BAD OMENS and Poppy have spun a gripping story straight out of your sci-fi horror nightmares on their collaborative new single “V.A.N.”
Following an exclusive audio premiere earlier today on SiriusXM‘s Octane, the ferocious single and cinematic music video officially released this afternoon via Sumerian Records.
Written and produced by BAD OMENS frontman Noah Sebastian, the song is the first glimpse of what the band will be offering on their upcoming album, the “Concrete Forever” project also known as “Concrete Jungle OST”. The project is an experimental extension of BAD OMENS‘ hit LP “The Death Of Peace Of Mind” and the soundtrack to their “Concrete Jungle” comic book universe.
“V.A.N” is an industrial metal masterpiece about an artificial intelligence entity set out on a course to destroy humanity. The track immediately captivates the listener with BAD OMENS’ hypnotic production and Poppy‘s angelic, whispering vocals as she takes on the role of the Concrete Jungle Universe AI character V.A.N. It then shock-transitions into a powerful onslaught of frantic drums, heavy guitars, and Poppy‘s vocals evolving from otherworldly tones to aggro screams.
When asked about his approach to creating the single, Noah explained: “That’s a song that started just with the hook ‘Violence against nature’, and then after saving the project with the acronym and seeing it we realized it could be fun to think of ‘VAN‘ as a name. Thus the rabbit hole of ideas began that led us to decide to write lyrics from the perspective of an artificial intelligence gone rogue.”
Playing off the AI concept of the track and taking additional visual inspiration from the video game “Portal”, the film “Ex Machina” and “Stranger Things”, the story is brought to life by a visually stunning sci-fi thriller. In the mini film written by Sebastian, Poppy and Garrett Nicholson, Poppy portrays a synthetic human being held captive and subjected to experiments in a laboratory, eventually escaping and embarking on a murderous rampage. Watch the Garrett Nicholson– and Poppy-directed video below.
Fans will get to experience “V.A.N” live for the very first time on the European leg of BAD OMENS‘ “Concrete Forever” tour with Poppy. The tour kicks off in Berlin this Saturday, January 27 and international fans can tune in to livestreams of the sold-out shows from Cologne, Germany on January 28 and January 29, exclusively on Veeps. The number of fans from around the world who streamed the BAD OMENS‘ recent sold-out Hollywood Palladium show on Veeps was more than double the capacity of the venue.
BAD OMENS are coming off a wildly successful two years with the explosive success of their breakthrough third studio album “The Death Of Peace Of Mind” (2022). Hailed as “a stunning fusion of dark, Weeknd-esque pop and industrialized metalcore” (Revolver),the project has racked up over 940 million streams globally and surged BAD OMENS catalog to over 1.5 billion streams.
The hardworking bands ascension was driven in part by the albums hit-single “Just Pretend” experiencing a viral TikTok moment that yielded a growing, dedicated fandom who catapulted them into the spotlight. Becoming the band’s first RIAA gold-certified single, “Just Pretend” reached No. 1 at U.S. Alternative Radio and smashed multiple Billboard year-end charts, coming in at No. 1 on Hot Hard Rock Songs, No. 6 on Alternative Airplay Songs, No. 11 on Rock and Alternative Airplay Songs, No. 11 on Mainstream Rock Airplay Songs, No. 14 Hot Rock & Alternative Songs, and No. 23 on Hot Alternative Songs.
The genre defyers continue their climb with the albums seductive title track, “The Death Of Peace Of Mind”, currently sitting at No. 23 on Mediabase Alternative Radio Charts and No. 37 on Billboard Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. The song also became RIAA gold certified in January 2024. Their radio success also earned BAD OMENS a nomination for “Best New Artist (Alt & Rock)” at the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards.
Gaining momentum online and over the airwaves, BAD OMENS persistently surged ahead, captivating their rapidly expanding fanbase with electrifying live shows at numerous sold-out tours and festival performances worldwide.
The band is already set for an intense touring schedule in 2024, recently concluding U.K. dates with BRING ME THE HORIZON, embarking on their “Concrete Forever” European headline run, announcing rescheduled U.S. performances and unveiling a lineup of festivals throughout the 2024 season.
Photo credit: Bryan Kirks