My new album titled Industrial Park will be coming out in 2026.
Featuring mixing and mastering by Ash Vestal (Youth Serum, ex-KFC Murder Chicks)
I’m still in the process of recording vocals. However the goal will be to
release it early or before midway through the year. It has taken me 2 years
to get to where I currently am with this project, and I’m looking forward to
sharing it with all of you. Ordinarily I don’t think it should’ve taken me
this long to record an album. But the reason it has is because I’m still
learning and experimenting as I go along. There were very specific sounds I
had in my head, or was inspired by, that I couldn’t bring to life without the
proper resources or skills. For example, I am very inspired by the Kawaii
R-50 III which was a defining drum sound in 80s Industrial and EBM. But
without a sample bank of those sounds, it was impossible for me to replicate
that at the time. I definitely think I wear my influences on my sleeve on
this album. It feels like a homage to the album I wish I could’ve made in my
teens or early 20s. But while I love the 80s Industrial bands, the last thing
in the world I want to sound like is retro or a throwback. I find myself
equally or even more inspired by the modern industrial, electronic, chaotic
independent artists you find in the dark corners of Bandcamp today. So my end
goal was to integrate all of those into something that is still very much Sam
Shadow.
As an artist, I felt the strong need to start over and make music in a way
that felt more authentic to my own vision. My past projects served more as a
teaching tool. Helping me understand how things like layering and basic
composition worked. Also in contrast, helping me rethink what ‘music’ could
sound like outside of traditional genres. However I don’t feel like that
music represents me at all anymore, so I ended up deleting my old albums. I
think my whole approach to how I view writing, producing, and instruments
has completely changed as well. All of my synths are software synths in my
DAW. I still use sampling sometimes, but my goal has been to do it more
subtly while blending it into my own arrangements. Also, I don’t really
care about playing guitar at my live shows anymore. I don’t consider myself
a rock or metal artist, although I’m definitely inspired by those genres and
still play guitar in my recordings. I feel like I’m more of a producer and
singer. Embracing the idea of backing tracks has felt really liberating as a
solo musician. It’s a way for me to showcase the work I have already put in
as a producer so I can put more focus towards singing. Pop music and hip hop
have always embraced this. Making a process more complicated does not always
mean the end result is better. So I feel like this is the most sensible
approach for solo musicians making heavier electronic music, instead of
creatively limiting ones self by the outdated and false concept of “real
music.” Sometimes the semantics behind how we record something isn’t what’s
important. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is if you
think it sounds good.
I might have another surprise announcement to share on Christmas, but I
don’t want to say too much just yet. So keep your eyes out for the next
update !
Posted December 18, 2025
