Imagica – SIDE-LINE

The Birthday Massacre get new single out: ‘Dreams Of You’ – check out the radio version!

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Mon, 13 Dec 2021 16:51:02 +0000

The Canadian goth metal act The Birthday Massacre will release their ninth album “Fascination” on February 18th through Metropolis Records. But first there is the new single “Dreams Of You” which you can check out below.

The new single is part of the new 9-song album “Fascination” which was produced by band members Michael Rainbow, M. Falcore, and Brett ‘Bat’ Carruthers and recorded at Desolation Studios, Dire Studios and The Altar Studios all in Toronto. Note that it was mixed by legendary former Skinny Puppy member Dave ‘Rave’ Ogilvie along with Rainbow, Falcore and Carruthers at Hipposonic Studios in Vancouver.

Here is the radio version of the new single “Dreams Of You”.

Upcoming tour

The Birthday Massacre will embark on a long-delayed U.S. tour with friends Julien-K in support which kicks off in New York City on February 24th. The band then follows with extensive international touring including treks across South America, The United Kingdom and Continental Europe.

February 24 — New York, NY – (Le) Poisson Rouge
February 25 — Pittsburgh, PA – The Crafthouse
February 26 — Hamtramck, MI – Small’s
February 27 — Chicago, IL – Reggie’s Rock Club
March 1 — Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line Music Cafe
March 3 — Indianapolis, IN – Emerson Theatre
March 4 — Kansas City, MO @ BLV
March 5 — Denver, CO – The Oriental Theater
March 6 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Soundwell
March 8 — Seattle, WA – El Corazon
March 9 — Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theatre
March 11 — San Francisco, CA – Bottom Of The Hill
March 12 — West Hollywood, CA – The Whisky a Go Go
March 13 — San Diego, CA – Brick By Brick
March 15 — Mesa, AZ – Nile Theater
March 17 — Dallas, TX – Amplified Live
March 18 — Austin, TX – Come And Take It Live
March 19 — Houston, TX – Warehouse Live
March 22 — West Palm Beach, FL – Respectables
March 23 — Tampa, FL – The Orpheum
March 25 — Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel
March 26 — Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade (Hell)
March 27 — Nashville, TN – The Basement East
March 29 — Virginia Beach, VA @ Elevation 27
March 30 — Baltimore, MD – Baltimore Sound Stage
March 31 — Cambridge, MA – The Middle East
April 1 — Parsippany, NJ – Dark Side Of The Con
April 2 — Mechanicsburg, PA – Lovedraft’s Brewing

About The Birthday Massacre

The Birthday Massacre formed in 2000 in Ontario and were originally known as Imagica, their name taken from the title of a novel by Clive Barker. Having relocated to Toronto, they renamed themselves The Birthday Massacre just before the release of their debut album, “Nothing & Nowhere”, in the summer of 2002. The “Violet” EP was issued in 2004 and then made available in expanded form as a full album via Metropolis Records, a label with whom the group have remained ever since.

The next two TBM albums, “Walking with Strangers” (2007) and “Pins and Needles” (2010), plus the EP “Imaginary Monsters” EP (2011), were followed by 2012’s “Hide and Seek”.

The group turned to their fans to help crowdfund their sixth album, “Superstition”, which appeared in late 2014 and was supported by major tours in North America, the UK, mainland Europe and Brazil.

A compilation of early four-track demos entitled “Imagica” (2016) preceded “Under Your Spell”, released in 2017. Three years later, the band celebrated their 20th anniversary with “Diamonds”, its release seeing new drummer Phillip Elliot and bassist Brett ‘Bat’ Carruthers join the band’s ranks. The latter is also the frontman of alternative rock band A Primitive Evolution.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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The Birthday Massacre launches all new album on March 27th: ‘Diamonds’

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 19:36:30 +0000

The Birthday Massacre have a brand new album coming up on March 27th featuring 9 all new recordings. “Diamonds” will be released as a digipak and as a limited vinyl set.

The album is the follow-up to 2017’s “Under Your Spell”.

The Birthday Massacre is a Canadian rock band and formed in 1999 in London, Ontario, and is currently based in Toronto, Ontario. When the band formed in 1999, they were known as Imagica. In 2002, they changed the name to The Birthday Massacre after one of their earlier songs in order to avoid confusion with another group. The song “The Birthday Massacre” was then renamed to “Happy Birthday”.

The band have released seven studio albums already: “Nothing and Nowhere” (2002), “Violet” (2005), “Walking With Strangers” (2007), “Pins and Needles” (2010), “Hide and Seek” (2012), “Superstition” (2014) and “Under Your Spell” (2017). They also issued the DVD “Blue” (2005), the live album/DVD “Show and Tell” (2009), the demo album “Imagica”, and the EPs “Violet” (2004), “Looking Glass” (2008) and “Imaginary Monsters” (2011). Read the review of ‘Diamonds’.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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The Birthday Massacre – Imagica (CD Album – Metropolis Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Sat, 17 Sep 2016 19:55:33 +0000

Genre/Influences: Goth-rock, dark-cyber-pop. Background/Info: The title of this new album has been named after the original band name Imagica. Imagica was active between 1999 and 2002. This album is a kind of look back to the early years featuring remastered songs from the Imagica-period, but you also will discover a few familiar songs that got later on released on The Birthday Massacre’s debut album “Nothing And Nowhere” and even two cover versions. Content: The style and influences of the early years of the band are easily recognizable. The songs are made of elements like gothic, rock and electronics while carried by the heavenly and alluring vocals of their front woman Chibi. The songs switch in between heavy, merciless outbreaks and moody pieces filled with some melancholia. The guitar playing remains another essential aspect, which can be furious now and a bit psychedelic at times. I also noticed vague shoegaze elements. The electronic arrangements add a more accessible pop touch, and also brings refinement to the global production. The work also reveals two cover versions and here again The Birthday Massacre mixes opposites styles. First there’s a quite well-crafted cover of Madonna’s “Open Your Heart” followed by a cover version of Faith No More’s “From Out Of Nowhere”. + + + : This album is an interesting documentary revealing the first steps of a band that would rapidly reach the top of the underground scene. The sound formula has never really changed throughout the years, but remains a magic elixir merging different influences together. There’s a perfect harmony between faster and furious cuts on one hand and more fragile and melancholic dark-pop cuts on the other hand. “Imagica” sounds powerful and dreamy while carried by the unique vocals of their singer. The cover version of Madonna is absolutely cool like the transposition of a teenager pop-song into a dark and naughty goth-pop adaptation. – – – : This is probably not the work that will enter into history as their best album ever. This is a more a kind of ‘fan-item’ to complete your discography. Conclusion: If black is for sure symbolizing darkness, purple definitely will be always linked to The Birthday Massacre, with a flavor of melancholia. That’s precisely what “Imagica” all sounds like; a kind of nostalgia for the early years when the band was called Imagica. Best songs: “Nothing and Nowhere”, “Over”, “The Birthday Massacre”, “Open Your Heart”. Rate: (7½). Band: www .facebook .com /TheBirthdayMassacre Label: www .metropolis –records .com / www .facebook .com /MetropolisRecords

Read the news on ‘Imagica’.

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

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The Birthday Massacre – Imagica (CD Album – Metropolis Records)

Inferno Sound Diaries — Sun, 04 Sep 2016 19:08:55 +0000

Read the news on ‘Imagica’.

Inferno Sound Diaries

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The Birthday Massacre reissue 11 4-track demos (1998-2001) on ‘Imagica’ vinyl and CD

Bernard - Side-Line Staff — Mon, 25 Apr 2016 18:00:10 +0000

Here’s a release which will be sold out very fast – especially on vinyl. The Birthday Massacre squad has dug into their past and will release a collection of songs recorded under the original moniker of “Imagica”. Remastered from the original 4-track recordings, “Imagica” offers 11 tracks documenting the early days of the band’s career. The release will be available on CD (available here in pre-order) and vinyl (available here in pre-order) by July, each holding these 11 tracks: Over, Remember Me, Under The Stairs, The Birthday Massacre, Nothing And Nowhere, Queen Of Hearts, Night Time, Play Dead, Open Your Heart, From Out Of Nowhere, Dead. The group was founded in London, Ontario, 1998, under the name Imagica. The band released a 7-song limited-edition demo CD which had been recorded on a 4-track cassette recorder during a time when the group was recording cover songs for fun. There were 40 hand-numbered copies of the demo which included the first recorded version of the song “The Birthday Massacre” (later renamed “Happy Birthday”). In 2001, the band relocated to Toronto and they began recording a new album. Shortly before releasing the CD, the band opted to change their name from Imagica to The Birthday Massacre in order to avoid confusion with a California death metal band with the same name. The band chose the name since people were already familiar with the song of the same title.

Read the reviews of ‘Imagica’ and ‘Imagica’.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

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