KARL SANDERS says he is “really happy with the material” on upcoming NILE album
15-09-2025
In a new interview with Rev. Tom Brice of Sportzwire Radio, NILE guitarist/vocalist Karl Sanders spoke about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the band’s follow-up to 2024’s “The Underworld Awaits Us All” album. He said: “Well, we’re working on song number six right now. So things are humming along. We’re really excited. Man, this new lineup of guys we got is just on fire. So easy and natural to work with these guys. It’s probably unfair how much fun it is. Yeah, so we’re having a blast. We’re making metal, and life is good. So we’re happy… We’re plugging away on it. And things are going great. I’m really happy with the material so far. Some really, really killer shit.”
Regarding why it is taking so long for NILE to release a new LP, Karl said: “Over the course of years, 10 records so far, I think it’s way smarter to get it right. There have been a couple times where we had a deadline, had to get things done, and sometimes you have to make decisions, and those decisions you then have to live with the rest of your career. Did you get the guitar solo loud enough? Did you turn up the vocal too loud? Could you hear the kick drum in that place? All these little details, and if you don’t get them right, not only do you gotta live with it, the fans gotta live with it too… So it’s better to take your time. Get it right. The fans will appreciate it.”
In September 2025, NILE recruited Adam Roethlisberger as the band’s new bassist/vocalist. Roethlisberger made his live debut with NILE on September 12, 2025 at the opening show of the band’s U.S. tour with Canadian extreme metallers CRYPTOPSY in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Dan Vadim Von announced his departure from NILE on August 20, 2025, writing on his Instagram: “Decided to leave NILE to concentrate on other commitments. Thanks to all who attended the shows during my tenure as frontman, you were the best part of it.”
Roethlisberger was a member of VITRIOL for over a decade, but exited the band in the fall of 2024, reportedly due to a “long and difficult working relationship” with VITRIOL guitarist-vocalist Kyle Rasmussen.
NILE‘s tenth album, “The Underworld Awaits Us All“, came out in August 2024 via Napalm Records. The LP was recorded with the lineup of NILE founding mastermind/guitarist Karl Sanders, longtime drum master George Kollias, vocalist/guitarists Brian Kingsland and Zach Jeter, and bassist Dan Vadim Von.
Watch “Under The Curse Of The One God”, “To Strike with Secret Fang” and “Chapter For Not Being Hung Upside Down On A Stake In The Underworld And Made To Eat Feces By The Four Apes” below.
NILE‘s Karl Sanders comments on the new track and lyric video: “We are really happy that fans will finally have a chance to hear ‘Under The Curse Of The One God’. It’s a ferocious and brutal NILE track, steeped in Ancient Curses. Many thanks to Ingo Sporl for once again wielding his uniquely creative visual artistry to help bring our music to blasphemous life.”
Watch the previously released “To Strike with Secret Fang” and “Chapter For Not Being Hung Upside Down On A Stake In The Underworld And Made To Eat Feces By The Four Apes” below.
Previously, NILE shared a short video of founder Karl Sanders (guitar, vocals) and Lewis as they were putting the finishing touches on the band’s tenth LP. The clip was accompanied by the following caption: “We are DONE mixing the new NILE album! This album sounds killer – We have put our hearts and souls into this record, and we believe that the amount of time, effort, and detail that went into it shows through the music. \m/”
Once again produced and recorded at Sanders‘s own Serpent Headed Studios in Greenville, South Carolina, the band returned to “Vile Nilotic Rites” engineer Mark Lewis (CANNIBAL CORPSE, DYING FETUS, WHITECHAPEL) for mixing and mastering.
Sanders says about the album: “We are very happy to be sharing with fans NILE‘s 10th album. We worked overtime making this record as killer as we could — because we sincerely felt fans deserved our best efforts. ‘The Underworld Awaits Us All’ — and we will see you there.”
“The Underworld Awaits Us All”‘s mind-bending art was once again envisioned and created by Michał “Xaay” Loranc, with reference to the cycle of life and judgment at its end.
“The Underworld Awaits Us All” track listing:
01. Stelae Of Vultures
02. Chapter For Not Being Hung Upside Down On A Stake In The Underworld And Made To Eat Feces By The Four Apes
03. To Strike With Secret Fang
04. Naqada II Enter The Golden Age
05. The Pentagrammathion Of Nephren-Ka
06. Overlords Of The Black Earth
07. Under The Curse Of The One God
09. Doctrine Of Last Things
10. True Gods Of The Desert
11. The Underworld Awaits Us All
12. Lament For The Destruction Of Time
The Underworld Awaits Us All will be available in the following formats:
-2LP Gatefold GOLD (Napalm mail order only – limited to 300) – NEW!!
-2LP Gatefold MARBLED ORANGE RED BLACK w/ 24 Page Vinyl Booklet and Slipmat (Napalm mail order only – limited to 200)
-2LP Gatefold SPLATTER DARK GREEN YELLOW (Napalm mail order only – limited to 300)
-2LP Gatefold CLEAR (North American indie stores only – limited to 500)
-2LP Gatefold CLEAR w/ signed card (limited North American Newbury Comics exclusive)
-2LP Gatefold BLACK
-6 Page CD Digipak
-6 Page CD Digipak w/ signed card (limited North American Newbury Comics exclusive)
-6 Page CD Digipak & Anubis Bust (limited to 500) – SOLD OUT in North America, only 50 left in international store!
-Cassette Tape Edition YELLOW (Napalm mail order only – limited to 200)
-Digital Album
Last October, NILE announced its new touring lineup. Joining Sanders and longtime drummer George Kollias are Dan Vadim Von (MORBID ANGEL, INCANTATION) on bass/vocals and Zach Jeter (HIDEOUS DIVINITY, OLKOTH) on guitar/vocals.
In June 2023, mastermind Karl Sanders spoke to Headbangers Latinoamérica about the progress of the recording sessions for NILE‘s tenth studio album. Asked how the studio work is coming along, Karl said: “Very well. (NILE drummer) George (Kollias) finished all his drums. He did an amazing job. When people hear this, they are not going to believe that it’s a real live human doing all this stuff. But it’s George. People who have seen him live and in the flesh can believe. So he’s done probably the best album of his career with this new NILE record. Now it’s our turn playing guitars.”
In July 2022, Sanders told Guitar World magazine that he and his bandmates had 10 songs written for the follow-up to 2019’s “Vile Nilotic Rites”. Earlier that same month, NILE announced the departure of bassist/vocalist Brad Parris.
NILE‘s current lineup consists of Sanders handling guitars and vocals, Kollias on drums, and Brian Kingsland, who joined the group in 2017, on guitar and vocals. Julian David Guillen is the band’s touring bassist and vocalist.
Originally hailing from Greenville, South Carolina, international death metal legends NILE have become one of the most revered names in the worldwide heavy metal scene today, combining extreme traditional and technical death metal styles with their trademarked blend of Ancient Egyptian and Near Eastern soundscapes and historical mysticism.
“Vile Nilotic Rites” was released in November 2019 via Nuclear Blast. The disc was recorded and produced by Sanders at Serpent Headed Studios in Greenville, South Carolina, with the exception of the drums which were recorded at Esoteron Music Studios in Athens, Greece with engineering handled by Jim Touras and George Dovolos. The album was mixed and mastered by Mark Lewis at MRL Studios. For the album artwork, the band returned to artist Michal “Xaay” Loranc who had worked with the band for over 10 years.
In September 2021, NILE announced that it had signed a worldwide contract with Napalm Records.
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