San Fernando Valley, CA melodic death metal band Upon Stone have announced their debut album, Dead Mother Moon, due January 19 via Century Media (pre-order). The album was produced and mixed by Taylor Young, and it features guest vocals on a track by Brian Fair of Shadows Fall, a Misfits cover, and recent single “Onyx Through the Heart.” It also features the just-released title track.
“We made a record that we wanted to hear,” says drummer Wyatt Bentley. “If I found this record on import at a record store, this would be my favorite new band. I think it’s a good sign when you’re writing the stuff you would have loved to hear when you’re first getting into a sound.”
Of the new single, vocalist/bassist Xavier Wahlberg says: “A mortal human’s search for meaning through the practice of ritual and magic. Discovering the power and reverence of the nocturnal spirit world waiting to be gained for those willing to devote themselves to it completely. The Dead Mother Moon represents a manifestation/personification of these elements. A deity/goddess ruling over it all.”
As on the previous single, you can hear the band’s ’90s melodeath influences coming through, but Upon Stone really make it their own. It’s as melodic as it is aggressive, and it’s a genuinely fresh take on this sound. Check it out below.
Tracklist
1. Dead Mother Moon
2. Onyx Through the Heart
3. My Destiny; A Weapon
4. Dusk Sang Fairest
5. Paradise Failed ft Brain Fair of Shadows Fall
6. Nocturnalism
7. To Seek and Follow the Call of Lions
8. The Lantern
9. Dig Up Her Bones (Misfits cover)
Upon Stone — 2023 Tour Dates
11/11 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teagram Ballroom w/ Earth Crisis, Undying
11/16 – Palmdale, CA @ Transplant Brewing Co. w/ Warbringer
11/17 – San Luis Obispo, CA @ Humdinger Brewing w/ Warbringer
11/18 – San Fernando, CA @ The Midnight Hour w/ Devil Master, Fuming Mouth, Final Gasp
w/ Xibalba
12/8 – Riverside, CA @ Raincross District
12/9 – Mesa, AZ @ The Nile Underground
12/10 – Las Vegas, NV @ Post 8
12/11 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Publik Coffee
12/12 – Reno, NV @ Cypress
12/13 – Berkeley, CA @ Cornerstone Cafe
12/14 – San Diego, CA @ Corazon Del Barrio