Charlie Griffiths announces debut solo album ‘Tiktaalika’
CHARLIE GRIFFITHS has announced his debut solo album!
Titled Tiktaalika, the upcoming album from the HAKEN guitarist is his debut solo album and is scheduled to be released in June this year, via InsideOut Music.
The upcoming debut was mixed by Adam ‘Nolly’ Getgood and mastered by Ermin Hamidovic and features a number of guest contributions, including Tommy Rogers [BETWEN THE BURIED AND ME], Danïel De Jongh [TEXTURES], Vladimir Lalić [ORGANISED CHAOS] and Neil Purdy [LUNA’S CALL] as well as Darby Todd [MARTIN BARRE, FROST, DEVIN TOWNSEND], Jordan Rudess [DREAM THEATER] and Rob Townsend [STEVE HACKETT].
Speaking about the upcoming debut solo album, CHARLIE GRIFFITHS says, “I picked up the six string guitar again, which ironically has become the more unusual option for me, after 10 or so years writing with an eight-string guitar for HAKEN. It definitely sent me into a different creative headspace, with riff after riff seemingly falling out of the guitar. I naturally began forming those riffs into song structures, while simultaneously writing vocal melodies and building the lyrical concept. It was a great form of escapism from my usual environment and I had a lot of fun doing it.
All of the guest musicians took the songs to another level. I had everything written and demoed, so the guys could quickly learn the parts, but I gave free rein for them to bring their personality to the party. Darby’s drumming style, is so beautifully improvised and more jazz-fusion influenced, when paired with my riffs, it resulted in something unexpected. It blows my mind that the synth solo Jordan played was the very first take! Capturing that spirit of spontaneity within a structured piece is always very special.”
Alongside the announcement of the new album, Griffiths has released a new music video for the first song lifted from the upcoming debut solo album; Arctic Cemetery.
Speaking about the new song, Charlie says, “Arctic Cemetery is palaeontology meets progressive metal. A fossil-dig, through a melodic tech-metal landscape. I am incredibly lucky to have BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME’s Tommy Rogers on vocals and Darby Todd [MARTINE BARRE, DEVIN TOWNSEND] on drums. They are both consummate pros and elevated the song far beyond my expectations. This was one of the first songs that came to life for the album and once I had the line ‘Dead and buried, laying in an Arctic Cemetery’ the idea blossomed. The song reflects upon the notion that modern humans can identify locations of graveyards, hundreds of millions of years old and find remnants of our ancestors and ask, what can this extinct creature teach us? I find that notion incredibly awe inspiring and humbling.”
Watch the official music video for Arctic Cemetery here:
Also, you can view both the track list and artwork for the upcoming solo album below:
Track List:
1. Prehistoric Prelude
2. Arctic Cemetery
3. Luminous Beings
4. In Alluvium
5. Dead in the Water
6. Digging Deeper
7. Tiktaalika
8. Crawl Walk Run
9. Under Polaris
Tiktaalika is set for release on June 17th via InsideOut Music. Pre-orders are available now and can be purchased here.
For more information on CHARLIE GRIFFITHS like his official page on Facebook.
