HEATHEN Signs With NAPALM RECORDS, Shares New Single 'Never A God'

San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal veterans HEATHEN have begun a new era, joining forces with Napalm Records. With a new album in the works as well, HEATHEN kicks off the new partnership with a special treat for its loyal fans. Digging deep into their musical past, the thrashers recorded two rather obscure tracks from other bands the members were involved with. Up first is "Never A God", title track of LAUGHING DEAD's first demo. The band was fronted by HEATHEN vocalist David White in the early 1990s — the classic song will now shine once again in HEATHEN's powerful style.

HEATHEN comments on the signing: "We're very proud to announce that HEATHEN has officially signed with Napalm Records! Joining forces with a team who shares our vision, our drive, and our passion for metal music. This marks the beginning of a new chapter for the band. We're fired up for what's coming and can't wait to complete work on the new HEATHEN album!"

Napalm Records senior A&R Sebastian Münch states about the signing: "We are incredibly proud and excited to welcome the legendary Californian thrash metal band HEATHEN to the Napalm Records family. HEATHEN are true icons of the genre, and working with them is an absolute honor. We strongly believe in this partnership and are thrilled to take the next chapter of HEATHEN's legacy to new heights together."

Watch the official music video for "Never A God" below

HEATHEN emerged from the San Francisco scene in 1984, leading the Bay Area thrash metal scene in their early years. "Breaking The Silence" (1987) and "Victims Of Deception" (1991) are staples of West Coast metal. After a few years of hiatus, they returned in 2001.

HEATHEN comments on "Never A God": "We're going to start this new partnership with Napalm Records off with a bang and give you something new to listen to while we continue to work on the new HEATHEN album. With that in mind, we recorded a couple of classic Bay Area thrash tracks originally written by other bands that we played with in the early 1990s. The demo collectors out there may have heard these songs before, but they'll be new to most of you. The first single is 'Never A God', originally recorded in demo form (with David White on vocals) by LAUGHING DEAD. So, new record label, new music, new video, 12" maxi-single pre-order, and a tour with CORONER in North America starting tomorrow. LFG!"

"Never A God" track listing:

01. Never A God
02. Twist of Faith

HEATHEN supporting CORONER on "Dissonance Over The West" tour:

Feb. 04 - Las Vegas, NV @ The Usual Place
Feb. 05 - San Diego, CA @ Brick By Brick
Feb. 06 - Los Angeles, CA @ Whisky A Go Go
Feb. 07 - Pomona, CA @ The Glass House
Feb. 09 - San Jose, CA @ The Ritz
Feb. 10 - Berkeley, CA @ Cornerstone
Feb. 12 - Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
Feb. 13 - Seattle, WA @ El Corazon
Feb. 14 - Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre
Feb. 16 - Billings, MT @ Pub Station
Feb. 17 - Butte, MT @ Covellite Theatre
Feb. 18 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Ace's High Saloon
Feb. 20 - Denver, CO @ HQ
Feb. 21 - Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad
Feb. 22 - Mesa, AZ @ Rosetta Room

HEATHEN is often credited — alongside exodus, testament, forbidden, death angel and VIO-LENCE — as one of the leaders of the Bay Area thrash metal scene of the mid-to-late 1980s. They have gone through several lineup changes over the years, but still having the foundation of David White on vocals and Kragen Lum on guitar, with Kragen filling in for Gary Holt in EXODUS whenever Holt was touring with SLAYER.

To date, HEATHEN has released four studio albums: "Breaking the Silence" (1987),"Victims Of Deception" (1991),"The Evolution Of Chaos" (2009) and "Empire Of The Blind" (2020).

HEATHEN's debut album, "Breaking The Silence", sold well over 100,000 copies worldwide, and the band's latest album, "Empire Of The Blind", hit Top 40 in the charts in Germany, Hungary as well as charting elsewhere around the globe in places like Scotland.

HEATHEN is:

David R. White - Vocals
Kragen Lum - Guitars
Kyle Edissi - Guitars
Jason Mirza - Bass
Blake Anderson - Drums

Photo credit: Ty Fox