Killswitch Engage Singer Shares Biggest Challenge of New Album

Could one simple challenge be taking Killswitch Engage to a new level on their This Consequence album?At nine albums in repetition could be an easy pattern to fall into, but Killswitch frontman Jesse Leach told Full Metal Jackie on her weekend radio show that a very cognizant effort was enacted to ensure that didn’t happen.”The big takeaway for me was for this one especially was dig deeper. Go deeper than you’ve ever gone before. Diversify yourself,” Leach explained. “We even set up a thing where certain phrases and metaphors were off the table. The big joke is no more fire references. Killswitch has too many songs about fire and also careful with the nautical themes.”In reflecting on the experience, the singer says, “Those guys really helped me bring out the best in what I had to offer lyrically. And I regret none of it.”Elsewhere within the discussion, Leach talks about the song that jumpstarted the album, comments on the theme of the recent single “Forever Aligned” and trying not to fall into the divisiveness that’s going on in the world.He also shares his thoughts on metalcore in the year 2025, gives us a death metal recommendation and offers insight on his creative process and what he’d like to eventually do outside of Killswitch Engage.Check out more of the chat below.It’s Full Metal Jackie and this week I’m proud to welcome Jesse Leach of Killswitch Engage to the show. Super excited to have new Killswitch Engage music. This was a longer period between records with a lot of life happening in between. Jesse, what was the jumping off point for this new music where you knew you had something to build on?I’d say probably a quarter way into the process of this record. This record was difficult at first. I had to find my voice again, where I’m coming from lyrically and even vocally with new techniques that I’m applying. So it took a little while, but we recorded a song called “Broken Glass,” and once that was demoed and sent out, we all sort of agreed, “Okay, this is the direction we’re heading on this. This is where we’re going.”That song is really sort of pissing vinegar, angry, heavy. And that’s really what we tried to inject throughout. Most of the record is just frustration, anger and just unleashing all that therapeutically.Killswitch Engage, “Broken Glass”Jesse, I have to say, “Forever Aligned” is a solid banger to kick things off with. I know your inspirations for the song are more personal, but from a broader perspective, the track speaks to connectivity. The video shows this in more of a band perspective. Having spent time out of this band, but now being back for over a decade, what is your appreciation now for having this connectivity with the guys? And also how has this relationship evolved over the years?That’s a great question. Yeah, I think the guys in the band, they’re my brothers. We all don’t always see eye to eye, but there’s a commonality between all of us, a love for what we do, a love for each other as a family, a big dysfunctional family, if you will.There’s definitely moments where we feel very unified and we feel very blessed to do what we do as we travel the world and play music. It’s pretty incredible. I think we have more of an understanding with each other. I think we know how to handle each other better. We’re much more quote, unquote, adults these days than we were back then. And all of us really appreciate the fact that we still get to do this, make music, travel the world. We owe a lot of that to the fans.So, yeah, in the same breath, you could say that that song is just about all of us. It’s about connectivity, for sure.Killswitch Engage, “Forever Aligned”Jesse, the early statements on this record say this was more of a collaborative effort and one of the few times that the band has worked entirely together in recording. As the lyricist, this has pushed you even more with added feedback. What was the big takeaway for you in the working process on this latest album?The big takeaway for me was for this one especially was dig deeper. Go deeper than you’ve ever gone before. Diversify yourself. We even set up a thing where certain phrases and metaphors were off the table. The big joke is no more fire references. Killswitch has too many songs about fire and also careful with the nautical themes.So it really made me dissect myself as a artist and to do better. Because I think if you’re not striving to do better or do something different or bring something fresh to the table, it gets boring, it gets played out and outdated.The last thing in the world I want to do is become a band that is celebrated for the legacy only and playing the same songs over and over again, putting out the same type of material. So for me, I dug deeper than I ever have.READ MORE: Killswitch Engage’s Jesse Leach Goes Deep on New AlbumAnd it was an arduous process filled with tons of self doubt. But in the end, it was necessary. Those guys really helped me bring out the best in what I had to offer lyrically. And I regret none of it.Jesse, there are moments on this record very much influenced by stepping back and taking a look at what is becoming a more divided world. While this music comes from a more positive place, what do you see as taking the best foot forward in how we as a society interact with one another?I think personally, for me, it’s in your everyday actions. It’s in the way that you speak to people, the way you treat people. I think kindness is the most important thing we could carry with us as a weapon these days because divisiveness is part of the control. If you’re turned on and you’re switched on and you’re really reading between the lines, that’s the way it works, man.If you are divided and at each other’s throats, then you’re not paying attention to the more important stuff, the stuff that’s going on behind the scenes, the bigger picture of life and existence. And at the end of the day, we are all much more connected than we think. We have much more in common than we think.So allowing people to sort of be who they are, asking questions before judging and having face to face contact with people and conversations, seeing people’s body language instead of arguing and bickering online, which gets us nowhere but further divided. Lyrically that’s something I’m fighting tooth and nail against is to remind people that there’s so much more than meets the eye.We have so much more in common than we do differences. And if we’re able to focus on that, the world is a better place. Recently, fans were remarking at what looks like an amazing 2025 for metalcore, especially after your band, Spiritbox and Architects all announced new albums in the same week. That’s also a great cross section of how the genre has evolved over time. As someone who was there from Killswitch’s early days, when metalcore was just becoming a thing, what’s your take on how the genre has evolved and where it seems to be at in 2025?Yeah, that’s a good question because I don’t even know what the word metalcore means anymore. It’s become so overused, but also, like you said, diversified. If you can put Architects and us and Spiritbox in the same quote unquote genre, that’s pretty wide. That’s a pretty wide reach.For me it’s all metal. But metalcore is, I guess, a way to try to attempt to narrow it down and because of all the subgenres we have in metal. So I guess the big picture for me is the more I see music expand as a whole, the happier I am.I enjoy the fact that bands are doing completely different things and not trying to sound the same because if you want to talk about metalcore, I think metalcore at a certain point did sort of mimic itself a lot. And I feel like as a genre it’s grown to where bands like the aforementioned band could be mentioned in the same sentence in the same genre, and they sound nothing alike.So I say bring it on. More diversity, more uniqueness. Metal can use it in general.And do you have any bands that you’re currently sort of touting or looking forward to what they do next?Yeah, I’ve been listening to a lot of death metal lately. A band that I’ve really gotten into recently is a band called Decapitated. If anyone is into extreme music, heavy music and groove, I think those guys are one of the best metal bands in the world right now. So good live. If you’re a metal fan and you don’t know them, get into them. Decapitated. They’re so sick.Jesse, while Killswitch Engage is front and center for you, you’ve had other musical outlets like Times of Grace and The Weapon in recent years. As a creative person, are you always stocking away ideas for things that don’t perhaps fit Killswitch? Or do you have to be focused on a particular project and be in that headspace?When Killswitch is writing, it’s all about Killswitch. I can’t do anything else. I have a hard time. It’s the moments where I have breaks here and there or I’m off tour for a while during a record cycle where I can sort of be more creative and exercise that creativity.I have a ton of ideas. I have a ton of little projects that I’ve started and never saw to fruition. I have a bunch of demos that have never seen the light of day, a bunch of solo music I’ve never released. But that being said, one day I will, mark my words, I will put out music that is different and I think more than anything, just solo music.I’ve collaborated so much and I’m continuing to collaborate, but my deepest desire is to put out music that represents me in the more quiet, darker moments. I’m super into bands like Dead Can Dance and I like The Cure. I like quieter, sort of trippy, spaced out kind of stuff. So maybe someday you’ll see Some solo stuff. But I’m always creative, I’m always writing poetry and lyrics and words. And I think it’s good to just stay inspired.As This Consequence is locked in, what does your 2025 look like? And are there other things that we should be looking for?For just a ton of touring, we’re booked solid for 2025 and it’s going to take us at least at this point, all over the world, Europe, hopefully back to Australia. So I’m just grateful we get to do this again and I’m really grateful to bring new music to people and just get back out there and reconnect with the fans again. I’m excited.Thanks to Killswitch Engage’s Jesse Leach for the interview. This Consequence is available now. Stay up to date with the band through their website, Facebook, X, Instagram, YouTube and Spotify platforms. Find out where you can hear Full Metal Jackie’s weekend radio show here.The 25 Best Metal Songs of the Last 25 YearsSo much metal, so many subgenres, but these songs stood out above the crowd in furthering heavy music over the last 25 years.Contributions by Jordan Blum (JB), Chad Childers (CC), Joe DiVita (JD), John Hill (JH) and Lauryn Schaffner (LS).Gallery Credit: Loudwire Staff