Long Island sludge metal trio Restless Spirit have released the video single “Marrow” as the first outtake from their forthcoming third studio album “Afterimage”. The new full-length is scheduled for release on October 6th, 2023, via Magnetic Eye Records.
Watch the official video for the new single “Marrow” below.
Restless Spirit comments: “The opening track ‘Marrow’ truly comes from the heart and sets the theme for the entire album”, guitarist and singer Paul Aloisio writes. “This song is about watching someone that you love at the end of their life. It’s about the bargaining, the pleading, the denial… all those stages of grief. Although the song deals with desperation, it is also an acknowledgement of a bitter truth. We think everyone can relate to this song, because while maybe you haven’t had to experience these feelings yet, reality is, eventually you will. I’ve never had the courage to be so open through my music before, and I won’t lie and say that it wasn’t terrifying to do so. Yet our hope is that it can resonate with anyone struggling through an experience like this”.
The album pre-sale is now available here.
Tracklist:
1. Marrow
2. Shadow Command
3. Of Spirit and Form
4. All Furies
5. Brutalized
6. The Fatalist
7. Hell’s Grasp
8. From the Dust Returned
In the case of Restless Spirit, the band name says it all, and in more than just one way. Their third album, “Afterimage”, embodies the East Coast trio’s aim of never wanting to sound exactly like before. Long Island deep-fried guitars meet pounding rhythms and emotionally raw vocals. Where the predecessor “Blood of the Old Gods” (2021) sometimes ushered the listener into twisted complexity, “Afterimage” delivers short, sharp shocks that hit straight home.
Lyrically, “Afterimage” is also born out of a restless spirit. Driven by tragedy and personal loss, singer and guitarist Paul Aloisio has put his heart and soul into the album. Confronted with a choice to deal with his pain in a healthy way or go down a destructive path, the singer and guitarist opted for the former but months later found his words to be prophetic for doing the latter. Deciding that artistry requires honesty, Alosio wanted to share his experience as a message to others in similar situations that they’re not alone in their despair. “Afterimage” might well be read as a cautionary tale.
Embarking on their musical journey very early in life, the band’s core of Aloisio and bassist Marc Morello met the summer before Kindergarten and grew up discovering music side by side. Channelling influences like Black Sabbath, Type O Negative, and The Sword and incorporating aggressive modern metal, unabashed stoner-doom pummelling, energetic changes, and stirring, earnest vocals, their band was finally christened Restless Spirit in 2019. Their debut full-length “Lord of the New Depression” (2019) fit equally well into the stoner, doom, and sludge molds, while on “Blood of the Old Gods”, the three-piece developed a more varied, melodic approach with added complexity.
Discontent at being sometimes labelled “progressive”, Restless Spirit, true contrarians that they are, avoided overly-long songs and excessive ornamentation on “Afterimage”, intentionally eliminating anything that might distract from the new album’s direct, crushing immediacy.
On the live front, the Long Island band has undertaken several tours in support of “Blood of the Old Gods” and shared stages with the likes of Crowbar, The Obsessed and Cannibal Corpse. They will return to the road in winter 2023/24 to present “Afterimage”.
With “Afterimage”, Restless Spirit deliver a massive punch to the gut that actually feels damn great once the initial pain subsides.
US Live Dates 2023:
25 Aug 2023 Masapequa, NY (US) VFW Hall
30 Aug 2023 Brooklyn, NY (US) St Vitus
01 Sep 2023 Montague, MA (US) RPM Fest
19 Sep 2023 Memphis, TN (US) Hi-Tone Cafe
21 Sep 2023 Austin TX (US) RippleFest Texas
25 Sep 2023 Mesa, AZ (US) Nile Underground
26 Sep 2023 Los Angeles, CA (US) Knuckleheads
27 Sep 2023 Sacramento, CA (US) Cafe Colonial
28 Sep 2023 Springfield, OR (US) The Spot,
29 Sep 2023 Portland, OR (US) Highwatermark
30 Sep 2023 Seattle, WA (US) Funhouse,
01 Oct 2023 Bellingham, WA (US) The Shakedown
29 Oct 2023 Amityville, NY (US) Amityville Music Hall
Line-up:
Paul Aloisio – Guitar, vocals
Jon Gusman – Drums
Marc Morello – Bass
Guest musicians:
Scott “Wino” Weinrich – Guitars on “The Fatalist”
Mike Hill – Vocals on “Shadow Command”
Weblinks:
www.facebook.com/restlessspiritny
twitter.com/Restlessspirit_
