ALBUM REVIEW: The Pronoia Sessions – Atreyu
Ever since TAYLOR SWIFT started to re-record her own music to claim back ownership of her songs, it has since inspired a number of bands to either re-work their own tunes or do an interpretation of their version of the Eras Tour. Recently we saw pop-punks ALL TIME LOW have a go at doing this to their own tunes and it actually improves them believe it or not. This week sees metalcore legends ATREYU release their own ‘reimagined’ hits with the release of The Pronoia Sessions. A fun nostalgic trip down memory lane that gives songs from as each song has a fun new spin on it. By now, you’d think this gimmick would be worn out. ATREYU however has given these songs a new lease of life.
When it comes to the music of ATREYU, you expect it to be of a metalcore or hard rock sound. The Pronoia Sessions however has a different idea, seeing the band for a more country music sound whilst still maintaining a hard rock element as the album’s backbone throughout, a surprise to be sure but a welcome one. Opening the record is a new version of Becoming The Bull. With foreboding instrumental performances throughout, this song instantly conjures up imagery of a dusty old western town that is building up to witness a duel.
One of the highlights of this album is frontman Brandon Saller’s voice, throughout it is incredible, echoing that of country singer Chris Stapleton. Up next is Save Me which goes hand in hand with Ex’s And Oh’s. Once again, Saller’s voice is in fine fettle on both tracks as the album starts to well and truly take its country music form. These tracks in particular have a very cinematic feel about them as the Wild West imagery remains throughout. They also have a very similar sound to the underrated AVENGED SEVENFOLD track, Gunslinger except with better vocals.
Right Side Of The Bed takes us further into the album which has now taken the fully fledged form of a country album, the darkness and mystery of it is all still there, instead of what could easily be a violin solo in any other album is an excellent saxophone solo that is always welcome. This time round, Saller has a style of singing which is incredibly similar to that of the late great Chris Cornell, which sets us up perfectly for the next track, a cover of AUDIOSLAVE’s Like A Stone. Every country album needs a ballad song on it, and this cover is exactly that. It’s a fantastic tribute to Cornell himself with Saller almost being able to match him with his vocal prowess, it’s easily going to be a lighters in the air moment when performed live and serves as possibly the highlight of the album. The ballad section continues as Drowning immediately follows, whilst this song is good in its own right, it isn’t quite as good as what came before it. Up next is The Theft which is arguably the most drastic change to the song. Starting off with what sounds like a music box playing a lullaby melody eventually moves on to combine with the ever powerful vocals that have been on display throughout The Pronoia Sessions. A nice orchestral piece also plays alongside with all aspects of the song combining perfectly to create an ethereal piece that wouldn’t feel out of place in a fantasy film.
As we get to the final stretch of the album, the track Gone keeps up with the cinematic feel of the record, however at this point you start to think that the album’s strong point was when it was focusing more on the country music aspect as it showed a more interesting side. Gone has that feeling of the generic slow song on a heavy album that needs to be there so it’s not all screaming and an all out assault on the senses. Warrior serves as the penultimate track of the record which starts off as the biggest departure in sound, taking influence from Chinese instruments such as lu pipes and harps at the very start. Whilst these elements do appear throughout the rest of the song in little cameos, it does revert back to that sound on Gone which takes the character away from the track, you get the feeling it should have kept that style throughout the whole track instead of trying to do both. Another cover brings the album to a finale. A cover of legend TOM PETTY’s Mary Jane’s Last Dance brings back the excellent country style that sees this version of ATREYU at their strongest. It’s a good final song for the record and isn’t too in your face about it. It’s a great bookend to what Becoming The Bull started with that mysterious foreboding country song as it brings the album to a satisfying end.
Overall, The Pronoia Sessions is a fun album to listen to. Whilst it does run out of steam a little during two or three songs, it’s a testament to the talent of ATREYU as it shows they have plenty of creative juices left in them after so long together as a band. It’s maybe one of those records that would have benefited more from being an EP rather than a full album, hopefully if ATREYU goes on a venture like this again there will be more saxophone solos!
Rating: 7/10
The Pronoia Sessions is out now via Spinefarm Records.
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