SIGNS OF THE SWARM have released a crushing cover of ROB ZOMBIE’s classic “Dragula,” arriving as a standalone single via Century Media Records and accompanied by a star-studded music video featuring Bam Margera, Will Ramos of Lorna Shore, Trey Williams of Dying Fetus, Matt Greiner of August Burns Red and more.
The release marks the one-year anniversary of the Pittsburgh deathcore outfit’s sixth full-length album, To Rid Myself of Truth.
According to drummer Bobby Crow, the band had spent years searching for the right song to cover, considering artists ranging from The Prodigy and Slayer to Static-X before landing on “Dragula.”
“We used to spin Hellbilly Deluxe on repeat to keep us awake on long tour drives, and we love tracks like ‘Living Dead Girl,’ ‘Superbeast’ and ‘Spookshow Baby,’ but one day we just started mouthing out ideas for what a SOTS version of ‘Dragula’ would sound like,” Crow explains. “Immediately, we were like, ‘DAMN! This is The ONE!’”
SIGNS OF THE SWARM brought the idea to producer and engineer Josh Schroeder, who helped develop the track’s beat loops before the band pushed the guitars into appropriately punishing territory.
“We tuned the guitars way down to drop fuck, and it all came together within a day,” Crow adds.
The accompanying video similarly evolved beyond the band’s original plans. Vocalist David Simonich says SIGNS OF THE SWARM initially envisioned a shot-for-shot recreation of Rob Zombie’s original “Dragula” video, but the inability to find the right car ultimately sent the concept in a much stranger direction.
Instead, a Polaris Slingshot became the centerpiece of a modernized and deliberately ridiculous take on the original, with the band inviting friends from throughout the heavy music world to join the shoot.
Among the cameos are Will Ramos of Lorna Shore, Tyler Beam of The Last Ten Seconds of Life, Jack Murray of 156/Silence, Trey Williams of Dying Fetus and Matt Greiner of August Burns Red. Galactic Empire’s Kevin Corkran also joined Crow and Greiner for the video’s expanded drum line.
The shoot became even more chaotic when Bam Margera joined the festivities alongside fellow professional skateboarder Dalton Dern.
“This video kind of spiraled out of control in the best way possible,” Simonich says. “It was the icing on the cake of a day summed up by the phrase, ‘Sure, why not?’ to great result!”
“Dragula” follows SIGNS OF THE SWARM’s critically acclaimed To Rid Myself of Truth, produced by Schroeder, whose credits include Lorna Shore, Mental Cruelty, Varials and King 810. The record saw the band continue expanding beyond their slamming deathcore foundations with influences from Meshuggah, Gojira and Fear Factory.
Following a run of major European summer festivals, SIGNS OF THE SWARM will return to the road this fall for a North American tour featuring dates alongside Nekrogoblikon, Aborted, Party Cannon and The Last Ten Seconds of Life.
SIGNS OF THE SWARM Tour Dates
Oct. 13 – Chicago, IL @ WC Social Club
Oct. 14 – St. Louis, MO @ Red Flag
Oct. 16 – Phoenix, AZ @ Van Buren
Oct. 17 – Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theater
Oct. 19 – San Antonio, TX @ Vibes Event Center
Oct. 20 – Dallas, TX @ Echo Lounge
Oct. 21 – Houston, TX @ House of Blues
Oct. 23 – Orlando, FL @ The Beacham
Oct. 24 – Tampa, FL @ Ritz Ybor
Oct. 25 – Atlanta, GA @ Buckhead
Oct. 26 – Myrtle Beach, SC @ House of Blues
Oct. 28 – Philadelphia, PA @ Brooklyn Bowl
Oct. 29 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Bowl
Oct. 30 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club
Oct. 31 – Norwalk, CT @ District Music Hall
Nov. 1 – Toronto, ON @ Opera House
Nov. 3 – Detroit, MI @ St Andrew’s Hall
Nov. 4 – Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues
Nov. 5 – Indianapolis, IN @ Deluxe at Old National Centre
Nov. 7 – Denver, CO @ Oriental
Nov. 8 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
Nov. 10 – Spokane, WA @ Knitting Factory
Nov. 11 – Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
Nov. 12 – Seattle, WA @ Crocodile
Nov. 14 – Ventura, CA @ Majestic Ventura Theatre
Nov. 15 – Los Angeles, CA @ Belasco
Nov. 18 – Tulsa, OK @ The Vanguard
Nov. 19 – Louisville, KY @ Headliners
Nov. 20 – Columbus, OH @ Summit
Nov. 21 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Preserving
SIGNS OF THE SWARM lineup
David Simonich — vocals
Bobby Crow — drums
Carl Schulz — guitars
Michael Cassese — bass