Thunder Bay, in the northwest of Ontario and across Lake Superior from the northern coast of Wisconsin, is home to the metal band VHS. So far as we know, Lake Superior is devoid of deviant sea monsters, killer whales, and ravenous giant sharks, but perhaps the band’s proximity to vast waters had something to do with their attraction to such submarine killers. Whatever the cause, VHS have fully embraced their attraction to ’80s films devoted to seaborne horror and their love of punk and death metal (among other musical interests, as you will soon discover) on their new album, We’re Gonna Need Some Bigger Riffs (get it?).
The new album is set for release on July 26th by Horror Pain Gore Death Productions (U.S.) and Rotten Roll Rex (Europe). The album features guest appearances on two of the songs. Trevor Strnad of The Black Dahlia Murder lends his snarl to the previously premiered “Rooting For the Villain“, and the song we’re presenting today through a lyric video — “Death and Carnage Coming in Waves” — includes guest vocals by none other than Exhumed’s Matt Harvey.
“Death and Carnage Coming in Waves” is based on the Oscar-winning 1980 film Humanoids from the Deep.
Okay, it didn’t win any awards. Produced by Roger Corman, it featured sex-crazed mutations engaging in a rampage of inter-species rape and viscera-drenched murder, which might have had something to do with why it was overlooked by the Academy. But it provides a fitting narrative and visual accompaniment for this VHS song, which melds hook-laden, hard-rocking riffs, neck-snapping snare beats, and predictably gruesome gutturals. In a co-starring role, the song also includes a hell of an extended guitar solo, which is a bit woozy, a bit sleazy, and also soars like the centerpiece of a rock anthem.
VHS vocalist/guitarist Mike comments about the song:
“The last album was missing a song that really showcased the rock side of VHS. While I wouldn’t say this was written to fill that void specifically, it definitely was a song that came very naturally and quickly became one of our favorites on the album. I’ve always been a fan of a lot of music outside of death metal and it is a lot of fun to bring in those different elements and styles to our sound.”
On having Matt Harvey on the track, Mike also tells us this:
“When we started having guest vocalists on our songs, Matt was always someone that I knew I wanted on a track but I really didn’t have the courage or nerve to ask him! I think he liked an Instagram post the band made about the Hemdale/Exhumed split and one thing led to another. I sent him our first album and he liked it. So we stayed in touch. When it came time for this album I had two people I wanted on the album. Trevor from The Black Dahlia Murder and Matt. I asked him if he would be interested and surprisingly he said yes! It was a total kid in a candy store moment hearing the track for the first time with his vocals on it. I’m a huge Exhumed fan, have been for a really long time, and it’s still pretty surreal that Matt is on one of our songs!”
We’re Gonna Need Some Bigger Riffs is available for pre-order now, and it’s recommended for fans of Exhumed, Impetigo, Autopsy. and Macabre. Below you’ll find our premiere, along with the previously released videos for “Rooting For the Villain” and “From the Murky Depths” (which pays homage to Creature From the Black Lagoon).
Now, hit that play button and rock your reproductive organs off!
PRE-ORDER:
https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/were-gonna-need-some-bigger-riffs
https://rottenrollrex.com/en/vhs-cd-were-gonna-need-some-bigger-riffs-pre-order-26-july-2019
VHS:
https://www.facebook.com/vhsthunderbay/