SHINEDOWN Is 'Probably 85 Percent Done' With Eighth Studio Album

SHINEDOWN singer Brent Smith spoke to Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada rock radio station 104.9 The Wolf about the band's recently released two singles, "Three Six Five" and "Dance, Kid, Dance", which were made available on January 24 via Atlantic Records. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We're working on the eighth studio record right now, but we wanted to release these two songs, 'Three Six Five' and 'Dance, Kid, Dance' kind of to give everybody a bit of an idea of what the record was gonna feel like. The last two records we've done have been conceptual pieces, so we wanted to make sure that this record — there's definitely a lot of experimentation on this new record, but there's a lot of different styles and what have you. So when we were putting the tour together and kind of figuring out how we were gonna do the timeline, 'cause we haven't announced the album just yet — we're probably 85 percent done with it."

Referencing SHINEDOWN's upcoming touring activity in support of the new LP, Brent said: "Yeah, the U.S. side of what we're doing is we wanted to get these shows kind of put on sale and get out as we move into kind of the summer because we're working on the Canada announce for touring as we speak. So that's in the works at the moment, but also just internationally outside of North America, we're trying to figure out exactly what's gonna happen for this year. But the goal next year in 2026, I can be honest with you, the idea is that we wanna play all seven continents next year. So we're kind of a few years ahead right now with how we wanna do certain things."

Regarding the lyrical inspiration for "Three Six Five", Smith said: "'Three Six Five' kind of has two different heartbeats in a lot of ways. I think the point of what 'Three Six Five' is representing is that time is precious, but it's not promised. And last year, in our band, on a personal level, we lost some family members last year that it was unexpected and it was deeply emotional for all of us. And that song was really born out of the sense of loss that we had during that time. I mean, I'll be very honest with you about it — Eric [Bass], our bass player, and also the producer, engineer and the mixer of the last two SHINEDOWN records, the producer, engineer and the mixer of the current one that's getting ready to be released, he lost his dad suddenly last year, and then he lost his father and he lost his aunt a couple of months later after that. His wife Kelly, she lost her sister. I lost my granny last year, towards the back half of the year. But in a lot of ways, I think that 'Three Six Five' was born from… You grow up with that impression that when a family member, especially a grandmother or a mother or a father, the patriarchs, if you will, when they pass away that they're gone, and that's not the case. They may be physically gone, but everything that they taught you and everything that they gave you and the time that they spent with you and how you pay it forward and who you are as an individual, you carry them with you. So they're never really gone; they're everywhere. But it is a song about that reflection of just saying, 'Man, I wish I had one more day with this person or even if I just had one more hour just to tell them what they meant to you and how much they mean to you. But you know what? You'll see 'em again. But while you're here, that song is such a deep meaning. And it doesn't even have to be somebody that you've necessarily lost. It could be somebody that you kind of fall out of touch with and what have you, but what they taught you, you keep that in your spirit every single day. And the other side about the dynamic of time is precious and it's not promised is it's a roll of the dice. And if you've been second-guessing what you want for your life or who you are or what you think you can and will be and what you can accomplish, don't have the mindset that you're not capable of going after what you really want for your life. Whatever your dreams may be, and don't focus so much on the plan B. Whatever your A plan is, go after that. It can change at any given moment. And that's the point in the song where it says a lot can happen in a year. So, quit wasting time and go after it."

As for "Dance, Kid, Dance", Brent said: "'Dance, Kid, Dance', man, we literally just wanted to write a song that you could dance to. It's a little bit more in depth from that. But it's a social commentary song about all of the things that are going on. It's a song sung from a lot of different points of views. But at the end of the day, it's met with this over… We wanted it to just be unabashed, we wanted it to be something that had an attitude, but just made you wanna move. So, that's why we chose to do the drops after the pre-chorus and then the chorus and then the solo section and all those different aspects of it. It was a four on the floor. We wanted it to be punk rock, but, again, we wanted it to have an attitude. It got the seal of approval from my son early on, which is always a good thing, 'cause he's 17 years old and he'll let me know if something's corny. So, once he gave us the approval, we were, like, 'All right, let's go.'"

This past January, Brent addressed the fact that "Three Six Five" and "Dance, Kid, Dance" are musically completely different from each other, telling Audacy Check In: "I think it definitely had a bit more tempo than maybe the last song that people were familiar with on maybe the more mainstream-leaning, pop-leaning-type songs. So we kind of bumped up the BPMs a little bit on that. And 'Dance, Kid, Dance', we just went to the wall with that."

He continued: "It's interesting. I had a friend of mine the other day say to me, 'Are you a rock band? Are you a metal band? Are you an alternative band? Are you a pop [band]? What are you?' And I'm, like, 'We're just SHINEDOWN.' We play in a big sandbox.

"We've always been a genre-bending band because we're inspired by a lot of different styles and we're constantly evolving," Brent said. "So we felt like the right move, with the first new material that people would hear from us, that we gave them kind of two sides of us."

Elaborating on SHINEDOWN's need to explore a variety of different styles on each album, Brent said: "I think along the way, people started to get pigeonholed or they started using boxes or 'stay in your lane' or 'you're only this genre'.

"When you expand your palette sonically or what have you, you're just trying to reach as much of the audience as you can. Some days you feel like you wanna throw down and rock, some days you're a little bit more emotional. But that's the beauty of music, man. It constantly evolves. And the only thing that we've ever done in this band is anybody from anywhere at any time, we wanted them to be able to know that SHINEDOWN has a lot of peaks and valleys, kind of like a rollercoaster ride. But there's something for everyone."

In a new interview with Tabatha Velasquez Grammer of Tulsa, Oklahoma's 106.9 K-HITS, SHINEDOWN singer Brent Smith was asked how he and his bandmates manage to navigate putting the finishing touches on a new studio album while simultaneously preparing to embark on a massive U.S. tour. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I'll be honest with you, I'm ready for it. I don't really have an 'off' switch in a lot of ways. I have to remind myself that it is a band, and I mean that wholeheartedly. There's a lot of moving parts to this machine that we call SHINEDOWN.

"We started last year thinking about what does the next three years look like, the next five years look like. One of the goals is that we had a bit of an issue kind of locking in international touring over the last few years and we have a lot of fans that have been waiting on us from that aspect. So, next year our goal is to play all seven continents in 2026. Obviously, these first run of shows that we're doing in North America are a big deal for us."

Referencing the fact that SHINEDOWN recently released two new singles, "Three Six Five" and "Dance, Kid, Dance", which offer a glimpse into the band's forthcoming eighth studio LP, Brent said: "The album should be coming out roughly late July, early August. But we wanted to get these two songs out because that's kind of the launch pad, in a way, to what we're getting ready to do next, but you just kind of juggle it.

"One of the things is that in SHINEDOWN, we're very lucky that one of our brothers and our bandmembers is a gentleman by the name of Eric Bass…. But Eric, for people that may not know this about him, who's the bass player in the band, he's way more than a bass player. The last two records and this record that we're working on right now, he's been the sole engineer, mixer and producer of those records. So having a bandmember that is really a savant in a lot of ways, we're very lucky in that way. So we can kind of articulate and carve out the schedule the way we need it to be done. But we're able to do a lot of things in-house. And we have to kind of circle the dates, and you've got deadlines when you've gotta meet things and all that, but we just navigate it to the best of our ability."

Last month "Dance, Kid, Dance" reached the No. 1 slot at Active Rock radio. The song is SHINEDOWN's 20th No. 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart and their 22nd song to reach No. 1 on Mediabase's Active Rock chart. When the song entered the Top 5 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, SHINEDOWN tied with the FOO FIGHTERS for the artist with the most top ten songs in the chart's history at 32 total songs.

Recently, SHINEDOWN announced it has added the historic Kia Forum in Los Angeles to the band's already massive headline tour. The "Dance, Kid, Dance" tour kicks off on April 25, and the 36-date run is one of the largest run of shows (and venues) the band has ever put on. It will be the first time the band has ever headlined some of the country's most legendary venues, including Madison Square Garden (July 20),Bridgestone Arena (May 10),Boston's TD Garden (July 19) and more. Joining them on the tour are BEARTOOTH and BUSH (on select dates) and Morgan Wade for all shows.

The two new singles embody the many multifaceted talents of the SHINEDOWN: one part rock 'n' roll dynamism and one part incredible songwriting and passion. "Dance, Kid, Dance" hits hard right out of the gate with incredibly heavy guitars and a tempo that just doesn't quit. It's part social commentary and part "don't overthink it, let's just rock out and LET'S DANCE!" The song pushes boundaries and is a reminder of why SHINEDOWN holds the record for the most No. 1 songs at Active Rock radio of all time with "Dance, Kid, Dance".

"Three Six Five" is an example of the band's ability to tackle tough subjects through impeccable songwriting. Anyone who has ever experienced loss knows that every day we draw breath is an opportunity to live out loud — to live for those we have lost. At its core "Three Six Five" is a reminder to stop wasting time, focus on the moments we have right now, and treasure time with the ones you love the most. The song honors the people in our lives who aren't with us anymore. It reminds us to stop taking time for granted because it's not promised. Take chances, be bold, and don't sweat the small stuff, because as the song says: a lot can happen in a year.

Smith and Bass co-wrote "Three Six Five", and "Dance, Kid, Dance" was co-written by Smith, Bass and Dave Bassett. The songs were produced by Bass at his own Big Animal Studio in Charleston, South Carolina.

SHINEDOWN continues to demonstrate that they are one of the most forward-thinking powerhouses in music, forever pushing the boundaries of what it means to be a modern-day rock band. The tour and new music not only kick off a new era for SHINEDOWN but continue to celebrate the momentous acclaim the band received from their juggernaut song "A Symptom Of Being Human" off their seventh studio album "Planet Zero" (Atlantic Records). The song, which has reached over 100 million streams and counting, crossed over not only to Alternative but Top 40 radio and resonated with fans across the globe for the unifying message of its lyrics: that it is our human connections that matter the most.

Photo credit: Ebru Yildiz