Photo by Stephanie Cabral
SIX FEET UNDER today unveils their latest single, "Ascension". The annihilating new track comes by way of the band's upcoming fourteenth studio album, Killing For Revenge, set for release on May 10th through Metal Blade Records.
A gnarly beast of a record that's not for the faint-hearted, Killing For Revenge dishes up nightmare-inducing imagery courtesy of legendary frontman Chris Barnes via the vocalist's trademark guttural vocals. Both the album title and darkly detailed red-hued album cover by artist Vince Locke are perfect containers for the brutality within.
Forged as a side project for Barnes during his final years with the band that he co-founded, CANNIBAL CORPSE, SIX FEET UNDER became the frontman's sole focus in 1995, coinciding with the release of their debut, Haunted. Only Barnes remains from SIX FEET UNDER's original incarnation, but the quality has remained remarkably consistent. The current lineup of Barnes, guitarists Jack Owen (ex-Cannibal Corpse) and Ray Suhy, bassist 1Jeff Hughell, and drummer Marco Pitruzzella make for a devastating unit.
Killing For Revenge marks the second album that Barnes and Owen have created together since reuniting for 2020's Nightmares Of The Decomposed. Owen also produced the record. The chemistry between the five men is palpable; listening to Killing For Revenge, one could be forgiven for assuming that they hid themselves away for a couple of months and hammered it out in creative seclusion. Not the case. "We all recorded it on our own, in different parts of the country since we're all spread out," says Barnes. "I think the most important thing is to put everybody in a comfortable space so that they get a great performance. That's what you want to capture. It's really hard nowadays to afford everyone being in the studio recording like we used to back in the '90s. It can be done just as effectively this way."
From the opening moments of "Know-Nothing Ingrate", which kicks off the vile proceedings, it's immediately clear that SIX FEET UNDER focused their energies into something that's as brutal, lyrically visceral, and musically dazzling as one would hope for from the ground-breaking Tampa-bred death metal lineup. As a special bonus, SIX FEET UNDER also recorded a cover of NAZARETH's "Hair Of The Dog", which appears on all formats of Killing For Revenge with the exception of vinyl.
Elaborates Owen of the "Ascension" single, "I wrote the music first, with no lyrical ideas in mind. I wanted a small musical phrase that linked the parts together throughout the song, so I wrote a little chord/drum fill thing to segue riffs from the start of the song, through to the end. It turned out sounding like early POSSESSED, according to listeners. I have an archive of riffs, so I dug for some fast-picking parts that would be easy to sing to.
I had recently found a vinyl box set of works by Shakespeare, and listened to Macbeth," he continues, "It's pretty violent! So while "Ascension" isn't a direct interpretation of the story, it's my take on the classic tale of influence, revenge, and the fate you face. As with many of the songs, Chris lent his lyrical talents to make the song that much better."
Watch SIX FEET UNDER's lyric video for "Ascension" BELOW.
Killing For Revenge, which features a guest appearance by guitarist Jason Suecof on "Neanderthal", was mixed and mastered by Chaz Najjar at Badlands Recording in Denver, Colorado. The record will be released on CD and digital formats as well as vinyl in the following color variants:
- 180g Black (US)
- Clear w/ Red Bloodshot (US)
- 180g Black (EU)
- Crusted Blood Marbled (EU)
- Khaki Brown Marbled (EU - Ltd. 300)
- Blood Red Splatter (EU - Ltd. 300)
- Gold "Black Dust" (EU - Ltd. 200)
Find preorders at metalblade.com/sixfeetunder.
