Members of The Dillinger Escape Plan, Extol, and Sea + Air have joined creative forces as Azusa. The band's debut album, Heavy Yoke, will be released on November 16th via Solid State Records in North America.

A music video for the album's title track can be seen below. The band described the clip as the "abstract visual metaphor about habit loops, rewinding time, and loss of innocence. Aesthetically, we were imaging what it would look like if Jonathan Glazer directed an episode of Twin Peaks."  

About the track itself, Azusa said, "The musical elements in 'Heavy Yoke' are constantly challenging the song's center line and balance point. While the acrobatic riffing insists on taking the tune off-track, the vocal lines add an anchoring sense of stability within the chaos. The opening riff is a precarious roller coaster and one of the more jarring, yet thrilling rides on the whole album. After the intro drop, the chorus catches you in a cushion of harmony, leaving you feeling secure and ready to take that ride again."

The band furthered, "Thematically, 'Heavy Yoke' deals with those unspeakable truths lurking in the subconscious mind. You can ignore them for a while, but sooner or later, they'll haunt you in the night. When you finally wake yourself up and let the daylight in, its healing powers reveal universal truths, which bring clarity and relief."

Azusa's music is a carnival of contrast - it's captivating with unconventional nerve. Uniting the complementary skills of its members, Azusa's sound is a thrash-fusion tour de force. Can you imagine Kate Bush fronting Slayer? Death collaborating with Annette Peacock? These allegedly incongruent influences dissolve seamlessly in an alluring sonic alchemy.

Uncompromisingly experimental, Azusa's curated approach showcases each member's unique strengths as a reaction to previous endeavours, more so than an extension of them. Reflecting on life's existential mysteries, Azusa's lyrics seek to explore cognitive dissonances at the crossroads of upbringing, mysticism, belief and betrayal. Defying expectations by embracing contradiction, Azusa finds strength in vulnerability, harmony in dissonance, and melody in discord.
 
The band commented on its debut, saying, "This album is special for all of us and we're currently feeling the same excited feelings we got before we debuted any of our previous efforts. We are really fortunate to have been able to create these songs together and to be able to share them with fans of our former and current bands, as well as new fans."

Azusa finished by stating, "It has been such a relief crafting music without having any outside expectations placed on us. Turning to creative playfulness with a more relaxed and intuitive approach to songwriting, we feel that this collection of songs will hold a unique space in the atmosphere of heavy music."

Tracklisting:

"Interstellar Islands"
"Heart Of Stone"
"Heavy Yoke"
"Fine Lines"
"Lost In The Ether"
"Spellbinder"
"Programmed To Distress"
"Eternal Echo"
"Iniquitous Spiritual Praxis"
"Succumb To Sorrow
"Distant Call"

"Heart Of Stone":

 
"Interstellar Islands" video:

Lineup:

Eleni Zafiriadou (Sea + Air) - Voice
Liam Wilson (The Dillinger Escape Plan) - Bass
Christer Espevoll (Extol) - Guitars
David Husvik (Extol) - Drums

(Photo - Simon Skreddernes)