If you asked me a year ago how I felt about UK metalcore group Bring Me The Horizon, I would have shook my head and told you to never speak their name again. Apparently, they decided to actually take their music seriously with the release of their fourth album “Sempiternal” and I can elicit a small smile at their mentioning.
I kept myself from listening to the whole album when it was leaked and I’m mad that I did. Bring Me The Horizon has overhauled their sound and I can actually consider them as actual music now. The differences between “Suicide Season” to “Sempiternal” is insane. Vocalist Oli Sykes has developed a different screaming technique while improving his range while the rest of the band sounds more cohesive. They’re finally becoming serious.
In “Can You Feel My Heart,” the opening track on the album, electronic beats intertwine with subliminal and surprisingly tasteful guitar work, Sykes’ screaming, and gasp- some clean vocals. Bring Me The Horizon isn’t known to have any clean vocals so “Can You Feel My Heart” introduced the album perfectly. It’s one of my favorite tracks on “Sempiternal” because of how their sound has progressed and the easy to relate to lyrics.
Current singles “Sleepwalking” and “Shadow Moses” also show another dimension to Bring Me The Horizon. “Sleepwalking” continues to experiment with electronic elements and is a lighter track. I don’t even know if you can consider it metalcore to be honest. Regardless, the chorus is catchy. Same goes for “Shadow Moses” which has elicited several memes. Sykes’ lack of diction in the line “this is sempiternal” has led to pictures of him with one of those sand pit turtles everyone has as a kid. Yeah, corny but funny as hell. Jokes aside, “Shadow Moses” hits hard and I love blasting it in my room to annoy my roommates.
While the rest of the album is solid, it starts to sound the same but let’s face it- it’s still better than any of their past material. “And The Snakes Start To Sing” explore Sykes’ new clean vocals and is a metalcore ballad of sorts while “Antivist” is a track full of pure hate. Bring Me The Horizon definitely wanted to rearrange their image and prove they possess more talent than simple breakdowns and non-dimensional screams.
While not the greatest album of all time, Bring Me The Horizon has evolved and are stepping in the right direction. Take a listen for yourself on Spotify if you don’t want to commit to buying. “Sempiternal” was a pleasant surprise to say the least.
-Fe
