The World is a Beautiful Place & I am No Longer Afraid to Die – ‘Harmlessness’

Whether your average music listener will want to admit it, or not – there is a lot to be said about a band name. It should always be the music that does the talking, but so often that’s not the first thing you are greeted with, and a name can suck you in as quickly as it can turn you off. The World Is a Beautiful Place & I am No Longer Afraid to Die is exactly that kind of band name. To some it will be seen as an interesting light that they can follow into an intriguing realm of introspection and complexity – whereas others will simply turn up their noses, and write off the band as pretentious try-hards. If you went with the former (like so many other adoring fans) then you made the right choice. To ignore TWIABP is simply an injustice.

They have always been a band known for their proclivity, and quite often it is impossible to keep up with their output; although it was their debut full-length ‘Whenever, If Ever’ that really put their name on the map. It arrived in the middle of the so-called “emo revival” (let’s be honest, emo never went away, people just stopped listening) but offered something more than just lovelorn lyrics about girls who didn’t want to go for coffee with them. It would mean that when it came to releasing its proper follow up, they would have to deliver something special – especially after joining the legendary punk label Epitaph. There is absolutely no denying that ‘Harmlessness’ is just that.

For all the greatness that was housed within ‘Whenever, If Ever’, if you listen back to it with fresh ears two years later, you find yourself noticing that it lacked direction in some places. However, the same cannot be said for ‘Harmlessness’, and TWIABP have fully refined their sound. The instantly infectious opener ‘You Can’t Live There Forever’ flaunts an acoustic driven, lo-fi sound before building into a glorious and graceful ending. Then the lead single ‘January 10th, 2014’ shows the incredible growth in their already accomplished song writing. It tackles the true story of Diana, Huntress of Bus Drivers, a lady in Juarez who set out to avenge years of sexual violence against women, by killing two bus drivers in 2013. A tough subject to touch upon, but one they have articulated with precision.

Where ‘Harmlessness’ differs from all of TWIABP’s previous releases, is that it sounds like all nine members have found a place within the band. No longer does it sound disjointed, with each member battling to be heard. ‘The Word Lisa’ is a prime example of how the band have reined in the scrappy nature of their past, in favour of a delectable melody and swells of warm guitar fuzz, as well as a more prominent female vocal. Even when they strip things back on the sparse ‘Mental Health’, you can hear that every subtle nuance has been tweaked with perfection – never deviating from the path this cohesive album follows.

So few albums can lay claim to having constant highs, with very few lows, but ‘Harmlessness’ comes pretty close to being a near perfect album. As they tread a more familiar ground with some unsubtle Modest Mouse worship on ‘Wendover’, and apply a classic emo sound on ‘I Can Be Afraid of Anything’, it still sounds surprisingly original. However, they reach a new level of grandeur that has not been seen from TWIABP before, in the form of the 8-minute epic ‘Mount Hum’. Twisting through straight forward driving rhythms, exuberant harmonies, and shimmering post-rock decadence; drawing ‘Harmlessness’ to a close with perfection.

‘Harmlessness’ has really shown what TWIABP are truly capable of, rather than just trying to repeat what they have already done. They have capitalised on the chances they have been given, and expanded on everything that has preceded this LP. When we live in a time of bands coming and going like there’s no tomorrow, the inviting charm of ‘Harmlessness’ cements TWIABP’s position as one of the most innovative bands in modern rock music.

GLEN BUSHELL