Project Description
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VOLUMES
‘Happier?’
(Album Review)
27th November 2021
Review by Karl Anchique
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PHOTO CREDIT: LINDSEY BYRNES
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Volumes’ new album Happier? delves into themes of loss, broken trust, and failed relationships with incredible talent and vigour. Released with vocalist Michael Barr after his lengthy absence, his energy is a revelation for the band. Happier? highlights Volumes’ musical dexterity and is mastered with a keen ear for detail, which will be absolute pleasure for the audiophile.
FBX kicks Happier? off with sirens and electric drums which foreshadows the menacing guitar riff perfectly. This riff builds into a call and response chorus between the electric and bass guitars that finishes with all instruments playing in unison. Barr’s and Myke Terry’s screams are guttural to match the intensity of the music. FBX is as ferocious a start as you could hope for, and a statement of intention from Volumes.
Malevolent spares no time in announcing itself with an intricate slap bass riff that sets an unrelenting precedent that drives the song forward. The staccato riffage in the verses set a solid platform for Barr and Terry’s brutal screams. The interplay between guitars and drums in the breakdown creates an uncomfortable tension that resolves in a slowed down return of the chorus, emphasising the best of the choruses instrumentation. Woven into the fabric of Malevolent is an atmos track that sits above the mix, creating an unsettling feeling that permeates the track wonderfully.
Bend starts with an optimistic fade-in guitar driven intro which flows into an ethereal sounding sung verse. The chorus features powerful singing from Terry and Barr, complimenting the pulsating instrumentation to deliver an all encompassing experience. The band propels the second verse vociferously with intelligent tom and kick drum beats that support a foreboding bass line. This is all before an introspective and sedate bridge, which highlights Volumes ability to manipulate their bands dynamics to create new soundscapes from section to section. Bend is a musically eclectic song, and is executed with astonishing talent.
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Get Enough’s electronic intro contrasts the slow, drone riff that follows, making for a pronounced jump when moving into the screamed verse. The riffage in Get Enough is bass heavy, creating an angry feel which sustains the screams beautifully. The breakdown is emblematic of this anger, with heavily distorted bass dominating the soundscape which makes the bands sound thicker despite sparser instrumentation. Get Enough’s choruses are uplifting, featuring screamed and sung lines that play off, and work together to highlight Barr and Terry’s vocal prowess.
Lets Me Down reveals a melodic side Volumes, with musical and vocal elements working in unison to contribute to a complex soundscape. Lyrically, Lets Me Down tackles the topic of broken trust without hiding behind metaphor, “Everything, everyone lets me down.” and reveals a sensitivity that is usually concealed underneath distorted guitars and screams. The breakdown has a finality about it, which is done through the guitars protracted notes and the drums expansive fills, making Lets Me Down feel like an album ender.
Man On Fire exhibits Volume’s ability to write songs that maintain a consistent momentum throughout, and show a diversity in musicality to embellish instruments to their fullest extent. The bass and drum interplay is a great example of this talent, with the bass following the drums feel to leave space for the guitars to be expressed more dramatically. Another interesting aspect of the rhythm section is the groove which has a danceability to it that is normally absent in other metal music. Man On Fire is a release of anger and emotion, intelligently portrayed through intricate musicianship.
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Weighted explores how external perception and pressure can affect a persons psyche to the degree that one feels like no option but fight against it. This notion is conveyed through the lyric, “Take a picture cause I’m right back at it again.” which is repeated by Barr like a mantra to ward off onlookers, and simultaneously own his own behaviour remiss of regret. Musically, Weighted features superb slap bass play which accentuates drum hits exaggerate their percussiveness.
See You Again discusses the emotions around longing for someone you love, the concern over their absence, and the mental drain that accompanies solitude. This feeling of desperate loss is conveyed perfectly through the chorus, “We’ve come to a head, and I was hoping I could see you again… Where will you go? Cause you’re all I’ve got, and I was hoping that I could see you again.” and despite their angry delivery, you can sense the hopelessness and grief. The music in See You Again maintains an anxious optimism, featuring predominantly high and open notes, expressing the feelings elicited in the forlorn lyricism.
Into You (Hurt) is another track alluding to themes of loss and being kept away from someone you care for. The musical standout is the verse bass play, which ebbs and flows to create a great ground level for it’s accompaniment to grow upon. The breakdown in Into You (Hurt) is prefaced by a short silence, which allows you a moment to gather yourself before flying headlong into brutal riffage and screams.
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Void depicts the state of mind from a bereaved person struggling to comprehend what they’ve experienced, and how to continue despite being mentally frayed. Articulated accurately through the chorus lyric, “Save yourself. You know I’m tired of saving you. Drown me out, hope you figure out, before the walls close in.” Terry displays how the emotional erosion of this relationship has affected him to the point that he’s given up on it. And even though Terry knows that extricating himself from the relationship will be detrimental to his partner, he knows it might be the only way to save himself. The grungy riffs and slow drum beat make for the perfect drab template for the lyrics to be expressed to their fullest extent.
Volumes combines all the best aspects of this album into Happier?. The guitars play graceful harmonies that are panned intelligently to take up a large amount of sonic real estate. The bass guitar growls away in the background for Happier?, which allows for the guitars to be embellished, and gives the drums an extra punch to bolster an already tremendous beat. The musicality underlines Barr’s throaty screams and Terry’s melodic singing, which lets us listen to their clear, impressive vocal lines. Happier?’s fade-out outro is simple but allows for the album to conclude solemnly and reverently, as though mourning it’s finish.
Happier? is a powerhouse from start to finish, exhibiting the absolute musicality Volumes possess and the songwriting experience of a band at it’s best.
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Get the metallic juggernaut here
HAPPIER?
Track Listing:
01. FBX
02. Malevolent
03. Bend
04. Get Enough
05. Lets Me Down
06. Man on Fire
07. Weighted
08. See You Again
09. Into You (Hurt)
10. Void
11. Happier?
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Follow VOLUMES
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Press Release 22nd November 2021 (below) HERE
VOLUMES
new album
‘HAPPIER?’
Out Now
on Fearless Records
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AMNPLIFY – DB
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