Gama Bomb Mourn Their Mascot in “Speed Funeral,” Announce New Album Bats
Strike up the Boys II Men and break out the hard alcohol — Gama Bomb‘s mascot Snowy The Gamabominable Snowman has passed and we’ve gathered here today to drink copious amounts of booze to get our hands on his inheritance money. At least that’s the concept of the hilarious music video for “Speed Funeral,” the first single off the band’s upcoming album Bats.
Released earlier today, the song is an absolute thrash metal ripper, featuring all the speedy riffs and circle-pit inducing goodness you’d come to expect from the Irish outfit.
Vocalist Philly Byrne said the new track reflected that classic Gama Bomb sound, but that fans should expect some deviation in other parts of Bats.
“There are songs on our new album that diverge from the ‘Gama Bomb formula’ a lot, so we wanted to lead with Speed Funeral because it’s a fun, catchy, classic GB mosher. We’re breaking you in gently with this one!
“The lyrics are about something I’ve always dreamed of – when I die, I want to be strapped to a rocket and blasted off into space as my family and friends watch. We’re middle-aged men now, so maybe death is on our minds a bit more.”
According to the band, the new album goes places, with songs taking a more ’60s-inspired aesthetic that sees the band cover Egyptian tombs to the glitz of old Hollywood. To that end, Byrne said this new record is definitely a more ambitious undertaking for the band.
“BATS is the weirdest album we’ve ever made. It has a guest spot by hip hop legend The Egyptian Lover, a surprise ending, a futuristic prologue, and a crossover song with lyrics by Percy Bysshe Shelley – we finally felt confident enough to take the brakes off and had a lot of fun with the writing. Weird is good!”
Bats will be available on November 10 via Prosthetic Records, but you can preorder your copy (in a variety of formats) right now. You can find out more about the new album down below.
The band is also gearing up for a U.K. tour next month; the full list of dates are also below.
BATS tracklist:
1. Prologue Under the Pyramids
2. Egyptron (feat. The Egyptian Lover)
3. Living Dead in Beverly Hills
4. Rusted Gold
5. Materialize
6. Mask of Anarchy
7. Don’t Get Your Hair Cut
8. Dreamstealer
9. Speed Funeral
10. Secular Saw
11. Bats in Your Hair
GAMA BOMB tour dates
Oct 7 – Rising Fest, France
Oct 20 – Milton Keynes – Craufurd Arms, UK
Oct 21 – Derby – Alt Fest, UK
Oct 22 – London – Boston Music Rooms, UK
Oct 23 – Manchester – Deaf Institute, UK
Oct 24 – Newcastle – Anarchy Brewing Co., UK
Oct 25 – Edinburgh – Bannermans, UK
Oct 26 – Carlisle – The Brickyard, UK
Oct 27 – Sheffield – Corporation, UK
Oct 28 – Swansea – The Bunkhouse, UK
Oct 29 – The Siege of Limerick, Ireland
Dec 3 – Life After Death Horrorfest, Mexico
