BLESSID UNION OF SOULS

BLESSID UNION OF SOULS

TAKE FANS ‘CLOSE TO THE EDGE’

WITH NEW ALBUM OUT SEPTEMBER 16

July 16, 2008 -- After rotating band members, management companies and record labels over the past few years, BLESSID UNION OF SOULS—founders lead singer/songwriter, Eliot Sloan and bassist Tony Clark, along with six year vets Bryan Billhimer (guitars) and Shaun Schaefer (drums)--are back with the band's sixth studio album, CLOSE TO THE EDGE. It’s due out September 16 on Torque Records (distributed by Sony/Victory/Red). The first single, “Could’ve Been With Me,” is currently being serviced to radio stations nationwide and will be made available on iTunes in the coming weeks.

With CLOSE TO THE EDGE, the Cincinnati band embarks on an album that is more indicative to what the four of them bring to the table musically. Taking eight tracks from their previously independent album, PERCEPTION and adding four fresh new songs to the record, the band is back in full force with a new outlook on their careers.

Blessid Union Of Souls fans can be reassured that they have not abandoned the song writing integrity that helped establish them as one of the premier groups of the past decade. Their knack for simple, sing along melodies can be heard in the instantly likeable “I’ll Be There” and their taste for intriguing themes is evident in their opening track, “Back From The Dead,” which is an emotional, personal piece about recovery from addictions.

“CLOSE TO THE EDGE, in its entirety and its title, represents exactly where we are as a band,” explains lead singer Eliot Sloan. “There’s a sense of urgency in this record that was completely unintentional and I think it turned out better than anyone in the band expected. It’s the record we’ve been trying to make for the last 5 years, and to hear it as a completed work, knowing it’s about to be released to the masses, has us feeling like this is the first record we’ve ever released.”

Blessid Union Of Souls has been blessed indeed since their 1995 debut. They’ve had eight Top 40 hits including “I Wanna Be There,” “Hey Leonardo (She Likes Me For Me)” and “I Believe,” which reached #1 in the U.S., Southeast Asia and England while becoming the fourth most played song of 1995; they’ve performed worldwide with The Goo Goo Dolls, Bon Jovi, Shania Twain, Sarah McLachlan and with Mike and The Mechanics at two sold-out shows at Royal Albert Hall in England; their songs have been heard in movies with Jodie Foster, Jim Carrey and Penny Marshall, as well as on TV shows like "Cold Case," "All My Children," "Dancing With The Stars" and "American Idol.”

With their humble, not-so-rock-star attitude, radio-friendly songs and an absolute love for their fans, Blessid Union Of Souls continues to defy odds and remain a steady, driving force on the music scene. With their new album on the horizon and a tour to follow, the band doesn’t complain about the climate of the industry, they just continue to do what they’ve done from the beginning that have made them a mainstay in pop music: write songs from the heart.

Stay tuned for news about U.S. tour dates launching later this year…