Killswitch Engage releases surprise new EP, “Atonement II B-Sides For Charity”

If you thought Killswitch Engage was done releasing new music for a while after 2019’s Atonement, think again. You’re probably just as surprised as we are to find out the metalcore vets have 6 new songs just released on Friday, and it’s all for a good cause. All proceeds from Atonement II B-Sides For Charity will be donated to COVID-19 charities. The release will include six songs from the recording sessions for Killswitch Engage’s 2019-released and Grammy-nominated album Atonement, out now via Metal Blade Records. It will be exclusively available on Bandcamp for a week as of today. Given how good some of these tracks are, it’s a little surprising they didn’t make the cut.

“These songs didn’t make the final cut for ‘Atonement’,” says Leach. “Choosing which songs make an album remains a tough process for me. While the songs that made the most sense appear on the album, I’m still attached to every song I write. So, when the idea came up to put these B-Sides out and donate funds to a charity, I was relieved at the idea and the band unanimously agreed to the cause. I am proud these songs get to see a release, and to help others in the process is a huge bonus.”

He continues, “These songs were written during a very difficult and uncertain time of my life. They are written with two perspectives: that of a struggling, angry, frustrated man having a crisis of faith, life, and love and a man finding the will and the strength to change perspective, try again, and to fight through it all. Although these songs may not have made the cut for the album, they are deeply meaningful songs that I believe in whole heartedly. Lyrically, they are some of my favorites that I have written. From the very personal ‘Hollow Convictions,’ ‘No Devotion,’ and ‘I Feel Alive Again,’ to the battle cry songs of ‘Killing of Leviathan,’ ‘Prophets of Treason,’ and ‘The Great Beyond,’ it tells the story of my journey and my view of the world around me.”