At nine records in, you might think you have Five Finger Death Punch pegged, but think again! Despite forging a signature sound over the years, guitarist Zoltan Bathory says that things are anything but stale at this stage. In fact, he looks to another band Queen and the trajectory their career took when he views how he feels things will progress with his own band.

Speaking to Metal Hammer in their latest issue, the guitarist says of the upcoming Afterlife album, "This is the ninth record, and at this point everyone knows who we are and the sound. It's very difficult to achieve a signature sound, but when you have that, you have nothing to prove and it allows you to venture farther away. Take Queen: you can't categorize Queen, and that's the place you want to be, because you can do anything."

Further diving into his point, the guitarist offers, "For us, I think this is the record where that's really starting. For an artist, as much as you want to be free, there's all this expectation, and you set yourself up, like, 'I have all these hit songs so I have to keep repeating that.' That's why I mentioned Queen, because those guys didn't give a shit, they wrote whatever the hell they felt like writing. That's as honest as music can be."

Five Finger Death Punch's lineup also looks a little different, which could factor into an evolving sound. Constants Ivan Moody, Bathory and longtime bassist Chris Kael have been joined by guitarist Andy James and drummer Charlie Engen in recent years.

The band's Afterlife album, which has already yielded the title track, "IOU," "Welcome to the Circus" and "Times Like These," is almost upon us. Place your pre-orders now at this location ahead of the Aug. 19 release.

And look for Five Finger Death Punch back out on tour later this month when they join Megadeth, The Hu and Fire From the Gods on the road. Get your tickets here.

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