News: 2006
Year-End Wrap Up 2006 12.20.2006
2006 was, at least in my opinion, a pretty good year for By Blood Alone, despite some glaring dismal points. (More on that later.)
There were numerous bright spots: Runtt got settled in as both a drummer and comrade, bringing his experience and humor to the table, and those long drives to out of state gigs would not have been the same without him. The Halfway to Halloween Horror Ball was a huge success, a gigantic crowd at a good venue and everyone in the Halloween spirit (in May, no less!) . We appeared on the cover of Good Times magazine, were featured on the "Greetings From Area Code 207" radio program, and appeared on two public access tv shows. Numerous reviews of our debut cd, Eternally, trickled in and ranged from pretty good to fantastic. We started work on our next cd, Seas of Blood, and so far that's going well. Our show opening for Goatwhore (which we thought would be a disaster) turned out great and really recharged our batteries. And of course we got to play for our fans and hang out with other local bands.
The main downside was that a lot of time and energy was wasted on chasing promoters who's shit was just not together, and the ensuing shows were either pitifully attended or the sound was absolutely terrible. If fact, two promoters stiffed us. Until now I have never been stiffed in 21 years of gigging, and I can finally say it is not fun - "insulting" and "frustrating" are more apropos. So those promoters and their venues can go fuck themselves. We are bypassing your asses in 2007. Our new cd is going to blow doors and you will be permanently benched for the season.
Goatwhore Show Commercial 10.31.2006
A commercial for the upcoming show with Goatwhore has been produced and is showing on various media outlets. By Blood Alone is mentioned in the ad, which although brief is kind of fun. Click here to view the commerical.
Initial Tracking Completed 10.17.2006
Over the weekend we finished recording basic tracks for our forthcoming CD at Acadia Recording, and Marc the engineer did an excellent job. Once we get past the next couple of shows we'll start recording vocals and other touch-ups at Purgatory Recording in Westbrook. The CD itself, tentatively titled Seas of Blood, will most likely come out in the fall of 2007 to great fanfare. We'll reveal more details when it's appropriate.
Opening For Goatwhore 09.20.2006
Metalblade recording artists Goatwhore are using a day off from their tour with Celtic Frost to play a show in Portland, and guess what? We get to open! The locale is The Big Easy on Monday, Nov 6th. Also on the bill are Random Acts of Violence from Boston and The End of Everything. Tickets are $8 advance/ $10 door.
Endorsement: KXK Guitars 09.20.2006
By Blood Alone guitarist John Graveside is now endorsed by KXK Guitars. KXK (a division of Kaufman Music) is a custom builder in California catering to metal players, including Steve Swanson of Six Feet Under, Manni Schmidt of Gravedigger, and DD Verni of Overkill. Being left handed, Graveside has special needs in gear and KXK stepped up to the plate, designing a custom model for him. "Rob at KXK does great work and is a good egg. Working with him on this design was a real pleasure." The KXK Graveside model will make it's live debut with By Blood Alone at the Skybar in Somerville MA on Thursday, Sept 21st.
Benefit Show on Sunday 9/24 09.20.2006
Fellow Portland band Twisted Roots has asked us to perform at a benefit at The Big Easy in Portland on Sunday, Sept 24th, 8PM. The benefit is for Ethan Powers (Son of Twisted Roots guitar player Adam Powers) who is very young and very ill. Hour Past & Heart Shaped Rock will also perform. Please come on down and help support this worthy cause.
WCLZ Interview Online 07.09.2006
Our interview with Charlie Gaylord on WCLZ-FM's "Greetings from Area Code 207" program can now be heard online in it's entirety here.
BBA On the Cover of Good Times 06.26.2006
By Blood Alone is on the cover of the new issue of Good Times magazine (as is Cheap Trick - how cool is that?) Good Times is a New York based arts & entertainment newspaper that publishes a New England edition as well, and has labeled the band "B-Movie Horror Prog Metal" which is probably the best label anyone has given us, at least IMO. The article inside is lengthy an insightful. Click here to read it.
BBA On WCLZ Wed July 5th 06.26.2006
Cruella and John Graveside will appear on WCLZ-FM's "Greetings From Area Code 207" program for a friendly chat with host Charlie Gaylord. The show will broadcast on Wednesday July 5th at 6PM and the re-broadcast on Sunday July 9th at 11AM. Listeners can tune to 98.9FM.
Horror Ball a Big Success! 05.30.2006
The Halfway to Halloween Horror Ball was a huge success and quite packed. Due to issues totally not band-related, it has taken a while to update the site, but our thoughts on the whole evening are now online. Click here to read all about it.
Nominated in Best Music Poll 04.05.2006
Those wise sages at the Portland Phoenix have nominated By Blood Alone for the 2006 Best Music Poll! We are nominated for best category-defying act and best female vocalist. In 2005 we were too new to be nominated, but I remember at the time telling my wife Michele that I really hoped our vocalist Cruella would be nominated for best female vocalist in 2006. It turned out even better - she received a nomination AND the band as a whole got one as well. A lot of my favorite local bands, like Ocean, the Horror, and Covered in Bees have been nominated as well, so we can all hold our heads high in the knowledge that our musical efforts have be acknowledged and validated.
Metalreviews.com! 03.06.2006
Ken Wood at Metalreviews.com has posted a glowing review of Eternally, referring to us as one of the only two great goth bands to come out of New England. (The other is the deservedly praised Autumn Tears). He further compared us to Bauhaus and The Gathering (the latter being a catalyst to By Blood Alone's formation.) Obviously Ken has excellent taste. Click here and read for yourself!
Site Update 02.27.2006
As you can see, we have a new site design. Surf around and we hope you like it.
New Bookings for 2006 01.27.2006
We have started bookings for what will be (for us at least) a heavy live schedule in 2006. See the Dates page for more info.
Portland Phoenix Top 5 of 2005 01.01.2006
Last week the Portland Phoenix voted By Blood Alone's debut cd Eternally one of the top 5 ep's of 2005! We're at number 4, sharing the list with Dead Season, Animal Suit Driveby, Twisted Roots and In the Arms of Providence. All the members of By Blood Alone are ecstatic about receiving such recognition from the local press and feel we are in good company. This bodes well for BBA in 2006.