Courtesy Fantasy RecordsThe title of Seether‘s upcoming new album, Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum, is Latin for “If you want peace, prepare for war.” Before you listen, you should prepare for rock.
Speaking to ABC Audio, frontman Shaun Morgan explains that he wanted to boil down the band’s sound on the record to its four core elements: guitars, bass, drums and vocals.
“I’ve done albums in the past where we’ve had mountains of percussion and tons of strings,” Morgan recalls. “I guess we trimmed the fat on this one.”
Morgan sounds very aggressive both vocally and lyrically on Si Vis Pacem, which he says deals largely with what he sees as “decay of society and community,” something he feels stems from a growing over-reliance on technology and social media.
“It started for me when people would come to the shows and they would hold up their cellphones,” Morgan says. “They’re not watching the show, they’re watching the cellphone screen. So you’re removing yourself from the experience.”
“That’s just a minor example,” he adds. “Now, more and more social media has become this really toxic element flowing through our veins.”
Morgan feels that the title Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum reflects both the hard-rocking nature of the album and what’s going on in the world today.
“If 2020 had a chapter title, I think that that’s what it should be,” he says.
You may recognize the line Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum from the third John Wick movie, which is subtitled Parabellum, but Morgan says he came across it while researching potential titles, which led him to a site of Latin phrases.
“It wasn’t from the movie, but I would like to say yes, so we could hang out with Keanu,” he laughs.
Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum arrives this Friday.
By Josh Johnson
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