ALBUM REVIEW: POST HUMAN: NeX GEn – Bring Me The Horizon
Love them or hate them, Sheffield icons BRING ME THE HORIZON have had an astronomical rise in stardom and become one of the UK’s most important bands in recent history. Time and time again they’ve evolved their sound with each album rather than just sticking to one style of music. It keeps them interesting and makes you wonder what they’re going to do next. After months and months of delays, Oli Sykes and co. announced on May 23rd that the hotly-anticipated follow-up to the 2020 EP Post Human: Survival Horror would release at midnight that night. After being announced at the band’s iconic Download headline set last summer, POST HUMAN: NeX GEn is finally here to deliver an all-out assault on the senses. It sees the band on the form of their lives, quashing any qualms over why they delayed the album so much.
We’ve been treated to a smattering of singles in the VERY long four-year build-up to NeX GEn. Songs such as DiE4u, sTraNgeRs and DArkSide, to name a few, were the perfect amuse bouche to tide us over until we got the album proper. Of course you’d be forgiven for thinking you’d have heard the album by the time NeX GEn came around, as you’d think five singles would be almost half an album. However, what we got after these singles are eight brand new tracks that we only heard snippets of on their latest UK tour as the band continued to tease us.
At its heart, this album does stick to the band’s metal roots but at times it leans heavily on a more pop-focused sound. Album opener YOUtopia lays the foundations for what’s to come; packed with great riffs, the band aims big for this track. It’s a song ready-made for stadium shows, everything about it sounds huge and the chorus will have you screaming along in no time. Kool-Aid follows up with a fun heavy number before going into one of the album highlights Top 10 staTues tHat CriEd bloOd. This track sees Sykes delivering some of the best vocals he’s ever done, which compliment the harsh vocals throughout perfectly. Once again there’s a stadium-sized chorus as a synthesiser helps to power through the track along with the cacophony of guitars and drums.
Slowing things down a tad, liMOusine offers a moment of respite whilst serving as the first collaboration on the album – in this case with Norwegian singer AURORA. The slow and bruising guitar matches her angelic vocals perfectly as the track slowly builds towards an ending filled with ace chunky riffs. Another collaboration that follows is a bulleT w- my namE On, this time featuring metalcore legends UNDEROATH. It’s one of the heavier tracks that NeX GEn has to offer, going from 0-100mph real quick and refusing to slow down one bit. Of course, the addition of a band like UNDEROATH only bolsters the quality of the track, and it’s one that will surely be the catalyst of many mosh pits when performed live.
n/A is a slow and thoughtful track which sees Sykes at his most vulnerable as he confronts his past battles with addiction but also looks to the future; it’s a poignant track that is sure to benefit any listeners who also have that same struggle. Instantly after this is one of the singles leading up to NeX GEn and one of the best songs on the record. LosT is as cathartic as it is euphoric with one hell of an emotional core to it. It’s already a highlight in their live shows as it allows you to dance and scream along without a thought in the world.
The latter part of the album welcomes in NeX GEn’s heaviest track in AmEN, featuring the likes of LIL UZI VERT and rock royalty in the form of GLASSJAW’s Daryl Palumbo. The track is as visceral as it is great; it hits like a hammer and will have you dying to be in a sweaty mosh pit as soon as the opening chords kick in. Closing out the album is the seven-minute long DIg It. It’s a daunting undertaking right at the end of the record, but it works. It takes all the styles of the album and combines into one long opus of a track, working in a similar vein to Take Me Back To Eden by SLEEP TOKEN. It offers a very solid end to a very solid album; the pop and electro influences are there and compliment those metal influences perfectly.
With it being their first full-length release since 2019’s Amo, POST HUMAN: NeX GEn was absolutely worth the wait. It’s a perfect continuation from what Survival Horror gave us and is double the length. On a first listen it does look like it will be overly long when looking at the album and seeing 16 tracks, but they never feel out of place or outstay their welcome. It’s an album that speaks to those who are struggling and offers them a chance of escapism from the real world and shows that they’re not alone. The best aspect of BRING ME THE HORIZON is that they’ll never release the same album twice. They’ll always keep you guessing and it makes you excited for what comes next. Bring on whatever Post Human 3 has to offer – hopefully the wait won’t be as long this time.
Rating: 8/10
POST HUMAN: NeX GEn is out now via Sony.
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