Category: news

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Bjarte K. Helland Announces New EP Scorched — Out May 2, 2026 via F.T.A.T.P

Bergen, Norway — Norwegian drummer and composer Bjarte K. Helland is set to release his new progressive metal EP Scorched on May 2, 2026 , delivering a rhythm-driven, cinematic take on modern instrumental metal that pushes the drum kit right to the front where it belongs.
Built from a composer’s mindset and a drummer’s instincts, Helland’s solo project flips the traditional progressive script. Instead of guitars leading the charge, Scorched is shaped from the kit outward, creating a heavy, dynamic, and atmospheric sound world where rhythm dictates structure, tension, and release.
Fans of technical and fusion-driven progressive metal will feel right at home alongside the energy of Liquid Tension Experiment, the futuristic precision of Planet X, and the modern complexity of Animals as Leaders.
Helland, known for his work with FastLoaders, Pitch Black Mentality, and Quadrasonic, brings a wide musical background into this release, blending progressive metal, fusion, and experimental instrumental styles into something both aggressive and cinematic.
A heavier evolution

The upcoming EP features collaborations with internationally respected musicians including Billy Sheehan, Jarle H. Olsen, James Pulli, Yas Nomura, and Tore Christer Storlid , adding extra weight and depth to an already ambitious project.
Helland explains the direction behind the release:


“ Scorched is my second solo EP and the first time I recorded and mixed the drums in my own studio, which gave me a much closer connection to the sound and the direction of the release. Compared to my previous EP, this one moves further toward the heavier side of progressive metal, while still keeping the melodic and cinematic elements that are important to me as a composer. The title captures both the erosion of the rule-based world we once relied on globally, and the reality that growth often comes through challenging and transformative experiences. Each track explores a different aspect of that tension, from the fierceness of Lupus Ferox to the more eclectic atmosphere of Embers Eternal .”


Check out the video premiere and subscribe:


Production credits

Composer: Bjarte K. Helland
Arrangement: Jarle H. Olsen, Bjarte K. Helland
Mixing: Jarle H. Olsen, Bjarte K. Helland
Production: Jarle H. Olsen, Bjarte K. Helland, LANDR
Drums: Bjarte K. Helland
Guitars: Jarle H. Olsen
Bass: Billy Sheehan, Yas Nomura, Tore Christer Storlid, James Amelio Pulli
Label

F.T.A.T.P
Listen / Pre-save
https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/bjartekhelland/scorched



Scorched lands May 2, 2026. No filler, no fluff, just pure progressive fire carved from rhythm and controlled chaos.

Connect: 
Website: www.bjartekhelland.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bjartedrums
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bjartekhelland
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/BjarteKHellandDrums
Bandcamp: https://bjartekhelland.bandcamp.com/album/scorched
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6goY9aF0lGC10oj2lxFqRe
Apple Music:https://music.apple.com/no/artist/bjarte-k-helland/1570164951
Contact
Bjarte K. Helland
bjartekhelland@gmail.com

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Proverbial sidekick and second fiddle Dave Davies opens his live album Rock Bottom, released in 2000, with not one, but two Kinks numbers written by his brother Ray. Sounding every bit as much as a Kink can, Dave spearheads one rocker after another with reckless abandon. Instead of telling stories and making esoteric, misunderstood films, this Davies gets down to the business of playing the riffs that virtually defined the songs. The two Ray Davies tunes, “I Need You” and “She’s Got Everything,” underscore Davies’ surefire guitar work, and a voice as similar and limey-soaked as Brother Ray’s.

It’s not difficult to recognize that Dave Davies was, at the time, more representative of what made the Kinks great than his more prolific sibling. His shows paid heavy tribute to some of the edgiest tunes that ever sprang forth from the Kinks’ well of music. On Rock Bottom, he claims eight of the compositions while nine are from Ray — and eight covers. But let’s face it: “You Really Got Me” simply needs Brother Dave to play the riff — he invented the lick that Van Halen made a pot of gold with. And Brother Ray surely got a nice little kickback whenever that Gap commercial popped up.

Still, Dave can swing hooks all night and be no less than the man who created them. From “All Day And All Of The Night” to his own “Death Of A Clown” and “Living On A Thin Line,” Rock Bottom spotlights a career founded on not just the song, but the machinery and know-how to get it moving. The only thing that really drags this release through the mud is when Dave bellies up to the mike between numbers and attempts to be witty and brazen. He’s become much more animated on that front in recent years, though perhaps Brother Dave should stick to his guitar and be content to be the riffmeister that he is.

~ Shawn Perry

Purchase Rock Bottom