Defenders Of The Faith, le forum Metal

SKYCLAD are „hard at work“ on their yet unnamed 13th studio album.

Following the return of guitarist Dave Pugh to the band’s line-up as a permanent member in 2014, SKYCLAD played several major festival shows including France’s Hellfest Open Air Festival and England’s Bloodstock Festival before being forced to take a year long break in 2015.

This February, SKYCLAD got back together to work on the successor to the band’s 12th studio album „In the… All together“.

The band comments:
„We’re really excited about having Dave back in the band. He’s a fantastic guy, a great musician and songwriter! The whole band is really inspired, and we’re making good progress on the album. Most of the bits and pieces are there already.
Even though we played a couple of ‘old school shows’ recently, the new LP definitely won’t be a thrash album; but it will be no typical folk metal album either. We’ll use all the options we now have – with 3 Guitarists, additional vocals, fiddle, keyboards, bass and drums – to create an album that will be the same but different. 100% Skyclad!“

SKYCLAD hope to release the new album within the next 12 months

British heavy metal band SKYCLAD will release its thirteenth studio album, "Forward Into The Past", on April 28 via the French label Listenable Records. The follow-up to 2009's "In The… All Together" marks the return of guitarist Dave Pugh to SKYCLAD's lineup as a permanent member.

Since their inception, SKYCLAD have created songs out of a highly original and influential sound mixing heavy metal and traditional folk. Their lyrics have been generally permeated by political, social and environmental matters and the new album seems to be no exception, as vocalist Kevin Ridley comments: "The songs are about politics, the environment and the music business and so on. These are mixed with the standard SKYCLAD fayre of traditional bawdy/drinking type of songs and songs with blues and more 'ethnic' feels."

The cover artwork for "Forward Into The Past" was painted by Duncan Storr, who has previously worked with EDGE OF SANITY, RAGE and HAWKING. The cover displays the mesmerizing face of a man made out of trees and branches. Ridley elaborates: "The 'green man' or 'storyteller' image used here is a traditional image (from Roman times at least in the U.K.) which is usually taken as 'showing the close interdependence between man and nature"

That natural feel is also largely expressed in the album production. "I think the new album sounds, warm, natural and 'real' (i.e. not processed or overproduced)," Ridley says.

"Forward Into The Past" track listing:

01. A Storytellers' Moon (intro)
02. State Of The Union Now
03. Change Is Coming
04. Starstruck
05. A Heavy Price To Pay
06. Words Fail Me
07. Forward Into The Past
08. Unresolved (instrumental)
09. The Queen Of The Moors
10. Last Summer's Rain
11. The Measure
12. Borderline
13. A Storytellers' Moon (outro)