Five Finger Death Punch will release “AfterLife,” its ninth studio album, on Friday, Aug. 19, 2022, and guitarist Zoltan Bathory has taken to social media to break the record down track by track.
The album, which is the band’s first since guitarist Andy James replaced Jason Hook, is available for pre-order here.
“This is hands down my favorite 5FDP record,” Bathory wrote. “It’s both the most diverse and it was the most fun to make. Can’t wait for you madafakas to hear it …”
Also this week, Five Finger Death Punch announced a fall 2022 tour with country music star Brantley Gilbert. This is in addition to the band’s summer tour, also starting Aug. 19, with Megadeth, The Hu and Fire from the Gods. All tour dates can be found below.
Bathory’s “AfterLife” track-by-track breakdown follows.
“Welcome to the Circus”
“This is a straight-up arena banger plowing through a not-so-subtle social commentary about the epic clown-show we are all living in today. Addicted to ‘likes’ and ‘thumbs ups’, people really will do just about anything for that digital dopamine.”
“AfterLife“
“At one point you’ll have to decide if the world is happening to you, or you are happening to the world. Time to kiester your prayers and wishes and actually use that free will you were fortunate to be born with and DO something. Your time is short here on Earth. You don’t wanna wait for some ‘higher power’ to ‘intervene on your behalf’.”
“Times Like These”
“It’s the artistic way of saying a giant turd-meteor is on a collision course with the fan and almost everyone is ignoring it. The world is too noisy or too busy to notice, let alone care. You wanna grab and shake people and wake them up but it seems futile, so you just have to let it burn…”
“Roll Dem Bones”
“It’s an old-school Five Finger Death Punch smasher; musically speaking, it’s a flashback to our first two records. It’s about that moment when you finally smash the eject button. Sometimes you just have to get rid of certain ideas, ideals, situations, or just the wrong people from your circle.”
“Pick Up Behind You”
“Everyone has that one friend or relative that keeps stumbling and falling down and you have to pick them up and glue the pieces back together, and they keep doing it and it’s harder and harder to be there for them. The more you care the more damage they cause and yet, out of loyalty you pick them up anyway.”
“Judgement Day”
“This one is the most adventurous songs on the record. Sort of a musical kaleidoscope of sacred geometry, Hemi-Synched minds and the strange world of the machine-elves. Something you will all experience when judgement day comes and you cross into the afterlife. Were you good, bad, an angel, the devil, or a saint… it all ends the same…”
“IOU”
“This track is about entitlement. The world owes you absolutely nothing. So, just like every other creature that was ever born, you just have to stop whining and figure out how to survive. Also, I think between the lines I can hear Ivan extending his middle finger toward some well-deserving individuals.”
“Thanks for Asking”
“Metaphorically speaking… What is your ‘Heaven’ and what is your ‘Hell’? Sometimes the line gets blurred between the two. You all have been in that relationship, friendship or job where you stayed much longer than you should have because most likely you got addicted to the drama or the pain. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if you have wings but are scared to take that leap – you gotta jump.”
“Blood and Tar”
“Ivan is throwing some verbal darts in this one. In every situation, everyone has their own perception about past events – everyone is either taking credit for certain things, or pointing fingers at each other and passing the blame. But when and if they realise that we – people in general – are all mad in some ways, then ‘life stands explained’.”
“All I Know”
“You don’t think you are crazy, but actually, how would you know? There is that moment when you start manically laughing into the face of adversity, because you have been living in hell so long that nothing can scare you anymore. ‘The devil you fear is all I’ve ever known.’ If you recognise that you hit rock bottom and the only way is up, then you have nothing to lose and there is a lot of power in that.”
“Gold Gutter”
“This one is another old-school piece. It’s about the outcasts and the black sheep, the ones who were not born with the silver spoon in their mouth. No matter how far you came, how far you are reaching up, you never forget, and ‘they’ will never let you forget where you came from – so even if your fist is in the gold, your foot will be always in the gutter. And that’s OK, because fuck ’em all!”
“The End”
“On Earth, there are no survivors. Death takes out everyone. Both physically and metaphorically everything is trying to kill you, everything is trying to take you out. Be that your life, job, career, social position… you are always under attack, there is always a struggle. The End is about the acceptance of the battle we have to wage from the moment we came into the world. Fine, so let the arrows fly – we won’t go down easy. It’s not over until it’s over.”
Tour dates:
With Megadeth, The Hu and Fire from the Gods
Fri Aug 19 – Portland, OR – RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater
Sat Aug 20 – Auburn, WA – White River Amphitheatre
Tue Aug 23 – Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre
Wed Aug 24 – Irvine, CA – FivePoint Amphitheatre
Fri Aug 26 – Phoenix, AZ – Ak-Chin Pavilion
Sat Aug 27 – Albuquerque, NM – Isleta Amphitheater
Tue Aug 30 – Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion
Thu Sep 1 – Del Valle, TX – Germania Insurance Amphitheater
Fri Sep 2 – Houston, TX –The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion presented by Huntsman
Tue Sep 6 – Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion
Wed Sep 7 – Raleigh, NC – Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
Fri Sep 9 – Virginia Beach, VA – Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach
Sat Sep 10 – Bristow, VA – Jiffy Lube Live
Mon Sep 12 – Wantagh, NY – Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
Wed Sep 14 – Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center
Thu Sep 15 – Camden, NJ – Waterfront Music Pavilion
Sat Sep 17 – Bangor, ME – Maine Savings Amphitheater
Sun Sep 18 – Mansfield, MA – Xfinity Center
Tue Sep 20 – Syracuse, NY – St. Joseph’s Health Amphitheater at Lakeview
Wed Sep 21 – Pittsburgh, PA – The Pavilion at Star Lake**
Fri Sep 23 – Scranton, PA – Pavilion at Montage Mountain
Sat Sep 24 – Hershey, PA – Hersheypark Stadium
Tue Sep 27 – Darien Center, NY – Darien Lake Amphitheater**
Wed Sep 28 –Cincinnati, OH – Riverbend Music Center
Fri Sep 30 – Tinley Park, IL – Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
Sat Oct 1 – Noblesville, IN – Ruoff Music Center
Tue Oct 4 – Cleveland, OH – Blossom Music Center
Wed Oct 5 – Clarkston, MI – Pine Knob Music Theatre
Fri Oct 7 – Milwaukee, WI – American Family Insurance Amphitheater – Summerfest Grounds
Sat Oct 8 – St. Louis, MO – Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
Mon Oct 10 – Atlanta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
Wed Oct 12 – Rogers, AR – Walmart AMP
Fri Oct 14 – Denver, CO – Ball Arena
Sat Oct 15 – Salt Lake City, UT – USANA Amphitheatre
**5FDP, The HU and Fire from the Gods only
With Brantley Gilbert and Corey Marks
Wed Nov 9 Grand Rapids, MI | Van Andel Arena
Thu Nov 10 Fort Wayne, IN | Allen County War Memorial Coliseum
Sat Nov 12 Lexington, KY | Rupp Arena
Mon Nov 14 Columbus, OH | Schottenstein Center
Wed Nov 16 Nashville, TN | Bridgestone Arena
Thu Nov 17 Knoxville, TN | Thompson-Boling Arena
Sat Nov 19 Charleston, WV | Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center
Sun Nov 20 Greenville, SC | Bon Secours Wellness Arena
Tue Nov 22 Tampa, FL | Amalie Arena
Fri Nov 25 Birmingham, AL | Legacy Arena at The BJCC
Sat Nov 26 Little Rock, AR | Simmons Bank Arena
Tue Nov 29 Kansas City, MO | T-Mobile Center
Wed Nov 30 Omaha, NE | CHI Health Center Omaha
Fri Dec 2 Madison, WI | Coliseum at Alliant Energy Center
Sat Dec 3 Green Bay, WI | Resch Center
Mon Dec 5 Minneapolis, MN | Target Center
Wed Dec 7 Des Moines, IA | Wells Fargo Arena
Fri Dec 9 Grand Forks, ND | Alerus Center
Sat Dec 10 Sioux Falls, SD | Denny Sanford PREMIER Center
Tue Dec 13 Spokane, WA | Spokane Arena
Thu Dec 15 Nampa, ID | Ford Idaho Center Arena
Sat Dec 17 Las Vegas, NV | Michelob ULTRA Arena
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