P.O.D. / The Innocence And Dark Hidden Truths Of Veritas

Acclaimed on a monumental level in their own right, P.O.D. are the Nu Metal giants with decades of music under their belts. Their new album, Veritas, is due for release on 3 May 2024 via Mascot Records and the levels of anticipation are rising and rising. The third single, I Won’t Bow Down, has now been released.

The recent P.O.D. show at London’s OVO Arena Wembley was a total slam-dunk knockout performance. The arena was teeming with drink-guzzling Metalheads raging for P.O.D. and their first UK dates in years.

The first single from Veritas was Drop. Released last year, it featured a vicious vocal cameo from Lamb of God singer Randy Blythe. The second out was Afraid To Die, featuring Jinjer vocalist Tatiana Shmayluk. Combined, both tracks have gained over seven million streams to date.

“We can’t wait for you all to hear the new album in its entirety,” Marcos Curiel [guitar] said. “We’ve put so much heart and soul into this recording. We are extremely proud of it. We hope to see all your beautiful faces in a city near you. Thank you for your unwavering support. We love and appreciate you all.”

Veritas is a cannon shot of adrenaline to the eardrums, written over the course of several years. The band also wrote a tune or two at a time in L.A. with The Heavy. This is one of the most emotionally inspired albums of the band’s career.

“There’s a first time for everything,” Sonny Sandoval [vocals] said, “and the writing and recording process of this record will definitely not be the last. We might’ve just created our best album yet.”

P.O.D. say their approach is still of perpetual underdogs, and with every new album and show, they still feel they have something to prove. “We’re still here,” Curiel says, “and we’re still creating some of the best music we’ve ever made.”

Bassist Traa Daniels is equally enthusiastic. “This will most likely be one of my favourite P.O.D. records,” he says. “There are some songs on this record that are so different from one another but still have that P.O.D. So Cal flavour.”

Always looking forward, P.O.D. are extremely grateful for where they are and excited about the future. “30 years ago, there wasn’t this end goal,” Sandoval says. “It was always about the next record, the next show, the next tour.

“We’ve always enjoyed where we’re at. We’re still hustling, and we’re still working hard.”

Veritas, which translates to ‘Truth’ in Latin, defines the album’s emotional core. The album cover, which pictures a child with its eyes blacked out, signifies, as Curiel describes it, “a culmination of innocence and dark hidden truths.”

Veritas is out on 3 May 2024 via Mascot Records and can be pre-ordered from here.

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