UK prog rock sextet Viriditas have announced that they will release new album Green Mars on September 17.
It's the follow-up to the band's debut album Red Mars, released back in 2018, and the start of a planned trilogy of albums loosely following the events within the novel trilogy of the same name. Authored by Kim Stanley Robinson, the books covered a vast amount of events and conflicts arising from the fictional characters within as they laboured to turn Mars into a viable, habitable planet.
"Green Mars is not only a continuation of that, but an evolution," the band say. "The album being nearly three times longer than its predecessor has allowed the band to dive deep into the story, picking out more emotive aspects that more strongly resonate with its audience ranging from optimism to hopelessness, exuberance and introspection.
"In Green Mars there is more room for musical ideas to grow, and meander through to completion, allowing for many interesting segues along the journey that take you in unexpected directions. The album is choc full of details that will be missed on first listen, and will stay new and enticing for many subsequent listens as melodies and lyrics begin to make more and more sense as the listener becomes increasingly familiar with the music.
"In a bit of a running theme within the album, there is more experimentation with time signatures and unusual harmony. Chromaticism also features prominently within the band's heavier riffs, which, while not at the forefront of the band's style, are certainly present within most of the songs on Green Mars."
