heavy metalempire state bastard
22:29 Thursday, 16 March 2023
Empire State Bastard have announced their signing to Roadrunner Records, and shared a teaser clip of their first single, “Harvest”, which will be released worldwide on March 24.
Founded by Simon Neil (Biffy Clyro) and Mike Vennart (Biffy Clyro live guitarist and solo artist, ex-Oceansize), the grindcore extreme metal band also features the legendary Dave Lombardo (Slayer, Testament, Mr. Bungle) on drums, with Naomi Macleod (Bitch Falcon) rounding out the live lineup on bass.
The concept for Empire State Bastard emerged when Neil and Vennart would spend downtime on tour sitting at the back of their bus sharing the heaviest, most avant-garde and confrontational music they could find. Now, a decade on from its conception, the project is finally coming to fruition with Vennart writing the songs and recording all the guitars, and Neil focusing on vocals and lyrics.
The two have emerged with a collection of songs which adventurously probes slamming hardcore in the vein of Siege; the frenetic, visceral thrash of Slayer; the claustrophobic sludge of Melvins; the freeform vocal dexterity of Mike Patton; and the gargantuan stoner riffs of Sleep. It’s a band that’s rooted in the tradition of metal’s forefathers but informed by more recent waves of leftfield aggression.
Up next, Empire State Bastard are slated for a run of sold-out UK shows later this month with festival set confirmed for this summer at Download Festival (June 9), HellFest (June 18), 2000trees (July 7) and ArcTanGent (August 17).
For tickets and more information on Empire State Bastard’s upcoming live dates, head here.
