Blood Command: Cult Drugs (English) --secret promo--
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Press pictures here and here (photos by Øystein Haara)
In 2017 Blood Command make their return with Cult Drugs - an album packed with cheeky and grandiose hits.
After two albums, numerous EPs and four radio hits, Blood Command are more hungry for success than ever. The sound still has the distinct fingerprint of producer and songwriter Yngve Andersen: Sharp and challenging, but still so universal and seductive that you will throw your hands in the air and run into the crowd before the first chorus ends. Since the last album, Andersen has received wide recognition in Norway as a successful producer and is responsible for several local hits. But Blood Command remains his favourite pet and Cult Drugs might be the point where all of his talents finally hit senit.
The band's previous album, Funeral Beach (2012) recieved a 5/5 in Kerrang (which also placed them at no. 8 in their year end list), 9/10 in Rock Sound, 5/6 in most big norwegian papers. Metal Hammer UK awarded the album a 9/10, saying that Blood Command is one of the best they have heard in recent years. In 2010, Blood Command was nominated for a norwegian Grammy for their debut album Ghostclocks.
Blood Command have played numerous festivals like Roskilde, Nova Rock in Austria where they shared the stage with, among others, Iron Maiden, and The Great Escape in Brighton, where they won the "Best Concert of the Year" in Artrocker Magazine.
The band have regularly placed Europe at their feet and have done support tours for Biffy Clyro and Protest the Hero among others.
Blood Command's reappearance shows a band that has never sounded as good as now. Singer Karina Ljone is angrier and more accurate than ever, the ninja-riffing is smoother and drummer Sigurd Haakaas sets new standards in action-drumming. The album is mixed and mastered by Blood Command’s long time collaborator Dagger, who together with producer Yngve Andersen has made sure that the album comes together like a relentless sting of murderous hooks. The artwork is done by Trine+Kim.
Musically, the band points out Refused and Boney M as the main inspiration, alongside acts like The Clash, “We’re making a sonic revolution you can dance to!” boasts Andersen. So put on your dancing shoes and join the cult!
In recent years, the band has binged on rave culture and charismatic cults like Heaven's Gate. Inspired by this and the increasing political manipulation taking place in both Europe and the US, the lyrics and the themes of Cult Drugs took form. Blood Command-mainman Yngve Andersen, who himself was part of a christian charismatic group in his youth, generally holds a positive view on non-mainstream religious groupings: “If it makes you happy and you don’t hurt anyone else, you can worship your cat as far as I’m concerned.”
Andersen elaborates:
The title Cult Drugs comes from the realization that we're all in some ways part of a cult that informs our way of being and our ways of thinking. We’re programmed to perceive ourselves as the good guys, no matter what side we're on. Most people live with a self-manipulation so extensive that it can compare to drug addiction. It is easy to put a stigma on religious outcasts, but it’s time to admit that every human, to some extent, live in denial.
So, the difference between “cult people” and “normal people” could be smaller than you think. Particularly when you’re exposed to the seducing power of music. What could appear as a perfectly ordinary rock album, might prove to be a gateway to powers beyond your control.
Press for the previous album, Funeral Beach:
"Blood Command have the uncanny ability to sound startlingly fresh and new, while never jumping too far to land on that dreaded island of ‘quirky’. Funeral Beach is a fiercely unique, invigorating slab of catchy punk’n’roll, and it demands your full, ongoing attention." - Metal Hammer
"In reality, where only good jams matter, Blood Command is fucking awesome!" - Metalsucks
"Funeral Beach is the sort of album you hear and think 'Holy Scheisse', Blood Command, where have you been all my life?" - Kerrang
"Uncompromising, snotty and refreshingly raw – this is unpolished but exuberant and will hopefully propel them into bigger venues and open them to a wider audience." - This Is Not A Scene
"Ghostclocks’, an album so good that you genuinely can’t believe that your ears have been doing without it" - Rock Sound
Album credits: Artwork by Trine+Kim All music by Yngve Andersen All lyrics by Yngve Andersen and Blood Command Recorded at Bergen Lydstudio in bits and pieces 2015-2016 by Dag Erik Nygaard Produced by Yngve Andersen Mix and master by Dag Erik Nygaard Andersen: vocals, guitars, bass, synthezeisers Sigurd Haakaas: Drums, percussion, vocals Simon Oliver Økland: bass, vocals Karina Ljone: Lead vocals
