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Arizona (USA) based doom metal solo outfit, Via Vengeance, has joined up with Battleground Records for the release of the project's recently completed second full-length, Harsh Conditions. Via Vengeance is the creation of solitary member Shane Ocell, the drummer of Phoenix-based dynamic sludge troupe, Sorxe. With his solo project, Ocell handles all instrumentation and vocals, even performing the tracks himself at live performances without the use of any looping or manipulation devices. After forming the project in 2006, a self-titled album was recorded in 2007 with Matt Bayles (Botch, Mastodon, Isis) and self-released later that year. Sporadic touring and live performances followed for the next few years, including a tour with A Storm Of Light in 2010, the same year Ocell recorded his follow-up album, Harsh Conditions. The record has been on the back burner since its creation, mainly due to focus on Sorxe, but the album finally comes forth through a new deal with Battleground Records.
Recorded in Phoenix by Jared Cox, Harsh Conditions delivers forty-two minutes of the straightforward and pentatonic Via Vengeance stylemid-paced doom metal with a wholly ethereal feel to each movement. The eleven tracks formulate a thematic concept about winter survival, adding an even more organic element to the overall album. As always, Ocell performs all guitars, drums, vocals, and other instrumentation on the album, outside of several special guest appearances on the album, including warm elements of piano and clean vocal harmonies from the artist's grandmother, BJ Scott, as well as vocals on another track by longtime friend Josh Graham of A Storm Of Light, who also created the immersive winter elements cover artwork for the album.
Battleground Records will release Harsh Conditions on CD and digital formats on 11th March 2016. The album's artwork and track listing have been released; preorders and audio samples will be made available in the coming days. Link
Harsh Conditions tracklist:
01. Efficient Kill
02. Expired
03. Swarmed
04. Dead In The Snow
05. Winter Mourning
06. Secluded Wolf In Sheep's Clothing
07. Lust Blood
08. Solitary
09. Harsh Conditions
10. Instinct to Survive
11. In The End Nothing Goes To Waste