Swarm of Eyes Debuts Video for “Dead Eyes”
Welp… It only took 15 years, but Swarm of Eyes has released their first music video. “Dead Eyes,” the lead single from the new EP, Once More Unto the Breach, blends live footage of the band with eerie conceptual imagery that brings the song’s subject matter to (un)life.
At its core, “Dead Eyes” is just a sweet little story about friendship and necromancy with the visuals lending a folk horror feel to Swarm of Eyes’ heavy-hitting new track.
“As a band, we’ve talked about making a music video for years, so having ‘Dead Eyes’ become our first one is pretty special,” explains Randy Carter, lead vocalist for Swarm of Eyes. “The song already felt cinematic when we wrote it, and the video’s dark imagery gave us a chance to tell the story behind the lyrics in a way we’ve never been able to before. Seeing it all come together was incredibly rewarding.”
The clip’s live footage was filmed at the legendary Massachusetts metal mecca, Ralph’s Rock Diner, showcasing Swarm of Eyes in their natural element and playing to a packed house.
“Having the opportunity to film the performance footage at the world-famous Ralph’s Rock Diner in Worcester made the project even more special,” continues Randy. “It’s a venue that has supported heavy music for decades, and we’re proud to have it be part of our first video.”
Check out the video for yourself over on the Swarm of Eyes YouTube channel. Don’t forget to (unironically) smash that like button, subscribe, and comment!
Swarm of Eyes Kickstarter Fully Funded After 40 Minutes! But Let’s Keep It Going!
Welp… It might be a record. The new Swarm of Eyes Kickstarter campaign officially launched today — and was fully funded in under 40 minutes! We’re elated to be diving Once More Unto the Breach and one step closer to unleashing the new EP onto the world.
While your handsome and humble heroes may have reached our initial funding goal, there’s still 24 days to go. As the campaign merrily rolls along, we’ll be sharing even more with you all. Stay tuned for exclusive song clips, mad musings from the band, and some of the stories behind the songs.
Since the CDs and shirts are all ready to go, this campaign is more about giving us a chance to connect directly with our fans, share music, and let you customize how you want to hear (and wear) your music. Which is why we’re sweetening the pot with early bird specials. Save $15 when you grab BOTH shirts and the CD.
So, yes. This campaign is basically a pre-order. But on a much larger level, it’s a party! We get to use this campaign as a destination where we can all come together and celebrate.
No one expresses this sentiment better than our guitarist, George O’Connor:
For the next 25 days, we get to celebrate this EP and all the effort that went into getting here.We get to connect WITH YOU!
When you support us, we SEE it.
When you get your music and shirts, we’re the ones sending it to you!In a landscape that seems determined to keep fans and artists apart, running a campaign literally brings us all together.
It’s only Day 1, but collectively, we want to thank everyone who has helped make this possible so far from the bottom of our ever-lovin’, thrashy, doomy metal hearts. Whether you donated a little or a heaping chunk, it means a lot that you trust us to deliver something we put our hearts, souls, calloused fingers and strained vocal chords in. Thank you.
Swarm of Eyes is Back in the Studio
Let’s face it: 2020 has been a downer of a year for music. Not only have we lost Neil Peart and Eddie Van Halen, but live music has been one of many casualties of the pandemic. Like many artists who are juggling a desire to create and share new music with fans, Swarm of Eyes has been working on recording new material
The same quintet you know and love — vocalist Randy Carter, guitarists George O’Connor and Derrik Albertelli, bassist Jeff Grossman, and drummer Tommy Burke — have been making the most of the world’s lull in the action by creating new music and reinterpreting fan favorites. The band recently took to the studio to re-record “Turn Back to Light.”
Re-Recording “Turn Back to Light”
One of the newer additions to Swarm of Eyes’ live shows (Live shows! Remember those?!), “Turn Back to Light” was released as a single in late 2019. Fast-forward to 2020 and the Eyes guys are shaking off the dust, writing and practicing new material, and plotting a course for a brand new album. For now, they’re starting slow, taking a familiar song from their catalog and reinterpreting it.
Much like a daytime soap opera and Jesus Christ (insert obligatory Type O Negative-inspired “Jesus Christ looks like Randy” quip) , this isn’t the first time Swarm of Eyes has performed a resurrection.
Previously, the band re-recorded one of their signature songs, “Humanemic,” for their 2017 EP, We Go To War With the Weapons We Have. The song originally appeared on their debut album, Designing the Dystopia, and was recorded before drummer Tommy Burke and bassist Jeff Grossman joined the band. The new-and-improved “Humanemic” let the Eyes’ rhythm section put their stamp on the song, preserving a slice of the band’s live dynamic for posterity.
Working With “New” Producer, Mac Ritchey
For the new re-recording of “Turn Back to Light,” producer Mac Ritchey is in the control booth, steering the ship. Liner notes junkies and longtime fans of several of the Eyes’ guys former bands may recognize Ritchey as the production mastermind behind Motokops 2000’s album, Only Pieces Remain. While MK2K and Swarm of Eyes vocalist Randy Carter had worked with Mac Ritchey before, the rest of the band finally got a taste of working with the producer.
“What Mac brings is a LOT of experience, a VERY trained musical ear, and an eagerness to collaborate and create,” noted Carter. “He likes a challenge.”
A musician’s producer, Mac Ritchey has worked with a diverse range of artists spanning the gamut from metal to folk and adult contemporary. The common denominator is that Ritchey has a reputation for working with passionate, highly trained musicians and has an appreciation for the subtleties of not just a given genre, but for the intricacies of sound unique to each artist. It doesn’t hurt that the man makes his own stringed instruments, too.
“He’s so good at working in Pro Tools and editing it’s actually stunning,” continued Carter. He left everyone in the room amazed and singing his praises. He’s also just the nicest, most upbeat, sweetheart of a guy.”
Swarm of Eyes: Celebrating 10 Years of Live Shows in 2021
Re-recording “Turn Back to Light” with Mac Ritchey is just the first step in the band’s march toward 2021. In addition to being any year that’s NOT 2020, 2021 is special because it marks 10 years of Swarm of Eyes playing live shows together as a fully-fledged five-member band. The group hopes to mark the occasion with fresh material to satiate fans hungering for heavy music.
“The plan is to have a whole new EP of songs and a brand new set to play live once venues open back up, sometime next year,” observed Carter.
While 2020 has been pretty damn abysmal, there’s a “Light” at the end of the tunnel — at least in the form of new Swarm of Eyes music on the horizon and the promise of live shows when fans and bands can safely return to clubs and concert halls. For now, it’s all about mining the time spent in solitude to create something together.