Brand New- The Devil and God Are Raging Inside of Me (Album Review)

Late…

I know that this review is 5 years late and Brand New has come out with a new album but honestly, I have just started to get into this album. I was a big fan of the album “Your Favorite Weapon” and a Huge fan of “Deja Entendu”. Then this album came around and I skipped the songs before they were over and then gave the CD back to my friend and never had the desire to hear it again. Then I heard one of the songs a year latter a few years after that I remembered parts of the song and needed to hear it again. I streamed the album, I bought the album, I listened often. I have now really come to love the first half of the album and like the second half. 

A Dark Angst

This album has a darker feel to the music and not just the lyrics. Though Brand New has always been known for singing about some of the darker sides to life, you really feel that darkness in the music. But those monotonous and droning melodies that Jesse Lacey sings put you on stable ground. They put themselves in the common category of rock with this album but they do it in a bold and solid way that makes them distinct in such a huge category of music.

The Good!

The build ups and breakdowns that you expect from Brand New. This album can sneak up on you and you can find yourself craving the dreary mood that comes with it. The hard crunchy guitars, searing solos, and driving drums are surprisingly calming. Lacey’s vocals are probably what make it smooth and calming amidst the chaos of the music and the world that he sings about. The two guitar parts on Jesus Christ blend into one addicting melodious part. There are parts that crescendo into a scream and feel big and not as if they could have been bigger like so many other band need. It is the same old Brand New doing different things witch is refreshing after their second album is French for ‘Already Heard’.

The Bad…

The subjects that are sung about really aren’t that uplifting and definitely are dreary. The change from the first two albums was difficult for me to jump past as it may have been for so many other people. Also the second half of the album looses my interest and there is a swing of 8 play counts less from the first song compared to the last on my playlist. I just can’t stay in the mood that they created for so long though I do crave it at times.

Overall?

3.5 out of 5. The album does perplex me and I can’t quite put my finger on it. That is probably why it keeps calling me back but I can hardly ever get though it. There is mystery in this album that has taken me 5 years to even get into and who knows how long before I can actually wrap my head around it.