The math core band is a year past their latest album, Ire Works, and is said to be releasing something new to the fans next year. On The Barrier caught up with guitarist, and only original member of the band, Ben Weinman in his home town to chat about the progress of the new album. "I'm kind of at the stage where I'm plugging away at the computer and making a lot of noise," he said. "I've got some cool ideas but the rest of the band is scattered around the country at the moment."

The new material is said to be very aggressive. Weinman said it was interesting that the music became more aggressive despite the band not being in "the same place as far as frustration and anger goes" in comparison to Ire Works. "We're interested in diving into more complexities with the new album," he said. Dillinger Escape Plan is notorious for the complexity of their music, but with the loss of their original drummer shortly before the pending recording of Ire Works, the band faced the prospect of not being able to complete or tour their album. "I don't think we've ever thought for a second that the band couldn't make it through something, but it was very difficult finding a new drummer," Weinman said. The band held auditions via their official website and eventually secured Gil Sharone (previous member of Stolen Babies) as a permanent addition.

Dillinger Escape Plan were delayed again when Weinman was injured shortly before they were scheduled to tour Ire Works. Since resuming their tour Weinman said the band had avoided any major interviews and so hadn't had much of a chance to talk about the successes of the album. Ire Works, however, is said to be Dillinger Escape Plan's most critically successful album to date. Weinman said he was really happy with the whole record but was particularly fond of the last track on the album Not The Ghost. "We wrote it on piano and took a totally new approach, it's got a whole other vibe to it," he said.

His reaction to the changing fan base with the release of each album was unequivocal: "every album is going to piss someone off". The band has admitted to channeling Tool and Radiohead for Ire Works, which is a far cry from what fans are used to. "We seem to gain as many fans as we lose with each album but we try to keep things exciting by making the album we want for the time," Weinman said. "We always try to have something new in each album."

Concert goers at Soundwave can expect nothing short of brutality when Dillinger Escape Plan takes to the stage in February. Infamous moments in the bands history have included vocalist Greg Puciato defecating on stage in England (resulting in their expulsion from the country) and running across the heads of the crowd - not to mention the band members launching themselves into the moshpit during their live sets. They have also been heavily involed a lawsuit in the US after * a girl had her neck broken by the violent antics of the band members. Weinman said the lawsuit was as bad as it had gotten for the band, but that they would never consider toning down the show. "We go into every performance with 100 percent energy," he said. "We enter into each show exactly as we did the last."

A concern for Weinman is his decreasing ability to heal after being injured on stage, which is said to be quite often. "It's not like some kind of gimmick, we just go out there and things happen, injuries and such," he said. "I didn't used to care, I'd break bones all the time and I'd be like ‘cool I've got a cast' but now it's like oh god if I'm on tour and I hurt myself there goes the whole thing. It's so much more stressful now but I will never go on that stage and not give 100 percent. If I can't do that then it's over." Despite impending injury Weinman admitted that he was more active on stage than he had ever been.

Dillinger Escape Plan will be dominating the Soundwave stage on March 2, 2009. They are playing alongside headliners Nine Inch Nails, Alice in Chains and Lamb of God along with a horde of other acts.

- Nikkita Dixon