Finnish progressive death metallers BARREN EARTH have released part one of their tour blog. Check it out below:

“With Barren Earth’s Finnish Tour almost complete it is now time to reflect upon some of the gigs and the circumstances surrounding them.

The opening gig of the tour, which was also the album launch gig, took place at one of the more prestigious venues in Finland, namely the Tavastia club in Helsinki. The gig was originally booked to Dom where we’d played a couple of times before. Unfortunately, Dom decided to close shop and all its gigs were transferred to Virgin Oil Co. As it happened, this resulted in several double bookings, including our date. The reggae act THE CAPITAL BEAT was deemed to have a bigger status than Barren Earth and therefore it was up to us to find a new venue. Luckily, Tavastia neatly happened to have a cancellation for Thursday March 15th. We jumped at the possibility to play there and grabbed the date.

The week prior to the gig was spent rehearsing, either individually or collectively. There was quite a lot of rehearsing to do, since we hadn’t played together in almost 6 months. Additionally, we would be playing a whole bunch of new songs which had never been played live before. There was some speculation on whether we’d even be able to play some of those songs live because of their intricate nature…

But the gig was a success! Despite being a relatively large venue (for us, anyway) there was a decent and a supportive crowd which seemed to embrace both the old and new songs with gusto. In addition to some BE ‘classics’ the set included six songs from the new album: ‘Passing Of The Crimson Shadows’, ‘As It Is Written’, ‘Vintage Warlords’, ‘The Rains Begin’, ‘Oriental Pyre’ and ‘The Dead Exiles’, of which the latter three received their live premiere. There were a few rugged edges and mistakes here and there, but all in all it was a very enjoyable gig and a perfect way to inaugurate the new album. It was also a great way to introduce the very fashionable new selection of Barren Earth T-shirts!

The following day we were off to Tampere. Whilst carrying the gear to the van parked outside Tavastia a woman appeared. She was keen on buying a ticket for MAGENTA SKYCODE’s Tavastia gig taking place that night. However, she didn’t want to wait at the long box office queue. So she asked our opinion on whether there would still be tickets left at the door in the evening. We were unable to give any authoritative opinions on the matter, but did manage to make an alternative suggestion. If she had doubts on the gig being sold out, and if she didn’t want to wait in the queue at the box office, wouldn’t it be easiest if she just went inside Tavastia at that very moment? After all, the doors were wide open, and she’d be sure to secure the best seat in the house. She acknowledged the ingenuity of the plan, but eventually voted against it.

Packing the van outside Tavastia, it soon became obvious that we had underestimated the size of the car. It was simply too small to accommodate all the gear, merchandise boxes and the band + crew unless we were interested in sitting on each other’s laps - and we weren’t. Luckily, we managed to locate a gas station renting out trailers, and soon we were viewing the trailer selection at a nearby Shell. Standing at the yard of the gas station Mikko said he’d really need to take a leak. I suggested he’d do it behind the trailer we had already chosen and connected to our van. He agreed with the suggestion and proceeded to relieve himself just behind the trailer. Unfortunately, it was precisely at this moment that our chauffeur decided to start driving forward, thus exposing a bewildered and alarmed Mikko still very much in the middle of his business…

As we had lost quite a bit of time due to the trailer business, it was obvious we’d be arriving late at Tampere. It was therefore agreed to drive with no delays. But as there were a few six-packs on board, the need to have a break was imminent. It was then agreed to stop at a gas station. But to minimize the loss of time everybody was urged to use the bathroom as quickly as possible so the journey could continue. And soon the journey did continue. But not before cigarettes and coffee…”

Barren Earth’s new album The Devil’s Resolve is out now via Peaceville Records.

The Devil’s Resolve tracklist:

'Passing Of The Crimson Shadows'

'The Rains Begin'

'Vintage Warlords'

'As It Is Written'

'The Dead Exiles'

'Oriental Pyre'

'White Field'

'Where All Stories End'

'Martyrs Of Devotion' (Special Edition)

'World In Haze' (Special Edition)

Special Edition CD artwork:

Limited Edition Vinyl artwork:

Mixed by Dan Swanö (OPETH, KATATONIA) at Unisound, The Devil’s Resolve continues with all the trademarks one has come to associate with Barren Earth: brutal riffs, gloomy growls, majestic melodies, as well as acoustic and progressive passages, according to a press release. But this time the band has delved even deeper, taking this sophomore effort to the extremes through musical landscapes encompassing brutal death metal, doomy vocals, trippy 70’s prog lunacy, pastoral passages and even bagpipes.

Barren Earth recently launched a new mini-site, with audio samples, studio diary and much more. Check it out at this location and receive a free mp3 upon sign-up.

Check out an album trailer below: