The rumors were true — sort of. Following some hee-hawing, Stetson-hatted speculation stirred-up by Attack Attack! founding drummer Andrew Wetzel on the band’s apparent swerve to country music, the crabcore originators have delivered a new song called “Dance!” — but rather than the boot-scootin’ cut they teased ahead of time, it’s actually a traditionally attacked rager featuring brutal guest vocals from Lorna Shore’s Will Ramos.
It’s also the lead single off Attack Attack! II, the Columbus, Ohio-formed outfit’s first full-length release since 2012’s This Means War.
As previously reported, Wetzel had revealed earlier this month that he had “lassoed in some brave new ideas” for the song, and that he roped in a group of Nashville musicians to help him “tear through the fabric of metalcore and country music.”
This leads us to the jokey country version of “Dance!” he’d teased on socials this week. It came complete with banjo-fied plucks, steel guitar solos and line-dance-commandin’, auto-tuned drawls (“If you want to throw down we can do it right now, come around and find out”).
In contrast, the real version of “Dance!” delivers pop-metallic riffs, Attack Attack!-styled electronic-core synth-and-beat textures, hard-squealing guitar sounds and a round of guttural growls from Ramos. The song also offers an F-bomb-loaded, red-band take on the chorus hook.
If you’re ready for the chokehold, you can stream the metallic, Ramos-assisted “Dance!” up above. Below, you can check out another new song, “Chainless,” which is described by the band as a “a powerful, anthemic counterbalance” to “Dance!”
Attack Attack! II is due out August 8th via Oxide Recordings. Pre-orders are up here.
Attack Attack! II tracklisting:
ONE HIT WONDER
Dance!
Chainless
Walk on Water
Karmageddon
Live, Love, & Die
i complain on r/metalcore
Big Booty Britches
Without You
Sacrifice
Jump Jump!