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Reluctant Hero

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Reluctant Hero
Studio album by
Killer Be Killed
ReleasedNovember 20, 2020
StudioHybrid Studios
Genre
Length47:42
LabelNuclear Blast
ProducerJosh Wilbur
Killer Be Killed chronology
Killer Be Killed
(2014) 		Reluctant Hero
(2020)
Singles from Reluctant Hero
  1. "Deconstructing Self-Construction"
    Released: September 4, 2020
  2. "Dream Gone Bad"
    Released: October 13, 2020
  3. "Inner Calm from Outer Storms"
    Released: November 6, 2020
  4. "From a Crowded Wound"
    Released: November 20, 2020

Reluctant Hero is the second studio album by American heavy metal band Killer Be Killed. It was released on November 20, 2020, by Nuclear Blast.[1]

Writing

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The band began writing the album in 2016, before going to Hybrid Studios in California in 2018 to record the music. They then finished recording the vocals in 2019.[2]

Cover artwork

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In an interview, guitarist Max Cavalera discussed the origins of the album cover:

"I'm really happy with how it came out, because I wasn't happy with the first one. I have a lot of these National Geographic magazines at home, and one had a story about haunted places in America. One of them was this cemetery in Cleveland, which has this really cool statue of an angel with a sword. I thought it would look so badass on an album cover — it almost looks like black metal — so I suggested to our label to find someone to go over and take a picture of the statue."[3]

Singles

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On September 4, 2020, Killer Be Killed announced the release of the album, along with the first single "Deconstructing Self-Construction".[1]

The second single "Dream Gone Bad" was released on October 13, 2020.[4]

On November 6, 2020, the third single "Inner Calm from Outer Storms" was released.[5] In a press release, bass guitarist Troy Sanders said the single is "about having the ability to sense a distant or unseen target. It explores a journey of reckless abandon where the destination may, or may not, actually exist."[6] The single also featured on Consequence of Sound's Top 30 Metal & Hard Rock Songs of 2020.[7]

The fourth single, "From a Crowded Wound", was released on November 20, 2020, the same day as the album release.[8]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Exclaim!8/10[9]
Kerrang![10]
Louder Sound[11]
Spectrum Culture75%[12]
Sputnikmusic3.2/5[13]

Reluctant Hero was met with generally favorable reviews from critics. Aggregator Album of the Year gave the release a 78 out of 100 based on a critical consensus of six reviews.[14]

Max Heilman of Exclaim! said the songs on the release are "elevating poppy ideas with explosive, multilayered musicality and hard-hitting emotion. Reluctant Hero proves metal can be catchy without being stupid."[9]

Accolades

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Publications' year-end list appearances for Reluctant Hero
Critic/Publication List Rank Ref
Consequence of Sound Top 30 Metal/Hard Rock Albums of 2020 21 [15]
Kerrang! Top 50 Albums of 2020 22 [16]
Loudwire Top 70 Rock/Metal Albums of 2020 N/A [17]
Revolver Top 25 Albums of 2020 9 [18]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Killer Be Killed

No.TitleLength
1."Deconstructing Self-Destruction"4:33
2."Dream Gone Bad"4:15
3."Left of Center"3:30
4."Inner Calm from Outer Storms"3:53
5."Filthy Vagabond"3:48
6."From a Crowded Wound"7:11
7."The Great Purge"4:13
8."Comfort from Nothing"4:18
9."Animus"1:08
10."Dead Limbs"4:48
11."Reluctant Hero"6:05

Personnel

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Killer Be Killed

Additional personnel

  • Josh Wilbur – producer, mixing, engineer
  • Nick Rowe – engineer
  • Cameron Rae – assistant engineer
  • Ted Jensen – mastering
  • Marcelo Vasco – cover artwork, design
  • Hannah Verbeuren – band photography

Charts

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Sales chart performance for Reluctant Hero
Chart (2020) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[19] 45
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[20] 46
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[21] 52
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[22] 35
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[23] 69
US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[24] 16
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[25] 47

References

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  1. ^ a b "Supergroup Killer Be Killed Announce New Album, Reluctant Hero". Kerrang!. September 4, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  2. ^ ""This Was Just Too Damned Good To Let Go After One Album": Troy Sanders On The Return Of Killer Be Killed". Kerrang!. September 10, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  3. ^ Bennett, J. (November 5, 2020). "Killer Be Killed's Max Cavalera Interview". Revolver. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  4. ^ Carter, Emily (October 13, 2020). "Watch Killer Be Killed's Intense New Video For Dream Gone Bad". Kerrang!. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  5. ^ Ruskell, Nick (November 3, 2020). "Killer Be Killed Are Teasing A New Single". Kerrang!. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  6. ^ Hadusek, Jon (November 7, 2020). "Killer Be Killed Unleash New Song "Inner Calm from Outer Storms"". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  7. ^ "Top 30 Metal & Hard Rock Songs of 2020". Consequence of Sound. December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  8. ^ "Watch Killed Be Killed's stunning animated video for From A Crowded Wound". Louder Sound. November 20, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  9. ^ a b Heilman, Max (November 16, 2020). "Killer Be Killed Live Up to Their Supergroup Pedigree with 'Reluctant Hero'". Exclaim!. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  10. ^ Thomas, Olly (November 18, 2019). "Kerrang! Review". Kerrang!. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  11. ^ Hill, Stephen (November 16, 2020). "Killer Be Killed's Reluctant Hero: stellar return from modern metal's greatest supergroup". Louder Sound. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  12. ^ Velluci, Justin (November 28, 2020). "Spectrum Culture review". Spectrum Culture. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  13. ^ K., Simon (December 1, 2020). "Sputnikmusic review". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  14. ^ "Album of the Year Review". Album of the Year. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  15. ^ "Top 30 Metal + Hard Rock Albums of 2020". Consequence of Sound. December 9, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  16. ^ "The 50 Greatest Albums of 2020". Kerrang!. December 16, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  17. ^ Divita, Joe (November 30, 2020). "The 70 Best Rock and Metal Albums of 2020". Loudwire. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  18. ^ Madden, Emma (November 25, 2020). "25 Best Albums of 2020". Revolver. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  19. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Killer By Killed – Reluctant Hero". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  20. ^ "Ultratop.be – Killer By Killed – Reluctant Hero" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  21. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Killer Be Killed – Reluctant Hero" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  22. ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2020. 48. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  23. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Killer By Killed – Reluctant Hero". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  24. ^ "Killer Be Killed Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  25. ^ "Killer Be Killed Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
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