Alien Ant Farm return from a seriously long hiatus with a new track, "Let 'Em Know."

When the going gets tough, the tough get back in the studio. That's the lesson behind "Let 'Em Know," a brand-new song from Alien Ant Farm (yes, that Alien Ant Farm), who are finally back after a lengthy hiatus. "You gotta get invincible, problems are minuscule," frontman Dryden Mitchell sings. We couldn't agree more.

Listen to Alien Ant Farm's "Let 'Em Know," and read an interview with Tye Zamora after the jump.

"This song is not for the broken; this song is not for the hopeless. Only the strong survive," Mitchell continues in an aggressively rhythmic cadence over a grinding mid-tempo beat, layers of electronics noise, synth strings, and crunching guitars. Sounds like he's singing to the band itself. The California group are currently in the midst of a PledgeMusic drive to aid in the release of Always and Forever, their first studio album in seven years. Fans can pre-order the album and get all sorts of bonus rewards, like helping choose artwork, and -- NBD -- hanging out with the band.

We reached out to bassist Tye Zamora to ask why Alien Ant Farm decided to go the fan-funded route this time around, and what they've been up to since the days of covering Michael Jackson's "Smooth Criminal."

1.) Why the long hiatus?
Tye Zamora: The initial split-up of Alien Ant Farm was really caused by a stream of bad luck the band experienced. The bus wreck, the physical and mental damages of the bus wreck, and the label-selling, leaving us with no support for our follow-up record, put us all in a bad place in our personal lives and with each other. In 2008 we decided to put the past behind us and get back together to do a series of one-off shows. We felt so much love from the audience that we decided to record another album. Since then we have once again run into nothing but bad luck. Due to management changes and signing to a label that doesn't know how to pull triggers, we have been writing and recording a record for four years now with nothing but road blocks.

2.) What have you been up to in the interim?
Tye: All of us have been doing music in some shape or form. I went to Berklee College of Music to get a degree in Film Scoring, Terry Corso played with Powerman 5000, Mike Cosgrove produced records for various bands and artists, and Dryden worked on a couple different projects with members of POD, Papa Roach, and Chevelle.

3.) Has Alien Ant Farm's sound changed much in the meantime?
Tye: Yes and no. The band has always written songs in a variety of genres, and that's what we did while writing this album. But this time we explored the electronic disco thing that is so popular with kids today.

4.) Do you think "Let 'Em Know" fits in with your old material, or is it a big jump?
Tye: I think the new songs fit. The core of the songs, regardless of genre, sound very much like what Alien Ant Farm has done in the past. The use of synths and the four-on-the-floor kick drum pattern would be the only thing that would really stand out against the rest of our material.

5.) What made you decide to take the crowd fund approach?
Tye: We have no choice at this point. We waited two years since being signed to record and put this album out. We can't wait any longer. We want people to hear these songs, and the only way we can do that is by creating the financial backing to record an album that is up to Alien Ant Farm's standards.

+ Listen to Alien Ant Farm's "Let 'Em Know." (NSFW lyrics)

Photo credit: Alien Ant Farm