Trivium’s Matt Heafy has shared a heavy new collaboration with Gerard Way from his solo black metal project Ibaraki’s upcoming debut album, ‘Rashomon’.
The new track, titled ‘Rōnin’, features screamed vocals from the My Chemical Romance frontman, as well as composition from Emperor’s Ihsahn. The nine-minute track also comes with a kaleidoscopic music video that sees two people being brainwashed and hypnotised.
Watch the music video for ‘Rōnin’ below.
Heafy revealed on Twitter that the track’s screamed vocals were performed entirely by Way, and were his “favourite moment” on the song. Ihsahn produced and recorded the guitar solo, with Trivium’s Alex Bent on drums and Ihsahn’s family also contributing to the track’s choir vocals.
FYI. Gerard did all the screams on this song. Ihsahn is on the solo. Ihsahn’s family on the “whoa oh’s”. Yours truly on singing. Alex Bent on drums.
— Matthew kiichichaos Heafy (@matthewkheafy) March 25, 2022
Heafy said of his collaboration with Way via a press release: “Gerard Way has been a long-time inspiration for me – like Ihsahn and Nergal – I have looked to Gerard as a constant source of motivation to be creative. While Gerard and I may be from different genres than where Ibaraki and black metal stem from – outsiders of sorts – the spirit and intent of our performances is what unites our passion for pushing boundaries.”
‘Rōnin’ serves as the third preview of ‘Rashomon’, the upcoming debut album from Heafy’s solo black metal project, Ibaraki. Ibaraki dates back to 2012, when Ihsahn approached the Trivium frontman for a separate project.
Over the years, Ibaraki has taken on multiple forms, first being named Mrityu with themes revolving around Scandinavian and Norse mythology, before switching to focus on Japanese legends instead.
Prior to ‘Rōnin’, Ibaraki have shared two other singles: ‘Akumu’, which features vocals from Behemoth’s Nergal, and ‘Tamashii No Houkai’ with Ihsahn.
‘Rashomon’ will be released via Nuclear Blast on May 6. The album will consist of 10 songs. Check out its full track listing below.