I have seriously been into Swedish future-synth legends Covenant for around two decades now and I can honestly say that I do believe that this will be their first ever concert in Brighton! If I am wrong, then please enlighten me.
Covenant haven’t toured in the UK for 5 years and now they are back with their ‘Blinding Dark Tour’ and one of my best ever gigs was witnessing them at the Electric Ballroom in London, where they performed ‘The Men’ and their best ever track ‘Ritual Noise’.
In fact some of the lyrics to ‘Ritual Noise’ absolutely superbly sums up the band “We make ritual noise, We weave the fabric of dreams, We build cities of sound, We feel the rhythm of time”. To me, that’s them in a nutshell. You lose yourself within their heavy tribal swirling and pounding synth rhythms and your life is totally enriched and made all the better for witnessing them. I pray that their forthcoming Brighton concert at The Haunt on Friday 16th March will have the exact same effect on me.
Empathy Test will be the support act on all UK “The Blinding Dark” 2018 tour dates and Massive Ego will be added to the bill as main support for London and Brighton concerts only.
Covenant state that………”There is no Berlin Wall to defiantly dance on any more”.
We live in dark, confusing times and Covenant wrote an album about how that makes them feel. In a world that’s stopped making sense, we need to learn how to see in the dark and “The Blinding Dark” is a triumphant embrace of the strength and resilience of the soul. It’s the dystopian, unforgiving music of the reflective shadows we all carry within us, but often lack the courage to take a good look at. It’s implosive instead of explosive, fuelled by cold fury rather than a roaring fire, as beautiful as a collapsed star.
“The Blinding Dark” will make you feel the outrage and the sorrow of a band that refuses to smooth things over, put on a brave face and reach for false hopes. It’s staring into the darkness with eyes wide shut.
It’s also a new chapter for Covenant. The trio that became a quintet hasn’t sounded this focused and so on target since the legendary album ”Sequencer” 22 years ago. But there is nothing nostalgic about ”The Blinding Dark”. It steers like an unstoppable Nautilus through the black waters, straight towards the future, never looking back.
Welcome to the void. For further Covenant details, visit: http://www.covenant.se/
Massive Ego formed in 1996 with original members Marc Massive and Andy JT. Marc ex-model and dancer for Boy George’s 90’s Jesus Loves You band, DJ and art event curator has fronted the band from the beginning. The band were originally at the centre of the short lived new romantic revival scene in London called ‘Romo‘.
Over the years, with many line-up changes Massive Ego have played the length and breadth of the UK at clubs and festivals including shows and also across Europe. The band have seen several single and album releases in the UK, Germany, USA, Belgium, Japan and Australia. Massive Ego tracks have featured on well over 40 compilation albums.
Originally known for their new wave pop sound, all that changed in 2013 when Marc Massive became more interested in the darker ebm/industrial/goth scene and from this point all new material reflected this change. To find out more, visit: http://www.massiveego.co.uk/
Empathy Test are childhood friends Isaac Howlett (vocals) and Adam Relf (production). They perform live with the help of Christina Lopez (drums) and Sam Winter-Quick (keyboards). Inspired by ’90s guitar bands, underground dance music and ’80s sci-fi soundtracks, the London based duo combine a knack for writing instantly memorable pop hooks with ’80s analogue synth samples and intricate, cinematic soundscapes.
Last year Empathy Test launched a PledgeMusic campaign to fund the self-release of two debut albums. The campaign was a massive success and ended with a truly massive 661% funded. The two albums, ‘Losing Touch (Remastered)’ and ‘Safe From Harm’ were released 17th November 2017.
You can hear/purchase these albums from their official website: https://www.empathytest.com/
Purchase your Covenant Brighton concert tickets here: https://www.songkick.com/concerts/30688569-covenant-at-haunt
