THE LEVITATION HEX - s/t LP HRR 297, ltd 500, 350 x transparent red/ white splatter vinyl, gatefold cover, lyric sheet Adam Agius - vocals, guitars, programming Mark Palfreyman - bass, vocals Scott Young - guitars Ben Hocking - drums, programming - The Longest Path Possible - Manipular - Scratch a Life and Find a Thief - Depressedemic - Internal Chatter - A Breathing Aparatus - Breaking Point - Flirting with Schizophrenia - Dream Defecit SOLD OUT!

Ever heard about The Levitation Hex? Well, it’s about time to become familiar with this exciting new outfit from the southern hemisphere. Hailing from Canberra, the four-piece-band are a brainchild of Adam Agius. The Levitation Hex step in the footprints of Adam’s former Band Alchemist, who were well-known as one of the most unique bands in the Australian metal scene, mixing thrash, heavy metal, and other kinds of extreme music with dashes of psychedelia and stoner rock. Alchemist disbanded in 2010, and the same year saw the birth of The Levitation Hex, who take a similarly fascinating approach to their own music – was it Adam’s wish to pick up where he left with his former band? “I started The Levitation Hex so that I could continue my own musical direction. Of course it’s going to sound similar to Alchemist, and I have no problem with that at all. I wanted The Levitation Hex to be a little simpler and a lot heavier with just enough texture to make it more interesting than a standard Heavy Metal sound. The new material so far is turning out even heavier, and I love the fact that as I’m getting older I’m digging heavy music even more.” No need to talk about age here – the story of The Levitation Hex has only just begun, even though the demise of his former band and the need to start from scratch again had put Adam in an awful state, especially as Alchemist had reached a certain level of recognition, playing headlining spots at several European festivals: “It was very, very difficult, mostly in an emotional sense. The split really left me very heartbroken and there was a time that I swore I would never write or perform again, but two weeks later I was in my studio working on material. Alchemist was absolutely everything to me, but I’m really digging The Levitation Hex. We are getting along very well at the moment, so hopefully that continues.” “We” means Adam and his new band members, of who Mark Palfreyman and Ben Hocking are also active in Alarum and Aeon of Horus, respectively. Is it not difficult to keep the line-up stable and to play live under these circumstances? Adam denies that: “So far it has not been a problem, it’s just a matter of respecting each member’s other commitments and planning the best we can. The band is actually split between two cities, Mark and Scott live in Melbourne and Ben and I live in Canberra, so we must be very organised to be able to cope.” Some reviewers of the album regard “A Breathing Apparatus” as its quintessence, incorporating all those influences mentioned above, like seventies British psychedelia, US punk and, of course, metal. To me, there are also traces of 80’s post-punk like Killing Joke or Siouxsie and the Banshees. Adam seems to be amazed by the comparison: “Wow, it’s really strange that you mention Killing Joke. I have had many close friends mention the exact same reference. I am not a huge follower of Killing Joke, but I can hear exactly what people are talking about, especially in regards to ‘A Breathing Apparatus’. I have a huge amount of respect for Jaz Coleman, a very brilliant composer and producer indeed. I will have to dig out some of my Banshees albums and see if I can hear what you are talking about.” As we are currently witnessing the rise and fall of the “occult wave”, a band name like The Levitation Hex makes me think of just that – occult, dark, mysterious things – are these the topics Adam writes and sings about? “Not at all. All the lyrics are really self reflective, they are about my thoughts, emotions and things that have happened to me in my life. There is really no link to the occult, and the reason we are called The Levitation Hex is this: I wanted to have a name that represented the thought that the want of better things is a curse. So originally our name was The Elevation Curse, and by some wild jumps in imagination it became THE LEVITATION HEX.” Talking about the want of better things – the Australian release was a “CD-only-affair”, while High Roller are going to put out a beautiful limited vinyl edition. Apart from finally putting the music on the right medium, will there be any special bonus features on the High Roller edition of the album? “The music is the same, but the CD booklet has been expanded and re-designed, and the vinyl is gatefold with some cool live shots. I can’t wait to get the vinyl copies!” So far, Adam can be very happy with the reactions the self-titled debut gets from the metal press – all over the country, reviewers have been very positive, sometimes even enthusiastic about the album. But as the record had been available in the band’s home country only, “it was difficult for punters outside Australia to purchase, and the press from overseas was very limited, as it’s very difficult to get noticed without a record company’s backing, especially in Europe.” Now with the High Roller edition, it is finally possible to get hold of this gem in this part of the world. Problem solved. Ulrike Schmitz Featuring past and present members of ALCHEMIST, ALARUM, and AEON OF HORUS, THE LEVITATION HEX now rises. The Levitation Hex was born in March 2010 by Adam Agius (Vocals, Guitars, Programming) after the collapse of Alchemist. The initial intention of TLH was to create a metallic psychedelic prog sound similar to Alchemist but at the same time a heavier and completely new beast. The sound is unique and hard to quantify containing elements of Thrash, Heavy Metal, and Extreme metal with touches of Psychedelia and stoner. Mark Palfreyman (Alarum) was the first to jump on board adding Bass and Vocal duties followed soon by Ben Hocking (Aeon of Horus) on Drums and Scott Young (ex-Alarum) on Guitars The Levitation Hex intend to create the heaviest prog metal possible and 2012 is the year they unleash their live show. Album now available worldwide at WWW.LEVITATIONHEX.NET Live Shows will commence in August 2012 with an Australian tour and a trip to Prog Power Europe in Baarlo Holland and an extensive European Tour in October 2012 Now the album drops in Europe on High Roller, fans from Europe and the UK can finally purchase Vinyl and Cds locally. Contact info@levitationhex.net Web site www.levitationhex.net