Shinedown returned today (June 29) with its first new music in three years, a chugging, fist-pumping rocker called "Cut the Cord." The track has been online for a few hours, but Billboard has the premiere of its official video.
Alongisde the requisite rocking, Shinedown sprinkled some interesting production touches into this one. Frontman Brent Smith's guttural vocals are juxtaposed against the choral chant of, "freedom la la la, freedom follow me," throughout the song. And pay attention to the intro for some additional sonic variety. Shinedown bassist Eric Bass handled the production.
About the song, Smith tells Billboard: "'Cut The Cord' is a wake up call reminding us all that we can control our own destiny by finding the courage and tenacity to destroy whatever it is that's holding us back. The process may not be pretty or perfect or even easy, but absolutely necessary. The song is brutally honest and unapologetic, which is what Shinedown has always been."
The intense clip was directed by Darren Doane who previously directed the band's music videos for "Devour," "Sound Of Madness," and "If You Only Knew." He is also working on an upcoming film about Shinedown's history.
"We really wanted the video to match the intensity of the song," Smith says. "We've worked with Darren Doane on several of our videos so there's a real trust between us and it only took a few takes. Honestly, I don't think we could have done too many more -- we gave it everything we had, literally playing so hard that it physically hurt."
"Cut the Cord" comes from Shinedown's forthcoming fifth album, which is due out later this year. The track will try to match the chart success of Shinedown's previous singles. Their last album featured five singles that peaked in the top five of Mainstream Rock Songs: "Unity" (1), "Bully" (1), "I'll Follow You" (2), "Enemies" (2), and "Adrenaline" (4).
Shinedown's last album was 2012's Amaryllis.
On July 9, the Florida-based band embarks on a U.S. tour, beginning with a home state gig in St. Petersburg. All the dates are listed on Shinedown's official site.
