Technical blackened death metal outfit Paindemonium is, after four years in the making and a ten-year hiatus, back with a new record, Latent, slated for release later this year.
Paindemonium was founded by Raafat "Raaf" Atasi (guitars/vocals), Mohamed Salama (guitars/vocals), and Haitham Aly (bass) in Egypt in 2007. The band started as a Dissection cover band before composing original material and, in 2010, released its first EP, Demonipathy. Soon after, the band disbanded due to political turmoil in the Middle East. In 2020, Raaf, who relocated to the Netherlands, and Salama revived it. In the same year, Yazan Ju joined the band as the new full-time bassist, and the band started working on the debut concept album Latent. A session drummer, Krzysztof Klingbein (live drummer of Vader, Hate and Belphegor), was hired to record drums for this release. In 2022 - and after recording a few songs - Salama got out of the band. However, Raaf and Yazan continued the recording process and, in June, released the first single/lyric video, "All Hail the Despot".
The album features seven guest musicians, including Tim "Ripper" Owens (KK's Priest, Ex-Judas Preist, Ex-Iced Earth), Stefan Nordström (Soliloquium, Ending Quest) and Inge Rijnja (Magoria), among others.
Latent is an epic journey that explores humanity - as a species and ideology. It depicts humans' deeply rooted proclivity towards atrocities throughout the ages and up until the present day. And it ends with a personal interpretation of the fate of humanity if the same patterns persist. Each song provides the thematic soundtrack for the chosen "scenes". Consequently, a mixture of different subgenres is incorporated within the album to create a soundscape that helps tell the story and gives it the proper dramatic texture. Last but not least, the magnificent artwork was designed by Aldo Yu Design. Link
Latent tracklist:
01. The Emanation (Intro)
02. Time Immemorial
03. Ostentatious Blood Spectacle
04. All Hail the Despot
05. Hypgnosis
06. Fragments of Humanity
07. Dazed by Equivocation
08. Cryogenized in Black
09. Disharmony of Spheres
10. Conflation
11. The Funeral of the Phoenix
12. Foul Obsessions
13. Derelict (Outro)
Following "Feelings" — a call to protect our humanity — and "Apology", a stark examination of ego and entitlement, I Ya Toyah's new single "Closer" completes a compelling trilogy exploring...
UK-based modern gothic act Spectral unveils their evocative reinterpretation of Sleep Token’s iconic track “Even In Arcadia”, featured on the new EP Love Letters: Part One, available now...
Xandria have revealed the third visual track from their forthcoming record, Eclipse, set to rise on 7 August through Napalm Records. "Northstar" stands as a guiding light within their...
Swedish industrial metal institution Pain erupts back onto the scene with “I Don’t Give A Fukk”, a compact blast of mechanised fury that distils the confusion, hostility and absurdity of...
"Goth people want to have fun sometimes too. I guess if your listening time is 99% dark, sad songs or evil black metal songs, sometimes you want 1% joy, and here I come." - Franck Hueso
"For my sake, I could just stop playing the old stuff, but on the other hand, I know that our fans want it." - Anders Kobro
"I hope that through our music and our words, people can feel that connection between us and them, and feel a little bit better — or at least less alone." - Alessandro Belluccio
"It would be an exciting thing to be a part of the fourth The Sisters Of Mercy album. I think my role has changed in the last few years." - Ben Christo
