By late 2023, From Ashes to New was at a creative crossroads. The group wrapped up demos for 16 songs for what was to be its fifth studio album. However, instead of sprinting towards the finish line and completing the record, the band decided to scrap those demo sessions.
“For a year, it was just like, ‘This is terrible,’” From Ashes to New frontman Matt Brandyberry says. “And then we threw it all in the trash.”
The process went against everything From Ashes to New did before. Usually, they’d have a set number of songs they’d go into the studio with, record those songs, and maybe have one or two leftover. Scrapping a session and mainly starting anew (they kept two songs) was liberating.
For years, From Ashes to New has captured the hearts and minds of music listeners worldwide. The band’s streaming figures are in the billions, they have successfully sold out tours, and they have performed alongside some of the biggest names in rock. Yet even so, something wasn’t working, and it forced them to dig deep creatively.
Rather than being compared to others, From Ashes to New collectively wanted to forge its own path, creating a sound distinctly its own.
As Brandyberry says, it was time for the Pennsylvania natives to make music that would stretch beyond their comfortable radio rock appeal. The band’s previous album, 2023’s Blackout, was a step in getting there and one that the band is proud of. However, this time around, From Ashes to New has loftier expectations and goals.
“I wanted to take what we are good at and push it even further,” Brandyberry says. “That was the process for this whole record.”
When From Ashes to New scrapped those sessions, the band collectively knew they had to make something that remained true to their traditional sound, yet broadened the tent to capture the ears and focus of a fresh audience. In this case, it means furthering the sound into alt-metal.
“If we can sit back and we can go, ‘That's pretty fucking cool,’ or if we can sit back and go ‘Oh I don’t know about that,’ it would be successful,” Brandyberry says of the band’s process. At the time, it felt daunting, but in the end, it worked out.
Once From Ashes to New had its Eureka moment, the group sat down and had the most successful sessions of its career. Tearing through a five-week tracking process, the newly armed confidence is clear throughout the songs that will encompass its next album, titled Reflections. Making an album unlike any they’ve done before helped keep their perspective fresh.
Thematically, Reflections explores two distinct themes: heaven and hell, while taking a deep look inside oneself. The album revolves around the idea of falling from grace and trying to reach a place in life that feels like you've made it, only to be dragged right back down to a purgatory where that state is the present.
This is reflected in “Drag Me,” a rollicking track that features a chorus unlike anything the band has done before. The lyrics focus on what happens when you give in to all your negative thoughts. The pulsating, industrial-driven beat of “New Disease” sees the band at its most urgent, with every word and note keeping listeners on edge.
It continues throughout Reflections, in particular on songs like the deeply personal “Forever,” its companion track, the emotionally intense “Die for You,” a song about feeling like you've done everything you can for someone, and it's still not good enough, and ends in betrayal. and the Brandyberry-charged “Villains.” The songs see From Ashes to New at its creative pinnacle. Infectious melodies, intense instrumental breakdowns that create a cinematic element unlike any of the band’s previous work.
“Forever,” in particular, is a revelation. One of the last songs written and recorded during these sessions, “Forever” explores themes of regret and longing.
“You almost betrayed this person, or you took this person for granted and never had the opportunity to apologize for your actions,” Brandberry says of the universally relatable, heart-wrenching song. “The idea of ‘Forever’ is even though that you and that person might be apart, or you and that person may never end up together, or whatever the scenario is, is that for lifetimes, it'll always feel that, is it forever, or is it just this moment?”
On “Villain,” rather than singing from the perspective of the person who knows their partner is so bad for them that it's toxic, but they still stick around, Brandyberry flips the perspective. Here, he takes the other person's viewpoint. “What if we wrote a song from the other perspective of the bad person saying, ‘I am so terrible for you, but you fucking love me, you know, and I like that that,’” he explains. “We always see it from the person who's talking about how bad the person is. Well, why don't we write the song about it from the bad person's perspective?”
On Reflections, From Ashes to New made a conscious effort to craft songs that had cool topics, cool titles, and things that mean something to them. They wanted their audience to understand what they were doing.
“One of the things that we learned in the past is that if we had an idea that was on the nose, we would try to color it differently to make it seem a little bit more heady,” Brandyberry says. “We did that and failed. I think it's better to let people know we're right there with them and feel the same way. Just because we have a cool job doesn't mean that life isn't hard.”
Following a successful stint returning to past glories at the Warped Tour in 2025, From Ashes to New is ready to unleash Reflections to the world. With a heavy batch of tour dates with Black Veil Brides and another with Shinedown slated upon and after the April release, From Ashes to New will be busy not just introducing a new body of work, but a new sense of being.
