ALBUM REVIEW: We Never Die – Paradise Now
The first song on PARADISE NOW‘s debut album is called Bring Me His Head. With a title like that, the pop-rock trio have people’s attention. Emerging out of Bridgend, Wales, PARADISE NOW are a band on innovators. The band have a shared passion for hybrid music, which soon led to them writing songs together. Those song-writing sessions led to new genres being built. This fresh new band are ready to take you on a journey you’ll never forget. This is We Never Die.
The beforementioned song, Bring Me His Head opens up with a bang. Starting off with electronic synths that lead into metal screams before entering a smooth pop/rock chorus, this band show that they are pioneering a new type of music that doesn’t even have a genre. The song has strong fantasy in its lyrics, including witch hunts. This strong storytelling aspect really brings the already great song to life. It is probably one of the best opening songs of all time.
Haunt Myself continues the excellence of the first song. The production on this song is smooth, and starts off noticeably slower than the first song. However, this is not a bad thing. The first thing you should know about a PARADISE NOW song? They always go in directions you are not thinking of. Although this song sticks closely to the pop-rock genre, that is not a bad thing. This is because they lean towards the heavier side of pop-rock. It is another superb track on a brilliant debut album.
Supernatural leans towards the electronic genre, with distorted vocals. This does not feel out-of-place as the band make the song their own by adding heavy guitars. Heaven Close leans further in to the electronic genre with skittering beats. The choruses are big and powerful with heavy guitars and drums. Each song is a further improvement upon the next.
The eleven song album has two features. The first is SU, who features on Criminal. The song is an electronic pop song and as SU sings the second verse, and she brings a soft opposition to the rougher vocals, which allows the harmonies to flow easily in an accessible song. The second feature is Ryan Kirby, who features on Monsters. The FIT FOR A KING vocalist offers the unclean vocals in an upbeat electro-pop song. Whilst this might sound ridiculous on paper, it works very well on the song, which is another album highlight. However, both songs lean a bit heavily on the electronic side of music, which is a shame because the band is so much more capable of pushing the boundaries of their music.
Baptist, Young Guns, and We Never Die are the last three songs, which get the album back on track. Baptist is a heavy electronic/metal track that is reminiscent of BRING ME THE HORIZON. However, PARADISE NOW make the genre their own by fusing the two genres together, instead of keeping them to separate parts of the song. Young Guns feels like a CROSSFAITH song, but more instrumentally heavy and closing track, We Never Die, is another highlight. Released as a single, the song combines everything that is great about PARADISE NOW – the metal, the rock, the pop and everything in-between – and puts it into a stirring pot. The song is just as good, if not better, than the opening song. The band have proven themselves to be the best in upcoming new music.
In conclusion, if you love albums that blow you away, are fans of BRING ME THE HORIZON, CROSSFAITH or ENTER SHIKARI, PARADISE NOW are the band for you. Their debut album is one of the best debuts, with a band that is secure in their sound. Despite slightly leaning too much on the electronic side during the middle of the album, this is one debut that you should keep an eye on. Make a note of PARADISE NOW; they’re going to be the next big band.
Rating: 9/10
We Never Die is set for release on July 30th via Tooth & Nail.
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