BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE Guitarist: How 'The Pandemic Benefited Us'

Welsh metallers BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE will release their seventh, self-titled studio album on October 22 via Spinefarm/Search & Destroy. Frontman Matt Tuck began writing the album in September 2019 before the coronavirus pandemic brought things screeching to a halt in early 2020. But in June 2020, Tuck and longtime producer Carl Bown, who co-produced the band's 2015 album, "Venom", and produced and mixed 2018's "Gravity", picked up the pace again. Together, they hunkered down at Treehouse Studio in Chesterfield, where the remainder of the album was written.

Speaking to Brazil's Wikimetal about the "Bullet For My Valentine" songwriting process, guitarist Michael "Padge" Paget said: "We started writing in 2018, I think. We had a bunch of songs; we had about 15 ideas demoed up. We went back on tour, and then finished touring in 2019. And then the pandemic hit in March '20. So, we just figured, 'Let's keep writing somehow.' Because in the U.K., there's four different states — what do you call it? — four different countries, but we're all called the U.K. So we have borders. And that was tricky because certain countries were locking down, others were open, you couldn't cross the border. It was really difficult, but, fortunately, I've got a studio at my place. Matt could go to the studio in England or up in Carl's place. Jase [drummer Jason Bowld] can write; he's got a setup in his garage. [Bassist] Jamie's [Mathias] got a little setup in his house as well. So we found a way around it. And, fortunately, it was really good because it gave us more time to write, gave us more focus on what we wanted to write. When the rules eased slightly, Matt came down to my place for a few weeks to write down here. So, the pandemic benefited us, it really benefited us in such a positive way that — let's have another one. [Laughs] Let's have another pandemic in two years. We'll write another record."

"Gravity" saw BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE's catalog surpass one billion streams in the U.S. That accomplishment solidified BULLET's hard-earned status as one of the most elite bands in the hard rock scene.

On the last cycle, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE played its biggest shows to date, including a U.K. arena tour and a massive show at London's Alexandra Palace.

Paget previously stated about "Bullet For My Valentine": "I think it's the most ferocious side of BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE that I've ever known. It's time for us to put out a really angry, heavy, aggressive record. I just can't wait to grimace on stage."

"I wanted to come out guns blazing, fucking middle fingers flying, and just go for the throat," agreed Tuck. "I think this is a far more aggressive, intense part of BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE. It's always been there. I've just never opened the floodgates on it. I want to take people's heads off in a metaphorical way."

He added: "This is the beginning of BULLET 2.0. It signifies where we are right now. The music is fresh, it's aggressive, it's more visceral and passionate than it's ever been."