Darkthrone has unveiled “Black Dawn Affiliation,” the first single taken from from their upcoming album It Beckons Us All, set to arrive on April 26th via Peaceville. The track is paired with an animation video by Matthew Vickerstaff.

Fenriz comments

“Nocturno Culto sculpted BLACK DAWN AFFILIATION and as much as I writhe in woe trying to describe riffs I did not make, we are certainly rocking hard and dark around a dungeon of slow Kreator 1986-era riffs (think Awakening Of The Gods or Take Their Lives from the FLAG OF HATE 12).

The song is linearly constructed, which is bold for a single but we often write this way. One could say it is a two-pronged beast which after the intermission (filled with a choir of the damned that we sung ourselves, believe it or not: “Aaaaaa.”) continues with my favourite riff in the song since I first heard it appear early in the second part and it is there that I was given the reins to let the halls and chambers of stardust levitate with unearthly synth and a voice that still today, when writing this, strikes me as being influenced by the first rock album I heard back in 1973 – Morrison Hotel. Lyrics darker and more disturbed than ever solidify these halls now.”

Nocturno Culto adds:

“It is not easy to describe the music you make, but for sure I will try…it´s heavy! Everything worked out as I hoped for this track. Some things are just forged in the studio, like as Fenriz´s excellent vocals at the end of the song; and the choir I wanted. Instead of just taking shortcuts, Fenriz and I recorded three vocal tracks each, and it was brilliantly mixed by Silje at Chaka Khan. There are many things one can say about riffs, but I make songs from a combination of a very methodical approach and happy accidents! And somewhere in the back of my head, it´s most likely there is something affecting a lot of my decisions on little details that shapes the riffing.”

Watch the clip below and pre-order the album here:

Track List:
01) Howling Primitive Colonies
02) Eon 3
03) Black Dawn Affiliation
04) And In That Moment I Knew The Answer
05) The Bird People Of Nordland
06) The Heavy Hand
07) The Lone Pines Of The Lost Planet