While She Sleeps is on a new and very interesting path this time around. Coming off of SLEEPS SOCIETY, they were at their creative best, both in their music and in their identity, and their deluxe additions were no different. I was pretty impressed at how robust their sound had become, especially for how unique it was already. When they released SELF HELL, I have to admit that it was a bit of a whiplash moment.
SELF HELL is a drastically different sound from what everyone is used to, and depending on how open you are with your music tastes, you might love it or entirely hate it. It's a super spiritual synth-heavy nü-metalcore dance groove, a blend of elements that makes complete sense for While She Sleeps even though I didn't see it coming. The band has always been moving towards these sounds even if you hadn't noticed, but you'd definitely notice this time around as it's one of the biggest jumps they've made.
Their repeating motif of "let's praise the love inside of us" is a core theme of the song, and it starts off the song before going into a groovy nü-metal riff. As the song progresses, it becomes more noticeable that this is heavily electronic, courtesy of Sean. It seems that he's dual wielding these days, either a guitar and double whammy pedal combo or a straight up synth patch, which is super fun honestly. As much as I love seeing Sean go ham on the strings, his synthwork is pretty tasteful and adds a lot of colour to their music.
The nü-metal aspect really shines through in the verses and their rapping/talking aspect, and lyrically it feels exactly like While She Sleeps, complete with mantra-esque lines and unapologetic rants on inner self and spirituality. Switching between robotic palettes and punchy punk ones, the verses are, even at it's very least, never dull. The choruses are quite a contrast in comparison, sounding more like an electronically infused psychedelic rock passage, stereotypically reminding me of hipsters and stuff.
After the second chorus, there's a fun groovy chug section that's subtly Bleed-like, before going into the breakdown itself. I like the cheekiness of adding claps into this section for that one moment, continuing to affirm their "we'll do what we want" mentality. The breakdown is slightly closer to metalcore territory though, and I love how frantic the drumming gets building up to the drop. Synths are already flying around during the build up, then become the main melody of the breakdown itself. A solo comes after, and even though it's a bit short, it's nice to see Sean still rip the guitar a bit with his signature high lead whammy playing style.
SELF HELL is definitely a very different cup of tea, and I can see it being slightly controversial as a release for long-time fans, but I appreciate it for what it is. Even though I personally didn't find myself coming back to it, I have to admit that, all things considered, it's a good song and a great release for them. It's a great blend of all their current stylistic elements, and it really sets the tone for what they're capable of these days. Much like how Bring Me The Horizon did with their current entire POST HUMAN catalogue, I think While She Sleeps is making a statement: they're making what they want to make, and they don't care what you think.
Rating: 2.5/5