Watch masked enigmas Imperial Triumphant become the first metal band to play New York’s iconic Chrysler Building

Imperial Triumphant atop the Chrysler Building, with the New York skyline behind them — (Image credit: Shannon Void)

Jazz-metal noiseniks Imperial Triumphant have become the first metal band to play atop the Chrysler Building.

The masked trio, heavily inspired by New York City’s jazz scene and Art Deco architecture, achieve the feat in the new video for single Lexington Delirium.

The song is taken from the band’s upcoming sixth album Goldstar, out on March 21 via Century Media, and features spoken word from Meshuggah drummer Tomas Haake. Listen to the track and watch the clip below.

Imperial Triumphant comment: “Ziggurats rise, skyscrapers weep and the future is not birthed from the organic but from a cosmic, mechanical womb. It speaks of posterity lost in the congestion of New Culture, a place where Manhattan’s towering ambition conceals impending delirium.

“The Throne Of Bolts becomes both a seat of power and a looming specter, begging for salvation from the soulless surge of progress. We climbed the deco spire of the magnificent Chrysler building in order to bring you a magnanimous visual experience.”

On a more personal note, bassist/keyboardist Steve Blanco talks about the significance of performing inside the Chrysler Building.

“Gazing at the building’s stainless steel Egyptian sun rays, I felt a profound connection to something greater, a deep resonance with the universe itself,” he says. “Sharing that moment with my bandmates Zachary [Ezrin, vocals/guitars] and Kenny [Grohowski, drums] and everyone involved made it all the more fabulous.”

Lexington Delirium is the third single from Goldstar, following Eye Of Mars and Hotel Sphinx. With the new song, the band have unveiled the album’s track listing and artwork, which can be seen below. They’ve also revealed that, as well as Haake, Goldstar will feature guest turns from ex-Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo and Bloody Panda vocalist Yoshiko Ohara.

Imperial Triumphant formed in 2005 and have since confounded many with their jazz-inspired extreme metal, elaborate masks, and live shows which include spraying audiences with champagne.

In a 2020 Metal Hammer interview, Ezrin confessed that the band’s avant-garde ways have “cleared a few rooms” during their career. “There’s a few people who had their minds blown,” he said, “and there were a few people who thought we were just pure shit.”

IMPERIAL TRIUMPHANT - Lexington Delirium (feat. Tomas Haake) (OFFICIAL VIDEO) - YouTube

Watch On

Imperial Triumphant – Goldstar

Imperial Triumphant &ndash; Goldstar — (Image credit: Century Media)

01. Eye Of Mars
02. Gomorrah Nouveaux
03. Lexington Delirium (feat. Tomas Haake)
04. Hotel Sphinx
05. Newyorkcity (feat. Yoshiko Ohara)
06. Goldstar
07. Rot Moderne
08. Pleasuredome (feat. Dave Lombardo and Tomas Haake)
09. Industry Of Misery

Louder’s resident Gojira obsessive was still at uni when he joined the team in 2017. Since then, Matt’s become a regular in Metal Hammer and Prog, at his happiest when interviewing the most forward-thinking artists heavy music can muster. He’s got bylines in The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Independent, NME and many others, too. When he’s not writing, you’ll probably find him skydiving, scuba diving or coasteering.