Industrial metal outfit Deathline International, which is composed of Th3Count, SLam, and James Perry, have teamed up with a large cast of musicians to cover “Troops of Tomorrow,” a track originally recorded by The Vibrators for their 1978 LP V2. This song was also notably covered by The Exploited, and appeared as the title-track for their 1982 sophomore album. This new single was released via Slicing Up Eyeballs.

Unlike the previous two versions, which open up with a gritty drum line on top of some bass guitar without any spoken words, the introduction for this track opens up with some protest chants and speech samples. A brooding industrial synth line on top of some electric guitars replace the original’s build up. The song eventually explodes into a straightforward industrial metal sound, with distorted vocals and a dark feel, that manages to channel the rage of The Exploited’s cover, while reinterpreting the rhythm of the punk original. This version is also noticeably longer than both previous songs, as it channels the current unrest occurring in the country.

The song’s uses multiple collaborators for the cover’s chorus-like sections: former Dead Kennedy’s frontman Jello Biafra, John Fryer of Black Needle Noise, Christopher Hall of Stabbing Westward, Emileigh Rohn of Chiasm, Betty X of Pigface, Anjela Piccard of Black Needle Noise, Kay Dolores of Suicide Queen, Lilith Bathory of LUNA13, Jim Semonik of Red Lokust, Jasin Monday of CF2020, Tom Berger of Johnny Tupolev, Warren Harrison of Jess Lamb & the Factory, Jay Tye of Soil & Eclipse and Shawn Brice of Bloodwire.

This single is accompanied by a cover of a Black child who is holding up an “I Can’t Breathe” sign, which has become a popular slogan in the Black Lives Matter movement. According to the band, this cover discusses the United States tenuous history of systematic racial discrimination and violence, that deems a group of people as “undesirables.”

“The United States of America has never reconciled its treatment of the “undesirables,” its systematic racial discrimination, and ultimately its violence against its own citizens,” the band stated in a press release. “We are now experiencing a tectonic shift in public opinion related to these treatments, and, as artists, we want to do our part to keep the momentum of this shift going. This fight is far from over. It was out of this sentiment that ‘Troops of Tomorrow’ was born. It is dedicated to the oppressed. It is our big cheer to those who stand up, call foul and resist.”

Fryer will be producing the first new Stabbing Westward record in over two decades. Check out Biafra’s on-stage live performance alongside Ministry here.

Photo Credit: Raymond Flotat