“Seizure And Desist”, the new video from DEAD CROSS, the Southern California outfit featuring drummer Dave Lombardo (ex-SLAYER, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, MISFITS) and singer Mike Patton (FAITH NO MORE), can be seen below. The song is taken from DEAD CROSS‘s self-titled debut album, which will be released on August 4 via Ipecac Recordings. The effort was helmed by producer Ross Robinson, who has previously worked with KORN, DEFTONES, SEPULTURA and LIMP BIZKIT, among others, and was mastered at Golden Mastering in Ventura, California.
DEAD CROSS, which is rounded out by Justin Pearson (THE LOCUST, RETOX, HEAD WOUND CITY) and Michael Crain (RETOX, FESTIVAL OF DEAD DEER), last year parted ways with singer Gabe Serbian.
Regarding the “Seizure And Desist” clip, Pearson said: “The artist who created our album art, Eric Livingston, came up with this video. As far as I’m concerned, It sums up the current social and political climate of today. For a lot of humanity, this world is a mean motherfucking place. The video captures the severity of the times we live in, as well as a means to communicate beyond basic language using iconic imagery, campy techniques, historical relevance, as well as a glimpse into the future.”
“Dead Cross” features a glow-in-the-dark cover (CD/LP) also created by Livingston, with vinyl available in a limited edition gold and a clear/red/black swirl. Digital pre-orders include instant downloads of “Grave Slave” and “Seizure And Desist”.
Joining DEAD CROSS on the bulk of their North American tour is SECRET CHIEFS 3. The San Francisco-based outfit, who describe themselves as “an ever-unfolding musical vision,” features Patton‘s former MR. BUNGLE bandmate Trey Spruance. “I have no idea what kind of chaos it will conjure on stage or in the audience,” said Lombardo of the five-week outing, continuing, “but I know it’s going to be a hell of a good time.”
The late-summer tour kicks off on August 10 at The Observatory in Santa Ana, California and includes a stop at Riot Fest in Chicago.
Patton told Rolling Stone that he got involved with DEAD CROSS after reaching out to Lombardo to see if he could release the band’s album on Ipecac. After getting a text from the drummer asking him to join the group, “my jaw dropped,” the singer said. “I was like, ‘Who, me? Hmm …’ And I think it took like all of 30 seconds, but in a sarcastic way, I’m like, ‘Yeah, of course. I can do this. Are you sure you want me?’ So I kind of second-guessed him a little bit. And he said, ‘Man, you’d be our dream vocalist.’ And then it was just a matter of logistics. I decided to record it here in my basement, which is fitting. It shouldn’t sound too polished.”
Regarding DEAD CROSS‘s musical direction, Patton said: “To me, it is a traditional hardcore record. It is very pointed, direct and visceral. Like, I wasn’t going to play keyboards, add samples or any kind of orchestration. It was like, ‘Yo, just go for it.’ In some ways, it reminded me of stuff that we had collectively all grown up with and loved when we were like teenagers — bands like the ACCÜSED, DEEP WOUND or SIEGE, stuff that was just brutal, uncompromising and right to the point. I was listening to all those bands again before this came to be, so it was already back infused in my blood. And now I got a chance to do a pencil-in-your-eye record.”
Lombardo concurred, telling Rolling Stone: “The album is only 28 minutes long. And the funny thing is [SLAYER‘s] ‘Reign In Blood’ was 29 minutes. This album carries so much anger and frustration. You hear it in my drumming. It was the perfect birth of a hardcore album. It’s one of the most brutal albums I’ve ever done.”
