Death Angel Drops First New Track In Six Years: ‘Wrath (Bring Fire)’ (Listen)

San Francisco Bay Area thrash metallers Death Angel have broken a six-year silence with the release of their blistering new track, “Wrath (Bring Fire)“. The song arrives ahead of the band’s “Summer Of Wrath” European tour, scheduled for the summer of 2025, and is accompanied by a striking visualizer created by Tamara Lienas of Aimed & Framed.

This marks the first new music featuring the full band since their 2019 Grammy-nominated album, Humanicide. Vocalist Mark Osegueda provided an extensive look into the song’s origins, revealing it was penned during the challenging early days of the pandemic.

“‘Wrath(Bring Fire)‘ is the first Death Angel song featuring the whole band to be released since our 2019 Grammy-nominated album Humanicide. This song was, however, written during the pandemic. I wrote the lyrics and melody to this song in January of 2021,” Osegueda explained. He described feeling “stuck at home lost, angry and very confused” during that period, leading him to watch more television, including medieval and fantasy shows which offered escapism from the global situation.

This viewing material partially inspired the song’s themes, Osegueda noted, blending epic conflict with his own real-life responses to perceived slights. “That being said, it was partially what inspired these lyrics. An ancient/medieval fantasy end of the world war meets my actual approach in disputes. That can unfortunately, for all involved, turn very ugly if I’m pushed to a certain level or place when I feel I’m being wronged.”

He emphasized that guitarist Rob Cavestany‘s music was the ultimate catalyst for the lyrics, combined with the fantasy influences and the intense personal introspection he experienced during that difficult time. “And the music Rob wrote for this and the fantasy/medieval-based shows I was watching at that time and the personal hell that I was going through, figuring out who the hell I was during that awful time in our collective history and marrying that with my true personal aggressions and fury that I still fight with to this very day when I feel I’ve been wronged, inspired this song.”

Osegueda added that these feelings persist, sometimes triggered even by those close who might act deceitfully. He dedicated the song to listeners who can relate, invoking a quote attributed to Al Capone: “‘Don’t mistake my kindness for weakness. I am kind to everyone, but when someone is unkind to me, weakness is not what you are going to remember about me.’ That being said, when I come, I’ll bring FIRE!!”

While “Wrath (Bring Fire)” offers fans new material now, work continues on a full-length follow-up to Humanicide. As of March 2024, guitarist Ted Aguilar reported “a bunch of songs, a lot of skeletons” existed after dedicated writing sessions early that year, awaiting Osegueda‘s vocals. Osegueda confirmed around the same time that songwriting was “going great” and the band was “excited about it.” Cavestany later mentioned having around seven songs in progress, expressing a desire to finish the album amidst a busy touring schedule.

In addition to his Death Angel duties, Osegueda lent his voice to Slayer guitarist Kerry King‘s debut solo album, From Hell I Rise, released in May 2024.

Looking ahead, Death Angel plans to celebrate the 35th anniversary of their landmark album Act III by performing it in its entirety at their tenth annual Christmas show on December 18th, 2025, at The Fillmore in San Francisco.

The band has remained active despite the gap between albums. They released the Under Pressure EP in October 2020, featuring a Queen + David Bowie cover and new material, followed by the live album The B*stard Tracks in November 2021, capturing a special deep-cuts performance from May 2021. Their previous studio album, Humanicide, earned them their first-ever Grammy nomination for Best Metal Performance for the title track.

This period also saw the band overcome significant adversity when drummer Will Carroll battled a severe case of COVID-19 in March 2020, contracted during their European tour, requiring nearly two weeks on a ventilator. The release of “Wrath (Bring Fire)” signals Death Angel‘s continued resilience and creative drive as they gear up for more touring and the eventual arrival of their next studio album.