NOLA thrash and groove trailblazers EXHORDER have revealed details and plans for the release of their eagerly anticipated 4th full-length record, Defectum Omnium, that’s due out March 8th, 2024 from Nuclear Blast Records. The album follows the band’s critically revered 2019 release Mourn The Southern Skies.

Commenting on the impending album, vocalist/guitarist Kyle Thomas states:

“It’s been quite a journey for Exhorder since the 2019 release of ‘Mourn the Southern Skies’. Lineup changes as well as the 2020-2021 pandemic and lockdown presented hurdles that weren’t easy to overcome. But we persevered, kept our heads down and went to work with intense focus and real goals. One of those goals was to bring our fourth full length album to our fan base. ‘Defectum Omnium’ is a collaborative effort in songwriting, much as it was in the early days of Exhorder. We produced it ourselves, as we felt no need or desire to bring in anyone from the outside based upon our shared vision. It was also important to us not only to continue the natural progression this band has been in since the early 90’s, but to put a foot back into our roots. The influence punk and hardcore had on this band from getting our start in the New Orleans punk rock scene has a strong presence. We’ve also made sure to keep plenty of our thrash roots as well in our songwriting process.

But we have also managed to keep our doom roots alive, which first surfaced on the song ‘(Cadence of) the Dirge’ back in 1992. In fact, on one new song we have guest appearances by Rick Wartell and Bruce Franklin from Trouble, and they absolutely killed it!

From the time that we began pre-production until the actual release date, we can promise you that every bit of ‘Defectum Omnium’ was crafted with great care, and we are really excited about it! Our goal was to make an album that WE loved and gives the experience of a journey, or maybe even a rollercoaster ride effect. We can’t wait to share it with the world!”

Without further ado, EXHORDER kicks in the door of 2024 with a savage new track, ‘Year of the Goat,’ that sets the neck-snapping pace for the record to come.

Adding on the new song, Thomas says:

“Our debut single ‘Year of the Goat’ is a fast paced, chugging piece in the spirit of the influence that Motörhead had on punk rock bands like Charged GBH and The Exploited. The lyrical approach is a throwback to early Exhorder attitude, and we had a ton of fun filming the video at a free show that we performed in the greater Cincinnati area. 2024 is the year of the goat!!!”

Hmmm...sounds like a neutered Slayer

I think the album as a whole is probably the most experimental thing they've done. There are elements of thrash, groove, death, doom and sludge metal along with a healthy dose of punk and even some traditional heavy metal at spots. The songs shift around a lot, there are a quite a few tempo and rhythm changes and it's also very technical in spots.