With an incredibly successful back catalogue of ten records under their belt, and a recent signing with powerhouse label AFM Records, Austria’s symphonic metal force Edenbridge has announced the first details about their upcoming, new studio album. “Shangri-La” will be released on August 26th, 2022, and is featuring nine epic tracks, seeing the band to deliver their most diverse album to date!
“Shangri-La” takes the dedicated Edenbridge listener on a musical ride into the realms of finest symphonic metal. The band’s eleventh studio album unleashes a sophisticated range of compositions along with an intoxicating and bombastic sound atmosphere. Despite constantly high quality standards and as the new offering proves, Edenbridge continually expands their musical expression from album to album without abandoning their trademarks. This time, the band has created a fine balance between emotionally magical moments, an ever-present mystical atmosphere and heavy, fast-paced riffage.
Today, they are presenting a first track taken of “Shangri-La”, alongside a lyric video for “Somewhere Else but Here”! Says lead vocalist Sabine Edelsbacher: “‘Somewhere Else but Here’ is about our phantasy, that takes us on a journey into a world we would like be different. In some extent, we also use it to write a part of our book of life, which lies at the bottom of the lake and life leafs through it”.
Watch the video for “Somewhere Else but Here” below.
Formed in 1998, Edenbridge belongs to one of the most style-defining bands of their genre, spearheading its domain since their pathbreaking debut album “Sunrise in Eden” (2000). Their forthcoming magnum opus, “Shangri-La”, was recorded at the Farpoint Station Studio, mixed by Karl Groom and was produced by Lanvall himself. “Instead of going on a European tour in spring 2020, it was a matter of flipping on our creative switch and channelling those intense energies into a transformative song writing process for the new album“, he says.
The cover art was created by United Arab Emirates artist, Muhammad K. Nazia, and features a pictorial representation of “Shangri-La” embodied as a synonym for paradise. The term was first mentioned in the novel “Lost Horizon” by James Hilton. It is described as a mystical place where people live in peace and harmony. However, the story itself is based on the ancient Far Eastern legend of “Shambala” depicted in long-preserved Buddhist scriptures. The legend depicts a paradise that is to become accessible again only when humankind is ready for it and only when a few have the spiritual maturity to understand and preserve the teachings. Sabine reveals: “For me, ‘Shangri-La’ is a wellspring of wisdom, a deeply secluded spiritual centre and a realm of retreat that casts a magical allure over we humans. And there is a reason why it is so meaningfully said: ‘You do not enter paradise with your feet, but with your heart’”.
Pre-order “Shangri-La” here.
Tracklist:
01. At First Light
02. The Call of Eden
03. Hall of Shame
04. Savage Land (feat. NDR Radio Orchestra flutist Daniel Tomann-Eickhoff)
05. Somewhere Else but Here
06. Freedom is a Roof Made of Stars
07. Arcadia (The Great Escape)
08. The Road to Shangri-La
09. The Bonding (Part 2) [feat. Erik Martensson (Eclipse, W.E.T.)]
I. The Bonding Overture
II. Alpha and Omega
III. The Eleventh Hour
IV: Round and Round
V. The Timeless Now – Finale
Live Shows 2023:
17.02.23 CZ-Zliv/KD
18.02.23 A-Vienna/Szene
24.02.23 D-Eisenhüttenstadt/RockHütte
25.02.23 D-Siegburg/Kubana
04.03.23 A-Enns/Zuckerfabrik
Line-up:
Sabine Edelsbacher: Lead Vocals
Lanvall: Lead & Rhythm Guitars, 6 & 12 String Acoustic Guitars, Nylon String Guitar, Piano, Keyboards, Orchestration, Electric Sitar, Bouzouki, Swarmandal, Ukulele
Johannes Jungreithmeier: Drums
Steve Hall: Bass
Dominik Sebastian: Lead Guitar
Weblinks:
www.edenbridge.org
www.facebook.com/EdenbridgeOfficial
