RICHARD PATRICK Says New FILTER Album 'The Antidote' Will 'Hopefully' Come Out In Early 2027: 'I'm Really Proud Of It'

In a new interview with Remzi "Jam Man" Yates of Rocking With Jam Man, FILTER leader Richard Patrick talked about the evolution of the band's sound over the course of the last three decades. Patrick said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "FILTER is the most fun [of all my projects] because it is just a complete and total reflection of how I feel on a daily basis. And I wake up and I'm mad, I get to write a mad FILTER song, an angry FILTER song. If I'm happy, I can write something a little bit more beautiful, like the song 'Surprise', [which] came out of happiness to be a father. And that's why I love FILTER as my ultimate baby. It's my band. It's a child of mine. I'm proud of FILTER."

He continued: "FILTER is evolving in a way that it's a gorgeous ever-changing thing, and I'm very proud of it. I think it's evolving just properly. I think it's a good evolution."

Speaking about the musical direction of FILTER's upcoming follow-up to 2023's "The Algorithm" album, tentatively titled "The Antidote", Richard said: "It's kind of similar to 'The Algorithm'. That's why I called it 'The Antidote', because it's kind of coming in with solutions. And 'The Algorithm' was the problem, and 'The Antidote' is the solution. It's heavy sounding, but it's also beautiful and light in certain areas. Just like all the other FILTER records, there's that moment of brightness on it sonically. So, it's a gorgeous record. I'm really proud of it. It's gonna come out hopefully early next year."

Asked if he is "leaning more into the industrial side, the heavier side" or if "The Antidote" is "pulling from every era of FILTER', Richard said: "It's pulling from every era of FILTER, but the first song is pretty industrial. But it sounds like 'Short Bus' meets a sequencer, like a sampler. It's called 'Snakes In The Grass', and we play it live. I wonder if YouTube has it somewhere, this new song that we've been playing live for the past couple of weeks."

Regarding whether he thinks about longtime FILTER fans and what they expect when he is working on band's new music or if he tries to block that out completely, Patrick said: "I make FILTER records for one person. That person is me, and I hope that the fans love it as much as I do. And that's kind of... Even [legendary producer] Rick Rubin said, 'You can't make a record for an audience. You have to love it yourself.' If I'm not blowing my own mind, then what am I doing it for? If you don't blow your own minds and go, like, 'Wow, I can't believe I came up with this,' then you're not really sticking true to yourself. You're adhering to someone else's wants and desires. And artistically, you need to stick to yourself. You need to listen to yourself artistically, I think."

After Yates noted that some FILTER fans want the anger of 'Hey Man Nice Shot', while others "want the vulnerability of 'Take A Picture' and some want the more political-leaning stuff", Richard said: "I'm hoping that I do a lot of that [on 'The Antidote']. We just had a question where I said the most important person artistically is yourself. But I would hope that the audience gets everything they want from a FILTER record. I love the gorgeous side, too. I love the political side as well. I love the heaviness of industrial. So I'm aware that I have different fans that expect different sides to the band. And a lot of my female audience members love 'Take A Picture', and so I try and include a 'Take A Picture' on every record, like a beautiful, melodic, acoustic-type song. I could probably put together a great playlist of just, like, 'Take A Picture', 'Surprise', all those types of songs. I could probably make a great playlist where it's just the chill stuff of FILTER, and it would be cool. I'm proud of that. But at the same time, I could make a equally devastating playlist with 'Hey Man Nice Shot' and 'Snakes In The Grass' or 'Obliteration' or something like that, too. So it's kind of fun."

This past March, Richard told Matt Bingham of the Z93 radio station about the songwriting process for "The Antidote", particularly as it relates to his collaborations with outside songwriters and musicians: "It's weird. There's a song called 'Snakes In The Grass', which was entirely by myself. And then there's songs that I write with Sam Tinnesz. He's a good friend of mine; he's one of my best friends. And we wrote a song called 'Hell In My Head' as well as another one called 'Panic Mode'. I just love working with Sam. He's just a great lyricist. He's a great songwriter. And I do love collaboration. That's why I do guest vocal spots with other people. And any opportunity to just make some great art is kind of my M.O."

Last year, Richard wrote a song called "The Gunslingers Of Redemption" and composed all the music for writer-director Brian Skiba's western "Gunslingers".

Richard had previously composed soundtracks for several films, including "Dark Crimes" (2016) and "Last Rampage" (2017). He also contributed to the soundtrack for "The Last Rampage" with his brother, Robert Patrick. In addition, he has composed music for TV series like "Comedy Kitchen".

"The Algorithm" came out in August 2023 via Golden Robot Records.

Originally conceived in 2018 as a collaboration between Patrick and fellow FILTER founding member Brian Liesegang, "The Algorithm" was given a tentative title, "ReBus", as a nod to FILTER's 1995 debut, "Short Bus", before being changed to "They Got Us Right Where They Want Us, At Each Other's Throats" and later to "Murica" and then back to "They Got Us Right Where They Want Us, At Each Other's Throats" and eventually "The Algorithm".

Last August, FILTER released "The Algorithm: Ultra Edition" via the band's No Pulse Records. The collection featured re-imagined cuts from FILTER's latest album, "The Algorithm", with nine additional tracks.

Patrick, the creative mastermind behind FILTER, has spent over 30 years pushing the boundaries of musical expression. His tenure as NINE INCH NAILS' touring guitarist and involvement in the band's iconic music videos cemented his place in rock history. Patrick left NINE INCH NAILS in 1993 to form FILTER. Their explosive debut album, "Short Bus", achieved platinum status, propelled by the breakout single "Hey Man Nice Shot". The success continued with their follow-up release, "Title Of Record", also going platinum thanks to the crossover hit "Take A Picture". Despite struggles with addiction and a stint in rehab, Patrick's determination led to the formation of the supergroup ARMY OF ANYONE in 2006 alongside Dean and Robert DeLeo of STONE TEMPLE PILOTS and Ray Luzier of KORN, before refocusing on FILTER's output of later lauded albums, "Anthems For The Damned" (2008),"The Trouble With Angels" (2010),"The Sun Comes Out Tonight" (2013),"Crazy Eyes" (2016) and "The Algorithm" (2023).

2023 "The Algorithm" press photo credit: Chapman Baehler