Alive For The Journey
[Lyric Video]
“Alive For The Journey” is a track taken from CRYSTAL GATES’s critically acclaimed album “Torment & Wonder: The Ways Of The Lonely Ones”, out via Wormholedeath.
“This song is about leaving your life behind to go live a life at sea. To face the loneliness of the vastness and to enjoy the camaraderie of the companions on which your new life depends on. To hope for new adventures and to reflect on the memories of all that was left behind. I find that inspiring!”
“Torment & Wonder: The Ways Of The Lonely Ones” is available on all digital platforms HERE
“Torment and Wonder by Crystal Gates will be right up there with the best releases of 2022 in the Symphonic/Melodic metal genres. It oozes class in a way that many similar bands may try to achieve, but only very few ever succeed.” – Metalepidemic
“The best Symphonic Metal album made in Uruguay writes a new page in the history of South American metal in general” – The Dark Melody
“..a truly magnificent album in all its parts.” – Globalstorytelling
“It is an album that will bring back the heydays of the late 1990s and early 2000s when the genre was at its peak.” – Metallerium
CRYSTAL GATES stated: “We are very excited about finally releasing our first full-length album. A lot of effort and love was put into it, from us and from many people around us that put the best of themselves to make it what it is today. Each song is special and has a special meaning, in particular for those of us that often feel lonely. We hope you enjoy it and it helps you find some of the wonders in life!”
Crystal Gates is a Latvia-based symphonic power metal band formed in Montevideo, Uruguay in 2013 by Benjamín Machín and Carolina Pérez. After two years of writing, arranging, and recording, the duo released their first studio work, the six-song EP “A Quest For Life” in 2015. Recorded and mixed at Molecula Studios in Montevideo, and mastered by Mika Jussila at the legendary Finnvox studios, in Finland, the album was very well received by the public and specialized press. On the year of the release, Crystal Gates became a full band and played multiple shows in Uruguay and Argentina. 2015 concluded with great news for the band, winning the “Best National Album”, “Best National Cover Artwork” and “Best National Female Voice” awards in a national metal-specialized poll hosted by the prominent Uruguayan metal producer “El Lado Oscuro”.
The single “Shadowborn” followed in 2017, bringing more international attention to the band, and the opportunity to play bigger shows and festivals now also in Perú and Argentina, sharing the stage with bands like Epica, Xandria, Masterplan, Anneke Van Giersbergen’s “The Gentle Storm”, Blackoustic, The Agonist and Fates Warning.
Now, after working hard through challenging times, the band has finished their first full-length album: “Torment & Wonder: The Ways Of The Lonely Ones”, their most ambitious effort to date. With bigger production, four video singles, an epic twelve-minute closing track, and the participation of renowned artists like Sebastian “Seeb” Levermann (mixing and mastering), Elisa C. Martin (backing vocals and arrangements), and Stan W. Decker (artwork), “Torment & Wonder” promises a bright future. The band also aims at new horizons by having Benjamín now settled in north-eastern Europe. Having recently signed a management and booking contract with Riga-based THP Production and a distribution deal with Italian WormHoleDeath Records, the first steps of a new chapter in their quest for global reach have already been firmly taken.
Line up
Benjamín Machín – Guitars
Carolina Pérez – Vocals
Guillermo Albano – Bass
Gastón Lorenzo – Drums
Juan José Leyton – Keyboards
