Tag Archives: Sam Carter

ALBUM REVIEW: Architects – the classic symptoms of a broken spirit

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Architects have been a busy band indeed these last couple of years, and it was initially somewhat of a surprise when they announced the release of their tenth studio album so soon after 2021’s game-changing career-shift in style on For Those That Wish To Exist, and the records accompanying Abbey Road Live recording that was released earlier this year.

But with For Those That Wish To Exist providing the Brighton based band their first UK number one release, and a diminished touring cycle providing the increased opportunity for writing new material and hitting the studio, it actually makes sense that Architects are looking to capitalise and continue their momentum on the upward trajectory into the arena rock band they are becoming.  

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ALBUM REVIEW: Architects – For Those That Wish To Exist: Live at Abbey Road 

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Last year, UK metalcore masters Architects showed a new side of their souls with their ninth album For Those That Wish To Exist (Epitaph Records). Now with their performance at the iconic Abbey Road Studios, each song shines in its full potential for a historic mark in the band’s career. 

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ALBUM REVIEW: Architects – For Those That Wish To Exist

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Please indulge me for one moment. I am not usually one for breaking the fourth wall when reviewing an album but bear with…. Back in 2004, I had a polar response to two albums in a way that encapsulates a particular dichotomy that fans (and bands) often find themselves caught up in that has stuck with me as a point of reflection ever since. To change, or not to change, that is the question… I remember the unshakeable feeling of disappointment at just how much Slipknot had changed their sound and attack on Vol III: The Subliminal Verses compared to Iowa (both Roadrunner), and the same deep sigh of discontent that Soil hadn’t changed enough (or at all, with Redefine, J Records).Continue reading →


Holding Absence – Holding Absence

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A debut album should stand as a bold statement of intent. Some bands absolutely nail the formula that they will rigidly stick to for their illustrious careers like Slayer did with Show No Mercy (Metal Blade Records). For others, it can be the start of a journey that is a mystery yet to unfold as they explore their own sounds and find comfort in their own abilities, see Undertow (Zoo Entertainment) by Prog Metal maestros, Tool. With their first full-length and self-titled effort (Sharptone), where do Holding Absence sit?Continue reading →


Architects: Live at Wembley Arena, London

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And so, to Architects at Wembley Arena. You start off with one of those angel/devil on your shoulder conversations about how this could be a really great way to spend a Saturday night or, conversely, rather like Roger Murtaugh in Lethal Weapon, you find yourself wondering whether you really are getting too old for this shit; a feeling that seems to continue as you take the tube northbound, past semi-frozen shoppers heading to warm homes and warm food, to the glorified cattle shed that is the SSE Arena, or Wembley Arena, as most of us still know (if not love) it.Continue reading →


Architects – Holy Hell

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It’s that gap between hope and expectation that we often fall through. Let’s be honest, your hope levels for Architects’ new album Holy Hell (Epitaph) might be stratospheric, but your expectations…? Given what this band has been through in terms of loss, sorrow and anguish, you could easily have fallen into that space of hoping for the best but guarding your expectations. It might be enough just that they simply deliver us something, anything, yes?Continue reading →


Good Charlotte – Generation RX

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It’s hard to fathom that Good Charlotte has been around for over twenty years – it doesn’t seem that long since the Maryland natives were the one band to really thrive in the pop-punk MTV explosion of the early 2000’s with the very successful The Young and The Hopeless (Epic/Daylight). They’re released a number of hits since then, the Madden brothers took time off for a side project, got married to Hollywood darlings, and came back with 2016’s Youth Authority (MDDN) to much praise from old fans, and not so much from others.

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Architects Announces New Album “Holy Hell”, New Video And Single Out Now

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One of the most hotly anticipated albums of 2018, Architects will release their new full-length Holy Hell, on November 9th on Epitaph Records. They also issued a new single and a music video which was directed by Jeb Hardwick. for ‘Hereafter’. Watch it below. The band also announced a headline tour of Europe and the UK, with tickets going on sale later this week!Continue reading →


Northlane – Mesmer

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Mesmer (UNFD/Rise) has been coming. This lush, expertly crafted album should come as no surprise. We’ve not just had the warning signs that its protagonists, Australian progressive metalcore act Northlane were ready to bring it all together for a couple of albums now, it’s been portended in neon lights that they could. That they should. And while the band may have enjoyed relative success to date, they had yet to fully convince. That is, until now.Continue reading →


Architects – All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us

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Architects- All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us ghostcultmag

 

For the most part, Metalcore is a genre with an air of defiance and empowering; normally a genre that is anthemic and uplifting with a positive message throughout. On latest album album All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us (Epitaph), serious credit has to be given to Brits Architects as they break this notion and offer an album with a towering message of bleakness and the need for us to stand up for change, in one of the boldest releases in the genre to date.

What is immediately striking about AOGHAU is how genuinely angry it sounds. Far from the faux rage of many of their peers, Architects have genuine reasons to be pissed off. As vegans and environmental activists, much of the album’s focus is on humanities destruction of the planet, and the sentiment of it is undoubtedly clear and real. Frontman Sam Carter in particular gives his most impassioned displays ever and very rarely drops from a full throttle roar, which amplifies the tone even further. The guitar work of course is very prominent and has a much darker tone than the genre is renowned for, whilst keys, rather than dominate, increase the atmosphere with subtle usage.

Aside from the soundscapes and textures, there are other signs that Architects are going for greater ambition than many of their peers, namely the 8 plus minute closer ‘Memento Mori’ which interjects the album’s trademark heaviness with passages of brooding, near ambience before erupting once again in sheer, white hot fury. In a genre that for all its greatness can prove stagnant at times, these signs and moves put Architects in a class of their own when it comes to vision in the genre, and thus have not only exceeded all their own greatness, but have further proven why they are one of the shining lights in the style, and for British metal itself.

9.0/10

CHRIS TIPPELL

 

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