Cradle Of Filth will return to American shores this fall for the Lustmord and Tourgasm tour, featuring an epic full performance of the British band’s classic 1998 concept album Cruelty And The Beast for the first time ever, as well as an encore of other Cradle Of Filth fan favorites.

“It’s been far too long America, but soon we will return to haunt your shores again,” says vocalist Dani Filth. “We, as a band, are very much looking forward to coming back to the States and performing Cruelty And The Beast in its entirety (plus some firm fan favourites), which was our earlier intention before the Pandemic reared its ugly head.”

Joining Cradle Of Filth will be 3Teeth and Once Human. “To say we’re very excited about this, plus the support of 3Teeth and Once Human is an overwhelming understatement!” Filth says.

Says Once Human guitarist Logan Mader, “After nearly two years of being pent up, it’s time to let loose! We are beyond ready to hit the road and destroy stages this October supporting the mighty Cradle Of Filth and in support or our new single, ‘Deadlock,’ featuring Robb Flynn. Once Human’s new album will be out early ‘22, more singles to come!”

Released in 1998, the monumental Cruelty And The Beast is based on the legend of the Hungarian “blood countess” Elizabeth Báthory. Born into a prominent Hungarian family in 1560, Bathory went on to torture and kill an unknown number of women and girls – reportedly up to 650 - between 1590 and 1610. Despite evidence against her, Bathory was spared a death sentence by her family’s prominence and was sentenced to imprisonment at Čachtice Castle in Hungary (now Slovakia) until her death in 1614. Bathory is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most prolific female killer in history.

This harrowing tale was brought to life musically on Cruelty And The Beast, a grandiose endeavor that introduced a more gothic influence to the extreme metal band’s sound, with vocal choirs and string elements working in synch with Cradle Of Filth’s trademark guitar riffs and blast beats. To complete the vision, the band included guest narration by actress Ingrid Pitt, who played the role of Bathory in the 1971 Hammer cult classic Countess Dracula. The album also served as Cradle Of Filth’s formal introduction to North American, after already catching the ears of fans across the pond with their The Principle of Evil Made Flesh and Dusk and Her Embrace albums.

Dates:

October
1 - Dallas, TX - Gas Monkey
2 - Austin, TX - Come and Take It Live
3 - Houston, TX - White Oak Music Hall
5 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade
7 - Baltimore, MD - Baltimore Soundstage
9 - Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club
10 - Harrisburg, PA - HMAC
11 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza
12 - Brooklyn, NY - Warsaw
14 - Cleveland, OH - Agora Theater
15 - Detroit, MI - Harpo’s
16 - Chicago, IL - Radius
18 - Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre
20 - Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theatre
21 - Anaheim, CA - House of Blues
22 - San Diego, CA - Belasco Theatre
23 - Los Angeles, CA - Observatory North Park
24 - Sacramento, CA - Ace of Spades
26 - San Francisco, CA - Regency
29 - Monterrey, MX - Monterrey Metal Festival

Belched from Hell’s depths into the rustic charms of the Witch County, Suffolk, thirty long and disturbing years ago, Cradle Of Filth are undisputed giants of the heavy metal realm. Imperious purveyors of a perennially unique strain of dark, dastardly and willfully extreme metal, with deep roots in the worlds of gothic horror and occult curiosity, the band led by Dani Filth has weathered three decades of tumult and trial, earning a formidable reputation as both a singular creative force and one of the most riotously entertaining live bands the metal world has ever produced.

Now the gates of hell have finally opened up again, to reveal the band's 13th manifesto, recorded during the lockdown periods of 2020 and entitled Existence Is Futile (out October 22). Pieced together in isolation, at Grindstone Studios in Suffolk with studio guru Scott Atkins (Devilment/Benediction/Vader), the band's latest chef-d'oeuvre is a pitch-black, perverse and at times absurdly brutal and extreme masterpiece following a truly nihilistic concept.

“The album is about existentialism, existential dread and fear of the unknown,” frontman Dani Filth explains. “The concept wasn’t created by the pandemic. We’d written it long before that began, but the pandemic is the tip of the cotton-bud as far as the way the world is headed, you know? I guess the title, Existence Is Futile, does sound a little morbid. But again, it’s more about recognizing that truth and saying that everything is permitted because nothing really matters, which mimics the occultist Aleister Crowley’s maxim. We all know we’re going to die, so we might as well indulge life while we possess it. The final track on the album - 'Us, Dark, Invincible' - really drives that point home. Also, the artwork for this record was created by the Latvian visionary Arthur Berzinsh, who also dressed the last two albums, and that reeks of the exceedingly beautiful yet apocalyptic too.”

Diehard fans will be thrilled to learn that horror icon Doug “Pinhead” Bradley makes a welcome return to the Cradle fold, lending his dulcet tones to the band's most politically astute song to date, the epic “Suffer Our Dominion” as well as the album bonus track “Sisters Of The Mist,” which is the conclusion to the Her Ghost In The Fog trilogy that started over 20 years ago on the infamous and classic Midian.

Yet today, the hellhounds from Suffolk will reveal one of their most brutal tracks on the new album, accompanied by an infernal music video directed by Vicente Cordero. Poison your eyes and ears with Cradle Of Filth’s latest Lovecraftian anthem and evoke the “Crawling King Chaos” below.

Existence Is Futile will be available in the following formats:

- CD jewelcase
- CD digipak (incl. 2 bonus tracks)
- Collector's edition boxset including digipak, 2LP in gatefold, necklace with band symbol pendant, 5 buttons, flag with album artwork, lyric sheet from Dani Filth (also available as strictly limited NB mailorder edition featuring an alternative cover artwork)
- 2 LP in gatefold with 2 bonus tracks:
* Black
* Picture
* Glow in the dark
* Red + yellow marbled (NB mailorder excl.)
* Purple + black marbled (UK exclusive)
* Silver + black splatter (US exclusive)
* Blue transparent (EMP excl.)
* White + black marbled (Revolver excl.)
- Cassette tape (US exclusive)

The album pre-order starts on this fateful day of July, so reserve your copy or pre-save the album here.

Existence Is Futile consists of 12 new tracks with a total playing time of 54 minutes.

Tracklisting:

"The Fate Of The World On Our Shoulders"
"Existential Terror"
"Necromantic Fantasies"
"Crawling King Chaos"
"Here Comes A Candle… (Infernal Lullaby)"
"Black Smoke Curling From The Lips Of War"
"Discourse Between A Man And His Soul"
"The Dying Of The Embers"
"Ashen Mortality"
"How Many Tears To Nurture A Rose?"
"Suffer Our Dominion"
"Us, Dark, Invincible"
"Sisters Of The Mist" (Bonus track)
"Unleash The Hellion" (Bonus track)

"Crawling King Chaos" video:

So, if we’re all going to perish in the fire of our own stupidity, we might as well have a suitably deranged and destructive soundtrack to do it by.

Cradle Of Filth, 2021 A.D., are:

Dani Filth - Vocals
Richard Shaw - Guitar
Ashok - Guitar
Daniel Firth - Bass
Martin ‘Marthus’ Skaroupka - Drums
Anabelle - Keyboards & backing vocals