Infest the Rats' Nest

Last updated

Cavs and Joe and I grew up on a fair amount of heavy metal, and so the three of us just started jamming this heavy stuff which just turned into the record. It was very natural. [18]

Stu Mackenzie
Stu Mackenzie used a Gibson Explorer on all songs on the album. King Gizzard & The LIzard Wizard (46584224021).jpg
Stu Mackenzie used a Gibson Explorer on all songs on the album.

Mackenzie cited groups such as Motörhead, Metallica, Slayer, Exodus, Overkill, Sodom, Rammstein and Kreator as influences. [19] [20] On creating Infest the Rats' Nest, he said the band intended to "be more extreme and more intense – just to see how it would take shape". [19] Mackenzie's acquisition of a Gibson Explorer was also said to have inspired the heavier sound, and was used on every song on the album. [18] Heavy metal guitar techniques are used throughout, such as shredding and chugging, in addition to the wah-wah and delay effects more typical of the band's style. [2] As with other releases, unusual time signatures are present. [2] The album makes consistent use of double kick drumming [15] and harsh vocal delivery. [2] "Superbug" has been described as a more downtempo stoner rock or sludge metal song than the rest of the track listing, and has been compared to the work of Sleep or Melvins. [15] [21] [12] "Mars for the Rich" was compared by some reviewers to Black Sabbath, [12] [22] and "Perihelion" has been likened to power metal. [15]

Lyrics

On the album's lyrical themes, frontman Stu Mackenzie explained that the A-side is about contemporary issues such as ecological disaster and climate change and is set in the near future, and the B-side follows a group of rebels attempting to colonise Venus after being forced to leave Earth. [13] [2] [20] In this "cli-fi" narrative, the group eventually die and enter Hell. [13] [2] Mackenzie said on the lyrics: "We've got a lot of things to fear... I spend a lot of time thinking about the future of humanity and the future of Planet Earth". [23]

"Planet B" opens the album, featuring the refrain "there is no Planet B". [3] [24] "Mars for the Rich" criticises inequality in the context of climate change, with the wealthy exploiting Mars, while the poor survive on a degraded Earth. [2] "Organ Farmer" addresses intensive farming and beef production. [21] "Superbug" discusses a disease outbreak that causes a mass extinction. [24] "Perihelion", "Venusian 1" and "Venusian 2" begins the science fiction narrative, addressing ozone depletion. [24] "Self-Immolate" uses self-immolation as a metaphor for the self-destruction of the human race, with "Hell" closing the album and its narrative. [24]

Critical reception

Infest the Rats' Nest
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard - Infest the Rats' Nest.png
Studio album by
Released16 August 2019 (2019-08-16)
Genre
Length34:50
Label
Producer Stu Mackenzie
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard chronology
Fishing for Fishies
(2019)
Infest the Rats' Nest
(2019)
K.G.
(2020)
Full chronology
Fishing for Fishies
(2019)
Infest the Rats' Nest
(2019)
Live in Paris '19
(2020)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 77/100 [25]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [26]
Classic Rock Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [22]
Exclaim! 8/10 [27]
NME Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [21]
Pitchfork 6.7/10 [12]
Under the Radar Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [28]

Infest the Rats' Nest was well received by music critics upon its release. On the review aggregator website Metacritic, the album has a score of 77 out of 100 based on 14 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". [25] In his review for AllMusic, writer Tim Sendra concluded that "King Gizzard aren't sugarcoating anything, either musically or thematically, and that makes for their most timely and political album yet. It's also one of their most musically compelling and impressive, too, and that's saying a lot." [26] Stuart Berman in Pitchfork commended the album as the band's "most succinct and single-minded statement to date" and its themes and heavy metal performances, but also said that it was "lacking both the unpredictable detours of their biggest rock-outs and the insidious melodies of their more pop-focused work." [12] A three out of five star NME review by Danii Leivers highlighted "Planet B" as a standout and compared it to Master of Puppets -era Metallica, but noted "as the album reaches its mid-section, the material does start to wear thin" and that not all of the tracks were memorable or cohesive. [21]

In PopMatters , Callum Bains described Infest the Rats' Nest as "a brutal, fear-inducing harbinger of our impending existential doom as the band steps on the soapbox to paint the apocalyptic horror of the climate emergency". [2] In Consequence, William Ruben Helms praised the musical performances and dark lyrical themes, and concluded that "while it feels like a minor misstep in comparison to much of their catalog, it finds the band crafting forceful and ferocious, mosh pit-friendly rippers that are politically and socially relevant." [29]

Accolades

At the ARIA Music Awards of 2019, the album was nominated for ARIA Award for Best Hard Rock or Heavy Metal Album, [30] losing to Northlane for Alien . [31] AllMusic also listed Infest the Rats' Nest as one of the "favorite metal albums" of 2019. [32]

List of appearances on year-end lists
PublicationListRankRef.
Rolling Stone 10 Best Metal Albums of 2019
6
[33]
Gigwise 51 Best Albums of 2019
23
[34]
Mojo 75 Best Albums of 2019
35
[35]

Track listing

Vinyl releases have tracks 1–4 on Side A, and tracks 5–9 on Side B. [36]

Infest the Rats' Nest track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Planet B" Stu Mackenzie 3:56
2."Mars for the Rich"
4:11
3."Organ Farmer"
  • Mackenzie
  • Walker
  • Cavanagh
2:39
4."Superbug"Mackenzie6:43
5."Venusian 1"Mackenzie3:20
6."Perihelion"
  • Mackenzie
  • Walker
  • Cavanagh
3:11
7."Venusian 2"
  • Mackenzie
  • Walker
  • Cavanagh
2:44
8."Self-Immolate"
  • Mackenzie
  • Walker
  • Cavanagh
4:28
9."Hell"
  • Mackenzie
  • Walker
  • Cavanagh
3:38
Total length:34:50

Personnel

Additional personnel

Charts

Chart performance for Infest the Rats' Nest
Chart (2019)Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA) [37] 2
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [38] 85
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [39] 66
Canadian Albums (Billboard) [40] 51
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [41] 69
Scottish Albums (OCC) [42] 35
UK Independent Albums (OCC) [43] 7
US Billboard 200 [44] 64
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard) [45] 5
US Independent Albums (Billboard) [46] 3
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) [47] 8

See also

References

  1. https://www.nme.com/news/music/king-gizzard-and-the-lizard-wizard-drummer-eric-moore-leaves-the-band-2736813
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "'Infest the Rats' Nest' Sees King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard Embrace Their Inner Thrash". PopMatters . 20 August 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  3. 1 2 Reed, Ryan (8 April 2019). "Hear King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard's Metallic New Song 'Planet B'". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on 27 June 2019. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  4. Parker, Jack (30 April 2019). "King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard's Reddit AMA: What We Learnt". All Things Loud. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  5. Strauss, Matthew (28 May 2019). "Watch King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard's Video for New Song 'Self-Immolate'". Pitchfork . Archived from the original on 21 June 2019. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  6. Mathieson, Craig (20 June 2019). "Melbourne's prolific King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard show their metal". The Sydney Morning Herald . Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  7. Parker, Jack (20 June 2019). "King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard to Release Thrash Metal Album". All Things Loud. Archived from the original on 29 September 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  8. Minsker, Evan (20 June 2019). "King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard Announce New Album Infest the Rats' Nest". Pitchfork . Archived from the original on 21 June 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2019.
  9. Minsker, Evan (26 June 2019). "Watch King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard's Video for New Song 'Organ Farmer'". Pitchfork . Archived from the original on 27 June 2019. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  10. Triscari, Caleb (13 August 2019). "King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard have just released their own video game". Beat Magazine. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  11. wookubus (16 August 2019). "King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard Release First-Person Shooter Video Game For Their Song "Mars For The Rich"". Theprp. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 Berman, Stuart (17 August 2019). "King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard: Infest the Rats' Nest". Pitchfork . Archived from the original on 17 August 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
  13. 1 2 3 Newstead, Al (21 June 2019). "Less than half of King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard recorded their new metal album". triple j . Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  14. "On 'Infest The Rats' Nest,' King Gizzard masters metal – The Miscellany News". miscellanynews.org. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Gray, Josh (20 August 2019). "King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Infest The Rats' Nest". Clash . Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  16. Reilly, Nick (21 June 2019). "King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard announce thrash metal album 'Infest The Rats' Nest'". NME . Archived from the original on 21 June 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2019.
  17. "Live Music Picks: Aug. 15-21". Salt Lake City Weekly . 14 August 2019. Archived from the original on 15 August 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
  18. 1 2 Bullpublished, Stan (25 August 2020). "The 10 best King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard songs... so far". Guitar World . Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  19. 1 2 Triscari, Caleb (6 August 2019). "We chat to King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard about their latest release, 'Infest the Rats' Nest'". Beat Magazine . Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  20. 1 2 Kennelty, Greg (23 June 2019). "King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard Announces Thrash Album Infest The Rats' Nest". Metal Injection. Archived from the original on 30 July 2019. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
  21. 1 2 3 4 Leivers, Dannii (21 August 2019). "King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – 'Infest The Rats' Nest' review". NME . Archived from the original on 21 August 2019. Retrieved 21 August 2019.
  22. 1 2 Sharp, Johnny (16 August 2019). "King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard have released... an old-skool thrash album?". Classic Rock Magazine . Archived from the original on 17 August 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
  23. Gray, Julia (20 June 2019). "King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard Announce New Album 'Infest The Rats' Nest'". Stereogum . Archived from the original on 30 July 2019. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
  24. 1 2 3 4 "King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard - Infest The Rats' Nest". mxdwn Music. 15 November 2019. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  25. 1 2 "Reviews for Infest the Rats' Nest by King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard". Metacritic . Archived from the original on 16 September 2020. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
  26. 1 2 Sendra, Tim. "Infest the Rats Nest - King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic . Archived from the original on 17 August 2019. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
  27. Haughey, Ryan (13 August 2019). "King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard Infest the Rats' Nest". Exclaim! . Archived from the original on 17 August 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
  28. Mayne, Stephen (16 August 2019). "Infest the Rats' Nest". Under the Radar . Archived from the original on 16 August 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
  29. Melis, Matt (23 August 2019). "Album Review: King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard Pay Homage to Thrash Titans on Infest the Rats' Nest". Consequence . Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  30. "ARIA Awards: 2019 ARIA Awards Nominated Artists Revealed". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). 10 October 2019. Archived from the original on 28 October 2019. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
  31. "2019 ARIA Awards Winners". www.aria.com.au. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  32. "Favorite Metal Albums | AllMusic 2019 in Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  33. Shteamer, Suzy Exposito,Kory Grow,Hank; Exposito, Suzy; Grow, Kory; Shteamer, Hank (11 December 2019). "The 10 Best Metal Albums of 2019". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 18 January 2023.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  34. "Gigwise's 51 Best Albums of 2019 | Gigwise". www.gigwise.com. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
  35. "MOJO's 75 Best Albums of 2019". Album of The Year. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
  36. Infest the Rats' Nest at Discogs (list of releases)
  37. "Australiancharts.com – King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Infest the Rats' Nest". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  38. "Ultratop.be – King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Infest the Rats' Nest" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
  39. "Ultratop.be – King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Infest the Rats' Nest" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
  40. "King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  41. "Offiziellecharts.de – King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Infest the Rats' Nest" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
  42. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 August 2019.
  43. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  44. "King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  45. "King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  46. "King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  47. "King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 27 August 2019.