Italian “extreme epic metal” band STORMLORD will release its long-awaited fourth full-length album, Mare Nostrum, on May 23 via Locomotive Records.

The CD was recorded at Giuseppe Orlando’s Outer Sound Studios (NECRODEATH, NOVEMBRE, KLIMT 1918) and was mastered at Finnvox Studios by Mika Jussila (HIM, CHILDREN OF BODOM, NIGHTWISH, SENTENCED). The artwork was designed by Gyula Havancsak (ANNIHILATOR, DESTRUCTION, BENEDICTUM, ELVENKING, GRAVE DIGGER).

Mare Nostrum track listing:

01. Mare Nostrum
02. Neon Karma
03. Legacy Of The Snake
04. Emet
05. The Castaway
06. Scorn
07. And The Wind Shall Scream My Name
08. Dimension: Hate
09. Stormlord

According to the band, “the journalists that had the chance to listen to [the new STORMLORD album] during the studio reports describe Mare Nostrum as a mix of our first two albums, Supreme Art Of War and At The Gates Of Utopia, played and arranged with a superior maturity and technical skill.

“We just can say that we love our new songs, they sound epic like in the old times without forgetting the style of The Gorgon Cult. There are a lot of new solutions that we never used before like sitar, folk parts, gloomy clean vocals, ‘Mediterrean’ ethnic instruments and an amazing drum work. Our singer Cristiano has sealed his best performance so far, going from high pitch screaming to earthquaking growls, while the keyboard work, now up to our guitar/keyboard player Gianpaolo, is the most epic thing we’ve ever done in ten years.

“Expect a bombastic yet furious avalanche of extreme epic metal, we know that some people has been waiting for this since a long time, we will not disappoint them.”

The Legacy – 17 Years of Extreme Epic Metal, a double “best-of” collection from STORMLORD, was released on February 22 through Scarlet Records. The first CD contains 13 songs spanning the band’s 17-year career as of one of Europe’s most respected metal merchants, including the rare EP Under the Sign of the Sword, originally released in 1997. The second CD contains a full live show recorded in Montreal on June 14, 2006 during the band’s Canadian tour.