Shihad’s Pacifier Album Released Under It’s Rightful Name For the First Time

Yesterday, New Zealand favourites Shihad announced that their beloved fifth album, Pacifier, would receive its first-ever vinyl release under the Shihad name.

"We are stoked to be finally releasing this beast on vinyl for the first time ever! And, even better, under the name Shihad too," the band wrote on social media. "Remastered to sound better than ever this is a very limited edition so get in quick before they’re all gone. It sounds massive!" Pacifier is now available to purchase here.

Released in 2002, Shihad were convinced by their record label to change their band name as their name bore too close a resemblance to the word Jihad, which was deemed controversial following 9/11. The title Pacifier stemmed from the single of the same name from the band's previous album, The General Electric.

The Pacifier single, Bullitproof, peaked at #27 on the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. The album features special guest appearances by Stone Temple Pilots' Scott Weiland and DJ Lethal (Limp Bizkit) on Coming Down.

Known for their bombastic live shows, the Shihad legacy spans decades, a name change (and subsequent change back) and, as of October 2021, ten studio albums, with their latest release, Old Gods showcasing the Wellington quartet sonically at their most ravenous selves yet.

"This is the first time we've taken seven years to write a record," Shihad vocalist Jon Toogood said in the Green Room Podcast upon the release of Old Gods.

"Literally what happened after FVEY was...my wife and I had two children. And for the first time in my life since I was 18 years old - I had no desire to write any music at all, and it just became all about the kids.

"But in the background, Shihad were still meeting up once every six months, jamming out some music...and I was just storing it all up in the background.

"About year three into that process, I started getting...I mean, 'cos I've got two children, and my wife's Sudanese, which was totally random, my best mate happened to be a Sudanese national.

"We decided to have kids, got married...then we had two kids, biracial, really interesting, amazing, beautiful children...but in the meantime, in the background, you've got images of people walking around with tiki torches in America saying 'the Jews will not replace us' - which is very reminiscent, I'm a big history buff 'cos I think it really serves to know where you are.

"I just started to think: 'right! I've got two biracial children, and that's becoming mainstream again'. And then, basically, all this music made sense to me after not making...well, I liked the sound of it, but I just didn't have any words.

"Then Australia caught fire for how many months there, about three or four months. And again, that existential threat was there, and I'm thinking: 'man...what is the world I brought these kids into?" View the full interview here.