Arizona groove metal hotheads Incite finally set fire to the Old World. After five relentless albums coming down like a ten ton hammer and with an insane touring schedule under their belts, Richie Cavalera and his gang of misfits gear up for their Atomic Fire debut “Wake up dead”. This infectious collection of raucous new songs and remastered gems from their 15+ year career is once again proving that Incite indeed are the missing link between Machine Head and Lamb of God.

And no wonder, with a guy like this helming the enterprise: Richie Cavalera was simply born this way. No tape collection of an older brother, no friend who incidentally took him to a Machine Head show back in the nineties. Not him. He’s the archetypal metal guy, an Obelix who fell into a cauldron of condensed heavy metal essence. He was baptized in a bar by Rob Halford’s devil horns when only a few days old, he’s the kid on the cover of legendary US thrashers Atrophy’s groundbreaking “Violent by Nature” album. Take that, “Nevermind” kiddo! Can you imagine this Arizona metal freak becoming a lawyer? Hell no. His mom is more metal than you will ever be. “Music has been there since my birth,” he says. “It only makes sense that I became a metalhead. I’m here to carry our name and metal into the future for years to come.”

In other words: There simply was no other path for him. With legendary metal manager Gloria Cavalera as mom and thrash forefather Max Calavera as stepdad, Richie was made for thrashing us. Growing up in metal venues and tourbuses around the globe, he chewed his way through several bands, honing his craft. After starting Incite back in 2004, he gave it ample time to ripen and experimenting with a rotating cast of members before finally cooling off the forge and revealing the sizzling metallic beast that was years in the making. “We really took our time before we hit it off,” Cavalera says. “I was in no hurry to gear up as I wanted to make sure we’re a unit ready to take on the world.” Which is what they did, step by step by step.

For many years now, Incite are a visceral groove metal force to be reckoned with, the lovechild of Lamb Of God, Pantera and Machine Head. On their five albums “The Slaughter” (2009), “All Out War” (2012), “Up in Hell” (2014), “Oppression” (2016) and “Built to Destroy” (2019) they cemented their reputation as one of America’s leading groove armadas, heavily hitting home with their blend of old school thrash majesty, timeless groove, frantic aggression, melody, skill, and bravado! What began as a band of greenhorns driving around the States in a shitty van thrashing small clubs has over time evolved into a band with the potential, the passion and the power to become one of groove metal’s biggest acts. The sky is the limit. “We really feel like we’re coming into our own with our new songs,” says Cavalera. “This is how Incite were supposed to sound all along. I couldn’t be happier with the results. It’s more mature without losing the balls-out aggression of our earlier releases.”

Written in several bouts of feverish inspiration across last years’ pandemic chaos, “Wake up dead” delivers the goods in the most relentless way. With recording duties again handled by legendary producer Steve Evetts (Richie: “The only guy who can simultaneously record The Cure and Suicide Silence and pull it off”) in Omen Room Studios just outside Los Angeles, here’s a band that couldn’t be more comfortable with the place they’re in right now. Kicking off with the open fire that is “Fuck with me (Wake up dead)”, it’s especially the menacing second song “War Soup” that will make a lasting impression on the international heavy metal troops – as the first ever duet of Richie and Max Cavalera, a historical gathering of heavy metal generations! “The song deals with the experiences of a relative during World War II, especially with all the soup they had to eat during that time.” Why not. There are enough songs already about the horror of the trenches. Make this one about the horror of the soup!

Following suite is the riff-dripping “Sucker Punched” and the unleashed groove superpower that is “Deadbeat”, a song about Covid-era lethargy. It all culminates in a rearing beast called “Mental Destruction”, “the most ambitious piece of music we ever wrote,” as Richie Cavalera states. Adding five of their most popular older tracks in viscerally remastered versions gives a unique opportunity of watching a band evolve into the riff monarchs they are today. “Wake up dead” is a two-headed hydra, showing the way into the future while honoring the foundations of old. Europe, get ready for a groove metal thrashing you won’t forget anytime soon. Incite are here to stay. And they’re just getting warm.