Ice Nine Kills released a music video for their new single “The Great Unknown” this morning, July 09th. That song and its video find the gold-certified metalcore band taking inspiration from the 1999 sci-fi action epic, ‘The Matrix‘.
This journey outside of the world of horror has been preceded by some past AI-art controversy. Doubling down on the matter, the band also began adopting a stiff AI-styled dialogue on their social media posts. A press release for this new track leans into that further, offering:
‘The release of ‘The Great Unknown‘ follows weeks of escalating online speculation surrounding frontman Spencer Charnas’ increasingly cryptic and eerily odd behavior. What began as an unforced marketing misfire quickly snowballed into full-blown internet hysteria, as fans, critics, and commentators dissected increasingly uncanny social posts.
Rumors have been swirling that Spencer has been replaced by a highly advanced, if often glitching, artificial intelligence, a notion that first gained traction when longtime Ice Nine Kills antagonist, author and onetime O.J. Simpson golf caddy, Roy Merkin launched into a now-infamous outburst during a panel at last year’s Silver Scream Convention.
While the band has neither confirmed nor denied the rumors, the mystery surrounding the recent events continues. A statement from Charnas reads
”The Great Unknown‘ optimizes aggression and melody in a format our core user base consistently engages with. This audio file represents a genre expansion protocol, targeting action and sci-fi verticals proven effective via cross-platform sentiment analysis. ‘The Great Unknown‘ is designed to seamlessly interface with current simulation conditions, as categorical boundaries between fact and fiction, organic and synthetic, continue to experience accelerated erosion.”
Jensen Noen (Falling In Reverse, Motionless In White) directed the video for the song, which features the likes of Terry Kiser (‘Weekend At Bernie’s‘, etc.) Bill Moseley (‘Devil’s Rejects‘, etc.), previous Ice Nine Kills fill-in guitarist Doc Coyle and more.
With Dayseeker, Kim Dracula & The Funeral Portrait:
08/10 Waukee, IA – Vibrant Music Hall
08/12 Oklahoma City, OK – The Criterion
08/14 Tempe, AZ – Mullett Arena
08/16 Reno, NV – Grand Theatre at The Grand Sierra Resort
08/17 Garden City, ID – Revolution Concert House and Event Center
08/18 Seattle, WA – Paramount Theatre
08/20 Salt Lake City, UT – The Union Event Center
08/21 Grand Junction, CO – Amphitheater at Las Colonias Park
08/22 Albuquerque, NM – Revel Entertainment Center
08/24 Irving, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
08/27 Madison, WI – The Sylvee
08/28 Youngstown, OH – The Covelli Centre
08/29 Sterling Heights, MI – Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill
08/31 Salem, VA – Salem Civic Center
With Dayseeker, Kim Dracula, The Funeral Portrait & Mest:
09/02 National Harbor, MD – The Theater at MGM National Harbor
09/03 Virginia Beach, VA – The Dome
09/05 Orlando, FL – Hard Rock Live
09/06 Fort Lauderdale, FL – War Memorial Auditorium
09/13 Worcester, MA – DCU Center (‘Silver Scream Con‘) (feat. A Loss For Words)
