New SHADOWS FALL Album Is 'Done', Says JONATHAN DONAIS

In a new interview with Mike "Radioactive MikeZ" Zara, host of the 96.7 KCAL-FM program "Wired In The Empire", SHADOWS FALL guitarist Jonathan Donais spoke about the status of the recording sessions for the remainder of the songs for the long-awaited follow-up to the band's 2012 album "Fire From The Sky", tentatively due in 2027. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "[The new album is] done, but [we've] just gotta go through everything and figure out the right times and people's schedules and stuff [before we release it]."

Regarding the musical direction of the new SHADOWS FALL material, Donais said: "When I was writing it, I tried to only get influenced by the bands that I was listening to when I started SHADOWS FALL. So I listened to a lot of thrash, a lot of '90s death metal, and I was just trying to get that vibe again when I was 17. Like, why did I wanna start SHADOWS FALL? What was making me wanna do it? And then I'm listening with kind of new ears, 'cause that was a million years ago. So I was listening to these bands with a new perspective. I was, like, 'Wow, shit, this stuff's still really cool.' And then I was just excited, because we hadn't done anything in a while, so it was exciting again."

Jonathan went on to say that there were no plans for SHADOWS FALL to work on new music before the band reunited for a high-profile concert on December 18, 2021 at The Palladium in Worcester, Massachusetts. This performance marked SHADOWS FALL's first live show in six years following the group's 2015 hiatus.

"I didn't think we were gonna do any new music," Donais explained. "I figured we were gonna get together for our reunion show, and that'd be it. Maybe down the line we'd do another show. But when we started rehearsing for it — I play guitar all day. I don't have any kids. While my wife's at work, I sit around and play guitar, so I have millions of riffs. So while we're rehearsing the old stuff, I just start throwing riffs out there, and of course the guys jump in and start jamming. Like, 'What's that?' I'm, like, 'Ah, something new.' And then they're, like, 'Oh, that's cool.' And then before you know it, we're just writing songs."

SHADOWS FALL recently released its first two singles in more than 12 years — "Souls Devoured", which came out in May 2025, and "In The Grey", which was made available in December 2024 — via SHADOWS FALL's new record label home, MNRK Heavy.

On July 18, 2025, prior to SHADOWS FALL's performance at the the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Massachusetts as the support act for LAMB OF GOD, SHADOWS FALL members Brian Fair (vocals),Jonathan Donais (guitar),Matt Bachand (guitar),Paul Romanko (bass) and Bittner received an official proclamation from Springfield mayor Domenic J. Sarno declaring Friday, July 18, 2025 "Shadows Fall Day".

SHADOWS FALL rose up as a prominent member of the bustling Massachusetts metal and hardcore scene that also produced such bands as KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, ALL THAT REMAINS and UNEARTH. Donais and Bachand got together nearly three decades ago and had the original lineup complete within a year. These members were vocalist Philip Labonte, now with ALL THAT REMAINS, Romanko and drummer David Germain. In 1997, the band released its first full-length album, "Somber Eyes To The Sky", on Bachand's own Lifeless Records. This, however, would be the only album the band would record with Labonte. Philip was replaced by Brian in 1998. Bittner joined SHADOWS FALL prior to the release of 2002's "The Art Of Balance" LP.

SHADOWS FALL's breakthrough happened when it landed a slot on Ozzfest's second stage in 2003. As a result of the band's enlarged fanbase, their next effort, "The War Within", released in 2004, entered the Billboard 200 chart at No. 20 and went on to sell over 300,000 copies.

SHADOWS FALL released a statement in August 2014 in which the bandmembers explained that financial difficulties made it virtually impossible for the group to continue as a full-time concern.

In August 2015, SHADOWS FALL played a few reunion shows on the U.S. East Coast, one year after completing what was being billed at the time as the band's "final" European tour.

SHADOWS FALL's last full-length album, "Fire From The Sky", was released in May 2012 via Razor & Tie. The CD sold around 10,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 38 on The Billboard 200 chart.

Photo credit: Jeremy Saffer