Coming off this year’s stellar This Consequence album, metalcore lifers Killswitch Engage have teamed with Revolver to premiere a previously unreleased cut from those same album sessions. The rager, titled “Blood Upon the Ashes,” is set to appear on this summer’s forthcoming The Dogs of Hope benefit LP.
The tune begins with a cataclysmic, speaker-jumping guitar chugging and fierce screams from vocalist Jesse Leach about the “dismay and disbelief” he feels while staring out at our “broken world.” Leach described the cutting-room-floor rescue as “a song about struggle, sacrifice and redemption,” further noting that its lyrics read like “a story that’s inspired by what we go through in the human experience.”
“I was picturing a war-torn city and people coming together to rebuild it — while the ‘blood’ signifies the sacrifice people make for each other in times of need,” he says. “As much as it’s based on humanity and everything people are going through in a world riddled with war, it’s also a post-apocalyptic story.”
Bassist Mike D’Antonio, meanwhile, offers a behind-the-scenes take on the track, describing “Blood Upon the Ashes” as “the one that got away” during the This Consequence sessions.
“Although I was fighting hard for it, this track didn’t get the votes to be included in the final, 10-song This Consequence record. So close,” he lamented of its B-side status. “I’m really excited for people to hear it ‘cus every time I do, there’s regret for not including it on the album. Enjoy.”
As previously reported, the The Dogs of Hope benefit compilation is due out August 1st via Iodine Records and will raise funds for the Randolph County Animal Shelter in Wedowee, Alabama. The collection likewise includes rare and unreleased tunes from Snapcase, Orange 9mm, Deadguy, Walter Scheifels, Testament’s Alex Skolnick and more.
A pre-order for a cloud blue splatter vinyl version, limited to 200 copies, is available in Revolver’s shop.