Finland's Chaoszine caught up with Nile mastermind Karl Sanders to discuss the band's new album, The Underworld Awaits Us All. Check out the completze interview below.
Sanders on Nile's songwriting process:
"Usually with us it's the lyrics that come first. The lyrics kind of become a blueprint or road map for how the song gets written. Every set of words is a little different, so that means if we're following the words, the music can go wherever it needs to. It feels very unrestricted and liberating to make it work that way."
Nile unleash their 10th album, The Underworld Awaits Us All, today (August 23) via Napalm Records.
In celebration of this week's album release, the band dropped their third single - pinnacle burner “Under The Curse Of The One God”. Accompanied by a hypnotic lyric video, the track combines sinister atmospherics with breakneck pacing and vicious riff acrobatics, soaring as a technical tour-de-force with career-defining drumming from George Kollias.
Nile's Karl Sanders comments on the new track and lyric video: "We are really happy that fans will finally have a chance to hear 'Under the Curse of the One God'. It's a ferocious and brutal Nile track, and steeped in Ancient Curses. Many thanks to Ingo Sporl for once again wielding his uniquely creative visual artistry to help bring our music to blasphemous life."
Boasting airtight technicality and unrelenting brutality, the new album pushes each member of Nile – founding mastermind/guitarist Karl Sanders, longtime drum master George Kollias, vocalist/guitarists Brian Kingsland and Zach Jeter, and bassist Dan Vadim Von – to their furthest extremes both in artistry and performance.
Once again produced and recorded at Sanders’ own Serpent Headed Studios in Greenville, South Carolina, the band returned to Vile Nilotic Rites engineer Mark Lewis (Cannibal Corpse, Dying Fetus, Whitechapel) for mixing and mastering.
Facing the planet’s inevitable end with their diehard fans at their side, Nile waste absolutely no time with histrionics on The Underworld Awaits Us All, distilling their trademark Egyptology driven tempest down to its most streamlined essence. Charging into battle as its namesake depicts, “Stelae Of Vultures” makes an immediate impact with dissonant guitar chords and supernatural drumming, teasing the auditory evisceration to come. Topped by impressive screams and gutturals, the track leads into "Chapter For Not Being Hung Upside Down On A Stake In The Underworld And Made To Eat Feces By The Four Apes", citing the Egyptian Book of the Dead’s 181st chapter. The album’s most succinct track, “To Strike With Secret Fang”, blends low-end punishment with blackened death metal inspiration, before album standouts such as “Naqada II Enter The Golden Age” and “Overlords Of The Black Earth” breathe new life with thrash and fusion experimentation, as well as real human choirs – adding a raw element to the Nile fold. Each track soars as a technical tour-de-force – featuring career-defining extreme drumming from Kollias, as well as razor-sharp soloing from all three active guitarists and palpable bass exploration. A perfect example of this equation is pinnacle burner “Under the Curse of the One God”, combining sinister atmospherics with breakneck pacing and whirlwind, vicious riff acrobatics.
Throughout the remainder of its 11 pummelling tracks and intricate interludes, Nile masters full-tilt speed and ferocious musicality. 30 years into their heavy reign, The Underworld Awaits Us All proves that Nile is marching onward and undoubtedly upward, bleeding metal for their fandom for as long as the sands of time will allow.
The Underworld Awaits Us All’s mind-bending art was once again envisioned and created by Michał 'Xaay' Loranc, with reference to the cycle of life and judgment at its end.
The Underworld Awaits Us All will be available in the following formats:
- 6 Page CD Digipak & Anubis Bust (limited to 500)
- 2LP Gatefold Marbled Orange Black w/ 24 Page Vinyl Booklet and Slipmat (limited to 200)
- 2LP Gatefold Splatter Dark Green Yellow (limited to 300)
- 2LP Gatefold Black
- 2LP Gatefold Clear (North American retail stores only - limited to 500)
- Cassette Tape Edition Yellow (limited to 200)
- 6 Page CD Digipak
- Digital Album
Pre-order here.
The Underworld Awaits Us All tracklisting:
"Stelae of Vultures
"Chapter For Not Being Hung Upside Down On A Stake In The Underworld And Made To Eat Feces By The Four Apes"
"To Strike With Secret Fang"
"Naqada II Enter The Golden Age"
"The Pentagrammathion Of Nephren-Ka"
"Overlords Of The Black Earth"
"Under The Curse Of The One God"
"Doctrine Of Last Things"
"True Gods Of The Desert"
"The Underworld Awaits Us All"
"Lament For The Destruction Of Time"
"To Strike with Secret Fang" lyric video:
"Chapter For Not Being Hung Upside Down On A Stake" video:
Nile will kick off their upcoming European headline tour on September 3 in Essen, Germany, and will follow with tour dates in Japan, Thailand, Australia and New Zealand later this year. Nile also recently announced their upcoming 2025 US co-headline tour with death metal greats Six Feet Under, featuring support from Psycroptic and Embryonic Autopsy. Visit nile-official.com for more information on all dates.
Underworld Europe Tour 2024:
September
3 - Essen, Germany - Turock
4 - Amstelveen, Holland - P60
5 - Bristol, UK - The Fleece
6 - Glasgow, UK - Slay
7 - Dublin, Ireland - Opium
8 - Belfast, N.Ireland - Limelight2
10 - Manchester, UK - Rebellion
11 - London, UK - Underworld
12 - Drachten, Holland - Iduna
13 - Uden, Holland - De Pul
14 - Brugge, Belgium - Het Entrepot
15 - Mannheim, Germany - MS Connexion Complex
17 - Barcelona, Spain - Salamandra
18 - Valencia, Spain - Almassera
19 - Sevilla, Spain - Custom
20 - Lisbon, Portugal - RCA
21 - Porto, Portugal - Hard Club
22 - Madrid, Spain - Mon
24 - Moncalieri (TI), Italy - Audiodrome
25 - Rome, Italy - Largo
26 - Modena, Italy - Notte Tempio
27 - Aarau, Switzerland - KiFF
28 - San Dona' Di Piave, Italy - Revolver
29 - Munich, Germany - Backstage
Japan Tour 2024:
October
8 - Tokyo, Japan - Space Odd
9 - Tokyo, Japan - Space Odd
10 - Osaka, Japan - Varon
Nile in Bangkok:
October
12 - Bangkok, Thailand - Mr. Fox Live House
Nile Australia & New Zealand Tour 2024:
October
15 - Perth, Australia - Milk Bar / Civic Hotel
16 - Adelaide, Australia - The Gov
17 - Brisbane, Australia - The Brightside
18 - Melbourne, Australia - Max Watts
19 - Hobart, Australia - Uni Bar
20 - Sydney, Australia - Crowbar
22 - Auckland, New Zealand - Whammy
Revenge Of The Underworld Tour with Six Feet Under:
January
7 - Nashville, TN - Basement East
8 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade
10 - Orlando, FL - The Abbey
11 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Culture Room
12 - Tampa, FL - Orpheum
13 - Charleston, SC - Music Farm
14 - Greenville, SC - Radio Room
15 - Greensboro, NC - Hangar 1819
17 - Sayreville, NJ - Starland Ballroom
18 - Worcester, MA - The Palladium Underground
19 - Albany, NY - Empire Live
20 - Mechanicsburg, PA - Lovedrafts
21 - Pittsburgh, PA - Preserving Underground
23 - Cleveland, OH - Agora Theater
24 - Columbus, OH - The King Of Clubs
25 - Flint, MI - Machine Shop
26 - Grand Rapids, MI - Elevation
27 - Joliet, IL - The Forge
29 - St. Louis, MO - Red Flag
30 - Cincinnati, OH - Bogarts
31 - Ft. Wayne, IN - Piere's
February
1 - Milwaukee, WI - The Rave
2 - Minneapolis, MN - Skyway Theater
4 - Denver, CO - Oriental Theater
6 - Las Vegas, CA - Sinwave
7 - Santa Ana, CA - Observatory
8 - Roseville, CA - Goldfield Roseville
10 - Portland, OR - Bossanova Ballroom
11 - Seattle, WA - El Corazon
13 - Berkeley, CA - Cornerstone
14 - Santa Cruz, CA - Catalyst
15 - Los Angeles, CA - 1720
17 - Phoenix, AZ - Nile Theater
18 - Farmington, NM - Lauter Haus
20 - Dallas, TX - Haltom Theater
21 - Austin, TX - Come And Take It Live
22 - Houston, TX - Warehouse Live
Nile Festivals;
May
22-25 - Baltimore, MD - Maryland Deathfest XX
Nile is:
Karl Sanders - Guitar, Vocals, Keyboards
George Kollias - Drums
Brian Kingsland - Guitar, Vocals
Zach Jeter - Guitar, Vocals
Dan Vadim Von - Bass
