BMTH's Post Human : Survival Horror is an ethereal yet heavy modern day cult album

MUSIC REVIEW

Hailing from Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, the rock band Bring Me The Horizon has penetrated deep into multiple genres of music in the last couple of years. Abbreviated as BMTH, the band is known for their incorporation of unconventional and coveted experimentation into their music. BMTH has mastered the element and art of surprise.

Their journey is intertwined with a plethora of sound experimentation in various sub-genres of rock. The group who started out young as a deathcore sounding band, now possesses sounds of alt-rock, alt-metal, nu-metal, EDM, punk, post-hardcore, pop, pop-metal, electronicore to many others. The group comprises of Oliver Sykes (lead vocalist), Jordan Fish (keyboardist), Lee Malia (guitarist), Matt Nicholls (drummer) and Matt Kean (bassist).

With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in the year 2020, the entire world retreated to their homes. Everyone started to protect themselves inside the four walls of their homes. The music arenas went silent and bands resorted to bedroom production again. This Sheffield band did the same. They started experimenting with their sounds from their respective bedrooms and eventually gave the world a cult-classic modern metal album, the Post Human: Survival Horror EP. Prior to this the bands were receiving a lot of criticism where the band's sound was about to go with Oli's vocal chords experiencing medical problems for a long time. Along with the two previous albums taking the route of a more pop -rock sounding lane, which made the bands receive a lot of new fans, it also made them lose a lot of old fans. However, Post Human: Survival Horror is probably what that was meant to be the band's future. The EP turned out to be the perfect spot where the old fans and new fans united.

The EP starts with the song "Dear Diary", a hard hitting heavy metal song that has a lot of heavily distorted riffs layered with Oli's classic unclean voice. The opening song made sure to answer all the questions, doubts, confusion and expectations of the listeners who had unsure thoughts about how Oli's voice will perform. Fans have been questioning if they will ever get to hear Oli's screams again for a long time until then. The song also brought back the breakdowns. "Traumatized for breakfast, I can't stomach any more survival horror", with lyrics such as this, the song was a perfect opening for the album and a comeback amidst the pandemic.

The second track of the album, "Parasite Eve", was released as a single prior to the album release. This song highlights the subtle nuances in sound, that BMTH is known to play around with. The song starts with a sample of Petar Lyondev's "Erghen Diado" which is performed by the Bulgurian Female Vocal Choir. It follows a low pitch whisper kind of vocal composition by Oli, backed with kick drums, electronic hits and synths. The verses build up in this manner to blossom into a clean heavy chorus. Breakdowns? Yes, with a marching band kind of drum pattern. The song turned out to be a classic

The next song called, "Teardrops" was said to be greatly inspired by Linkin Park. Many said it was a tribute to the legendary band as well. The song had a pattern similar to one of Linkin Park's songs. The vocals are ethereal with a lot of focus on the lyrics. Along with the heavy guitars and new age drum sounds, the song featured an amazing bassline. The breakdowns came in yet again, to subside down to some soft piano sounds and finally ends with the chorus repeated.

The next song is called "Obey" in which Yungblud was featured. This song was released as a single, prior to the release of the album. The song featured some tight punky drums with hazy synths and lots of electronicore sounds. Both the vocalists demonstrated a perfect blend of their unique voices. The chorus is a perfect amalgamation that manages to hold up the theme of the song perfectly. The song emphasizes upon the society being puppets of modern terror. The song also features a short breakdown backed by screams by both the vocalists.

The next song is more like a prelude to the track following it. It's called "Itch For The Cure (When Will We Be Free?). The 1.26 mins track opens up with whispered vocals from Oli and then electronic drums take over. A female vocal screams in between the drums- "I wanna be a Kingslayer". The vocals are none other than from Suzuka Nakamoto of Babymetal, who is featured in the subsequent track.

The next song is "Kingslayer" which features the front woman of the Japanese metal band, "Babymetal". This song was another fan favourite and was talked about greatly by majority of listeners. The song is decorated with fast paced tempo and electronic synths backed by hazy guitars. Suzuka Nakamoto does perfect justice to the chorus which follows the pre-chorus with Oli's scream-guttered vocals. Secondly to everyone's utter surprise, Suzuka of Babymetal does a verse after the first chorus. She did the verse in Japanese and English. The pattern again follows Oli's pre-chorus and then to be taken over by the chorus. Another breakdown with a subtle fun play of Babymetal's vocals in between, while Oli digs in a long scream.

The next song is an iconic collaboration with Nova Twins. The title of the song is 1x1. A perfect package of emotions, melody and perfectly layered beats. The chorus and verses from the duo and Oli turned out to be a song that had the listeners put it on repeat.

The next track called "Ludens" was first released as a single in the year 2019. This song will surely stay as one of the most iconic productions in the band's history. The song was a peek into where the band's sound can possibly go into the future. The song sounds like four to five songs mixed into one song. It picks up elements from all their previous albums. Dancing electronic drum patters, popish vocals, riffs, melodies, synths and experimentation with random sounds like the baby voice that says "Ok" before the breakdown. No one expected the song to have a breakdown. Prior to the breakdown the song demonstrates a drum break. Ludens was where the band brought back breakdowns. The song left the audience confused and happy. The song was the band's stand to all they can possibly do.

And finally the EP ends with a ballad that features the legendary Amy Lee of Evanescence. The song's title is "One day the only butterflies left will be in your chest as you march towards your death". The song is an ethereal piece that made the audience clutch their heart and hold onto what the song portrayed. The song turned out to be a classic hit. When Oli says, "One day, the only butterflies left will be in our chests" the listeners had their brains blown out to a thousand pieces.

To sum it up all, the EP was art in its finest form. As of now, listeners are anticipating the next series of Post Human EP.

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