The 3rd album from De Profundis, entitled The Emptiness Within, will be released in Europe in May.
I will be posting reviews, links to music, live dates etc here.

The song "This Wretched Plague" can be heard here. It's the first and only song from the album made public so far.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgmSJGM1g6Y

Online review by Louciferspeaks.com - rating 98/100!

"Mere moments ago (well, about an hour or so now), I posted up some details of the forthcoming De Profundis album (click here) and now I’m reviewing it. Marvellous!

I have been told by numerous sources over the years that I really should listen to this amazing band called De Profundis. Various sources – both online and in that weird ‘real life’ thing – have pretty much shat puppies over how apparently awesome this band is… and, yet, until today I hadn’t even listened to them. Why? Because I’m easily distracted… ooh, look! A butterfly!

So “The Emptiness Within” is a totally new experience for me and, as such, I am unable to compare it to the band’s previous albums. Pretty obvious really, but sometimes it’s worth pointing these things out. Anyway… moving on…
Usually I will listen to an album several times before attempting to review it. Generally I like to listen to each track a few times and let my mind marinade in musical sauces for a while. But, with “The Emptiness Within”, it became apparent very quickly that I would have write something almost immediately – such was the intense effect this album had on me. Let me put it this way: if I wasn’t already sitting down when this album started, I would definitely need to be sat down within minutes of listening to it. This album is so good that remaining stood would either mean that I excreted a puppy, fainted, or became a gibbering wreck (many would argue that I am already a gibbering wreck, but that’s a matter of opinion and has nothing whatsoever to do with this review).

At times I am reminded of Opeth, at others Thus Defiled, but throughout the album it’s clear that whatever influences the band has, they are simply that: influences. De Profundis haven’t found another band’s sound, stuck their flag in it and claimed it as their own. Instead they sailed past it (and several others), took the best bits and made a Frankenstein-like monster from them. This means that the music on “The Emptiness Within” is somewhat familiar but, at the same time, a completely different beast. It’s new, fresh and exciting – something that’s particularly important and impressive in a time when ideas seem to be recycled over and over again.

Interesting rhythms and tempos flood this album, but it’s the guitar tone that has really hooked me in. There’s something about a near-clean lead guitar sound in extreme metal that just blows my mind. Acting like the proverbial axe, it slices through the rest of the sound and makes you take notice. Like I said before, it hooks you in – it gives those tracks that all-important addictive quality. No sooner have you finished listening to this album, you find yourself wanting to listen to it again. Such was the case with me anyway…

Highlights include: … Oh, hell, just listen to the whole thing…. especially “Release”; the jazzy bit is genius…

This album is released at the beginning of May and I strongly suggest you buy it. Progressive extreme metal that really hits the spot!"
[Loucifer]

Link:
http://louciferspeaks.com/2012/02/28...tiness-within/

Online review from Swedenmetal.se (in Swedish)
Rating: 9/10
"De Profundis bildades i november 2005 av sångaren Craig Mark och gitarristen Roman Subbotin. Bandet har genomgått flera förändringar tills en stabil och engagerad line-up avslutades med rekrytering av Aleksej Obradovic (bas) och Shoi Sen (gitarr), och då David Andrews klev ombord för att spela trummor på första inspelningen.

Sedan starten har konstellationen hittills nött olika scener i 22 länder, medverkat i tre internationella turnéer och flera stora musikfestivaler i hela världen. Detta inkluderar deras insats som support till Iron Maiden i Indien, turné med Rotting Christ och Bloodstock Open Air. Bandets unika sound hämtar influenser, inte bara från heavy metal, döds, black och doom-metal, jazz och progressiv rock, och även i viss mån goth..Med andra ord – tillgodogörs dessa komponenter i ett brett spektrum av influenserna och bandmedlemmarnas olika nationaliteter. Med två kritikerrosade fullängdsalbum (”Beyond Redemption”, 2007 – egenrelease/Sony Musik – och ”A Bleak Reflection”, 2010 – Kolony Records / Sony Music -) i bagaget, påbörjades inspelningen av De Profundis tredje album -mästerverket ”The Emptiness Within” i december 2011. Det magnifika albumet producerades av bandet själva,med assistans av Fernando Pereira i London, Storbritannien och mixades vid Studios Davout i Paris, Frankrike. Coverarten är tillverkad av den briljanta konstnären Costin Chioreanu / Twilight 13 Media (MAYHEM, Darkthrone, ABSU).Trots att detta album är fyllt med grymt läckert örongodis, kan man dock emellanåt uppfatta viss soundmässig, knappt märkbar upprepning i kompositionen på vissa låtar..Men det är likväl något av ett mästerverk, som förmodligen kommer falla flertalet åhörare i smaken. Jag kan verkligen rekommendera det!" [Ulrika Henriksson]

Link:
http://www.swedenmetal.se/?p=23073

Online Review from Beyond the Veil Webzine, Greece
Rating: 8.5 / 10!

"Who said everything in music has already been played and that there’s no place for innovations or originality?

If you, too, believe that, then I urge you to listen to this great British band, DE PROFUNDIS, who have managed to blow my mind away with their third full length work! The band's sound is unique and bears their seal that is characterized by a plurality and variety of sounds, not only restricted within the metal boundaries. Their sound is definitely and undoubtedly extreme metal but it’s enriched with a great deal of progressive metal ideas, rhythm and tempo changes, as well as it’s also embellished with plenty of jazz themes. If you are looking for something different, out of the norms that’s yet catchy, addictive and intense, then “The Emptiness Within” is an amazing album that’s well worth your money and time! The production is excellent, the compositions top notch and the execution and musicianship superb!"
[Christine Parastatidou]

Link:
http://www.behindtheveil.hostingsite...ptiness-within

Online review by Thisisnotascene.com webzine
Rating: 8 out of 10

"De Profundis have a rubbish web site. Presumably they know that, but I felt it important to mention it up front rather than hide it away somewhere in this review. However, if they do already know, why aren’t they doing something about it?

I always look at a band’s web site when I’m about to review something. Mainly to find information on the band itself so that I can pass on that information to you, the reader, but also to get a feel for the band. As this web site doesn’t work properly, I shall have to go elsewhere.

Their MySpace page tells me they are a progressive black metal from London. Excellent. I’m always looking out for British bands to get into; so much easier for me to go and see live. The MySpace page also says “the band continues to work hard to share its musical vision of despondency and negativity with the world.”

Well, that’s cheery.

Mind you, with a title like “The Emptiness Within” I guess I already had a clue.

Three tracks in and the first thing I’ve noticed is that there doesn’t seem much bass, which is a bit odd for this kind of stuff. Track 3 “Silent Gods” is an enjoyable six-minute workout with surprisingly melodic guitars and pounding double bass drums but the bottom end is very underwhelming. Nevertheless, the track moves about nicely, in an almost Iron Maiden-like way, and comes to a satisfying conclusion.

Likewise the next couple of tracks.

In fact, by track 5 “Twisted Landscapes” I’m beginning to think De Profundis are nowhere near as bleak as they seem to think they are.

And I mean that as a good thing. Throughout the album the guitars soar and swoop brightly and the barked vocals add another texture rather than sounding like someone who just wants to bite your head off.

I wonder if De Profundis have parked their musical vision of despondency and negativity and emerged into the sunlight. I don’t know how this album compares to the previous two but if this is a conscious effort to be less glum then I think they have made the right decision.

Heck, track 6 “Release” skips along positively brightly before the guitars kick in with a neat riff. This brightness continues for the next seven and a half minutes. There’s even a jazz ending. Not very often you hear piano on a metal album. This is good stuff, it really is. Not earthshattering, but certainly interesting.

Track 8 “Parallel Existence” has more jazzy stuff but it works as a contrast to the blistering riffs elsewhere in the song.

Final track “Unbroken (A Morbid Embrace)” is doing more of the above but without sounding repetitive and at the end of the first full play of the album I have realised I like the album a great deal and am looking forward to playing it again. Not always the case with the albums I review.

De Profundis show much more promise than I originally expected from a band with a logo that looks like so many others and a web site that simply doesn’t work.

I absolutely, whole-heartedly recommend this album to all you metal heads out there and I will be checking out their first two albums and seeing if they are playing anywhere local. They look pretty lively on YouTube and that’s good enough for me."
[Bruce Smeath]

Link:
http://www.thisisnotascene.com/2012/...tiness-within/

Online review by Bass Players United
Rating: 9,5 out of 10!

“The Emptiness Within” by De Profundis is the UK metal band’s third release, but since I personally haven’t heard the first two, I will approach this one with fresh ears. I am familiar with bassist Arran McSporran’s fretless work, and I’m pleased to hear his playing is in full force here, with awesome fretless licks throughout this 9 track release.

The band describe themselves as “extreme progressive metal” and I think this title fits quite well. They have a distinctly European melodic element to their songs, with intricate guitar layering, lots of double bass/blasts beats and extreme blackened vocals.

The album opens with the atmospheric intro “From the Depths” which sets the mood. The first song “Delerium” is instantly catchy with its melody and solo work, before blasting into extreme metal goodness. The band shows that they aren’t afraid to mix it up by having slower, clean interludes as well. This is fantastic because it gives previously mentioned McSporran the room to shine.

All the players here are top notch, with everything sounding very tight. Kudos to the production as well, since with this kind of music clarity can be an issue. Not the case here. Everything is very distinct and crisp.

The second song silent gods shows a bit of a doom feel at times, before switching into almost straight ahead black metal, and I even got some Maiden sensibilities in there as well. I can tell De Profundis is trying to sound fresh by mixing various influences and for the most part it works.As the album progresses, I notice that the songs tend to focus a lot on atmosphere and mood (which is very cool) but as a result sometimes sounds a bit disconnected, especially with the genre mixing going on.

“Twisted Landscapes” introduces even more variety with a Middle Eastern flair to the guitar work, and “Release” closes with an almost Jazz section with piano and clean guitar. I find it very hard to describe De Profundis’ sound by name-dropping and comparing them to other bands, and this is probably a good thing. I hear some Maiden, some Control Denied, the progressive elements of Pain of Salvation and definitely some of the atmosphere of Paradise Lost, though De Profundis have certainly developed their own sound.

“Parallel Existence” is an instrumental that cranks the progressive elements up about ten notches, and is a personal favourite of mine. The band really shine here and pull out all the stops to showcase their playing. Really solid track. Album closer “Unbroken (A Morbid Embrace)” oozes atmosphere. There are clean vocals, soft passages and downright brutal ones.

Overall this band seems to have really developed their own sound within a crowded metal scene. I thoroughly enjoyed “The Emptiness Within” and highly recommend it to anyone who is a fan of extreme music or progressive music in general."
[Paul Vidal]

Link:
http://www.bassplayersunited.com/201...tiness-within/

Online review by Ave Noctum
Rating: 8/10

"Amongst the usual stuff I think about, recently there has been the question as to what we actually mean by extreme metal. I wonder because it seems to have been reduced to “has been known to use ‘death’ vocals.” In other words it is shorthand for ‘not mainstream’. Case in point: extreme progressive metal band De Profundis.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock (in which case, push off, this is my rock) the name at least of UK band De Profundis will be familiar to you. Probably also their gigging and recording (this being their third full length) will have crept across your path at some point too, as they certainly have the work ethic. To add that they have talent is being too mild. Technically highly proficient, they play a brand of complex, shifting progressive metal that I guess will always provoke comparisons to Opeth. A fair comparison too, rather than a lazy one. After the sombre intro of From The Depths, we get flung in at the deep end with Delirium. It’s a fair cantering tune, too, with effortlessly fluid and engaging lead breaks flying over a driven riff. There are the fine varied death vocals from Craig Land and some serious Nick Tingle drum battery, but pull those two things out of the mix and you will see that things are nowhere near as heavy as they seem. The riff is a good, melodic flutter of notes, shared by Roman Subbotin and Soikot Sengupta but hardly death metal and it drops into a lilting reverie lead by some sweet and tricky bass notes by Arran McSporan before riding back up into the tempestuous finale. None of this is criticism, merely how I find it. A fine, head nodding song it is too with meticulous but not emotionally sterile playing.

Songs are long but never overly so or laboured and everything genuinely flows, albeit with all the twists and turns of an underground stream. I never get a sense of passages being dropped in without thought and those sinuous musical turns are never jarring. If you’re waiting for a ‘ but….’ then you’ll be waiting a long time. Songs of the quality of the superb Release, or Silent Gods, have no real downside if prog metal is something you have even the smallest soft spot for. Nor do the guys ever let it lapse into ‘look at us, we can get all technical on your ass’ type noodling even though they live and breathe complexity.

To pick at it a bit, some of the clean vocals need a bit more work as they drop the odd note and neither was I totally convinced by the jazz piano and the other jazz touches which poke their head up here and there but they are not to distracting. Yes, to these ears at least there is a heavy debt to Opeth with just the odd pinch of the bleakness of My Dying Bride maybe, but frankly rather them than some Kerrang TV emo band and they are still several streets and a long bus ride away from being clones of either.
If you don’t believe me just check out compelling closer Unbroken (A Morbid Embrace) and just allow out sweeping you away in gothic romance and bass driven prog turbulence that is as beautifully composed as any classical work and you will just want to smile so hard. It is rather magnificent.
Does the world need another prog metal band? Well if Opeth’s last album and this is anything to go by, then yes. De Profundis have, with The Emptiness Within, stepped up to be counted and this should be snapped up by any fan of progressive metal, extreme or otherwise."
[Gizmo]

Link:
http://www.avenoctum.com/2012/03/de-...olony-records/

Online Review from Blistering.com
Rating: 8/10

The discussion on British black metal typically begins and ends with Cradle of Filth. The question if they’re a “true” black metal band has always been up for debate (Mike Sloan would be the right person to ask – dude loves the Filth), so that leaves the U.K. with very little to show for in the BM sweepstakes. In terms of the band in question, De Profundis, they’re not even sure if they want to be a black metal band either, for The Emptiness Within is all over the extreme metal stratosphere. It’s awfully confusing. Doesn’t anyone from the United Kingdom want to be a black metal band?

Judging by the band’s indecipherable logo and previous output, the underpinnings of black metal are certainly there for De Profundis. However, they cast an awfully wide net on the nine songs that comprise of The Emptiness Within, and they usually strike gold when they’re hitting the melodic gong, like on the excellent opener “From the Depths” and album highlight “Silent Gods.”

To their credit, the Brits do an excellent job of cross-breeding the black arts with death metal and even jazz (although that influence is quite minor). The rumble and roar of “This Wretched Plague” and tech-on-prog-back-to-tech clamor of “Twisted Landscapes” boggles up the album and sends it into an entirely different direction. The same bodes for “Release,” which hits like Human-era Death, while “Parallel Existence” is a gem of an instrumental, utilizing the full capabilities and scope of the band’s distinct grasp of melodic arrangements.

The air of sophistication in which The Emptiness Within operates is distinctive and is probably too cerebral for the pale-toned, blast-beat borne black metal scene. Rather, De Profundis is one of the rare smorgasbord extreme metal bands that totally defy categorization, and if they had a half a brain (which they probably do), they’d avoid any black metal tags like the plague. Bloody well done, as they say.

By: David E. Gehlke

link: http://www.blistering.com/fastpage/fpen ... x/4/link/1

New review from Infernal Masquerade Webzine
Rating: 90/100

With nine tracks of super catchy melodic Metal, De Profundis brings us their third full-length offering “The Emptiness Within”. Combining excellent Melodic passages with Progressive elements and a hefty dosage of powerful riffing, this release has a vibe similar to the Melodic DM wave that came out of Finland in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. Don’t get us wrong, “The Emptiness Within” does feature a good amount of aggressiveness, but it is all surrounded by excellent melodic elements.

“Delirum” opens the riffing marathon with very well defined and melodic guitars, a sound that reminded us of earlier Eternal Tears of Sorrow, and similar acts. The growls are spot on and the overall mixture of melodic guitars, pummeling drums and guitar solos is just outstanding. The guitar work courtesy of Soikot Sengupta and Roman Subbotin is very well crafted and entertaining, particularly in the dreamy ‘instrumental’ passages.

With a pulsating bass guitar line, “Silent Gods” delivers another riffing onslaught and some excellent melodic passages. This track is one of our favorites due to the excellent melodic edge to it. The band’s creativity does not seem to stop and with tracks like “This Wretched Plague”, “Twisted Landscapes”, “Release”, and “Dead Inside” they keep delivers solid riffing and very well structured tracks that will make you want to start headbanging immediately.

Our favorite track of this release has to be the short but sweet “Parallel Existence”. After the relaxing intro passes, the riffing is at its best and the drumming nicely complements such a well-crafted piece. Being an instrumental, the weeping guitar solos are top notch and even the bass guitar solo just feels right in this song. Closing with the last crushing blow titled “Unbroken (A Morbid Embrace)”, the whole ETOS similarities surface back with a very well executed track that balances fast brutal sections and lush melodic sections with some atmospheric keyboards.

In general we are surprised at the great quality that “The Emptiness Within” brings. The songs are very well crafted, and bring back that old feeling of Melodic Death Metal that was big in Finland (and Europe) at the end of the 90’s, early 2000’s. With strong vocals, a pummeling bass guitar, super tight drumming and majestic guitar work, this release will be staying on our constant rotation for months to come.

Link: http://www.infernalmasquerade.com/?q=re ... ithin-2012

New review (in French) from Music Waves online zine
Rating: 8/10

Modeste offrande auto-produite dont on doit la découverte au défunt label Holy Records qui décida alors de la distribuer, Beyond Redemption dévoilait déjà un fort potentiel chez ce groupe au line-up international toutefois basé dans la Perfide Albion. Bien que maladroitement arrimé au Doom Death, se posant d'une certaine manière comme l'héritier d'une tradition britannique gravée par le triumvirat My Dying Bride/Paradise Lost/Anathema chère à certains de ses membres (partis depuis) issus de la formation de Funeral Doom Pantheist, la présence, certes éphémère, de Paul Westwood, futur batteur de To-Mera, était pourtant un indice quant à des véléités évolutives et anti-conformistes qui n'allaient pas tarder à exploser au grand jour, à s'affirmer comme une des lignes de force chez De Profundis.

A Bleak Reflection, trois ans plus tard, a confirmé ces atours d'une musique désormais définie comme de l'extrême progressif, étiquette informe collant à des explorateurs du son pour qui le death, le Black ou le Doom ne sont que le terreau propice à la création d'un art complexe à haute teneur technique et dont Opeth reste un des spécimens les plus plus évidents. On ne peut d'ailleurs s'empêcher de penser aux Suédois à l'écoute de "Release", un des neuf titres traversant The Emptiness Within, influence à laquelle le groupe injecte néanmoins des emprunts jazzy souvent étonnants. Mais ce ne sont pas les seuls.

Du coup, à l'instar de ses aînés, ce troisième album se révèle délicat à décrire, à enfermer dans une case pré-définie, ce qui est tout à l'honneur de De Profundis qui accouche, selon son habitude de compositions, sans doute moins tortueuses qu'à ses débuts mais toujours épiques, alambiquées, sombres, chargées en multiples arabesques. Le chant est caverneux, entre gorges profondes doomy et raclements Black ("Silent Gods") parfois plus clair ("This Wretched Plague"), se rapprochant alors du trop tôt disparu Without Face (précédent port d'attache de la chanteuse de To-Mera, d'ailleurs), la basse est ronde et groovy, les guitares tissent une toile dont chaque fil est une note mélancolique. Car en dépit de sa complexité, la partition jouée par le collectif n'est jamais vierge ni d'une tristesse sourde qui fait parfois plus qu'affleurer à la surface ("Delirium") ni d'une beauté qui éclate notamment lors de l'instrumental final, "Parallel Existence", sans doute le titre le plus progressif du lot.

Lorgnant de plus en plus vers ce qu'on pourrait nommer le "Techno Doom/Death" (?), De Profundis réussit le grand écart entre extrême et virtuosité technique, en brassant les genres pour aboutir à un art étonnemment fluide et des plus personnels, d'une richesse foisonnante.

Chronique écrite par Childeric Thor le 17.04.2012

link: www.musicwaves.fr/frmChronique.aspx?pro ... ss_WithinE

Upcoming shows in the UK, Netherlands, Sweden and Germany

Stock has arrived! CD's and shirts will be available at the album launch show on Friday 4th May 2012 at The Unicorn, Camden Town, London, UK, a few days prior to the official release date.

New review from Lords Of Metal (Netherlands)
Rating 92/100

De Profundis is a band that created ultra high expectations from the very beginning. Their self-released debut ‘Beyond Redemption’ (2007) happened to be such a seminal record that the London based international outfit immediately caught our attention. Technical skilled doom/death metal does not come our way every day, you know. The successor ‘A Bleak Reflection’ (2010) showcased a natural and engrossing evolution. Now, exactly two years after the predecessor, ‘The Emptiness Within’ will be available on the eleventh of May. This third studio effort gathers all new experience and inspiration of this accomplished five-piece.

For the first time they could work relax on new material with a consolidated line-up since two years. The rhythm section appeared to be a fine one and that makes a difference. Now we cannot longer put De Profundis in a pigeonhole, not even doom/death metal, and that’s not our purpose anyways. This is technical skilled music, progressive extreme music as the guys call it, with loads of elements from other (sub) genres. However, without getting lost in avant-garde alike exposures that invoke nothing but confusion for the listener: this is a fluent amalgamate of raucousness (death growls, black influences in guitars) and smoothly lovely interludes (acoustic guitars, clean chants, spoken fragments, prog-like soloing or jazzy intermezzos). You cannot think of anything whatsoever, but ‘The Emptiness Within’ has to offer it right away.

The album is a musical journey with a natural wastage. That is an important feature we can emphasize. Even if the technical skills of the musicians are beyond dispute, they write (lengthy) songs in which repetitive elements create a kind of catchiness. Fiery black/death passages pass into acoustic fragments or jazzy intermezzos when needed. This album also introduces clean vocals, a pro to add some solemn and captivating moments. Describing every song with all its details would end up in three pages, no one would bring up the patience to read this. That’s why we only have one advice: DO buy this album! It is a peerless gem coming from the London metropolis. With the extensive compositions ‘Delirium’, ‘Release’, ‘Dead Inside’ and ‘Unbroken (A Morbid Embrace)’ you will find yourself on the Himalaya of current extreme music with depth (much breaks with acoustic fragments as well). For ‘Twisted Landscapes’ they have shot a breath-taking video clip.

In despite of roots in the doom/death and black metal scene, this music does not sound grim, but fluent like lava coming out of a semi-awoken volcano, giving you some fireworks from time to time. Masterly!

Link: http://www.lordsofmetal.nl/showreview.p ... 05&lang=en

A new track from the forthcoming album "The Emptiness Within" has been made available for streaming.
Silent Gods: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zy2uou_xrjI

New album streaming in its entirety for 1 week only.
www.deprofundis.bandcamp.com/

Uploaded a new song from the 3rd album
Release: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jgymx59izc0

Uploaded a new song from the 3rd album
Parallel Existence: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktMTkfXDwkg

Uploaded a new song from the 3rd album
Dead Inside: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoJZPxYu9v8