Published: February 25, 2025
The record will be released on CD and digital formats as well as vinyl
“Franklin County Line” is the new single from New York heavy metal trio SANHEDRIN. The fiery new hymn comes by way of the band’s Heat Lightning full-length, set for release on March 14th via Metal Blade Records.
SANHEDRIN has spent the last decade at the forefront of the American heavy metal scene blending traditional metal and hard rock sounds with a fresh modern energy and perspective. With 2022’s critically lauded Lights On full-length, the band had created their most complete work to date. With their follow-up, Heat Lightning, the band delivers a diverse collection of songs that wholly captures their wide array of influences with an elevated level of production.
Heat Lightning gets its title from the second track of the same name. “Heat lightning is a flash of lightning from very far away, sometimes seen in a clear sky,” notes vocalist/bassist Erica Stoltz. “It is used as a metaphor for where we see ourselves at the moment in relation to climate change. Collectively we have moved further away from our direct relationship to nature and have adopted a paternal relationship with the natural world, as if we have control.”
Unlike the previous three albums, which were all tracked and mixed by Colin Marston, for Heat Lightning SANHEDRIN opted to work with a fresh set of ears in a new environment. In doing so, the band landed at the legendary Utopia Bearsville studio in Woodstock, New York. At the helm for recording and co-producing were Matt Brown (Life of Agony, A Pale Horse Named Death) and Jerry Farley (Sick Of It All, Madball).
SANHEDRIN’s latest single, “Franklin County Line,” is the fastest song on the record and inspired by guitarist/vocalist Jeremy Sosville’s hometown and surrounding area in northern New York State. Sosville recounts “Erica and [drummer] Nathan [Honor] came up to visit me and work on new music. In the process, we wrote a song inspired by the local Amish population but with a twist.”
The band rehearsed in a small kerosene-heated shack deep in the woods during what turned out to be the coldest week of the winter. It is a fictional tale about Amish girls running off in the night to be naughty with some local boys partying by a riverside campfire. It was the final song to be written for the album.
Heat Lightning was recorded and co-produced by Matt Brown (Life Of Agony, A Pale Horse Named Death) and Jerry Farley (Sick Of It All, Madball) at the legendary Utopia Bearsville studio in Woodstock, New York and features the striking hand-painted cover art of band friend and fervent supporter Johan Prenger.
The record will will be released on CD and digital formats as well as vinyl in the following color variants:
180g Black
Violet Blue Marbled
Ruby Red Marbled (Ltd. 500)
White, Purple Splatter (Ltd. 200)
Find preorders at:
metalblade.com/Sanhedrin
SANHEDRIN will appear at this year’s edition of Hell’s Heroes Festival in Houston, Texas followed by a pair of one off shows in Oklahoma and Pennsylvania respectively. In May, the band will head to Europe for a co-headlining tour with Savage Master. See all confirmed dates below.
SANHEDRIN Live:
3/20/2025 Hell’s Heroes Festival – Houston, TX
3/30/2025 Bangover Brunch – Tulsa, OK
4/26/2025 Mr. Smalls Playhouse – Pittsburgh, PA
w/ Savage Master:
5/21/2025 P60 - Amstelveen, NL
5/22/2025 Schwarzer Keiler – Stuttgart, DE
5/23/2025 Sounddog – Breda, NL
5/25/2025 Hell – Diest, BE
5/26/2025 Logo – Hamburg, DE
5/28/2025 Klubb Fredagsmingel – Järfälla/Stockholm, SE
5/30/2025 The Abyss – Gothenburg, SE
5/31/2025 Muskelrock Festival – Alvesta, SE
6/03/2025 Nachtleben – Frankfurt, DE
6/05/2025 Goldgrube – Kassel, DE *
6/06/2025 Rock Hard Festival – Gelsenkirchen, DE *
6/07/2025 MTS Records – Oldenburg, DE *
6/08/2025 Cart & Horses – London, UK *
* SANHEDRIN only
Heat Lightning Track Listing:
1. Blind Wolf
2. Heat Lightning
3. Above The Law
4. The Fight Of Your Life
5. King Of Tides
6. Franklin County Line
7. Let’s Spill Some Blood
8. High Threshold For Pain
9. When The Will Becomes The Chain
SANHEDRIN:
Erica Stoltz – vocals, bass
Jeremy Sosville – guitars, vocals
Nathan Honor – drums, percussion
