Heaven Shall Burn have finally returned with a new record, Heimat, released June 27 via Century Media Records. While metalcore seems to once again be having its day in the sun, Heaven Shall Burn have never let the fickle whims of the music industry dictate their style or their output. We chatted with them about the record, the process behind it, and the meaning behind the title.
Folks have been eagerly awaiting the new album after the five-year gap—What was the writing and recording process like for this one, and how does it compare to previous albums?
There aren’t really any particular characteristics of each recording process for us. We’ve been working with the same methods and conditions for several albums. We constantly sit together and search for riffs, try out ideas or visions. It’s a constant process. In addition to this routine, each record naturally has its own story. This time we also collaborated with a Ukrainian choir and recorded these recordings in Vienna at a renowned soundtrack studio. We recorded the string quartet in an old pilgrimage church, which was also a very moving and inspiring experience.
The commentary in the press release on the album title is fascinating, and you make it clear it’s not meant for the name to be perceived in a xenophobic way. What was the intention behind the name, and why is that such an important distinction right now?
The term “Heimat” (homeland) has been hijacked by right-wing circles. While left-wing circles no longer use the term at all, right-wing circles fill it with some kind of identitarian nonsense and use it as a battle cry. We wanted to reclaim this term, and everyone should be able to fill it with meaning for themselves. The term “Heimat” (homeland) immediately touches everyone, and it evokes an emotional reaction in everyone who reads this title—That’s something an album title should ideally be able to achieve!
The art is gorgeous, and the commentary there is also fascinating. Why did the art speak to you so much for this album?
For me, expressive and iconic album covers are absolutely essential in metal. That’s one of the main attractions of this music. We chose a truly emotional title, and we wanted it to engage the listener with all of their senses, which is why the visual component was all the more important for this album. I think Eliran Kantor has once again done a fantastic job and delivered incredibly powerful artwork.
As a millennial, I am loving the fact that metalcore is making a comeback with the younger generations. Have you noticed a resurgence in popularity due to this? Do you consider yourself part of that genre at all?
Luckily, we never felt like we were losing popularity or falling victim to any trends. So I can’t see any increase in our popularity due to a metalcore revival; we’re always on the rise, haha. But it’s interesting how much metalcore has changed in the last 20 years. Today, metalcore is more of a nu-metalish, djentish kind of thing. Back then, we were more interested in combining the energy of Bolt Thrower and the melodies of At the Gates with the attitude of Earth Crisis.
In that sense, you could almost say you’re talking about old-school and new-school metalcore. So, I think we have an odd situation here: We do the same thing we always did, but the genre has moved away from us. Not the band stopped playing metalcore, but the archtype-metalcore has become something els, and therefore we’re not really metalcore anymore.
What are you most excited about when it comes to playing this record for audiences?
It’s always exciting and thrilling to see which songs resonate with people the most live, and there are always some big surprises. Your hit singles sometimes fizzle out, and obscure songs from the second tier become live classics. It’s always really exciting and never in the way you expect it to be!
Can you share any plans for future records after this one, or are you not thinking that far yet?
We’re currently putting together the lineup for our European tour at the beginning of next year. It’s going to be a really cool tour, and we warmly invite you all to join us. And we might play a few shows in Asia and Latin America this year, but we’re still in the planning stages for those.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Give our new record a spin and listen to the entire album! It’s a truly exciting emotional journey we’re taking you on, and it’s so much more rewarding to listen to a band’s album as a whole rather than just loading a few songs into a playlist!
Photo courtesy of CandyWelz
