Tales from the Grave in Space

Last updated

Tales from the Grave in Space
TalesThumbnail.jpg
Studio album by
Released5 November 2009
RecordedSeptember–October 2009 at Grindstone Studios in Suffolk, England
Genre Thrash metal
Length30:56
Label Earache
Producer Scott Atkins
Gama Bomb chronology
Citizen Brain
(2008)
Tales from the Grave in Space
(2009)
The Terror Tapes
(2013)

Tales from the Grave in Space is the third studio album by Irish thrash metal band Gama Bomb, and one of the first albums ever to be released as a free download by a signed band. In a partnership between the band and record label Earache Records, the album was available for free download from 5 November 2009, hosted by RapidShare. It was physically released on 25 January in the UK and Europe and the US on 8 March.

Contents

Artwork

The album cover was created by Jeff Jordan, known for his work with The Mars Volta. He took inspiration from classic pulp and sci-fi artists like Virgil Finlay, and the themes of 1950s horror comics like Tales from the Crypt . It was then designed into an album cover by Rory McGuigan, who styled it after a Hammer Horror movie poster. [1]

The cover's concept was created by frontman Philly Byrne, based on the Lost Cosmonauts conspiracy theory. The cover of the album shows a skeletal cosmonaut, attached by living tentacles to a vast, abstract piece of masonry – the titular Grave – in space. Byrne described the artwork as a "sort of ' Doctor Who -meets-Arthur C. Clarke' thing [about] an alien object that absorbs whatever it encounters." [1]

The album's inlay was designed by Rory McGuigan, imitating the pre-Comics Code Authority horror and fantasy comics of the 1950s.

Tales from the Grave in Space is dedicated to the memory of late Evile bassist Mike Alexander.

Promotion

Gama Bomb released Tales from the Grave in Space as a free download available from Earache Records website on 5 November 2009, hosted by RapidShare, [2] in one of the first official deals between a band and the one-click hosting website. [3] Radiohead used a similar release method on their seventh studio album, In Rainbows , which was released through the band's own website on 10 October 2007 as a digital download for which customers could make whatever payment that they wished, including nothing. [4] Significantly, Gama Bomb had the backing of Earache Records to release the record via RapidShare, a site often considered to be a threat to the music industry as it allows users to anonymously upload files for download. [3]

Gama Bomb frontman Philly Byrne, a self-proclaimed fan of file sharing, [3] said, "We're giving the album away for free as a natural progression. It's an open-handed gesture that reflects the room the download revolution has created in the music business [...] taking away the many restrictions of a physical-only traditional release opens us up to a new and wider audience. More people will hear the music and enjoy it and talk about it, and if that leads to them helping us out by buying a t-shirt or coming to a show, so be it." [5]

In an apparent vindication of this decision, bassist Joe McGuigan has said that despite it already being given away for free online, the physical copy of the album actually sold more than copies than the band's previous album Citizen Brain. [6]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [7]
Metal Hammer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
Kerrang! Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg
Terrorizer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
Big Cheese Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg

Tales from the Grave in Space was well received by critics and fans like, with Kerrang! magazine awarding it four Ks and Metal Hammer magazine giving it a rating of 7/10. Due to the novel nature of the album's release, advance review copies were not made available to journalists.

Pop culture references

Tales from the Grave in Space's lyrics and lead guitar work reference Withnail & I, the Amok Time battle music from Star Trek , D.A.R.Y.L, video game The Last Ninja and Don't Look Now among many others. Album track "We Respect You" alone features mentions of High Spirits , Steve Guttenberg, singer Tane McClure and actors Michael Biehn, Michael J. Fox, Ronny Cox, Christopher Lee, Kurt Russell, Gary Busey, Christopher Walken, Christopher Lloyd, Peter Falk, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Bill Paxton as well as directors John Hughes, John Carpenter and Bruno Mattei.

Half Cut

On the album's physical release in January 2010 a limited edition double CD version featured the bonus EP Half Cut, an Irish slang term meaning 'drunk'. The five track EP features material recorded during and after the Tales From The Grave In Space sessions, was produced by Scott Atkins and engineered by Morgan Dunne. [8]

Track listing

Tales from the Grave in Space

No.TitleLength
1."Slam Anthem"2:34
2."New Eliminators of Atlantis B.C."3:05
3."Three Witches"2:39
4."Last Ninjas Unite"2:16
5."Escape from Scarecrow Mountain"2:35
6."Mussolini Mosh"1:12
7."We Respect You"2:28
8."Apocalypse 1997"2:32
9."Return to Blood Castle"2:43
10."Polterghost"2:50
11."Skeletron"3:08
12."Mummy Invasion"2:48

Half Cut

No.TitleLength
1."Cellar Dweller"2:08
2."Deep Red"2:56
3."Curry Chip"0:47
4."Welcome Back to Life"2:12
5."Exhumed Maniac"3:23

Related Research Articles

Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. They comprise Thom Yorke ; brothers Jonny Greenwood and Colin Greenwood (bass); Ed O'Brien ; and Philip Selway. They have worked with the producer Nigel Godrich and the cover artist Stanley Donwood since 1994. Radiohead's experimental approach is credited with advancing the sound of alternative rock.

<i>Hail to the Thief</i> 2003 studio album by Radiohead

Hail to the Thief is the sixth studio album by the English rock band Radiohead. It was released on 9 June 2003 through Parlophone internationally and a day later through Capitol Records in the United States. It was the last album released under Radiohead's record contract with EMI, the parent company of Parlophone and Capitol.

Earache Records is a British independent record label, music publisher and management company founded by Digby Pearson in 1985, based in Nottingham, England, with offices in London and New York. The label helped to pioneer extreme metal by releasing early grindcore and death metal records between the late 1980s and mid-1990s. Its roster has since diversified into more mainstream guitar music, working with bands such as Rival Sons, the Temperance Movement, Blackberry Smoke, Scarlet Rebels and the White Buffalo. The company also hosted the 'Earache Express' stage at Glastonbury Festival in 2017 and 'The Earache Factory' at Boomtown 2018. The label's logo is a homage to Thrasher magazine, as Pearson was a skateboard culture enthusiast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ewigkeit</span>

Ewigkeit is the musical project of English artist James Fogarty aka Mr. Fog from Brighton. Having released five studio albums, on 28 March 2007, Fogarty announced the end of the project on Blabbermouth, the Death To Music website and also on Myspace but revived it in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Accüsed</span> American crossover thrash band

The Accüsed is an American crossover thrash band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1981. The band was a progenitor of the crossover style that bridged the gap between thrashcore and thrash metal, later influencing grindcore and some crust punk bands; as well as an influential band in the Seattle area alternative scene. The band calls their music "splattercore", and their zombie mascot, Martha Splatterhead, appears on most of their albums. Common themes involve social issues and Martha Splatterhead coming back from the dead to slaughter rapists and child molesters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evile</span> English thrash metal band

Evile are an English thrash metal band from Huddersfield, formed in 2004. They have experienced numerous line-up changes over the years, with drummer Ben Carter being the only member of the original line-up to have stayed consistently. The current line-up consists of Carter, lead guitarist and vocalist Ol Drake, bassist Joel Graham, and rhythm guitarist Adam Smith, who replaced Drake's older brother Matt in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cult of Luna</span> Swedish post-metal band

Cult of Luna is a Swedish post-metal band from Umeå founded in 1998. Their style of music is similar to contemporary bands Neurosis and Isis. Cult of Luna was signed to Earache Records in the early 2000s and released five albums, including the commercially successful albums Salvation (2004) and Somewhere Along the Highway (2006). After an extended period of inactivity, Cult of Luna returned with its Indie Recordings debut Vertikal (2013) and companion EP Vertikal II (2013), both drawing inspiration from Fritz Lang's 1927 film, Metropolis. In 2016 the band released their space-themed collaborative album, Mariner, featuring American vocalist Julie Christmas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gama Bomb</span> Thrash metal band based in Northern Ireland

Gama Bomb are a thrash metal band based in Northern Ireland. The band's 2009 album Tales from the Grave in Space was one of the first albums released as a free download by a band signed to a record label.

<i>Survival of the Fastest</i> 2005 studio album by Gama Bomb

Survival of the Fastest is the first album by the Irish thrash metal band Gama Bomb. The album was released on the European music label Witches Brew in 2006, after an initial 2005 self-release.

<i>In Rainbows</i> 2007 studio album by Radiohead

In Rainbows is the seventh studio album by the English rock band Radiohead. It was self-released on 10 October 2007 as a pay-what-you-want download, followed by a retail release internationally through XL Recordings on 3 December 2007 and in North America through TBD Records on 1 January 2008. It was Radiohead's first release after their recording contract with EMI ended with their album Hail to the Thief (2003).

Short Sharp Shock are an English crossover thrash band from Liverpool, England. They are signed to the music label Prosthetic Records.

<i>Enter the Grave</i> 2007 studio album by Evile

Enter the Grave is the debut album by the English thrash metal band Evile. Released on 27 August 2007 in Europe and on 25 September in North America and Japan, the album received generally favorable reviews and entered the UK Rock Chart at number 33. It was produced by Flemming Rasmussen and recorded at Sweet Silence Studios, Copenhagen, Denmark. Rasmussen had produced three Metallica albums, which raised the profile of the album's release. The track "Thrasher" was included on the 2008 Earache Thrash Pack, a downloadable selection of songs for the music video console game Rock Band.

<i>Citizen Brain</i> 2008 studio album by Gama Bomb

Citizen Brain is the second album by the Irish thrash metal band Gama Bomb. It was released on 9 June 2008 in Europe and 24 June 2008 in the United States and rest of the world by Earache Records. A Bonus DVD featuring tour and studio footage was included in early pressings of the album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">These Are My Twisted Words</span> 2009 song by Radiohead

"These Are My Twisted Words" is a song by the English rock band Radiohead. It was leaked via BitTorrent on 12 August 2009, possibly by the band, and released on 17 August as a free download from the Radiohead website.

Slaraffenland is an experimental pop music band from Copenhagen, Denmark. Their sound is a mixture of many different styles, including post-rock, experimental rock, noise pop, and freeform jazz. They self-released an album and an EP under their own label, "Honningmand Records". Their second album Private Cinema was released in 2007. The band's third studio album, entitled We're on Your Side was released on September 15, 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bonded by Blood (band)</span> American thrash metal band

Bonded by Blood is an American thrash metal band, named after Exodus' debut album Bonded by Blood. Like its labelmates Evile, Gama Bomb, and Municipal Waste, Bonded by Blood is part of the thrash metal revival movement. The band was founded in mid-2005 by vocalist Jose Barrales, who with the help of friends completed the band's original lineup with guitarist Alex Lee, guitarist Juan Juarez, bassist Ruben Dominguez, and drummer Carlos Regalado.

<i>The Terror Tapes</i> 2013 studio album by Gama Bomb

The Terror Tapes is the fourth studio album by Irish thrash metal band Gama Bomb. It was released on 19 April 2013 in Europe and 7 May in the US via AFM Records.

<i>Untouchable Glory</i> 2015 studio album by Gama Bomb

Untouchable Glory is the fifth studio album by Irish thrash metal band Gama Bomb. It was released internationally on 30 October 2015 via AFM Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Massive Wagons</span> British rock band

Massive Wagons are an English rock band. They were formed in the north Lancashire city of Lancaster in 2009.

<i>Kid A Mnesia Exhibition</i> 2021 video game

Kid A Mnesia Exhibition is a 2021 exploration game published by Epic Games for macOS, Windows and PlayStation 5. It serves as a digital exhibition of music and artwork created for the Radiohead albums Kid A (2000) and Amnesiac (2001). It was developed by Namethemachine, Arbitrarily Good Productions and Epic Games in collaboration with the Radiohead singer Thom Yorke, Radiohead's producer Nigel Godrich and the Radiohead cover artist Stanley Donwood.

References

  1. 1 2 "Gama Bomb unveil artwork, song titles for Tales from the Grave in Space". Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. 29 October 2009. Retrieved 8 November 2009.
  2. "Gama Bomb's Tales from the Grave in Space now available for free download". Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. 5 November 2009. Retrieved 8 November 2009.
  3. 1 2 3 Cardew, Ben (22 October 2009). "RapidShare deal for Earache band". Music Week. United Business Media. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
  4. Tyrangiel, Josh (1 October 2007). "Radiohead says, pay what you want". Time. Archived from the original on 4 October 2007. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
  5. "Earache Records markets new album via free RapidShare downloads" (Press release). PR Newswire. 2 November 2009. Retrieved 7 November 2009.
  6. "Interview: Gama Bomb (Part #1)". MuchMoreMetal.com. 10 August 2010. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  7. Eduardo Rivadavia. "Tales from the Grave in Space". AllMusic . Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  8. "Tales gets physical release, EP announced" (Press release). Earache Records. 20 January 2010. Retrieved 20 January 2010.