White Empress’ debut full-length album of forbidden delights, titled ‘Rise of the Empress’, is set for release on Peaceville Records on September 29th – UK & RoW / 30th September – USA & Canada / 3rd October – Germany, Austria & Switzerland / 6th October – France. The album was recorded in White Empress’ studio and has been mixed and mastered by veteran producer, Kit Woolven (Thin Lizzy, Cradle Of Filth…).
Formed by guitarist Paul Allender – previously of UK titans Cradle of Filth – and with a full band line-up, this new venture into the metal landscape under the moniker of White Empress exudes the depth and ferocity of his prior work whilst pushing new boundaries. Paul’s signature razor-sharp riffing & epic, melodic twists and turns compliment the sumptuously alluring & often demonic voice of Mary Zimmer (Luna Mortis) to create a masterclass in savage yet uplifting metallic darkness.
With Paul’s relentless guitar and Mary’s diverse vocals, ranging from operatic to death metal screams, White Empress is exploring new areas of metal.
Paul Allender says, “White Empress is the link the music scene has been so desperately missing. The band started writing together two years ago, and have slowly crafted the sound that is White Empress. White Empress has all the best parts of the metal scene rolled up into one band. The music is hard, but emotive. White Empress’ unique style and sound is bringing fresh life to the music scene that it’s been crying out for.”
When Paul relocated to the USA in 2012, in between working with Cradle of Filth, he decided to start work on another project with local musicians in his newly adopted home of Minneapolis, and with his friend, Martin Skaroupka from Cradle of Filth, this soon became White Empress. Having also recently released the acclaimed EP, ‘White Empress’, the stage was set for a full-on assault.
White Empress comprise: Paul Allender, formerly the main guitarist and songwriter in Cradle of Filth, vocalist Mary Zimmer from Luna Mortis (and a vocal coach), Will Graney, keyboardist from Damnation Angels, Chela Harper, bass player for Coal Chamber, guitarist Jeremy Kohnmann from The Awakening, and drummer Zac Morris, who’s played with many bands including Ugly Kid Joe.
