Mastodon released their new single for the film Bill & Ted Face The Music, titled “Rufus Lives.” The film was released Friday, and its soundtrack features appearances from Lamb of God, Animals as Leaders, Weezer and more.

The track starts off with an eerie silence and echoes before the energy picks up. There is a strong focus on the guitar and percussion in the fast-paced heavy metal track. The song takes its name from George Carlin’s character, Rufus, in the first two films. Carlin passed away in 2008.

According to a statement from drummer Bran Dailor, the group started working on the track around February. He was headed to guitarist Bill Kelliher’s house. They wrote the song quickly, and when the film contacted them about making the music, they reworked the song to be a party banger and less dark.

“They sent us the scene, and it needed to be like party rock ‘n’ roll,” Dailor said in a statement. “We sent them a couple things, but they were a little doomy. It’s hard for us not to be doomy, you know? They were like, ‘It needed to be at a party, not a funeral!’ And we were like, ‘Okay, we’re sorry!’”

The science fiction-comedy film serves as the third installment in the Bill & Ted trilogy. The two main stars are Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter, who reprise their roles. It follows 1989’s Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure and 1991’s Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey. The new film portrays the two title characters as middle-aged and the fathers of daughters, who also appear in the film. The filming was completed in Aug. 2019.

In July, the group announced they will release their upcoming album, Medium Rarities, in September. They also announced they would record a soundtrack single. When he talked about the album, Kelliher said that Nick John, the group’s late manager, would be a central theme.

Photo Credit: Raymond Flotat