CYHRA Drummer Says Next Studio Album Will Be More 'Riff- And Guitar-Oriented' Than 'Letters To Myself'


Finland's Tuonela magazine recently conducted an interview with CYHRA vocalist Jake E (ex-AMARANTHE), guitarist Euge Valovirta (ex-SHINING), and drummer Alex Landenburg (LUCA TURILLI'S RHAPSODY). You can watch the entire chat below. A few excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On the band's songwriting process for their next studio album:

Jake: "It started off that me and Jesper [Strömblad, guitar; ex-IN FLAMES] started to sit down and make the foundations of songs. Then Euge came in and had tons of ideas and then we sent it over to Alex. We threw stuff back and forth, so this was a complete band effort this time. Everyone was involved both in musical writing and in lyric writing."

Alex: "It was very organic. A lot happened in the studio. This time, the demos were rougher and less detailed than on the first one. The first one, Jake and Jesper had worked out a couple of songs too detailed then you don't have much space anymore to do things. You're just used to what it sounds like. You're more or less trying to do it the same way in the studio. This time, it was very organic and a lot of collaboration in the studio. It was great."

Euge: "We wrote songs in the studio. It was really inspiring because we were all there at the same time because the first album was done. I write guitars in my own studio, but we were all there and living there together, so it was 24/7 together for the four weeks, so there was a lot inspiration."

Jake: "I don't get how we did it the last time. The first album, Alex recorded the drums in Gothenburg together with the guitars and then we switched studios for the bass to a complete other studio in Sweden. Then I flew to New York to do the vocals. Then Euge did his parts in Riga, then we mixed in Denmark. It was the biggest fucking puzzle last time. This time, we decided that we're going to go to one place."

On how the band's sound progressed on its forthcoming second album:

Jake: "We found our sound with the first album. We knew already what kind of music we wanted to play and how we wanted it to sound. Of course, two albums will sound differently, but not to the [extent] that they will be over here [holds hands wide apart]."

Alex: "We have a sound. It's clearly the same band. It changed and evolved, but I think it's mostly Euge having a bigger part in the writing and the playing of the album and having the mindset of having two guitars on the album. So, naturally, it's more riff-oriented, more guitar-oriented than the first one. That is probably the biggest difference."

On what fans can expect from CYHRA's next studio album:

Jake: "[It will have] a little bit more live-oriented songs. We figured out that not a lot of the songs, but some of the songs on the first album didn't end up being that 'party' — if we can call them a little bit party poopers live, because they're great to listen to in general, but when you have a live set, it's hard. Usually when you release one album, you just get a couple of shows, and then you release a couple of more albums and your career takes off. We were fortunate enough to have our career take off pretty fast, and then we have to play the whole album, all the songs, because we don't have any other songs. But now with the new album, there's some songs that are faster and harder."

Euge: "It's a bit more guitar-oriented, like riff-oriented. There's more of those twin-guitar harmonized melodies and riffing than on the first album, but there's still stuff that has nice orchestrated stuff, so it's an evolution from the first album."

Alex: "In many aspects. The drums are more diverse than the first album just because on the first record as a band you have to find your sound and test the waters and see how far you can take things, what fits the band and I think all of us got an idea about how the band sounds when we started touring more and playing more. Then you realize, 'Okay, this is something I can do in this band and it works.' Then, on the second record, you can go a little more for that. But, the most obvious thing is the more guitars. More is more."

CYHRA's sophomore album is tentatively due in early 2019 via Spinefarm Records.

The band made its live debut in October 2017 at Nosturi in Helsinki, Finland.

This past spring, CYHRA completed a successful North American tour opening for SABATON and KREATOR.

