Bavarian metal act Dust Bolt has a new single out in ‘Leave Nothing Behind’, taken from the band’s fifth studio album, titled Sound & Fury, and both out now on AFM Records, alongside this is that the band will be appearing on British shores this April, as special guests on Suicidal Angels‘ tour of the UK.
Available on all digital streaming services here, as have been previous singles, while you can check out their videos here at RAMzine, or if they’re age appropriate on YouTube.
Formed in 2007, Dust Bolt have been resolute and ruthless in their pursuit of metal glory over the last 16 years. Childhood friends with a collective passion for metal in all its various forms, the quartet, led by vocalist/frontman Lenny Bruce, has established themselves among Europe’s leading thrash metal bands. Across four studio albums on Napalm Records – Violent Demolition (2012), Awake The Riot (2014), Mass Confusion (2016) and Trapped In Chaos (2019) – and countless live shows among acts such as Obituary and Sepultura, expanding their army of fans in the process.
Sound & Fury is said to refine and noisily redefine Dust Bolt’s sound for a new era. Written during those isolated months of pandemic lockdown, it is their first record to feature new bassist Tom Liebing, alongside Lenny Bruce, guitarist Florian Dehn and drummer Nico Remann.
Back in January came, ‘Disco Nnection‘ about which the band’s singer Lenny Bruce said: “I think the song says it all. This tune takes you to the depths of Munich‘s nightclubs and Freddie‘s legacy. Munich is a holy place – Somehow- when it comes to music history. Queen, Zeppelin, Rainbow… they all recorded their albums – and partied here.”
“During the pandemic I became really attracted to the world of Quincy Jones’ music & work. I kinda fell in love with 70s music, listening to a lot of disco, pop and soul from that era. They all had at least one thing in common: great musicianship & magical musical passion on their instruments and as a band playing together.
“The next day I stepped into the rehearsal room, we had this heavy riff. Straightforward. Metal as hell. It was obvious. We needed to add a disco beat. Disco and thrash? Yep. When everybody says, something can’t be done, all you gotta do is turn around and say ‘watch me’. The defiance against conventional norms adds a powerful touch, echoing the spirit of innovation & rock ’n’ roll.“
Sound & Fury features the tracks: ‘Leave Nothing Behind’, ‘I Witness’, ‘I am the One’, ‘New Flame’, ‘Burning Pieces’, ‘Sound And Fury’, ‘ Love & Reality’, ‘Bluedeep’, ‘Disco Nnection’, ‘You Make Me Feel (Nothing)’, ‘Feel the Storm’ and ‘Little Stone’. It can be ordered here.
‘Burning Pieces’ came before ‘Leave Nothing Behind’ as a single, showcasing Dust Bolt‘s their boundless energy and intensity and comes with warning: “Neck pain may be inevitable!”
Frontman/guitarist Bruce commented on it: “We’re bursting with excitement to present our brand-new single ‘Burning Pieces’ to you. This song is a statement: Dust Bolt is back and ready to ignite a musical fire, ready to compete with the big names. It’s an explosive mix of pure energy and passion, combining our thrash metal roots with melodic hard rock elements, and we hope that fans will be just as thrilled as we are.“
Before that, they released ‘New Flame’ as a single, and Bruce, who also produced and recorded their new album, explained: “‘New Flame’ is a high-energy thrasher anthem packing a punch with its straightforward yet deceptively intricate riff. Or as our bassist, Exx Tom, puts it: This is our thrash summer jam! So grab your skateboards, bikes, and surfboards, and let’s hit the streets with ‘New Flame’, ready to kick some serious butt.
“This track embodies the spirit of embracing the new, staying open to fresh ideas, and embracing the positive side of change. All within the relentless realm of thrash metal. So, let’s ignite that new flame and keep the fire burning eternally. We gotta move it on!”
The album’s title track ‘Sound And Fury’ was the first single issued.
“‘Sound And Fury’ was created during the probably darkest and most difficult time for the band.” Dust Bolt commented. “First time in our lives, since we were kids, we were somehow separated from another and the dream we lived together seemed to stopped. It was during the pandemic days, when the band even decided to take a break from one another, when Flo came up with this beautiful piece of music – Not knowing how he would channel and express our feelings, leading to LB putting some Dust Bolt unusual, but heartfelt vocals on it and having Nico introducing a disco beat to a metal song in the end.
“We didn’t know what was happening – we just did it. We did know, there’d be a million voices saying we can’t put this up on a Dust Bolt record. But more than that we knew, as long as we stick together, we can do anything the *** we want. ‘Sound And Fury’ is a story about friendship, struggle & inner turmoil. ‘S & F’ is a story about us. ‘S & F’ is a different, open and honest Dust Bolt, sharing their emotion with you and your friends.”
Regarding their signing to AFM, the band said, “We are happy and grateful to have found a label and partner that understands the development such as the potential of the band, while giving us absolute creative freedom and respect towards our art.” The band commented. “This is rare and something special these days. With the even amount of respect and appreciation we are looking forward to a good and long-lasting partnership in the name of music, metal and rock ‘n roll. Let’s do this!“
“Here we are – In your face,” declared the German band of that first single. “’I Witness’ is the first single of many new Dust Bolt tunes coming. It’s been an adventurous and exciting way since the last album and we are glad to be back with full pace and full energy. We have never been so certain of any of our releases as for this album. We are ready for the future.
“’I Witness’ shares the emotion of us and many young folks out there, witnessing what’s happening around us, witnessing injustice, witnessing populism, backwardness and empty slogans in times that need progress, empathy and new ideas.“
“Starting the process for this record one and a half years ago, we had literally nothing. No money, no budgets, no label, no nothing. Nothing, but a vision. A vision and us,“ the band revealed. “That´s how we started recordings drums in Berlin and that’s how we continued, doing it all by ourself in the end, having me producing the album together with a friend (and so felt 5th band member) in a basement in Munich. Finally, we couldn’t be happier than getting Moritz Enders for the mix & mastering on board, too, closing the circle to our ideas and vision.”
