Mesopotamian thrashing black metal pioneers MELECHESH are currently headed for Istanbul, Turkey to shoot the music video for the track 'Grand Gathas Of Baal Sin'. The song comes from the band's new album The Epigenesis and will be shot by Canadian director Rouzbeh Heydari. Director of cinematography and producer are Emin Murat K?l?ç and Tumay Irgas.

Commented mainman Ashmedi: “We decided to film in Istanbul in order to capitalize on the suitable and real scenery and avoid a greenscreen, the location is surreal. Choosing to film in Istanbul also keeps us in line with The Epigenesis photo shoot and recording which were both done here. Rouzbeh, the director, flew in from Canada today and the whole band will arrive tonight. Friday we will do some pre production, Saturday and Sunday we will be shooting in two different locations. We chose ‘Grand Gathas Of Baal Sin’ because it has all of the desired elements; speed, thrashiness, aggression, mysticism and middle eastern ritualistic beats and parts.”

Melechesh will be direct support to ROTTING CHRIST on their tour next March/April 2011. Joining them will be Polish death metallers HATE, ABIGAIL WILLIAMS, and LECHEROUS NOCTURNE. Reduced service charge tickets are now available through EnterTheVault.com. Confirmed dates are as follows:

March

9 - Jaxx – W. Springfield, VA
10 - Championship Bar & Grill – Trenton, NJ
11 - Montage Music Hall – Rochester, NY
12 - Rocko’s – Manchester, NH
13 - The Palladium – Worcester, MA
14 - Crazy Donkey – Farmingdale, NY
15 - Petite Campus – Montreal, QC
16 - Mod Club – Toronto, ON
17 - Blondie’s – Detroit, MI
18 - Peabody’s – Cleveland, OH
19 - Reggie’s Rock Club – Chicago, IL
20 - Station 4 – St. Paul, MN
22 - The Republik – Calgary, AB
23 - Starlite Room – Edmonton, AB
25 - El Corazon – Seattle, WA
26 - Hawthorne Theatre – Portland, OR
27 - DNA Lounge – San Francisco, CA
28 - Chain Reaction – Anaheim, CA
29 - The Key Club – Hollywood, CA
30 - Brick by Brick – San Diego, CA
31 - U.B’s Bar – Mesa, AZ

April

1 - The War Legion Underground – Amarillo, TX
2 - The Marquee – Tulsa, OK
3 - Rail Club – Ft. Worth, TX
4 - Emo’s – Austin, TX
5 - Walter’s – Houston, TX
7 - Brass Mug – Tampa, FL
8 - The Masquerade – Atlanta, GA
9 - Volume 11 – Raleigh, NC
10 - The Casbah – Charlotte, NC

Melechesh have uploaded the track 'Grand Gathas Of Baal Sin' to their MySpace page.

The Epigenesis was recorded in the newly built first class Babajim Studios in Istanbul, Turkey. The album was mixed by Reuben de Lautour and mastered by Pieter Snapper. In an unprecedented move in metal, the band chose to record the album entirely in Istanbul in an attempt to capture the inspiring surroundings. Babajim Studios is run by some of the most elite sound engineers in Turkey.

The Epigenesis was released on October 1st in Europe and on October 26th in North America via Nuclear Blast Records.