I WONDER IF THEY’RE SPEAKING FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE?

Well, you can’t say that Jim Malone doesn’t have a sense of humor.

After admitting earlier this year that he’s struggled with anorexia, Malone and his band, Arsis, have announced the title of their new album to be Starve for the Devil.

Maybe it’s just my own warped mind that finds gallows humor in that title, but in all fairness to said warped mind, eating disorders have not traditionally been the thematic domain of melodic technical death metal or, come to think of it, any metal whatsoever. And Malone’s self-professed love of hair metal leads me to believe that the name has to be a deliberate call-back to a certain Motley Crue record.

And you have to applaud Malone for a) not just doing what every other band is doing and b) continuing to be open and honest about his personal travails. And Arsis is a fucking brilliant band, so I’m inclined to think they’ll pull this off brilliantly. And I’ll certainly be paying much closer attention to Malone’s lyrics than I might under “normal” circumstances.

Starve still doesn’t have an official release date, but should be out early next year on Nuclear Blast. To make the release even more enticing, it will feature the return of super-awesome drummer Michael Van Dyne after his absence from We Are the Nightmare.

More info as we get it…

-AR