Yungblud has shared a third instalment in his series of graphic novels, The Twisted Tales Of The Ritalin Club – get all the details on The Funeral below.
The new novel, released later this year in collaboration with Z2 Comics, follows 2019’s debut edition and 2020 follow-up Weird Times At Quarry Banks University. Its title is taken from the singer’s 2022 single, which has an official video featuring Ozzy Osbourne.
A synopsis for the novel reads: “This new chapter builds off the gleefully irreverent, bitingly profane adventures of Yungblud and his super-powered coterie—the titular Ritalin Club—of Harmony, Scout, Zombie Joshua, Em, and Encore. After breaking free from the repressive constraints of Blackheart’s High School and navigating the horrors of Quarry Bank University, Yungblud will face his greatest foe: mortality.
“Two years after saving the world from the Mangaverse, Yungblud died. No one knows how, only that it was enough to cause The Ritalin Club to disband and stop talking to each other. But as their old foe, The Spreading Darkness, has returned, more powerful than ever, it falls to Zombie Joshua to get the band back together. Every member. Living or dead.”
Pre-order The Twisted Tales Of The Ritalin Club 3: The Funeral here, and see its cover below.
CREDIT: Z2 Comics.
Speaking of the new comic, Yungblud said: “These powerful graphic novels serve as a mirror to my own journey as an artist through a medium I absolutely adore.
“The previous volumes chronicled my battles with authority, identity and self expression. The Funeral, like its musical counterpart, grapples with the idea of self acceptance, belonging, and finding peace with your own insecurities.”
Joshua Frankel of Z2 added: “Yungblud continues to be one of the most singular, confrontational voices in the pop culture landscape.
“As soon as we launched Twisted Tales, I knew that his story couldn’t be contained in one volume. This is a glorious middle finger of genre fiction. We’ll continue to publish them as long as there’s a story to tell.”
Yungblud. CREDIT: Tom Pallant for NME
Yungblud announced details of his new self-titled record last month and appeared on the cover of NME to discuss working with WILLOW, the advice Ozzy Osbourne gave him, the misconceptions people have about him, and shares insight into his new album.
“I think I’ve been painted with a brush,” he told NME. “So much of what has been said about me has come from a manipulated truth that has blown up on Twitter. I’ve always provided answers for people – and I don’t want to do that anymore.”
Last week, Mick Jagger presented Yungblud with a special guitar while meeting for the first time backstage at The Rolling Stones’ Liverpool gig.
Jagger, who recently praised Yungblud in an interview on Swedish radio (saying that the artist has “that kind of post-punk vibe [that] makes me think there is still a bit of life in rock and roll”), presented Yungblud with a Buddy Holly-inspired guitar during that meeting to formally welcome him into the Buddy Holly Educational Foundation, for which Jagger is an ambassador.
Named ‘Blue Suede Shoes’, the gifted guitar in question was inspired by Holly’s preferred Gibson J-45 and marks Yungblud’s “contribution to the art of songwriting and performing, an important part of Buddy Holly’s legacy which the Foundation promotes and celebrates”.
