Do you like big riffs? Yeah course you do, well if you haven’t already make sure you do yourself a favour and listen to Every Time I Die’s latest record. Got that? Good. Every Time I Die releasing great records has now become almost boringly predictable. Their latest release entitled Low Teens is the eighth album from the band. Unsurprisingly it follows the same formulae as the rest of their back catalogue by being undoubtedly brilliant. Bursting with stomping riffs, dirty southern swagger and unrelenting ravenous hardcore punk aggression Low teens perfectly encapsulates all the reasons as to why Every Time I Die are so beloved.
With Low Teens the band have once again embraced their penchant for dirty blues straight from Americas deep south. Their previous album, From Parts Unknown, was the band clearly exploring their heavier and aggressive influences. Whilst this was still a great record it’s great to hear the more melodic side coming through once again. This is exemplified perfectly in the track It Remembers, which features a sauntering bluesy guitar line accompanied by the soulful vocals of Keith Buckley. It Remembers also stands out due to the song featuring Brendon Urie of Panic at the Disco Fame, a mismatch of styles at first glance. However, his voice seems to perfectly blend into the song without the band compromising their sound. Another standout song is the infectiously catchy stomp of Two Summers. With huge choruses matching up to the size of the mountainous riffing its songs such as this which really show why ETID standout from their peers. The song calls back to some of the bands hits like We’rewolf with its cowbell work and more melodic vocal approach. Its more than clear this song is going to fit in perfectly with tracks like The New Black live.
Those worried that this record might not contain the mammoth heaviness of the bands previous work have no need to fear. Songs like The Coin Has a Say feature some of the most crushing groove laden material the band have ever produced. This song in particular also has more of the genius lyrical work that makes Keith Buckley such an exciting vocalist. “I can’t go back to what I was, Metallica without the drugs” for instance is just one gem uttered from the frontman’s screeching mouth. Oddly enough though it is the heavier and faster tracks that seems to stunt Low Teens momentum. It’s not that there are any particularly bad songs on this record it’s just some are of far higher quality than others. Upon multiple listens it’s hard not to feel just a couple of songs could have been cut to maybe streamline this into a better album.
As to where this record sits alongside the bands previous efforts it would be fair to say it’s in the mix with their best material. Possibly not matching up the heights of Gutter Phenomenon and the Big Dirty but undoubtedly taking a place ahead of the bands last couple of releases. Low Teens essentially just continues the trend of Every Time I Die releasing high quality albums, it doesn’t reinvent the wheel for the band’s sound but successfully feeds fans appetites for big stomping riffs. Ultimately there’s nothing wrong with that and truthfully the band do include enough subtle eccentricities to spice up the record. Due to the bands hot streak of albums it may be easy to take Every Time I Die for granted. With Low Teens it’s important to note just how fortunate we all are to have someone so consistently great as ETID.
More on Every Time I Die can be found here….
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