British four-piece rock band Collateral has issued ‘On The Long Road’ – The second single taken from their sophomore album Should’ve Known Better.
“I’ve never been in a position to write about such a personal painful subject,” said Collateral’s frontman and guitarist Angelo Tristan about the new single. “During the pandemic, my partner’s mum passed away with no real warning. It was a real dark time, and there was no way of escaping it, so I did the only thing I know how, and that was to try and get those feelings out. It’s about tragedy, but I’m starting to see an underlying hope within the song. After all, it’s a story that sooner or later, we all take part in.”
New single ‘On The Long Road’ is available on all streaming platforms here and you can check out the official video her at RAMzine.
Both single and forthcoming album were produced by Dan Weller (Those Damn Crows, Elles Bailey, Enter Shikari, Monster Truck, Kris Barras).
Since the band released their eponymous debut album (Top 5 UK Rock Album Chart) at the start of 2020 Collateral has spent little time standing still. Covid came only weeks after the debut album was released and forced the band to cancel their highly successful tour with Phil X (Bon Jovi) halfway through. This made the band hungry to keep the momentum. With innovative ways to produce top quality live streams, the band became special guests supporting the likes of Skid Row, H.E.A.T and Reckless Love.
The Kent-based rock and roll band featuring Tristan, lead guitarist Louis Malagodi, bass player Jack Bentley-Smith and drummer Ben Atkinson, independently released a remixed and remastered a version of their debut album retitled as Re-Wired in October 2022, with Jeff Scott Soto, Phil X, Kee Marcello, Rudy Sarzo, Danny Vaughn, and Joel Hoekstra putting guest appearances, with the record reaching #12 in the Official UK Rock Charts.
After the gruelling back-to-back tours with Skid Row, H.E.A.T and Reckless Love, the band ignited a spark and strengthened their already loyal fanbase leading them to win the opening slot at 2023s Stonedead Festival, leading the band to perform their biggest show.
Collateral’s “hotly tipped” sophomore album looks like it will take them to the next level. A lot of people don’t know what to expect from the new album, as the band have been tight-lipped about the new songs. However, word has it they’ve created a state-of-the-art rock album that will immerse listeners in their rock music universe, enabling fans to feel the blood, sweat and glory that went into the recording of every song.
“We felt that our debut album was lacking the production,” reflected Tristan. “For the sophomore album, I wanted to make sure that this time we left no room for error and so got one of the hottest producers in the music industry, Dan Weller, to help lift these songs into a new dimension. With Dan’s pioneering studio expertise, this album has massive production quality that enables you to get lost in each character-filled track. Dan really brought out the emotions we were trying to portray and has achieved it with his own unique style.
“We wanted this album to express where we were in our own lives since the release of our first. So much has happened since then, I mean the world shut down for what felt like a lifetime! And it was obvious that people were going to need some sort of optimism. I hope ‘Glass Sky’ is one of those songs that gives people the belief to find themselves again.
“Whereas, the feel-good ‘Just One Of Those Days’ is trying to find the good side of a bad day. Me being me, couldn’t help but to write a big power ballad, ‘The Long Road’, that I wrote from a very hard and deep place, in hope that it could maybe bring some peace and comfort to people who need it. I think there’s all aspects of life running though this album and what it means to us will remain in our hearts forever.
“Should’ve Known Better is an album that goes beyond specific music genres,” the singer said. “It’s almost like a soundtrack to a beating heart. It’s an album that will remain timeless in years to come.”
The full list of tracks on the album is as follows: ‘Glass Sky’, ‘Original Criminal’, ‘Just One Of Those Days’, ‘Teenage Dreams, ‘Elysium’, ‘On The Long Road’, ‘No Place For Love’, ’Game Changer’ and ‘Final Stand’.
Should’ve Known Better will be out on 24th May. It will be released by Big Shot Records on red vinyl, picture disc, CD and digitally with worldwide distribution by Cargo Records Direct. The album is available to pre-order from Collateral’s website and Cargo Records Direct.
