EXODUS Announces New Album 'Goliath', Shares First Single '3111'

San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal legends EXODUS will release their twelfth studio album, "Goliath", on March 20, 2026 via Napalm Records. Today, the band reveals the massive opening track "3111" — the sinister single strikes dissonant chords before careening into breakneck thrash intensity. This album standout showcases EXODUS's ever-increasingly dynamic approach, even decades into their historic reign.

Emerging hungrier than ever in 2026, with "Goliath", EXODUS reinforces their eternal foothold at the top of thrash metal's hierarchy with 10 of their most diverse, anthemic emissions to date. Further fueled by the widely embraced return of iconic late-era frontman Rob Dukes — first appearing on 2005's "Shovel Headed Kill Machine" — the album boasts what the band describes as the performance of his life. "Goliath" is EXODUS's most collaborative record in their four decade-plus history, featuring songs written by several band members and guest contributions from Peter Tägtgren (HYPOCRISY, PAIN) and violinist Katie Jacoby.

EXODUS on "3111": "We decided to go hard with the leadoff single '3111'. The song is about the narco killings in Juarez, and 3111 is the estimated number of murders for 2010 alone."

The official video is too brutal for YouTube and is being denied. It will be released in its entirety at a later time and place.

"Goliath" wastes no time proving as massive as its name, with a sinister introduction opening "3111". Ode to owning one's own volatility "Hostis Humani Generis" features a palpable lyrical delivery from Dukes that cuts like crystal amid frenetic riffs, before rolling into "The Changing Me". The track's introductory notes cascade into hair-raising rhythms, forming one of the band's most anthemic offerings — blending menace and melody with the cleans of guest Tägtgren together with Tom Hunting and at the end both Peter and Rob scream off the song. Harmonic dual axe acrobatics from resident guitar legends Gary Holt and Lee Altus. "Promise You This" incites mosh pit treachery with explosive energy, cyclonic riffs and turbocharged soloing from Holt and Altus, prior to colossal title track "Goliath" simmering the tempo down with winding, malevolent leads, towering drums and ominous string work from Katie Jacoby coupling with intricate guitars. The album standout showcases the band's ever-increasingly dynamic approach, even decades into their historic reign. Tracks like "Beyond The Event Horizon" and "2 Minutes Hate" provide EXODUS's trademark deadly dose of thrash theatricality — the latter boasting one of the album's most grimacing, grooving pit primers — while undeniably '90s-tinged metallic charm attacks alongside drummer Tom Hunting and bassist Jack Gibson's unmistakable rhythmic rage on tracks like "Violence Works". The nearly eight-minute epic "Summon Of The God Unknown" turns the danger dial to max capacity, setting the stage with a wicked introductory passage before traversing a variegated passage of trudging riffs and heavy metal melody. Power-packed closer "The Dirtiest Of The Dozen" wraps the album on a manic high, showcasing EXODUS pulling out all the stops on all instruments. Flurried dueling solos, an isolated bass excursion, rigorous drum dexterity and a blend of both gritty vocal passages and cutting chants combine to serve as yet another prime example of the band's ever-evolving musical mastery.

Produced by EXODUS, mixed and mastered by Mark Lewis (WHITECHAPEL, NILE, UNDEATH),"Goliath" beams with the explosive authenticity that has set EXODUS eons apart from their peers since the release of their debut, 1985's groundbreaking thrash blueprint "Bonded By Blood". 40 years later, EXODUS are steadfast in their refusal to settle for the safety of mediocrity, fearing nothing and no one and continuing to forge their trademark just as resolutely as they did in their fruition.

EXODUS on the new album "Goliath": "Are we excited for this record? That's an understatement. We put everything we had into this record (and it's 80 percent complete follow-up, but we'll save that conversation for another day!) and it's one of our proudest accomplishments. Wildly collaborative, the most band centric album to date with four songs written by Lee, lyrics by Gary, Rob, Lee and Tom, and just killer all the way around. The time to let the monster loose is coming! Bow Down!"

"Goliath" track listing:

01. 3111
02. Hostis Humani Generis
03. The Changing Me (feat. Peter Tägtgren)
04. Promise You This
05. Goliath (feat. Katie Jacoby)
06. Beyond The Event Horizon
07. 2 Minutes Hate
08. Violence Works
09. Summon Of The God Unknown
10. The Dirtiest Of The Dozen

Last month EXODUS filmed music videos for three songs from "Goliath", including "3111". The clips were helmed by Jim Louvau, a musical and visual creative artist based in Phoenix, Arizona, who previously worked on EXODUS's music video for the song "The Fires Of Division" from the band's previous LP, 2021's "Persona Non Grata".

In November, EXODUS guitarist Gary Holt told Robb Chavez of Robbs MetalWorks about "Goliath": "It's fucking awesome. I mean, it's so awesome. We're so proud of this record."

According to Holt, EXODUS completed nearly two albums' worth of material during the latest recording sessions, with a view toward releasing the second collection of songs when the first touring cycle is finished.

"80 percent of the follow-up [to EXODUS's next album] is done already," Holt explained. "We just kept working. We never stopped. We were in the studio for two months. And we tend to record by… We all live together in a house, or sometimes we build a studio in a house, and it's like heavy metal summer camp. But we like each other enough to live together still. A lot of bands — that's a rarity. And so we write the whole process. When we started recording, we only had four songs done and a million ideas. And Lee wrote a ton of stuff; he wrote four out of 10 songs on the new album."

Gary also talked about the return of Dukes, who replaced Steve "Zetro" Souza in January 2025. He said: "It's fucking been amazing. When you hear [Rob's] vocals on this new record, you're gonna shit your pants."

Elaborating on what fans can expect from the new EXODUS material, Holt said: "The new album is so killer, dude. And everybody says that — I know that — but, dude, this album's so good. Me and [EXODUS drummer] Tom Hunting call each other and [I tell him], when I listen to it, it makes me wanna cry, it's so good. It's that fucking good. We made something special."

Asked what it is about the new EXODUS album that is so good, Gary explained: "It's just the songs, dude. It's all about the songs. I mean, it's crushing, but it's all anthems. And it's so varied, this record. So many different aspects of EXODUS are in there, from the blinding speed to the slowest, heaviest shit we've ever done. And Rob's vocals are, like, at the top of the pyramid on this shit."

As for the status of the second collection of new songs EXODUS had written during the most recent sessions, Gary said: "We still gotta record a little bit more to complete it. Our goal, we fell a little bit short. We have eight songs done. It was hard picking which ones go on this, 'cause I still, to this day, I have panic attacks, like, 'I should have put that one on it. That song is so sick.' But you're trying to balance a record. And we just picked what we thought were the best ones for this album."

"Goliath" marks the first time in nearly three decades that an EXODUS album hasn't been mixed by Andy Sneap, who has acted as JUDAS PRIEST's producer and touring guitarist for eight years.

In a recent interview with Chicago's Rebel Radio 92.5 FM as part of the station's 31st-anniversary celebration, Dukes praised the material on EXODUS's upcoming effort, saying: "It's killer. It's the best thing I've ever done with EXODUS. I thought [2010's] 'Exhibit B: [The Human Condition]' was probably some of my best work, and I think this tops it. It's so different than what we've done. We've added so many little different things that it's still EXODUS, but we've definitely stepped outside the box a little bit and tried a few different things and it worked well… It's fast. it's dark, it's awesome, man. It's gonna be a lot of fun to go play these songs live."

Souza joined EXODUS in 1986 after previously fronting the band LEGACY (which later became TESTAMENT). He remained in the band until their hiatus in 1993, but rejoined them for two years from 2002 to 2004. Dukes had joined EXODUS in 2005 (following Souza's departure) and remained until 2014, when Souza rejoined.

Dukes previously joined EXODUS in January 2005 and appeared on four of the band's studio albums — "Shovel Headed Kill Machine" (2005),"The Atrocity Exhibition... Exhibit A" (2007),"Let There Be Blood" (2008, a re-recording of EXODUS's classic 1985 LP, "Bonded By Blood") and "Exhibit B: The Human Condition" (2010).

EXODUS played its first concert with Dukes in nearly 11 years on April 5, 2025 at the Decibel Magazine Metal & Beer Fest: Philly at the Fillmore in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Although EXODUS rarely gets mentioned alongside the so-called "Big Four" of 1980s thrash metal — METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER and ANTHRAX — the aforementioned "Bonded By Blood" LP inspired the likes of TESTAMENT, DEATH ANGEL, VIO-LENCE and many others to launch their careers and is considered one of the most influential thrash metal albums of all time.

Photo credit: Jim Louvau