Ice Nine Kills aren’t just flirting with horror anymore, they’re knee deep in it.
The band has now unleashed ‘Hell Or High Slaughter (Grave Diggler: Pt. 2)’, tying their twisted universe directly into Ready Or Not 2: Here I Come, with the track and its NSFW video landing exclusively on YouTube.
This isn’t just another soundtrack play, it’s a full blown expansion of the Grave Diggler myth, a fictional ‘80s glam band that feels uncomfortably real the deeper you dig.
“If you were a kid in the ‘80s, and you were into fast cars, fast girls, and sniffing glue, then you were into Grave Diggler.” – Matt Pinfield (Radio & MTV icon)
Ice Nine Kills Presents GRAVE DIGGLER (pt. 2) – Hell Or High Slaughter | From Ready Or Not 2
The joke that’s starting to feel real
What started as a tongue in cheek concept is now spiralling into something bigger, Grave Diggler’s backstory reads like every glam cautionary tale stitched together, excess, ego, and a slow motion crash into irrelevance.
“What people don’t know is that the way that Ice Nine Kills actually met is that all of our fathers were in Grave Diggler.” – Spencer Charnas (Ice Nine Kills)
The punchline? It’s all fiction, but Ice Nine Kills are committing so hard to the bit that it’s starting to blur into something else entirely.
Behind the scenes, things weren’t as clean as the concept suggests. Securing the track for the film reportedly sparked a legal tug of war between the “fathers” and their sons, ending with the band re-recording the track and finally dragging a long buried 1987 video out into the light.
“I’ve been estranged from my father for a long time,” Spencer explains. “But this movie, and this song, while bringing a lot of complicated feelings to the surface, also brought us back together.”
INK’s horror universe keeps expanding
Ice Nine Kills have been building this hybrid of metal, film, and storytelling for years now. From The Silver Scream era through to Terrifier 3 and Scream tie-ins, they’ve turned horror fandom into a full ecosystem.
Now, Laid to Rest: The Grave Diggler Story is set to push the concept even further, the upcoming mock-doc ropes in names like Samara Weaving, Elijah Wood, and members of the horror and metal worlds, doubling down on the band’s commitment to the narrative.
Still, not everyone’s buying it — at least in universe:
“You call my son shrieking into a microphone like a meshuggah mental patient ‘singing’? That’s not heavy metal. I’m heavy metal.”
Australian fans won’t miss out
Ice Nine Kills will hit Australia this September supporting Electric Callboy, bringing the spectacle to arenas across the country.
Electric Callboy ft. Ice Nine Kills Australian 2026 Tour Dates
- Friday, September 4th – Perth – RAC Arena
- Sunday, September 6th – Adelaide – AEC Arena
- Tuesday, September 8th – Melbourne – Rod Laver Arena
- Thursday, September 10th – Sydney – Qudos Bank Arena
- Saturday, September 12th – Brisbane – Riverstage (Sold Out)
- Sunday, September 13th – Brisbane – Riverstage
Find out more and grab your tickets here.
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