Gold & Grey

Gold & Grey is the fifth studio album by American heavy metal band Baroness, released on June 14, 2019, on the band's own label, Abraxan Hymns.

Background
As with previous releases by the band, the album's artwork was designed by front-man and lead singer John Dyer Baizley. The album is the band's first to feature new guitarist Gina Gleason and was mastered by frequent Flaming Lips collaborator Dave Fridmann who also produced Baroness' previous album. The first single from the album, "Borderlines", was released in March 2019.

"'Our goal is, was, and will always be to write increasingly superior, more honest and compelling songs, and to develop a more unique and challenging sound. I'm sure we have just finished our best, most adventurous album to date. We dug incredibly deep, challenged ourselves and recorded a record I'm positive we could never again replicate. I consider myself incredibly fortunate to know Sebastian, Nick and Gina as both my bandmates and my friends. They have pushed me to become a better songwriter, musician and vocalist. We’re all extremely excited for this release, which includes quite a few 'firsts' for the band, and we're thrilled to be back on tour to play these psychotic songs for our fans. Expect some surprises.'"

The band debuted the album's first single, "Borderlines" in Houston at the start of their co-headlining tour with Deafheaven in March 2019.

Album artwork
As with all previous releases by the band, the cover art was done by front man Baizley and echoes themes seen on prior recordings that prominently feature scantily clad woman intertwined with scenes inspired by nature in a gold and grey color scheme, giving the album its name. The art work was leaked by music identifying app Shazam which forced Baizley to release it early on the band's Twitter account. "'Here is the full cover painting for our new album, Gold & Grey. This is just the first piece of a much larger puzzle. Like the forthcoming album itself, it is the result of an intense, tireless, and psychotically convoluted creative process. This painting was born from a deeply personal reflection on the past 12 years of this band's history, and will stand as the 6th and final piece in our chromatically-themed records. I hope you all enjoy this album cover (sorry it's not called Orange). Don't look too closely, you might just see all the hidden elements.'"

Critical reception
Gold & Grey was well received and on aggregate website Metacritic, the album received a score of 91/100 from 14 critics indicating universal acclaim. Loudwire named it one of the 50 best rock albums of 2019.

Commercial performance
Gold & Grey debuted at number one on the UK Rock & Metal Albums Chart, the highest chart position achieved by Baroness to date.

Personnel

 * John Dyer Baizley – lead vocals, backing vocals, rhythm guitar, percussion, piano, artwork
 * Gina Gleason – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards, lead vocals, synthesizer
 * Nick Jost – bass, synthesizer, keyboards
 * Sebastian Thomson – drums