Nita Strauss, who recently rejoined Alice Cooper’s band as lead guitarist, has announced a new solo album. The set, titled The Call of the Void, will drop on July 7th via Sumerian Records.
Strauss explained of the album’s new title in a press release, “Have you ever been at the top of a high building and had the fleeting thought, ‘I could jump right now?’ This feeling is sometimes called ‘The Call of the Void,’ also known as ‘high place phenomenon.’ It’s not a suicidal impulse, rather the exact opposite — a subconscious decision to live your life, to step back from the ledge, and take control. As researcher April Smith aptly put it: ‘An urge to jump affirms the urge to live.’”
She continued, “I wanted the follow up to [my debut album] Controlled Chaos to be exciting, new, and fresh, to take listeners to a new place and take myself somewhere new as an artist too. We have some amazing collaborations on this album with incredible musicians, as well as the instrumental guitar music that first inspired me to play.”
As for the creation of the album, Strauss explained that it came with its share of obstacles. “Some pieces of music come into the world gracefully and easily,” she remarked. “This album is not one of them! The Call of the Void was born kicking and screaming, a labor of love for sure, but also of blood, sweat and plenty of tears. I couldn’t be more proud of the end result. Making this album helped me learn and grow so much as a musician and songwriter and I’m excited to finally unleash it on the world.”
In advance of the album’s release, Strauss has shared the new single “The Golden Trail,” featuring In Flames singer Anders Fridén.
“When I was first learning how to play guitar, In Flames were my Beatles; my first favorite band,” Strauss said. “Anders’ iconic vocal style is burned into my mind! To write a song like this and have him sing on it, as a kid who grew up with In Flames posters on my walls, is an absolute dream come true.”
Fridén added, “It was a lot of fun to collaborate with Nita on ‘The Golden Trail.’ She’s an amazing guitar player and I can hear the history of metal flowing through her fingers!”
“The Golden Trail” follows previously-released singles “Winner Takes All” featuring Alice Cooper, “Dead Inside” featuring Disturbed’s David Draiman, and “The Wolf You Feed” featuring Arch Enemy’s Alissa White-Gluz.
Other guests on the album include Halestorm’s Lzzy Hale, Motionless in White’s Chris Motionless, Dorothy, Lilith Czar, and former Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman.
Strauss also recently announced an early summer North America solo tour, sandwiched in between her outings with Alice Cooper. Tickets to her upcoming shows are available here.
Check out the song “The Golden Trail” and view the artwork and tracklist for Nita Strauss’ The Call of the Void below. Pre-order the album here.
The Call of the Void Artwork:
The Call of the Void Tracklist:
01. Summer Storm
02. The Wolf You Feed (feat. Alissa White-Gluz)
03. Digital Bullets (feat. Chris Motionless)
04. Through the Noise (feat. Lzzy Hale)
05. Consume the Fire
06. Dead Inside (feat. David Draiman)
07. Victorious (feat. Dorothy)
08. Scorched
09. Momentum
10. The Golden Trail (feat. Anders Fridén)
11. Winner Takes All (feat. Alice Cooper)
12. Monster (feat. Lilith Czar)
13. Kintsugi
14. Surfacing (feat. Marty Friedman)
