Invisible Enemy

Album: Phantom Anthem (2017)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The first single to be released from Phantom Anthem, "Invisible Enemy" was debuted on the July 26, 2017 episode of SiriusXM's Liquid Metal, one day after August Burns Red teased the album's release date.
  • The song was written by guitarist JB Brubaker. Asked by Billboard what makes the track special to him, vocalist Jake Luhrs replied:

    "Personally, I'm the guy in the band that just loves breakdowns, and I just love aggressive songs. Initially, when JB had written that song, I was like, 'Yeah dude, for sure. I'm gonna tear this one up. This is my kind of vibe.' There's a part in the middle of the song where I scream, and I think it's like 16 seconds long or something like that. And I call it the 'Wolverine scream,' because in the lyric, we're talking about being surrounded by pain. So I really wanted to convey that, you know? That this is really hurting and it's making me frustrated and it's painful. It's a painful scream.

    So I sat there in the studio, and I must have been in there for half an hour, just working on this one scream… I would think of my own pain, like things I had been going through or things that I had just experienced, to get me to a place of feeling that. But then I thought to myself, 'How do I envision this scream coming out of me?' And the thing that came to me was Wolverine. I don't know if you've ever seen any Wolverine movies or were a fan of him when you were younger, but when he gets angry, he kind of growls a little bit, and then his scream comes out. So I was trying to mimic that and really be pissed off, you know what I mean? So the combination of thinking about the way he would scream and how crazy scary the sound is, and my thoughts of pain and suffering in my life, I just kind of went for it and finally got a really, really good take."
  • Working with director Samuel Halleen, the song's stop-motion music video features the band being turned into miniature marionette versions of themselves, closely resembling the format employed by the Team America: World Police film. The clip includes a scene of one of August Burn Red's most iconic visuals for their 2009 song "Meddler."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Spooner Oldham

Spooner OldhamSongwriter Interviews

His keyboard work helped define the Muscle Shoals sound and make him an integral part of many Neil Young recordings. Spooner is also an accomplished songwriter, whose hits include "I'm Your Puppet" and "Cry Like A Baby."

Gavin Rossdale of Bush

Gavin Rossdale of BushSongwriter Interviews

On the "schizoid element" of his lyrics, and a famous line from "Everything Zen."

Kerry Livgren of Kansas

Kerry Livgren of KansasSongwriter Interviews

In this talk from the '80s, the Kansas frontman talks turning to God and writing "Dust In The Wind."

He Hit Me (And It Felt Like A Kiss): A History Of Abuse Pop

He Hit Me (And It Felt Like A Kiss): A History Of Abuse PopSong Writing

Songs that seem to glorify violence against women are often misinterpreted - but not always.

Petula Clark

Petula ClarkSongwriter Interviews

Petula talks about her hits "Downtown" and "Don't Sleep In The Subway," and explains her Michael Jackson connection.

Dr. John

Dr. JohnSongwriter Interviews

The good doctor shares some candid insights on recording with Phil Spector and The Black Keys.