Why GODSMACK Scrapped Plan To Release Two New Albums

In a new interview with Las Vegas's KOMP 92.3 radio station, Sully Erna was asked what happened to GODSMACK's previously announced plan to release "a full-length rock record" as well as "a really cool vibey acoustic album or EP." Erna responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, a couple of years back, we were a little bit more ambitious maybe [laughs], talking about doing two records. And then the reality sinks in when you're doing the record and you realize that these things take a long time to do, to get 'em right. And what we wanted to focus on was quality and not quantity. And that's what we did."

As for GODSMACK's upcoming album, "Lighting Up The Sky", which will feature the recently released single "Surrender", Erna said: "This record has really been an incredible journey, writing it and recording it. And we really do feel it could be the last piece of music because we're at a place in our lives now where we've done a lot in music. But music, although it's something we've always wanted to do in our lives, it's not everything we've wanted to do in our lives. It's not that we're saying we're breaking up and this is some farewell tour or whatever; we're just saying that this could be the last full body of music that you hear from us. But we will always come back and do shows, and maybe just try to relax the schedule a little bit more, since we're coming up now on 25, 26 years, whatever it is… And we're really grateful for it— we have no regrets — but there's other things that some of us wanna be doing, and we just wanna be able to have the time to do it. So that's why we're saying we're not quitting, but we're just creating a little bit more of a relaxed schedule, and our job is to just give you the best music we can give you.

"I would rather go out on a high note than just keep kind of grinding through," Sully explained. "But you can never say never. I'm just saying that I would expect it, and I'm pretty sure this could be the last of the new music. But again, this isn't the end; it's just the beginning of a new chapter. We're just gonna do it a little bit differently now. We'll be out there enjoying ourselves playing live shows, 'cause that's what we love to do and that's really the reward for all that we do in the studio and putting out new music. It's all about getting on the road and playing it live. So now we have an opportunity to just do the greatest-hits shows and really have a great time with the fans from this point forward."

On September 28, GODSMACK released "Surrender" via BMG. The track marks the first release from the band in four years, following their globally acclaimed and gold-certified 2018 album "When Legends Rise", which earned the Erna-fronted outfit a No. 1 spot across U.S. Hard Rock, Rock, and Alternative album charts.

According to Erna, the second single from "Lighting Up The Sky" will arrive in February and will coincide with the release of the full-length album.

In September 2021, GODSMACK's latest album, "When Legends Rise", was certified gold on by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) for sales in excess of half a million copies. In addition, two more of the LP's singles (the title track and "Under Your Scars") were also officially certified gold by the RIAA. The album's first single "Bulletproof" earned a platinum digital single award in September 2020 and was previously certified gold in the U.S.

"When Legends Rise" was the seventh studio album from GODSMACK. Produced by Erik Ron and Erna, it was the band's first release in four years and was recorded at their now-former headquarters (GSHQ) in Derry, New Hampshire. The album went on to garner a multitude of career milestones for the group: four No. 1 rock tracks (an accomplishment that makes GODSMACK one of only four rock acts to achieve this),and a record 11 No. 1 singles in the band's career with the album's fourth single, "Unforgettable". "When Legends Rise" entered the Billboard Top 200 album chart in the top ten (No. 8),with four No. 1 placements on other charts: Top Rock Albums, Top Hard Music Albums, Top Independent Albums and Top Alternative Albums.