UK extreme metal, hardcore, sludge five-piece, Mastiff, have shared a video for their track, “Serrated,” which featured guest appearances from Harry Nott (Burner), and Dan James (XIII). It comes from their approaching new album, Deprecipice, due for release on March 22nd, via MNRK Heavy records. Keep reading below to check out the video and more.
Pre-order Deprecipice here.
“We’ve gone quite a lot towards a hardcore sound,” says vocalist Jim Hodge. “Where the last one was more death metal, this one’s a lot more staccato: a lot more defined, riff-wise.”
Unlike so many of their extreme metal peers right now, though, Mastiff didn’t source this rejuvenated savagery from the anxieties and frustrations of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the lockdowns ended and real life started to resume in 2021 and 2022, Hodge and guitarist/vocalist James Lee Ross noticed the spirits of the world around them lifting. Feelings of trauma and isolation were beginning to enter people’s rear-view mirrors – and it was an overcoming that the duo couldn’t relate to. Ross was mourning the loss of his mother, while Hodge realized he was still grieving over the death of his five-day-old son, Isaac, in 2010.
“The album’s called Deprecipice, and that pretty much sums up where me and James were when we wrote it,” says the singer. “We were both standing back on the edge of a depressive void.”
Elaborates Hodge, “The track lyrically is about the ‘bullshit machine;’ people blowing smoke up your arse but you trying to stay grounded. It’s too easy to fall foul of the reverse of imposter syndrome. We met Harry and the Burner boys when they came to Hull when they were supporting Employed To Serve and it turned out Burner were fans of us and after about 30 seconds of them playing we all became some of their biggest fans too.”
Adds Nott, ““Serrated”is a relentless track and the vibe clicked instantly – went in the studio and smashed it in a couple of takes with some quickly penned lyrics. Mastiff is the epitome of darkness, so I went hard on some apocalyptic imagery.”
Deprecipice Track Listing:
01 Bite Radius
02 Everything Is Ending
03 Void
04 Cut-Throat feat. Ethan Lee McCarthy (Primitive Man)
05 Skin Stripper
06 Serrated feat. Harry Nott (Burner) & XIII
07 Worship feat. Yersin
08 Pitiful
09 The Shape
10 Thorn Trauma
Deprecipice was produced by longtime collaborator Joe Clayton (Wallowing, Ithaca, Tuskar) at Manchester’s No Studio, and will be released on CD, LP, and digital formats.
To support Deprecipice, Mastiff will hit the road in March touring the UK, which includes a stop at London’s legendary The Black Heart, alongside UK extreme metal outfit, Yersin. See all confirmed dates below.
3/22/2024 Polar Bear – Hull, UK
3/23/2024 Audio – Glasgow, UK
3/24/2024 Bannermans – Edinburgh, UK
3/27/2024 The Black Heart – London, UK
3/28/2024 Green Door Store – Brighton, UK
3/29/2024 Crofters Rights – Bristol, UK
3/30/2024 Devils Dog – Birmingham, UK
3/31/2024 Rough Trade – Nottingham, UK
Mastiff:
Jim Hodge – vocals
James Lee Ross – guitars/vocals
Phil Johnson – guitar
Dan Dolby – bass
Michael Shepherd – drums
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