The band’s long-awaited third album is out today
Twelve Foot Ninja have unleashed a new music video for “Vengeance.” It is the title track from their long-awaited third album which is out today via Volkanik Music. Stream the official clip below.
Guitarist Stevic Mackay said of the album, “There are definitely some ‘80s inspired permeations in the genre permutations, but I think we became clearer on the distinction between ‘songs’ and ‘riffs’; there’s a clear harmonic bone-structure carrying all of the songs.”
Vengeance features a squall of industrial-grade synthesized guitars intercut by a patter of digital beats and a sinewy, Tokyo-tech cabaret feel. The ominous intro builds the tension to an expected crescendo, only to pull it back which forces you to focus on the lyrics….seemingly a deliberate decision aligned with the band’s much talked about prioritization on wordsmithing of this album.
The 10-song album, which is available digitally here and physically here, was released in tandem with a high fantasy novel detailing the story of the Twelve Foot Ninja: “The Wyvern and The Wolf,” from author Nicholas Snelling. The 1000-page book is based on the original concept by MacKay. Set in a grim and savage world, the novel tells the tale of an orphaned samurai boy called Kiyoshi who is adopted by the ruthless leader of a clan of ninja. Much more than a mere origin’s story, however, the novel is a tour de force in fantasy fiction and world-building. The novel is available now in paperback from www.twelvefootninja.com or eBook from Amazon.
Over the past few months the band has released three singles as appetizers – “Long Way Home” (https://youtu.be/JYLJwT2fwDk), “Start The Fire” (https://youtu.be/AC3lfCk7qnE), and “Over and Out feat. Tatiana Shmayluk (Jinjer)” (https://youtu.be/wojwq-xX9uM). Each single was accompanied by highly entertaining videos – and not ones to rest on any laurels, they also released a graphic novel and a video game Uncle Brusnik.
About the album and accompanying content, Mackay said, “This is an exorcism of content that’s spent a decade in gestation. ‘Catharsis’ is close to what it feels like to finally share Kiyoshi’s story; and I guess respond to all questions pertaining to our name; All this time, so many have thought ‘Twelve Foot Ninja’ was tongue-in-cheek, when in actuality, the story’s genesis occurred a year before the formation of the band. I really hope our fans enjoy the vastness of what we’ve created, and we’re able to continue to surprise people with new methods of storytelling.”
Twelve Foot Ninja has never neatly fit into one musical genre, and true to form, Vengeance sees them explore a whole new rich sonic palette. In a sense, the album cover artwork says it all – a decrepit ’80s-era arcade video game listing sideways after being rudely plunged into the cracked earth of a dystopic wasteland. It’s a nexus where pinball meets post-truth.
Excluding the singles already released, some notable tracks on the album include “IDK” which fuses an 8-bit side-scroller vibe, slinky bass, sardonic lyrics and a megalithic nu-metal riff. “Shock to the System” proves another album highlight. The vocoder intro, hook-laden verses and stadium-sized chorus work together to brutally skewer our culture’s increasing reliance on technology and the perils of transhumanism. In typical Twelve Foot Ninja fashion, however, the middle of the song detours into a board-trotting, spoken-word pantomime, as a depraved vaudevillian villain plots his own AI-enabled immortality.
There’s the disco-ball boogie of “ the band’s heaviest excursion to date Culture War and their most tender and biggest surprise – “Tangled,” a sparse but sophisticated slice of cinematica, that sees the band paint with simple brushstrokes; stripped-back acoustic guitar, mournful melodies and soaring orchestration. As the band’s first real ballad, it offers a truly moving, emotionally resonant denouement to the entire album.
Vengeance is a veritable roller coaster sonic experience. All the information about Project Vengeance can be found at twelvefootninja.com.
Twelve Foot Ninja were the 2014 winners of Best New Talent at Revolver’s Golden God Awards and a 2016 ARIA nominee for Best Hard Rock Album. Their last album, Outlier, was #1 on Australia’s Independent Records album chart, #6 on the all genre ARIA chart, #3 on Billboard’s Heatseekers chart and #15 on the U.S. trade magazine’s Alternative album chart.