KILLSWITCH ENGAGE frontman Jesse Leach's hardcore/punk project THE WEAPON has released a two-song, selft-titled EP via Bandcamp. The singer is joined in the new band by guitarist Chris Drapeau, bassist Josh Mihlek and drummer Andy Mass. Leach told Revolver magazine that he has been "wanting to do a hardcore project for years but just never had the right people or the right timing. It started with my friend Chris Drapeau who used to play for AGGRESSIVE DOGS, a Japanese crossover band," he said. "He saw me post about wanting to start a hardcore project and sent me some tracks he had been messing with. I was immediately into what he was doing and the rest just came together fairly easy. I have my good friend Josh Mihlek — also KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's production manager — on bass and my friend and Dark City Studio — where we recorded — owner Andy Mass on drums." Jesse also talked about the differences between what he does with THE WEAPON and his work with KILLSWITCH ENGAGE and TIMES OF GRACE. HE said: "[With THE WEAPON] we are not striving for perfection, just feeling. With KILLSWITCH and TIMES, it's very polished and precise. It can be tiring and tedious. Don't get me wrong, I love it and I'm very fortunate to do both of those bands, but to me, THE WEAPON is for fun and for the love of hardcore! On top of that, I can go in a little more hard on the lyrics and I don't have to concern myself with melodies or singing a part near perfect. I am not a fan of unflawed 'perfect'-sounding vocals — clearly, if you've seen me live — so it's a breath of fresh air to just belt it out and be done. Each song, I did three full takes, picked the best one and slapped backups on them and it was done in 45 minutes tops." KILLSWITCH ENGAGE is hoping to complete work on its new album by the middle of the summer for a tentative late 2018 release. The follow-up to 2016's "Incarnate" will mark the band's third full-length effort since the return of Leach, who rejoined the group in 2012.
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