Atreyu have reunited in force since their 2011 hiatus, as a recent interview with Музыкальные каналы at Soundwave has revealed that their anticipated ‘comeback’ album teased since 2013 is “essentially done” according to drummer and melodic vocalist Brandon Saller.
“We just finished tracking the record, for the most part, four days before we left for [Soundwave].” He adds that mixing and ‘all that crap’ is still needed and aims for a release later in September or October. “I’m sure throughout the summer there’ll be other tidbits and new singles.”
Though their sixth album is being called a ‘comeback,’ Saller assures they are not approaching it as a new band, as vocalist Alex Varkatzas called their hiatus back in 2011 a time to simply recharge and focus on other parts of their lives such as his project I Am War and Saller’s Hell Or HighWater.
“I feel like we have too much of a history to not embrace the fact we have been around…. There’s no real agenda other than to make music we love and have fun…. These shows we’ve played so far, since we’ve been back, feel like they did when we were seventeen years old- it feels like that again, which is I believed how it should be.”
Atreyu are touching back on that history, with Varkatzas leaving his ‘clean vocals’ from Свинцовые паруса, бумажный якорь to Saller behind to return to his heavier roots, writing in a Фейсбук post for fans, “Absolutely no melodic vocals on my end. AMEN!”
Saller talks more on the decision- “[Lead Sails Paper Anchor] was an expansion of Alex wanting to do something different, and us wanting to do something different. We did ‘Lead Sails,’ and it was a fucking really great record, […] and it was fun for us.
“But I think everyone loves their comfort zone and everyone just loves what they do, [… so Alex now feels like] ‘I just wanna get there and fucking be pissed and go fucking apeshit.’ And we love that about him.”
He goes on to say going away from Atreyu for some time and coming back together has allowed them to find what they love most about the band; Saller singing, as always before, and Varkatzas going ‘nuts.’
“[Alex is] doing a lot of different stuff on the new record- different shit he’s never done before. But’s brutal. It’s fucking awesome.”
