Dear friends, even this year's installment of MGCDF shall unfortunatelly not avoid a change in the line-up. As we learned, there has been a break-up of the current line-up of the U.S. death metal squad SKINNED and until a new one is formed, the band is alas unable to play live. To the roster of MGCDF 2019 we thus welcome a new name - the symphonic extreme metal pack SHADE EMPIRE from Finland!

There is no disputing the fact that Finland is a promised land for metal music, and it does not matter if you are seeking black, death, psychedelic or melodic metal. This country simply excels in all thinkable metal sub-genres. As a fine example, take SHADE EMPIRE that bring to the table a perfectly balanced combination of extreme and melodic metal. Should we wished to classify this act based on their current album “Poetry of the Ill-Minded”, we would most likely state the closest proximity to melodic death metal. That said, it would be significantly reductive, as the music of SHADE EMPIRE is not only about modern melodic death riffs, lengthy guitar solos and multilayered walls of keyboard sounds. There are also cunning guitar leads into black metal territories, subsequently softened by complex melodic orchestrations that bring the music to a truly epic level. The vocals as well alternate between melodic death metal register and black metal screech, while the clockwork rhythmic section drives resolutely the whole warmachine forward. Such can be the characteristic of the sound, which SHADE EMPIRE evolved into over the years, though it does not do it true justice. There are far more nuances to be heard, which is why we wholeheartedly recommend you check out their show on MGCDF 2019 and be consumed by their masterfully balanced mix of melody and aggression.

Enjoy!