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The Norwegian duo Keldian will release their 5th album in the summer of 2022. This time, Christer Andresen and Arild Aardalen want you to join them on a singularly dramatic and emotional journey into the not-so-distant future. Climate change and pandemics have changed the world as we know it. Fresh water is now the world's most precious resource. And the barren wasteland between fortified cities is where the world's less fortunate scramble to survive the desolation. Based on an unpublished post-apocalyptic novel co-authored by Christer Andresen, the new Keldian record is their first full-blooded concept album. It arrives with all the elegance and beauty that fans have come to expect from Keldian, but digs deeper into their classic rock influences than ever before. Keldian here offers the thought-provoking sound and vision of tragedy and disaster, but ultimately ignites the hope of redemption. As usual Christer Andresen handles rhythm, lead and acoustic guitars, bass guitars, and lead vocal work. The guitars and bass mostly have a crunchy, vintage tone to them, a fresh contrast to the more metal-oriented guitar sound of previous albums. Make no mistake, this is still hitting hard and heavy, but in a distinctly different way than before. The lead vocals are soaring like you would expect from Keldian, delivered with authenticity and heartfelt emotion from the darkest lows to the brightest peaks of the story being told on the album. Arild Aardalen plays all the different keyboards heard on the album and adds his trademark additional vocals throughout the record. The exquisite keyboards range from pianos to electro mechanicals and even old-school analog synthesizers. There is definitely a modern flair to the keys at times, but mostly they stay grounded in a more retro style of sound than before. Yet it all still sounds so right, and without a doubt: pure Keldian. This album has perhaps the least involvement of featured musicians of all Keldian albums, and one can argue that this is Keldian in its purest form so far. There is however a few select guests that elevate the Keldian experience to that next level fans have come to expect. Keeping the beat is the excellent Norwegian drummer Sindre Skeie. Originally hailing from the north-western part of Norway, these tracks were recorded in his own studio in Vilnius, Lithuania. Sindre's lively drum room provides some very nice-sounding drum tracks with lots of authentic acoustic bite. Sindre is not only an artist of tasteful playing but also a master of tuning drums, and the results speak for themselves. We also have a guest vocalist making an apperance on one track. This is the Israeli singer and songwriter Liel Bar-Z. Arild had worked with her previously on another project and had become a big fan of her distinct and haunting voice. During production of the new Keldian album, it became clear that one of the songs really needed an additional layer of different timbre in the vocal section. Liel delivered an excellent performance from her own studio in Tel Aviv. A Keldian first is the addition of a trumpet solo. The beautiful performance of New York-based trumpet player Jon Garcia really sets the emotional tone at the climax of what may be considered this album's semi title track. In the proud tradition of previous Keldian albums, a big choir of some sort was needed on a couple of songs. Friends and family willing to help were in no short supply, and the choir sections came together quite nicely without the aid of synthesizers or samples. Arild and Christer desired that the 5th Keldian album would apply a dirtier and grittier old-school rock 'n roll kind of sound to their original brand of heavy metal. The result is unmistakably Keldian, but there is a raw, nervy and unbridled soundscape on this record that has not been heard before. Arild's mixes are dynamic, punchy and full of surprises and tasteful nods to times gone by. It all makes for a very fresh and interesting Keldian listen, with the distinct vibe and feel that you already know from the Norwegian duo. Also integral to this year's Keldian flavor is the skill of London-based mastering engineer Barry Gardner. His studio Safe&Sound Mastering did the 2019 remasters (now streaming everywhere) of the previous four Keldian albums. Barry has excellent ears and wicked gear, and also a very keen sense of his clients' particular needs. He has further distilled the Keldian sound into something that is truly enjoyable on every kind of speakers and headphones, all the while keeping the original intent and vibe of the mixes fully intact.

 

KELDIAN'S 4th studio release "Darkness And Light" CD includes all 8 songs composed and produced by Keldian recorded and mixed by Arild Aardalen. All the drums tracks were done by our good friend Jørn Holen. Fans will not be dissapointed by the new studio release by Keldian. President of Perris Records Tom Mathers is quoted "This is the best release to date by Keldian, This is a masterpiece that will be enjoyed by many for years to come".

Keldian is a Norwegian metal band that made their mark with their first two albums on Perris Records: Heaven’s Gate (2007) and Journey Of Souls (2008). Their music is a blend of classic 1980s melodic rock and symphonic metal. Outbound (2013) is their latest release, and it is now issued on CD for the first time through Perris Records. To mark the occasion, Perris is also reissuing the previous two records on CD, featuring remastered audio that was previously only available as digital downloads. The new Keldian CDs also include new concept art and liner notes by the band. Keldian is a studio project formed by Christer Andresen (guitars and vocals) and Arild Aardalen (synthesizers). Among the many contributors to their albums are the drummers Per Hillestad (a-ha) and Jørn Holen (Vreid / Windir). Keldian produce their own records and have garnered a worldwide fanbase with what many now call sci-fi metal, since their lyrics often deal with issues of space exploration, spiritual journeys and humankind’s destiny among the stars.
Keldian draw on influences from Iron Maiden via Europe to Pink Floyd to create a unique style of hard rock and metal, characterized by heavy riffs, uplifting melodies, sophisticated synthesizers and soaring vocals. Perris Records was proud to release all three Keldian albums: HEAVEN’S GATE , JOURNEY OF SOULS and OUTBOUND in 2015.