Russian Circles have released a new song from their forthcoming LP Gnosis available on August 19th via Sargent House. Perhaps the heaviest song on the album, Betrayal is a five-minute unmitigated assault and follows the first single “Conduit”. Both singles show how the Chicago stalwarts have created their most fuming and focused work to date—an album that favors the exorcism of two years’ worth of tension over the melancholy and restraint that often colored their past endeavors.
Gnosis eschews the varied terrain of those past works by employing a new songwriting technique. Rather than crafting songs out of fragmented ideas in the practice room, full songs were written and recorded independently before being shared with other members, so that their initial vision was retained. While these demos spanned the full breadth of the band’s varied styles, the more cinematic compositions were ultimately excised in favor of the physically cathartic pieces.
Due to a hand and neck injury, a member of Russian Circles is undergoing physical therapy and has been advised by his doctor to avoid practicing and performing while he works to address these injuries. Unfortunately, our Lincoln Hall dates fell within the rehabilitation timeframe, so we have rescheduled these shows into one on April 10th, 2022. Tickets for the January 13th and 14th shows will be honored for the new date. Refunds are available if you can not attend the April 10th date. 
I first heard of Russian Circles a few years back and although I wasn’t a fan of instrumental music, they quickly changed my mind. Fast forward a few years and I learned of SUMAC and their fantastic intensity. Brian Cook playing bass in both bands came as a surprise but really shouldn’t because the level of musicianship in both bands requires one incredible musician and he fits that bill.