Of course it is Matt - he "officially" released this clip in this forum and on the website as a preview from the upcoming album "Mirror of Souls" after they were signed by a big label (Sony BMG).
It was really funny (and still is)
Here's the announcement:
Theocracy Signs with Sony BMG Music Entertainment
NEW YORK -- Sony BMG Music Entertainment is pleased to welcome Theocracy to its diverse family of artists and musical visionaries. Hailing from Athens, Ga., Theocracy started life as a metal band in the tradition of hundreds of others, playing in front of small audiences and struggling to build a legacy. Their particular brand of melodic mayhem has traditionally been most successful on European shores, but Sony Senior A&R Representative Matt Pinfield heard potential for so much more when he listened to the material included in the band's press kit.
"It was apparent right away that the raw talent was there," explains Meghan Lyons, A&R assistant. "What they needed was a gentle nudge in the right direction." The result is the band's major-label debut, Mirror of Souls. Jam-packed with almost 70 minutes of music, the material on Mirror of Souls runs the gamut from screaming death metal to smooth R&B-styled choruses to twangy country, culminating in the 23-minute magnum opus title track.
"We normally frown on lengthy songs," says Lyons. "But this track is like a journey through a mind-meld of seemingly disparate musical universes. It is truly something to behold."
Theocracy's self-titled debut album was released on an independent label called MetalAges Records at the end of 2003, leading some to express concern about why the follow-up has been such a long time in the making.
"It's been frustrating, because we've had to keep silent on why this album has taken so long," explains band founder and frontman Matt Smith. "We finished the whole album last year, but since Sony picked it up and re-tooled it with several different producers and mixing engineers, it's been a lengthy process. However, the end result is well worth it."
To those fans who may be tempted to cry foul at the stylistic shift between the albums, Smith emphasizes that these broader directions were simply natural extensions of the band's sound. "When I heard that Sony wanted to alter the approach of certain songs, I was concerned, but I decided I'd be cheating myself if I didn't at least try it with an open mind," Smith says. As it turns out, he would have been cheating the rest of the world at large, too.
"I was blown away by the finished product. Rest assured that not one note on this album is contrived or unnatural; it's a reflection of where we're at as a band, and an extension of our natural evolution."
Part of that evolution includes Sony's considerable marketing muscle, which sees the band releasing everything from wall calendars to its own clothing line, Theocrasize. Guitarist Jon Hinds is even releasing his own fragrance, Scent of Hinds.
"We will be pushing the Theocracy brand very hard starting in the third quarter of 2008," says Lyons. Though an actual date has yet to be determined, look for Mirror of Souls to be released sometime in that window.
A three-minute sneak preview of the title track, " Mirror of Souls ," is available for download here.
The link is still available:
http://www.theocracymusic.com/MirrorofSoulsExcerpt.mp3
