Review Summary: Not a complete cock-up, but this is easily Atreyu's weakest.
It isn't often that a band will follow up a comeback record after years on hiatus with their weakest release yet. While Breaking Benjamin’s
Ember was a relative disappointment, it isn't like
Dark Before Dawn was all that impressive to begin with. The same story applies with other records, such as Disturbed's ironically-titled
Evolution. In Atreyu's case,
In Our Wake is decent, yet still a massive step down from their current magnum opus,
Long Live. While its status as “weakest Atreyu album” could be considered somewhat debatable when you call the decent but generally less favored
Lead Sails Paper Anchor into question, that still contains more substance in its radio-friendly style than this experiment with an arena-rock anthemic nature.
Contrary to popular opinion, Alex Varkatzas has never been a particularly good harsh vocalist, so having him take a backseat in favor of drummer/singer Brandon Saller is not a problem at all. In fact, that could have possibly saved this album more than hurt it. The major problem with
In Our Wake, is that for a massively hook-driven album, too many of its hooks simply exit your mind the millisecond the tracks containing them end. The title track poses the question “who will we leave in our wake?” to the listener, and in a scene that’s corrupting itself by the day such as the modern metalcore scene, that’s a deeply important question to ask. Other hooks, like in “No Control”, “Terrified”, and “Nothing Will Ever Change”, detail the writer’s experiences with anxiety, mania, and other unsettling realities of the human condition. Nothing on here is particularly bad, just not great. Bookend “Super Hero”, which features M. Shadows of Avenged Sevenfold and Aaron Gillespie of Underoath, is their attempt at an “epic” closer. Lyrically, it’s a change of heart compared to previous tracks, as it veers into an almost love-song territory.
Musically, this album feels like a stylistic continuation of 2007’s
Lead Sails Paper Anchor, with even more emphasis on the anthemic approach that Atreyu flirted with in the past. Every song was written with the intention of becoming a live staple and an arena-rock anthem, much like tracks among the likes of “Becoming the Bull” or “Doomsday” from the aforementioned
Lead Sails. Some songs stick the landing, but at least half of the album is unfortunately mired in mediocrity. Cringeworthy as some lyrics from “Blind Deaf & Dumb” may be, the songwriting that backs it is simply too bland to make the listener care, unlike some other notable releases this year;
And Justice for None comes to mind. “House of Gold” has salvageable ideas sprinkled in, but it suffers from the same issue.
In Our Wake is decent enough if you have a soft spot for anthemic radio rock, but even that has been done better recently.
Highlights: “In Our Wake”, “Nothing Will Ever Change”, “Terrified”, “No Control”, “Super Hero”
