If you follow Filter, you’ve probably noticed something. Singer Richard Patrick isn’t one to stay in one lane. One day it’s rage. The next it’s reflection. And that’s exactly how he wants it.
Speaking with Remzi “Jam Man” Yates of Rocking With Jam Man, Patrick reflected on Filter’s evolution over the last three decades, describing the band as the purest expression of who he is.
“Filter is the most fun because it is just a complete and total reflection of how I feel on a daily basis,” he said. “If I wake up and I’m mad, I get to write a mad Filter song. If I’m happy, I can write something a little bit more beautiful, like the song ‘Surprise’, which came out of happiness to be a father.”
Calling Filter his “ultimate baby,” Patrick said he’s proud of how the band continues to evolve.
“It’s a gorgeous ever-changing thing, and I’m very proud of it. I think it’s evolving just properly.”
That evolution continues on Filter’s next album, tentatively titled The Antidote, the follow-up to 2023’s The Algorithm.
“It’s kind of similar to ‘The Algorithm’,” Patrick explained. “That’s why I called it ‘The Antidote’, because it’s kind of coming in with solutions. ‘The Algorithm’ was the problem, and ‘The Antidote’ is the solution.”
He described the album as both heavy and melodic, balancing industrial aggression with moments of beauty.
“It’s heavy sounding, but it’s also beautiful and light in certain areas. Just like all the other Filter records, there’s that moment of brightness on it sonically.”
Patrick hopes to release The Antidote early next year.
As for the album’s sound, he said it draws from every era of Filter.
“It’s pulling from every era of Filter, but the first song is pretty industrial,” he said of the track “Snakes In The Grass,” which the band has already been performing live. “It sounds like ‘Short Bus’ meets a sequencer.”
When it comes to writing new music, Patrick isn’t chasing trends or trying to predict what fans want.
“I make Filter records for one person. That person is me, and I hope that the fans love it as much as I do.”
He pointed to advice from legendary producer Rick Rubin, saying artists need to create music they genuinely love rather than trying to satisfy expectations.
“If I’m not blowing my own mind, then what am I doing it for?”
That doesn’t mean he’s unaware of the different corners of the Filter fanbase. Patrick knows some listeners gravitate toward the crushing intensity of “Hey Man Nice Shot,” while others prefer the vulnerability of “Take A Picture.”
“I would hope that the audience gets everything they want from a Filter record,” he said. “I love the gorgeous side. I love the political side. I love the heaviness of industrial.”
In fact, he intentionally tries to include a melodic, emotionally driven song on every album.
“A lot of my female audience members love ‘Take A Picture’, and so I try and include a ‘Take A Picture’ on every record.”
Patrick recently revealed that “Snakes In The Grass” was written entirely on his own, while other songs on The Antidotewere co-written with songwriter Sam Tinnesz, including “Hell In My Head” and “Panic Mode.”
“I do love collaboration,” Patrick said. “Any opportunity to just make some great art is kind of my M.O.”
Released in 2023, The Algorithm marked another chapter in a career that has seen Patrick evolve from Nine Inch Nails touring guitarist to the driving force behind one of alternative metal’s most enduring bands. More than 30 years after Short Bus and Title Of Record helped define an era, Patrick is still chasing the same thing he was chasing at the beginning: creating music that surprises him first.
Do you think The Antidote will deliver the perfect balance of Filter’s heaviness, melody and atmosphere? Time will tell!
