On July 29, Swedish/Canadian/American melodic death metallers ARCH ENEMY will release their 11th studio album, "Deceivers", via Century Media Records. A collection of 11 tracks that are ruthlessly catchy and mercilessly violent, "Deceivers" stands toe to toe with the highlights of the band's storied catalog. The LP's new single, "Handshake With Hell", can be streamed below. The song's official music video, directed by Patric Ullaeus, will premiere later today.
ARCH ENEMY guitarist Michael Amott comments: "Our new single/video 'Handshake With Hell' started off with some riffs and melodies that I thought might be suitable for each other, and when I showed the parts I had to Daniel [Erlandsson, drums], he also felt it had potential. We worked on a demo of it, developing it much further together, and once we had reached a point where we felt it was ready, we sent the instrumental version to Alissa [White-Gluz, vocals] over in Canada. She came back with this really cool approach to the vocals and lyrics that elevated the song even further. To me, it's a stand-out track on the new 'Deceivers' album, really showcasing what we are capable of as songwriters and performers in 2022 â it's definitely one of the new songs I'm dying to play live on tour!"
White-Gluz adds: "When Michael and Daniel showed me the instrumental they had cooked up, I got a ton of vocal ideas to complete the song. 'Handshake With Hell' has a classic heavy metal feel, and it felt like the right time to unleash some classic heavy metal vocals to match. I think the result is really interesting and catchy."
Before "Handshake With Hell" arrived, fans were also able to check out the previously released album tracks, "Deceiver, Deceiver" and "House Of Mirrors".
Amott had stated about the new LP: "Having just celebrated our 25th anniversary as a group and now releasing our 11th studio album, one could easily assume that we would be cruising along and going through the motions at this point. In reality, nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to ARCH ENEMY and our new album, 'Deceivers'.
"It is, without a doubt, always a challenge to raise the bar each time in both the songwriting and production side of things, and it can feel a bit daunting before we get into it. But once we do get started and fully immerse ourselves in the creative process, it's really like there is nothing else in the world and we are very focused. And believe it or not, for the most part, we have a ton of fun making this music! Creating 'Deceivers' was no different. Once again we shut out the outside world and went deep into the artistic zone. I believe we pulled out some really interesting musical and lyrical themes this time, a few things might even raise an eyebrow or two â while retaining all the signature elements of the band. In the end, it's ARCH ENEMY at full speed and power."
"Deceivers" track listing:
01. Handshake With Hell
02. Deceiver, Deceiver
03. In The Eye Of The Storm
04. The Watcher
05. Poisoned Arrow
06. Sunset Over The Empire
07. House Of Mirrors
08. Spreading Black Wings
09. Mourning Star
10. One Last Time
11. Exiled From Earth
This spring, ARCH ENEMY and BEHEMOTH will return to the states to co-headline "The North American Siege 2022" tour with NAPALM DEATH and UNTO OTHERS as special guests, before ARCH ENEMY appears at select summer festivals; the rescheduled "European Siege 2022" tour (with ARCH ENEMY, BEHEMOTH, CARCASS, UNTO OTHERS) will kick off in the fall.
"Despite the obvious uncertainties everyone is currently facing in the world, we have got quite a few concerts booked for this year!" says Amott. "We're delighted to be returning to the live stage in North America this spring and hitting select European festivals in the summer, as well as a huge European tour at the end of 2022. It's time; let's do this!"
In December, ARCH ENEMY released another new song, "House Of Mirrors". Mixed and mastered by Jacob Hansen, an accompanying music video for the track was directed by Grupa13.
"House Of Mirrors" marked the second new ARCH ENEMY track to be made available in four years, following the October 2021 arrival of "Deceiver, Deceiver".
In the fall of 2018, Amott revealed that he had commenced the songwriting process for the follow-up to the "Will To Power" album. Released in 2017, that disc marked the second ARCH ENEMY LP since the departure of longtime singer Angela Gossow and addition of ex-THE AGONIST frontwoman Alissa White-Gluz. It was also the first ARCH ENEMY disc to feature former NEVERMORE guitarist Jeff Loomis, who joined the band in late 2014.
Jeff, who was the main songwriter in his previous group, NEVERMORE, was not involved in the writing for "Will To Power".
Album artwork by: Alex Reisfar / Single cover artwork by: Hellish Maggot
