Mars Red Sky Post “Slow Attack” Video

Posted in Bootleg Theater on October 23rd, 2024 by JJ Koczan

mars red sky (Photo by Jessica Calvo)

Videomaking has been a part of the Mars Red Sky story since the Bordeaux-based band first started rolling out self-made clips for “Strong Reflection” and “Marble Sky” some 14 years ago. The trio’s ongoing collaboration with director Seb Antoine (also drums in Starmonger) is a narrative thread unto itself in the growth of the band over the last 15 years, and the clip out today for “Slow Attack” from the band’s late-2023 album, Dawn of the Dusk (review here), is among the most cinematic clips the two entities have worked together to produce.

In the spirit of 2016’s ambitious clip “Alien Grounds” (posted here) that included  “Apex III” and “Sapphire Vessel” from the band’s third album, Apex III (Praise for the Burning Soul) (review here), “Slow Attack” uses more than one piece from Dawn of the Dusk to soundtrack the tale being told. “Heavenly Bodies” from the same record also features in the bookending quiet moments of guitarist/vocalist Julien Pras soft-strumming while bassist/vocalist Jimmy Kinast and drummer Mathieu “Matgaz” Gazeau clean up the place, at the start making way for the eyepatch-clad leader of a biker gang who’s about to forced-marry the protagonist of the video.

I won’t spoil how it ends, or the twist of plot that becomes so crucial to understanding it, but there’s a chase and a big bad that feel reminiscent in concept of a sans-pyro Mad Max: Fury Road, and with intermittent shots of the band playing the nearby saloon in this apparent Western ghost town, the song “Slow Attack,” which precedes “Heavenly Bodies” at the end of Dawn of the Dusk, makes a resounding backdrop for a tale of bitter triumph over the trauma that’s held one back. The metaphor is there, but also the visceral visual — you’ll see what I mean when you watch the clip.

Which is what I recommend you do next. In the blue text, there are the credits — I bet this was a good day of filming — and also the December tour dates that Mars Red Sky will pick up with to follow on the Fall US touring they’ve already done in the company of Nashville’s Howling Giant. That Dec. 5 show in Brooklyn is among the things I’m most looking forward to for the rest of 2024, and that list also includes Thanksgiving with family, just to give you some idea of the scale of anticipation. If you’ve never seen either band, you’re in luck as it’s a crucial moment to see both, and if you’re in Baltimore, Brooklyn, Boston or Philly, you get Black Lung for a bonus.

Clip and all info follow, courtesy of the PR wire:

Mars Red Sky, “Slow Attack” official video

Bordeaux-based doom-psych/heavy-progressives MARS RED SKY launch a video featuring three tracks off their new album ‘Dawn Of The Dusk’ – released back in December on Mrs Red Sound and Vicious Circle Records.
MARS RED SKY’s new video “Slow Attack” focuses on a biker gang roaming through a retro-futuristic setting. It’s reminiscent of Mad Max or Easy Rider, but the video is more modern, with a female character at the centre of the action. The short film includes the songs “Trap Door”, “Slow Attack” and “Heavenly Bodies” from the band’s latest album, ‘Dawn Of The Dusk’.

It was directed by Seb Antoine at Fort Rainbow, Cestas (France), with the help of Ronan Boudier and Hugo Vandekerckhove.

Video credits:
Directed by Seb Antoine
Starring: Anne-Sophie Picard, Gregory Dreyfus
Cinematography by Ronan Boudier
Motorcycle and stunt double: Dominique Kinast, Floriane Fontaine
Camera assistant: Hugo Vandekerckhove
Accessoiries and costumes: Frozen Joke Creation, Ouicube Design
Photo creation: Pierre-Gérard David
Catering: Germain Kpakou
Set photographer: Jessica Calvo

Extras: Benjamin Monnereau, Rachel Dumas, Audrey Chemin, Marceline Louis, Mathieu Figuier, Germain Kpakou, Piero Quintana

Filmed in Fort Rainbow, Cestas (France)

Special Thanks : Jean-Claude and PVKCR Moto Club

Recorded and mixed by Benjamin Mandeau at Cryogene Studio, France. Mastering: Ladislav Agabekov at Caduceus Studio in Gimel, Switzerland.

MARS RED SKY & HOWLING GIANT:
12.05 BALTIMORE, MD – Metro Baltimore *
12.06 BROOKLYN, NY – TV Eye NYC *
12.07 CAMBRIDGE/BOSTON, MA – Middle East *
12.08 PHILADELPHIA, PA – MilkBoy *
12.10 ASHEVILLE, NC – Eulogy
12.11 LOUISVILLE, KY – Portal Louisville
12.12 DETROIT, MI – Sanctuary Detroit
12.13 YOUNGSTOWN, OH – Westside Bowl
12.14 TORONTO, ON 🇨🇦 Monarch Tavern
12.15 MONTREAL, QC 🇨🇦 Foufounes Electriques
* with BLACK LUNG

MARS RED SKY are:
Julien Pras : guitar, vocals
Jimmy Kinast : bass, vocals
Mathieu “Matgaz” Gazeau : drums, vocals

Mars Red Sky, Dawn of the Dusk (2023)

Mars Red Sky on Facebook

Mars Red Sky on Instagram

Mars Red Sky on Bandcamp

Mars Red Sky merch store

Mars Red Sky website

Mrs Red Sound on Facebook

Mrs Red Sound on Twitter

Mrs Red Sound on Instagram

Mrs Red Sound website

Vicious Circle Records on Facebook

Vicious Circle Records on Instagram

Vicious Circle Records on Bandcamp

Vicious Circle Records website

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Mars Red Sky Update Winter US Tour Dates; New Shows Added

Posted in The Obelisk Presents, Whathaveyou on September 12th, 2024 by JJ Koczan

mars red sky

Hey, here’s a tour I haven’t posted about in… days? But, you know, sometimes shows get added to a thing, then sometimes more shows get added to that same thing, and here we are. When last we left US jaunt from Bordeaux’s Mars Red Sky in the company of Nashville’s Howling Giant, the groups had added a stretch of Dec. 5-15 to the in-progress September stint. The span of dates is the same as of now, but the shows taking place over that time have begun to fill in. Asheville, Toronto and Youngstown are new here at least, so hey, if you live in one of those places, good for you. I see an open date where a New Jersey show could be handily slotted, but more likely they’ll split that drive from Philadelphia to North Carolina, because that’s a hike.

Also notable, Baltimore’s Black Lung will jump on board for the first four nights, in their hometown as well as Brooklyn, Boston and Philly. Mars Red Sky, Howling Giant, Black Lung is a pretty sick show. I can’t and won’t tell you how to live your life, but that doesn’t seem to me to be a terrible way to do it, again, if that’s where in the world you happen to be at the time.

Crucialfest tomorrow, though, and a bunch more to go — also Ripplefest, because it’s also been like three minutes since I talked about that, on the 21st — before they get there, as the post from Mars Red Sky‘s socials reminds:

mars red sky tour update

USA TOUR / NEW DATES

A quick update on the US tour with all the confirmed dates in December! Still with our dear Howling Giant and also with BLACK LUNG for a few gigs. Cheers!

TICKETS https://marsredsky.rocks/tour

FALL (remaining)
09.13 SALT LAKE CITY, UT – Crucialfest
09.14 LAS VEGAS, NV – Sinwave Vegas
09.15 SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Bottom of the Hill
09.16 SACRAMENTO, CA – Cafe Colonial
09.17 LOS ANGELES, CA – El Cid on Sunset
09.19 ALBUQUERQUE, NM – Launchpad
09.20 EL PASO, TX – Rosewood
09.21 AUSTIN, TX – RippleFest Texas

WINTER
12.05 BALTIMORE, MD – Metro Baltimore *
12.06 BROOKLYN, NY – TV Eye NYC *
12.07 CAMBRIDGE/BOSTON, MA – Middle East *
12.08 PHILADELPHIA, PA – MilkBoy *
12.10 ASHEVILLE, NC – Eulogy
12.11 LOUISVILLE, KY – Portal Louisville
12.12 DETROIT, MI – Sanctuary Detroit
12.13 YOUNGSTOWN, OH – Westside Bowl
12.14 TORONTO, ON 🇨🇦 Monarch Tavern
12.15 MONTREAL, QC 🇨🇦 Foufounes Electriques
* with BLACK LUNG

MARS RED SKY are:
Julien Pras : guitar, vocals
Jimmy Kinast : bass, vocals
Mathieu “Matgaz” Gazeau : drums, vocals

http://www.facebook.com/marsredskyband/
https://marsredsky.bigcartel.com/
http://www.marsredsky.net
https://mrsredsound.com/

https://www.facebook.com/mrsredsound33
https://www.instagram.com/mrsredsound/
https://mrsredsound.com/

https://www.facebook.com/viciouscirclerec
https://www.instagram.com/vicious_circle_records
https://viciouscircle.bandcamp.com/
https://www.viciouscircle.fr/

Mars Red Sky, Dawn of the Dusk (2023)

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Mars Red Sky Announce Rescheduled US Dates with Howling Giant for December

Posted in Whathaveyou on September 2nd, 2024 by JJ Koczan

Mars Red Sky (Photo by Jessica Calvo)

I’ve been waiting for these rescheduled Mars Red Sky and Howling Giant dates in no small part out of self-interest. That is, I want to see the bands. I was selfishly hoping for a Jersey show somewhere, but doing so in December in Brooklyn — or maybe Philly if I feel like driving just as long in the other direction — should be fine too. I’m not sure what the timing concern was that required these shows to be re-booked for after the two bands are out together starting this week in Chicago, en route to Crucialfest and Ripplefest Texas, but whatever works. The good news is they’re happening at all.

These dates — not the new ones — have been posted a couple times by now between posts about Mars Red Sky and posts about Howling Giant. If you want to come at me for redundancy, go for it. Take me down a peg. I’m sure I could use it. Or maybe even better, just go to a gig instead and let Mars Red Sky‘s richly melodic progressive heavy textures and Howling Giant‘s infectious heavy-pop bounce wash away what might really be bothering you for a while. If you need me I’m gonna go put on Dawn of the Dusk (review here) again. It will have been out for a year by the time they get to Brooklyn. How about that.

From social media:

mars red sky new dates poster

Hey there!!

So excited by upcoming USA tour with special guest Howling Giant!! Some tiny updates to declare… Baltimore, Brooklyn, Boston, Philly and Detroit are postponed to December and additional dates are added to a second leg in Winter – including a short Canadian trip!!

TICKETS https://marsredsky.rocks/tour

09.03 CHICAGO, IL – Reggies
09.04 MILWAUKEE, WI – X-Ray Arcade
09.05 MINNEAPOLIS, MN – First Avenue & 7th St Entry
09.06 SIOUX FALLS, SD – Club David 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐞!
09.07 RAPID CITY, SD – Fairgrounds/Left of the Dial
09.08 DENVER, CO – Hi-Dive Denver
09.10 PORTLAND, OR – High Water Mark Lounge
09.11 SEATTLE, WA – Substation
09.13 SALT LAKE CITY, UT – Crucialfest
09.14 LAS VEGAS, NV – Sinwave Vegas
09.15 SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Bottom of the Hill
09.16 SACRAMENTO, CA – Cafe Colonial
09.17 LOS ANGELES, CA – El Cid on Sunset
09.19 ALBUQUERQUE, NM – Launchpad
09.20 EL PASO, TX – Rosewood
09.21 AUSTIN, TX – RippleFest Texas
12.05 BALTIMORE, MD – Metro Baltimore
12.06 BROOKLYN, NY – TV Eye NYC 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐞!
12.07 CAMBRIDGE/BOSTON, MA – Middle East
12.08 PHILADELPHIA, PA – MilkBoy
12.09 RICHMOND, VA – Cobra Cabana 𝐧𝐞𝐰!
11.12 LOUISVILLE, KY – Portal Louisville 𝐧𝐞𝐰!
12.12 DETROIT, MI – Sanctuary Detroit
12.15 MONTREAL, QC 🇨🇦 Foufounes Electriques 𝐧𝐞𝐰!

More dates to be announced soon…

Tour poster artwork by Carlos Olmo Art.
Cheers Heavy Talent, 3C, The Obelisk, Vicious Circle Records, Mrs Red Sound.

MARS RED SKY are:
Julien Pras : guitar, vocals
Jimmy Kinast : bass, vocals
Mathieu “Matgaz” Gazeau : drums, vocals

http://www.facebook.com/marsredskyband/
https://marsredsky.bigcartel.com/
http://www.marsredsky.net
https://mrsredsound.com/

https://www.facebook.com/mrsredsound33
https://www.instagram.com/mrsredsound/
https://mrsredsound.com/

https://www.facebook.com/viciouscirclerec
https://www.instagram.com/vicious_circle_records
https://viciouscircle.bandcamp.com/
https://www.viciouscircle.fr/

Mars Red Sky, Dawn of the Dusk (2023)

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The Obelisk Presents: Mars Red Sky Announce Aug./Sept. Tour with Howling Giant

Posted in The Obelisk Presents, Whathaveyou on April 30th, 2024 by JJ Koczan

Having just wrapped a stretch of European touring that found them keeping company with Stoned Jesus, Bordeaux heavy psych progressives Mars Red Sky today reveal the US stint leading to their previously-announced appearance at this September’s Ripplefest Texas, stopping at Crucial Fest along the way. They go on the back of this past December’s Dawn of the Dusk (review here), and with support from Nashville uptempo melodymakers Howling Giant, who issued their second album, Glass Future (review here), in October, that’s two of 2023’s very best records paired up for in-person delivery. Such efficiency brooks no argument.

The Obelisk has presented Mars Red Sky tours in the past, and I’m especially proud to have it do so again in light of the LP they’re heralding to the US audience. In addition to the basic routing here, the tour also answers the question in my mind of whether they would appear at Desertfest NYC with a decisive no — they’ll be in Boise, Salt Lake City and Vegas at the time — but if you’re in New York and worried about missing out, the tour starts Aug. 29 in Brooklyn, so don’t sweat it. More dates are TBA as well.

From the PR wire:

mars red sky us tour 2024 poster

MARS RED SKY US tour announced with special guest HOWLING GIANT

Psych/prog trio MARS RED SKY is getting ready to cross the Atlantic Ocean to join Nashville’s heavy psych quartet HOWLING GIANT on a North American adventure. Their USA tour will kick off this August 29th in New York to end up with RippleFest Texas in Austin on September 21st. All dates and info below.

Brought up on bands like Sonic Youth, The Jesus Lizard or My Bloody Valentine, Bordeaux-based outfit MARS RED SKY had no idea that they were about to become French stoner scene cornerstones when they founded the band in 2007. Julien Pras’ ethereal and melodic voice emerges from a thick and complex rhythm, carried by sci-fi literature’s lyricism. Almost cinematic, MARS RED SKY’s sounding has a peculiar and unique flavour, standing out within the heavy rock scene.

New album ‘Dawn Of The Dusk’ – out on December 2023 on Vicious Circle & Mrs Red Sound – is a genuine conceptual piece of work skillfully exploring progressive and post-metal territories with boundless inspiration. The eight-track album is packed with the band’s overflowing inspiration that has made their reputation in France and around the World over the last decade.

Hailing from Nashville, Tennessee, HOWLING GIANT blast forth a cosmic convergence of pulpy sci-fi themes and blistering psych-prog songcraft. Across a variety of recorded and live experiences since 2014, have become an essential act of the US forward-thinking heavy rock scene.

8/29 Thu – Brooklyn, NY – Baby’s All Right
8/30 Fri – Cambridge – Boston, MA – Middle East
8/31 Sat – Philadelphia, PA – Milk Boy
9/1 Sun – Baltimore, MD – Metro Gallery
9/2 Mon – Detroit, MI – Sanctuary
9/3 Tue – Chicago, IL – Reggies / Music Joint
9/4 Wed – Milwaukee, WI – X-Ray Arcade
9/5 Thu – Minneapolis, MN – 7th St Entry
9/6 Fri – Sioux Falls, SD – Remedy Brewing
9/7 Sat – Rapid City, SD – Fairground
9/8 Sun – Denver, CO – Hi-Dive
9/10 Tue – Portland, OR – The High Water Mark
9/11 Wed – Seattle, WA – Substation
9/12 Thu – Boise, ID – The Shredder
9/13 Fri – Salt Lake City, UT – CRUCIAL FEST
9/14 Sat – Las Vegas, NV – Sinwave
9/15 Sun – San Francisco, CA – Bottom Of The Hill
9/16 Mon – Sacramento, CA – Cafe Colonial
9/17 Tue – Los Angeles, CA – Residen
9/18 Wed – Tempe, AZ – Yucca Tap Room
9/19 Thu – Albuquerque, NM – Launchpad
9/20 Fri – El Paso, TX – The Rosewood
9/21 Sat – Austin, TX – RippleFest Texas

Tickets: https://marsredsky.rocks/tour

MARS RED SKY are:
Julien Pras : guitar, vocals
Jimmy Kinast : bass, vocals
Mathieu “Matgaz” Gazeau : drums, vocals

http://www.facebook.com/marsredskyband/
https://marsredsky.bigcartel.com/
http://www.marsredsky.net
https://mrsredsound.com/

https://www.facebook.com/mrsredsound33
https://www.instagram.com/mrsredsound/
https://mrsredsound.com/

https://www.facebook.com/viciouscirclerec
https://www.instagram.com/vicious_circle_records
https://viciouscircle.bandcamp.com/
https://www.viciouscircle.fr/

Mars Red Sky, Dawn of the Dusk (2023)

Howling Giant, Glass Future (2023)

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Mars Red Sky Announce More Touring for Spring

Posted in Whathaveyou on February 8th, 2024 by JJ Koczan

Pardon me for just a minute as I once again go look at flight prices from Newark, NJ, to Austin, TX, where this September, Mars Red Sky (along with Dozer and literally dozens of others) will take part in Ripplefest Texas 2024 from Sept. 19-22, unquestionably the largest of the various city-based Ripplefest franchises. My motivation in doing so comes from putting on Mars Red Sky‘s Dec. 2023 album, Dawn of the Dusk (review here) and imagining a world in which basically I don’t fly to Texas to see them play live. I don’t want to live in that world. It’s $297 on United right now. That doesn’t seem so bad, but then you get into lodging.

Ripplefest is but one stop the Bordeaux trio will make as they support Dawn of the Dusk over the course of this year, and I wouldn’t be surprised if some other US shows were announced as well. Ditto that for the UK the month after. Australia? South America? Japan? Not a lot of places I can imagine they wouldn’t find welcome.

Fests and club shows and dates with Stoned Jesus; oh my. From social media:

mars red sky new shows spring 2024

MARS RED SKY – TOUR ANNOUNCEMENT

Stoked to unveil a bunch of new gigs in Germany, Denmark, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, France and the UK! Can’t wait to see your faces!! Game plan below, presales links here: https://marsredsky.rocks/tour

07.02.2024 LYON (FR) Marché Gare
10.02.2024 CAEN (FR) BIG BAND CAFE **
17.02.2024 PAU (FR) La Ferronnerie
22.02.2024 DIJON (FR) Consortium Museum
23.02.2024 MONDORF LES BAINS (LU) Casino 2000 Mondorf-les-Bains
24.02.2024 EINDHOVEN (NL) Into The Void
21.03.2024 ANGERS (FR) Le Chabada – Angers (club et salle de concerts)
22.03.2024 SAINT-BRIEUC (FR) DRAKK METAL FEST officiel
23.03.2024 AMIENS(FR) 1001 Bières Amiens
03.04.2024 PARIS (FR) Le Trabendo **
04.04.2024 BREST (FR) Cabaret Vauban
20.04.2024 HONDARRIBIA (SP) Psylocibenea *
21.04.2024 PORTO (PT) Hard Club *
22.04.2024 LISBON (PT) LAV – Lisboa ao Vivo *
23.04.2024 MADRID (SP) nazcacluboficial *
24.04.2024 BARCELONA (SP) Razzmatazz (Sala 3) *
25.04.2024 TOULOUSE (FR) ) Le Rex de Toulouse *
26.04.2024 TOULON(FR) Omega Live *
24.05.2024 LE GRAND-PRESSIGNY (FR) JURASSIC FEST 2024
28.05.2024 KARLSHRUE (DE) Alte Hackerei
29.05.2024 MUNICH (DE) Feierwerk
30.05.2024 WIESBADEN (DE) Schlachthof Wiesbaden
01.06.2024 ESBJERG (DK) Esbjerg Fuzztival
02.06.2024 HAMBURG (DE) Hafenklang Hamburg
04.06.2024 LEIPZIG (DE) Soltmann
05.06.2024 BRAUNSCHWEIG (DE) B58 – Braunschweigs behänder Live-Club!
06.06.2024 BOCHUNM (DE) Die Trompete
07.06.2024 LEEUWARDEN (NL) Metalfestival Into The Grave
08.06.2024 CAMBRAI (FR) BetiZFest
14.06.2024 LA ROCHE SUR YON (FR) QUAI M
23.06.2024 LA SARRAZ (CH) Humus & Wine
19.09.2024 AUSTIN (USA) RippleFest Texas
19.10.2024 GLASGOW (UK) Sword of Damocles Festival
* with Stoned Jesus
** with HINT

MARS RED SKY are:
Julien Pras : guitar, vocals
Jimmy Kinast : bass, vocals
Mathieu “Matgaz” Gazeau : drums, vocals

http://www.facebook.com/marsredskyband/
https://marsredsky.bigcartel.com/
http://www.marsredsky.net
https://mrsredsound.com/

https://www.facebook.com/mrsredsound33
https://www.instagram.com/mrsredsound/
https://mrsredsound.com/

https://www.facebook.com/viciouscirclerec
https://www.instagram.com/vicious_circle_records
https://viciouscircle.bandcamp.com/
https://www.viciouscircle.fr/

Mars Red Sky, Dawn of the Dusk (2023)

Mars Red Sky, “The Final Round” official video

Mars Red Sky, “Break Even” official video

Mars Red Sky, “Maps of Inferno” official video

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Album Premiere, Review & Interview: Mars Red Sky, Dawn of the Dusk

Posted in audiObelisk, Features, Reviews on December 7th, 2023 by JJ Koczan

Mars Red Sky Dawn of the Dusk

Tomorrow, Dec. 7, is the release date for Dawn of the Dusk, the fifth full-length from Bordeaux, France, progressive heavy psychedelic rockers Mars Red Sky. Issuing through Vicious Circle Records and the band’s own Mrs Red Sound, it is their first LP since 2019’s The Task Eternal (review here), and it comes preceded by the earlier-2023 EP, Mars Red Sky & Queen of the Meadow (review here), which paired the trio of guitarist/vocalist Julian Pras, bassist/occasional-vocalist Jimmy Kinast and drummer Mathieu “Matgaz” Gazeau with folk singer Helen Ferguson, otherwise known as Queen of the Meadow. A past and present collaborator with Pras in his and her solo work, she both fit with the band and delivered a standout lead vocal performance with Pras backing. “Maps of Inferno” — which along with an edit of itself and the B-side “Out at Large” completed the EP’s tracklisting — reappears on Dawn of the Dusk as well, as part of a multi-tiered opening salvo that feels like nothing so much as the band purposefully pushing themselves in different directions.

To wit, “Break Even” which was the first single from the album-proper, opens and leads into the aforementioned “Maps of Inferno,” which all the more threatens to dominate the record due its prior release on the EP — threading short- and long-players is a standing tradition for Mars Red Sky — and “The Final Round,” and each of those three songs has a different lead singer. And even in “Break Even,” which unfurls itself with a roll very much characteristic of Mars Red Sky‘s style, melding languidity and tonal heft, breadth in the mix with forward rhythmic turnings and a lyrical message that feels like perhaps it’s earned some of its cynicism in the Frank Sinatra-referencing lyrics “If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere/Just what you’d be making exactly is anyone’s guess,” reassuring the listener that the band hasn’t ‘gone disco’ or some such while laying out the expanse of atmosphere in which the rest of the changes throughout the record will take place.

And it’s not just the first three songs that make up the vinyl’s A-side; it’s everything, but those first three songs are a clear example of Mars Red Sky‘s active participation in their creative growth. Pras takes “Break Even,” and while that’s the standard for the band, you can still hear them itching to try new ideas. The sweep into the chorus. The floating lead guitar near the end. Next, Ferguson steps in for “Maps of Inferno,” which is a landmark — as on Mars Red Sky & Queen of the Meadow, the collaboration cries out here for a full-length — and Kinast has a turn on “The Final Round.”

It’s not the first time he’s sung lead on a Mars Red Sky track, as one might recall “Marble Sky” from their 2011 self-titled debut (discussed herereview here), but if you’d like a convenient analogue for how much the band have grown in the 12 years since, a side-by-side of the two isn’t a terrible way to go. Here, Kinast is more confident. The construction of the song is broader. Its layers are dynamic. Its flow is psychedelic without losing its place or purpose. It goes somewhere. Not that these things weren’t true of “Marble Sky” — you will not hear me shit-talk that record, ever — but in concept and execution, Mars Red Sky‘s maturity has seen them become masters of a heavy, immersive rock that’s progressive not because it’s putting on a show of technique, though Matgaz patterns “Maps of Inferno” with subtle math, but because they build an instrumental like side B opener “A Choir of Ghosts” layer by layer with care and detail, mindful of their audience and how material might be perceived by their listenership, but always driving to balance that with an internal artistic chase — running, or rolling as with the riffs, after some idealized version of the thing, the sound, the song that’s perfect and always just ahead.

mars red sky (Photo by Jessica Calvo)

Side B has its own structure. The instrumental “A Choir of Ghosts”  leads into “Carnival Man,” which is the longest inclusion at 7:42 and downtrodden in its storytelling as it moves through the chorus toward the halfway point at about three minutes deep, the break to a long stretch of serene psych meandering taking hold for the next two-plus minutes. That’s step one.

Step two, “Trap Door” sets up “Slow Attack.”  The former is 46 seconds long and an acoustic intro for “Slow Attack” playing the next song’s central riff, quiet and unplugged, but they’re not kidding (though no doubt they’re having a bit of fun) when they call it “Trap Door” because it does feel very much like you’re being dropped into the penultimate cut as it bursts in at the start of a new measure and proceeds onward from there with stately march. Step three, the bottom drops out.

While not as much of a spectacle as “Maps of Inferno” or “The Final Round,” “Slow Attack” is quintessential Mars Red Sky. Again, Matgaz makes an intricate riff accessible through the drums. Kinast‘s bass winds beneath the chorus with an uptick in low end compared to the verse riff, which is more of a bounce as Pras delivers the title-line after the first chorus. And for step four, they finish with a wash that cuts back to the acoustic guitar, perhaps to shut the “Trap Door” behind them as they move on to the end of the record, but also to shift directly into “Heavenly Bodies,” which closes.

In a subdued reprise of “Slow Attack” on guitar and an arrangement that, while quiet and minimal-feeling is not at all the latter with Rhodes and maybe a broken piano, Ferguson returning to join Pras on ethereal vocals to enhance the ambient impression of “Heavenly Bodies” overall, which begins like a lullaby and comes to be consumed by static noise. Surprisingly harsh, almost machine-like, the noise swallows the melody and then settles itself into quick-fading static, like it was barely there to begin with. It’s not out of place, necessarily, and it’s fair enough that after spending the prior 39 minutes building a world of such vivid light and solidified ground and textures, they should be able to wipe the slate of Dawn of the Dusk and perhaps signal the arrival of nightfall.

Hopefully not. I’ve expressed a few times by now a concern that Dawn of the Dusk will be the last album from Mars Red Sky, a band I believe have more to say. Call me superstitious, but I believe in the subconscious, and when a group starts talking about endings, about circuses leaving town, about letting it be, “The Final Round” and so on, I get nervous. If this does end up being their last studio LP and touring cycle — and I don’t know that it is and I sincerely hope it isn’t — then Dawn of the Dusk serves as both a measure of how much the band have grown and flourished in their time together and of their desire to keep developing and trying new paths.

Both the familiar and not are reinforced, and even the curious structure of the two sides, the way each half develops its own personality, Dawn of the Dusk is a realized vision of Mars Red Sky‘s fluid chemistry, dynamic, malleable approach and psychedelic vision. They are a special, singular band.

[I was fortunate enough this week to talk to Pras, Gazeau and Kinast for a bit before a show in Germany on their current tour. The signal was spotty but the video of the interview follows here. Thanks if you check it out. The band’s remaining tour dates on this run (they’ll have more in 2024 and are confirmed for Ripplefest Texas in August), and other videos for the record follow as well.]

Mars Red Sky, Dawn of the Dusk interview, Dec. 5, 2023

Mars Red Sky on tour (remaining shows, more TBA):

mars red sky dawn of the dusk tour

Tickets: https://marsredsky.rocks/tour

07.12.2023 DE – DRESDEN, Chemiefabrik
08.12.2023 DE – JENA, KuBa
09.12.2023 DE – SIEGEN, Freak Valley Festival Winter Edition
19.01.2024 FR – AMIENS, 1001 Bières
20.01.2024 FR – ISSY-LES-MOULINEAUX, Le Réacteur
02.02.2024 FR – CHALON-SUR-SAÔNE, LaPéniche
03.02.2024 FR – STRASBOURG, La Laiterie
07.02.2024 FR – LYON, Marché Gare
10.02.2024 FR – CAEN, Big Band Café
17.02.2024 FR – PAU, La Ferronnerie
22.02.2024 FR – DIJON, Consortium Museum
23.02.2024 LU – MONDORF-LES-BAINS, Casino 2000
24.02.2024 NL – EINDHOVEN, Into The Void Festival
21.03.2024 FR – ANGERS, Le Chabada
22.03.2024 FR – SAINT-BRIEUC, Drakk Metal Fest
03.04.2024 FR – PARIS, Trabendo
01.06.2024 DK – ESBJERG, Esbjerg Fuzztival
07.06.2024 NL – LEEUWARDEN, Into The Grave Festival
14.06.2024 FR – LA ROCHE- SUR-YON, Quai M
19.09.2024 US – AUSTIN, Ripple Fest

Mars Red Sky, Dawn of the Dusk (2023)

Mars Red Sky, “The Final Round” official video

Mars Red Sky, “Break Even” official video

Mars Red Sky, “Maps of Inferno” official video

Mars Red Sky on Facebook

Mars Red Sky on Instagram

Mars Red Sky on Bandcamp

Mars Red Sky merch store

Mars Red Sky website

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Mrs Red Sound on Instagram

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Mars Red Sky Post “The Final Round” Video

Posted in Bootleg Theater on November 15th, 2023 by JJ Koczan

Mars Red Sky (Photo by Jessica Calvo)

Fresh off a performance at the Rise and Fall Festival in Niort, France, the Bordeaux-based heavy psychedelic progressive rock trio Mars Red Sky are edging closer to the Dec. 8 release of their fifth full-length, Dawn of the Dusk. Following up on the clip for “Break Even” (posted here) that itself followed the actual album announcement early last month, “The Final Round” is track three on the record after “Break Even” and “Maps of Inferno,” which featured earlier this year on the collaborative EP, Mars Red Sky & Queen of the Meadow (review here).

It’s an eight-track record and the last one is an instrumental revisit to the eerie melodies of “Maps of Inferno,” so three songs is not an insubstantial portion of the release out there before the arrival, which is still basically a month off. “The Final Round” also brings to my mind one of my greatest concerns about Dawn of the Dusk, namely that it’s either consciously or not positioning itself as the last Mars Red Sky album. The LP’s title certainly hints at beginnings of endings, and maybe “The Final Round” really is a last go on their part in some way. You’ll note it’s not the first round for bassist Jimmy Kinast taking on lead vocals. That was “Up the Stairs” on their 2011 self-titled debut (review here, discussed here), but Kinast makes the six-plus-minute track a highlight of the album — which is doubly impressive following Helen Ferguson‘s sit-in for “Maps of Inferno” and the high standard of guitarist Julien Pras‘ general handling of the role — and the effect those changes have in broadening the scope of Dawn of the Dusk isn’t to be understated. I may or may not be streaming the album in advance of the release, so I’m trying to hold back reviewing for that, but Mars Red Sky have never put out the same record twice, they’ve only ever moved forward, and this one does that too.

I only hope it’s not where they stop moving at all. I don’t think the shape of heavy rock or progressive psych would be what it is without the work Mars Red Sky have done over more than the last decade. They’re the band that showed a generation how to be heavy without having to give up melody for aggression. If they are done — mind you I have no confirmation, this is me hypothesizing; and “done” includes a hiatus for a few or however many years — the legacy they’ve left is not a trifling thing, and while I hope very much Dawn of the Dusk is not their collective final round, neither do I feel like they owe listeners or anyone else anything in terms of either the quality of their work or the ethic with which they’ve thus far delivered it. Speaking of, there’s tour dates listed below that carry into next year. Hardly the kind of thing a band wrapping up would do, you say? It is my sincere, sincere hope that you’re correct.

Enjoy “The Final Round”:

Mars Red Sky, “The Final Round” official video

From MARS RED SKY’s new album ‘Dawn Of The Dusk’ – out December 8th 2023 on MRS Red Sound & Vicious Circle. https://idol-io.ffm.to/DawnoftheDusk

French doom-psych/heavy-progressive trio MARS RED SKY unveil a striking new video for their monumental new track “The Final Round”. Their upcoming album ‘Dawn Of The Dusk’ is due out on December 8th 2023 via Mrs Red Sound and Vicious Circle Records.

‘Dawn Of The Dusk’: the beginning and the end are one. Mirror effects, reversals, double-dealing, deterioration… This fifth studio effort from French heavy psychedelic stalwarts MARS RED SKY is a genuine conceptual piece of work skilfully designed to take the listener on a journey through a shifting, unpredictable and even utterly disconcerting sonic universe. Bordeaux-based trio explore progressive and post-metal territories with boundless inspiration.

New video “The Final Round” proves that the band know how to surprise with a sumptuous Bowiesque journey with Jimmy Kinast (bass) on vocals! One of the highlights of the album. “As the film progresses, the organic elements of the creature deteriorate. This slow decline reflects the lyrics suggesting, in a pre-apocalyptic atmosphere, a balance of power between leaders and victims, the powerful ones and the weaks, power and the people it affects” comment film director Carol Teillard D’Eyry. “The Final Round” was directed by Carol Teillard d’Eyry with the help of D.O.P Nicolas Pradeau and Mathieu Disson (gaffer). Starring: Clément Gyselinck.

TRACK LISTING ‘DAWN OF THE DUSK’
1. Break Even
2. Maps of Inferno
3. The Final Round
4. A Choir of Ghosts
5. Carnival Man
6. Trap Door
7. Slow Attack
8. Heavenly Bodies

TICKETS: https://marsredsky.rocks/tour

11.11.2023 NIORT, FR – Rise & Fall Festival
16.11.2023 VANNES, FR – L’ECHONOVA
17.11.2023 VALLET, FR – Westill
18.11.2023 ARGENTEUIL, FR – La Cave Argenteuil
01.12.2023 MACON, FR – Matilda
02.12.2023 OLTEN, CH – OltenAir Rock Session
03.12.2023 GENEVA, CH – UNDERTOWN
05.12.2023 REGENSBURG, DE – Alte Mälzerei
06.12.2023 VIENNA, AU – ARENA WIEN
07.12.2023 DRESDEN, DE – Chemiefabrik Dresden (Chemo)
08.12.2023 JENA, DE – KuBa
09.12.2023 SIEGEN, DE – FREAK VALLEY FESTIVAL Winter Edition
19.01.2024 AMIENS, FR – 1001 Bières Amiens
20.01.2024 ISSY-LES-MOULINEAUX, FR – Le Réacteur
02.02.2024 CHALON-SUR-SAÔNE, FR – LaPéniche
03.02.2024 STRASBOURG, FR – La Laiterie Artefact
07.02.2024 LYON, FR – Marché Gare
21.03.2024 ANGERS – Le Chabada – Angers (club et salle de concerts)

Vicious Circle Records – Mrs Red Sound

MARS RED SKY are:
Julien Pras : guitar, vocals
Jimmy Kinast : bass, vocals
Mathieu “Matgaz” Gazeau : drums, vocals

Mars Red Sky, “Break Even” official video

Mars Red Sky, “Maps of Inferno” official video

Mars Red Sky on Facebook

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Mars Red Sky website

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Mars Red Sky Post “Break Even” Video

Posted in Bootleg Theater on October 9th, 2023 by JJ Koczan

Mars Red Sky (Photo by Jessica Calvo)

As announced last week, Mars Red Sky‘s new album is called Dawn of the Dusk and it’s being released on Dec. 8 through Vicious Circle Records and Mrs Red Sound. I spent a goodly portion of September (and October so far) with it on repeat, so when the clip came out last Wednesday, I wanted to post it right away because I’ve been dying to talk about this record, the somewhat darker take in “Break Even” at the outset and how that comes to define the record through the diversion in “Maps of Inferno” from the Bordeaux trio’s earlier-’23 collaboration EP with Queen of the Meadow, aptly-titled Mars Red Sky & Queen of the Meadow (review here) and on from there into the heart of the band’s latest expression, built on their core approach of bringing together heavy, melodic, progressive psychedelia with memorable songwriting and identifiability of sound. That is, especially by this point, as they head to their fifth long-player and look to tour in Europe this Fall and probably next Spring (if they wait that long) ahead of traveling back to the US to tour to support it. They’ve already been announced for Ripplefest Texas 2024, and I doubt that will be the last. Recall they were on the American West Coast last year.

More even than 2019’s The Task Eternal (review here), and as four additional years — especially the last four — will, Dawn of the Dusk presents a more mature sound from Mars Red Sky, whose directional growth revealed itself on their second full-length, 2014’s Stranded in Arcadia (discussed here, review here) as the three-piece of guitarist/vocalist Julien Pras, bassist/sometimes-vocalist Jimmy Kinast (he gets lead vox on “The Final Round,” which is track three afterMars Red Sky Dawn of the Dusk “Break Even” and “Maps of Inferno”) and then-new drummer Mathieu “Matgaz” Gazeau set themselves forth after their 2011 self-titled debut (discussed here, review here) with an expansive take that has only continued to flourish through 2016’s Apex III (Praise for the Burning Soul) (review here) and the aforementioned 2019 outing. This should be seen as willful commitment to stylistic progression, because that’s what it is. Mars Red Sky have always been a band who have looked to push themselves toward new ideas and interpretations of what they do. “Break Even” boasts a familiar roll and breadth, and in the layering of the guitar, the somewhat downtrodden vocal delivery from Pras and the subtle angularity of its turns and the solo that complements its final lines, has a kind of urgency to it that seems to be mirrored in the lyrics.

To that end, the lyrics are here. I don’t always include them with videos unless specifically asked — and I wasn’t — but they’re relevant, and maybe you want to sing along. I do. I’m still getting to know the abiding mood of Dawn of the Dusk, but I’m also still getting to know their first record, so don’t go by me. I’ll have a full album review up at some point between now and Dec. 8 (he said with absolute confidence after being the better part of a week late posting the video; I’ve been annoyed at myself since about last Wednesday at 9AM Eastern), but I’ve heard it enough over the last few weeks to tell you with certainty that “Break Even” represents Dawn of the Dusk well and its accompanying video bolsters the atmosphere of the song itself, which of course is the idea, while mostly giving the track its own space.

Gonna stop myself here, but know that there’s more to say on this one and that I hope to sooner or later do at least some of that saying. With that warning in mind, I urge you to please enjoy the video below:

Mars Red Sky, “Break Even” official video

From MARS RED SKY’s new album ‘Dawn Of The Dusk’ – out December 8th 2023 on MRS Red Sound & Vicious Circle. https://idol-io.ffm.to/DawnoftheDusk

Video directed by Clara Griot.

Special thanks to Paul Roucher. Project supported by ADAMI.

Recorded and mixed by Benjamin Mandeau at Cryogene Studio, France, mastering by Ladislav Agabekov at Caduceus Studio in Gimel, Switzerland.

℗ & © 2023 Mrs Red Sound & Vicious Circle.

Lyrics :
For any sort of pain there’s a market and a remedy
Stocks bonds up & down the chain of custody
Keeper of the Flagstaff a sniper at the ready
Prone to snap hands clapping cracking codes & ribs
Fire up & down the rapids shoot the medecine
He’ll quit and join the race, the rank & file for normality
If you can make it there you’ll make it anywhere
Just what you’d be making exactly is anyone’s guess

Soon it’s the pat on the back
The ravings, the panic attacks
Fool it’s the common mistake
The fun and the fin in the lake
Soon it’s the cast of a die
The shrewdly slanted device

Thank the groom for a room so dank
Phantom-powered light bulbs flicker in a fish tank
Who’s that waiting on the other side of the receiving end
Cold-blooded doner with ghastly manners
I was leader of the aging pack when I found her
Sketch out etching replicate shiped out built-in operator

Soon it’s the pat on the back
The ravings, the panic attacks
Fool it’s the bid in the auction
Break even or break into heaven

A figure head of state a true visionary
Joins the rank & file for dependency
Investigating what lays back younder
What might come out of it I dare not wonder

Soon it’s the pat on the back
The ravings, the panic attacks
Fool it’s the common mistake
The fun and the fin in the lake
Soon it’s the cast of a die
The shrewdly slanted device
Fool it’s the bid in the auction
Break even or break into heaven

Mars Red Sky on Facebook

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Mars Red Sky website

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Mrs Red Sound on Instagram

Mrs Red Sound website

Vicious Circle Records on Facebook

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Vicious Circle Records website

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