After two years of work and nearly 10 months of building up excitement with fans, Papa Roach are celebrating the release of their eleventh studio album EGO TRIP today.

An album that sprouted almost by mistake in the throes of a global lockdown, its seeds were planted when the quartet entered a COVID-secure mansion in Temecula, California in the summer of 2020. What started as an escape and an exercise in keeping the creative juices flowing, in a world that had completely ground to a halt, quickly grew into something bigger. Purposeful, provocative, and just the right side of the line between confident and cocky (“I really hope [the album title] stops a few people in their tracks” cackles front man Jacoby Shaddix), EGO TRIP is Papa Roach -completed by guitarist Jerry Horton, bassist Tobin Esperance and drummer Tony Palermo – at its boldest and most brilliant.

“Throughout my life I’ve embarked on this constant journey to unravel this…thing,” begins Jacoby on the inspiration behind EGO TRIP. “This eternal paradigm; this struggle between the light and the dark. I see it alive in the world and it’s something I’m constantly trying to find balance in with regards to my own life. Who is at the wheel of my ego? Is it the high-frequency version of myself, the one who is more spiritual and self-aware, or is it the low-frequency version who can be selfish, self-centered and self-seeking? Throughout the process of making this record, we had some really profound conversations about life, who is at the helm of our egos and what it is that drives and motivates us.”