ARMORED SAINT releases single 'Hit A Moonshot'
24-04-2026
American heavy metal icons ARMORED SAINT have released a new single, “Hit A Moonshot”. The track is taken from the band’s upcoming full-length album, “Emotion Factory Reset”, due on May 22 through Metal Blade Records.
Watch “Hit A Moonshot” below.
“Hit A Moonshot” is a band favorite. A “moonshot” is a baseball term referencing a homerun that’s hit at a high angle and distance. An avid sports fan, ARMORED SAINT vocalist John Bush was considering the parallels between sports and entertainment.
“It’s like you knocked something out of the park,” elaborates Bush, “I use a lot of sports analogies because I love sports. Sports IS entertainment… ‘Hit A Moonshot’ is inspired by the people who keep landing on their feet. Like, no matter what the fuck this person does… Some people just get lucky. This applies to anyone. And landing on your feet is commendable. So, I’m busting balls, but I’m also giving accolades. Sometimes people can do that all the way to their grave. Then there are other people who are so good or talented or creative, and they struggle forever. I don’t think life is balanced all the time, and I don’t think it’s fair.
“It has a ferocious riff, cool tempo changes, scorching leads, huge chorus with lots of backing vocals,” he continues. “We love QUEEN and THE SWEET! It’s a cool breakdown with an epic ending. Once again, it sounds just like ARMORED SAINT.”
Says ARMORED SAINT bassist Joey Vera: “The intro riff is an echo of a memory from age 17 when I was in a garage band in Los Angeles. After I came up with this new version, the familiarity of it revealed itself once I stood back and listened. The riff is very different from the original one but there’s no doubt the feel and vibe has stuck with me ever since then. I added a half-time feel to the chorus to steer the arrangement away from predictability. It feels like classic SAINT to me.”
“I think the song defines what ARMORED SAINT sounds like now,” adds ARMORED SAINT guitarist Jeff Duncan. “I used my Les Paul and an EVH amp for the rhythm guitars on everything. My solos were done with a couple different guitars; it’s simple, just good guitars plugged into a good amp and let it rip.”
Watch “Close To The Bone” below.
Comments singer John Bush, “The first track on the record sounds like vintage ARMORED SAINT. Yet vintage that comes out in 2026! How did we do that? The title of the record, ‘Emotion Factory Reset’ appears as the first line of the bridge. Killer riffs, awesome rhythms and attacking vocals gets this train rolling. The title implies the human response to withdraw and keep things to yourself instead of being confrontational; Something I believe we all struggle with as humans. Do you just say, ‘aww, whatever man,’ or do you say, ‘hey, fuck you!’ Depends on the moment I guess.”
Adds Vera, “Musically, this song was inspired by my love and appreciation for metal that was coming out around the time of the NWOBHM, which is right when ARMORED SAINT was formed. As always, I try to reimagine my early influences by giving them a slight modern twist.”
Guitarist Jeff Duncan agrees: “I like to think that ARMORED SAINT doesn’t keep making the same album over and over. ‘Emotion Factory Reset’ is another musical chapter for the band. When the five of us play together, we have a special chemistry and our first single ‘Close To The Bone’ demonstrates this perfectly; it’s musically sophisticated but still retains the ARMORED SAINT signature sound.”
“Emotion Factory Reset” was recorded across several studios, including 606 Studios, Secret Hand Studios, Skullseven Studios, Constantine Studios and Bridge Recording, engineered by Oliver Roman, Bill Metoyer, Joey Vera and Jason Constantine. It features cover art by DDKing.
A special European edition of the CD digipak includes the bonus track “One Chain (Don’t Make No Prison)”, only available digitally until now.
“Emotion Factory Reset” track listing:
01. Close To The Bone
02. Every Man-Any Man
03. Not On Your Life
04. Hit A Moonshot
05. Buckeye
06. Compromise
07. It’s A Buzzkill
08. Throwing Caution To The Wind
09. Ladders And Slides
10. Bottom Feeder
11. Epilogue
ARMORED SAINT is:
John Bush – Vocals
Joey Vera – Bass
Jeff Duncan – Guitars
Gonzo Sandoval – Drums
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