Reno, NV’s FOUR STROKE BARON has today announced their fourth album, Data Diamond, set for release via Prosthetic Records on May 31. Alongside the announcement the progressive metal duo has also shared the lead single and music video, titled The Witch, the first part of a planned four videos that will eventually unravel Data Diamond‘s bloodthirsty anthology series.
WATCH THE MUSIC VIDEO FOR THE WITCH BELOW.
Listen to The Witch via Apple Music, TIDAL, Deezer, Bandcamp and Spotify
Pre-order Data Diamond here.
Speaking on the album announcement, FOUR STROKE BARON comments: “When we get together, our entire writing process is to scream at each other and tap into a wavelength that we have no control over. Before anything is actually recorded, it has been sung, shouted, hummed, or beatboxed into existence.
“With Data Diamond, we have officially created the most efficient path from our mouths to an actual recorded body of work. There is no dumbing down, no overthinking, no compromising, no restrictions, and no rules, except for one. That rule is if you can’t hum a part you just heard after listening to it once, it’s no good.”
Of The Witch, the band adds: “When it comes to progressive music, there seems to be a fear of being too basic or digestible. If a song doesn’t have 20 different ideas and beat switches, it won’t make the cut. We took the opposite approach for The Witch and created a simple two riff song. That forced us to be creative and see how we could manipulate only two ideas to form something interesting that doesn’t sound too repetitive.”
The pair continue, on the music video: “Robert has discovered something ghastly in the deserts of Reno, Nevada. His business partner, William, is shocked to hear about this artifact and its implications. The Witch–an introduction to a four part series that will unfold each month–will leave you with more questions than answers. Who is Robert? Who is William? What did they find? Why is it casting such a dark shadow over humanity? And most importantly–why is it honking?”
Data Diamond is the sound of FOUR STROKE BARON at their most confidently unhinged. Originally conceived as two separate EPs (one purely electronic – Data, one heavy – Diamond) that would then meld together on one full length release, the idea morphed into what is now the succinct sucker punch of an album that is heading our way at speed.
Heavily inspired by their own work on Data Diamond’s predecessor, Classics, Witt and Vallarino got to work in their laboratory creating the most potent, concentrated form of FOUR STROKE BARON possible. “We love Classics, we think it’s one of the coolest albums ever”, the pair state unequivocally. If they have any criticism of their previous work it is simply that they didn’t push their own boundaries far enough, feeling like they took just a little too long to get to the point.
No such claim could be laid against Data Diamond – a dizzying sub-40 minute dive into the deranged psyches of its creators. The tracks on Data Diamond are lithe yet still allow enough room for idiosyncratic flourishes that mark this out as a true FOUR STROKE BARON opus. If Classics was a Man vs. Food belly busting plate of indulgence, Data Diamond is an upmarket Gordon Ramsay dish, served with a side of insanity. Finding a co-conspirator in Cynic’s Paul Masvidal, the trio get somewhat psychedelic on the album’s eponymous closing – and most expansive – track, which also features Vola’s Adam Janzi on drums.
Thematically, this is their most murderous anthology to date. Those who find themselves embroiled in these tales include a Radio Shack CEO, an internationally acclaimed cyborg, an accidental trafficker of human body parts, and the leader of a death cult located in a convenience store. FOUR STROKE BARON’s anomalous view of the world takes a particularly dark turn across the songs on Data Diamond, yet, as ever the macabre tragedies are dressed up with catchy melodies, pop hooks for days and a big shimmering bow of positivity.
Synths are a leading element across the length of the album, with more dark electronics seeping into the sound of the band than ever before – marking this out as the most experimental and intensely crazed the band have sounded to date. Samples recorded out in the wilds of Reno, Nevada weave their own kind of horror throughout the deliriously anthemic tunes laid down at FSB HQ, paving the way towards an incalculable future with limitless possibilities of where their minds will lead them next. It sure seems that they’re reaching a boiling point that will eventually tear a hole through spacetime. With this, their fourth full length, FOUR STROKE BARON has blossomed into the self-absorbed, wildly confident, musically deranged partnership that they were always destined to be – and it sounds incredible.