Progressive deathcore giants Within The Ruins have unleashed their new video for “Demon Killer.” The ferocious new hymn comes off of the band’s Phenomena II full-length, out today on MNRK Heavy.
Phenomena II serves as the sequel to Within The Ruins’ critically lauded Phenomena full-length, which was released a decade ago and has reaped over 18 million streams to date! “We had written a handful of songs, and we were searching for inspiration,” recalls guitarist Joe Cocchi. “We wanted to celebrate the tenth anniversary of Phenomena, because it was a pinnacle point of our career. I wrote a demo that reminded [vocalist] Steve [Tinnon] of Phenomena. So, it was his idea to create Phenomena II. The styles really aligned in terms of the unique guitar effects and the themes where each track tells a story from a comic book character’s point-of-view.”
With “Demon Killer,” the band tempers technicality with moral ambiguity within its depiction of [DC Comics antihero] Constantine. “It checked all of the boxes by utilizing this glitchy effect we started using on Phenomena,” Cocchi elaborates. “‘Demon Killer’ is Constantine. He was born into a world that never appreciated him. Steve is breaking down his character by talking about his internal conflicts and how he’s fighting evil with evil.”
“We absolutely love how this video turned out,” adds Tinnon. “The imagery and effects do incredible justice to the character of John Constantine, and really encapsulate his struggle between the forces of good and evil.”
Within The Ruins was forged in 2003. As the story goes, Cocchi and McGuill first linked up back in high school. They slogged it out locally for a long time, solidifying the initial core lineup of Within The Ruins with previous vocalist Tim Goergen. Building a devout fan base one gig and project at a time, they served up Creature (2009), Invade (2010), and Elite (2013), paving the way for the fan favorite, Phenomena (2014). Drawing its primary subject matter from Marvel and DC characters, the latter yielded two of their most popular anthems “Gods Amongst Men” and “Enigma,” which reeled in 4.7 million Spotify streams and 3.5 million Spotify streams, respectively. Following Halfway Human (2017), the musicians welcomed Steve Tinnon to the fold and ignited Black Heart during 2020. Highlighted by “Deliverance,” “Devil In Me,” and “Black Heart,” the latter incited critical applause.
Tinnon’s addition had injected fresh fire into the band as they continued to write and record. In the meantime, Cocchi opened up his own brewery Tin Bridge Brewing where he and McGuill both work. Tin Bridge Brewing also serves as the band’s homebase, including their studio on site. With the decade anniversary of Phenomena looming, the musicians made a conscious decision to leap forward by looking back. The band wrote and recorded in their hub of Westfield, Massachusetts with Cocchi at the helm as producer once again.
“We had written a handful of songs, and we were searching for inspiration,” recalls Cocchi. “We wanted to celebrate the tenth anniversary of Phenomena, because it was a pinnacle point of our career. I wrote a demo that reminded Steve of Phenomena. So, it was his idea to create Phenomena II. The styles really aligned in terms of the unique guitar effects and the themes where each track tells a story from a comic book character’s point-of-view.”
Phenomena II is available on CD, LP, and digital formats. Order here.
Phenomena II tracklisting:
"Castle In The Sky"
"Daywalker"
"Demon Killer"
"Level 12"
"Eater Of Worlds"
"The Last Son"
"Chaos Reigns"
"Death Mask"
"Corruption"
"A World On Fire"
"Enigma II"
"The Last Son" video:
"Castle In The Sky" video:
(Photo - Riamond Lomeli)
