At long last, our friends in White Arms of Athena are poised to release White Arms of Athena, the Kurt Ballou produced follow-up to their celebrated 2011 debut album Astrodrama. We’re pleased to announce the full details of the release, which is sure to be a stand-out record among the current wave of progressive and psychedelic music.

The self titled album — due out December 2 through Prosthetic Records — was mixed by Ballou (Converge, High on Fire, Every Time I Die), engineered and co-produced by Travis Kammeyer (Storm of Light, Generation of Vipers) and mastered by Alan Douches (Baroness, The Dillinger Escape Plan). The tracklist is as follows:

01. Truth, The Greatest Lie Ever Told (2:29)

02. Heavy Sleep (5:03)

03. On The Edge (4:40)

04. Time Is Nothing (Or Maybe Just One Thing) (1:47)

05. This Transition (11:00)

06. Manifest; Withdrawal (4:01)

07. Participating In and Awakening To The Cycle (3:28)

08. The “I” (6:29)

Lauded by Decibel Magazine for having “polished chops of lifelong shredders and a compositional sensibility that many older progressive musicians would gladly sell their ponytails to attain,” White Arms Of Athena’s forthcoming album proceeds in a new direction from their debut featuring a mélange of experimental progressive passages with a psychedelic-infused ambiance.

And speaking from personal experience, the new album feels a little less Between the Buried and Me and a little more Intronaut. Across White Arms of Athena, the band explores a wide range of tones and delves deeper into jazzy atmospherics. The aesthetic is patently Kurt Ballou, who favors earthy, organic production for bands in the realm of post-metal and sludge. His presence is certainly felt, and it suits the new material incredibly.

New music and pre-order information will be available in the coming weeks, and we’ll be sure to pass along news as it comes in.

– JR