JAMES GANG
“IT’S ALOMST LIKE ONE BAND ENDED AND A NEW ONE HAS BEGUN”
FIVE FINGER DEATH Punch founder and rhythm guitarist Zoltan Bathory admits there have been “many crazy chapters” during the band’s 15-year existence, but he reveals that he’s now experiencing a sensation that’s utterly new to him: an overall feeling of peace and tranquility. “It’s almost like one band ended and a new one has begun,” he says. “For a long while, we had this inertia that pushed us forward, but it was also tumbling downward. But things have a way of turning around, which they’ve done for us, and it all happened in kind of a synchronized manner. I feel really good about where we are now. It feels like a new chapter for the band.”
One big reason for Bathory’s sunny outlook is the sobriety embraced by bassist Chris Kael and singer Ivan Moody. “That’s been a positive step for both of them, and it’s reflected on the whole band,” Bathory says. “Our last album, [early 2020’s] F8, was the first record that Ivan made completely sober, so that was great. Everybody was super focused, and I think that helped to make it the best record we ever made.”
is the first album to feature the group’s new drummer, Charlie Engen, who replaced longtime sticksman Jeremy Spencer in 2018, and it’s also the last disc lead guitarist Jason Hook (a member since 2009) recorded with the group before his departure last year. Rumors about Hook’s exit swirled on the internet for months (fans speculated that it had something to do with his late-2019 gallbladder surgery), and the guitarist has yet to address the issue fully. Last October, he posted a video to Instagram announcing his departure,
