German genre-fusing visionaries, Lord Of The Lost, are ending 2022 with a big bang, releasing their eighth studio album, Blood & Glitter, virtually overnight on December 30. The official video for the album's title track which premiered yesterday, can be viewed below.
Following extensive touring throughout the year, including as special guest of Iron Maiden, and the great success of their last album, Judas (#2 Official German Album Charts), the band now turns 180 degrees both visually and thematically. Following their mythologically and theologically influenced previous albums, on Blood & Glitter, the band fully embraces their deeply-rooted love for 70s glam rock visuals and the sound of the 80s and its electronic, goth and new wave musical offshoots, without abandoning relevant metal elements.
Pre-order Blood & Glitter here.
The album gets straight to the point and goes all the way from start to finish - thus completely bypassing ballads. Blood & Glitter embodies the energy of a Lord Of The Lost live show and can be brought to the stage as a complete work. The lyrics of the consistently up- and mid-tempo songs are direct, honest, topical, political and critical - and often surprisingly angry or very personal. Contrasts run like a thread throughout the album, once again proving different in comparison to their previous work.
In addition to Chameleon Studios in Hamburg, Blood & Glitter was produced and recorded at the Sonic Pump Studios in Helsinki. Blood & Glitter is 100% Lord Of The Lost - different as usual while encompassing all that they are!
When conjuring the concept of Blood & Glitter, the band was inspired by the eponymous work of legendary music photographer Mick Rock, known for taking a large majority of the most famous photos of musicians in the 70s glam rock era. Lord Of The Lost visually immerse themselves in the lifestyle of that era and combine it with the new wave and pop sound of the 80s, building on their own familiar dark metal foundation. The result: a glamorous party with critical and direct messages.
Chris Harms says about the album release: "In a time when the marketing madness for each album seems to last longer and longer, when half the album – or even more – is already known six months in advance through pre-released singles, so that the high pre-release sales generate the highest possible chart result, what it should actually be about - the pure magic of hearing a new album of your favorite band for the first time - is becoming more and more lost. We want to transport this "like the old days" feeling through this surprise release! Fuck the charts, playlist pitches and 1,000 pointless reviews in advance. What matters is what an album means in the long run, not how high its "value" is on release day."
Title track "Blood & Glitter" opens the album in an immediately catchy manner, before "Leave Your Hate In The Comments" makes a strong statement by addressing the increasing hate culture in social media. Blood & Glitter features a variety of very special guests such as Heaven Shall Burn singer Marcus Bischoff on "The Future Of A Past Life", Andy La Plegua of Combichrist on "Reset The Preset" and Subway To Sally's Ally Storch on violin for "Save Our Souls''.
The album ends with "One Last Song”, about which Chris Harms says, "I was wondering what song I would want to sing last before I die and realized that song didn't exist yet. So here it is. Probably the most important song I've ever written."
The bonus track, a remarkable cover of Roxette’s “The Look”, features none other than German 90s pop-star Blümchen as a duet partner. The band once again goes its own way and releases, without much advance, an album that defies all clichés, prejudices, genre norms and conventions, and makes strong statements in terms of content.
Blood & Glitter tracklisting:
"Blood & Glitter"
"Leave Your Hate In The Comments"
"Absolute Attitude"
"The Future Of A Past Life"
"No Respect For Disrespect"
"Reset The Preset"
"Destruction Manual"
"Dead End"
"Leaving The Planet Earth"
"Forever Lost"
"Save Our Souls"
"One Last Song"
"The Look" (Roxette Cover)
"Blood & Glitter" video:
