Hear Phil Anselmo Sing Doomy ‘Dying Song’ With Supergroup Metal Allegiance
The grim reaper swings his scythe literally in the video for “Dying Song,” a brooding cut off the upcoming album by the super-project Metal Allegiance. It’s a morbid scene, with Death zeroing in on a teenager in a field, a middle-aged man at home and a young girl with a dandelion, for a song that’s just as preoccupied with mortality.
“Death tripper, forsaker,” singer Phil Anselmo bellows between grinding doom-metal riffs toward the end of the moody tune, which appears on Metal Allegiance’s self-titled debut. But since the group is a fluid congregation of some of the genre’s most notable players, the Down and former Pantera frontman is just one piece of the puzzle. Testament guitarist Alex Skolnick commands the fiery solo and heavy riffs on “Dying Song,” while Winery Dogs and former Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy and album co-producer and bassist Mark Menghi round out the song’s rhythm section.
“It’s always my pleasure to jam with such esteemed musicians and brothers, and my contribution to this project is further proof of that fact,” Anselmo said in a statement. “Hail to all heavy metallers the world over.”
“As a guitarist, this project feels like a career milestone [since it features] some of my best work as a soloist. . .as well as the first metal recording to feature my own rhythm playing and guitar tone as it’s core foundation,” Skolnick said. “I’m grateful for the opportunity and believe this is an album that will shatter all preconceptions.”
The rest of the record, which comes out on September 18th, features guest appearances by a who’s who of hard rock and heavy metal on its 10 tracks. The performers include Anthrax’s Charlie Benante, Testament’s Chuck Billy, Lamb of God’s D. Randall Blythe, Pantera’s Rex Brown, Megadeth’s David Ellefson, Exodus’ and Slayer’s Gary Holt, Mastodon’s Troy Sanders and Dillinger Escape Plan’s Ben Weinman, among many others. The album is available for preorder in a number of configurations here.