Richmond, Virginia metal-punk trio Bat has been delivering their own blood-spattered horror since ascending from the underground a decade ago on a dark, leather-winged trajectory. The brainchild of Municipal Waste guitarists Ryan Waste & Nick Poulos, Bat leans heavily on the dirtier side of speed metal. On May 17, the band welcomes the release of their second full-length album Under The Crooked Claw via Nuclear Blast Records.

Today, the band offers the infectious second track entitled “Streetbanger”. The music video was directed by Ryan Waste and the cinematography was completed by Jeff Howlett.

Bat's Ryan Waste states, "'Streetbanger' was a title and lyrical concept I’ve had since the Bat demo days, so it’s been marinating for some time. It’s one of the tunes we reworked and played live for a while so it’s already been a staple in the setlist. For the video, we walked the streets of our hometown, Richmond, VA and shot the performance in our actual rehearsal space. I was able to direct the video clip on my own terms with the help of our close friend Jeff Howlett. Jeff is an amazing photographer who shot the band photos for our upcoming album Under the Crooked Claw as well as a documentary filmmaker known for A Band Called Death (2012). 'Streetbanger' embodies our raw, no-frills attitude in Bat and what you see is what you get.”

Preorder/pre-save Under The Crooked Claw at this location.

The power trio, completed by drummer Chris Marshall, decamped to Philadelphia in June 2021 where Arthur Rizk recorded the basic tracks for Under The Crooked Claw. Yavé Rust tracked lead guitars and vocals later when the band was back in Richmond, ultimately to be mixed by Rizk and mastered by Joel Grind. The artwork for the album was inked by Brandon Holt and colored by Margaret Rolicki.

Jam-packed with tight, concise songs loaded with punchy choruses and lightning-laced leads, each of the 13 tracks offers a new horror short story mixing the perfect blend of heavy metal, punk, and rock ‘n’ roll or as Waste coins it "primitive heavy speed".

This Summer, Bat will be heading across the US on a series of 5 headlining dates followed by the first half of the 'Lifeless Birth Tour 2024' with headliners Necrot. Bat will perform throughout May before joining the Necrot tour on June 5 in Berkeley until departing the package on June 27 in Boston. The second half of the tour will continue until July 13 and will include Phobophilic as well as Street Tombs, who will be on the complete tour.

Tracklisting:

“Una torcia illumina il cielo”
“Vampyre Lore”
“Rite For Exorcism”
“Streetbanger”
“Just Buried”
“Warshock”
“Horror Vision”
“Battered”
“Revenge Of The Wolf”
“Marauders Of Doom”
“Electric Warning”
“Bastardized Force”
“Final Strike”

“Streetbanger” video:

“Rite For Exorcism” video:

Headlining dates:

May
3 – Charlotte, NC – Snug Harbor
30 – St. Louis, MO – The Sinkhole
31 – Omaha, NE – Reverb Lounge

June
2 – Denver, CO – The Crypt
3 – Salt Lake City, UT – Aces High Saloon 

June (supporting Necrot)
5 – Berkeley, CA – The Cornerstone
6 – Santa Ana, CA – Constellation Room
7 – Los Angeles, CA – First St. Billiards
8 – San Diego, CA – Brick By Brick
9 – Phoenix, AZ – Nile Underground
10 – Albuquerque, NM – The Launchpad
12 – Austin, TX – Parish
13 – Dallas, TX – Three Links
14 – San Antonio, TX – Vibes Underground
18 – Tampa, FL – Orpheum
19 – Orlando, FL – Will’s Pub
20 – Atlanta, GA – Boggs Special
21 – Columbia, SC – New Brookland Tavern
22 – Raleigh, NC – Chapel Of Bones
23 – Pittsburgh, PA – Cattivo
24 – Baltimore, MD – Metro Gallery
25 – Bensalem, PA – Broken Goblet
26 – Brooklyn, NY – The Meadows
27 – Boston, MA – Sonia

(Photo – Jeff Howlett)