I remember this single not really catching my attention when it first dropped. I hadn't yet grown to love their newest record, Iridescent, but after that happened, I did revisit this single and it did in fact sound a lot cooler than I remembered. I guess that once the Silent Planet sound clicked for me, it clicked for everything.
Between the great blend of sharp metalcore and great cyberlike atmosphere, it feels like they've already started on a path towards new sound, incorporating more electronics than they had before. The airy synths remind me a bit of Loathe, especially of their atmospheric work on I Let It In And It Took Everything or the entire The Things They Believe ambient record. The riffwork on this song is mostly simple yet very tasteful, whether it's the chug patterns, the slightly dissonant verse riff, the sync-ups with the vocals in the middle, or just the general modern metalcore finesse of it all. And if I haven't commended it enough, the electronic work and production on this song is stellar. The fast climbing arppeggio synths behind the first intermission is a fantastic piece of the soundscape, and so is the highly distorted vocals that play back-and-forth with the chug riff.
The breakdown is nothing too crazy or spectacular, but it definitely has that signature Silent Planet touch to it, and the second half with the spoken-word-esque line is interesting at the very least. I adore the quick cadence of the word "broken" as well, it's very satisfying to hear for some reason.
This song has all the makings of a great Silent Planet song, and even though it might not be a top 5 kind of track, it definitely deserves to be listened to. Their cynically poetic lyricism remains on point, their metalcore writing continues to be innovative and their understanding of musical intent has yet to falter. It's been long enough since the previous album, and I'm very excited for the next era of their music, especially since they've announced a new single and it looks like we're on track for a new album cycle to begin soon.
Rating: 4/5