BODY COUNT have unleashed the official music video for their new track “Psychopath”
Strap in for a wild ride…
BODY COUNT conjures up visceral imagery and references to history’s most feared criminals in the music video to their newest song, “Psychopath”.
Directed by Jay Scorsese, the video pulls inspiration from fictional and real-life horrors, with references spanning from Jason Voorhees to Ted Bundy.
Though recording wrapped up last year, the release date for “Merciless” remains undisclosed. The band’s ongoing collaboration with producer Will Putney, who snagged the 2021 Grammy for Best Metal Performance for his work on their song “Bum-Rush,” made the choice for this track’s guest vocalist a no-brainer: FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY‘s frontman Joe Badolato.
“Merciless“ serves as the successor to 2020’s “Carnivore” and is expected to hit the shelves later this year via Century Media.
Back in July of 2023, BODY COUNT frontman Ice-T tweeted the following update: “The New @BodyCountBand album is being Mixed as we speak ‘MERCILESS‘”.
Going back even further, to October of 2022, Ice-T made an appearance on the “Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz” and discussed the upcoming BODY COUNT record, saying: “Will Putney‘s producing again. We’ve had three consecutive great albums working with Will; he understands. I call him ‘the Dr. Dre of metal,’ because he has the ability to produce different groups but make them sound like themselves, but just better.
We did ‘Carnivore’, and right [when] our first date of touring was supposed to start, COVID hit,” he continued. “COVID hit, shut down all the stateside tour; 35 European festivals shut down; and we didn’t really get to really perform the album; we didn’t get to go out, and that kind of sucks.
“You make albums to perform ’em; you don’t make ’em just [to sit at home]. And we won a Grammy on that one. That was great; that was a great accolade. It kind of took the sting out of dropping an album to a dead scene; it took the sting out of it. But then the label’s, like, ‘Okay, we’ll do another album.’ And I’m, like, ‘Wait a minute. We didn’t even really get this one out good.”
Also discussing his process for recording vocals for BODY COUNT, Ice-T said: “Usually when I do songs, I’ll do the songs but I don’t complete ’em. Like, if there’s gonna be three verses, I’ll sing two and then I kind of live with them, and maybe that way I can think about how I wanna end the song and how I wanna change it up.
“I’m at a point now… When I first used to do albums, I would do, like, 20 songs and then try to pick 12. Now I’m very difficult to find the music, so by the time I pick 12, those are the 12 songs. I’m not doing a whole bunch of recording just to find that… I know what I’m doing. I’m like that photographer that knows how to just wait until the right moment to take the picture: ‘Okay, that’s one… two.’ Versus the guy [who takes a bunch of pictures one after the other]. I don’t need to do that.
“So the ‘Merciless’ album is sounding pretty hard, though,” Ice-T added. “We named the motherfucker ‘Merciless’.”
At the 63rd annual Grammy Awards held in March 2021 in Los Angeles, BODY COUNT received a prestigious honor during the pre-telecast ceremony. They were awarded a Grammy in the coveted “Best Metal Performance” category. The nomination was for their powerful track “Bum-Rush,” featured on their album “Carnivore.” The recognition further solidified BODY COUNT‘s impact and contribution to the metal genre.
BODY COUNT formed in Los Angeles back in 1990, and featured the original lineup of Ice-T, guitarist Ernie C, drummer Beatmaster V, bassist Mooseman, and guitarist D-Roc. The Ice-T fronted group gained massive attention for its unique fusion of metal and rap, addressing social and political issues with a raw and aggressive sound.
BODY COUNT are currently on the “Merciless” tour in Europe and the UK with German funk force SLOPE:
BODY COUNT feat. Ice-T tour dates:
6/13 – Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic – Rock for People 2024
6/15 – Nickelsdorf, Austria – Nova Rock 2024
6/16 – Zagreb, Croatia – Salata Stadium
6/17 – Zurich, Switzerland – Komplex 457
6/18 – Lausanne, Switzerland – Les Docks
6/20 – Nummijärvi, Finland – Nummirock 2024
6/22 – Cophenhagen, Denmark – Copenhell Festival
6/23 – Dessel, Belgium – Graspop Metal Meeting 2024
6/25 – Esch-Sur-Alzette, Luxembourg – Rockhal
6/26 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Paradiso
6/27 – Ysselsteyn, Netherlands – Jera On Air
6/28 – Clisson, France – Hellfest 2024
6/30 – London, UK – O2 Forum Kentish Town
7/1 – Manchester, UK – O2 Ritz Manchester
7/2 – Glasgow, UK – Galvanizers Yard
9/28 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life
10/12 – Sacramento, CA – Aftershock