Canadian metal legends ANVIL have set "Impact Is Imminent" as the title of their 19th album, tentatively due in May. The cover artwork for the effort, which was recorded at a studio in Germany, can be found below.
Earlier in the month, ANVIL guitarist/vocalist Steve "Lips" Kudlow told Canada's The Metal Voice about the band's upcoming follow-up to 2020's "Legal At Last" LP: "The new album is completed and mixed and done. What can I say? I can't wait till it comes out.
"The whole thing is a bit weird and odd because we put out an album and then never got to tour for it," he continued, referencing the aforementioned "Legal At Last". "So it's, like, where is the tour for the last album already? So, what is the last album, just spinning our wheels? What was that? What happened? Now I'm in a position where I'm putting out another album, and I'm gonna have to actually try to push both albums. It's, like, I don't know. I've never been in a position like that."
Lips added: "And then at the same time, while all this is going on, I got back from [recording in] Germany, of course, in October and have been writing songs since I got back. Because, of course, the last song I wrote was before I left — months before — so I had months of time off, not doing anything. So we started back in on it. We're at [song] number 10 already — for the next album."
"Legal At Last" came out in February 2020 via AFM Records.
ANVIL, a Toronto-based group, was formed in 1978 by childhood friends, Kudlow and drummer Robb Reiner. Both came from Jewish families and had been playing music together since their teens. ANVIL is considered to have been an influence on many metal bands, including METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER and ANTHRAX.
Though initially a four-piece band, ANVIL's current lineup includes Kudlow, Reiner and bassist Chris Robertson.
ANVIL gained popularity and new fans since the 2008 theatrical documentary, "Anvil: The Story Of Anvil", which is currently available on Netflix. Made by former ANVIL roadie, filmmaker Sacha Gervasi, it became a cult hit, described by the Chicago Tribune as "a sort of real-life version of 'This Is Spinal Tap' with more appealing characters and real emotions."
In a 2015 interview with the Chicago Tribune, Lips stated about ANVIL's longevity: "We learned a very early and very brutal lesson in our younger years — you don't let up, ever. You keep the tank full and you keep driving it. You don't stop. 'Cause stopping means that you're gonna slip. So we've been on this survival-terror mode to keep it going."
