POST HUMAN: NeX GEn

This album has been added to 2 public lists:

• 

  Vortex's Album of the Year List '24

  Tom

  Metalheads are always complaining. It's kind of their thing. The common refrain as of late has been that there's a lack of "big" metal bands that are actually good, or even interesting. Bring Me The Horizon hasn't wholly escaped those criticisms in the past, and the skepticism only ramped up with the recent departure of a key member, but with POST HUMAN: NeX GEn they've proven they're worthy of the legacy left for them by the legendary bands of old.

  For one thing, this shit sounds damn good! Guitar shreds like the ones in intro track YOUtopia are compressed into fleshy, wet crunches of noise, and lead vocalist Oli Sykes is front and centre with that signature rasp and surprisingly nimble range. It's something he flexes often on this project, hanging just above gnashing drums with ease. Kool-Aid is the track I first heard off the album, and it's everything pop metal should be; gloriously self-indulgent, sexy, and fuzzy, with an immense hook that was BUILT for arena-filling speakers.

  It's also impressive how willing BMTH have shown themselves to be in inviting newer genres into the metal fold. Tracks like Top 10 staTues tHat CriEd bloOd, p.u.s.s.e and R.i.p. (duskCOre remix) bring hyperpop and jungle elements of abrasive stuttering and incredibly heavy, thumping beats and combine them with an increasingly experimental metal sound that makes for one of the most engaging listens of the year.

  There's just straight heaviness here, too, like liMOusIne, a track with heavy Deftones vibes and a doomcore cadence. Already sounds pretty compelling, right? Take that track and put AURORA, a folksy, elfin singer/songwriter on the top, tying her voice inbetween Oli's yowls and cresting over the top of dirty screams. Does it sound good? Of course it does, and the cherry on top of the poisoned cake is one of the most romantic bridges I've ever heard: "So lock all the doors/Cos I'm insecure" resolves all the tension you didn't even know had built up.

  That sums NeX GEn up perfectly, really; take damn good metal and blend it up with whatever was at hand, whether that's utilising Gupi's talents to churn Undertale Sans' laughs into chirpy, knives-out chugdowns or silly breakcore drums into a track about existential crises on LosT. It's everything modern metal should be; fearless, SO damn emo, and thrilling at all times. You know this fucking rips in concert. Metal's doing well, guys.

• 

  Top 80 Albums 2024

  rodeiji