Official Press Release

For Tom Angelripper, his thrash metal band Sodom is a perfect vehicle to bluntly take a stand. Like few other musicians on this scene, he personifies - along with down-to-earthiness and honesty - a healthily critical position on political authorities and decision-makers from finance and industry. On their latest album, In War And Pieces, Sodom focus on the worst excesses of power: arrogance, greed, spotlight-seeking, fanaticism, corruption, cowardice and oppression.

Tom states: "I've always written about what's going on in the world, about the injustice and mistakes that happen everywhere. I know that you can't change anything politically that way, but I would like to at least comment on the situation and generate an awareness of this deplorable state of affairs. Being a singer in a metal band allows me to voice my anger to a large audience."

This uncompromising attitude marks the eleven songs on Sodom's latest album which could hardly sound more dynamic and violent. In War And Pieces owes its bloodcurdling energy largely to producer Waldemar Sorychta (Grip Inc., Enemy Of The Sun), whose great skill and commitment were instrumental in creating the album's - as Tom calls it - "phat, brutal and open" sound. With Sorychta's support, Angelripper (vocals, bass), Bernemann (guitar) and Bobby Schottkowski (drums) succeeded in adding new impulses to their music without watering down the band's long tradition. "Waldemar is a great musician himself and has done some brilliant work, especially on the guitar sound," Tom explains. "He knows how to get the absolute maximum out of a speaker."

As brutal as the production is the diverse songwriting on In War And Pieces, a kind of tour de force through the whole history of thrash metal, featuring harsh arrangements, melodic solos and raging vocal attacks. "I feel that we sound more contemporary and structured than we did on our recent releases," Tom analyses. "At the same time, there are also references to recordings such as Persecution Mania and Agent Orange. After Venom, Sodom were the world's first angry band, and nothing has changed that." Tom lists as examples the impressive title track, as well as "The Art Of Killing Poetry" with its ultra-deep guitar atmospheres and the German-language song, "Knarrenheinz", which holds up the tradition of classics such as "Bombenhagel" and "Ausgebombt". "Knarrenheinz is the mascot on the album cover, that's why I felt he deserved his own lyrics," Tom grins. Talking of album covers: the artwork was designed by Eliran Kantor, who enjoys an excellent reputation on the scene thanks to his work for renowned acts such as Testament, Gwar and Mekong Delta.

The album will be released in Germany on November 19th, in the rest of Europe on November 22nd and in the USA/Canada on January 11th, 2011. The album will be released in 4 formats: Limited Edition Digipak with Bonus Live CD incl. 10 tracks (Wacken, 25th Anniversary show 2007), a Double Gatefold LP in bloodred vinyl with 1 bonus track ("Murder One"), a standard version and a download version.


In War And Pieces [cover art] tracklist:

01. In War And Pieces
02. Hellfire
03. Through Toxic Veins
04. Nothing Counts More Than Blood
05. Storm Raging Up
06. Feigned Death Throes
07. Soul Contraband
08. God Bless You
09. The Art Of Killing Poetry
10. Knarrenheinz
11. Styptic Parasite

Source:	sodomized.info
Band profile:	Sodom