It’s been three years since Pallbearer, Arkansan gods of psychedelic doom metal, released Heartless, their masterful third album. Pallbearer have been relatively quiet recently, though they released the one-off single “Atlantis” last year. Today, Pallbearer announce their grand returns. This fall, they’ll come out with the new album Forgotten Days. Today, they drop the title track on us.

Pallbearer recorded Forgotten Days in Texas, with Sunn O)))’s Randall Dunn producing. In a press release, bassist and songwriter Joseph Rowland says that the band was focusing in on the songs that will be good in live shows, once live shows are happening again:

Forgotten Days is us exploring what is natural to us. The songs tell me where I need to go when I write. We wanted to focus on songs that were visceral and enjoyable to play live — that our audiences would enjoy experiencing. We’re also getting back to more of the groovier and heavier elements of Pallbearer. Heartless is fairly uptempo and technical. This one is a little more open, it hammers you.

There’s plenty of hammering in “Forgotten Days,” the six-minute lead single. The song builds up intensity as it goes, and it’s built on top of a huge, bongwater-stained riff. But as usual with Pallbearer, this isn’t punishing music. It’s warm and melodic and comforting. In director Ben Meredith’s video, which I’m guessing is inspired by the movie Solaris, a space traveler goes on an internal journey. Check it out below, along with the Forgotten Days tracklist:

TRACKLIST:
01 “Forgotten Days”
02 “Riverbed”
03 “Stasis”
04 “Silver Wings”
05 “The Quicksand Of Existing”
06 “Vengeance & Ruination”
07 “Rite Of Passage”
08 “Caledonia”

Forgotten Days is out 10/23 on Nuclear Blast.