After making fans wait four years between their 1995 debut, "Short Bus," and their next offering, 1999's "Title Of Record," the men of Filter are vowing that their next studio effort is right around the corner.

[article id="1444064"]"The new album is on its way. We're working very hard on it,"[/article] Filter frontman Richard Patrick told MTV News this week. In Patrick's estimation, the band's studio work has already yielded [article id="1444064"]"two almost completed songs, three works in progress, and many ideas coming weekly."[/article]

As the new album begins to take shape, Patrick and company are building songs that may provide a bit of a jolt to fans of the band's recent lilting radio hit, "Take A Picture.

[article id="1444064"]"It's a hard record,"[/article] Patrick warned. [article id="1444064"]"I think that's what made me shave my head. I was like, 'Damn, this stuff's hard, man. Grrr, give

me the razor.' It's beautiful so far."[/article]

[article id="1444064"]"We're upping the ante,"[/article] Patrick's Filter cohort Geno Lenardo added. [article id="1444064"]"We're going for a much harder rock approach than anything we've done in our past." [RealVideo][/article]

Driving that move is Filter's recording MO, which finds the bandmates actually playing together instead of patching songs together with the ample use of high-tech wizardry.

I wanted to make the schedule so that there's more band time and less time farting around on a drum machine," Patrick explained. "I just said, 'Listen, let's turn our amps up, let's jam.' We didn't really jam on 'Title Of Record,' we just handed each other discs of songs.

I'm very confident in what we're doing," Patrick concluded.

The band hopes to complete work on the album by March and have it in stores by June.