Irish progressive metal outfit Uragh return this autumn with their most intense and thematically ambitious work to date. Their new EP Stalemate will be released 25th September via digital platforms and limited physical editions. The first single, ‘Crimson Dove’ is out now, accompanied by an official music video.
Following last year’s debut album, Maelstrom, Stalemate delivers four interconnected tracks that explore the darker aspects of institutional control and personal deterioration in modern society. Across its concise runtime, the EP traverses themes of mental health breakdown, societal alienation, and the psychological toll of systemic oppression.
The record builds a compelling conceptual arc, beginning with the mechanical warfare of ‘Perpetual’, progressing through the circling predation of ‘Crimson Dove’, the personal grief of ‘Time Heals Nothing” (featuring guest vocals from Foelicitye), and culminating in the stark institutional imagery of the title track, ‘Stalemate’.
Lyrically and sonically, Uragh craft a narrative that becomes increasingly intimate and disturbing, employing industrial and predatory metaphors—“vultures watching their selected weary victim,” “white apparel,” “barbed wire,”—to deliver a scathing critique of modern power structures.
“Musically, we really wanted to bottle the energy of our live show this time around,” said guitarist Marcelo Varge. “It’s definitely a step up in intensity from Maelstrom, but the process was also more spontaneous. ‘Time Heals Nothing’, for example, was basically built from scratch in the studio. We walked in with a few loose riffs and just let the song find its own way.
“Thematically, we didn’t start with a concept, but the idea of being trapped just kept surfacing. Whether it’s the daily grind in ‘Perpetual’, or the feeling of having your dreams picked apart in ‘Crimson Dove’, it all points back to this paralysis. It’s why Stalemate felt like the only fitting title.”
Recorded at JSR Audio earlier this year, the EP saw producer Josh Sid Robinson step into a central role in shaping the band’s evolving sound. The EP’s artwork was created by Georgian visual artist Alex Malakmadze, whose piece echoes the mechanical and institutional tone of the record.
Uragh will support the release of Stalemate with a string of live shows across Ireland and the UK.
URAGH IRELAND & UK TOURS
Sep 26 – Dublin @ Sin É
Oct 3 – Bristol, UK @ The Gryphon
Oct 4 – London, UK @ The Dev
Oct 10 – Cork @ Fred Zeppelins
Oct 11 – Belfast @ Voodoo Belfast
Oct 26 – Limerick @ TBA
Nov 14 – Edinburgh, UK @ The Banshee Labyrinth
You can check out the video for ‘Crimson Dove‘ here at RAMzine.
