This Consequence

Over the past 25 years, Killswitch Engage has spread a message of positivity and unity through aggressive music. And while the Massachusetts metalcore band has written its share of breakup songs and tales of personal turmoil, This Consequence is probably its darkest and most political album to date. “I dig that we’re kind of known as the metal band with a positive twist,” guitarist and producer Adam Dutkiewicz tells Apple Music. “But I like that we get a little darker in some of the songs on this record. It definitely feels like a fresher album to me because of the variation in topics. Not everything’s about cheering up and getting through something with positivity this time.” Indeed, tracks like “Abandon Us” and “Discordant Nation” speak to our turbulent times, while “Aftermath” sees vocalist Jesse Leach singing about rebuilding after the pandemic. Elsewhere, “Broken Glass” and “The Fall of Us” are two of the heaviest songs Killswitch has ever written, while singles “Forever Aligned” and “I Believe” maintain the band’s trademark positivity and soaring choruses. Below, Dutkiewicz comments on each track. “Abandon Us” “That’s a song I wrote, a perfect example of me writing a full song and then showing it to the guys, and they’re like, ‘Yeah, cool. Let’s use this.’ I think the topics within the song are pretty cool. It feels a bit more political than anything we’ve ever done. And we like aggressive opening songs on records—something to just come out of the gates fast.” “Discordant Nation” “This came from a demo that Joel [Stroetzel], our other guitar player, wrote. I feel like it kind of alludes to Testament, which is a band he loves. We heard it and just thought it kicked ass. I think Joel and I may have worked on the bridge together on that song. Lyrically, it’s about the use of fear as a means of control.” “Aftermath” “Our drummer Justin [Foley] wrote this one. I think we might’ve changed some guitar parts a little bit, just because we’re the guitar players, dam