Review Summary: Everyone's gone to the Rapture, but most of us didn't notice
Admittedly, I came into this album lukewarm, having only briefly heard Betraying the Martyrs’ previous effort The Resilient while absent-mindedly listening to albums during an extended Overwatch session with friends. I had a general expectation of what I was walking into with Rapture, and it met that expectation completely, which is to sum up this album succinctly: Rapture meets expectations, nothing above, nothing below.
Rapture is a safe, comfortable affair, settling into a standard formula of slow to mid-tempo, rhythmic metalcore combined with orchestral sensibilities. Most of the tracks follow a similar song structure which means the songs flow into each other well enough, although that does lead to some of them melting together in certain sections of the album. Rapture maintains a constant, bouncing cadence with a consistent pacing, never slowing down for too long, but never really speeding up either.
I had no real qualms with the production, as it was listenable both in headphones and in my car, although in certain sections, I did feel like the strings and synths could have been a bit stronger. This led to some songs feeling decidedly restrained when they could have revelled in grandeur (the catchy but flat “Down” being a perfect example).
Rapture leaves its strongest moments until last, with the opening and middle sections being passable but somewhat weak in comparison. The album didn’t really pick up until the heavier hitting tune, “The Swarm,” and stashed away more emotive and impactful songs like, “Monster,” and “Incarcerated,” in the back. The album ends solidly as well with the title track, leaving me to wonder why some of these songs were not placed a bit further forward as attention grabbers.
The main strength and weakness of Rapture as a whole is that it was incredibly easy to listen to, meaning it is accessible for most listeners, and many listeners will probably enjoy something about it, but it does nothing to wrest attention away from other, more engaging things. My first listen was a complete write-off; three quarters of the way through I realised I had drifted off into thinking about what I was going to have for dinner tonight and the music had slipped into the background as casually as a middle-aged Indian man sliding into a teenage white girl’s direct messages. I will undoubtedly listen to Rapture again, but probably not until the next ill-advised Overwatch session, where it will sit contentedly in the background, without much fuss or fanfare.
