American metal stalwarts, Solace, have signed a multi-album contract with Magnetic Eye Records. The five-piece originally from Asbury Park, New Jersey will issue an expanded edition of their debut album, Further, in celebration of its 25th anniversary this summer, along with their upcoming fifth full-length also via the label in the last quarter of 2025.
Solace have already announced US live dates for early 2025. The roadtrip through the South and Southwest kicks off on January 23 at Bandito’s in Richmond, VA. See below for all currently confirmed shows.
Solace comment: “Solace are happy to announce our signing to Magnetic Eye Records, a label we respect and more importantly who respects us”, guitarist Justin Daniels writes on behalf of the band. “We’re looking forward to an awesome partnership that lets us get more of our dirt metal out to the world.”
Daniels continues: “This announcement is bittersweet in coming just a week after the passing of our original singer Jason. If nothing else, Solace perseveres as long as we can lift guitars and switch on amps. We move through sadness and look forward to honoring Jason’s legacy and our own with this newest chapter of the band.”
Jadd Shickler adds: “I had the privilege to sign Solace in 1999”, the Magnetic Eye director adds. “They were the best band my first label ever signed, and they still are. Through different incarnations and numerous line-ups, I’ve dedicated countless years to making sure as many people as possible saw and heard their greatness, and I’m more than ready for Magnetic Eye Records to ram Solace’s music down throats for countless more years to come.”
Solace are celebrated veterans of the American metal scene. Hailing from Asbury Park, New Jersey at the windswept shore of the Western Atlantic, the band was founded in 1996. Built on a solid foundation of classic metal, early doom and punk ethic, the original four-piece infused a healthy dose of hardcore fury into grooving, grinding sludge.
Debut full-length Further garnered immediate attention for Solace on both sides of the Atlantic at the turn of the millennia. Three years later, the sophomore album 13 (2003) witnessed the Americans expanding and solidifying their style by highlighting the epic side of their songwriting. In the wake of this album, the band was invited twice to perform at the prestigious Roadburn Festival in 2006 and 2009, which further endeared them to an international audience.
Following a string of singles and EPs, the shoremen returned with acclaimed third album A.D. in 2010. Although the release was again well received, a hiatus followed during which Solace implemented some changes in their lineup. This maneuver got the heavy ship afloat again, and the remarkable full-length number four, The Brink, made landfall in 2019. This album has been described as a glorious trek through churning riffage, weighty doom power and drunken sea shanties, while the massive use of NWOBHM dual-guitar attack was also gladly noted.
Solace call their amalgamation of doom and heavy metal with hardcore elements dirt metal, while elsewhere it has been somewhat tongue-in-cheekly dubbed shorecore. Others file the New Jersey five-piece under stoner metal – and in truth, all these descriptions fit to an extent.
Solace aim to release their upcoming fifth full-length via Magnetic Eye Records by the end of 2025.
Tour dates:
January
23 – Richmond, VA – Bandito’s (with Book of Wyrms, Hagstone)
24 – Atlanta, GA – Star Bar (with Hot Ram, Brood of Mockers)
25 – New Orleans, LA – Siberia (with Wizard Dick, So Awful, Burial Gift)
27 – Houston, TX – Black Magic Social Club (with Grim Trophies, Mr Plow)
28 – Arlington, TX – Growl Records (with Sons of Gulliver, King Otter)
29 – Austin, TX – Valhalla +Crimson Devils (with Ungrieved)
30 – Tempe, AZ – Yucca Tap Room (with Jupiter Cyclops, Weapon of Pride)
February
1 – Las Vegas, NV – The Usual Place, Planet Desert Rock Fest
March
28 – Baltimore, MD – The Depot
29 – Columbus, OH – Ace of Cups (with Horseburner, The Most Falcons)
In January 2025, original Solace singer Jason L. sadly passed away, just as the band prepare to honour their classic debut album (and the first to feature Jason’s vocals) as an expanded new edition this summer. Raise a glass to his legacy and everything he brought to the band during his formative years as their tortured and brilliant frontman.
Lineup:
Justin Daniels – guitar
Justin Goins – keyboard, vocals
Tim Schoenleber – drums
Mike Sica – bass
Tommy Southard – guitar
(Photo – Shane Green)