Metal Express Radio's Mick Burgess caught up with Dave Meros from SPOCK'S BEARD on the band's current UK tour. Hear them talk about touring, the departure of drummer/vocalist Nick D'Virgilio, the entry of vocalist Ted Leonard (ENCHANT), and about continuing the band after co-founder Neal Morse left.

Check out the interview via the audio player below:

Photo by Stan Ausmus

Spock's Beard

Meros on Neal Morse's departure: "It was so extreme him leaving that we didn't have a plan. We just went ahead. It was actually kinda strange the way it happened. We just decided 'Well, you know, this is the best band we've ever been in. We really love playing with each other. Let's just try to keep it going. We may fail after one record we may not even get one record out. Let's go as far as we can 'cause we don't really know where to go.'"

Spock's Beard released their brand new and 11th studio album, Brief Nocturnes And Dreamless Sleep, on April 2nd via InsideOut Music.

The new studio album also marks the recording debut of long-time drummer Jimmy Keegan, and vocalist / guitarist Ted Leonard (ENCHANT, THOUGHT CHAMBER). It also sees the return of one familiar name to the song-writing credits, that of Neal Morse who has co-written two tracks after having left the band in 2002. Of the collaboration, bass-player Dave Meros says: "Al and Neal are brothers, of course, and keep in regular contact with each other. What happened was that Al spoke to Neal and told him he was working on some ideas. Neal said he'd love to help, so Al went down to Nashville, where his brother's now living, and they collaborated on the songs."

Co-produced by Al Morse, Rich Mouser and John Boegehold, Brief Nocturnes And Dreamless Sleep is described by Meros as, "quirky, edgy, and reminding us a little bit of older times in the band, but also taking us further forward."

The tracklisting for Brief Nocturnes And Dreamless Sleep is as follows:

Disc One:

'Hiding Out'

'I Know Your Secret'

'A Treasure Abandoned'

'Submerged'

'Afterthoughts'

'Something Very Strange'

'Waiting For Me'

Disc Two (special edition only):

'The Man You’re Afraid You Are'

'Down A Burning Road'

'Wish I Were Here'

'Something Very Strange (Sanctified Remix)'

Limited edition bonus track:

'Postcards From Perdition'

A lyric video for 'Afterthoughts' can be seen below:

Excerpts of five songs from the new album can be heard below:

In May, Spock's Beard will embark on a European tour with support from BEARDFISH and SOUND OF CONTACT. Spock’s Beard had this to say about the tour package:

"We are really looking forward to coming back to Europe and playing our new music. The combination of Spock's Beard, Sound Of Contact and Beardfish promises to be really strong and entertaining for our fans.”

The tour dates can be found below:

May

10 - Hirsch – Nürnberg, Germany
11 - Majestic – Bratislava, Slovakia
12 - A38 – Budapest, Hungary
14 - Szene – Vienna, Austria
15 - Colos-Saal – Aschaffenburg, Germany
16 - Das Rind – Rüsselsheim, Germany
17 - Zeche – Bochum, Germany
18 - De Boerderij – Zoetermeer, Netherlands
19 - Markthalle – Hamburg, Germany