BURNING SHADOWS returns with their fifth EP, Beneath the Ruins, a new collection of tales recounted through a blend of US- and European-style power metal, and their first release on Rafchild Records. As with past BURNING SHADOWS releases, songs on Beneath the Ruins directly draw inspiration from 20th century authors. “Blacken the Sky” and “Monuments of Rust” are inspired by HP Lovecraft’s flash fiction short story “Memory,” originally published in 1923. “The Grey Company (Paths of the Dead)” is based on the Dead Men of Dunharrow from JRR Tolkien’s third volume of Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, which was previously visited in BURNING SHADOWS’s 2010 song, “Oathbreaker.” Finally, “The Red Key” is based on the short story “The Thing on the Roof” by Robert E. Howard, published in 1932.

The Bandcamp and CD versions of Beneath the Ruins include exclusive bonus tracks. The first is a fifth new song, “The Shadow From the Steeple,” based on Robert Bloch’s short story of the same name, and is a sequel to “The Haunter of the Dark,” a short story by HP Lovecraft and a song from BURNING SHADOWS’s 2008 release, Into the Primordial. Also included are two live tracks, “The Last One to Fall,” recorded live at Swordmetal Fest VII on September 16, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, and “Oathbreaker,” recorded live in BURNING SHADOWS’s home state, in Baltimore, Maryland, USA on February 10, 2019.