5X Platinum-certified alternative rock mainstays The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus have released “X’s For Eyes” the second single from their forthcoming studio album “X’s For Eyes” out on October 3rd, 2025, via Better Noise Music.
The guitars hit hard, the melody soars, and the rhythm jumps fast in this riveting song that extends a helping hand to someone who’s living close to the edge. With his signature wide-ranging voice, lead vocalist, guitarist, and founding member Ronnie Winter digs in deep with lyrics like: “Do you want to be right, or do you want to be happy?/Cause I’m scared you’re gonna die/Take control of your life/Wake up from this bad dream/You could end it all tonight”.
“X’s For Eyes” is the first full-length album from The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus – vocalist Ronnie Winter, his multi-instrumentalist brother Randy Winter, guitarist Josh Burke, bassist Joey Westwood, drummer John Espy, keyboardist Nadeem Salam and newest member K Enagonio on vocals – as part of a new partnership with Better Noise Music.
To write the title track, Winter reteamed with producer and songwriter Matt Squire (Panic! at the Disco, Metallica, Good Charlotte), who first worked with the band on “Slipping Through (No Kings)” that came out June 27th. The urgent and impassioned rallying cry – written by Winter and Squire – compellingly looks at the societal chaos gripping America right now.
“What’s really exciting is that we basically rebuilt the same team for ‘X’s for Eyes’ that we had when we made ‘Don’t You Fake It’”, says Winter. “A lot of the people who were behind the scenes back then – working on things like mixing, track sequencing, and artwork – have come back together, nearly 20 years later, to be part of this new album. It feels like a reunion in the best possible way, and if you were a fan of ‘Don’t You Fake It’ we think you’re going to really love this album”.
“X’s for Eyes truly has something for everyone”, he adds, “including what came to be known as ‘The Lost Songs’, songs from our original 2004 pre-signing demo that didn’t make it onto ‘Don’t You Fake It’. Fans have been asking for these for over 20 years and with the new album, they’re being commercially released for the first time ever. It felt like we were digging up something long buried, like raising a zombie from the dead”.
The video for “Slipping Through (No Kings)” directed by Steve Tramposch and Jamie Lewis, first introduced the concept of “X’s For Eyes”. In the clip, there is destruction everywhere in a world devoid of color. The main characters – “X boy” and “X girl” – watch as their friends and loved ones are snatched off the streets by masked men in menacing dark cars. The characters have X’s for eyes symbolizing their disillusionment, while others also have X’s for mouths, symbolizing that they’ve been quieted and have lost their voice. “X boy” and “X girl” are left to navigate the rubble and fend for themselves. An Alliance flag, the symbol of their rebellion (and the band’s fan community) is planted in the rubble at the end and the video turns from black and white to full color. The eyes of “X boy” and “X girl” return to full circles to emphasize their awakening and solidarity. These are the youth of the world planting their flag with open eyes after there’s nothing left.
“Slipping Through (No Kings)” marked the third new music offering from The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus since their “Emergency” EP in 2020. They previously released “Home Improvement” (which has logged over 363k YouTube views) at the time of last October’s announcement of their signing to premiere independent music label Better Noise Music.
Pre-order & pre-save “X’s For Eyes” here.
Formed in 2004 in Jacksonville, FL, the band has accrued Gold and multi-Platinum singles – including their massive 5x Platinum hit single “Face Down”, 2x Platinum “Your Guardian Angel” – and 2x Platinum-certified debut album, “Don’t You Fake It”, alongside numerous high-ranking radio chart positions and a robust digital history of over 1.5 billion career streams. Sometimes it’s hard to believe that The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus began their expedition into the hearts and minds of a generation 20 years ago. Their blazing 2006 single “Face Down” delivered both anthemic choruses and a strident message about domestic abuse, achieving both sales accolades and adoration from crowds all over the planet.
“It’s kind of surreal — I’ve been in a band professionally for 20 years now”, explains Ronnie Winter, “and all that time I wanted to work with Matt Squire but never got the chance. Back in 2005, when we were just starting to record our first album, he was already a major force in the emo scene. So to be collaborating with him now, all these years later, feels like coming full circle. I’m just really grateful we get to explore something new with him this far into our career, especially something I dreamed of doing from the very start”.
Weblinks:
www.theredjumpsuitapparatus.com
www.facebook.com/redjumpsuitapparatus
