Welsh thrash/metalcore band
Bullet for My Valentine
sold a lot of records out of the gate with their 2006 album
The Poison
, blending old-school metal riffing and emo lyrical content in a manner similar to Stateside peers like
Atreyu
. On their second album, 2008's
Scream Aim Fire
, they evolved into a much more aggressive and assured metal act, going a little easier on the overwrought diary-entry lyrics in favor of
Trivium
-style anthems like
"Eye of the Storm"
and
"Waking the Demon."
On their third disc, they consolidate their style and split the difference between their two previous discs, offering ultra-clean singing and overwrought lost-love lyrics atop a bed of gated and triggered drums, staccato guitar riffing, and arena-friendly soloing. Having apparently overcome the throat problems that plagued him around the time of
,
Matt Tuck'
s vocals are powerful and committed, whether on heavy tracks like
"Your Betrayal"
or ballads like
"Bittersweet Memories."
This isn't a pathbreaking album by a band with any chance at reshaping their genre in their image; it's a solid disc by a group that knows its own strengths. ~ Phil Freeman