After experimenting with electronic sounds on their last album, 2018’s Misery, The Amity Affliction return to their metalcore roots with their latest release, Everyone Loves You… Once You Leave Them. But will it be enough for those fans who have become disillusioned with the Australian band?
Album opener Coffin serves as a breakdown/intro-track, which then paves the way for the first single, released back in September: All My Friends Are Dead. With its screamed vocals courtesy of Joel Birch and new drummer Jon Longobardi’s blast beat assault, this is sure to go down as one of the group’s most brutal songs in recent memory.
Soak Me in Bleach (the second single from the record) and All I Do Is Sink are next. While reminiscent of softer songs found on their later works like Misery, thanks to some (often, but not distracting) electronic sounds here and there, they are infused with the same heaviness as the aforementioned single, being much more focused in the end. One thing is for sure: the clean vocals of bassist Ahren Stringer make for soaring choruses which are bound to worm their way into your ears – especially that of Soak Me in Bleach.
Following up is Baltimore Rain, with its trap-reminiscent intro and a solo from guitarist Dan Brown complementing its catchy chorus. One interesting touch here is the inclusion of the sound of someone lighting up a cigarette and taking a smoke at the halfway-point of the song, effectively mirroring its chorus: “Smoke them if you got ‘em.” Aloneliness is definitely the softest (and some might say ‘poppiest’) song on the album, with plenty of finger-snaps to be heard during the verses, but it is also one of the most sensitive moments of the record, with Birch opening up about his bipolar disorder diagnosis. This theme also carries on into the heartfelt, upbeat Forever, albeit this time dropping the finger snaps for the metalcore elements once again.
Just Like Me comes up next, with some whistles sprinkled in alongside the returning finger snaps, as well as some “doo-doo-doos” during the chorus. Surprisingly, it all ends up working quite well. Born to Lose returns the album to the heaviness expected by the masses, offering a djent-y intro and chorus, topping off with a crushing breakdown, just for good measure. Fever Dream offsets the chugging guitars once again, with its electronic “woah-ohs” and keys during the chorus, effectively turning the song into a “metalcore ballad” of sorts, while also sporting a jangly guitar solo. Fear not, though: the band still have one more ace up their sleeve.
Catatonia, the most recent single, is the last song on the album – talk about ending on a high note! The group pulls out all the stops on this one, making sure that you hear one more heavy song before the end. Fueled once again by Longobardi’s pummeling drums and blast beats, Birch reflects on the untimely passing of a good friend of his, which left him, as the song says “Catatonic, I’m on the floor.”
So, TL:DR, is this new album by The Amity Affliction a worthy return to (heavy) form? In one word: definitely. If you were a fan of them in the old days, or are just simply curious to see what they are up to these days, check it out, you may very well be pleasantly surprised by it.
8.5/10
Standout Tracks: Soak Me in Bleach, Just Like Me, Catatonia, All My Friends Are Dead
For Fans Of: Architects, Parkway Drive, Of Mice & Men
Written by: Florin Petrut
