Following the breakout success of the band's volatile debut LP, Social Grace, Louisiana deathgrind collective BRAT have doubled down with their visceral sophomore LP, Manslayer.

Taking inspirational cues from the sharp narrative and burn-it-all-down wit of country anthems like “Goodbye Earl” by The Chicks, “Before He Cheats” by Carrie Underwood and “Gunpowder & Lead” by Miranda Lambert., frontwoman Liz Selfish proves commanding on an album that sources extremity to achieve empowerment. 

Combined with BRAT's Southern take on grind, death and thrash, the result is one 17-tracks of swamp-soaked heft. If the sonic direction of the album wasn't certain enough, the provocative artwork from Wes Benscoter (Mortician, Slayer) certainly makes their intention clear. 

Manslayer also marks a pivotal moment for the band, as the album ushers in a new era for BRAT as Selfishhas taking on the role of lyricist with guitarist and co-founder Brenner Moate shifting his focus on composition. 

 “It’s quite new territory for me, and it wasn’t necessarily an intentional thing initially,” Liz says. “I wrote the first song for the album, and I just loved writing, and I was like, ‘I really love doing this, and I want to do more, so I ended up writing the whole album. Brenner’s main focus is writing music – he wants to write riffs - so he wasn't too torn up about not writing the lyrics. It was a nice passing of the torch."

The pivotal release for BRAT not only underscores a new creative dynamic for the band, but also asserts new blood into the space of modern grind and extreme music. Tapping into the debauchery and excess long associated with the genre, combined with modern perspective and commentary, BRAT pay homage by attempting something fresh. 

Offering a glimpse into the progression of the album and the process of the songs, Selfish detailed a track-by-track breakdown of the release that reaffirms that BRAT is the real deal. 

"Intro"/ "Alieen Wuornos"

LIZ SELFISH - Aileen Wuornos, truly a woman in a male dominated field, seemed like a perfect representation for the vengeful theme of this album, so beginning the album with her voice and a song inspired on her story felt fitting. 

"Speculum Bleed"

 

LS - This is my personal favorite song lyrically and the most death metal song on the album. I wanted to delve into story telling but also keep with traditional death metal body horror imagery. I was inspired by the clinical language used in the early Carcass albums and wanted to have my perspective as a woman shine here with a gynecological horror story. The guitar harmonies at the end of the song were a last minute addition just a few days before recording and the roto toms were a spur of the moment decision in the studio. 

"Bone Spurs"

LS - This is a real life voicemail from my doctor. I had an appointment regarding some neck pain before one of our tours and got this voicemal end of day on a Friday on the drive to our first show. We found the flippant tone of his delivery letting me know I had Bone Spurs and needed physical therapy as both hilarious and concerning. We decided to put it on the album similar to a skit you would find on 90s rap album. 

"Botch Tox"

LS - This was the first song I wrote vocals for on the album. I knew I wanted to write a song around the push and pull pressures of getting work done but approach it in a way that still felt a bit bleak and horror leaning. The end of the song features a drum solo from Dustin that bleeds into Media Slop.

"Media Slop"

LS - We wanted to have the album flow together and feel like one body of work. I love the groove of the song. Dustin wrote this track and Brenner added the opening riff when he was messing around at practice. 

"Trophy Hunting"

 

LS - I leaned into the classic trope of an old rich man hunting for a young trophy wife with this song. The original draft of the song by Brenner, he didn’t love, and we considered scrapping it but he and Dustin re-worked it and it became a highlight of the album and one of our singles. 

"Asking for Hell"

LS - This song I wrote with more of hardcore slant lyrically. I wanted to use some language that you could almost see. I wrote about my relationship with BRAT and the plight having your dreams an art based on public opinion. 

"Heretic Burning"

LS - This is Brenner’s favorite song to play. I think production really shines here, with Andy Nelson who produced the album adding in the bell ringing and hellfire sounds. We also had an intern at the studio, Joey, do the feminine sounding screams on the track. 

"Interlude"

LS - The interlude acts as a “breaking point” where the album’s content switches from songs primarily featuring woman as victims to songs about women seeking revenge. I wanted to have a distinct switch from prey to predator after the Aileen intro that encompasses both. We felt a dance style track would be a nice reprieve from the hammering of riffs and act as a nod to the dance samples we use in our live shows. I wrote the news stories for this song based on real life events and Dustin produced the track. Brenner, Dustin, and I recorded them and used some pitch shifting to make it sound like a barrage of newscasters 

"Manslayer (Hell Hath No Fury)"

 

LS - This song feels like the pinnacle of the album which is why we chose it as the title track. I was inspired by Power Trip’s Executioner’s Tax (Swing of the axe) and wanted to write lyrics that people could bite onto. This track feels the most anthemic. 

"Bloody Mary"

LS - This song was the first song Brenner wrote for the album one of our favorites to play live. People have really responded to this one and the breakdown towards the end always gets the crowd moving. 

"Femicidal Vengeance" (ft. Revocation)

LS - This was a song Dustin and Brenner wrote together late one night after the majority of the album was completed. We still felt that we needed another song to round it out. They were unsure of how to end the song, and thought that spot would be well suited for a solo. We knew if we wanted a crazy guest solo on the album there was only one guy to call in Dave Davidson. He breathed new life into the track. 

"Spit on His Grave"

LS - I really wanted a song that would encourage some crowd participation live, and the straight forward and repetitious message of “Spit on his grave” throughout the front of the track is perfect for mic grab moments. This is another high energy one that feels exciting to play live. Brenner wrote the first riff in the trailer at one of our shows with Gwar. 

"Ways To Kill Your Husband"

LS - I went full tilt horror on this song by putting the worst ways I could think of to kill someone, pulling some influence from medieval torture. Dustin was inspired by September by Earth Wind and Fire which created the breakdown towards the end. He wrote it as an homage to our friends in No Mas, and is sonically inspired by their style of grind. 

"Blistered Tongues" (ft. Walls of Jericho)

LS - Candace brought this track to another level with her guest feature. It sounds like she’s throwing up on the track (in the best possible way). This is another song that leans more hardcore lyrically and ends the albums revenge sequence on a note a of total desperation and lack of hope. 

"Outro"

LS - It’s been a bit of ours that we like to play whimsical instruments in the van on tour, particularly flutes. We knew we had to incorporate flutes on the album in some way. Dustin was inspired by A24 horror film scores and wanted to tie the outro into the beginning so that the album loops into itself. We pulled that together with the eerie synth and swirling flutes.

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In support of the pending release, BRAT are currently out on the MANSLAYER Tour. Along with headlining dates, the band will also be supporting legends GWAR and Weedeater for select dates. A current itinerary can be found below. 

Manslayer is now available via Prosthetic Records. Order the album - HERE