer, Staffan Karlsson, also produced and mixed the album, and the result is something we’re very proud of.
“I think every album we have made (this being our ninth) has had its own vibe and atmosphere. I can honestly say this band has never made the same album twice.
“To me, ‘Sunrise To Sundown’ is the next chapter of the book we’ve been writing since we started the band over twenty years ago. Of course, the foundation of our style is heavy rock music, but we always keep evolving adding new influences and colors to the bands core sound.”
SPIRITUAL BEGGARS will embark on a European tour in support of “Sunrise To Sundown” in March.
SPIRITUAL BEGGARS reissued two of its classic catalog titles on October 14, 2013: the band’s 2005 “Demons” album was made available for the first time ever on vinyl via InsideOut Music; and their acclaimed and hard-to-find debut LP, the self-titled “Spiritual Beggars” from 1994, was re-released with over 70 minutes of unreleased bonus material via Century Media Records.
SPIRITUAL BEGGARS is:
Michael Amott (ARCH ENEMY, CARCASS) – Guitar
Ludwig Witt (FIREBIRD) – Drums
Per Wiberg (OPETH) – Keyboards
Sharlee D’Angelo (ARCH ENEMY, MERCYFUL FATE) – Bass
Apollo Papathanasio (FIREWIND) – Vocals
Source: Blabbermouth
