Six years of silence from a band that already had a cult following is either the end of the story or the start of a very interesting next chapter. For Montreal heavy-rock outfit Paradise, it's looking like the latter.

The band — who have been at it in various forms since 2002 and describe their sound as "volcanic rock" (a molten blend of heavy rock, classic metal and stoner undertones) — are back with "Queen of Mars," their first new music since their 2020 self-titled album. It's the opening shot of what they're calling a retro-futuristic new chapter, drenched in '60s and '70s sci-fi imagery: Hawkwind's cosmic drift, Dozer's desert-space textures, the cinematic sweep of Muse.

The band's history gives the comeback real weight. Their early albums were underground favorites, and they recorded with Michel "Away" Langevin and the late Denis "Piggy" D'Amour of Voivod — collaborations that put them in genuinely serious company. Their 2020 return reset the band with a harder edge and earned praise from across the heavy music press.

Now with 8–9 new songs in the pipeline and their creative approach intact — naming tracks early in the writing process to set the tone — Paradise are operating with what guitarist Frank Kelly describes as refreshing simplicity: "We're doing this for fun and to keep the creativity going. We're a party band. Just five guys having a blast."

That might sound modest, but bands this deep into their mythology and this connected to the underground rarely make comebacks just for the hell of it. "Queen of Mars" has the riffs to back up the story.

Watch the "Queen of Mars" video. | Stream on Spotify. | paradiserockband.com