Exclusive Video Premiere: BAT – “Beware of the Bat”

Whether or not steel chain whippers BAT took Shane Mehling’s recent post on the unanimous suckiness of metal music videos as a challenge is besides the point. What matters is that the Richmond-based speed metal trio’s brand new video for their song “Beware of the Bat” (known originally as “Bat,” from their critically hailed debut album, Wings of Chains) is a testament to the hitherto largely untapped potential of combining a rippin’ good heavy metal track with a keen cinematic eye and a band who know well how to wear the metal grimace with panache and just the right amount of levity. Featuring Municipal Waste’s Ryan Waste (bass/vocals) and Nick Poulos (guitars), as well as drummer Felix Griffin (ex-D.R.I.), BAT sound and look right at home in black & white video, shredding in the middle of some remote and foggy Appalachian cemetery.

“We’ve always been fans of classic horror films, so this is BAT’s first stab at making a creature feature of our own,” says Ryan Waste. “It wouldn’t be possible without the talented Margaret Rolicki who fabricated the BAT costume and brought our moniker to life. She did an incredible job and continues to thrive in the Richmond art community working with GWAR among her other artistic endeavors. We called upon another fellow Richmondite who lives and bleeds horror, our one-man army, Mr. Jim Stramel to film this on the fly. All we had to mention was ‘monster in abandoned graveyard’ and he was in. Jim does a horror series called ‘REVILED’ that you can check out here. We co-directed the video and had a blast putting the whole production together. This is only the introduction to the BAT so you better beware. We are currently working on a new 4 song EP due out on Hells Headbangers later this year. Expect plenty more filth and fury from the BAT to come . . .”

We’re privileged to bring you this exclusive premiere of BAT’s video, “Beware of the Bat.”

Check out BAT on Bandcamp and Facebook, and be sure to subscribe to BAT’s official YouTube channel.