Review Summary: Whilst not genre defining, opinion changing or even the best album of 2010, Black Veil Brides still release a decent debut album with many enjoyable moments
Black Veil Brides. The five musicians from Hollywood have left a mark on the music scene since their arrival, whether it’s one of adoration or one of abject hatred, everyone has heard of them. Arriving on the scene in 2008 with their EP
Sex And Hollywood they built up a cult following. Fast forward to 2010 and we have their debut album
We Stitch These Wounds and whilst not genre defining or an album that is going to change opinions on the band, it’s a pretty decent debut.
Instrumentally it’s a very well-crafted release, the twin guitars provided by Jake Pitts and Jinxx are intricate and technical, often forming harmonised licks that are very catchy, such as the opening to the title track and
Knives And Pens, the indisputable fan favourite from the album, the pair are undoubtedly talented, demonstrating skill on almost every song, most of the guitar work is quick, rarely slowing down which can get boring, though they do slow down sometimes, such as the verses of
Perfect Weapon or the acoustic track
The Morticians Daughter providing a nice change. The song
The Morticians Daughter in particular shows this, been a well-executed change of pace. When solos arrive, they are quick, flashy and full of shredding and harmonised sections, the pair show influence from old heavy metal bands such as Iron Maiden, or more recent examples such as Avenged Sevenfold. The drumming is also well done, though never been as flashy as the guitars, it’s solid and keeps the rhythm well, whilst obviously proficient at her art, she never really shows off, which is a shame, a short drum fill would have been nice. The bass is rarely heard, but mainly follows the guitars from what I can hear, which is well done as well.
Vocally this album is the weakest of the three albums they have so far released, the vocals provided by Andy Biersack on this album are limited, his range is not what it would be on later albums, though he does seem aware of the limitations himself and there isn't a point where he tries to go beyond his obviously small range, rather trying to highlight his higher points with choruses and changes in the songs, sticking to his lower points for the rest of the time, for a good example of this
Carolyn is a good song. To make up for this lack of range Andy utilises his screams, which are very well executed and are a regular appearance on this album, with only two tracks not featuring them;
The Morticians Daughter and
Carolyn, the screams are powerful and the lyrics are still decipherable which is something not always found in metalcore. The only thing is that sometimes they can be used too much in a song, or at the wrong point, but other times they are perfect, such as the opening to
Perfect Weapon which has a great opening scream, and
Knives And Pens which has perfectly placed screams to highlight the changes in the song. Lyrically Andy Biersack is decent at writing, and although they would on later albums improve, they are still decent on this album, an example been on the title track:
You kissed the lips of evil,
Two months is all the same.
I begged for the mans approval,
Pray to die in vain.
Sit down with thoughts alone now,
With blood these lyrics came.
Your words, they eat right through me,
Death could hear my shame.
Overall, though not genre changing or the next Back in Black, We Stitch These Wounds is a decent debut album, though it is held back by the lack of variety between all the songs and the lack of range in the singer, it paves the way for better albums to come, and does have a couple of fan favourites inside, if you don't like Black Veil Brides however, avoid like the plague.
Recommended tracks:
We Stitch These Wounds
Perfect Weapon
Knives And Pens
The Morticians Daughter
