Shorestank
SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA - Bay Area folk metal artist Valensorow will release their 3rd full-length studio album on all major streaming platforms in April 2023.
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Lead songwriter Conner Bruce on 'Shorestank':
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"There was disparity in the writing approach between Shorestank and its predecessors. The characters, the weapons, the mythical beasts that roamed their lands, and all of the details in between were my primary focus. With this information in my mind I can play out their fantastical scenarios in my head and listen for the score. That score is where we began with the songwriting. We wanted to create a worldly, well-traveled texture on Shorestank. It was our goal to make the music come alive with the instrumentation"
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'Shorestank' features 10 tracks in an immersive epic folk metal experience that takes the listener on a journey through lively forests, bustling villages, and icy caverns.
April 2023
Valensorow is an epic folk metal project hailing from the Redwood forests of Santa Cruz, CA. For fans of WINTERSUN, TROLLFEST, DEVIN TOWNSEND, and FINNTROLL Valensorow creates a fantastical medieval world with tales of land and sea, monsters and men, and the unending thirst for blood and ale
(to be enjoyed separately, of course).
After forming in 2013 as a passion project of lead composer Conner Bruce, the band debuted with the full length album 'Neptus'. The album was a thundering introduction into the world of Valensorow. The sound resembled a beautiful marriage between traditional folk metal and American metalcore influences. The story is captured by the use of various hand drums and stringed instruments including a handmade octave mandolin made by luthier Garret Alexander Davis.
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In 2015, the band released the sophomore adventure of 'The Battle of Oak Mountain'. This album had a significant focus on orchestration and complexity within its composition. With guitars now headed by Joey Menicucci (EMBRIUM) and Conner Bruce the music took a turn towards a more cosmic and emotional landscape. With the addition of Natasha Littlewood on cello, the music found its way to the bottom of the staff often and effectively textured by acoustic guitars, flutes, whistles, and a healthy accordion dosage.
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In 2023, Valensorow is set to release the most immersive and lore-rich album to date. 'Shorestank' follows two insignificant travelers, Hamhoth and Krogan, as they meander their way around the island nation of Nornile. The journey involves encounters with strange beasts and individuals including (but not limited to) a dragon-sized Canadian goose, deadly swamp implings, and a witch doctor with a passion for alchemical fungi. Musically, the album is composed with a core orchestra of strings, horns, and percussion with additional color instruments including erhu, jinhu, pipa, duduk, shakuhachi, and tin whistle.
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