Despite being a little short of a year removed from its last album, 2018’s Through the Ages, Blacklite District is hard at work on a new album, and today (Sept. 3) brings the release’s first taste: “Me Against the World,” for which the music video is premiering exclusively on Billboard.
“Me Agains the World,” released via the band’s own AK19 Entertainment and produced by Semi-Riffmatic, finds Blacklite District (Kyle Pfeiffer and Roman James) leaning into a Hollywood Undead-esque vibe, matching crunching guitars with Pfeiffer’s catchy vocal melodies and a bridge featuring screamed vocals from James.
Pfeiffer tells Billboard that the video for “Me Against the World” was shot in the Black Hills, a mountain range mostly situated in South Dakota that stretches into Wyoming (the duo itself hails from Spearfish, S.D.). “I love that we can proudly represent who we are and where we come from by incorporating the Black Hills into the visual aspect of the music,” he says.
In addition to getting a push at mainstream rock radio — the act has made Billboard‘s Mainstream Rock Songs chart twice, most recently with “Cold As Ice” (No. 35, Jan. 6, 2018) — Pfeiffer says the song will also receive its own Minecraft-inspired music video. If that seems like an odd thing to point out, know that it’s not for Blacklite District; many of its songs have been set to clips from the popular video game, the most popular of which created by the YouTube channel Rainimator, which has over 1 million subscribers. In fact, the Rainimator video for Blacklite District’s “Cold As Ice” recently crossed 50 million global YouTube views after initially being released in August 2017.
Call it a little unconventional, but the Internet continues to open new channels through which one can discover music, and it’s certainly worked for Blacklite District so far, says Pfeiffer.
“We’ve really come into our own over the last couple of years,” Pfeiffer says. “Hard work and dedication definitely pays off, especially when you have access to the same audience as the major artists do with streaming and YouTube. It gives independent artists a real shot to create something special, because we have a direct line of communication with our fans, and with platforms that can help us get discovered by new fans. That’s what AK19 is all about.”
Blacklite District’s upcoming album, its fifth, does not currently have a name or release date, and “Me Against the World” will be available on all DSPs on Sept. 6. The band has a fall tour planned supporting Adelitas Way, kicking off Sept. 27 at Jake’s Backroom in Lubbock, Texas.
Check out the new video below, and see the band’s tour dates with Adelitas Way after the jump.
Sept. 27 — Lubbock, TX @ Jake’s Backroom
Sept. 29 — Houston, TX @ Scout Bar
Oct. 2 — New Orleans, LA @ House of Blues
Oct. 4 — Birmingham, AL @ Iron City
Oct. 5 — Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
Oct. 16 — Charlotte, NC @ Amos’ Southend
Oct. 18 — Greensboro, NC @ The Blind Tiger
Oct. 19 — Richmond, VA @ Canal Club
Oct. 21 — Stanhope, NJ @ Stanhope House
Oct. 24 — Columbus, OH @ The Basement
Oct. 25 — Angola, IN @ The Eclectic Room