Takoma Park quintet Darkest Hour, consisting of Mike Schleibaum (guitar), John Henry (vocals), Aaron Deal (bass), Travis Orbin (drums), and Nico Santora (guitar), will release their tenth album, “Perpetual | Terminal,” on February 23 through MNRK Heavy.
The official music video for the title track of the album can be viewed below.
“This is a whole Darkest Hour album in one song,” the band said in a press release. “It felt like the perfect album opener, eventually became the title track, and therefore is the perfect place to start as we present this new album to the world. Lyrically, it touches on all of the themes of the record — an album centered around the duality of survival and rebirth. Or, you could just say, some new music from old friends who just won’t ever give up.”
“Perpetual | Terminal” was produced by Taylor Larson of Bethesda-based MixWave, who also led the sessions for the band’s 2014 self-titled album on Sumerian Records. The new album was funded independently with the help of fan support on Patreon.
“The record’s theme centers around the duality of survival while embracing rebirth,” says Schleibaum. “We keep killing parts of ourselves to make new parts and survive. The story of the record is the story of the band. We’re still here, and we’re giving the world a body of work that’s representative of our music today. We’ve realized relationships, tours, good times, everything that seems to give life meaning, is terminal — and will inevitably end. Nevertheless, we’re 46-year-old dudes who love this music enough to put up with the trials and tribulations of being artists in a touring band.”
Darkest Hour has endured for nearly three decades, blending death metal, thrash, hardcore punk, and melody into their unique sound. The band emerged from the area in 1995 and quickly gained a dedicated fan base, accumulating tens of millions of streams over the years. The band has performed at thousands of shows across the globe, excluding Antarctica, and achieved five Top 3 debuts on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums Chart.
The band’s 2017 album “Godless Prophets & the Migrant Flora” debuted at #1 on the Heatseekers Chart, reached #42 on the Billboard 200, and made it to the Top 10 of the Top Vinyl Albums Chart. It received critical acclaim from music publications such as Revolver, EXCLAIM!, MetalSucks, New Noise, Metal Hammer, and PopMatters. The album also inspired the Washington Capitals’ fight song during the 2017-18 hockey season and was reissued by MNRK Heavy last fall.
Photo Courtesy of MNRK Heavy