Richmond metal veterans debut new visual directed by Meriel O’Connell as tenth studio album receives widespread critical praise
‘Lamb of God‘ have released a video for “St. Catherine’s Wheel” as the band prepares to launch their Into Oblivion U.S. tour tomorrow. The visual, directed by Meriel O’Connell, arrives as the Richmond metal veterans gear up to bring material from their newly released tenth studio album to stages across North America.
Vocalist Randy Blythe spoke with Forbes about the song’s underlying message and its emphasis on solidarity:
“The last line of ‘St. Catherine’s Wheel’ is ‘these savage days can’t break us’ and I use the term ‘us’ very specifically… I think community is going to become incredibly valuable in the next few years.”
“Into Oblivion” arrived via Epic Records last week to widespread acclaim from critics and fans alike. Leading up to the release, the band graced the covers of Metal Hammer, Loudwire, and Kerrang!. The Associated Press featured the album in their weekly highlights, describing it as “10 tracks of ferocity.” Brooklyn Vegan observed that “the band spends these 10 songs reminding the world that their reign as New Wave of American Heavy Metal giants is far from over,” while SPIN noted the band is “channeling America’s unraveling into a ferocious new album.”
The upcoming tour promises to be one of 2026’s heaviest packages, with ‘Lamb of God’ joined by ‘Kublai Khan TX’, ‘Fit For An Autopsy’, and ‘Sanguisugabogg’. Tickets and VIP packages are available now via the band’s official website.
Prior to the album’s arrival, ‘Lamb of God’ released several singles that showcased the record’s sonic range. “Sepsis,” their first new material since 2022, paid tribute to the early ’90s Richmond underground scene. Consequence praised the track’s fresh direction, noting that “Morton’s riffs are bruising at this slower pace” while Blythe bellows “like a heavy metal Nick Cave.” Follow-up single “Parasocial Christ” delivered classic ‘Lamb of God’ aggression in a three-minute assault that Revolver called an “anti-tech thrasher.” The title track earned praise from Metal Hammer, who deemed it “ferocious,” and Brooklyn Vegan, who described it as “as much of a gut-punch as you’d hope for from LOG.”
The final pre-release single, “Blunt Force Blues,” found Blythe reflecting on the band’s origins: “We learned how to play by watching and hanging out with other local dudes. That’s what we aspired to do, keep up with good local bands. They were just as much of an influence on us as any of the bigger bands from different cities.”
Guitarist Mark Morton addressed the creative freedom the band experienced during the album’s creation: “For me, the album is about having the space to breathe creatively and not feeling like we have to keep up with any trend or expectation. It feels nice to be untethered from any agenda beyond rallying around the notion of, ‘Let’s just make music that we think is cool,’ which is really where it all started.”
Produced and mixed by longtime collaborator Josh Wilbur, “Into Oblivion” was recorded across multiple locations significant to the band’s history. Drums were tracked in Richmond, Virginia, while guitars and bass were laid down at Morton’s home studio. Blythe tracked his vocals at the legendary Total Access studio in Redondo Beach, California, the same facility where seminal punk records by ‘Black Flag’, ‘Hüsker Dü’, and ‘Descendents’ were born.
Multiple physical formats are available, including various vinyl variants and a collectible CD packaged with a limited-edition companion zine containing album art sketches, handwritten lyrics, and previously unseen studio photographs.
Following the North American run, ‘Lamb of God’ will return to Europe and the UK for select headline performances and major festival appearances including Wacken Open Air and Bloodstock Open Air.
European and UK dates:1 Aug 2026 – Wacken, DE – Wacken Open Air
3 Aug 2026 – Leipzig, DE – Haus Auensee
5 Aug 2026 – Lissabon, PT – Vagos Open Air
6-9 Aug 2026 – Kortrijk, BE – Alcatraz Open Air
7 Aug 2026 – Walton-on-Trent, UK – Bloodstock Open Air
11 Aug 2026 – Kopenhagen, DK – K.B. Hallen
12-16 Aug 2026 – Dinkelsbühl, DE – Summer Breeze
13-15 Aug 2026 – Sulingen, DE – Reload Festival
14-16 Aug 2026 – Eindhoven, NL – Dynamo Metalfest
“Into Oblivion” tracklisting:
- Into Oblivion
- Parasocial Christ
- Sepsis
- The Killing Floor
- El Vacío
- St. Catherine’s Wheel
- Blunt Force Blues
- Bully
- A Thousand Years
- Devise/Destroy
‘Lamb of God’ are: D. Randall Blythe – Vocals Mark Morton – Guitar Willie Adler – Guitar John Campbell – Bass Art Cruz – Drums
Formed in 1994, the Richmond, Virginia-based band has released ten critically acclaimed albums, received five Grammy Award nominations, sold over 3 million albums, and amassed over one billion streams. Their previous album, “Omens,” arrived in late 2022 and marked their sixth consecutive release to debut in the Top 15 on the Billboard 200.
