Protest the Hero Return with New Album Within: Rody Walker on Six-Year Gap and Independence

By Devious Dayna

Protest the Hero are back with Within on July 17, their first full-length album in six years. The reason for the wait, according to vocalist Rody Walker, is simpler than fans might expect.

“Slowly,” he laughed when asked how the record came together over that time.

The band did not fully realize how much time had passed since 2020’s Palimpsest until they began teasing new material.

“I hadn’t realized it had been quite so long. When we started releasing little teasers for the album, I started reading the comments and people were like, ‘Finally, where have you guys been?’ To me, Palimpsest felt like it was last year.”

There was no single reason behind the gap. No writer’s block or planned break, just life.

“We all have other businesses outside of this and most of us have children and things like that. Writing music just happens a little slower these days.”

That slower pace also shaped the direction of Within. Where Palimpsest leaned into historical and political themes, the new record turns inward.

“What is very different to me about this record is I am exclusively singing about myself. It feels nice. It’s cathartic. It’s unusual to be vulnerable, but I think it’s important for men to show vulnerability and express emotions other than anger.”

The album title reflects that shift in focus.

“The very concept of Within is about how the larger topics outside of us affect our inner world. And the inner world that is discussed is my world.”

The release also marks a major turning point for Protest the Hero, as their first fully independent global rollout. Creative freedom, Walker noted, comes with added responsibilities.

“We’re becoming content guys. Which is funny and ridiculous and also incredibly rewarding.”

Behind the scenes, that independence has meant stepping into roles far outside music.

“There are a lot of really boring things that we definitely did not get into music to do that we’re doing now. It really makes you appreciate the people that have been working with us and for us for a long time.”

More than two decades into their career, Walker sees Within as both a reset and a continuation.

“In some ways it feels like a reset, and in other ways a continuation. It is a new stage for sure, but definitely a continuation of what we started.”

His approach to vocals has also changed, with less emphasis on pushing extremes for their own sake.

“I used to think every record, ‘I need to sing higher.’ Everything has to serve the song now. If it does not serve the song, there are no egos with us. It is just get rid of it.”

That mindset carried into some of the album’s most personal material, including “Liberty Spike."

“It is an extremely vulnerable song for me. Just reliving the writing of it throughout the studio process was difficult.”

Touring and live performance have also changed since the band’s early years.

“I really miss when you just walked on stage as you were. You have your monitor in front of you and then there is a stick count for the song and it is go time.”

Modern shows now rely heavily on technology.

“I remember touring with TesseracT years ago and they were like, ‘Our computers are down, we cannot play without our computers,’ and I was like, ‘That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard in my life.’ Now we are on click tracks and all that stuff. The computers go down, we are screwed.”

Even so, Walker understands why bands rely on it.

Still, he prefers a level of imperfection on stage.

“We want to sound like five guys on stage playing songs. We do not want to sound like the record. The imperfection is what makes it unique.”

Throughout the conversation, Walker moved between humour and reflection. He described himself as a difficult collaborator at times and opened up about life at home, including coaching his son’s baseball team and, in his words, living the life of a “shitty little suburban dad.”

“I want to apologize for wearing sunglasses like a fucking rocker,” he laughed.

Fortunately, the music speaks louder than the sunglasses.

Protest the Hero’s Within arrives July 17.

Pre-order here