The Hunter

Reprise released The Hunter on September 27, 2011: the band's third album for the label in the US and Canada, and the first issued by Roadrunner everywhere else. Mike Elizondo produced it at Doppler Studios in Atlanta, the drums having been cut earlier at Sound City in Los Angeles. Just as the band thought they were ready to record, Bill Kelliher told them he was going to rehab. For the sleeve they took AJ Fosik's wood carving "Sad Demon Oath" in place of the Paul Romano artwork that had fronted earlier records. The title came from Brent Hinds' brother Brad, who died of a heart attack while hunting on December 4, 2010. The closing "The Sparrow" was dedicated to the late wife of the band's accountant. The album sold 39,000 copies in the United States in its first week.