Review Summary: Black Veil Brides improve on their first album and release a good example of what a rock album should be.
Black Veil Brides, a band that causes two types of response upon their name been uttered. You either belong to category one, the larger of the two, where the name invokes a hatred so strong that you would quite happily beat the band to death with blunt items rather than listen to their music. Then there is category two, where you love the band and defend them with righteous fervour whenever they are criticised. It is fair to say that the band hailing from Hollywood have caused a big stir. Their second album
Set The World on Fire caused a big reaction when it was first released, a big change from their debut
We Stitch These Wounds it sees the band go into a more mainstream hard rock direction.
First of, what has improved with the band. The obvious place to start is with the vocals, singer Andy Biersack has improved greatly for this album, his voice is no longer the more monotonous tone that was heard on the debut, and the tone is better than on that or the earlier EP records. For this album he has, for the most part abandoned the screams that littered the first album, them only appearing occasionally on this one, most noticeably on
Saviour and
Youth and Whisky. His voice sounds more mature on this album, probably the result of the vocal training that he received for this album, it also sounds more gruff. The lyrics have improved as well, they make more sense and are more sensible, whilst the topic remains the same, outcasts and standing up for yourself, they are more diverse and thought out. An example of this being;
We are the in between
Cast down as sons of war
Struck to the earth like lightning
On this world we're torn
We won't cause the pain
Of living out their law
Take joy in who you are
We know our wings are flawed
as opposed to:
Never give in,
Never back down,
Never give in,
Never back down,
When your life feels lost,
(Fight against all odds!)
Never give in,
(Never back down!).
Another positive, one that has carried through from the first album is the guitars, though there is a noticeable difference here from the first album, whilst in the first album the guitars had a fast moving harmonised tune to each song, now there is a more mainstream hard rock riffing present, though the harmony is still present often most noticeable in the solos as opposed to throughout the whole song, there are obviously exceptions,
Fallen Angels been an example. Jake Pitts and Jinxx are probably the most obviously talented members of the group and have some great solos through the album. The gang vocals provided by the guitarists and bass do add to the songs throughout and are a great addition to many songs, again
Fallen Angels is a good example of this. The drum work is another improvement, it provides a good rhythm for the songs and is quite diverse throughout, it has also improved in terms of technical proficiency, double bass pedalling and more complex beats been present throughout.
Now for the negatives. For a start the album artwork is frankly a very VERY poor example of photo-shopping, and is a little ridiculous. Next, the lyrics, whilst, as said before have improved, do still have moments when they are ridiculous, maybe a reflection of the age of the vocalist I don't know, but they aren't anything special. Another point is that sometimes the songs sound a little repetitive, some songs sounding a little less thought out than others, Youth and Whisky for example, sounds like it may of been a last minute job. Lastly, the screaming, where it is used it is better than the first albums examples. Whilst it is good that it is not used as much as the first album, it could of been used more. There are moments when you listen to some songs and wish there had been screaming present.
Overall, Black Veil Brides have released what they set out to release, a good hard rock album, and whilst the album is definitely not for everyone, and many people will listen to it and wish nought but long painful deaths for Andy and the rest, it is still a good album overall.
Recommended tracks:
New Religion
Fallen Angels
God Bless You
Rebel Love Song
Saviour
The Legacy
Ritual
