Esoteric Announce Tour Dates with Chthe’ilist and Vacant Eyes
Esoteric move at their own punishing pace. The band climbed out of the post-industrial wreckage of metropolitan England back in the early ’90s, when the underground was hell-bent on death-defying speed. That these Birmingham Britons bucked that trend by hitting the brakes ran circles around some slower-witted metalheads. But while ahead of the curve, they’re now rightfully regarded as one of the heaviest — and headiest — hitters in funeral doom. Today, Esoteric are announcing their first North American tour in more than 10 years. This marks just the second time that they’ve toured North America. The band will creep through the Midwest before trudging across Canada. They’ll then seep down the East Coast before heaving the full bore of their cosmic weight onstage at Maryland Death Fest.Vacant Eyes will join for the first leg of this tour, followed by Chthe’ilist for the second. Spectral Voice will also appear on select dates, including MDF. “We are really looking forward to crushing stages across North America with these three incredible bands,” says Esoteric’s long-time vocalist and guitarist Greg Chandler. Get your tickets here.
Esoteric 2024 North American Tour Dates w/ Chthe’ilist, Spectral Voice, and Vacant Eyes:5/10/24: Minneapolis, MN @ White Rock Lounge+5/11/24: Chicago, IL @ Reggies#+5/12/24: Toronto, ON @ Garrison+5/13/24: Ottawa, ON @ Dominion Theater+5/14/24: Montreal, QC @ Piranha Bar+5/15/24: Quebec City, QC @ L’Anti Bar+5/16/24: Portland, ME @ Space+5/17/24: Worcester, MA @ Ralph’s Rock Diner*5/18/24: Providence, RI @ Fete Lounge*5/19/24: NYC, NY @ TV Eye*#5/20/24: Pittsburgh, PA @ Preserving Underground* 5/21/24: Richmond, VA @ The Camel*5/22/24: Philadelphia, PA @ Kung Fu Necktie*#5/23/24: Baltimore, MD @ Maryland Death Fest#* with Chthe’ilist # with Spectral Voice+ with Vacant EyesThese North American dates will come on the heels of Esoteric’s performance at The Dome in London with Bell Witch and Knoll. Esoteric’s will vary their setlist throughout this tour, pulling from across their vast, 30-year discography, including songs off their latest album, A Pyrrhic Existence.
A Pyrrhic Existence Tracklist:
1. Descent
2. Rotting in Dereliction
3. Antim Yatra
4. Consuming Lies
5. Culmination
6. Sick and Tired
Order physical copies here.Stream the album here.
About Esoteric:
For nearly thirty years, Esoteric has been pushing the limits of sonic intensity. From the mind-bending darkness of their ’90s double albums – Epistemological Despondency (1997) and The Pernicious Enigma (1997) – to the expansive epics found on their recent opuses The Maniacal Vale (2008) and Paragon of Dissonance (2011), they have never compromised their initial aim – to unleash aural mayhem on unsuspecting listeners. Late 2019 saw the release of their most accomplished work to date, A Pyrrhic Existence. Begun in the post-industrial decay of Birmingham in 1992, the band initially took influence from personal excursions into inner space, contemporary death metal, and their own warped take on ’70s progressive and psychedelic music. The early years saw them perform live infrequently, often to perplexed (and sometimes hostile) audiences. The prevailing ethos in the underground, and indeed heavy music in general in the early ’90s was one of speed. Along with a few of their contemporaries scattered across the globe, Esoteric eschewed this in favor of slow building intensity, extended and multi-layered compositions, and free form noise breaks. A foreboding and pervasive sense of unease permeated the early recordings – this was truly dark music.Throughout the ’90s, the band remained very much in the underground, perfecting their craft, unmoved by trends or the expectations of the fickle masses. Albums such as The Pernicious Enigma (1997) and Metamorphogenesis (1999) saw them develop and refine their sound, evolving naturally, never appearing contrived. Problems finding dedicated members meant decreased activity in the late ’90s – finding a suitable drummer proved particularly difficult.2003 saw the band rejuvenated. With the line-up complete for the first time in years and signing to Season of Mist for the release of their fourth album, Subconscious Dissolution into to Continuum (2004), they performed their first live shows since 1997.The growing interest in the style of music Esoteric had been peddling without compromise since 1992 meant more opportunities to perform on stage, something the band has relished. Esoteric has developed into a formidable and respected live act, playing tours and festivals throughout Europe and beyond, sharing stages with bands and artists including Ahab, Alcest, and Draconian, and festivals appearances at Brutal Assault, SWR Barroselas, Damnation Festival, Madrid is The Dark, and more.Released in 2008, The Maniacal Vale proved to be the bands most ambitious and successful album to date, simultaneously honoring the chaos of the earlier releases whilst expanding into territory that at first glance may seem at odds with the band’s ethos, yet has always lurked within their compositions – namely, a sense a melody and grandeur. Having been hinted at on previous albums, this side of the band was fully realized. This was followed in 2011 by Paragon of Dissonance, an album equal to its predecessor in compositional scope and ambition.2019 saw the release of the band’s seventh opus, A Pyrrhic Existence, 98 minutes of new material that once again expanded on the band’s sound, yet retains elements of all their preceding works. It is a culmination of 27 years of uncompromising dedication to their craft – detailed and layered compositions and a high level of musicianship, foreboding production, and equal measures of utter darkness and melodic diversity.
Line-upGreg Chandler: Vocals, GuitarsMark Bodossian: Bass, synthsJoe Fletcher: DrumsJim Nolan: GuitarsGordon Bicknell: Guitars
