Orchestral heavy metal project BRIGHT AND BLACK announce debut album

A symphony orchestra. Composers from the world of metal. A wild conductor. A truly unique soloist. Attitude and talent. This is BRIGHT & BLACK. The debut single ‘Nidhugg’, is composed by Opeth‘s Fredrik Åkesson, arranged by Nico Elgstrand and Jacob Hellner, and is taken from The Album, due to be released 26th January 2024.

Stream ‘Nidhugg’ here.
Watch the album trailer here.

On the new single, composer Fredrik Åkesson (Opeth) comments:
“It’s quite overwhelming when you hear a symphony orchestra perform your music. With a stellar production and arrangement. The goal with ‘Nidhugg’ was to create something dark and epic. It’s been interesting and inspiring all the way. Sincerely hope you will enjoy ‘Nidhugg’.”

The full-scale Dolby Atmos album production of the project was recorded with an orchestra of 65 players in the fall of 2022 at the Estonian National Radio studio in Tallinn. Produced by Jacob Hellner. Performed by Baltic Sea Philharmonic. Conducted by Kristjan Järvi. Orchestrations by Jonny Abraham. Additional recordings took place at Urban Sound, Oslo, and the postproduction and mix took place at Big Island Sound in Stockholm.

Music can be magical. And the magic of music is never greater than the experience of a live performance. Kristjan Järvi and the Baltic Sea Philharmonic have aroused audiences across Europe for years with a totally fresh approach to how an orchestra performs. No sheet music and everybody standing up makes it a very dynamic, organic and different experience. And with Eicca Toppinen as frontman a Bright & Black show will be something out of the normal, both for an orchestral audience as well as the metal crowd.

Tour Dates
07.03.24 – Alexela Concert Hall, Tallinn
08.03.24 – Filadelfia Convention Center, Stockholm
11.03.24 – Berliner Philharmonie, Berlin
14.03 – Hong Kong Arts Festival, Hong Kong

More Info:
Eicca Toppinen
Eicca Toppinen, founder of Finnish metal band Apocalyptica and the soloist for Bright & Black. A past student of the Sibelius Academy. Composer and musical producer of multiple stage productions and movies. Performer of metal on his cello for 25 years.

Kristjan Järvi
Tallinn-based Kristjan Järvi, is a conductor, producer, and composer from a family of great conductors. He himself as well as his father Neeme and brother Paavo hold the baton in the greatest orchestras in the world. Kristjan has a reputation for being an innovative and bold conductor within the classical scene moving freely between various styles and genres. Together with his team, he runs his own Estonia-based company: Sunbeam Productions. Kristjan is also the founding conductor and artistic director of the Baltic Sea Philharmonic.

Jacob Hellner
Jacob Hellner out of Stockholm producing cutting-edge metal for 30 years for artists such as Rammstein, Clawfinger, Apocalyptica, and Entombed AD among others. Apart from producing he is also a composer for various TV, film, and stage productions. Jacob is together with Per Kviman founder and artistic director of Bright & Black.

Per Kviman
Per Kviman runs Stockholm-based Versity Music, an artist management formed in 2003. Per has a background as A&R for the record companies RCA (UK), MVG, and Wire Records (SE) and has been rewarded with platinum and gold-selling albums across the world. Per is together with Jacob Hellner founder and artistic director of Bright & Black. Per also holds the position of Chairman of the Board for the European Music Managers Alliance (EMMA), the largest artist manager organization in the world.

BRIGHT & BLACK

Track Listing: 
1. Nidhugg
2. Bloodgrind
3. Can’t Explain This
4. Collateral Damage
5. The Secret
6. Mounts of Misfortune
7. Armies of the Preposterous
8. A World of Strange
9. From Dust and Mud
10. And Flesh and Bone
11. Midnite Son
12. End of All
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