Full disclosure, The Devil Wears Prada is one of my favorite bands of all time so please do expect some bias. With that said, let’s begin.
‘Space’ is fantastic so go buy it. Jokes. But seriously, you should go buy it. When Chris Rubey left the band, I was devastated. Not only because I loved the band and what they had produced thus far but also because I was fearful for the future. Chris was the driving force behind the band’s sound, so to my mind, Chris’s absence would signal a cataclysmic change in the band’s sound. Growing up during the reign of metalcore, nothing could beat the perfect blend of sparkling synths, predicable but captivating breakdowns and screaming vocals of ‘Plagues’ and ‘With Roots Above and Branches Below’.
Then ‘Zombies’ happened. I can honestly say that not many albums have impacted my life like ‘Zombies’ did. To this day, I cannot hear the faint sound of a chainsaw in the distance without standing on the nearest table and screaming ‘with contamination comes fever, the disease is at its worst’. Bringing the heavy in conjunction with an instructional run down of what is likely to happen in the event of a zombie outbreak, ‘Zombies’ signaled a bright future for the band. Carried forward into ‘8:18’, the metal community was not disappointed by the release. Still creating dark atmospheres with crushing breakdowns and just the right about of melodic riffing, to me ‘8:18’ demonstrated a maturity to the band moving from fast and bright to dark and slow.
In the leadup to the release of the ‘Space’ EP, I remember desperately trying to avoid any or hint of what the band was going to be releasing to the point of avoiding conversation with friends as soon as they even mentioned the band’s name. So, when I eventually gathered enough courage to see what the new guitarist Kyle Sipress had done with my Devil Wears Prada, this is what I was presented with.
The first of six songs ‘Planet A’ starts with some atmospheric overtones that sit behind a voice over that walks the listener through the final checks of a spaceship launch. Working well to introduce the concepts of loneliness, emptiness and fear, the heavy rhythmic guitars alongside Hranica’s signature vocals and ominous atmospherics do well to make you almost feel as if you are up there with Elizabeth floating through the vastness of space. Although the concept of space may not fill you with the same levels of foreboding that a plague of zombies might, The Devil Wears Prada manages to use carefully crafted songwriting to create an apocalyptic environment that has all the danger of ‘Zombies’ if not more.
If the slow and steady dance with the dark side to discovery leaves you craving for the crushing ferocity of ‘Zombies’, the records second track ‘Alien’ will satisfy that hunger. Smashing through the window, quite literally, this track gives a straight forward and brutal run down of massive demonic Ridley Scott type aliens that descend on mankind with the sole purpose of killing without remorse. Birthed from an idea that Kyle brought to the band, ‘Alien’ does much to silence the skeptical fan by demonstrating that The Devil Wears Prada can still bring the heavy and deliver a groovy melodic metalcore masterpiece.
The stand out track for me comes in with ‘Moongod’. Just as the trees watch the ages pass, ‘Moongod’ comes across as a romantic take on the moon as a judge of all mankind, forever watching, yet seemingly without action. Reminiscent of ‘Chicago’, the interplay of Hranica’s harsh vocals and Jeremy’s soothing voice make for a haunting exploration of what metalcore can be.
After the solace that comes with ‘Celestial Mechanics’, ‘Supernova’ returns us to the darker side of space, by drowning the listener in the inevitability of entropy. Describing the last moments of a star’s life, ‘Supernova’ was the first song released for the album and the last that has the hand of Chris in its creation. Serving as a farewell to the fans, this song is deliberately ambiguous. Possibly dealing the mysteries of space-time or even the fear of death, this song is notable for the extensive clean sections that flow expertly over the inventive musical interplay between the old Prada and the new.
Closing the album, ‘Asteroid’ tells the story of humanity’s panicked reaction to the imminent threat of an extinction level event. Beginning with a sense of urgency, the opening riffs are reminiscent of sirens, almost as if The Devil Wears Prada are trying to warn the planet of the coming end. Carrying this urgency through the rest of the track, the next triplet laden riffs work well against Hranica’s harrowing vocal performance to emphasise the imminence of humanity’s destruction to the point of making you almost beg for a breakdown to relieve the buildup of tension. But instead of giving you that release, the song takes a mournful twist. In stark contrast to the rushed panic of the first half of the song, the second half surrenders to a reflective melancholy, almost as if humanity has accepted its fate and is now choosing how to spend its last moments.
In closing, ‘Space’ is a formative release for the band, marking a transition from the Prada of old to the Prada of the future. From this point, the focus for the band is not so much on the speed or technicality of old but rather writing for a general atmosphere and feel. Aptly celebrating the five-year anniversary of ‘Zombies’, ‘Space’ is a good representation of where metalcore is heading. Honestly, whether you are a fan of the band like me or just a fan of metalcore in general, ‘Space’ is a must listen.
A review by Matthew Young