[Cover photo by Jeremy Saffer]

North Sea Echoes, featuring singer Ray Alder and guitarist Jim Matheos of Fates Warning have announced a new studio album, How To Cast A Shadow, set for release on July 24th, 2026, on Metal Blade Records. With the new album, the band further explore and expand their identity.

Matheos explains:

This record is a bit heavier, with several more songs featuring real drums, played by Dennis Leeflang. It wasn’t necessarily intentional or planned, just the way things shaped up and how they emerged this time.

Alder aggrees:

[A track like] ‘I’ll Leave A Light On’ is much heavier than anything on Really Good Terrible Things. It has a darker, melancholic feel that fits well on this album. I loosely based the lyrics on a character from my favorite sci-fi series. I won’t say which, but they do use the quote ‘out there in the black.’

Alder has been the vocalist and main co-writer for Prog Metal band Fates Warning for 37 years, recording ten albums between 1988 (No Exit) and 2020 (Long Day Good Night). Rounding out his discography are seven albums with Redemption, two solo records, and the band A-Z, which debuted in 2022.

Guitarist and producer Matheos is a cofounder of Fates Warning, the lineup debuting with 1984’s Night On Bröcken on Metal Blade. In addition to thirteen albums with Fates Warning, Matheos launched several solo albums, four LPs alongside former Dream Theater keyboardist Kevin Moore under the name OSI, and Kings Of Mercia, which launched in 2022.

In advance of the release, the band have revealed the single “Enjoy the View.”

Alder comments:

The guitars and drums have this great drive that builds throughout the song. The combination of quiet verses and heavy choruses made me think (lyrically) of a darker side to some people. Those who would choose numbness over pain.