Wisdom In Chains tackle mental illness with “Better Than I Was”
Forming from the bands Krutch and Daredevil in 2001, Wisdom In Chains are ready to release their seventh studio album, Nothing In Nature Respects Weakness. After 17 years together, their latest record will be out July 20.
Going back to the studio that started it all, the band created the 13-track album with ample time and creative reign. Without hard-pressing deadlines, the band were able to really enjoy making music together. “Better Than I Was” is the first single from their latest project.
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With a tinge of hypnotic guitar work, “Better Than I Was” begins with instrumentation that isn’t commonly seen on many hardcore records. However, the track soon melts into a compound of fuzz and deep-cutting bass lines that carry frontman Mad Joe Black’s voice as it digs into the song’s lyrical truth and vitality.
About the band’s personal experience in overcoming depression and taking back a feeling of hopelessness, “Better Than I Was” tackles delicate themes without losing grip of hardcore’s heavy essence.
“Dealing with feelings of hopelessness can teach you just how strong you really are,” Black says of the track. “Feeling depressed is such a lonely and cut-off mental state. It’s so common, but it feels like nobody on Earth can possibly relate. Maybe that’s because nobody on Earth can pull you out of the dark except yourself.”
Nothing In Nature Respects Weakness approaches themes such as suicide, depression and living in the social craze of the digital media age. Through the course of making the album, Black has found that there is more to live for than what immediately presents itself.
“I’ve learned that the pain of depression and struggle is not the feeling of dying,” he says. “It’s the feeling of living. And I’m alive now, so I’m gonna fight for life every day that I have left.”
In addition to substance-filled thematic expression, Wisdom In Chains’ upcoming album will feature vocal performances from members of fellow quintessential hardcore bands, Madball and Kingdom. Freddy Cricien (Madball) and Davin Bernard (Kingdom) will each make appearances on forthcoming tracks, “Someday” and “Slow Down,” respectively. In the meantime, you can preorder Nothing In Nature Respects Weakness here. You can listen to “Better Than I Was” below.
Wisdom In Chains will be playing This Is Hardcore July 29 in Philadelphia. You can get tickets here.
