amo is the album that Bring Me The Horizon needed to make. It reflects who they currently are as a band, and the ways in which they want to expand their sound and scope.
For some fans of the band, this album will be the nail in the coffin - this is so far removed from their beginning days (first three albums or so). Those who were unhappy with That's The Spirit will most likely be displeased with amo, for similar and more amplified reasons. The pop leanings, the current trend dabbling, all will lead some fans to be disheartened and disappointed.
While I can understand them, I feel bad for them.
This is a common and reoccurring theme I've seen with some of the bands who are getting to be a bit farther along in their careers - an original, defining sound, and an eventual breaking with and evolving towards new directions. On Linkin Park's polarizing album A Thousand Suns, Mike Shinoda delivers a few very applicable lines in "When They Come For Me":
"'Cause even a blueprint is a gift and a curse
'Cause once you got a theory of how the thing works
Everybody wants the next thing to be just like the first"
The notion of bands being led by expectations of their sound and the kind of music they make is a difficult one to grapple with. The way in which Bring Me The Horizon has addressed this is fitting, and the resulting album should really be of no surprise to followers of the band. Those who cannot seem to grasp this and continue to rail against and whine and complain online will always exist. It's true for many bands who have gone down different paths and moved away from their roots, and while it is a difficult thing to do, I believe it is a sign that a band is doing something right. If they are pursuing the path they desire, making music and exploring sounds that they want to create, then they are doing what is right for them. While fans are the ones who make their careers and dreams possible, they are not required to put out things just for the sake of pleasing the fans. In fact, I believe they shouldn't. Making that which is true, that which is honest, is the most important to bands and artist as creators of music, of art.
Now, this album is a solid piece of work. It explores such a variety of sounds and influences - pop, trap, edm, hip-hop, and beatboxing all make their appearances and show their influence. These new spaces allow the band to express new sentiments and ideas, showing a vulnerability that they hadn't really been able to express before. They collaborated with different artists (Grimes, Dani Filth, and Rahzel), which also allows for outside influence and new ideas mixing in.
With this expansion, this delving down different paths, there does come a certain sense of inconsistency. The ebb and flow is not quite as smooth as that of Sempiternal or That's The Spirit; there isn't the same cohesiveness. However, the diversity of the sound is the strength of the album - showing the band in new and quite different lights than we've previously been allowed to see. "nihilist blues (feat. Grimes)", really takes the band into a space that is both similar and foreign to them - as vocalist Oli Sykes described it, there's something "primitive" about the sound of this song, this darker, dance track. This notion of a sound that taps into the primitive nature is especially evident in some of their older work, the raw screaming, thundering, roaring nature of heavy metal. The trap influence on "why you gotta kick me when I'm down?" allows for a bit of a swagger, a retaliatory nature against those who say one thing (that they care for you) and do another (talk down to you), which is fitting with the sort of bravado commonly found in rap but also very much fits with the gritty guitars and heavier influence.
Their last album, That's The Spirit, was a powerhouse in terms of lyrical strength. That album ended up being a very meaningful and relatable album for me a few years ago, so I realize that my view is somewhat skewed. I knew it was going to be a high standard I had for their next release, and that it probably wouldn't reach it. I was correct, but that doesn't mean that there aren't some very meaningful lyrical moments on this album. "medicine" is one of the more intriguing songs lyrically, going into depth about the ways in which people can be toxic and how those relationships are hard to leave - my favorite line is the opening one:
"Some people are a lot like clouds, you know
'Cause life's so much brighter when they go".
"heavy metal (feat. Rahzel)" is also different in that it directly addresses the band's change in sound and the reactions of certain fans. This is always difficult territory to tread into, as it can be seen as very aggressive or immature, but I feel as though BMTH does a great job of sort of making light of the whole situation. The chorus says it all:
"And I keep picking petals
I'm afraid you don't love me anymore
'Cause a kid on the 'gram in a Black Dahlia tank
Says it ain't heavy metal
(And that's alright, that's alright)".
While speaking with Apple Music, Sykes said that while they are proud and confident in the music they are currently making, they still struggle with that desire to please people. This song is supposed to address that, both seriously and in jest.
Overall, I think this album was an excellent step for the band. They made intentional music that addresses their own lives and where they stand, as well as looking towards the future. It's a really vulnerable piece of art, a bearing of their hearts and minds, and I respect and appreciate that immensely. While I still personally have more attachment and favor for That's The Spirit, I know this is an album that will continue to provide moments of discover and excitement in the music.
Rating: 4/5
Recommended: "nihilist blues (feat. Grimes)", "medicine", "wonderful life (feat. Dani Filth)", & "i don't know what to say"
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