ICE NINE KILLS Goes Glam On New Single “Hell Of High Slaughter (Grave Diggler: Pt. 2)”

Once kings of sleaze, debauchery, and panty raids, Grave Diggler left a stain on 1980s rock ‘n’ roll that few could match. Shoulder-to-shoulder with the eyeliner-and-excess brigade of Poison, Mötley Crüe, and W.A.S.P., they burned bright… until bad business deals and even worse drugs snuffed out the fire. By the early ’90s, like so many glam metal survivors, Grave Diggler had faded into obscurity.

When the directing duo behind Scream (2022) and Scream VI began work on the sequel to their 2019 black comedy horror hit Ready or Not, they were desperate to include one of Grave Diggler‘s lost anthems. After a labyrinthine rights battle involving none other than Spencer Charnas and the band’s estranged patriarch, the song was resurrected in a new form: Ice Nine Kills Presents “Hell or High Slaughter (Grave Diggler: Pt. 2)”.

The long-banned 1987 music video for the track also finally saw the light of day, NSFW and unfiltered, available exclusively on YouTube. “I’ve been estranged from my father for a long time,” Spencer admits. “But this movie, and this song, while bringing a lot of complicated feelings to the surface, also brought us back together.”

The resurgence isn’t just a one-off: Broken Lizard’s Paul Soter (Super Troopers), director Myles Erfurth (Pandemic Sex Party), and Spencer are teaming up on a documentary, Laid to Rest: The Grave Diggler Story, tracing the band’s chaotic history.

The film features interviews with stars of Ready or Not 2: Here I Come – Samara Weaving (The Babysitter), Kathryn Newton (Freaky), and Elijah Wood (The Lord of the Rings) – alongside metal icons like Stephen Pearcy (Ratt), Michael Starr (Steel Panther), MTV legend Matt Pinfield, and industry veterans like Andy Gould, former manager for Rob Zombie and Guns N’ Roses. Both Sonny and Spencer Charnas provide insight into the family feud and reunion at the heart of the story.