eastern

Orphaned Land announces April 2019 European Headlining Tour

In order to celebrate the success of their 8th studio album “Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs”, the biggest and most influential middle-eastern metal band, Orphaned Land, will be touring Europe again in April 2019!

Singer Kobi comments: “We're so thrilled and excited to go back on the road for the second leg of our latest album's tour. Prepare for one hell of a night!”...

Orphaned Land announces February/March 2018 European Tour

In order to celebrate the release of their 8th studio album “Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs” – to be released on January 26th, 2018 – the biggest and most influential middle-eastern metal band, Orphaned Land, will be touring Europe again in early 2018!
 
Singer Kobi comments: “We are impatiently waiting to hit the roads and stages and play our new songs for you all. We feel that we have an amazing album on our hands. Join our ride and see you all very soon!”...
 

Orphaned Land to release new studio album “Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs” on January 26th 2018

Oriental metal pioneers, Orphaned Land, will release their new studio album “Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs” on January 26th, 2018, via Century Media Records.

Jens Bogren once again took over mixing and mastering duties of what turned out to be the band’s best and biggest production so far.

“Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs” will feature a guest appearance of guitar virtuoso Steve Hackett as well as guest vocal appearances by no other than Hansi Kürsch (Blind Guardian) and Tomas Lindberg (At The Gates). The great album artwork was created by Valnoir.
 

Orphaned Land announces new studio album “Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs” - due out in January 2018

Oriental metal pioneers, Orphaned Land, just announced they will release a new studio album on January 26th, 2018 via Century Media Records.

Most parts of the album, which will be entitled “Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs”, have already been recorded and Jens Bogren will once again take over mixing and mastering duties of what is to be destined to become the band's best and biggest production so far.

“Unsung Prophets & Dead Messiahs” will feature a guest appearance of guitar virtuoso Steve Hackett and more specials will be announced soon.

The Meier-Budjana Group announces October 2017 UK & European Tour

The Meier-Budjana Band is a group of superlative guitarists and accomplished musicians, corporately dedicated to creating music which exceeds stylistic and cultural bounds. True sonic explorers, in the most progressive jazz and beyond sense with distinctive ethnic bland of Middle-Eastern and South-East Asian flavors, theirs is a music which is both soulful and cerebral. Embracing a multitude of regional musical dialects from across the globe, MBB speaks in a profoundly unique, original voice – a voice bound by neither convention or preconception.
 
The band is co-chaired by Swiss-born and UK-based Nicolas Meier and Indonesian guitar icon of Balinese descent Dewa Budjana.

Nicolas Meier - Infinity

Nicolas Meier is a UK-based Swiss guitarist, who likes to blend various music styles together. Nicolas studied arranging with Max Jendly and Francis Boland before earning a scholarship to Berklee in Boston, USA and immersing himself in classic Amercian jazz (Parker, Coltrane, Miles etc.) and playing acoustic jazz and fusion. He graduated and returned to Switzerland in 1998. Later he had the chance to play alongside the legendary Jeff Beck on the Jeff Beck Band.
 

Blaak Heat


Hi Thomas, welcome to Grande Rock. First of all, do tell us why Blaak Heat Shujaa became Blaak Heat? What’s with the “blaak” spelling and how did you come up with the name initially?
 
T: We decided to drop the “Shujaa” because it was too hard to explain the name to drunk guys at bars.
 
 
Apart from the name change, are there any changes on the band’s music approach or on other aspects as well?
 

Blaak Heat - Shifting Mirrors

I was a bit aloof and my eyes were getting heavy when I started this review, so I had to look twice at the intentional misspelling of “Black” in the band’s name… and I was like – really?! Consisting of guitarist & occasional singer Thomas Bellier (ex-Spindrift), who relocated to Los Angeles in 2012 with Mike Amster (drums) and Henry Evans (ex-Spindrift, bass), the band was previously known as Blaak Heat Shujaa.