Progressive rock legend Neal Morse is to release a new studio album in September.

‘Momentum’ is Morse’s first studio outing since 2010’s personal ‘Testimony 2’ and will give longtime fans another dose of complex progressive rock.  The new record features six tracks in total, including a thirty three minute epic and another chapter in the ‘Thoughts’ saga, complete with Gentle Giant inspired vocal passages.

Featured guests on the upcoming record include long-time collaborator Mike Portnoy and Mr Big guitarist Paul Gilbert, who previously worked with Neal Morse in the short-lived Beatles cover band Yellow Matter Custard.

Unlike other Neal Morse releases, ‘Momentum’ is only a single disc release (clocking in at just over one hour), and as yet, no special edition has been announced.

Following the album’s release on September 11th, he will take to the road once again.  No dates have been announced at the time of writing.

Confirmed tracklist:
01. Momentum (6:25)
02. Thoughts Part 5 (7:51)
03. Smoke and Mirrors (4:38)
04. Weathering Sky (4:15)
05. Freak (4:29)
06. World Without End (33:39)
i) Introduction
ii) Never Pass Away
iii) Losing Your Soul
iv) The Mystery
v) Some Kind of Yesterday
vi) World Without End

Seattle alt-rockers Band of Horses have announced the release date for their new album.

‘Mirage Rock’, the band’s fourth album – and first since 2010’s ‘Infinite Arms’ – will be released on September 17th.

The record is produced by the legendary Glyn Johns (noted for his work with The Who, Eric Clapton and The Clash) and is set to feature the following tracks:

‘Knock Knock’
‘How To Live’
‘Slow Cruel Hands Of Time’
‘A Little Biblical’
‘Shut-In Tourist’
‘Dumpster World’
‘Electric Music’
‘Everything’s Gonna Be Undone’
‘Feud’
‘Long Vows’
‘Heartbreak On The 101’

Band of Horses will play four gigs in the UK following the record’s release:

NOV:
15th HMV Institute, Birmingham

It’s hard to believe it’s been twenty-five years.  It’s even harder to believe that the band are seriously considering re-recording it due to a record company dispute, but Def Leppard’s multi-million selling, world-dominating ‘Hysteria’ is now a quarter of a century old.

Sheffield’s finest discussed ‘Hysteria’ at length with US DJ Redbeard, whose syndicated show ‘In The Studio’, which discusses many classic albums, has a strong following.  [The show about Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Rumours’ is worth a listen]

You can hear the full show on Redbeard’s website at this location.

Deluxe reissue specialists Rhino have announced plans to re-release Pantera’s last three releases on vinyl in the US at the end of July.

‘The Great Southern Trendkill’, ‘Official Live: 101 Proof’ and ‘Reinventing The Steel’ will each be released on high quality 180g vinyl; the first two as double sets and ‘Reinventing The Steel’ as a single LP.

It marks the first time that ‘Official Live’ has been given the vinyl treatment.  ‘The Great Southern Trendkill’ was given a very limited vinyl pressing at the time of its original release in 1996, while ‘Reinventing The Steel’ supposedly came out on viny in 2000, but proved impossible to find.  The new vinyl reissue of ‘Trendkill’ expands the release to two discs and adds a previously missing track ‘Suicide Note Pt 1’.

Over the past year, Rhino have released expanded CD versions of Pantera’s ‘Cowboys From Hell’ and ‘Vulgar Display of Power’ to fan acclaim.  It is known known at this time whether Rhino plans to issue expanded CDs of the other Pantera albums.

It was recently announced that singer-songwriter Beth Orton was to break a long haitus with the release of new material and a short UK tour.

It has now been confirmed her new album will be titled ‘Sugaring Season’ and will be released via Anti Records on October 1st.

Tracklist:
‘Magpie’
‘Dawn Chorus’
‘Candles’
‘Something More Beautiful’
‘Call Me The Breeze’
‘Poison Tree’
‘See Through Blue’
‘Last Leaves of Autumn’
‘State of Grace’
‘Mystery’

‘Sugaring Season’ is Orton’s first new work since the release of ‘Comfort of Strangers’ in 2006.