In the metal world, Welsh rockers Bullet For My Valentine have showcased their sheer talent for melody and well thought out arrangements. With each album, Bullet For My Valentine has allowed their legion of fans to unpack layers of the band as they offered up new elements with each album. However, with “Gravity”, they are bound to be taking that road less traveled that Ralph Waldo Emerson would famously coin way back when.
We have seen bands such as Parkway Drive and Blessthefall evolve their sound over time to sound virtually night and day from their debut record to their current record. With “Gravity”, fans will see Bullet For My Valentine continue that same trend as this record offers more electronica elements and more of an alt-metal sound to their music. This move could alienate some of the core fanbase, however this move could bring in new fans. Naturally, Bullet For My Valentine is going to wish it was the latter instead of the former.
Appropriately, “Gravity” starts off with a track entitled “Leap Of Faith”. Some bands prefer to test the water to check the temperature of the water or to check the depth of the water. In this track, Bullet For My Valentine dives in head first without checking the temperature or the depth of the water. With the arrangements and lyrical content of the song, this song exemplifies that new direction that Bullet For My Valentine is heading in their careers with this song.
Fans will certainly appreciate the track “Letting You Go”, especially the orchestral ambiance that builds up into a ballsy chorus that old school Bullet For My Valentine fans will certainly appreciate. “Not Dead Yet” continues to provide that soaring and anthemic feeling in the band that they are not going away and that they are here to stay.
In the baseball game of life, Bullet For My Valentine not only throws a curveball, but throws an R.A. Dickey style of knuckleball with their ballad “The Very Last Time”. The song is packed full of emotion but it provides that moment where Bullet For My Valentine has started a new chapter in their respective careers.
Old school fans should embrace this record with open arms, but some hardcore fans might take this album as a bitter pill to swallow as the metalcore riffs aren’t there as frequent(while there is a breakdown here and there in this album) in favor of incorporating more electronica and ballad-y riffs throughout the album. This record showcases the talent that Bullet For My Valentine possesses and that they continue to showcase their willingness to experiment in their songwriting. I just felt that this record wasn’t very memorable, and the electronica arrangements in the record were too distracting and Matt Tuck’s voice sounds way too polished. Madness To Creation rates this a 6 out of 10 stars, there are songs that are “all right” on here, but I need a band with the caliber of Bullet For My Valentine to do more to showcase that they belong at the top of the metal mountain. Here is the track listing below.
- Leap of Faith
- Over It
- Letting You Go
- Not Dead Yet
- The Very Last Time
- Piece of Me
- Under Again
- Gravity
- Coma
- Don’t Need You
- Breathe Underwater
Bullet For My Valentine will be touring in support of “Gravity”. Check out tour dates below.
Thursday, June 28th- Panesky Tynec Airport in Panesky Tynec, Czech Republic (w/Stone Sour, Limp Bizkit, Nine Inch Nails, Parkway Drive, Wiz Khalifa, Lana Del Ray, and Macklemore)
Friday, June 29th- Download Festival in Madrid, Spain (w/Thrice)
Saturday, June 30th- Vainstream Rockfest in Munster-sarmsheim, Germany
Saturday, July 14th- Festival d’ete de Quebec in Quebec City, Canada
Tuesday, July 17th- Harbour Station in Saint John, Canada (w/Avenged Sevenfold)
Thursday, July 19th- Les Grandes Fetes Telus in Rimouski, Canada
Saturday, July 28th- Borgholm Brinner Fest in Oland, Sweden (w/In Flames)
Saturday, August 18th- Summersonic in Tokyo, Japan
Sunday, August 19th- Summersonic in Higashi-osaka, Japan
Sunday, August 26th- Zaxidfest in Lviv, Ukraine (w/Sepultura)
Thursday, September 13th- Harrah’s Voodoo Lounge in Kansas City, Missouri
Friday, September 14th- Riot Fest in Chicago, Illinois
Saturday, September 15th- Myth Live in St. Paul, Minnesota
Tuesday, September 18th- The Pageant in St. Louis, Missouri
Thursday, September 20th- Diamond Ballroom in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Friday, September 21st- House of Blues in Dallas, Texas (w/Of Mice & Men)
Saturday, September 22nd- Emo’s in Austin, Texas
Monday, September 24th- House of Blues in Houston, Texas
Tuesday, September 25th- Aztec Theatre in San Antonio, Texas
Thursday, September 27th- Buckhead Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia
Saturday, September 29th- Louder Than Life Festival in Louisville, Kentucky (w/Godsmack, Five Finger Death Punch, Sick Puppies, and Dance Gavin Dance)
Sunday, September 30th- 20 Monroe Live in Grand Rapids, Michigan
Tuesday, October 2nd- House of Blues in Cleveland, Ohio
Wednesday, October 3rd- SI Hall in Syracuse, New York
Thursday, October 4th- House of Blues in Boston, Massachusetts
Saturday, October 6th- Monster Energy’s Rock Allegiance Festival in Camden, New Jersey (w/Avenged Sevenfold, Papa Roach, Limp Bizkit, Skillet, Fozzy, Insane Clown Posse, Of Mice & Men, Sylar, Beartooth, Bad Wolves, Bad Omens, Devour The Day, Blacktop Mojo, Knocked Loose, From Ashes To New, Stone Broken, and The Fever 333)
Sunday, October 7th- The Fillmore in Detroit, Michigan
Tuesday, October 9th- The Cotillion Ballroom in Wichita, Kansas
Wednesday, October 10th- Ogden Theatre in Denver, Colorado
Friday, October 12th- The Wiltern in Los Angeles, California
Sunday, October 14th- Monster Energy Aftershock Festival in Sacramento, Calfornia (w/Underoath, Black Veil Brides, and All Them Witches)
Tuesday, October 16th- House of Blues in Las Vegas, Nevada
Wednesday, October 24th- Columbiahalle in Berlin, Germany (w/Of Mice & Men)
Friday, October 26th- Jahrhunderthalle in Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
Saturday, October 27th- Palladium Cologne in Cologne, Germany
Sunday, October 28th- Zenith in Munich, Germany
Tuesday, October 30th- Samsung Hall in Zurich, Switzerland
Wednesday, October 31st- Estragon in Bologna, Italy
Friday, November 2nd- Gasometer in Vienna, Austria
Saturday, November 3rd- Haus Auensee in Leipzig, Germany
Tuesday, November 6th- Casino de Paris in Paris, France
Wednesday, November 7th- Rockhal in Roeser, Luxembourg
Thursday, November 8th- Poppodium 013 in Tilburg, Netherlands
Saturday, November 10th- Alexandria Palace in London, United Kingdom
Sunday, November 11th- Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff, United Kingdom
For tickets and further information on any shows or festival appearances, click here.
Fans can find Bullet For My Valentine at the following locations:
www.facebook.com/BulletForMyValentine
www.instagram.com/bfmvofficial
An outstanding review!