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ANNIHILATOR Release 17th Studio Album ‘Ballistic, Sadistic’
January 24th, 2020

Canadian thrash metal band Annihilator issued 17th full-length studio album Ballistic, Sadistic on January 24th, 2020 through Silver Lining Music.

Annihilator mainman Jeff Waters commented: “Almost every artist, initially, loves the songs they create. They are like your babies! In my case, it is difficult to be the main writer / producer and stay fresh, come up with new ideas or make old ones better and I am well aware of that. Since ‘we’ love what we do, we can be blinded to just how good or bad a song or record really is. Time will tell. Press, fans, band members, label, etc… They will all tell you what they think and, in their own ways, are usually right. In this case, I throw that nonsense in the garbage and can tell you that we have made a record that is angry, technical, back to the first three records’ vibes and it is going to be difficult to continue writing another record after releasing this one!

“It’s the best record I’ve made since 2005’s Schizo Deluxe and I think many will argue that this new one is in the top three. From the ‘Stonewall’-esque track ‘Psycho Ward’ to the haunting ‘I Am Warfare’ and the pissed-off ‘The Attitude’ to the aggression and old-school technicality of ‘Out With The Garbage,’ the record is like this: take the Alice In Hell [1989], Never, Neverland [1990], and Set The World On Fire [1993] records, make them angry, combine the old-school production with modern hi-tech studio gear, then add the best guitar work I didn’t know I still had in me, and you’ve got the best we could possibly offer. I honestly cannot wait for everyone to hear this.”

Ballistic, Sadistic was written, performed, engineered, and produced by Jeff Waters at his own Watersound Studios UK, in Durham, England with additional engineering and editing by Annihilator bassist Rich Hinks. The outing was mastered by Maor Appelbaum at Maor Appelbaum Mastering in Los Angeles, California.

Contributing guest vocals on the track ‘Dressed Up For Evil’ are Raven’s John Gallagher and Thronehammer’s Kat Shevil Gillham.

Speaking about the song, Waters said: “Musically-speaking, this one is as old-school Annihilator metal as it gets. It’s obvious that the vibe in this tune reminds us of the early days of the band; even extending back to the demo days from ’84-’88. A highlight for me in this song is the legendary voice of Raven’s John Gallagher on backing vocals with Durham’s Kat Shevil Gillham [Thronehammer]. An honour to have John on this record and his voice helps make this song a killer.”

The track listing is as follows:

01. ‘Armed To The Teeth’
02. ‘The Attitude’
03. ‘Psycho Ward’
04. ‘I Am Warfare’
05. ‘Out With The Garbage’
06. ‘Dressed Up For Evil’
07. ‘Riot’
08. ‘One Wrong Move’
09. ‘Lip Service’
10. ‘The End Of The Lie’

Annihilator’s line-up is as follows:

Jeff Waters (vocals and guitar)
Aaron Homma (guitar)
Rich Hinks (bass)
Fabio Alessandrini (drums)

Ballistic, Sadistic will be available as a limited edition digipak CD, coloured vinyl and digital formats.

Music videos were filmed for the tracks ‘Psycho Ward’ and ‘Armed To The Teeth’. In addition, an official lyric video was created for the song ‘I Am Warfare’. All four clips can be viewed below.

Sixteenth studio record For The Demented was released in November 2017 via Neverland Music Inc. / Silver Lining Music.

Promotional photograph by Kai Swillus.

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