Review Summary: Those expecting a Sempiternal 2.0 will be disappointed. A brave new direction for Bring Me The Horizon, with astonishing results.
Lets start off with a big point, I love Bring Me The Horizon from Suicide Season onwards. While Count Your Blessings has it's little charms (Pray For Plagues) I find it juvenile and a poorly produced and performed album. So if you come into That's The Spirit expecting a Count Your Blessings/Suicide Season feel album then this isn't the record for you.
It would have been very easy for Bring Me The Horizon to write a Sempiternal 2.0 after the rampant success of that album which was a superb rock/metal album. However I feel they have been very brave and not gone in a direction which would take them into the bracket of becoming repetitive and boring with the albums they released. While die hard fans may not embrace the new sound, I think the progression of this band is extraordinary. This album clearly has it's influences, as with Sempiternal there are hints of a Linkin Park-esqe sound. However some tracks such as What You Need wouldn't feel out of place of an Arctic Monkeys or Royal Blood album.
Doomed is the opening track to this brave new sound Horizon are showcasing. We hear Oli as we have never heard him before and the accompanying music is some of Bring Me The Horizon's most radio friendly yet, but it works! We are all familiar with Happy Song, the cheerleader chanting at the start of the song is an alternative take on the huge gang vocals we heard from Sempiternal. Happy Song's sarcastic nature is ever present and the song feels like an anthem for the disenchanted and depressed in society. My only issue with this song is the way it is performed live, as I would like to see Oli attempt to sing the chorus.
Jordan Fish has clearly had a huge impact on the band, his influence on Sempiternal was clear with tracks like Can You Feel My Heart and Sleepwalking. There is a lot of negativity towards him and I cannot work out why. Throne and True Friends again evidence his influence, these two tracks in my opinion are some of Horizon's finest work. While Throne does sound like Faint by Linkin Park, it has its individuality and Sykes' lyrics are wonderful, the lyrics appear to be a middle finger to all their doubters and haters throughout the years. True Friends is the perfect revenge track, and gets its message across in a mature way, unlike tracks like Sleep With One Eye Open and Blacklist, that while superb songs don't have the mature angle that True Friends does. True Friends and Happy Song are the heaviest songs on this album and the only songs which give a flashback to Sykes' Sempiternal screamed vocals.
Follow You has proved to be a divisive track to Horizon fans. I think that it is superb and a complete triumph. The lyrics have been described as 'cringe worthy', but I actually think they are quite sweet, the song almost feels like a more romantic version of Deathbeds. Oli's vocals rising to new strengths and soaring above the beat. Matt Nicholls exhibits on this song that he is capable of provided a solid drumming performance on slower songs, putting to bed any doubts I had following Sempiternal.
What You Need has a very chart rock sound. The chorus sounds very similar to a Arctic Monkeys of even a Foo Fighters track. The lyrics aren't some of Horizon's strongest, but the message portrayed by the song is very clear and this song is a clear intention of the band's stadium ambitions, the chorus wouldn't feel out of place in Wembley Stadium let alone Wembley Arena. The lyric 'you make me what to kill myself for the ***ing fun' is a classic Horizon lyric and is wonderfully dark.
Avalanche is possibly my favourite track from this album. The musical side of this song comes together so well, Lee Malia's playing on this song is superb and there is a subtle bass track from Matt Kean which adds another layer to this songs. Jordan Fish provides a beautiful electronic sound and this song is another track that has a stadium feel to this. This song is very honest, as Oli takes us into his head and tells us about his struggles with ADHD. Sykes' strength as a lyricist is his honestly on songs, as shown on Hospital For Souls. The lyrics on Avalanche are some of the best Horizon has written, and Sykes' honest lyrics remind me of Staind lyrics, with Aaron Lewis being a very similar lyricist with his openness and honesty.
Run is a song I was very excited about after hearing the preview. This songs does something no Horizon track has ever done, Oli's vocals are added to the structure of the song in a similar way they did on Can You Feel My Heart. This song rises and falls seamlessly, and has a consistent drum track that makes you feel like you are running while listening to it. The riff for the chorus is excellent and shows Malia's ability can span across genres, and reminds us all why Horizon didn't feel the need to bring in a second guitarist. Malia seems to have more freedom on this album and is playing his heart out on every track, coming along way from the wailing guitars of Pray For Plagues.
Drown is another track we are all very familiar with. I will admit I was unsure of this track when it was first released but it really grew on me. This new version is exactly the same track with some new Lee Malia guitars added and extra gang vocals to make the chorus sound superb. This is an arena rock song without a doubt. The lyrics to this song are so meaningful and you can really sympathise with how Sykes' must've been feeling when he came up with these lyrics. This new version is brilliant and I am incredibly glad Horizon decided to do this version.
Blasphemy starts of with very direct lyrics and does sound very familiar, Sykes' vocals sound very gritty on this track and it has superb features. The guitars on this track to sound suspiciously like the new guitars in Drown and I hope this is coincidence. This track seems to be another Malia conceived track, with the rest of the band stepping up to his level with some excellent playing. The lyrics have an anti-religious feel, but not to the same extent of tracks on There Is a Hell and Sempiternal, Sykes has tried to steer away from religious themed lyrics on this album.
Oh No doesn't sound like Bring Me The Horizon. Is that a bad thing? Absolutely not. While this song may be very pop-rock, it is emotional and the vocal hooks are excellent. I think this song is a look at the party hard lifestyle the band adopted prior to Sykes' drug addictions. The lyrics are touching and they again wouldn't feel out of place in an arena. While not on the same emotional level as Hospital For Souls, this is a superb closing songs.
Overall this album is superb. There are issues with some of the lyrics and a few teething problems with the new sound but this album is a triumph. Horizon have taken a brave new step into a more radio friendly rock direction and it works. Bands don't stick around for 10 years doing the same thing. If they never changed Bring Me The Horizon would still be playing pubs in Rotherham. This album is no Sempiternal but that is a good thing. An excellent achievement from the band and credit for Sykes for the way his vocals have progressed and how they shine on this album.
