In a brand new interview with United Rock Nations, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE singer Jesse Leach spoke in regards to the band’s upcoming album, “This Consequence”, which due on February 21, 2025 by way of Steel Blade. “This Consequence” is KILLSWITCH ENGAGE‘s ninth LP general, and sixth with Leach, who rejoined the band in 2012. Requested what the largest problem was in making the brand new report, Jesse mentioned (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “I feel for me desirous to be, and I exploit this phrase loosely, related, however related to me and my bandmembers. I needed what I needed to say to excite them, however I additionally wanted it to be real. I wanted it to be one thing that once I checked out these lyrics, I believed, ‘Sure. That is precisely what I wanna say.’
“I went by way of — I do not know — seven, eight songs the place I used to be type of simply throwing it out to see what would stick,” he continued. “And people guys have been, like, ‘This does not really feel such as you’re actually giving us your finest.’ So having that kind of rejection from them initially was very exhausting. It kind of felt like I used to be changing into insecure. I used to be questioning if I had it in me. However that become a dedication to rediscover myself as a author, to go deeper, to faucet into issues that I by no means tapped in earlier than, and to kind of look outdoors of myself. I imply, after every part we have been by way of, there’s a lot to attract from. There’s a lot to tug from. So I began pulling from issues that I used to be seeing on mainstream media. I began pulling from tales that I heard from folks that they have been by way of. I began pulling from excessive relationships of abuse and simply type of dialing all of them right into a story — clearly coming from me and the best way that I noticed and felt about these issues, however it ended up changing into rather more of a worldview versus simply me going, ‘I, me, I.’ It was extra about us — ‘That is about us.’ Therefore the title ‘This Consequence’. It is about us — all of us. How do you reply to those conditions? How do you modify your habits? What classes have you ever realized? And realizing that with every part that you just do, there’s going to be a response.
“So, the massive image to me is what I used to be specializing in and learn how to learn how to heal our PTSD from every part we have gone by way of and realizing that we’re nonetheless all going by way of it,” Leach added. “We might not understand it, however we’re. And the way can we enable the surface sources which are continuously manipulating us to manage our minds and to proceed to maintain us divided? The problem was how do I crack that code? How do I get that message by way of to folks? And I did one of the best I might. And I feel I did fairly rattling properly.”
Requested if writing about all these matters was a type of remedy for him, Leach mentioned: “Yeah, completely. Completely, it’s. And I feel it is necessary. You possibly can’t keep away from it. And I feel I averted it quite a bit throughout the pandemic. I needed nothing to do with it, ‘trigger it was such a unstable time. I feel we’re all kind of coming down off that, and it is not so intense the place persons are truly open to discussions of, or perhaps you were not one hundred pc correct or appropriate in your perception. Possibly you may have room to be flawed right here, and in that case, what did you study from that? And the way do you progress ahead with out having that assumption being a part of your vocabulary? I feel all of that is essential. And as a author, how do I write it in such a method the place you as a listener can draw your personal conclusion? So I am not supplying you with the reply. I am asking you to consider this factor. After which what do you consider that? You because the listener can kind of put the reply on that query. And that is actually what I attempted to do — writing with a broad sufficient brushstroke the place the music may be yours. I penned the lyrics, however I very a lot need you to kind of take the torch and run with it.”
In a separate interview with Joshua Toomey of the “Discuss Toomey” podcast, Leach acknowledged in regards to the “darkish”, “offended” and “aggressive” nature of “This Consequence”: “Yeah, I feel offended, darkish and aggressive, for higher or for worse, is type of what the world wants proper now, I feel, therapeutically talking. I feel plenty of us can relate to frustration, anger, betrayal, all these issues, and that is type of what I highlighted lyrically with this album; I used to be actually specializing in that stuff. However I’ll say this: when you actually learn into the lyrics, there is a positivity by way of a righteous anger, anger that desires to kind of wake folks up and have folks select their very own path as a substitute of simply the blind main the blind, which is what we see a lot in society and our governments and arranged faith and all this stuff that management us as folks. It’s totally a lot about breaking out of the matrix, if you’ll, and carving your personal path. And there is a righteous anger beneath all of it, and that is the place the positivity lies. However I feel with steel music, the beauty of it’s you can discuss darkish stuff and it is therapeutic. That is why plenty of us get into this type of music.”
Jesse additionally talked in regards to the lyrical inspiration for the primary single from “This Consequence”, a music known as “Endlessly Aligned”, which was made accessible in November. Talking particularly in regards to the line “now my tongue should confess”, Jesse mentioned: “Yeah, I am at all times weaving out and in… I used to be raised by a minister, I used to be raised in a Christian house, so although I do not subscribe to organized faith anymore, I like utilizing biblical phrases right here and there to kind of tie within the themes. I am very a lot a believer in in God, if you’ll, basically. I do know folks roll their eyes when different folks say that, however my journey has been such the place I’ve simply seen a lot deeper issues that I do not assume may be outlined by a specific human organized faith. And ‘Endlessly Aligned’ is about that. It is about love. It is about, before everything, the music was impressed by the love I’ve for my spouse and the connection we have been in a position to have throughout the pandemic, particularly, the place it was simply the 2 of us, no one else, and actually studying what love and sacrifice is, after which weaving that into what I imagine God is. God is love, to maintain it actually basic for folks to know. We are able to attempt to faucet into that as people, that phrase ‘love’, however it’s far past human comprehension. In order that music could be very a lot about being damaged and in a darkish place and discovering salvation by way of love.”
Elsewhere within the chat, Leach touched upon his progress as a vocalist because the launch of 2019’s “Atonement” LP, saying: “Fact be instructed, [‘This Consequence’] was very tough for me to write down and kind of discover my inspiration once more. And even vocally, studying new methods, just like the vocal fry, and making an attempt so as to add that into my outdated approach and nonetheless sound like me, it was an extended, exhausting course of.
“Particularly after my vocal surgical procedure in 2018, I relearned learn how to communicate in a different way — I communicate in a different way than I did,” he defined. “I am extra measured; I make sure that my voice is positioned in the proper place. And thru that, it went into my vocals, my singing, particularly. I used to be actually specializing in my singing before everything to remain in key and never go flat or sharp. Then it was, like, my screams have been — I used to be so paranoid. I used to be actually anxious about… We do three reveals in a row. That fourth present, I am, like, ‘It is getting tough. I can really feel the swelling occurring.’ So I used to be actually finding out vocal fry, ‘trigger you are able to do plenty of cool stuff with fry, however me with my voice, it has such a signature sound to it, I suppose, in response to Adam [Dutkiewicz, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE guitarist and producer], a minimum of, that if I simply went into that new approach fully, the lows have been lacking one thing, my yelling. It completely different. So I used to be going into these demos simply doing fry, saving my voice, particularly considering that, as soon as I get to the studio, it may be fatiguing; we’re doing four- or five-hour periods. However I stored falling flat and the voice simply did not sound correct. For a few of the excessive stuff, it really works, however for the decrease, mid stuff and for the loss of life steel growls, that is all old fashioned… It is the old-school method, the best way all of us began doing it within the late ’80s and early ’90s. So I’ve realized, fortunately, by way of plenty of trial and error, and this album had quite a bit to do with it, to mix the kinds. So I can do my old-school stuff, after which I can kind of mix in a few of the vocal fry to hit these loopy, maniacal-sounding highs with out it destroying my voice.”
“Atonement” was launched in August 2019 by way of Steel Blade Information within the U.S. and Sony Music Leisure in the remainder of the world. The disc featured visitor appearances by former KILLSWITCH ENGAGE singer Howard Jones and TESTAMENT frontman Chuck Billy.
KILLSWITCH ENGAGE will embark on a headline tour in March 2025. It is their first tour of North America since late 2022. The trek will characteristic help from KUBLAI KHAN TX, FIT FOR A KING and FROZEN SOUL, and can kick off on March 5 in Nashville and runs by way of April 12 in Portland, Maine.
