![amenra [photo by Unai Endemaño]](https://www.earsplitcompound.com/site/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/amenra-photo-by-Unai-Endemaño.jpg)
[photo by Unai Endemaño]
Belgian entity, AMENRA, will take part in the upcoming installment of the world renowned Roadburn Festival, having this week been confirmed to perform two times at the 2016 event. With a sonic arsenal behind them that covers a broad spectrum of emotive intricacies, AMENRA is perfectly placed to showcase their diversity at Roadburn 2016. The band will be playing an acoustic set with an expanded band of musicians immediately before Neurosis on the Saturday, and will again take to the main stage on Sunday night to play an electric set.
AMENRA is renowned for the intensity of their live performances; often brooding, always evocative. Over the course of five full-length albums, and numerous split releases, the band has carved itself a nook in the affections of fans over the past twelve years. Their rhythmic, even tribal, and nihilistic bludgeoning interspersed with delicate twists has cemented the outfit as a firm favorite with open-minded fans of sludge, doom, drone and everything in between.
In 2009 when the band recorded an acoustic EP entitled Afterlife, and played select shows with this material, they retained their unique atmospherics, but introduced a lighter yet still deeply personal element to their output. AMENRA mastermind Colin H. Van Eeckhout explains the motivation behind the EP as “borne out of the idea that we wanted to be able to counsel, speak to and guide our (grand) children long after we are gone.”
The performances at Roadburn are currently the only planned live outings for AMENRA in 2016, as they intend to dedicate much of the year to simultaneously writing both a second acoustic offering — this time a full-length release — as well as their upcoming LP, Mass VI, the follow-up to their latest album, 2012’s Neurot Recordings-released, Mass V.
The band is also scheduled to perform at a series of European dates this Fall, including a set at Amplifest in Portugal, with additional shows in France and the UK confirmed. A band like no other, the sounds of AMENRA are raw, honest and sincere, which often provides a helpful guide to listeners when facing the tribulations of life. With that being said, their live presence is simultaneously visceral yet ethereal, crushing yet cathartic, making these dates not to be missed.
AMENRA Tour Dates:
9/20/2015 Amplifest – Porto PT
10/01/2015 Divan Du Monde – Paris, FR
10/02/2015 L’astrolabe – Orleans, FR
11/06/2015 Bodega Social Club – Nottingham, UK
11/07/2015 Damnation Fest – Leeds, UK
11/08/2015 Heaven – London, UK
4/16/2016 Roadburn Festval – Tilburg, NL
4/17/2016 Roadburn Festval – Tilburg, NL
In addition to writing the mentioned upcoming albums, AMENRA is also working on film scores and music for theatre and contemporary dance performances, while outside of the band itself, the members further immerse themselves within various sonic endeavors including Oathbreaker, Hessian, The Black Heart Rebellion, Harlowe, CHVE and more, in addition to continually creating new artwork and visuals to accompany their musical output. Stand by for further announcements in the coming months.
http://www.churchofra.com
http://www.ritualofra.com
http://www.facebook.com/churchofra
http://www.neurotrecordings.com
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