Review: Atreyu - Lead Sails, Paper Anchor

AHEM. I KNOW THIS IS A LONG POST. BUT I PUT A LOT OF EFFORT INTO MAKING IT NOT A BORING READ, AND I EVEN WROTE A LITTLE MINI-STORY, SO IT'S ACTUALLY TWO POSTS IN ONE! I HOPE YOU ENJOY

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Atreyu's new Album came out a few days ago and I picked it up as soon as I woke up that day. I had no idea that purchasing and listening to this disc would bring me such turmoil... it tested my loyalty to Atreyu, metal, and music itself. While in the end it would make my appreciation of the music stronger, there were stormy waters and an overall feeling of being lost, stranded, and left for dead along the way. Before I review the album itself, I'd like to share with you the journey that this Album took me on, both the good and the bad.

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Lead Sails, Paper Anchor is a departure from Atreyu's usual methods more so than any of their previous works. Above all else, it seems to have marked the death of their underground status, and the birth of their acceptance into the "mainstream" of metal. This bothered me intensely when I first heard the disc, and it took me days to actually listen to the music without discriminating against it because it wasn't what I expected of the album. Some of you may remember my review of "A Deathgrip on Yesterday", which is arguably one of my Top-5 favorite albums. I wanted Lead Sails to be Deathgrip, Version 2, only, better! ...but this was not the case, so at first listen I hated almost every track, even the single "Becoming the Bull" that I had liked so much before the release of the album started to sound like crap to me.

Now, despite my existing spite towards the CD due to it not sounding like Deathgrip, I would probably have suffered the same feelings, to a lesser extent, had I not been as big a fan of Deathgrip as I am. This is because the new album contains very little screaming/metal vocals, and uses almost exclusively traditional vocals as the primary method of delivering lyrics. There are some screams, but almost all of the lyrics are vocalized without the usual guttural awesomeness that I associate with Alex Varkatzas the main vocalist. Interestingly enough, Alex's new vocals sound superb, it really shows that he has been working on his voice, and he can still scream just fine, but I suppose that he wanted to showcase what he had been working on and not do the same thing that he had been doing for the past three albums. Coming to this realization alone would not be enough for me to enjoy the album, however...

At first glance it would be easy to say that the lack of screaming is the reason the album is hard for an old Atreyu fan to accept, but this couldn't be farther from the truth. If that had been the only problem I wouldn't have had a hard time accepting the album by any means, a change in vocal styling would be noticeable, but acceptable. It was the change in vocals in combination of the change in musical style and, primarily, subject material that threw me off. It's hard to describe, but Atreyu's sound is no where near as dark, vampirous, or hurt as it once was. And this is how I came to realize...

The general feeling of pain is absent in this album, and THAT is what made me hate it.

I know that now. Much like one of my other favorite bands, Bleeding Through, I had come to associate Atreyu with my own personal problems, my own pain, because their work had always reflected on my owns feelings so directly, I wasn't ready to move on, I wasn't ready to stop being angry. ...but Atreyu was. They already had. And I felt left behind, alone, lost, without the music that I had looked to for so long to guide me. I felt betrayed, I felt like all music had betrayed me, like I had nothing that I could cling to for guidance, like I could never again go back to the place that once made me feel like everything was okay, because that place had become something else. I literally had a death-grip on yesterday, so to speak.

Desperately I tried to cling to what I had once loved, I listened to several of the Deathgrip tracks and tried to figure out why they would make such a drastic change to their style. I thought they had sold out. I wanted blood. I wanted Alex's head on a stick. I revisited the album and played the first song, "Creature"...

"BOOM! You scream, as the light hits you, it radiates throughout your whole soul, BOOM! The pain is clarity, it cleanses and if it still fucking hurts then you still fucking know that you are still alive..."

And so this was how it came to be that A Deathgrip on Yesterday would make me realize just how great of an album Lead Sails, Paper Anchor was. These lyrics from the song Creature have such a great metaphor for that epiphany moment, and that's exactly what happened. I needed to move on too. I would always have Deathgrip there for me, and I would always be able to revisit it when I needed to, but for Atreyu to grow, for ME to grow, Lead Sails had to be a different album than Deathgrip. It had to contrast it. It had to cut off that part of me. It had to cauterize it so it could never come back again. I had to be finished with it all. Finished with everything that made me love A Deathgrip on Yesterday... and Lead Sails, Paper Anchor did just that, and the great part was that I could still love Deathgrip and all the previous Atreyu albums, but I could move on, I could make the journey to the same place that the band had already made it to, and they were waiting for me. With a new hope, I gave Lead Sails, Paper Anchor a re-listen, and it was a wonderful experience. So, without further adieu, I give you the review of Lead Sails, Paper Anchor by Atreyu.

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Lyrics: 7
Vocals: 9
Instrumentals: 9
Replay Value: 9
Overall: 8
Summary: (See above)

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And here are the tracks and some lyrics and thoughts on them if you care to go on reading

01 - Doomsday:
The opening track showcases all of the band's new tricks quite nicely, deep bass hits and crystal clear vocals abound, the track blazes through from start to finish. The lyrics themselves seem to be the embodiment of everything that I described above. All of the feelings that I encountered in my journey are present in this song, and that's why Doomsday is the perfect intro for the Album. I like to think of this song as the transition between Deathgrip and Lead Sails.

Go!

A rush of blood, to my head
Leaves me winded and wanting
To feel the weakness, in my body
Beaten and crushed like my soul

I walked the streets flirting death
But it never kissed back
I'm so lucky so cursed so fucked up
But that's the way that it goes
It's in the ebb and the flow
I wish that I could give you my time

GIVE YOU MY TIME

Seems like doomsday has come early this year
The last angel has gone
I can't remeber the last time I cried
The last angel has gone home

The memories stacking up
And they pull at my guts
What do I have to do to end it?
The better days hacked away
Leaving the only pain
This regret is never ending

But in the blink of an eye
This life passes you by
I wish that I could give you my time

GIVE YOU MY TIME

Seems like doomsday has come early this year
The last angel has gone (angel has gone)
I can't remeber the last time I cried (last time I cried)
The last angel has gone home (angel has gone)

02 - Honor:
Honor is a solid track, but mostly I'm listing it because it has my current favorite quote of the moment

Nothing can hold you back when
WHEN YOU'RE NOT HOLDING BACK A THING

Love that line, seems like the theme to my life that was never written. Some people find my opinionated nature too abrasive, well, fuck you! Tongue

03 - Falling Down:
I probably hated this song more than any other on the album at first listen, but it has since grown to be quite addictive. The main reason that the song rubbed me the wrong way so much initially is because it has such a punk/pop sound to it during the intro. The drums kick around like Greenday meets Brittany Spears during the intro, but give the song a few seconds and it actually becomes pretty catchy and hard to stop listening to. By the end of the track Brandon is wailing his ass off and the vocals are off the chart. It's a great feel good song even though the lyrics suggest otherwise.

04 - Becoming the Bull:
Great vocals, great lyrics, AMAZING guitar riff, it's no wonder why this is the single for the album. Great song, absolutely great, not much else to say.

Grab the bull by the horns the old adage goes.
Nobody tells you where to go from there.
Seems like fate's pulling you.
Decisions have to be made.
The the best path is the hardest earned.

Back and forth the struggle consumes us all.
Trying to keep a level head.
In the most unsettling of times.
Today I'll become the bull.

05 - When Two Are One:
Kind of sappy, but definitely the most catchy song on the album as far as choruses go. It's not unlike Atreyu to have a sappier love song on the album, they just usually have bleeding/burning/vampire imagery. Without that it seems much happier

You'll have this one stuck in your head long after it's over, the chorus is infectious. This song also has what I think is probably the hardest "moment" on the album, there's a scream that lasts a full 11 seconds with a great chugging riff behind it midway through the song before it transitions back into the chorus. Good times.

06 - Lose It:
Another transitional song, somewhat like Doomsday in premise, but totally different in sound. It begins with a mellow almost middle-eastern sounding intro. The song is carried by a wandering guitar riff and echoing acoustics and vocals. The chorus, listed below, is traded off 50/50 by Alex and Brandon, and is used as a transition between the verses, which are also split between Alex and Brandon. This song, like so many others on the album, is a great showing of how much the two vocalists have grown with and learned to feed off of each other. A great use of team work.

This is it, I've shaken.
My body's aching,
I lose my hold,
I will let go.
This is it, I'm falling.
My wings need to grow.
I lose my hold,
I will let go.

09 - Slow Burn:
Another great chorus and concept, I am officially addicted to Bradon Saller's new vocals, but then again, his choruses have always done that.

I can't keep telling myself what I want to hear,
I can't just close my eyes
(my eyes, my eyes, my fucking eyes)

I know that it's killing me,
and it's poisoning the best of me,
What I see, I don't want to believe.
So let me tell you more, tell you more,
about the lies I lead.

Calling, calling out.
The darkest reaches of my soul,
are riddled with self-doubt.
Crawling, crawling out,
my will to fight will more than suffice,
when others would lay down.

It's only as dark as you make it.

10 - Blow:
This is my favorite song on the album, it's the most glam-rock-esque, the most feel-good-sound is found on this track, but alas, I love it. The chorus is great, and the lyrics are the general variety of "fuck whatever you think or say because you're a lying piece of shit and I don't care"... yeah, good times. Haha. Any how, besides the distinct style of this song and the great chorus, there are two things specifically that make me love it the most. Primarily, Brandon actually does a little bit of a scream at the end of the song, and I've never heard him do that, and it sounds awesome, but also the end of the song has a fantastic 80's metal wail-off trail-off ending with the drums and guitar and vocals going well after you would expect the song to be over and finishing off with that over-done snap of the drum and symbols. It's overused but it's done as an homage, of course, so it works. Fantastic.

So Fucking Blow
Those Words Out Of
The Back Of Your Head
I've Heard It All And I'm
Done With That Shit
You Tell Me Lies
And You Get What You Get
So Blow Those Fucking Words
Out Of The Back Of Your Head

I'm Gonna Blow Those Words
Out The Back Of Your Head
(Of Your Head Of Your Head Of Your Head)

11 - Lead Sails (And a Paper Anchor:)
A great finishing track, I'd rate this up there with "Untitled Finale" off of Deathgrip, and just like Untitled Finale it's a slower song with more reflecting and in depth lyrics than most of the rest of the disc. The last part of the song sees both singers combining their vocals in a rather peaceful lullaby like style, leading up to Alex doing background vocals and Brandon stepping up the volume and flare on the vocals. After this the band uses a repeated overlay of the vocals which gives the illusion of a choir or a large group of people singing along. Very beautiful.

Marching Alone, Like A Good Soldier Does.
I’m Setting Sail, With Anchors Holding Me Down.
Pack Up My Bags, Stow Them Away.
Bidding Farewell To All That Is Safe.

Will I Come Up For Air, Come Up For Air.
After Awhile The Coroner’s Calling Me,
lolling Me Waving Goodbye.
I’m Out Here Alone, Oh God Can You Save Me Now?
Sinking My Heart Turns To Stone.

Withering Away, Her Sinking Violet Dies.
So Full Of Life, These Lights Have Dried Me Out.
Into The Sea, I Needed A Drink.
I Never Thought This Would Consume Me Whole.

Save Me, Take Me Home,
Over And Over Again.
Save Me, Take Me Home.
Wishing That This All Would End.
Save Me, Take Me Home,
Over And Over Again.
Save Me, Take Me Home,
Wishing That This All Would End.

Save Me Take Me Home,
When I Come Up For Air,
Save Me Take Me Home,
When I Come Up For Air,
Save Me Take Me Home,
Over And Over Again.
Save Me Take Me Home.

12 - (Untitled Bonus Track)
This is actually a cover of Faith No More's song "Epic", and a pretty good one, I'm a fan, but I prefer Faith No More's oddly enough, I wouldn't rate this as good as Atreyu's cover of Bon Jovi's "You Give Love a Bad Name", but it's definitely a good jam.

WHEW, I'M DONE. JESUS CHRIST. YAY! That was a fun write, thanks for reading whatever chunk you could bring yourself to read! Haha.