The stalwart British rockers' sixth full-length effort,
Like a House on Fire
sees
Asking Alexandria
continuing to distance themselves from the screamo/metalcore scene in which they were forged. While much of the uncompromising heaviness remains, that aggression is tempered by a willingness to measure the sonic possibilities of melody with a much longer yardstick than in the past. Bursting at the seams with 15 tracks,
could have benefitted from some pruning, since it's as protracted as it is sonically and stylistically diverse. Commencing with the titular cut, a stadium-filling anti-anthem that effectively imbues the group's trademark power and melodic angst with a radio-ready modern rock sheen, the LP cycles through a multitude of genres before coming to rest on the sugary and sleazy electro-pop closer "Lorazepam." A predilection towards electronics has always been in the band's wheelhouse, but
is positively voltaic, with every palm-muted riff and beefy breakdown being carried along by a cavalcade of loops, programmed beats, and moody synth pads. Pizzicato digital string plucks accompany the verses of the otherwise hulking "One Turns to None," opaque tendrils of contemporary R&B weave themselves into "It's Not Me (It's You)" and "Here's to Starting Over," and token power ballad "I Don't Need You" -- a duet with social media star
Grace Grundy
-- even flirts with modern country. Still, there are plenty of muscular and grandiose moments to be found here, many of which ("Down to Hell," "Antisocialist, The Violence") retain the scope and seismic heft of the group's earlier works. That said, no longer wading into the mainstream,
have officially gone swimming, and it'll be up to longtime fans to decide whether or not the water is fine or not. ~ James Christopher Monger