Kvelertak Debut Rowdy New Song Featuring Mastodon’s Troy Sanders
Kvelertak's fourth album, Splid, will be out next month and the Norwegian group has just dropped a music video for the second single, "Crack of Doom," which features a guest appearance from Mastodon's Troy Sanders.
Unlike the winding, contorting "Bråtebrann," the first track from Splid to be released, "Crack of Doom" is fairly straightforward, rollicking affair. There's a garage rock aesthetic prevailing over the entire song, loaded with the hardcore punk energy Kvelertak have made their name on. As for Sanders, he really gets involved, trading lines with singer Ivar Nikolaisen, taking the chorus for himself and the two combine the mix of barking and crooning elsewhere with explosive effect.
"Ever heard of the Maya apocalypse? Johannes Stöffler? Harold Camping? Are you afraid that the religious leaders, scientists, or the doomsday preachers may be right?," asked Kvelertak, who reassured us all, "Have no fear! They were all wrong. But now, Kvelertak has come to prophesize Ragnarok, straight into your heart and soul. The 'Crack of Doom' shines on us all!"
Divulging how Sanders entered the picture, Kvelertak continued, "We sent Troy a demo of the song because there were a couple of parts we felt would fit his voice very well and lift the song. Luckily, he liked the track and was keen to do it. He got some scratch vocal tracks and some guidelines but was free to do it however he wanted. What we got back was even better than what we could hope for. We’re extremely proud to have him featured on this song, and with Troy being American, it felt natural to just do the whole thing in English."
In the video below, Nikolaisen endures a bit of a hazing rite as the newest member of the band. "It has been an amazing experience and a privilege to assist in the baptism of Ivar Nikolaisen into the ranks of the band, and putting him through the torturous conditions of ice bathing in sub-zero temperatures, setting him on fire, galloping through the forest shirtless mid-winter, or hanging him upside down from a tree," added director Stian Anderson.
Splid is due to arrive on Feb. 14 on Rise Records. The album can be pre-ordered here.
Kvelertak, "Crack of Doom" (Feat. Mastodon's Troy Sanders) Music Video
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