Will Marshall
Whether or not she found salvation through this process is almost immaterial; the search for meaning and safety is laid bare, an uneasy and despairing listen that might not discuss trauma any more but is still rooted in it.
None of this should work together – but it does, because The Callous Daoboys have such a tight handle on their songwriting, and an unshakeable belief in the brilliance of absurdity.
The Above takes what CODE ORANGE already did, every part of their DNA, and radically rearranges it in bold new forms. For a band that pushed the boundaries of their hardcore and metal roots by incorporating industrial glitch and grind, this is a fearless leap into the unknown, and it almost entirely pays off.
BARONESS’ refusal to repeat themselves and to evolve in some way with every record has paid off hugely here; while Stone takes its time to truly release its secrets, once it does it’s a truly arresting album that sinks its hooks in deep.
Perfect Saviors is everything THE ARMED have been working towards, a radical redefinition of what people can expect from them, an explosion of emotion, barbed, tongue-in-cheek lyrics; if THE STROKES dropped acid, you’d possibly get a short way to finding out just how far out THE ARMED have managed to not only go, but nail every step.
None of this should work but it does. Lavish guitars, bile-spewing vocals, time signatures that would make theoretical mathematicians blush; Ontological Mysterium has all that as well as a confidence and brilliance that simply eclipses most other extreme albums.
This Is Why in a strange position; arguably a very good album, but one that feels as if it doesn’t play to PARAMORE’s strengths quite as much in its drive to experiment, and one that only pays off partially.
Is Holy Fvck groundbreaking? No, but arguably it never set out to be. What it is, is raw and honest reflections from an embattled star whose time in the public eye has cost them dearly, and they’ve at last found freedom in their roots. And surely, that’s enough.
This is a bold, adventurous step into new pastures that still fundamentally feels like a DEAFHEAVEN album, and for that they deserve acclaim.