“For nearly 20 years, Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero have been marrying their love of metal with nylon-stringed acoustic guitars, releasing an impressive catalog of albums that showcase their remarkable dexterity and gift for reimagining heavy rock sounds as acoustic instrumentals.

Now comes one of their most surprising recordings to date.”

– NPR

Renowned guitar virtuosos Rodrigo y Gabriela have announced today’s premiere of their visceral new single, “Mettavolution,” the latest song form their eagerly awaited new album of the same name. The band’s fifth studio album arrives everywhere on April 26 via ATO Records. The song’s arrival is heralded today with its premiere via Guitar World magazine. METTAVOLUTION is available for order now, with the first 500 pre-orders receiving an exclusive autographed postcard from Rod and Gab themselves.

LISTEN TO “METTAVOLUTION”

ORDER METTAVOLUTION

The duo’s first album in five years, METTAVOLUTION marks the most ambitious music of Rodrigo y Gabriela’s remarkable two-decade career. Three years in the making, the LP embraces the duo’s passionate interest in Buddhism, the history of human evolution and the liberation of the potential we have as a species, all expressed through the medium of two acoustic guitars. Mettavolution? “Metta” is a Sanskrit word for the meditative condition that produces compassion and benevolence. It is a “practical state of mind” as well, according to Gabriela, “something you practice like an instrument to become a better citizen, in a more evolved place.” Conceived and composed in their studio in Ixtapa on the Mexican Pacific Coast, the music of METTAVOLUTION was road-tested around the world on tour in 2017 and 2018 before being recorded late last year in Los Angeles with multiple GRAMMY-winning producer Dave Sardy (Oasis, LCD Soundsystem, A Perfect Circle, Band of Horses) behind the board.

METTAVOLUTION gathers six white-hot new Rodrigo y Gabriela compositions – much of which acknowledge the duo’s thrash-metal roots back in Mexico City – as well as an inspired, side-long cover of Pink Floyd’s sprawling “Echoes” – originally found on 1971’s MEDDLE – audaciously reimagined for two acoustic guitars. Rolling Stone recently hailed the 19-minute epic as a “Song You Need to Know,” noting, “(‘Echoes’) is such a signature song, it’s hard to imagine anyone else doing it justice, yet somehow the Mexican acoustic-rock duo Rodrigo y Gabriela landed on a brilliant interpretation… Like the original, the song is its own journey, and it’s beautiful.” “(Rodrigo y Gabriela) make (‘Echoes’) entirely their own,” wrote NPR Music, “turning the original version’s extended psych-jam and terrifying atmospherics into percussive knocks on their guitars and strings and other strange, tactile effects. It only gets better and more breathtaking the deeper you get into the track.”

LISTEN TO “ECHOES”

With career album sales now in excess of 1.5 million worldwide, Rodrigo y Gabriela have undoubtedly established themselves as the planet’s preeminent acoustic guitar duo, earning international acclaim and a fervent fan following with their awe-inspiring mastery of their instruments as well as a truly distinctive approach to melody, energy, and rhythm.

One of the world’s most in-demand live acts, Rodrigo y Gabriela have spent much of their remarkable 20-year career performing on increasingly larger stages around the globe. Highlights include sold out shows at such legendary venues as New York City’s Radio City Music Hall, Los Angeles, CA’s Hollywood Bowl, Morrison, CO’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre, London’s Royal Albert Hall, and Paris, FR’s Le Zenith, along with countless other theatres and concert halls in North America, Europe, Australia, and Japan.

APRIL

13 – Munich, GERMANY – Technikum

15 – Berlin, GERMANY – Columbia Theater

17 – Bourges, FRANCE – Printemps de Bourges

18 – Luxembourg City, LUXEMBOURG – den Atelier

19 – Brussels, BELGIUM – Cirque Royal

21 – Dublin, IRELAND – Olympia Theatre

24 – London, ENGLAND – Roundhouse

25 – Paris, FRANCE – L’Olympia

27 – Chamonix, FRANCE – Musilac Mont Blanc *

MAY

4 – Austin, TX – ACL Live at the Moody Theater

5 – Memphis, TN – Beale Street Music Festival *

15 – Boston, MA – Orpheum Theatre

17 – Philadelphia, PA – Franklin Music Hall

18 – New York, NY – Beacon Theatre

23 – Detroit, MI – The Fillmore Detroit

24 – Chicago, IL – The Chicago Theatre

JUNE

1 – Atlanta, GA – Fox Theatre

2 – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium

4 – Wilmington, NC – Greenfield Lake Amphitheatre

5 – Charlottesville, VA – Sprint Pavilion

7 – Vienna, VA – Wolf Trap Filene Center

8 – Cleveland, OH – LaureLive *

9 – Grand Rapids, MI – Frederik Meijer Gardens Amphitheater

JULY

3 – Montreal Jazz Fest – Montreal, Canada *

5 – Ottawa Bluesfest – Ottawa, ON *

9 – Lake Superior Big Top Chautauqua – Bayfield, WI

13 – Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery – Woodinville, WA

* FESTIVAL APPEARANCE

RODRIGO Y GABRIELA

METTAVOLUTION

(ATO Records)

RELEASE DATE: FRIDAY, APRIL 26