New Zealand modern groove metal trio ALIEN WEAPONRY recently announced its heaviest, most powerful and mature offering to date, “Te Rā”, due out March 28, 2025 via Napalm Records. In the hands of veteran producer/mixer Josh Wilbur (LAMB OF GOD, GOJIRA, MEGADETH) and featuring a guest vocal appearance from longtime ALIEN WEAPONRY champion Randy Blythe of LAMB OF GOD, “Te Rā”‘s gnashing blend of groove, nu, math and thrash metal shines with anthemic choruses and refreshed technical skill.Today, following the release of the album’s acclaimed first single, “Mau Moko” — a track Revolver, Metal Hammer, Heavy Consequence and others dubbed as one of the best new metal tracks upon release — the band returns again with second single, “1000 Friends”. Warning of the looming societal division and hidden dangers created by social media dependency, the track premieres alongside a brand new music video.ALIEN WEAPONRY frontman Lewis Raharuhi de Jong says about “1000 Friends”: “‘1000 Friends’ encapsulates the shifting way we socialize today, and the impact it has on the human psyche. We can often feel disconnected from the outside world. The human mind wasn’t built to comprehend the world we are currently living in.”Since releasing its acclaimed debut “Tū” (2018),ALIEN WEAPONRY has been lauded for its kinetic presence and sound, as well as its vital blend of culturally profound lyricism in both English and te reo Māori, the indigenous language of New Zealand. With their third full-length album, ALIEN WEAPONRY expands on its hallmark messages of cultural, societal and environmental resilience while delivering their most massive-sounding, focused musical output ever.On “Te Rā”, listeners can hear ALIEN WEAPONRY doubling down on the aggression in the verses before applying temperance, especially in the case of “Taniwha”, a death metal-leaning banger featuring the particularly raw aforementioned guest vocal from Blythe. Lyrically, there’s a noticeable tilt towards despondency, hopelessness, and frustration on “Te Rā”. While bassist Tūranga Porowini Morgan-Edmonds’s lyrics in Māori on songs like “Tama-nui-te-rā” and “Ponaturi” draw from the themes of history, battle lore and mysticism that made the first two albums so rich, frontman/guitarist Lewis Raharuhi de Jong’s English-language lyrics illustrate the impact when culture collides with disenfranchisement day to day. “Crown” and “Hanging By A Thread” take us into the headspace where struggle pushes people to the brink of desperation, while on “Blackened Sky”, Lewis addresses universal woes like the looming threat of World War III. On album closer “Te Kore”, Tūranga dives into primordial nothingness at the root of the Māori origin story, while on “Mau Moko”, he finds the middle ground between these perspectives. Taken as a whole, “Te Rā” grapples with what it’s like to be caught in the pull of divergent cultures — not just for the descendants of colonized people, but for all of us.ALIEN WEAPONRY have solidified themselves as one of the greatest young metal bands of their generation with renewed musical tenacity and crucial messaging. “Te Rā” is a bold, unwavering cry for a future in which we can all take part in the legacy of peoples like the Māori and others all around us – people who, if they aren’t seen, most certainly need to be heard.ALIEN WEAPONRY frontman/guitarist Lewis Raharuhi de Jong said: “We really stepped it up this time, as we understood that this album had to go further. We went through a lot of songs and scrapped entire sections of songs. We kept working them and working them until we got them right. Then, with the way we were pushing ourselves musically, I knew it was important to challenge myself lyrically as well. This time I delved into difficult emotional places and mental states. There’s a lot of existential dread running through the album, and I tried to find the right words to describe the indescribable.””Te Rā” track listing:01. Crown02. Mau Moko03. 1000 Friends04. Hanging By A Thread05. Tama-nui-te-rā06. Myself To Blame07. Taniwha (feat. Randy Blythe)08. Blackened Sky09. Te Riri O Tāwhirimātea10. Ponaturi11. Te KoreALIEN WEAPONRY recently embarked on a massive North American tour with metal icon Kerry King, kicking off today. After the Kerry King tour, ALIEN WEAPONRY will embark on a headlining tour of New Zealand.ALIEN WEAPONRY is:Henry Te Reiwhati de Jong – Drums, Backing vocalsLewis Raharuhi de Jong – Guitars, Lead vocalsTūranga Porowini Morgan-Edmonds – Bass, Backing vocalsPhoto credit: Frances Carter[embedded content][embedded content]