Machine Head have just announced their 8th studio album, “Bloodstone & Diamonds”. While an official date for the Nuclear Blast release has yet to be given, a good bit of information was put forth. The band’s frontman Robb Flynn and Juan Urteaga (Testament, Cattle Decapitation) took care of production duties while Colin Richardson covered mixing duties.
Robb had all the following to say in regards to “Bloodstone & Diamonds”. Read up and learn
“Without getting too philosophical on ya, bloodstone and diamonds represent two of the hardest materials on earth, it is also a lyric from the opening track of the album “Now We Die“. In many cultures the bloodstone has been used as an amulet to protect against evil, and is the symbol of justice. Diamonds are the hardest natural material on earth (which is how we feel about our music), and it also represents the diamond logo I drew 22 years ago (in my wife’s apartment on Dover St. in Oakland) that has become the symbol for the band.”
10 songs, an interlude, and an instrumental with an audio collage of spoken word snippets (think “Real Eyes, Realize, Real Lies“) by Dr. Bruce Lipton and Steve Bhaerman, taken from their (incredibly inspiring) audiobook “Spontaneous Evolution“.
It was once again produced by your truly The General and Juan Urteaga, and like the last 7 out of 8 albums masterfully mixed by Colin Richardson. Additional tracking, editing, and mixing was done with heavy metal legend Andy Sneap and Steve Lagudi.
Guest musicians include 2 different string quartets featuring the original Quartet Rouge that appeared on our last album “Unto The Locust“. And a new all-male quartet which we featured on the song “In Comes The Flood“.
String arrangements for 2 of the songs “Now We Die” and “Sail Into The Black” came courtesy of myself and Rhys Fulber who has worked with everyone from Sarah McLachlan, to Fear Factory, and the string arrangement for “In Comes The Flood” came courtesy of myself and ex-Worship and current-Bring Me The Horizon keyboardist Jordan Fish, who is a producer in his own right.
We worked with several artists to complete the 28 page (!) “standard” CD booklet, as well as the 48 page (!) hardcover leather-bound Media-book that will serve as the special edition, including Rafal Wechterowicz, Marcelo Vasco, and long-time Machine Head art-collaborator Strephon Taylor. The theme was to have both CD and hardcover Mediabook look like an old Alchemy book from the 1800′s, with weathered edges, sepia toned pages, and magic / masonic / alchemy themed woodcarvings throughout.
It turned out fucking amazing!!
All album photos were done with our friend Travis Shinn who took some mind-bogglingly awesome photos, that again, were set to match the theme of the book with an old 1800′s / alchemy feel to them.”
The tracklist and cover art for the album are as follows…
01 – “Now We Die“
02 – “Killers & Kings“
03 – “Ghosts Will Haunt My Bones“
04 – “Night Of Long Knives“
05 – “Sail Into The Black“
06 – “Eyes Of The Dead“
07 – “Beneath The Silt“
08 – “In Comes The Flood“
09 – “Damage Inside“
10 – “Game Over“
11 – “Imaginal Cells” (instrumental)
12 – “Take Me Through The Fire“
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