Nuclear Blast has announced the signing of Montreal-based deathcore pioneers, Despised Icon.

For many extreme music fans, it may be hard to remember a time before Despised Icon, given the massive influence they’ve subsequently had on the genre. But when the group formed back in 2002 and released Consumed By Your Poison the same year, there was little intersection between the sounds of classic death metal and the brute force of hardcore. But Despised Icon were among the first to fully embrace the signatures of the traditional death metal formula combined with a relentless embrace of breakdowns, part of an emerging new sound.

Now Despised Icon have returned with their upcoming album entitled, Beast. The genre-defining band is fully reawakened, poised to recapture the crown with the monstrous and merciless might of their potent expression. Featuring the men responsible for most of the band’s now classic death metal catalog, Beast is a vicious commentary on the state of the world and the state of music itself.

"It's been 7 years since our last record and our batteries are fully recharged," comments the band. "The O.G. lineup is back and the new shit hits hard. You'll hear sounds of our older slammin' death metal days blended with the speed and technicality of our latest records. Cheers to everyone that has stood by us after all these years. Can't wait to unleash the Beast."

Adds Nuclear Blast head of retail Roy Culver: "I signed Despised Icon to Century Media back in 2004 after hearing their debut record Consumed By Your Poison. The band perfected the mix of ferocious, technical death metal with a modern take on hardcore and their first record for the label, The Healing Process, broadened the minds of a whole new generation of metal heads. I love these guys and couldn’t be happier to be working with them again here at Nuclear Blast. The Icon is back!"

Check out the album teaser for Beast below. The album is tentatively scheduled for a summer 2016 release. More info to follow soon.

Despised Icon’s live itinerary can be found here.

(Photo - Charlie Baron)