Bad Omens and Poppy team up on “V.A.N.,” the foreboding new song that the metalcore band and the alternative singer unleashed on Wednesday after Bad Omens cryptically teased the music video and hinted toward the song’s meaning — like what “V.A.N.” stands for.
Days prior, Bad Omens had completely wiped their Instagram profile before posting the first of two teaser clips starring Poppy.
Well, it turns out that “V.A.N.” stands for “Violence Against Nature,” and the high-powered track features Poppy singing lead vocals, without any singing or screaming from Bad Omens’ Noah Sebastian, though he wrote and produced it.
The industrial metal song, part of Bad Omens’ Concrete Jungle comic book universe, is about an AI entity set out on a course to destroy humanity.
Watch the video near the bottom of this post.
READ MORE: Bad Omens’ Noah Sebastian Explains Why He Left Social Media
In a press release Wednesday, Sebastian said that “V.A.N.” is a “song that started just with the hook, ‘Violence against nature,’ and then after saving the project with the acronym and seeing it, we realized it could be fun to think of ‘VAN’ as a name.
Thus, the rabbit hole of ideas began that led us to decide to write lyrics from the perspective of an artificial intelligence gone rogue.”
In the narrative of the new song, which premiered on SiriusXM’s Octane, Poppy takes the role of the Concrete Jungle AI character ‘V.A.N.’ with her angelic singing and menacing screaming.
“V.A.N.” gives us Bad Omens fans the first glimpse of the band’s upcoming album, the Concrete Forever project that will serve as the Concrete Jungle soundtrack. It’s an experimental extension of Bad Omens’ breakthrough 2022 album, The Death of Peace of Mind.
Underneath the music video, see Bad Omens’ upcoming tour dates, including several shows with Poppy in Europe that run through February. Bad Omens return Stateside this April.
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Bad Omens + Poppy, “V.A.N.” (Music Video)
Bad Omens 2024 World Tour Dates
Jan. 27 – Berlin, Germany @ Columbiahalle *Jan. 28 – Cologne, Germany @ Palladium *Jan. 29 – Cologne, Germany @ Palladium *Jan. 30 – Zurich, Switzerland @ Zenith *Feb. 1 – Zurich, Switzerland @ Halle 622 *Feb. 2 – Offenbach Germany @ StadthalleFeb. 4 – Tillburg, Netherlands @ Poppodium *Feb. 5 – Brussels, Belgium @ Ancienne *Feb. 6 – Paris, France @ Salle Pleyel *Feb. 8 – Dresden, Germany @ Messe *Feb. 9 – Prague, Czech Republic @ Sasazu *Feb. 10 – Innsbruck, Austria @ Congress *Feb. 11 – Milan, Italy @ Alcatraz *April 21 – San Antonio, Texas @ Boeing CtrApril 23 – Albuquerque, N.M. @ Revel CtrApril 25 – Mesa, Ariz. @ Mesa Amp.April 27 – Las Vegas, Nev. @ Sick New WorldApril 30 – Tulsa, Okla. @ Tulsa TheaterMay 2 – Dallas, Texas @ The FactoryMay 3 – Dallas, Texas @ The FactoryMay 12 – Daytona, Fla. @ Welcome to RockvilleMay 18 – St. Louis, Mo. @ Point FestJune 7 – Nurnberg, Germany @ Rock im ParkJune 8 – Nurburgring, Germany @ Rock am RingJune 12 – Hradec, Czechia @ Rock for PeopleJune 13-16 – Nickelsdorf, Austria @ Nova RockJune 14-16 – Derby, U.K. @ Download FestJune 26-29 – Viveiro, Spain @ Resurrection FestJune 27-30 – Clisson, France @ HellfestJune 28-30 – Helsinki, Finland @ Tuska FestJune 29 – Seinäjoki, Finland @ Provinssi FestJuly 5 – Werchter, Belgium @ Rock WerchterJuly 7 – Milano, Italy @ I-Days
* With Poppy
The 56 Rock + Metal Songs With Over One Billion Spotify Streams
Recapping the rock and metal songs that have eclipsed one billion streams on Spotify.
NOT INCLUDED: The definition of rock is incredibly broad today and, in this list, we’ve elected not to include pop/rock acts such as Imagine Dragons, Maroon 5, Twenty One Pilots, 5 Seconds of Summer, Coldplay, Goo Goo Dolls, Gym Class heroes and Train.
Gallery Credit: Joe DiVita