Bullet for my Valentine - Fever Review

Great lyrics. Fantastic emotion. Gorgeous orchestration. These are all the things that Bullet For My Valentine has NEVER had. If you go into Fever, the new album by this Welsh quartet, and expect any of these things, then you have never heard an album by this band before. There definitely are a few standard contents that many have come to enjoy from a BFMV record, yet with the release of their previous album Scream Aim Fire a lot of those things were dropped. Now, with Fever, even more have been lost and we are left with a shell of what was once a very entertaining band.

First of all, don’t by any means think they have lost their ability to play their instruments. Paget, the lead guitarist, can still hold his own among the top guitarists in mainstream metal. Unfortunately, his riffs are often the only things that keep the songs afloat. That’s not to say that the rest of them are mediocre musicians, it’s just that they don’t do anything to stand out. In songs like Fever, the only part of the song that is the least bit interesting is the guitar. This really isn’t a step too far from the norm, but there is one thing noticeably missing from most of the album’s songs, that made BFMV at least a decent band.

Matt Tuck, while his clean vocals have been vastly improved, all but abandons his scream. Not only that, but the other members of the band have grown much more silent as well when it comes to their chipping in with a wail. This is what made BFMV fun. It wasn’t music to sit back and contemplate the deeper meanings of; it was music to bob your head to and workout to (and possibly try to pump yourself up to before a swimming race to). Yet, with the loss of this facet of their music, they become completely boring. They lose any edge they had, and fall down into a realm of complete mediocrity. In songs like A Place Where You Belong and Bittersweet Memories, BFMV tries to slow it down, and utterly fail to produce anything worthwhile. Not only can Tuck not carry these songs just on his vocals, but the with the slowdown of the music, it further proves that they can’t seem to fit any emotion at all into their music anymore.

The entire first part of the album, minus The Last Fight, which upon first listen disappointed but has a catchy enough chorus to make it a highlight of the album, completely falls flat. Song after song opens with a promising guitar riff, and then follows with a lackluster verse delivery and a chorus that tries to be epic and soaring, yet is just lackluster and cheesy.

I would be lying if I didn’t say that there were in fact parts of this album that I enjoyed. Three songs caught my attention, yet they were all back-to-back at the end of the album. Dignity hearkens back to The Poison’s Tear’s Don’t Fall in it’s screaming of the pre-chorus, which seems to give BFMV some of their edge back. Then, with the promising Begging for Mercy, the screaming comes back full-fledged, and allows at least for a momentary flashback into what BFMV used to be. Even Tuck’s cleans in the chorus are good, making the song the album’s second best. Clearly the album winner is at the tail end, with the scream-laced Pretty on the Outside. This song has most likely the best lyrics BFMV have ever written (which really couldn’t have been that hard to do) and also has by far the best hook of the album. The passion returns, if only for a brief moment, and shows that possibly not all hope is lost on this band.

Overall, Fever is a disappointment to any fan of Bullet for my Valentine, or melodic metalcore for that matter. Almost all that made this band a fun and enjoyable listen is gone, left with only a small glimmer of hope at the end of the record. Maybe they are satisfied with producing average records for the rest of their recording days. However, a lot of their fans won’t be.

2.5/5

Recommended Tracks:

Pretty on the Outside

Dignity

Begging for Mercy

Ouch, that Hurt!

These puns with the titles are getting out of hand. Sorry for the lack of updates over the last couple of weeks, been really busy. Over spring break, I went and saw Red (go back about 2 posts ago) and walked away with 2 water bottles and I shook the lead singers hand. It was awesome!

Anyway, with the sad, boredom inducing school year about to come to a close, I’ve turned rather emo. Yea, I said it. I’m tired of being here in this tiny room doing work all the time. I MISS FREEDOM! So why not listen to some music that reflects the depression within?

Hurt is a perfect band to do so. A more dark, depressing band you will not find. Yet, my god, the emotion they fill each song with and the passion they put into it will blow you away. There musical sound closely resembles that of the popular hard rock on today’s radio (the good stuff, Shinedown, Alter Bridge, etc.) when they’re heavy, and when they’re soft, they are as progressive as they come.

Yet the music really isn’t what makes them special. Sure it matches the vocals and lyrics, but these both outshine the guitars and drums in a way that I thought previously unimaginable. J. Loren, Hurt’s lead singer, is one crazy motherfucker, and his music reflects that. Whether singing in a low, almost whisper-like voice, or yelling at the top of his lungs, Loren takes your music listening experience to whole new levels. Then when he stops, he picks up his violin and adds an entirely new dimension to each song.

Another reason why Hurt is truly capturing my attention as of late is their wonderful lyrical songwriting. J. Loren gets most of the credit here too, as he is the main lyricist. Most of the songs tell a story, a story that can be followed from record to record. Think about famous storytellers like Johnny Cash, and bring them into today’s classic hard rock, with much more dark stories, and you have Hurt. Some songs, like Rapture, tell stories of family life gone horribly wrong. Others tell of relationships destroyed due to unfaithfulness or lives torn apart from wrong decisions, like Pandora. This is what sets Hurt apart from anything you’ve ever heard.

Similar Bands:

Take Shinedown and Tool, and meet in the middle.

Songs

Rapture

Alone with the Sea

Let's go to the Karnivool!

Well, obviously my statement was a little early about the Canada thing. They are truly the dominant ones in the hockey world. But who cares about hockey anyway?! That's right, no one. Regardless of the sports world, I'm excited. After a crazy weekend at State College (State Patty's day is the greatest holiday ever), we've only got one more week 'til spring break. THANK GOD!

Over spring break I'm not going anywhere though. Which sucks some serious ass. But hey, what are you gonna do? Maybe I'll go to see a Karnivool. HAHA WHAT A TERRIBLE JOKE! No, but seriously Karnivool is a progressive rock band out of the down under. With their first album, Themata, Karnivool made a name for themselves by creating a very "epic" and exciting sound that really hadn't been delved into before. Songs like "Cote" and "Themata" are the epitome of what Karnivool likes to accomplish through their music.

With their most recent album, Sound Awake, which just released in the U.S. a couple of weeks ago, Karnivool made an even bigger move towards the progressive side of things. Their bass got louder, their drums got more sporatic, and any semblance of the main stream rock song structure that they may have had before was completely thrown out. Songs such as Change and Deadman rank right up there with the best songs that Karnivool have released.

The music itself creates a very serene feeling. It seems to be a bit dark, yet there is a sense that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Karnivool is not an overly technical band by any means, but they sure do know how to play together. The lead vocals are also very well done, giving an overall happy feeling to the music.

Similar Bands:

Tool (ALOT)

Coheed and Cambria (Not much)

RED, white, and blue!

Haha, the bitches in Canada must be SOOO pissed at us right now....eh? We walk into their house and lay the smackdown on their mounty asses. If they weren't so passive I'd honestly expect some form of retaliation.

Anywho, a band that has been a long time favorite of mine is RED. They're a Christian rock hard rock band, and my oh my are they good. Utilizing strings to accompany their heavy sound, RED creates a sound entirely their own, and shows how good mainstream rock can be if its not diluted and repetitive (I'm talking to you Saving Abel, Theory of a Deadman, and Nickelback).

The lead singer Barnes' has a scream that gets you pumped, while he can also sing a slow ballad with so much emotion that you can feel it in your core. RED is easily just as good as 90% of the crap you hear on today's modern rock radio, all the while maintaining a very original sound that most haven't heard before.

Similar Bands:

Linkin Park

Breaking Benjamin

Recommended Tracks:

Out From Under

Ordinary World -

So it begins...

Alright this is how this is gonna work. About once a week, I'm gonna write a short blurb telling you people what music to listen to. I know exactly what I'm talking about, and you have no idea at all what YOU'RE talking about. Deal with it, this isn't 'Nam, there are rules.

In all seriousness though, I'm gonna recommend some good rock music that you all should give a listen to try to expand your mind. I'll be doing reviews sometimes of new stuff from my favorite bands as well as stuff you guys want me to review. Just send me an e-mail if you want me to include something your enjoying and if I think well enough of your opinion it might be a possibility (probably not). I'm also gonna use this blog to bitch about what retarded thing is causing me grief in my life. This will probably never be relevant to you. Yet this will tie in greatly with the type of music I'm digging at the moment, so bear with it.

See ya soon with my first update. Also, so you get an idea about what kind of rock music I like...NICKELBACK SUCKS.