Bring Me The Horizon Sounds a Bit Unhappy

Give Bring Me The Horizon a five foot perimeter berth. The Brits may be singing "Happy Song" but they're anything but gleeful. Lucky for us they have their agitation meter cranked up to eleven. More unrest equals more metallic mind blowing. Nobody dialed it in here. You could quibble that the chord arrangements aren't that dynamic but if you step away from that and focus your cosmic energy on the explosiveness the band brings to an unapologetic head I promise you won't be left disappointed. Lead vocalist Oliver Sykes slides into disturbed psyche ward patient turf and isn't too unhappy to join the party. Drummer Matt Nicholls hammers away behind drums like somoeone slapped his girlfriend and brutalized his dog. Lee Malia comes with guns blazing in his unrelenting guitar salvo. Strip that from the song's toolkit and you'd lack the full spectrum of amazing "Happy Song" makes overtures to give you. Bassist Matt Kean doesn't sit small in the saddle either. He sprays his bullets everywhere, leaving no survivors in his wake. Oliver reminds us what a depraved universe we occupy. So much depression, so little time for medication in the name of relief. If only we'd sing a happy song a little bit louder then maybe we'd be happy. I'm sensing he makes this suggestion in jest. Too much overtly suggestive anger behind the fangs. This great big void threatens to consume us. Not exactly schmaltzy greeting card thinking, huh? Where "Happy People" succeeds is in using the accelerator gear to help us forget what a bleak track this is. The "S.P.I.R.I.T." chorus isn't there as a stress reduction. Rather I think it's there to poke fun at the mirth people want versus the reality they're getting. This band boards the loathing locomotive and chugs on down to a certain sort of oblivion sensitive souls couldn't absorb in one sip. With each new step on the path Oliver digs his discontent in even deeper. Giving it all you've got doesn't register so much as a blip on the cosmic radar screen. Added grist for Oliver's rage. This song wears the schizophrenia well. Jagged outside and chewy inside. Bring Me The Horizon gets bonus points for keeping in mind that no one person rules the roost. Each player gets to work his forte to the hilt. What's our benefit? Rock served rough and ready. Oliver's a diabolical force but his mates aren't far from ambling by his side stride for stride. Oliver leans into his agonies full on at about the juncture where he cranks out "But if I sing along a little fucking louder to a happy song." The disenfranchisement seeps through his pores like a cancer that refuses to stop spreading. Matt's bass can't stop the bleeding, the very reason why this collision needs to be appreciated from a close range. Lee adds kindling to the burn. Still no let up. Artistically "Happy Song" doesn't stray far from the angry man formula. That's not objectionable. Vented frustration has its place. If that skill gets honed steadily over time you can say you authored a fantastic bit of rock poetry. "Happy Song" exposes some angry men with a combustible spirit. Catch the contradictory cacophony on the forthcoming "That's The Spirit" album.