VOLBEAT Release "Temple Of Ekur" Lyric Video; Servant Of The Mind Album Out Now
December 3, 2021, 2 years ago
Volbeat have released a lyric video for "Temple Of Ekur", featured on their new album, Servant Of The Mind, out now via EMI Records. Watch the clip below:
Servant Of The Mind is available in standard/digipack CD, deluxe 2LP vinyl (with various limited-edition variants, more info below), a deluxe digital edition, plus a special box set (including 2CD digipack, 28pg booklet, bandana, and hip flask, housed in a metal box, available from the official Volbeat store). Order the album here.
For Servant Of The Mind, the band - Michael Poulsen (guitars/vocals), Jon Larsen (drums), Rob Caggiano (guitars) and Kaspar Boye Larsen (bass) - took their signature heavy metal, psychobilly, and punk ‘n’ roll sound up a notch while showcasing Poulsen’s keen ability for songwriting and storytelling.
"I wrote the whole album in three months," recalls Poulsen, "I was in a good place and mood while at home, and had a captive audience of myself… There are a lot of Volbeat signatures in it. If you go back to the first record and compare it to where we are now, you can hear how the band has developed its style, while keeping the signature sound."
The album also includes the double barrel of summer songs the band released in June: "Wait A Minute My Girl” and "Dagen Før" (feat. Stine Bramsen) (the former of which became the band’s ninth #1 single on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart).
Other songs on the album weave intricate and fascinating tales. "The Sacred Stones" tells the story of "an earthly being who has committed himself to the dark side. He is on a mission, speaking to darker forces and fallen angels." Meanwhile, "The Devil Rages On" looks at the idea of the devil taking human form. Album opener "Temple Of Ekur” returns to the ancient themes explored in past songs such as "The Gates of Babylon,” while the epic album closer "Lasse’s Birgita” explores the story of the first witch burnings to occur in Sweden in 1471.
Volbeat are two decades deep into a career that has found them sharing stages with genre legends like Black Sabbath, Metallica, Motorhead, Slipknot, Megadeth, Anthrax and more. They have racked up nearly three billion cumulative streams over the course of their career, notched a Best Metal Performance Grammy nomination for "Room 24 (feat. King Diamond)" from 2014's acclaimed (and gold-selling) Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies, and have grabbed multiple Danish Music Awards. Not ones to rest on their laurels, their forthcoming album Servant Of The Mind, which was written and recorded during the shutdown and quarantine necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic, is introspective but pulls no punches and is no less raucous or driving than their previous efforts.
Since forming in 2001, Volbeat has gone from the clubs of Copenhagen to headlining stages around the world, including the famed Telia Parken stadium in Denmark (becoming the only domestic artist to ever sell out the venue). Over the course of seven record-breaking albums the band has picked up number one songs (including nine #1s on the US Mainstream Rock chart and counting, the most of any band based outside of North America), multi-platinum certifications, awards, and accolades all over the planet. Their latest album, Rewind, Replay, Rebound, was released in 2019, giving the band their highest national album chart position in the UK yet at #7, and has spawned the hit singles "Last Day Under The Sun,” "Die To Live (feat. Neil Fallon)” and "Leviathan.” A live album featuring songs recorded during the subsequent world tour, Rewind, Replay, Rebound: Live in Deutschland, was released digitally in November 2020. Most recently, they contributed a cover of "Don’t Tread On Me” to The Metallica Blacklist, with all proceeds from the track benefiting the All Within My Hands Foundation and the Børne Cancer Fonden of Denmark.
Servant Of The Mind vinyl variants (Europe):
- Standard 180g black vinyl 2 LP
- Crystal Clear 2 LP, volbeat.dk webstore exclusive, limited to 2000
- Glow In The Dark 2 LP, EMP exclusive, limited to 2000
- Orange and Blue 2 LP, UMG exclusive, limited to 3000
- Danish Red and White 2 LP – only available in Denmark, limited to 2000
Servant Of The Mind vinyl variants (North America):
- Standard 180g black vinyl 2LP
- Translucent Rust 2 LP – volbeat.dk webstore exclusive, limited to 550
- Transparent Yellow 2 LP – Revolver Magazine exclusive, limited to 400
- Mystery Colour LP2 – indie retail exclusive, limited to 100
Tracklisting:
"Temple Of Ekur"
"Wait A Minute My Girl"
"The Sacred Stones"
"Shotgun Blues"
"The Devil Rages On"
"Say No More"
"Heaven’s Descent"
"Dagen Før" (feat. Stine Bramsen)
"The Passenger"
"Step Into Light"
"Becoming"
"Mindlock"
"Lasse’s Birgitta"
Deluxe 2 CD/2 LP and Digital Deluxe bonus tracks:
"Return To None" (Wolfbrigade cover)
"Domino" (The Cramps/Roy Orbison cover)
"Shotgun Blues" (feat. Dave Matrise from Jungle Rot)
"Dagen Før" (Michael Vox Version)
"Shotgun Blues" video:
"Becoming" lyric video:
"Shotgun Blues” lyric video:
"Wait A Minute My Girl" video:
"Dagen Før" lyric video:
Volbeat have announced a special, intimate show in London ahead of their June 2022 Download Festival performance, where they play directly underneath headliners Biffy Clyro and Korn on Sunday's main stage.
The one-off London date will take place at the 800-capacity O2 Academy Islington venue on May 21, a giant underplay for the band who have previously sold out the 48,250 capacity Telia Parken stadium back home in Denmark. Tickets are expected to sell out rapidly when they go on sale.