Ampersand Umlaut's Rock Dichotomy

FONTAINEBLEAU, France - Edward The Frivolous has found his happy place. 

The lead singer of the neo-classical / hard-rock group Ampersand Umlaut has just finished recording vocals for the band's latest release, Dichotomy, recorded in the legendary Château de Fontainebleau, located 60 km outside of Paris. 

"We're extremely happy with the success of our first two albums, Rock Renaissance and Let Them Eat Cake," Edward beams, "but we felt we needed to expand our horizons sonically and lyrically. Plus we made a ton of money off the last tour, so why not rent a French castle for a few months, eh?"  

The album title is especially apt given the influences heard on some of the tracks. Punk and thrash metal mixed with actual classical instruments 

The castle is convenient - we've going into Paris to see rock shows then come back to record. Most of us grew up listening to X, Green Day, Iron Maiden, and Alphonse XIV's mother was a world-renowned cellist, so he was classically trained by osmosis. We have rawer guitars on most tracks, with slightly less wanky solos. We still have our cowbells and gongs, but we've added clavichord, harps and mandolin to our repertoire, both in their natural state and hooked to all kinds of effects. Ever heard a harp with massive distortion? Didn't think so."

Heart(Baroque)n will be the lead single coming out April 7, with the album dropping May 8. Tour dates will be announced in the next month. "We'll be going full Parisian bordello with the stage set. We're wearing full powder, rouge and giant wigs in addition to our usual frilly costumes. The ultimate in rock-meets-royal-decadence." 

Edward is suddenly impatient. Who wouldn't be with the Ampersand invasion about to commence.