SINGLE REVIEW: BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE - OVER IT
There was a time when Welsh metalcore outfit 'Bullet For My Valentine' appeared unstoppable. After releasing their phenomenal debut 'The Poison' in 2005, the band went further and further down the hard rock route as they perfected their sound from record to record. Then just as they were being tipped as potential Download headliners, they released their controversial fourth record 'Temper Temper'. Dismissed by critics and fans alike, it has been an uphill struggle for 'BFMV' ever since and despite their criminally underrated 2015 release 'Venom' the band still have a way to go before they can reach the heights that they seemed destined for at the start of the decade.
2018 looks set to be a very exciting year for 'BFMV' with a sub-headliner slot supporting 'Avenged Sevenfold' at Download festival and the release of their sixth album 'Gravity' at the end of June. This week, we were treated to the welcome surprise of their first single from the new album; 'Over It'. With every new release, 'BFMV' prove that 'Temper Temper was just an unfortunate anomaly and not a sign of a band that had run out of steam as once again the band continue to develop and evolve their sound whilst maintaining the classic Bullet style. 'Over It' has a much more commercial sound to it, but stops short of sounding cynical as Matt Tuck continues to improve as a vocalist. The song is primarily clean vocals, however when Tuck does switch to harsh vocals, his voice roars across the track. It is safe to say that 'BFMV' haven't gone soft on us yet. New drummer Michael Thomas more than proves his worth as the drums threaten to steal the show, but in the end it is the dynamic between Matt Tuck and Michael Paget that is the main focus as once again 'BFMV' have created a non-stop riff factory.
Whilst maintaining enough of the traditional 'BFMV' formula to satisfy long term fans, Bullet have continued to evolve in a way that should appeal to a lot of people who had never showed an interest before. If the rest of the record is up to the same standard and the Download set goes as well as expected then 'Gravity'' may finally be the record to propel them to the heights that they were reaching for at the start of the decade.
