More than two years after POST HUMAN: SURVIVAL HORROR, the wait is over. Bring Me The Horizon has finally announced the existence of PH2, and with it comes a new single that Oli Sykes himself says has realised his vision of what "future emo" sounds like. I gotta say, he might be absolutely right on this one.
DiE4u and sTraNgeRs both had a very fun modern emo sound still rooted in their diverse Bring Me The Horizon sound, but LosT absolutely blew me away with the unique production work and musical style that screams future emo like no other. Drawing influences from hyperpop, glitch music and emo, and leaving their own personal touch on it, LosT has become one of their most fun songs in their discography.
From the very start, the "future" in "future emo" is made very clear with a synth melody that also shows up a lot in the rest of the song. They combine that with strong emo rock elements to build the intro until the verse. The verses are highly electronic, but they do have their fun with it, throwing in subtle vocal effects and sound effects throughout. The soundscape and production of Bring Me The Horizon has always been astounding, but with the scope of a hyperpop-infused emo rock sound, they've really gone above and beyond with this one.
The chorus, like most of Bring Me The Horizon's discography, is undoubtedly catchy and strong. Coupled with the drums coming in, it just makes for an energetic and bouncy section that contrasts well with the verses. People have made comparisons to My Chemical Romance and I honestly don't see it, but I'm glad to know they got the "emo" part on lockdown too. It amazes me too, that with all the genre-blending they-ve been doing in the past few years, it seems that they've only managed to become even more accessible and pop-sensible amidst it all.
I have to be honest and say that I wouldn't mind a bit more screaming, but we still get a decent tasting with the end of the second chorus and some of the breakdown. I'm not sure what the prospects are for screaming on PH2, especially since the band is hoping to make the records more distinct by leaving the heavy stuff to one of the later records, but I do hope that they cross into some screamo territory on this upcoming future emo record.
When it comes to the "future emo" sound, the breakdown sealed the deal for me. I truthfully was not expecting glitchy easycore, and I was so ecstatic hearing it for the first time that I could barely stay in my chair. They've managed to find such a refreshing way to execute breakdowns with electronic elements, even electronicore of the 2010s didn't come close to this. I have to give props to the producers that worked alongside them to spice up simple chugs to this hyperpop insanity breakdown, including the build up to it. The sonic textures scratch all the itches in my brain, especially as someone who grew up with EDM and fell in love with metal after. The processed vocal callout, overlaying chopped vocals on the chugs, the gang vocal "woah"s in the post-breakdown, that one downbend note in the riff, everything about this breakdown makes me so happy.
The song ends in a very reasonable way and there's nothing else amazing to mention, but it wraps up the whole track nicely. I really do think they hit the mark with this track, because the previous two singles, albeit pretty good tracks, didn't make future emo click for me as much as this did. The moment I heard this song, it all made sense, what their vision for future emo really was and what it sounded like. It's neverendingly awesome to continue to see this band push boundaries and fearlessly redefine their music, constantly excelling no matter what territory they're in. I was excited enough on the wait for PH1, but PH2 may just take the title of my most anticipated record of this year, which will be a feat against the likes of Sleep Token's Take Me Back To Eden and Fall Out Boy's So Much (For) Stardust. LosT might just usher in their newest collection of best songs to date, we shall wait and see.
Rating: 4/5