[photos by Jennifer Deutrom]
Austin, Texas-based multi-instrumentalist MARK DEUTROM (Bellringer, ex-Melvins, Clown Alley) will release his highly anticipated new album The Blue Bird on January 4th, 2019 through Season Of Mist. Several pre-release singles and videos are now streaming, and preorders are available.
The first work under the MARK DEUTROM name in almost six years, The Blue Bird is a full album listening experience; it explores melody, space, nuance, and volume as it flows from track-to-track like a prismatic audio storybook. From the classic unconventional heaviness of tracks such as “The Happiness Machine” to the fever dream haziness of the “Somnambulist” through the moody “They Have Won,” MARK DEUTROM moves from strength to strength without ever letting his foot off the gas. The Blue Bird is rock grandeur, oozing poise and purpose, and has all the hallmarks to be an abiding piece of heavy rock history.
Through thirteen diverse tracks, The Blue Bird delivers over fifty minutes of intoxicating, surreal, and spellbinding rock, with MARK DEUTROM performing vocal, guitar, bass, keyboards, and more. Bellringer’s live percussionist RL Hulsman (Robert Plant, Nashville Pussy, Tarbox Ramblers) handles the drums for the album, with guest drums/percussion and vibraphone on “Hell Is A City” and drums/percussion on “They Have Won” by Aaron Lack, upright bass on “Hell Is A City” and “They Have Won” by G. Pat Harris, and alto saxophone on “They Have Won” by Joe Morales. The album was recorded at Estuary Recording Facility in Austin, produced by MARK DEUTROM, engineered by Chico Jones, with mixing and additional engineering by Chad Bamford, and mastering and additional engineering by Bernd Heinrauch. The bandleader’s wife Jennifer Deutrom handled the album’s cover art, photography, and video creation.
Stream The Blue Bird‘s “The Happiness Machine” at Bandcamp HERE, see the “Maximum Hemingway” official music video HERE, and stream “Nothing Out There” HERE.
Set for release on Friday, January 4th, The Blue Bird is being issued on CD, LP, and all digital platforms, with each format featuring a slightly different track listing and arrangement. Season Of Mist also recently reissued MARK DEUTROM‘s back-catalog including The Silent Treatment, The Value Of Decay, Brief Sensuality & Western Violence, and Bellringer on all platforms.
Find preorder options for The Blue Bird and the reissued titles at the Season Of Mist webshop RIGHT HERE and through all digital providers.
Following the release of The Blue Bird, MARK DEUTROM and the Bellringer live lineup featuring drummer RL Hulsman and bassist Brian Ramirez will tour in support of the album. Watch for live actions to be announced shortly.
The Blue Bird Track Listing:
1. No Space Holds the Weight
2. Futurist Manifesto
3. Radiant Gravity
4. O Ye of Little Faith
5. Our Revels Now are Ended
6. Hell is a City
7. Somnambulist
8. Maximum Hemingway
9. Through the Ringing Cedars
10. They Have Won
11. On Father’s Day
12. The Happiness Machine
13. Nothing Out There
MARK DEUTROM is a renowned guitarist, composer, songwriter, and producer. He studied composition at California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, where he attended seminars with such composers as John Cage, Lou Harrison, Morton Feldman, Aaron Copland, and Morton Subotnick. In 1986, MARK DEUTROM co-founded Alchemy Records in San Francisco. During his time at the label he produced a record for his own band, Clown Alley, as well as records for scene stalwarts Sacrilege, Melvins, RKL, and Neurosis. Mark also released records for bands such as Poison Idea, Virulence, and more.
DEUTROM was invited to play bass in the Melvins in 1993 where he remained until 1998. During this period, he contributed material to the albums Prick, Stoner Witch, Stag, Honky, and additional releases, while the band toured with Tool, Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails, Kiss, and Rush, among others. In 2006, MARK DEUTROM was invited to collaborate with Sunn O))) on various live dates in the USA and Europe.
DEUTROM has released various solo projects and continues to produce for other bands. His band Bellringer has served as the main live vehicle for his music and also collaborations with other musicians. Bellringer released their latest album Jettison in 2016.
“…Deutrom continues to craft his own epic narratives.” – Popdose
“If his work both before and after the Melvins is any indication, Mark Deutrom deserves a lot more credit… in the career of arguably the greatest hard rock band of all time.” – Noisey
“one gets a sense of the LP’s cinematic scope and Deutrom’s deft touches as a writer, arranger, performer, and producer. Neither a full-on sonic assault nor an overly polite pop journey, the track encapsulates a diverse range of moods in a singular fashion that speaks to Deutrom’s particular genius.” – Pop Matters, on the track “Nothing Out There”
“…excellent, creative rock music that gets under your skin in just the right ways.” – Duluth Trading Tribune News
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