Vocalist Chris Barnes and guitarist Jack Owen of death metal veterans SIX FEET UNDER are “just about done” writing the band’s next studio album. According to Barnes, the material is shaping up to be “incredibly fucking heavy.”

SIX FEET UNDER‘s 17th full-length album, “Nightmares Of The Decomposed”, was released in October 2020 via Metal Blade Records.

Barnes previously stated about “Nightmares Of The Decomposed”: “Working again after 25 years writing an album with my old bandmate from CANNIBAL CORPSE, Jack Owen, was like coming home… to a room full of dead bodies. Jack‘s writing and riff work on this album gave me the fuel to write some disturbing lyrics and really set my creative mind on fire.”

Comprised of 12 tracks, “Nightmares Of The Decomposed” was tracked at various studios, including Criteria Studios in Miami, Florida, which over the years has played host to the likes of AC/DC, BLACK SABBATH and AEROSMITH, among others. It was produced, engineered and mixed by Chris Carroll, while the album’s mastering was handled by Chaz Najjar at Badlands Recording in Denver, Colorado. The finished product came packaged in artwork by Luke Hunter.

Barnes exited CANNIBAL CORPSE in 1995, one year after the release of the band’s “The Bleeding” album. Six years ago, he told “The Chainsaw Symphony” radio program about his departure: “I just didn’t like being around them, because I was being ridiculed, and I just didn’t feel comfortable being in the same room with people that weren’t very nice to me personally. And I was part of that too, so we had all of our own type of differences, personally, and I don’t think it was gonna be able to be worked out. You know, mutual respect goes a far way when it comes to being in close quarters with people.”

Owen left CANNIBAL CORPSE in 2004, explaining in a statement that his “heart just wasn’t in it anymore, and it was reflected in my appearance on stage. Times change, and I just don’t enjoy the music as much as I used to, and the only thing keeping me in the band was steady work, and the pay,” he said. “These things makes it unfair to myself, my band members, and especially the fans.”

After Barnes left CANNIBAL CORPSE to form SIX FEET UNDER, he was replaced in the former band by George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher.