BLUE ÖYSTER CULT will return with a mammoth new studio album, “The Symbol Remains”, on October 9 via Frontiers Music Srl. Coming nearly two decades after the release of the band’s last studio LP, “Curse Of The Hidden Mirror”, the effort showcases a band which hasn’t been slowed by the time passed but is simply unfazed by it. “The Symbol Remains” is said to be one of BLUE ÖYSTER CULT‘s most spirited, diverse and inspired releases to date.
“The Symbol Remains” track listing:
01. That Was Me
02. Box In My Head
03. Tainted Blood
04. Nightmare Epiphany
05. Edge Of The World
06. The Machine
07. Train True (Lennie’s Song)
08. The Return Of St. Cecilia
09. Stand And Fight
10. Florida Man
11. The Alchemist
12. Secret Road
13. There’s A Crime
14. Fight
As the saying goes, “good things come to those who wait,” and the 14 new songs on display here embody that. Fans will be delighted with an extremely inspired album which ultimately sounds like a band looking back at their storied catalog and giving the fans a bit of everything they’ve ever loved about BÖC, while simultaneously continuing to evolve.
For over four decades, BLUE ÖYSTER CULT has been thrilling fans of intelligent hard rock worldwide with powerful albums loaded with classic songs. Indeed, the Long Island, New York‐based band is revered within the hard rock and heavy metal scene for its pioneering work. BLUE ÖYSTER CULT occupies a unique place in rock history because it’s one of very few hard rock/heavy metal bands to earn both genuine mainstream critical acclaim as well as commercial success. Now they have partnered up with Frontiers Music Srl to continue their amazing journey.
BÖC is often cited as a major influence by other acts such as METALLICA, and BÖC was listed in VH1‘s countdown of the greatest hard rock bands of all time.
Upon the release of BÖC‘s self-titled debut album in 1972, the band was praised for its catchy-yet-heavy music and lyrics that could be provocative, terrifying, funny or ambiguous, often all in the same song. BÖC‘s canon contains three stone‐cold classic songs that will waft through the cosmos long after the sun has burned out: the truly haunting “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” from 1976’s “Agents Of Fortune”, the pummeling “Godzilla” from 1977’s “Spectres” and the hypnotically melodic “Burnin’ for You” from 1981’s “Fire Of Unknown Origin”. Other notable BÖC songs include “Cities On Flame With Rock And Roll”, “Then Came The Last Days Of May”, “I Love The Night”, “In Thee”, “Veteran Of The Psychic Wars”, “Dominance And Submission”, “Astronomy”, “Black Blade” and “Shooting Shark”.
The intense creative vision of BÖC‘s original core duo of vocalist/lead guitarist Donald “Buck Dharma” Roeser and vocalist/rhythm guitarist Eric Bloom are complemented by Richie Castellano on guitar and keyboards, and the longtime rhythm section of bass guitarist Danny Miranda, and drummer Jules Radino.
