UNEARTH RELEASES NEW SINGLE “MOTHER BETRAYAL” PREMIERES VIDEO! THE WRETCHED; THE RUINOUS ALBUM DROPS MAY 5TH – PRE-ORDERS
Get “Mother Betrayal” and pre-order album HERE
“‘Mother Betrayal’ is an ominous banger heavily laden with the melodic death metal, thrash and metallic hardcore combination that has signified our sound since the beginning. It kicks up the aggression and ferocity beyond previous recordings while also veering into new territories musically, vocally and structurally. ‘Mother Betrayal’ is a warning that we are smashing past multiple ecological tipping points caused by our dependence on fossil fuels that will forever alter life on our planet,” says Trevor Phipps of UNEARTH. “Mother Betrayal” is the second single from the upcoming album The Wretched; The Ruinous, dropping May 5, 2023. UNEARTH’s previous single, title track “The Wretched; The Ruinous” premiered on Sirius XM Liquid Metal, and has spent a monumental three weeks in the number one spot on “The Devil’s Dozen.”
On album number eight, The Wretched; The Ruinous, UNEARTH not merely continues to amp-up their metal meets hardcore intensities, but they also exceed themselves with a record that incorporates elements of classic UNEARTH offerings dating back to 2004’s “breakthrough” The Oncoming Storm, while exploring beyond the recent back-to-basics promise of 2018’s Extinction(s). For UNEARTH’s founding mainstays, Trevor Phipps and guitarist Buz McGrath, it feels like the beginning of a new chapter. “Buz took the entire pandemic to write these songs,” says Trevor. “He pushed himself to get out of his comfort zone and explore what UNEARTH is, both past and present. Buz adding these new elements and killer song structures inspired me to be more diverse vocally. The Wretched; the Ruinous is still UNEARTH, but it’s also the most dynamic record we’ve ever done.”
Teaming again with Extinction(s) producer, Will Putney (Body Count, Thy Art Is Murder), the goal was simple: create the definitive UNEARTH record. From the scathing title track opener to the explosive “Cremation of the Living”, the brooding “Mother Betrayal” to the album’s riff-violent closer, “Theaters of War”, The Wretched; The Ruinous is UNEARTH pulling out all the stops. “There’s certain songs where you can really hear the band’s hardcore roots,” explains Trevor. “The track ‘Dawn of the Militant’ is a true mix of metal and heavy hardcore, that to me define what the term ‘metalcore’ truly is. For the bulk of this record though, the metal, aggression, and technicality are reminiscent of our Watchers of Rule (2014) album. All of the ingredients of UNEARTH are present on these songs, but the band continues to explore new territories as writers and players.”
The Wretched; The Ruinous is a turning point moment for UNEARTH. It’s first album in their canon recorded without guitarist Ken Susi, who mutually parted with the band in 2022. Trevor shares, “It simply came time for Unearth and Ken to take a break from working together. He’ll always be a large part of the story of this band, and we wish him the best on all of his endeavors”
The frontman makes no bones about the arduous writing process for The Wretched; The Ruinous. “Coming out of the pandemic I found myself struggling to find my zone of creativity with writing, but I pushed through, and once I found it things caught fire.” Phipps has never been one to shy away from often scathing social commentary. “Lyrically, it’s a warning shot record,” Trevor continues. “I’ve spoken about the decline of our environment by Mankind’s hand dating back to our first record in 2001, and I’ve continued to write about the environmental crisis throughout our entire career. We are now at a tipping point with Mother Nature and our place on this planet, and I had to devote the entirety of this album to what is happening around us. This album is a collection of stories of what is happening, and what is to come, if we do not make monstrous changes to how we treat our only home.”
“The Wretched; The Ruinous is about the eight billion people on this planet,” echoes the frontman of UNEARTH’s latest state of the world address. “We’ve created a man-made mass extinction event and have been too slow to correct our faults. Extreme weather, drought, famine, disease, erosion of land, culture wars, civil wars, wars for natural resources, and the displacement of billions of people, is all a current reality. This isn’t a future problem; it is a now problem and I take this record to talk about it. As a species we are very quickly turning our once Garden of Eden into our future hellscape.”
“It’s not all devastation and gloom though,” adds Phipps. “On the track ‘Call of Existence’ I talk about how we can turn this around with swift, drastic changes to our emissions and consumption of natural resources. There is a responsible way forward that will benefit all life on our planet, and we have to embrace and act on that responsibility now.”
UNEARTH premieres the video for “Mother Betrayal”
Watch “Mother Betrayal” HERE – Videographer: Neil Corbin – @nlcrbn
UNEARTH – Hell on Earth Tour 2023
with Misery Index, Year Of The Knife, Turbid North and Leach
04.01.23 Dortmund, Germany – Junkyard
04.02.23 Antwerp, Belgium – Trix
04.05.23 Munchen, Germany – Backstage
04.04.23 Freiburg, Germany – Crash
04.05.23 Eindhoven, Netherlands – Dynamo
04.06.23 Sheffield, UK – Corporation
04.07.23 Leeds, UK – The Warehouse
04.08.23 London, UK – Islington Assembly Hall
04.09.23 Lille, France – The Black Lab
04.10.23 Paris, France – La Machine Du Moulin Rouge
04.11.23 Stuttgart, Germany – Im Wizemann
04.12.23 Weinheim, Germany – Cafe Central
04.13.23 Cottbus, Germany – Gladhouse
04.14.23 Leer, Germany – Zollhaus
04.15.23 Chemnitz, Germany – AJZ Chemnitz
04.16.23 Ostrava, Czechoslovakia – Barrak Music Club
04.17.23 Berlin, Germany – SO36
04.18.23 Hamburg, Germany – Bahnhof Pauli
04.19.23 Copenhagen, Denmark – Pumpehuset
04.20.23 Gothenburg, Sweden – Musikens Hus
04.21.23 Stockholm, Sweden – Slaktkyrkan
+
FESTIVALS
5.28.23 Milwaukee, Wisconsin – Milwaukee Metal Fest
6.15.23 Dessel, Belgium – Graspop Metal Meeting
6.16.23 Clisson, France – Hellfest 2023
6.30.23 Emmen, Netherlands – Pitfest
7.02.23 Saarbrucken, Germany – Reality Bites Fest
About UNEARTH:
With their 25-year mark looming, it’s a daunting thought that UNEARTH has been a part of the metal landscape since making their recorded debut with 1999’s Above the Fall of Man EP. At that point, UNEARTH was one of the key bands in an-about-to-detonate New Wave of American Heavy Metal (NWOAHM) scene that included nascent lineups of Killswitch Engage, Lamb of God, Shadows Fall, Darkest Hour, Bleeding Through, and God Forbid. “It was a healthy competition between all of us,” the vocalist recalls. “It made for some great music and opened up a new chapter in American metal.”
The release of 2001’s The Stings of Conscience album (Eulogy) and its landmark follow-up EndlessEP ignited excitement about UNEARTH, who in 2003 joined Killswitch Engage, Shadows Fall and Lamb of God on the inaugural MTV Headbanger’s Ball tour. Inking with Metal Blade that year for the album The Oncoming Storm, UNEARTH took their spot as one of American metal’s most explosive live acts. “Those early years of full-time touring were really impactful for us,” says Trevor. “We were hitting milestone after milestone, year in year out. Endless road work followed including countless tours, massive European, Japanese, and Australian festivals, and rite-of-passage American road-jaunts, including the Ozzfest and Mayhem festival tours, cemented the Mass quintet as a force in the world of metal. That unassuaged work ethic drives the band to this day.
Joining Trevor, Buz and long-time bassist, Chris O’Toole, on the road is not only new guitarist Peter Layman (ex-Apiary), who filled in for UNEARTH before, but also drummer Mike Justian, long considered an integral part of UNEARTH’s halcyon days. “Mike’s live performance and presence are unmatched, and we couldn’t be happier to have him back with us,” states Trevor. In the Summer of 2022, with Justian and Layman, the band headed off to Europe for festivals and haven’t looked back since, with appearances at various US festivals, a tour in Mexico to round out 2022, and upcoming world touring in 2023, with tours in Australia, Japan, Taiwan and Europe all on the docket in the first quarter of the new year.
Recording Line-Up:
Vocals – Trevor Phipps
Guitars – Buz McGrath
Bass – Chris O’Toole
Drums – Nick Pierce
UNEARTH Discography:
The Stings of Conscience (2001)
The Oncoming Storm (2004)
III: In the Eyes of Fire (2006)
The March (2008)
Darkness in the Light (2011)
Watchers of Rule (2014)
Extinction(s) (2018)
UNEARTH ONLINE:
Website // Facebook // Instagram // Twitter
CENTURY MEDIA RECORDS ONLINE:
Website // Facebook // Instagram // Twitter
