WEREWOLVES are today premiering their utterly crushing new single, Harvest of the Skulls, and its accompanying music video via Knotfest. Harvest of the Skulls is the third single to be taken from the Australian extreme death metal trio’s upcoming third full length, From the Cave to the Grave, due out on June 24 via Prosthetic Records.
WEREWOLVES have also recently announced their first ever set of live performances in their home country, more details on the dates below.
WATCH THE MUSIC VIDEO FOR HARVEST OF THE SKULLS VIA KNOTFEST HERE.
From the Cave to the Grave is available to pre-order here.
Harvest of the Skulls will be available on all streaming platforms tomorrow (Friday, June 10).
Speaking on the premiere, bassist and vocalist Sam Bean comments: “We thought we’d bring you a happy little track about death and genocide called ‘Harvest of the Skulls’, which we think is our sauciest film clip so far. Most metal tracks out there that deal with genocide gratuitously recount the action itself. We thought it would be way more horrific if we described what it would be like to be in a country where everyone loses their mind and you’re coerced into mass murder… being made to go along with things, like you’re forced into a large public service work.
“As usual, we wrote this a year or two ago and hey presto, just as the song’s coming out the world is waking up to a few large ongoing genocides happening right now. We really need to write a track about everything turning out alright and everyone being okay.”
WEREWOLVES’ debut The Dead Are Screaming was recorded in 2019 and followed by Australia going from medium to well-done in apocalyptic bushfires. The second release What A Time to Be Alive was recorded in 2020 and closely preceded a global pandemic then mass hysteria. WEREWOLVES attempted some caution and tact by only releasing a limited vinyl EP, DeathMetal, in February 2022 and happened to put it out for sale the same day war came to Europe.
From The Cave to The Grave keeps up the searing pace of the first two WEREWOLVES albums, with a mix of black and death metal and unprecedented aggression that is coalescing into a style of its own. Opener Self-Help Book Burning kicks the door in Hate Eternal-style before deforming into a blackened ending. It’s followed by stadium crowd-pleaser We Are Better Than You, blaster All the Better to Eat You With, and social credit score-destroyer Crushing Heaven’s Mandate. Harvest of the Skulls is an ode to the horror of genocide and the rest of the album blasts through to closing threat Watch Your Mouth, leaving you to enjoy your ringing ears and mild trauma.
The mixing is by Joe Haley (Psycroptic) and the artwork is by Mitchell Nolte. Slayer never changed their shit up, neither will WEREWOLVES. “Change” can be mistaken for “progression”, which WEREWOLVES shrinks in horror from.
Upcoming WEREWOLVES tour dates:
June 25 – Crowbar – Sydney, Australia*
August 5 – Max Watts – Melbourne, Australia*
November 19 – Froth & Fury – Pirate Life Brewing – Adelaide, Australia
*w/ Psycroptic