Berlin’s Earth Ship are touring on a new album released by Napalm. Hamburg’s High Fighter are touring on a new album released by Svart. Mammoth Storm are supporting their late-2015 release, also on Napalm. Safe to say this upcoming run for the three bands through Germany, the Netherlands and France will be time well spent in terms of getting the word out. And doubtless that’s the whole idea, but I wouldn’t be surprised if any or all of these bands had further plans to announce for the summer leading into the fall as well — all seem ripe to take part in any number of coming Euro fests, especially with new or still-relatively-new LPs — but I guess we’ll see what shakes out as we get there.

Just by way of a heads up, I’ve got a video premiere from High Fighter coming tomorrow morning. Scars and Crosses is a beast.

Until then:

EARTH SHIP, HIGH FIGHTER & MAMMOTH STORM: On tour this summer!

In support of their upcoming and hotly anticipated releases, EARTH SHIP have teamed up with HIGH FIGHTER and MAMMOTH STORM for an album release summer tour, kicking off in July!

Hailing from Germany’s capitol Berlin, on their upcoming new album ‘Hollowed’ which is set to be released June 24th on Napalm Records, once again EARTH SHIP celebrate the power of riffs in all shapes and sizes. They’re not just delivering a finest sludge record, but it has been also written to be made for eternity in doom and beyond. Watch out when EARTH SHIP is going to perform their walls of tunes live!

With HIGH FIGHTER on the bill, a volatile cocktail of heavy as hell riffs fuelled by beer and the mighty weedian riffs is already guaranteed, as these guys and girl offer something special to the Sludge, Blues and Stoner Scene! After their critically acclaimed debut EP ‘The Goat Ritual’ released end of 2014, followed by numerous shows over Europe including UK dates, festivals, gigs and tours with bands such as Ahab, Mammoth Storm, Crowbar, Corrosion of Conformity, The Midnight Ghost Train & many more, HIGH FIGHTER will release their first & full length album ‘Scars & Crosses’ by June 10th 2016 with Svart Records.

But who would mess with a MAMMOTH STORM. These Swedish label mates of EARTH SHIP have already made their name and left a stamp in the worldwide doom scene! With their latest and highly acclaimed release ‘Fornjot’ (November 2015, Napalm Records), MAMMOTH STORM toured with bands such the likes of AHAB and already gained lots of praise from fans and press all over the world of doom and heaviest riffs.

Catch this exciting doom & sludge steamroller live, this summer!

EARTH SHIP, HIGH FIGHTER & MAMMOTH STORM
22.07.: Kiel, DE – Kieler Schaubude
23.07.: Naaldwijk / Den Haag, NL – De Flatertheek
24.07.: Le Havre, FR – Mac Daid’s
25.07.: Nantes, FR – Le Ferrailleur
26.07.: Köln, DE – Underground
27.07.: Weinheim, DE – Cafe Central
28.07.: Berlin, DE – Badehaus Szimpla
29.07.: Erfurt, DE – From Hell
30.07.: Hamburg, DE – Fundbureau

www.facebook.com/wearetheearthship
www.facebook.com/highfighter
www.facebook.com/mammothstorm

High Fighter, Scars and Crosses album trailer

German sludge metallers High Fighter have set a June 10 release for their debut album, Scars and Crosses, through Svart Records. It’s been something of a whirlwind for the hardcore-influenced five-piece since issuing their debut EP, The Goat Ritual (review here), in 2014, playing shows around Europe and finally announcing they’d hooked up with respected purveyor Svart last month. As they did for the EP, they’ll be touring for Scars and Crosses, and it seems fair to expect that the dates below are the first list of many to come. I’ll post more when I know more.

For now, check out the frickin’ excellent cover art by Dominic Sohor for Scars and Crosses, as well as the tracklisting, below, courtesy of the PR wire:

HIGH FIGHTER ANNOUNCE NEW ALBUM DETAILS!

And unveil album cover, title & tracklist!

Hamburg-based Sludge Metal / Stoner / Power Doom band HIGH FIGHTER, who already gained high praise in the scene for their self-released demo EP ‘The Goat Ritual’ back in the end of 2014, have just unveiled some new details about their upcoming, first full length album! After the band formed in the summer of 2014 and in one band year only, High Fighter heavily toured across Europe including UK dates, shared the stages with bands such as Ahab, Mammoth Storm, The Midnight Ghost Train, Corrosion of Conformity or Greenleaf, and played festivals in 2015 such as Stoned from the Underground, Sonic Blast in Portugal, Red Smoke Poland, Hamburg Metaldayz or an exclusive press showcase live at Wacken Open Air 2015.

Now High Fighter have finished the work on their debut studio record, and unveil first details about “Scars & Crosses”, set to be released June 10th 2016 on Svart Records!

“Scars & Crosses” has been recorded live at RAMA Studio in Mannheim, Germany ( Ahab, The Hirsch Effekt, Fjørt & many more ) by Jens Siefert, and is mixed & mastered by none else than Toshi Kasai (Melvins, Big Business) in Los Angeles. Again the band worked with artist Dominic Sohor from the UK, who has already been responsible for the stunning artwork of ‘The Goat Ritual’ back in 2014, on the band’s upcoming album:

The tracklist will read as follows:

1) A Silver Heart
2) Darkest Days
3) The Gatekeeper
4) Blinders
5) Portrait Mind
6) Gods
7) Down To The Sky
8) Scars & Crosses

On “Scars & Crosses”, High Fighter continue their exciting mix of Stoner Rock, Sludge, Doom, Blues and Metal. The album will be coming out June 10th 2016 on Finland’s cult-label Svart Records, and will be available as a 6-page CD Digi Pack, Digital Download & LP Gatefold.

To support High Fighter’s new album live, the band will be heavily hitting the road again this year. Make sure to catch their energetic stage shows live on the following dates:

28.04.2016: Desertfest Berlin, DE
27.05.2016: Stadtfest Bad Oldesloe, DE
10.06.2016: Bambi Galore, Hamburg, DE – High Fighter Album Release Show, w/ Jucifer, The Moth & Doperuler!
17.06.2016: Immerhin, Würzburg, DE – w/ The Midnight Ghost Train!
18.06.2016 Alte Hackerei, Karlsruhe, DE – w/ The Midnight Ghost Train!
02.07.2016: Stadtfest Mücheln, DE
17-20.08.2016: Summer Breeze Festival, DE
02.09.2016: MetallerGrillen Festival, DE

www.highfighter.de
www.facebook.com/highfighter
www.highfighter.bandcamp.com
www.svartrecords.com

High Fighter, The Goat Ritual (2014)

German sludge metallers High Fighter will release their debut album on June 10 through Svart Records. The band has just started what one assumes will be a quick recording process to make the LP, which will follow their wildly-well-received 2014 debut EP, The Goat Ritual (review here), which also came out as a 12″ on Vinyl Got Soul Records last fall in time for High Fighter to tour in Europe alongside Ahab. Indeed, High Fighter have been off and running since getting their start about two years ago, and to coincide with the arrival of their debut, they’ve already booked appearances at Desertfest Berlin 2016 and the Summer Breeze festival. No doubt there will be more to come.

Kudos and congrats to the band and here’s looking forward to the album. From the PR wire:

HIGH FIGHTER sign with SVART RECORDS, prepare label debut

Hamburg- based Stoner Metal / Sludge outfit HIGH FIGHTER have just hit the studio to record their first full length album, now the band announced that they have signed a worldwide deal with Finland’s cult label SVART RECORDS!

Born in the summer of 2014 by former band members of A Million Miles, Buffalo Hump and Pyogenesis, HIGH FIGHTER self-released their first and critically acclaimed debut EP titled ‘The Goat Ritual’ in the same year. Followed by numerous shows all over Europe and the UK in 2015. With one EP out and in the band’s first year only, HIGH FIGHTER have already shared the stages with acts such as Corrosion of Conformity, Ahab, Mammoth Storm, The Midnight Ghost Train or Greenleaf, and appeared on festivals like Stoned From The Underground, Sonic Blast Portugal, Red Smoke in Poland, Hamburg Metaldayz and many more, including an exclusive press showcase live at Wacken Open Air. After heavily touring in 2015, the band has now hit the renowned Rama Studios in Mannheim, Germany, to record their first and highly awaited full-length album, set to be released in June 2016!

“When we introduced the band to public by the end of 2014 and released our first demo EP ‘The Goat Ritual’ the same year, we would have never imagined what amazing things & opportunities would come up for us and where the still young road of High Fighter would go…in one year only, we were lucky enough to tour heavily, played shows & tours with so many fantastic bands, rocked several festival stages, seen amazing places and met the greatest people out there. But when we started the band, we would have also never imagined to be signing a deal with one of the best underground labels this scene has to offer and after this very short band history. Having build up bands such as Mantar or Hexvessel, Svart Records’ artist roster speaks for itself, and we’re over the moon to have signed with such well- reputated and fantastic record label. We look forward to this journey, and can’t wait till our first album will see the light of day on Svart!“ HIGH FIGHTER’s vocalist Mona Miluski states.

HIGH FIGHTER are currently recording at Rama Studios in Mannheim, Germany. To support the upcoming album live, the band has already announced several first shows for 2016 such as at Desertfest Berlin or Summer Breeze Festival, and will be announcing more tour dates and gigs coming up this year soon. Mark your summer calendar, HIGH FIGHTER’s first full length album is set to be released on June 10th 2016 on Svart Records!

For More Info Visit:
www.facebook.com/highfighter
www.highfighter.de
www.highfighter.bandcamp.com
www.facebook.com/svartrecords
www.svartrecords.com

High Fighter, The Goat Ritual (2014)

The countdown is on for Desertfest Berlin 2016 — yes, in terms of the number of days until the German fest kicks off its arguably strongest lineup to-date, but also in terms of how many bands there are left to add to said lineup. With Philadelphia’s Stinking Lizaveta and Hamburg’s High Fighter and Mantar joining, that means only five bands remain to be announced. Who will it be? When will word come? Well, for the latter I’d guess sometime before April. The former is pretty much up in the air. Could be locals, could be someone imported who’s also taking part in the London fest. We’ll just have to wait and find out.

In the meantime, the bill, as noted, is ridiculous for the weekend fest at the Astra Kulturhaus in Berlin. Check it out below, along with the official confirmation of Stinking Lizaveta, Mantar and High Fighter signing on:

Desertfest Berlin 2016 – MANTAR, STINKING LIZAVETA, HIGH FIGHTER added to the line-up!

Countdown to D-Day is ticking, 12 weeks left and our planned amount of 3-day passes is already gone! Because we value your trust and your dedication, we decided to stock up on some more festival-passes and reduce the number of day-tickets, so attention please: a bunch of additional 3-day-passes are on sale but they will not last long, so better be safe and be quick than sorry. Get yours on www.desertfest.de right now! The day tickets will be very limited and will go on sale afterwards.

Also regarding the question you all are longing to have answered: this years door policy will let you enter and exit from the festival until 10pm / 22h00! Concerning food, we also heard your requests: there will be more stalls and booths to feed your hungry bellies. Last but not least, we will stick to our NO OVERLAPPING SETS rule – that means that if you’re a true music warrior you’ll be able to see every single band scheduled. Time schedules will come when we will release our day tickets.

But first, let us introduce 3 new bands added to the line-up today: German punishing black metal-doom-punk duo Mantar; Philadelphia’s long-running psychedelic punk metal trio Stinking Lizaveta; and Hamburg’s volatile cocktail of heavy as hell riffs High Fighter! We are proud of this year’s edition, and we still have 5 bands to announce to make it even better, so stay tuned!

http://www.desertfest.de/
https://www.facebook.com/DesertfestBerlin

High Fighter, The Goat Ritual (2014)

German sludgecore rockers High Fighter toured in Europe this past Spring alongside Polish exports Sunnata, and they’ll return to the road later this month and into November with the formidably doomed likes of their seafaring countrymen in Ahab. The difference? This time, High Fighter will have a limited 12″ edition of their 2014 debut EP, The Goat Ritual (review here), in tow. The wax pressing comes courtesy of Vinyl Got Soul Records, and the magic number is 300. If there are any left as I write this, I don’t imagine they’ll be around for too long.

High Fighter played Stoned from the Underground and SonicBlast Moledo this summer, and in addition to the run with Ahab, they have a few select other dates this fall listed below, as they arrived from the PR wire:

HIGH FIGHTER re-release debut EP on Vinyl + On tour with AHAB this Fall!

Hamburg based newcomer stoner metal outfit HIGH FIGHTER have just announced the re-release of their critically acclaimed debut EP ‘The Goat Ritual’ on Vinyl. Originally self-released as CD Digi Pack as well as Digital Download via Bandcamp back in October 2014, HIGH FIGHTER have now teamed up with Vinyl Got Soul Records for an exclusive Vinyl edition! Their debut EP ‘The Goat Ritual’ is now available as a handnumbered, 12inch limited edition to 300 copies, and can be purchased via several LP online stores as well as directly at: vinylgotsoulrecords@gmx.de

Formed in the summer of 2014, HIGH FIGHTER deliver a volatile cocktail of heavy as hell tunes and offer something new to the doom, sludge, blues and stoner metal scene. After numerous shows with bands such as Corrosion of Conformity, Greenleaf, Mammoth Mammoth or The Midnight Ghost Train, tours throughout Germany, Belgium, France and the UK, as well as several festival appearances this summer at like Stoned from the Underground 2015, Sonic Blast Portugal, Red Smoke in Poland, an exclusive press showcase at this year’s Wacken Open Air & many more, in one year band existence HIGH FIGHTER have gained high praise from both fans and the press all over Europe and already belong to one of the most promising newcomer acts the scene has to offer.

To celebrate the band’s EP re-release on Vinyl and to end a first successful year of their young band history, HIGH FIGHTER have just recently announced an extensive tour with nautic funeral doom masters in AHAB. With them on the bill will be Mammoth Storm from Sweden, make sure to catch this exciting band line up on their upcoming tour:

‘The Tour of the Glen Carrig 2015 Part I’
AHAB, HIGH FIGHTER + MAMMOTH STORM
29.10.2015: Frankfurt a.M. DE – Elfer
30.10.2015: Jena DE – Cassablanca
31.10.2015: Hamburg DE – Bambi Galore
01.11.2015: Köln DE – Underground
02.11.2015: Paris FR – Glazart
03.11.2015: Nantes FR – Le Ferailleur
05.11.2015: Colmar FR – Grillen
06.11.2015: Stuttgart DE – Club Cann
07.11.2015: Pratteln CH – Z7
08.11.2015: Heidelberg DE – Schwimmbad Club

More upcoming shows of HIGH FIGHTER:
16.10.2015: Dresden DE – Club 11
17.10.2015: Leipzig DE – Wilhelmine Setalight Festival, Villakeller
04.12.2015: Oldenburg DE – Cadillac
26.12.2015: Hamburg DE – Rock Café St. Pauli

www.highfighter.de
www.facebook.com/highfighter
www.highfighter.bandcamp.com

‘The Goat Ritual’ – Now available on Vinyl via: vinylgotsoulrecords@gmx.de

Or at:
http://shop.napalmrecords.com/high-fighter-the-goat-ritual-black-vinyl.html
http://www.hrrshop.de/HIGH-FIGHTER-The-Goat-Ritual-LP

High Fighter, “Breaking Goat Mountains” Live at Stoned from the Underground 2015

How far off can we, as a species, be from a stoner rock cruise? I don’t know. Heavy metal already has like 50 different cruises. Get Royal Caribbean on the line! What? There’s no lines? And I’m not actually speaking to anyone? I’m blogging? Still? Ah hell.

SonicBlast Moledo 2015, in Portugal, isn’t the only fest in the world offering a resort-type atmosphere — a certain “secret” Sardinian shindig walks by and waves — but they certainly make the prospect enticing. Part of that, of course, is the lineup. Pentagram will headline, and Greenleaf, My Sleeping Karma, Belzebong, High Fighter and many more share the bill on Aug. 14 and 15 in the coastal town of Moledo. Going to the beach is nice. Going to the beach where riffs are is how you win at life.

The timetable for SonicBlast Moledo 2015 has been newly unveiled, and you’ll find it below with more info from the PR wire to fuel your escapist fantasies:

It’s on the 14th and 15th of August that, by the Atlantic shore, the 5th edition of SonicBlast Moledo takes place. For those looking for stoner, psych, doom or heavy music styles, it’s already an obligatory yearly stop. This small festival is a well kept secret for the fans of these genres. With a powerful line up, a dream location in one of the most beautiful beaches in the Iberian Peninsula and affordable prices, going to SonicBlast Modelo is a no brainer.

Spread across two stages, in the afternoon by the pool and at night by the park, the highlights of this year are pioneers of doom Pentagram, unique and hypnotic My Sleeping Karma, the intense sound of Greenleaf, responsible for one of the best stoner records of 2014 (Trails and Passes), heavy rockers The Vintage Caravan and Belzebong, playing for the very first time in Portugal. Some other smashing acts from the european scene playing at Sonicblast Moledo are Wight, Mother Engine, High Fighter, The Attack of the Brain Eaters, Somali Yacht Club, Puma Pumku and Galactic Superlords. The usual support to the punk scene is held by Nervous from North America and Cuchillo de Fuego from Spain. The Portuguese scene is also very well represented through the 70’s rock from The Black Wizards, Big Red Panda, Lâmina, Vircator, Mantra and the return of aweless Plus Ultra.

This festival has a free-entrance warmup party on the 13th August on a beach bar, several activities as surf or skate, and free camping just two minutes away from the sea, where it meets the forest.

Kadavar, Blues Pills, The Atomic Bitchwax, Church of Misery, Samsara Blues Experiment, The Machine and Black Bombaim are some of the great bands that have passed for SonicBlast Moledo in the past editions.

The tickets for this outstanding gathering are already on sale. You can acquire the 2 day pass for 36€ until the 13th August. After this date the price is 42€. Daily tickets are 20€ until the 13th and 25€ on the day.

Tickets at:
http://www.blueticket.pt/site/EventoDetalhe.aspx?ecomm=1&eventoId=2308&idiomaid=2&op=0
www.sonicblastmoledo.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/SonicBlast-Moledo/242619262427066
https://www.facebook.com/events/607451179385390/

Belzebong, “Diabolical Dopenosis” live in Germany

German sludge metallers High Fighter and Polish heavy rockers Sunnata will embark on a European tour this week. It’ll be the first run for the hotly-tipped High Fighter, who released their debut EP, The Goat Ritual (review here), last year, and Sunnata head out in support of their latest offering, Climbing the Colossus, which was released following a name change.

Tour starts on Thursday in Dresden, and will cover ground in Germany, France, the UK and Belgium, and with 10 shows in 10 days — including three free gigs, which are always a good time — no doubt it’ll provide some solid experience to High Fighter, whose membership is culled from A Million Miles and Buffalo Hump.

Dates and info off the PR wire:

HIGH FIGHTER + SUNNATA LIVE IN APRIL 2015: GET DOOMED IN SPRING TOUR!

Hamburg based stoner metal / sludge newcomer in High Fighter, who are currently featured as “Heroes of Tomorrow” in the new issue of Germany’s Metal Hammer Magazine, in such short but promising band history the band has just recently announced their very first tour ever! Alongside with doom band sunnata – hailing from Warsaw, Poland, this heavy-weight band package will hit the road through Germany, Belgium, France and the UK, starting this April 2015.

Catch High Fighter + sunnata live on the following dates – presented by Metal.de, The Sludgelord and Doomed & Stoned:

09.04.2015 – Dresden, GER – Sabotage
10.04.2015 – Potsdam, GER – Hanns-Eisler-Klub (*Free entry!)
11.04.2015 – Wiesloch, GER – Rock & Pop
12.04.2015 – Köln, GER – Underground
13.04.2015 – Hastings, UK – The Carlisle
14.04.2015 – London, UK – The Unicorn (*Free entry!)
15.04.2015 – Oxford, UK – Wheatsheaf
16.04.2015 – Antwerp, BE –The Rocking Bull
17.04.2015 – Thionville, FR – Shamrock (*Free entry!)
18.04.2015 – Wolfsburg, GER – s.V. Jugenhaus Ost (*High Fighter only!)
18.04.2015 – Paris, FR – Glazart / Doomed Gatherings (*Sunnata only!)

For More Info Visit:
www.facebook.com/highfighter/events
www.highfighter.de
www.facebook.com/HighFighter
www.facebook.com/sunnataofficial

High Fighter, “2Steps Blueskill” official video

Sunnata, “Asteroid” live

Hamburg-based High Fighter released their debut EP, The Goat Ritual (review here), last year to a flurry of hyperbole highlighting its precise riffing, tradeoff harsh and melodic vocals and schooled songwriting. The band, who also just formed in 2014, are getting ready to head out on their first tour next month, and they’ll be joined by Polish rockers Sunnata, whose transition from the moniker Satellite Beaver was made complete with the issue of the Climbing the Colossus full-length a year ago. A couple dates are still TBA, so keep an eye out.

The PR wire had this to offer:

HIGH FIGHTER & SUNNATA announce “Get Doomed In Spring Tour 2015“!

What a heavy-weight package! German newcomer sludge / doom outfit HIGH FIGHTER have announced their first tour ever, alongside with none other than doom mates in SUNNATA! Hailing from Warsaw, Poland & heavily touring Europe over the last years such as at Desertfest & many more stages with well-known acts, Sunnata have already left their remarkable stamp in nowadays doom & fuzz scene.

Formed in the summer of 2014 and started as a total new band project born by former band members of A Million Miles, Buffalo Hump and Pyogenesis, HIGH FIGHTER is a volatile cocktail of heavy as hell riffs fuelled by beer and the mighty weedian riffs. Add a heavy dose of the blues and the deadly schizophrenic vocals by frontlady Mona, and High Fighter offer something new to the Sludge, Blues & Stoner Scene. If you’re looking for a highly polished band then look elsewhere as High Fighter play mean and dirty Blues, Stoner & dark Sludgy riffs to fuel your appetite with.

For their first tour ever, HIGH FIGHTER could not have picked a heavier and better choice to round up this spring tour package: Driven by addiction to low frequencies, SUNNATA (“voidness”) merge psychedelic trips, doomed & catchy heavy riffage with oriental vibes along with grungy vocals and intense grooves. Open your mind and experience it. Let there be noise.

And there will. On the upcoming “Get Doomed In Spring Tour 2015“,
presented by Metal.de, The Sludgelord and Doomed & Stoned:
09.04.2015 – Dresden, GER – Sabotage
10.04.2015 – tba
11.04.2015 – Wiesloch, GER – Rock & Pop
12.04.2015 – Köln, GER – Underground
13.04.2015 – Hastings, UK – The Carlisle
14.04.2015 – London, UK – Unicorn
15.04.2015 – Oxford, UK – Wheatsheaf
16.04.2015 – Antwerp, BE – The Rocking Bull
17.04.2015 – tba
18.04.2015 – Wolfsburg, GER – s.V. Jugenhaus Ost ( *High Fighter only! )
18.04.2015 – Paris, FR – Glazart / Doomed Gatherings ( *Sunnata only! )

For More Info, News & Tickets Visit:
www.highfighter.de
www.facebook.com/HighFighter
www.highfighter.bandcamp.com
www.facebook.com/sunnataofficial
www.sunnataofficial.bandcamp.com

Sunnata, Climbing the Colossus (2014)

High Fighter, The Goat Ritual (2014)