We’ve teamed with HEALTH on a limited, exclusive coke bottle clear vinyl variant of their new album ‘RAT WARS.’ Get yours in the BV shop.
HEALTH‘s new album RAT WARS comes out tomorrow (12/7) via Loma Vista, and it’s one of the band’s heaviest, most overtly-metal albums yet. From the pounding Godflesh-y industrial metal songs (one of which, “Sicko,” actually samples “Like Rats”) to the full-on metal guitar riffage of “Children of Sorrow” (by Lamb of God’s Willie Adler), Rat Wars is the HEALTH album that would’ve fit perfectly on Headbangers Ball. And even at its most aggro moments, vocalist Jake Duzsik eschews the genre’s stereotypical masculinity in favor of his trademark boyish coo. Even when the ’80s/’90s influences come through loud and clear, Rat Wars sounds like a record that only HEALTH could’ve made.
Ahead of the album’s release, Jake and bassist Johnny Famiglietti have made us a list of albums with the word “black” in the title. It’s not necessarily their favorite albums with the word “black” in the title (see their review of Weezer’s The Black Album) but they’ve got interesting/funny things to say about each one. Read on for the list.
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10 Albums with “Black” in the Title (by HEALTH)
AC/DC – Back in Black
Back in black…I tore my sack.
-Jake
Depeche Mode – Black Celebration
Perhaps the most goth of DM records. Also notable is the fact that you can tell how British they are based on the title. An American band would have been like “Isn’t that a kinda weird thing to name an album?”
-Jake
Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath
Featuring the song Black Sabbath.
Now that is fucking commitment.
Nothing was the same after this one.
-Jake
Metallica – The Black Album
If we turn back time and swap Kirk’s bunk with Cliff’s on that cursed night in Sweden, does Metallica still go for it and become one of the biggest bands of all time? No way to know. One thing is for sure, no matter which side of the aisle you are on, there is simply no way to deny the cultural importance of this record…although it should really probably just end after nothing else matters.
-Jake
Black Dice – S/T
This EP opens 5:51 of edging before bussin’ into pure madness. Still a favorite.
-Johnny
Spinal Tap – Smell the Glove
After controversy over the original record cover, Polymer Records forced Spinal Tap to release the now legendary all black album with no titles, tracklist or any other information on the sleeve.
-Johnny
Various Artists – The Black Album Yesterday, Pt. 2
Excellent reggae Beatles covers.
-Johnny
The Damned – The Black Album
Punks go goth. Features an amazing tribute to the legendary Mel Brooks as well.
-Johnny
JAY-Z – The Black Album
Jay-Z’s final record, going out at the top of his fame. Amazing way to sign off and he never did another record, fully cementing his legacy.
-Johnny
Weezer – The Black Album
This sucks.
-Johnny
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HEALTH also have a 2024 tour coming up with Pixel Grip and King Yosef, including NYC’s Brooklyn Steel on March 15. All dates are listed below.
Pick up our limited, exclusive coke bottle clear vinyl variant of HEALTH’s new album in the BV shop.
03/02/24 – Ventura, CA – Ventura Music Hall *
03/04/24 – Mesa, AZ – Nile Theatre *
03/05/24 – Albuquerque, NM – Sunshine *
03/07/24 – Austin, TX – Empire Garage *
03/08/24 – Dallas, TX – Studio at the Factory *
03/09/24 – Houston, TX – Warehouse Live Midtown *
03/11/24 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade – Heaven Stage *
03/12/24 – Charlotte, NC – The Underground *
03/13/24 – Richmond, VA – The National *
03/15/24 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Steel *
03/16/24 – Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer *
03/17/24 – Boston, MA – Royale *
03/19/24 – Toronto, ON – The Opera House *
03/20/24 – Detroit, MI – The Majestic *
03/22/24 – Chicago, IL – Concord Music Hall *
03/23/24 – Saint Louis, MO – Red Flag *
03/25/24 – Englewood, CO – Gothic Theatre *
03/26/24 – Salt Lake City, UT – Metro Music Hall *
03/28/24 – Seattle, WA – The Showbox *
03/29/24 – Vancouver, BC – The Commodore *
* with support from Pixel Grip and King Yosef
