Prior To The Fire, Dispute With RCA and Departure For Tee Pee Records (2008-2011)
A second studio album had been in progress ever since the summer of 2007, and was finished as Prior to the Fire in the fall of 2008, but was constantly impeded before, during, and after being recorded. All throughout, RCA debated with the band over whether any of the songs were worthy of being singles that could sell the album substantially. RCA first delayed the beginning of the recording process trying to force them to write more songs, then delayed the album release by asking the group to write even more, which the group refused. The production process itself was plagued with problems that prolonged it, as any producer hired before David Schiffman quit the project and law enforcement directed the band to relocate their studio because the bass guitar was set at such a high volume it was shaking houses in the Los Angeles neighborhood they worked in. Their extensive touring schedule for Hello Master had also left them little time to write new songs in the first place.
Because of the disagreements, Priestess were relinquished from their contract with RCA and allowed to release the finished product on another label - a compromise for which the band still respect RCA. Tee Pee Records, who had approached the band in their early days before they decided to sign with RCA who offered them more money, subsequently signed the group and the release finally occurred. Indica Records waited until the band had an international label before releasing Prior to the Fire, and released it in Canada on October 20, 2009, while the international release occurred early the following year. David Schiffman's more-relaxed approach to recording led to a sound for the record the band were more satisfied with; his production style was summarized as " about recording it and not fucking with it", avoiding such studio tools as click tracks or editing, resulting in a record that more closely mirrors the band's live sound than Hello Master does. They have also expressed feeling more comfortable being signed to Tee Pee than to RCA.
In spite of delaying concert plans due to their inability to schedule recording dates, Priestess continued to tour ceaselessly after finishing the album, making a Canadian tour with Bison B.C. in November 2008, and touring the US again in Spring 2009 with GWAR and Cattle Decapitation. Following its release, the group performed with such acts as Early Man, High on Fire and new labelmates Naam in North America, and Bigelf in Europe and the UK.
Read more about this topic: Priestess (band), Biography
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