In This Moment, Mother
Mother follows 2017’s beloved Ritual. Excitement for this record burns at a fevered pitch, as In This Moment landed on several “Most Anticipated” lists, including Alternative Press, Loudwire, and Revolver.
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Music Journalist
Southern Florida’s LiveKill recently announced the release of their upcoming EP, entitled Turned to Grey
As a follow up to the release of their first single and title track, “Turned To Grey”, via lyric video (which in under a month has garnered over 120,000 streams/views via Facebook alone),LiveKill is pleased to reveal their second single, “In This Moment”, and its music video, directed by Alex Morgan (Whitechapel, Gojira, Bad Wolves). Check out the music video now via Metal Wani.
Guitarist John Snell says, “I had rented a pretty amazing white wall studio full of everything we needed to make a great video. On the day we were supposed to film the video, the owner of the studio told us that he had rented the studio to someone else that day! So, I made a few phone calls and literally within 30 minutes, I was able to secure a new location. We walked through the space and found a section with metal framing that had not been completed, and right then Carlos our vocalist came to me and said, “you know this is pretty badass because the song is about being trapped in your mind, feeling trapped with nowhere to go”. The framing gave off a feeling of being in a cell, which really brought out the conceptual meaning behind the song.
I reached out to Alex Morgan to do this video because of his great work with Daath, Chimairaand Gojira and his extensive knowledge in the world of metal music. We are looking forward to hopefully working on our next video with him! He really made this fun and brought out a great live performance in us.”
Featuring top-tier production and a world-class pummeling from seasoned drummer Kevin Talley (Daath, Chimaira, Suffocation) on the EP itself, LiveKill also features Carlos Guerreros on vocals, Sean Young on lead guitar, John Snell on rhythm guitar, Anthony Laurella on live drums (and in the “In This Moment” video), and Gil Giberga on bass.
For Turned to Grey,the band brought on Alastair Sims of MOTTO Sound (Rush, Three Days Grace) to mix and master the EP, which took place at Villa Studios in Canada. Further building upon the intensity, passion and professionalism of Turned to Grey, LiveKill sought the creative talents of artist Eliran Kantor, recognized for his work on album covers for Testament, Soulfly, and Sodom. Livekill and Eliran worked over a period of five months to complete the vision of guitarist John Snell to capture the concept of how fleeting life is. The art was inspired by the imagery, stories and grief of people who lost their lives in a flash of light – so quickly that they were “Turned to Grey” while leaving their last moment’s impression.
The main inspiration behind the art and EP concept is the lives lost in Hiroshima and more specifically, the story of Shinichi Tetsutani, a three year old boy who lost his life in the atomic bomb strike there. His father buried Shinichi and his tricycle in the backyard, and 40 years later in 1985, dug up his son along with the tricycle, had him properly buried, and donated the tricycle to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. Basing some concepts of the EP on this story was not intended to highlight war itself, but rather that any one of us, in a moment so quick, can be nothing more than an imprint left behind.
1) Turned to Grey
2) In This Moment
3) Demons
4) Shadows
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See below for more information:
10/19 – West Palm Beach, FL @ Respectable Street
Show: 7:00 PM
Tickets: $15
w/ Doyle, Natsuki, The Coven
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Featured photo (top) by Alex Morgan
PHOENIX — Amidst their “The Witching Hour” tour, shock rock quintet In This Moment had fans spellbound during a thrilling visually-charged performance at historically-located venue The Van Buren. Openers on the bill included The Word Alive — a metalcore group from Phoenix who’s most recent album Deceiver
After a vigorous crowd sing-along to Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’,” ferocious frontwoman Maria Brink dawned the stage through a storm of purple-red smoke, spookily cloaked in all-black attire which was somewhat reminiscent of Emperor Palpatine in Star Wars.
As Brink positioned herself center-stage, horror-esque slivers from In This Moment’s music video for title track “Blood” spliced on and off on a large overhanging screen. Current members Chris Howorth (Lead Guitarist & Founding Member), Travis Johnson (Bass Guitarist), Randy Weitzel (Rhythm Guitarist) and Kent Diimmel (Percussionist) followed close behind her — also dressed to shock and impress in true gothic metal fashion.
The group transitioned into a haunting yet brutal performance of “Blood”, which was seamlessly followed by “River of Fire” from In This Moment’s latest album, Ritual
With a mix of fire and wind enveloping her silhouette, Brink immediately dominated the stage with her display of unique showmanship and incredible ability to personify her lyrics through purpose-driven theatrics. Her gruff throaty screams and eerily dazzling vocals are a fitting accompaniment for the band’s vehemently aggressive rhythms, sludgy guitar and relentlessly rhapsodic percussion.
Although In This Moment’s 2017 album is in fact less sexualized than albums in previous years, Brink’s outlook on the highly-debated topic remains the same. The singer changed from costume to extraordinary costume throughout the show — reappearing on-stage in everything from skin-tight bodysuits and ritual garb, to Krueger-like talons, a top hat, and faceless creature masks. Backup dancers morphed from demons and witches to twinning alter-egos as the show’s storyline evolved before our eyes, exquisitely interpreting the lines of each song. Brink seduced the crowd with ease, gripping the audience with infectious performances of “Adrenalize”, “Roots” and “Burn”, which preceded a chilling vocal performance of ballad “Lay Your Gun Down.”
After an official band introduction, Brink disappeared from the stage leaving Howorth, Johnson, Weitzel and Diimmel in the spotlight for a savage Metallica tribute beginning with the opening instrumentals to “For Whom The Bell Tolls” and leading into a monster drum solo harnessing the chunky classic rock vibes that we all crave.
Next, Brink stepped center stage once again beneath a large crescent-shaped entryway, which appeared as two halves of a glowing moon, altar-style. The opening scene from “Black Wedding” featuring Rob Halford (of Judas Priest) strobed in and out to church music, teasing the energized duet between Brink and Ded frontman Joe Cotela which was to follow. The night finished strong with blazing performances of fan favorites “Big Bad Wolf”, a cover of Phil Collins’ “In The Air Tonight”, “Sick Like Me”, and “Oh Lord” — which had fans raging.
However, there was still one song yet to be desired. Audience members roared as Brink stepped out from behind the curtain for one final song — this time wearing the infamous blood-smeared dunce hat as featured in “Whore”, which Brink described to Steppin’ Out Magazine as “an empowering, beautiful song for women.” On-stage, as oversized balloons began bouncing across the crowd, she went on to explain that “Whore” is about reclaiming control of what hurts us and rising above it:
“I was told that I would amount to absolute shit”, she told the crowd. “That I would become nothing at all. So, you see this next song, this last song is about rising above other people’s expectations, all of these ideas about who and what we should be. This song is about taking other people’s hate and turning it into something powerful and liberating within. So tonight, ladies and gentlemen, if I can inspire just that, turning hate into love, then I am proud to say to you Phoenix — tonight, I will be your whore!”
The song’s title “Whore” is actually an acronym created by Brink to further communicate its underlying purpose:
Women Honoring One Another Rising Eternally
It seems that with their most recent album, Brink and her bandmates have finally perfected the delicate balance between their sultry sex appeal and crust punk approach to the ideals of empowerment and strength embedded in their music. “The Witching Hour” tour is more than an unforgettable performance; it’s a wakeup call. We truly cannot wait for more.
Photographer: Katherine Amy Vega
Photography © Katherine Amy Vega, Kataklizmic Design
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