Randy might not like the process, but it’s where he thrives, entering a space where he can exorcise his demons and unleash his thoughts on the state of the world. The resulting eponymous album is a 10-track takedown of modern society, dripping in piss and vinegar. We hear him tackling topics that range from the Standing Rock oil protests and humanity’s environmental impact on Routes, to the broken American political system on lead single Checkmate, a punishing track that rails against both main parties as two sides of the same coin, and bemoans how the truth has become an afterthought in people’s minds.
With it being election year in the United States, it stands to reason that Lamb Of God should return with such a resonant track. Although, in typical Randy fashion, he counters such a suggestion by saying that he doesn’t “give a fuck what song comes out first”.
“It’s the most on-the-nose track, politically, but this whole record is political,” he explains. “When we had [George W. Bush] during the [2004 album] Ashes Of The Wake era, he was a whole lot easier to write specifics about, because we had the war in Iraq and the mythical weapons of mass destruction. But right now, the political world everywhere looks like Pee-wee Herman’s Playhouse. Civility and discourse is at an all-time low, and that’s because people view political parties now not for their policies, but [as something to] support like sports teams. The lyrics reflect that. The system is a fucking fraud.”
Such heightened political awareness and increased fanatical support for the left or right could be attributed to humanity’s reliance and obsession with social media and rolling news. Now we’re all connected to the hivemind, scrolling through our echo chambers, the lines between our screens and our lives are blurring, which feeds into the album’s opening track, Memento Mori.
A Latin phrase meaning ‘Be mindful of death’, the title not only bemoans our addiction to media and political punditry, but urges us to wake up and explore the wonders that this life can bring.
“If you pay attention to the news too much, if you pay attention to the talking heads, to the extremists on both sides of the political spectrum, you will come to the conclusion that the world is about to end right fucking now,” says Randy.
Despite being plugged into the mainframe of global politics and fronting a vehicle that allows him to share his truth, Randy is just looking for simplicity; a life of zen and harmony.
“In a global sense, things are really fucked up, but in a personal sense, somewhere right now a mother is seeing her newborn child for the first time, and that’s a magical event. Someone is falling in love for the first time. An old man is sitting there remembering his wife who has passed away and he’s smiling. These are all good things.
“The song is about waking up from that [negative] mentality. It’s something I’ve been guilty of, and I found myself getting more and more fucking depressed. But then take a look at my cat, like, ‘You know what? You’re fucking awesome and it’s rad that you’re here with me. Life ain’t so bad.’”