Watch: NITA STRAUSS Kicks Off 'Summer Storm' Tour In Nashville

Nita Strauss kicked off her "Summer Storm" tour last night (Tuesday, June 13) at the Exit/In in Nashville, Tennessee. Fan-filmed video and photos of the concert can be found below (courtesy of Anna Henry and Father Nathan Monk).

As previously reported, Nita recruited a vocalist named Kasey Karlsen to join her onstage during "Summer Storm".

In a Twitter message introducing Kasey, Nita wrote: "We needed someone fearless and versatile for this tour who could handle tons of different vocal styles, and if you've seen Kasey's videos you already know she can do it all. She is going to destroy these stages and we are beyond excited to have her with us!!"

Karlsen has a half a million followers on TikTok where she posts vocal covers of such acts as SLIPKNOT, MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, BRING ME THE HORIZON and ICE NINE KILLS.

The "Summer Storm" trek will wrap up on July 14 in New Orleans. Support on the tour is coming from LIONS AT THE GATE, the new band featuring former ILL NIÑO members Cristian Machado (vocals),Ahrue "Luster" Ilustre (guitar) and Diego Verduzco (guitar),alongside bassist Stephen Brewer (WESTFIELD MASSACRE) and drummer Fern Lemus.

Nita will release her sophomore solo album, "The Call Of The Void", on July 7 via Sumerian Records. The LP features guest appearances by IN FLAMES vocalist Anders Fridén, former MEGADETH guitarist Marty Friedman, HALESTORM frontwoman Lzzy Hale, Alice Cooper, DISTURBED's David Draiman, Dorothy, Alissa White-Gluz of ARCH ENEMY and Chris Motionless of MOTIONLESS IN WHITE.

Regarding the album's title, Strauss shared: "Have you ever been at the top of a high building and had the fleeting thought, '… I could jump right now?' This feeling is sometimes called 'The Call Of The Void,' also known as 'high place phenomenon.' It's not a suicidal impulse, rather the exact opposite — a subconscious decision to live your life, to step back from the ledge, and take control. As researcher April Smith aptly put it: 'An urge to jump affirms the urge to live.'

"I wanted the follow-up to 'Controlled Chaos' to be exciting, new, and fresh, to take listeners to a new place and take myself somewhere new as an artist too. We have some amazing collaborations on this album with incredible musicians, as well as the instrumental guitar music that first inspired me to play.

"Some pieces of music come into the world gracefully and easily. This album is not one of them! 'The Call Of The Void' was born kicking and screaming, a labor of love for sure, but also of blood, sweat and plenty of tears. I couldn't be more proud of the end result. Making this album helped me learn and grow so much as a musician and songwriter and I'm excited to finally unleash it on the world."

In early December 2022, Nita told "The Mistress Carrie Podcast" about her decision to make the upcoming LP half vocal songs and half instrumental: "I did feel, and the label and everybody agreed, it's still important for me to keep my identity as a guitar player and not just branch off too much and go, 'Okay, well, now it's just guests.' Let me still have a little of what makes me me, which is the instrumental shred stuff. And the instrumental pieces that I've written on this record are, I think, better than anything I did on the first one — definitely more… I don't know if it could be more emotional but they're very emotional pieces of music and I think a little better crafted this time around. So I think all the songs in general are more well thought out, better put together this time around. And I do have some of my absolute favorite [singers guesting on it]."

Nita released 2018's "Controlled Chaos" to mass acclaim from fans and media alike, with Metal Injection calling it "a great debut that — as its creator intended — leaves no doubt", and Guitar World stating "'Controlled Chaos' is a panoramic view of Nita Strauss's many strengths".

In March, it was announced that Nita would return to Alice's band for his 2023 tour.

The Alice Cooper North American tour, with an all-new show dubbed "Too Close For Comfort", kicked off in late April in Michigan and will continue through late September, including a handful of August stadium shows with DEF LEPPARD and MÖTLEY CRÜE, followed by a co-headlining late summer "Freaks On Parade" tour with Rob Zombie.

Nita spent eight years playing with Alice before joining Demi Lovato's band last summer,

Strauss played her first full live show with Demi in August 2022 at the Grandstand at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield, Illinois.

Nita made her live debut with Demi in July 2022 with a performance of "Substance" on ABC's Emmy Award-winning late-night show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!".

Strauss had been playing with Cooper since 2014 when she replaced Australian musician and former Michael Jackson player Orianthi. She joined Alice in time for a mammoth MÖTLEY CRÜE tour. She was recommended to Cooper by the legendary rocker's former bass player and WINGER frontman Kip Winger.