Bring Me The Horizon “amo” Album Review

For a band that started with deathcore, Bring Me The Horizon have evolved their sound in countless ways throughout the 15 years they’ve been together – but with their sixth album amo, they utilized a wider range of sounds and styles than ever before, and experimented with them in unpredictably eccentric ways. Do not listen to this album expecting it to be metal or like anything they’ve done before, or you will be sorely disappointed. This is a record that needs to be listened to with an open mind and a blind ear in order to appreciate it for what it really is.

The album was named after the Portuguese word for “I love” as it is a concept album that describes every positive and negative aspect of the spectrum of emotions it kindles (and the frontman’s wife is Portuguese). Since the band’s last album release in 2015, frontman Oliver Sykes has gone through marriage, divorce, his second marriage, and the loss of a childhood friend. Upon hearing this news, one can easily assume he had a lot to write about for a collection of songs based on love – but no one could’ve ever predicted the directions he would take the songs in musically. Being produced by Sykes himself as well as keyboardist Jordan Fish, the band had full creative control for this album.

The record starts with the track “i apologise if you feel something”, a dark electronic introduction that only gives you a small taste of the emotional sonic journey you’re starting. With its processed vocals and generally static vibe, some may find it unnecessary along with the two interludes “ouch” and “fresh bruises” – but when listened to in the context of the album, the inclusion of these tracks makes more sense. “ouch” references a song off their last album with its brutally honest lyric “I know I said you could drag me through hell, but I hoped you wouldn’t fuck the devil” about Sykes’s ex-wife who had an affair.

The first two singles released, “MANTRA” and “wonderful life” are on the heavier side of the album, with their huge anthemic choruses and vigorous guitars. “MANTRA” is a rock song that compares starting a relationship to starting a cult, while “wonderful life” is about finding pleasure in the mundane parts of life while off tour, and features Cradle of Filth’s Dani Filth, as well as an electrifying horn section – probably the best way they could’ve ended the song to ensure it would be memorable. The track “sugar honey ice & tea” is also full of heavily distorted guitars, stirring electronics and some wretched muffled screams under a falsetto chorus.

But we’re only getting started with the many sounds and styles amo has to offer. “nihilist blues” is a very well-written EDM-styled song with haunting vocals from both Sykes and featured artist Grimes (definitely a collaboration none of us expected). The instrumentals include powerful riveting synths and a thrilling chorus you could imagine hearing at a rave. The poppier songs on the album such as “medicine” and “in the dark” may not impress you right away if you have a strong preference for the band’s metal side, but there’s no denying how catchy they are. Give songs like these a few extra listens before you label them generic pop songs – heavy or not, these are solidly written songs with melodies that stick and lyrics that hit hard. I’m not sure if I can say the same for “mother tongue”, probably the poppiest – and definitely the happiest – song they have ever released. It felt pretty bland to me in comparison to all their other work, but at the same time, there is something intriguing and uplifting about hearing Sykes sound happy in a song for a change. When you hear someone who’s written so many songs about suffering sing about gushing over his wife, you know it has to be genuine.

Another song that really threw me off guard at first listen is “why you gotta kick me when i’m down?”, a song written to fans who make judgments on the band based on the information about their personal lives they find online. Musically, the song is a wild ride. We hear Sykes rap for the first time, followed by a hard-hitting trap chorus that builds chaos once the vocals start to get more aggressive. This is a track that you either love or hate, with its many unconventional elements thrown together into sonic disarray. They definitely took some huge risks with this one.

The penultimate track “heavy metal” is a song that calls out fans who have continuously complained about the band stepping further away from their deathcore and metalcore roots with every new album. It features siren-like sound effects and rapper Rahzel, who adds in some tasty beatboxing. In the last few seconds of the song, the instruments build aggression as Sykes starts to scream “this ain’t heavy metal,” delivering both his beloved highs and lows that older fans have missed. The song then ends abruptly, and goes straight into the final track “i don’t know what to say” which starts with soft, classically influenced violins. This song is about Sykes’s childhood friend who he lost to cancer, and may be the most emotionally compelling song on the album. In addition to the enchanting violins, it features an orchestra, soothing electronics and a guitar solo. After the solo ends, we hear more mellow sounds and effects, and then the violin comes back in to gradually end the album, as if to close the curtains around the impassioned collection of love-inspired songs.

While this album is a bold compilation of creative risks and is not for everyone, it is one that should be listened to a few times to properly recognize its artistic intent. Every track is very different, and there is so much going on that you may not notice in your first listen. If you think you have the album figured out after listening to a few songs, you don’t. There are so many curveballs thrown at you that you really never know what is going to happen next. Give it your full attention and it will leave you completely dumbfounded. Bring Me The Horizon have proven themselves to be capable of evolution in such unforeseeable ways, there is really no telling where they will go next.

Favorite tracks: in the dark, i don’t know what to say