Killswitch EngageAmong the second wave of American metalcore's progenitors, Massachusetts' Killswitch Engage will return Down Under as main support for Parkway Drive. While Atreyu falsely claim to have “invented” the sub-genre, Killswitch Engage were part of a crop of bands that helped facilitate a career path for the likes of the Byron Bay outfit they will support (guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz even produced their first two albums), who have since scaled enormous, previously unthinkable commercial heights.
As they prepare to perform in Australia's stadiums in addition to their own headlining shows, frontman Jesse Leach marvels at how far and wide this style of music has travelled. “That thought crosses my mind on a regular basis when we're out on tour. I'm very grateful, and I never would have thought in a million years that we'd be playing in front of thousands of people in this band we started so many years ago, standing in front of handfuls of people in small, sweaty clubs,” he laughs.
After recent events, Leach certainly doesn't appear to be taking his role for granted. Earlier this year, the singer underwent vocal cord surgery. Since returning to the road, he's modified his behaviour. “I'm definitely a lot more responsible with the way that I act before and after shows. I've stopped drinking before; I don't have any alcohol. After I get off stage I might have a glass of wine or a sip of whiskey, but I've definitely calmed way down on that. I'm getting much more sleep because that's huge. There were nights on tour where I wouldn't sleep much, which is really bad for the voice."
“I've just become more healthy, more aware and take my warm-ups and my days off, when I'm not singing I'm very quiet. I'm just taking it a lot more seriously. Learning new techniques and training. I get my second chance here – I'm not going to screw this up,” he laughs. “I'm doing everything in my power to keep healthy. And I've noticed it; my voice is easier to control. I think I sound better and it's a lot less frustrating to sing now. It was a blessing in disguise.”
"It was an extremely stressful time for me and my family, my wife and I'm sure the band as well. But thankfully we got through it."
Don't miss a beat with our FREE daily newsletter
Was there a legitimate fear that career-wise, 'this could be it?' “Absolutely, yes. I was definitely nervous and wondering what was next – 'What am I going to do?' Especially with the Iron Maiden tour [of Europe/the UK] looming. 'Cause I had to cancel one tour, and the next tour coming up was the Maiden tour. I thought to myself, 'There's no way I'm going to cancel the Maiden tour. If I can make it, I'm gonna make it.' So it was an extremely stressful time for me and my family, my wife and I'm sure the band as well. But thankfully we got through it.”
The Leach-fronted 2002 album Alive Or Just Breathing was the band's breakthrough, and a legitimate heavy music game-changer; to the extent that one high-profile publication billed them as “the band to kill nu-metal”. “That's funny,” the vocalist chuckles. “Journalists will say anything, won't they?” he laughs. “We never said that.”
Leach left soon after its release and was replaced by Blood Has Been Shed's Howard Jones, before returning in 2012. Formerly estranged from his ex-band-mates due to various personal issues, Jones (who now fronts Light The Torch) has reconnected with the Killswitch Engage camp of late.
In April, metal blogs went into meltdown after Leach posted a photo on Instagram of himself, Jones and Dutkiewicz in the studio, soon revealing that the two vocalists had recorded a duet. In a follow-up post, Leach revealed that “the song was in fact written with Howard in mind and our connection through our similar mental illnesses”.
The track will appear on Killswitch Engage's next album - their first since leaving long-time label Roadrunner - which Leach suggests will surface next year. “We trade verses and sing the chorus together, and then he does back-ups,” he says of the collaboration. “It's a back-and-forth vocal thing. I wrote the song, just kinda told him what to do, and he was like, 'Yeah, this is great,'” Leach laughs. “He just came in and sang what I wrote for him. But I had written it with him in mind, so it was really cool to do that.”
Jones also guested onstage with Killswitch Engage in London recently. Although the frontmen have now forged a friendship and many fans embrace both eras of the band, others inevitably continue to make comparisons or insinuate there's a rivalry there. “Yeah, it's annoying, but I get it,” Leach remarks of the latter. “I just try not to pay attention to it any more. It is what it is; people are going to do what they're gonna do. But we have our paths; he's in a great band and I'm in Killswitch. People can talk, it's fine, whatever. I love my job,” he laughs.
