The band began recording the drum tracks for the new album on September 9, 2014, and planned to release the complete recording by the spring of 2015. Michael Lepond stated they had ten songs written and that the album would contain either nine or all ten of them. He also stated all lyrics and instrumental tracks were composed and ready to be brought together, and that the album would be less heavy than "Iconoclast": "If I had to compare, I would say that it's a combination of "The Odyssey" and "Paradise Lost" — something in there. It has a lot of classic Symphony X elements in it, which I think a lot of our fans were missing for a few years. So I think our fans will really like this one. It really just focuses on solid songwriting."