GAMA BOMB are today premiering their new album, BATS, via MetalSucks. Accompanying the premiere, the band has also shared a full track-by-track breakdown of the full-length ahead of its November 10 release date. The Irish thrashers eighth full-length follows their recent Bats Over Britain UK tour, and comes ahead of GAMA BOMB‘s planned Life After Death Horrorfest appearance in Mexico this December.
LISTEN TO BATS AND READ THE TRACK-BY-TRACK VIA METALSUCKS HERE.
Pre-order BATS
here.
Speaking on BATS‘ premiere, GAMA BOMB vocalist Philly Byrne comments: “We put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into this album – almost a year of our lives. We’re proud of how eccentric, complex and ambitious it is, and how damn catchy the riffs are. We hope you love it just as much as we do. See you on the road!”
From the tombs of Egypt to the faded glamour of old Hollywood, Philly, Domo, John, Joe and James (Vader and Decapitated) lead us through new sonic landscapes and all manner of novel adventures on BATS. BATS
is an album that could only be borne from GAMA BOMB; they have embraced their inner absurdities, they’ve taken a trust fall into each other’s arms, relying on the idiosyncratic glue that has bound them together over the last 21 years to propel them forwards. BATS is the first GAMA BOMB
album to be entirely produced, mixed and mastered by guitarist Domo Dixon; utilising the remote recording skills picked up during various lockdowns over the past few years, recording for BATS was approached with a deliberately self-sufficient attitude.
Whilst the lyrical content veers into various different directions, the album is tied together with a 1960s-inspired aesthetic as demonstrated via the BATS
artwork – serving as a visual tribute to the iconic design trends and pop culture of the 60s. The art was created by the legendary Graham Humphreys, the artist behind iconic posters for A Nightmare on Elm Street, Evil Dead and What We Do In The Shadows, now in his fourth collaboration with GAMA BOMB. John comments: “The accompanying artwork and inlay by the lovely Rory McGuigan are based on 1960s exploitation movies in the vein of Russ Meyer and other directors who didn’t want to put their name on their films.” Longtime GAMA BOMB
fan and accomplished painter, Kirsty Clark, takes the starring role on the album artwork – welcoming you into the entirely fictional BATS cinematic universe.
Sonically, GAMA BOMB manage to stay true to their distinctive thrash sound, honed to perfection over two decades at the frontline of headbanging and fist-pumping. There are nods to heavy metal titans such as Judas Priest and Iron Maiden, there’s even a sliver of Bad Brains-esque punk attitude, and more familiar influences such as Tankard and Sodom are still evident. But if you think GAMA BOMB are serving up something run of the mill then you’ve clearly not accounted for the guest appearance by Irish musician Gavin Kerins or a star-turn from hip hop pioneer The Egyptian Lover who raps on – naturally – Egyptron.