Mithras stream 'On Strange Loops' in full ahead of release

Experimental metallers, MITHRAS, are streaming their new album, On Strange Loops, in full via Team Rock ahead of its release on Friday. The band will shortly be embarking on a series of UK shows in support of the album release. Listen to On Strange Loops

Team Rock declare On Strange Loops a "bewildering blend of hyper-dense yet stupendously lithe dynamics and vast, nebulous lead breaks..." Of the album release, MITHRAS' Leon Macey comments:

"After a genesis spanning six years, I'm really pleased our new record 'On Strange Loops' is finally hitting the record store shelves and digital distributors this Friday. I've lived with this album for so long now I'm really intrigued to know what people make of it; all I can say is there's nothing else I could have done to make the record any better and I hope people enjoy it"

As the band's first album 'proper' in almost ten years, On Strange Loops sees MITHRAS raise the bar to a whole other level. Their signature sound is present across the album's 56 minutes: Leon Macey's mind-bending, ethereal solos creep in and out when you're least expecting them, insanely fast blastbeats and crushing drums underpin Rayner Coss' otherworldly vocals and lurking bass; in essence On Strange Loops delivers everything that can - and maybe should - be expected from a band of MITHRAS’ stature, and more!

The album explores themes and concepts that edge into the sci-fi world, but far from being based in a comic book style fantasy world, Macey puts his in-progress masters in Astrophysics to good use and sets out to explore some great philosophical questions. The ticking of a clock both opens and closes the album - creating an infinite loop - and in between the status of time, energy and physical beings are put to the test.

Where the album is similar to those that came before is the fact that it was marred by so many set-backs along the way. Having left and returned to the fold prior to work commencing on On Strange Loops, it came as a significant blow to Leon Macey when vocalist/bassist Rayner Coss again decided to leave the band, this time just a month before it was due to be finished. As a consequence, 'On Strange Loops' will be the last MITHRAS release to feature the band's co-founder Rayner Coss.

Despite the turbulent times, Macey continued mixing and mastering the album at Dreaming Studios, giving it a truly massive-sounding production. Meanwhile he solidified a live line-up to make sure the band could keep their live commitments without Coss - including an appearance at the Czech Republic's prestigious Brutal Assault Festival this August.

Upcoming MITHRAS shows:

• 26/10 Audio, Glasgow
• 27/10 Underground, Plymouth
• 29/10 Head of Steam, Newcastle
• 30/10 The Rainbow, Birmingham
• 31/10 The Black Heart, London
• 05/11 Damnation Festival, Leeds

On Strange Loops Track Listing

1. Why Do We Live?
2. When The Stars Align
3. The Statue On The Island
4. Odyssey's End
5. Howling Of The Distant Spaces
6. Between Scylla And Charybdis
7. Time Never Lasts
8. The Last Redoubt
9. Inside The Godsend
10. The Outer Dark
11. On Strange Loops