San Francisco-based gore metal band CARTILAGE has released a new music video for 'S.C.D. (Sudden Cardiac Death)', taken from their third studio album, “Operating Altar”. Due out on September 11 via Everlasting Spew Records, the album marks CARTILAGE’s first conceptual release.

“Operating Altar” tells the story of a deranged surgeon determined to continue decades of horrific practices at St. Petersen’s University Hospital. The band builds this narrative around a single deathgrind framework while retaining its fast blast beats and hard-hitting riff work. Lead vocalist Mark Wallace and guitarist/vocalist Ria Flory, meanwhile, bring a more theatrical dimension to the band’s trademark brutal vocal approach.

At the heart of the album’s concept is Matthew Krolmark’s descent into medical madness. As CARTILAGE puts it, the story is told through a single, sprawling deathgrind work. The album’s narrative extends beyond its lyrics, with the fictional St. Petersen’s University Hospital serving as the central element shaping the record as a whole.

“Operating Altar” also brings together a more extensive production team than on the band’s previous releases. Scott Evans, who has worked with bands including Neurosis, Exhumed, and Autopsy, handled recording and mixing, while mastering was completed by Leon del Muerte. The album artwork comes courtesy of David Romero.

CARTILAGE has also mapped out its touring plans before the album’s release. The band will hit the road on September 15 in San Diego for a run across the Western United States and Mexico alongside Washington, D.C.-based Goetia, with Degraved and Unidad Trauma also joining the tour. It will be the band’s most extensive touring run to date.

The tour will stop in Tijuana on September 16, Los Angeles on September 17, San Francisco on September 19, Olympia on September 22, Spokane on September 23, and Portland on September 25. Goetia will not appear at the Seattle show on September 24 or the Portland date on September 25.

“Operating Altar” will be released on September 11 in CD, cassette, and digital formats. A vinyl edition is planned for the winter months. 'The Operating Altar' and 'The Sanguine Fiend', meanwhile, are already available for streaming.

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