Our August 2012 Band of the Month Is…

4Without

We thought this month’s Dame-Nation 2012 themed poll would be a close call. Turns out that it became a battle between two of Chicago’s up-and-coming hard rock bands: Burning Eve and 4Without. And after one day of Burning Eve at the top, 4Without fans came back with a vengeance. That’s why 4Without is our Band of the Month for August 2012!

Click here to visit 4Without’s Band of the Month page.

Thanks again to everyone who showed their support for Dame-Nation 2012 by voting! Here are the complete results:

1. 4Without –  851 votes (58.61%)
2. Burning Eve –  490 votes (33.75%)
3. Schoolcraft – 33 votes (2.27%)
4. Persistence of Memory – 28 votes (1.93%)
5. A.D.D. –  26 votes (1.79%)
6. (tie) MindShatter – 8 votes (0.55%)
7. (tie for 6) Last Red Ransom – 8 votes (0.55%)
8. Virulence Factor – 5 votes (0.34%)
9. DeadMansWake – 3 votes (0.21%)

Onto our September 2012 poll! Your choices are:

• Crystal Viper, a Polish heavy metal band. Crystal Viper released their fourth full-length album Crimen Excepta via AFM Records in April.
• Dorota Malek, a hard rock / metal singer from Wels, Austria. Her full-length debut album Dayphobia was released this past March via Noisehead Records.
• Heaven Rain, a progressive power metal band from Banja Luka, Bosnia. Their third release Second Sun is their first full-length album with current singer Miona Graorac.
• Kontrust, a cross-over band rock/metal band from Ried and Vienna, Austria. Although Kontrust have been around for several years, their popularity exploded in mid-2012 with the release of their new album Second Hand Wonderland.
• White Skull, an Italian heavy metal band. White Skull recently premiered the music video for “Red Devil,” the first single from their latest album Under This Flag.

Visit our WordPress site and scroll down to find the poll on the right-hand sidebar. Vote once a day, every day through Friday, August 31st!

Which bands would you like to see featured in our next Band of the Month Poll? Let us know by posting a suggestion on our Facebook page or emailing us at unleashthefuriesmetal@gmail.com.

Our April 2012 Band of the Month Is…

Vainglory

Atlanta heavy metallers Vainglory owned this poll from March 1st and onward. Not even a last-minute surge could get metal’s newest starlets Huntress to snatch the lead away. So, in convincing fashion, Vainglory wins the honor of being our April 2012 Band of the Month!

Click here for Vainglory’s Band of the Month Page.

Here is how the final tally shaped up:

1. Vainglory– 228 votes (43.85%)
2. Huntress– 158 votes (30.38%)
3. Arkona – 74 votes (14.23%)
4. Shadowside – 52 votes (10%)
5. Mortad – 8 votes (1.54%)

Since Unleash The Furies celebrated  its first anniversary last month, we decided to do something special for our May 2012 Band of the Month Poll. It’s our first “Second Chance” Poll! We picked the six best-performing second-place finishers from the past year’s polls and are giving them another shot at winning the Band of the Month contest. The chosen six are:

• Die So Fluid, who battled it out with Dimlight to the very end for August 2011, but lost by 48 votes (827 to 875). Die So Fluid are currently working on their fourth studio album, due out later this year.
• Kells, who couldn’t match Stream of Passion’s 2,823 votes for July 2011, but still gathered 1,731 of their own. Kells recently released their third album, Anachromie, and areplaying headlining shows in their native France this month.
• Meden Agan, who came so close to winning for November 2011, but couldn’t overcome Dama’s 76-vote lead (1295 to 1371). Meden Agan are currently promoting their latest album, Erevos Aenaon, and are scheduled to play at this year’s Metal Female Voices Festival.
• Opus Doria, who were neck-and-neck with Modified for February 2012 until Modified ran ahead with a 600+ vote lead (2,783 to 2,143). Opus Doria recently announced a new lead singer, just a few months after releasing their debut album Infraworld.
• Pythia, who never caught up to Elyose’s 1,468 votes for March 2012, but were well ahead of the rest of the pack with 965. Pythia released their second album, The Serpent’s Curse, at the end of February.
• Sacramento, who couldn’t hold off a last-minute rebound by EarlyRise and came up short by 54 votes (394 to 448) for October 2011. Sacramento recently released a video for “Everything To Waste,” from their 2011 album Weight Of Sin.

As always, visit our WordPress site and scroll down to find the poll on the right-hand sidebar. Vote once a day, every day through Monday, April 30th!

Which bands would you like to see featured in our next Band of the Month Poll? Let us know by sending an email to unleashthefuriesmetal@gmail.com.

June BotM Poll Ends; July Poll Begins!

Our Band of the Month for June 2011 is…

Regardless Of Me

Death metal fans came out swinging for this poll. Amaranthe took a whopping lead early on, but halfway through the month Regardless Of Me made a charge for the top. In the end, the Swedes couldn’t hold off the Italians. So, Regardless of Me is Unleash the Furies’ new Band of the Month!

Click here to visit of Band of the Month page on Regardless Of Me.

Thanks to fans and readers, our second Band of the Month Poll was an even bigger hit than our first! Over 550 votes were cast by the end of the month. Here are the final results:

1. Regardless Of Me: 271 votes (49.18%)
2. Amaranthe: 146 votes (26.5%)
3. Whyzdom: 54 votes (9.8%)
4. ReVamp: 53 votes (9.62%)
5. Solsikk: 27 votes (4.9%)

And now, here are our nominees for Band of the Month Poll for July 2011:

• Benedictum, a heavy metal band from San Diego, California. Benedictum recently released its third album, Dominion, on Frontiers Records and will make its second appearance at Metal Female Voices Festival later this year.
• Kells, a symphonic nu metal band based in Lyon, France.  Kells has toured extensively with Tarja Turunen in Europe this year. The band’s third album is due for release via Season of Mist later this summer.
• Skeptical Minds, an electro rock/metal band from Brussels, Belgium.  Last October, Skeptical Minds released its third album, Skepticalized, which is its first album with Polish-born singer Karolina vel Death.
• Stream of Passion, a symphonic progressive metal band based in The Netherlands and led by Mexican vocalist Marcela Bovio. Stream of Passion will release their third album, Darker Days, in late June via Napalm Records.
• Visions of Atlantis, a symphonic power metal band from Styria, Austria. Visions of Atlantis is currently touring to promote its fourth album, Delta, which is the band’s first album with Greek singer Maxi Nil (formerly of Elysion).

To cast your vote, visit our WordPress site and scroll down to find the poll on the right-hand sidebar. Voting closes on Thursday, June 30^th, and you can vote once a day!

Which bands would you like to see featured in our next Band of the Month Poll? Let us know by sending an email to unleashthefuriesmetal@gmail.com!

~ Sara

Check It Out: Triosphere

What metal subgenres do you think of when you think of Norway? Probably gothic, doom, and death metal, especially since Norwegian bands Tristania, Beseech, and Theatre of Tragedy are considered to be some of the most influential female-fronted metal bands of all time. Now, Triosphere is the newest Norwegian band to make some noteworthy noise – and they’re not following in their countrymen and women’s footsteps. Consider that a good thing, though.

Triosphere is often called a progressive metal band, but to me that label doesn’t capture the band’s overall sound. They’re really more of a melodic heavy metal band with progressive tendencies. So, along with tempo changes and other unpredictable elements, you’ll hear massive riffs, intricate guitar solos, soaring refrains, and the commanding voice of Ida Haukland (who is also Triosphere’s bassist).

So far, Triosphere has released two albums: Onwards (2006), and The Road Less Travelled (2010). I particularly like The Road Less Travelled because of its contrasts: abstract, introspective lyrics; loud, bold heavy metal; and lush atmospheres that remind me of 80’s metal and power ballads. The Road Less Travelled also features three great instrumentals, including “Echoes,” a piano/string piece that at first sounds out of place. But once you’ve listened to the album a few times, pay very close attention to the arrangements on “Echoes.” Do they remind you of melodies from the album’s other songs?

My favorite track on The Road Less Travelled is definitely “The Anger and the Silent Remorse,” a ballad with the strongest retro feel out of all the songs on the album. I also recommend “Driven” (see YouTube clip below), “Twenty One,” and “Worlds Apart,” all of which are faster, more intense, and more indicative of Triosphere’s true sound.

Triosphere is also on my long list of bands I’d love to see live someday.  Their killer studio sound translates extremely well live – maybe even better!  See it for yourself in this (lengthy) video from one of the band’s recent shows in the Netherlands:

Triosphere is still touring to promote The Road Less Travelled. They opened for Sonata Arctica’s European tour in March, and most recently played several shows with Crimson Glory in the Benelux region, Switzerland, and Italy. Later this year, Triosphere will play at a number of European festivals, including Wacken Open Air and Metal Female Voices Festival.

Triosphere are:

• Ida Haukland – Vocals, Bass
• Marius Silver Bergesen – Lead and Rhythm Guitar
• Tor Ole Byberg – Rhythm Guitar
• Ørjan Aare Jørgensen – Drums

Visit Triosphere at their official website, Myspace, Facebook, YouTube, ReverbNation, and LastFM.

Vote in Our First “Band of the Month” Poll!

Great news: Today we launch our very first Band of the Month Poll!

Every month, readers can vote for one of five up-and-coming female-fronted bands selected by the UtF staff. The band with the most votes at the end of the month will, of course, be our Band of the Month and have their own special feature on our site. (We’re still working on those details right now.)

Here are our nominees for the UtF Band of the Month for May 2010:

• Echoterra, a symphonic metal band from Minneapolis, Minnesota (U.S.), fronted by former Aesma Daeva / Visions of Atlantis singer Melissa Ferlaak. Echoterra recently announced their second album, Land of the Midnight Sun, will be released this summer.
• Noctura, a rock duo from Indianapolis, Indiana (U.S.). Noctura’s debut album, Surrender the Sun, will be released later this year – and the band’s debut show on June 25th has already sold out!
• One Without, a gothic metal band from Gothenburg, Sweden. One Without is working on its second album and recently released their cover of Kent’s “Om Du Var Här” on iTunes.
• Straight Line Stitch, a metalcore band from Knoxville, Tennessee (U.S.). Straight Line Stitch just released its new album, Fight of Our Lives, and will tour the U.S. this spring with In This Moment and recent UtF-featured band System Divide.
• Triosphere, a heavy progressive metal band from Trondheim, Norway. Triosphere’s second album, The Road Less Traveled, was released last year, and the band is touring Europe with Sonata Arctica this month and with Crimson Glory in May.

To cast your vote, visit any page on the UtF WordPress site and scroll down to find the poll on the right side (between the Recent Posts and Facebook / Twitter link widgets). Voting closes on Saturday, April 30^th, and you can vote once a day!

Which band(s) would you like to see featured in our next Band of the Month Poll? Let us know by sending an email to unleashthefuriesmetal@gmail.com!