AUGUST BURNS RED debut 'Empire,' the lead track from new album Leveler

Genre giants AUGUST BURNS RED are gearing up to release one of the most anxiously awaited hard rock albums of 2011 - a colossal effort entitled Leveler - available in stores and online June 21st in both regular and deluxe editions.

Today, the band gives the public the first taste of Leveler by streaming the lead track 'Empire' on its Facebook page.

"'Empire' is a pretty intense song and we feel it starts the album out with a bang," explains guitarist/principle songwriter JB Brubaker. "My favorite part is the melodic section in the middle with the group singing. We've never done anything like that before and it makes the song special for me."

For those who think the s-word (singing) means the band has "mellowed" out, be warned: 'Empire' is a blistering track that sets the stage for an album that is unquestionably heavier than the band's lauded 2009 breakout Constellations. Similarly, detractors should be warned that the band isn't content with recycling past tricks.

"Putting out a fourth record is a little scary because we obviously have our sound figured out at this point, but we don't want to put out a record that just sounds like a redux of our previous albums," explains guitarist JB Brubaker. "Our tastes are always evolving as musicians and we've been motivated to progress as a band and push ABR in different directions, while maintaining the characteristics that made us the band we are in the first place."

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Tags:  August Burns Red    

Jason Fisher    May 17, 2011