MERIDIAN VEIL, Featuring Members Of THE AGONIST, CRYPTOPSY, SEVEN SPIRES And LEPROUS, Announces Debut Album 'Forgotten Sun'

MERIDIAN VEIL, the band featuring members of THE AGONIST, CRYPTOPSY, SEVEN SPIRES and LEPROUS, will release its debut album, "Forgotten Sun", on January 22, 2027 via Season Of Mist.

The official music video for the LP's epic opener and lead single, "The Watcher", can be seen below.

For fans of heavy music, the four stars of MERIDIAN VEIL are easy to spot. Guitarist Danny Marino, vocalist Matt McGachy, drummer Dylan Gowan and cellist Raphael Weinroth-Browne are known not only across their native Canada but around the world as members of THE AGONIST, CRYPTOPSY, SEVEN SPIRES and LEPROUS. Now, together, they're pushing themselves to even greater emotional extremes with their new progressive metal band's inventive debut album. At once bold, blistering and beautiful, "Forgotten Sun" is a timely reminder of everything that makes us human.

"From the beginning, more than 20 years ago, I wanted MERIDIAN VEIL to be deeply emotional", Marino says. "Even though 'Forgotten Sun' gets heavy, there's a deep longing that runs through the cautionary tale at the album's core."

MERIDIAN VEIL is two decades in the making. Marino and McGachy first met during the early 2000s while the two were growing up in Montreal, Québec. But the concept behind "Forgotten Sun" has never been more pressing. Unlike conventional dystopian epics, the album is told from the perspective of an artificial superintelligence that's programmed to serve the greater good, albeit, to disastrous results.

"Technology is evolving far faster than the actual evolution of our species," Marino comments. "It's going so fast that soon we'll be at the point where we are completely disconnected from it".

Lead single "The Watcher" signals the moment that the A.I. is welcomed into our world. "I am afraid", McGachy declares in an awe-inspiring scream that's met by a rush of Gowan's blast beats.

While each band member is well-known for their metallic strength, MERIDIAN VEIL prides itself on emotional feats. Like a flutter of excitement in the pit of one's stomach, Marino's deep aching melodies leap into piercing leads. Stroking and shredding on his cello, Raphael Weinroth-Browne raises the tension until the song reaches it cathartic finish.

"There's so much to take in", McGachy sings, polishing off his raspy cleans. "Now I'm eager to see everything".

"Singing on this album was freeing for me", McGachy shares. "I'm happy to show that side of myself".

"When you have a band that involves writers from different styles, you get something really unique", Gowan adds.

Weinroth-Browne agrees: "I believe 'Forgotten Sun' captures the best aspects of 2000's death and prog metal with a distinctly modern approach".

The video for "The Watcher" was written and directed by Christopher Kells. Kells played bass and contributed backing vocals in THE AGONIST alongside Marino.

"I've known Chris for almost 30 years," McGachy says. "It's been very nice for me to watch him blossom into such a great director".

"Forgotten Sun" track listing:

01. The Watcher (6:40)
02. Orpheus Before The Light (5:11)
03. Ashen Genesis (6:51)
04. False Shepherd (4:36)
05. Only Perfection (5:19)
06. Downfall (4:40)
07. Children Of Betrayal (5:12)
08. The Last Garden (7:26)

Full runtime: 45:47

The idea for MERIDIAN VEIL started when Marino met McGachy during the early 2000s while the two were growing up in Montreal. Touring with Billboard-charting THE AGONIST and Juno Award winners CRYPTOPSY delayed their plans until 2024, when they met at Marino's home for what became the initial writing and recording session of "Forgotten Sun".

"I remember going home and feeling super excited", says McGachy, who first flashed his range of harsh and clean vocals with 3 MILE SCREAM and THE ERA OF. "'Forgotten Sun' is an interesting, exciting and very melodic album. Singing on it was freeing for me. I'm happy to show that side of myself".

With MERIDIAN VEIL possessing both the intense ache of melodic death metal and intriguing depths of progressive extreme metal, Marino was correct in thinking Dylan Gowan was the right fit behind the kit. He'd seen the SEVEN SPIRES drummer at THE AGONIST shows, as well as his online drumming videos. But recruiting a cellist instead of another guitarist didn't cross his mind until he saw Weinroth-Browne open for LEPROUS.

"Upon hearing the demos for 'Forgotten Sun', I was struck by the quality of the songwriting", Weinroth-Browne says. "There was a lot of room for me to contribute leads, melodies, lush harmonies and heavily distorted sounds. I believe the album captures the best aspects of 2000's death and prog metal with a distinctly modern approach."

"When you have a band that involves writers from different styles, you get something really unique", Gowan adds. "'Forgotten Sun' is progressive metal with a very dark atmosphere and thought-provoking lyrics. I'm very proud of what we accomplished and hope people enjoy the album as much as we did making it."

While MERIDIAN VEIL needed time to come together, the concept behind "Forgotten Sun" has never been more pressing. "The central tension of the album is the friction between machine logic and human biology", Marino explains. "We've never had more, and yet everybody is depressed. Technology is evolving far faster than the actual evolution of our species. It's going so fast that soon we'll be at the point where we are completely disconnected from it".

Unlike conventional dystopian epics, "Forgotten Sun" is told from the perspective of an artificial superintelligence that's programmed for good. Lead single "The Watcher" welcomes the A.I. into the world with a rush of blast beats, awe-inspiring screams and raspy cleans. But despite its sincere intentions on early standout shredder "Orpheus Before The Light", the A.I. grows frustrated as human nature thwarts its efforts toward progress. Emboldened by commanding riffs and an undeniable chorus, "False Shepherd" refuses to serve an earthly kingdom it deems built on lies, loss and endless greed.

"As the album unfolds, the A.I. stops being benevolent and starts to become controlling", Marino explains. "It steps in to fix our mistakes, only to end up with disastrous results".

Whether "Forgotten Sun" ends with a shred of hope remains open to interpretation. Shrouded by strings that ache from sorrow, "The Last Garden" mourns humanity's failed potential, though its tragic irony cuts far deeper. "I will not fail again", McGachy belts as his bandmates end the album in the most ideal way possible: with an incinerating climax.

"'Forgotten Sun' is a cautionary tale", Marino concludes. "While flawed, it's our messy human nature that allows us to thrive".

Perhaps it's too late for humanity as a whole, but when it comes to metal's expanded universe, a star is born in MERIDIAN VEIL.

MERIDIAN VEIL lineup:

Danny Marino - Guitars
Matt McGachy - Vocals
Dylan Gowan - Drums
Raphael Weinroth-Browne - Cello

Photo by Sean Mundy