Jinjer vocalist Tatiana Shmayluk has named her favourite song on upcoming album Duél.
The frontwoman gives her pick exclusively in the new issue of Metal Hammer, ahead of the record coming out on February 7 via Napalm.
When asked by Hammer writer Stephen Hill if there’s a song on Duél that the Ukrainian band are “particularly proud of”, Shmayluk points to the single Green Serpent, which came out in November.
“[It’s] very special to us,” she explains. “I’ve been sober for a few years now, so it’s kind of about that.”
Bassist Eugene Abdukhanov also piles praise onto that track. “I actually remember when I heard Tatiana sing that song for the first time,” he adds. “I had tears streaming down my face. I have also been sober for five years now, so it just connected with me. I honestly think it is the best song Jinjer have ever written.”
Duél will be Jinjer’s first studio album in four years, following the release of Wallflowers in 2021. In a 2022 interview, Shmayluk said that the Russian invasion of Ukraine delayed the writing of new material.
“It’s easy for me to write about war when it’s not happening around me,” she told Bloodstock TV. “But when it started, I was absolutely devastated and paralysed creatively. I cannot write about that. I still cannot process that.
“I think it’s such a great trauma that it takes years and years to process, not only for me but mostly for the citizens of Ukraine, for the victims. I really think that it’s not my time to write another war song right now.”
As late as April 2024, the singer admitted to Metal Hammer that she was still yet to write lyrics. “I confess that I haven’t started writing anything yet,” she said. “I think I will suffer this year with writing lyrics. There’s 99 problems that I have to solve right now – taxes, personal stuff. I honestly can’t find the inspiration to write.”
Nonetheless, Jinjer announced Duél in October and have thus far released four singles from it: Rogue, Someone’s Daughter, Kafka and Green Serpent.
As well as the interview with Jinjer, the new Metal Hammer contains conversations with both Trivium and Bullet For My Valentine as the bands gear up for a co-headline world tour. It also details the 50 albums you need to hear in 2025. Order your copy online now and get it delivered directly to your door.
