I think it’s fair to say that Punktastic hasn’t been overly kind to Atreyu in the past – slating both of their last two records. While Jay ripped into ‘The Curse’, I hammered ‘Suicide Notes and Butterfly Kisses’. Now I don’t profess to being an expert on hardcore at all, which is maybe why I didn’t ‘get’ the band’s first record, but I’m certainly more qualified to listen to their new record – a CD that throws in huge singalong choruses and melodies alongside some gargantuan metal solos. Oh, and the odd scream and shout…
Atreyu haven’t exactly progressed as a band – I’m sure old-skool fans would say they’ve maybe even regressed, toning down the aggression and introducing more singing into the mix. With bands like Avenged Sevenfold making the jump to a major label, they’ve opened the doors for bands such as Atreyu to make a dash for the brighter lights and ‘A Death Grip On Yesterday’ is certainly the record that will take them to that next level – and perhaps even beyond. More accessible than their last album by miles, there are even a couple of songs that, with a decent video, could even chart in the Top 40 (‘Your Private War’ for example).
This is certainly not a record for the hardcore purists. ‘The theft’ has an enormous vocal melody and a huge hook in the chorus that could have been lifted from a pop song. Alex Varkatzas barks and screams his way through the song, but it’s about as aggressive as the band get. ‘Ex’s and Oh’s’ is another track with a very distinct melody and Alex again sings more than he screams. The first time the band crank out the metal guitar is during ‘Our Sick Story (Thus Far)’ and it’s the first time the band actually sound like the Atreyu of old. The solo at the end of the end of the song is actually spot on and I can imagine it’d sound great live.
Now I can appreciate that generic is sometimes palatable, but ‘Your Private war’ is a bit too sugary-sweet for me. I mean it’s a fucking ballad! Still, ‘Shameful’ and ‘Creature’ turn the volume notch up a little bit. I can’t stress enough how melodic and ‘mainstream’ this record is, but I think Atreyu have reached the point now where they couldn’t even begin to suggest they’re a hardcore band anymore – the chorus on ‘Creature’ would dispel that myth immediately. My favourite song on the album is ‘My Fork In the Road (Your Knife In My Back’), a track which actually maintains a nice balance between screaming and singing – again it’s more poppy than the band are used to producing, but it’s something a pop-kid like myself can stomach.
‘The Curse’ went Gold, but I can see ‘A Death Grip On Yesterday’ going Platinum. While it’s a far cry from what the band started on ‘Suicide Notes…’, this record is about perfect for its genre. It has hooks in all the right places, perfectly watered down screams and, with an army of black-clad teenage fans already locked in place, Atreyu can look forward to a very successful 2006. ‘A Death Grip On Yesterday’ won’t win any awards for being inventive or original, but sometimes being generic wins. They maybe don’t compare to bands like Darkest Hour, but compared to other bands of the ‘pop-hardcore’ ilk, Atreyu are as good as anyone…
www.atreyurock.com
Victory Records
Paul