.png)
After a week of cryptic teases and a worldwide scavenger hunt, today on July 9, theatrical metal extraordinaires Ice Nine Kills have released their newest single “The Great Unknown”, bringing fans down the rabbit hole through an AI-controlled dystopia. The captivating new track is inspired by the renowned sci-fi action film The Matrix, an interesting and unlikely departure from the band’s usual horror-inspired music. Spit out the blue pill and stream the single HERE and watch the official music video below:
“The Great Unknown” is a melodic yet energetic track that perfectly fits such an action-packed movie as The Matrix, complete with computerized sound effects that capture the atmosphere of the film. The lyrics explore main character Neo’s story from beginning to end; from being found by Morpheus and encouraged to leave the artificially simulated prison of the Matrix, to fulfilling his destiny as “The One” to liberate humans from the clutches of their robot overlords. Many fun references are found in the song that will excite any hardcore Matrix fan, such as the quote “There is no spoon”, and Trinity’s iconic “Dodge this” line right before the breakdown hits. Despite Ice Nine Kills breaking away from their established horror brand for this song, fans can clearly see the same genuine love and appreciation for the source material within this track, which is what makes Ice Nine Kills’ music so unique. The music video, directed by Jensen Noen, recreates many iconic scenes from the film with top notch special effects, such as the subway fight scene, the office chase scene, and Trinity’s wall-run scene.
This release comes a week after the band launched a mysterious website teasing the new single. The purpose of the website was to encourage fans around the world to search for six different USBs which would unlock a folder on the site, each of which contained a different isolated clip of the song. After a USB would be found and uploaded to the site, a new folder would unlock for everyone the next day. During that week, fans banded together to hunt down the USBs and piece the track together like a puzzle, while debating what the song could be about.
About the new single, frontman Spencer Charnas shares an unusual statement:
“‘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.”
Within the band’s Silver Scream Cinematic Universe lore, “The Great Unknown” is the first single to release after the start of Spencer Charnas’ strange and robotic behavior. Conspiracies started to take hold, with author and longtime Ice Nine Kills adversary Roy Merkin accusing Charnas of being replaced with a highly advanced AI at the band’s Silver Scream Con panel last September. The band has not yet commented on the rumors, but fans continue to speculate.
Catch Ice Nine Kills on tour on their Hell of a Summer Tour starting in August, with Dayseeker, The Funeral Portrait, and Kim Dracula joining as support, with Mest also joining on select dates. Get tickets HERE.
ICE NINE KILLS: HELL OF A SUMMER TOUR
Sunday, August 10 – Waukee, IA – Vibrant Music Hall
Tuesday, August 12 – Oklahoma City, OK – The Criterion
Thursday, August 14 – Tempe, AZ – Mullett Arena
Saturday, August 16 – Reno, NV – Grand Theatre at The Grand Sierra Resort
Sunday, August 17 – Garden City, ID – Revolution Concert House and Event Center
Monday, August 18 – Seattle, WA – Paramount Theatre
Wednesday, August 20 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Union Event Center
Thursday, August 21 – Grand Junction, CO – Amphitheater at Las Colonias Park
Friday, August 22 – Albuquerque, NM – Revel Entertainment Center
Sunday, August 24 – Irving, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
Wednesday, August 27 – Madison, WI – The Sylvee
Thursday, August 28 – Youngstown, OH – The Covelli Centre
Friday, August 29 – Sterling Heights, MI – Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill
Sunday, August 31 – Salem, VA – Salem Civic Center
Tuesday, September 2 – National Harbor, MD – The Theater at MGM National Harbor*
Wednesday, September 3 – Virginia Beach, VA – The Dome*
Friday, September 5 – Orlando, FL – Hard Rock Live*
Saturday, September 6 – Fort Lauderdale, FL – War Memorial Auditorium*
Saturday, September 13 – Worcester, MA – DCU Center (Silver Scream Con)**
Bold = Ice Nine Kills with Dayseeker, Kim Dracula, The Funeral Portrait
* = Ice Nine Kills with Dayseeker, Kim Dracula, The Funeral Portrait, Mest
** = Ice Nine Kills Show Silver Scream Con (Worcester, MA): Ice Nine Kills, Dayseeker, The Funeral Portrait, Mest, A Loss for Words. Not a Live Nation show.
