This Friday, July 15, sees Irish post-rock maestros God Is An Astronaut release a very special anniversary album: With 20 years and a strong collection of masterful, acclaimed albums to their name, the four-piece comes full circle with their new live studio epos, The Beginning Of The End. Recorded at Windmill Lane Recording Studio in Dublin, Ireland on October 3, 2021, the album features modern transformations of all of the songs from their debut album, 2002’s The End Of The Beginning, encompassing each track’s evolutionary changes throughout the band’s years of live performances while allowing the original melodies and songwriting to shine through.

To shorten your wait until the record finally arrives this Friday via Napalm Records, today, God Is An Astronaut have premiered a brand new music video for their classic "Route 666”. The new live studio version kicks off with its praised synth and dark wave beat, taking the listener on a ride into the otherworldly sounds God Is An Astronaut has created for two decades.

"‘Route 666’ is the oldest God Is An Astronaut song. It was written in 1999 before God Is An Astronaut was formed,” Torsten Kinsella reveals.

"Initially Niels and I came up with the name / subject matter after watching US Televangelist Don Stewart pitching his green prosperity prayer handkerchief on the TV which we found obviously ludicrous, equally entertaining and humorous. 

“Back in the early years when we would play ‘Route 666’ live we would use some old film clips from the 1968 Horror film The Devil Rides Out. Needless to say the whole vibe was satirical.”

God Is An Astronaut's upcoming release provides a sonic snapshot of the evolution of the Irish post-rock band over two decades. Stage classics such as "From Dust to the Beyond", "Coda or "Route 666" can be heard in a new light, with clear, transformative variations originally heard during the band’s captivating live performances now incorporated. Plus, in addition to these live expansions, technical advances have been applied to each track. Originally limited to just a keyboard sequencer and an Akai S3000 sampler on The End Of The Beginning, 20 years later on The Beginning Of The End, the band seizes the opportunity to breathe new life into these live versions, allowing them to bring more feeling, experience, equipment and expression to the music and songs.

Niels adds: "When we recorded the The End of the Beginning we only had limited equipment; we couldn't even record full live performances,“ bassist Niels Kinsella reveals. "The Beginning Of The End gave us the opportunity to perform the whole album live and allowed us to bring more feeling and expression to the music and songs. We're very excited to share this with everyone."

The release of The Beginning Of The End could not be more relevant than in these current dark times. War themes are strikingly evident on songs such as the aforementioned "From Dust To The Beyond", as well as album title track "The End Of The Beginning" – named after a quote credited to Prime Minister Winston Churchill during the WWII era. Influenced by the chaos and futility of war, these themes are also reflected on the album’s cover, created by the band in collaboration with returning artist David Rooney. Featuring a war-torn concert hall and a piano, the art is a defiant message reflecting that the power of music transcends war and time.

Torsten Kinsella adds: "From Dust to the Beyond was written in 2002, inspired by the futile wars of the past and how we are doomed to repeat our mistakes and ironically we are now seeing the same unfold once again."

The Beginning Of The End will be available in these varying formats in various territories:

- 1CD Digisleeve
- 2LP Gatefold Black
- 2LP Gatefold Gold - limited to 300
- 2LP Gatefold Marbled Orange Transparent & Black - limited to 500
- Shirt & 2LP Gatefold in Black
- Shirt & Digisleeve
- Digital Album

Pre-order here.

The Beginning Of The End tracklisting:

"The End Of The Beginning"
"From Dust To The Beyond"
"Ascend To Oblivion"
"Coda"
"Remembrance"
"Point Pleasant"
"Fall From The Stars"
"Twilight"
"Coma"
"Route 666"
"Lost Symphony"

"Route 666":

"From Dust To The Beyond" video:

Lineup:

Torsten Kinsella - Guitar, Piano/Synths
Niels Kinsella - Bass
Lloyd Hanney - Drums
Jamie Dean - Guitar, Piano

(Photo - Brian Meade)