WINTER
SOLSTICE
Matt
Tarpey - Vocals
Duke Cuneo - Drums
JT Turner - Guitar
Caleb Goins - Guitar
Nathan Smith - Bass
Winter Solstice, a 5 piece hardcore influenced thrash
metal outfit located in Lynchburg, VA, began their
journey as a band in the fall of 2000. Since the bands
inception they have already played with bands such
as Underoath, As I Lay Dying, Norma Jean, The Black
Dahlia Murder, Bleeding Through, Bury Your Dead, Death
By Stereo, It Dies Today, and many, many more. Winter
Solstice made their largest debut in the summer of
2004 at the Sonshine festival in Wilmar, MN in front
of a vast crowd and received an astonishing response.
The band is already confirmed to play the Cornerstone
festival in July on the HM Magazine stage, which is
a massive step forward for the band. With their new
album The Fall of Rome out in March and plenty of
tours lined up the band is definitely headed for some
extreme recognition in the scene.
What’s
different about The Fall of Rome from the bands’
previous work is that they have fine-tuned themselves
as musicians and now have a much more mature and focused
sound. This is due in part to the bands relentless
playing and practice schedule. Winter Solstice has
not only improved their playing drastically but has
settled into a much more metal/thrashy sound with
more flowing breakdowns and heavy parts than previous
releases. Winter Solstice wants listeners to walk
away with the feeling that they just heard a band
that is not only unrelenting and punishing but also
has a strong message to bring to their fans. The albums’
title, The Fall of Rome, and the artwork are definitely
themed around a specific idea. “The Fall of
Rome is a great historical metaphor. There are many
both complex and simple comparisons that can be drawn
between the Roman Empire, and our own society today.
From rise to greatness, to its slow decline, there
are so many lessons our society could learn from Ancient
Rome. The albums’ layout focuses more specifically
on the end of Rome, and it's similarities to Western
culture at the beginning of the 21st century, including
the moral depravity, the loss of historical perspective,
and the prideful arrogance of both ancient and modern
societies. The slow decline of something that was
once great and beautiful is so epic, seemed like a
great idea for a metal album with a conscience, which
is what we set out to write.” states drummer
Duke Cuneo.
The
Fall of Rome was recorded at Red Planet Studios in
Richmond, VA between October 22 and November 12, 2004
and was produced by Andreas Magnusson (of Scarlet)
and Winter Solstice. Special guest and label mate
Tim Lambesis, vocalist of As I Lay Dying, appears
on track 9, “To The Nines”.
It
can easily be said that every track on The Fall of
Rome is driving and fast, and they keep beating you
down with very few breaks in the action. With that
being said, there is a lot of melodic catchiness in
there that should stick in listeners' heads for quite
some time. The Fall of Rome will hit stores everywhere
on March 8th 2005!
