UK and Bangkok-based Billy The Mountain, the awesome band delivering an eclectic mix of music that defies immediate classification, is close to releasing their latest album – Tides of Mercy – with some 14 tracks now mastered ahead of a planned worldwide release of the new CD. Talks with a major label looking to launch the album outside the original independent label format are still going on, with the band itself divided as to how best to release the album in these different times. Band frontman and songsmith Alex ‘Dr Blues’ Pithie says the majority of the work is done and also exclusively revealed that the band’s label has also arranged for the re-mastering of their classic first album Drifting To Valhalla, in order that it can be simultaneously released packaged with the new Tides of Mercy CD. The new album Tides of Mercy features artists from around the world with the recording done as far afield as Bangkok, Stockholm, Rome and Copenhagen. In Bangkok, Lester Esteban took care of live drums while one of Italy’s finest drummers Derek J Wilson added all the other drums in his Rome studio. Legendary Swedish guitarist with bRONk and Eric Bibb sideman Staffan Astner guested on the song, the bluesy ‘Here Before’, while elsewhere Thailand’s Manop Veronitipas delivered soulful alto sax, and back up vocals were done in Copenhagen and Bangkok. Band anchor Nils Andersson flew in from Sweden to deliver tasty guitar and dobro licks, while the band’s ‘secret weapon’ Rick Stickney flew in from the US for the other guitar parts. Keyboards were shared among Denmark’s Daniel Alexander Muschinsky and Thailand’s Kevin Intraporn. Tasty brass was added in Copenhagen and the entire recording, engineering and arranging challenge was handled in Bangkok. All songs on both albums were mastered by Torben Lyshol in Denmark.
Band frontman Pithie says the 8pp commissioned Tides of Mercy Artwork and new Drifting To Valhalla artwork for the release of the first album are also looking good, crafted and conceived by UK studio The Front Room.
