British metal band Malevolence were forced to remove their music video due to threats of legal action made by UK conservation charity the National Trust.
The Sheffield-based band had just released a music video for their latest single ‘Salt The Wound’, part of their upcoming album ‘Where Only The Truth Is Spoken’. The new single, released on 21 May, is a striking and harmonic blend of hard and mellow soundscapes. Its poetic lyrics describe the turmoil of leaving things unsaid: “Bite my tongue, hold my breath/Salt the wound and rip the heart from my chest.”
Speaking more about the inspiration behind the sound, frontman Alex Taylor said: “’Salt The Wound’ is the product of us making a conscious decision to bridge the two faces of Malevolence. On one hand, we have the heavy aggressive side, and on the other, we have the slower melodic songs, so we wanted a song that could combine the two.”
The video, shot around Sheffield, was intended to highlight the landscape’s natural beauty, which serves as a source of pride for the band. He adds: “From the industrial depths of Sheffield, a 900-year-old ruined Abbey, to a perfect sunrise over some of the incredible hills of Derbyshire, there is some incredible scenery in the north of the UK which we sometimes take for granted, so this song felt like the perfect opportunity to showcase some of that. From the moment I heard the guitar solo Josh had written for this song, I pictured him on a mountain top doing the solo, so we made it happen, Malev style!”
However, not long after the music video was uploaded to YouTube, it had to be pulled due to threats of legal action made by the National Trust.
The National Trust is Europe’s largest conservation charity, which works to nurture and protect nature across the UK, from coasts to woodlands, as well as historic buildings and more.
In a statement shared to social media, Malevolence addressed the National trust: “Apparently pretending to play guitar for a couple of hours on a public path that thousands of tourists walk up every single day is a criminal offence.” The video was removed as the band didn’t have permission to film on their sites. While recording footage for personal use is generally permitted, a contract is required if the footage is intended for commercial purposes.
Yesterday, on 10 June, the music video was anonymously reuploaded to YouTube under an account named Trust Issues.
‘Where Only The Truth Is Spoken’ releases Friday 20 June, and the tracklist goes as follows:
MALEVOLENCE – WHERE ONLY THE TRUTH IS SPOKEN
1. Blood To The Leech
2. Trenches
3. If It’s All The Same To You
4. Counterfeit
5. Salt The Wound
6. So Help Me God
7. Imperfect Picture
8. Heavens Shake
9. In Spite (ft. Randy Blythe)
10. Demonstration Of Pain
11. With Dirt From My Grave
You can pre-order the album here.
