Bullet For My Valentine - Temper Temper (Album Review)
Thursday, 07 February 2013
Written by Katie Vowles
Once praised for their ability to produce classic and powerful hits as well as heartfelt ballads, Bullet For My Valentine have seemingly slipped further and further from their former metal ways. Back in 2010 'Temper Temper'’s predecessor 'Fever' was released and subsequently criticised for straying from Bullet’s metal roots. Moving on three years and Bullet have drifted from metal altogether, settling for hard rock instead. Fourth studio album 'Temper Temper' will no doubt have die-hard fans up in arms because if you’ve come to this album looking for the old Bullet then you might as well leave now. On the other hand, if you’re open to change then embrace 'Temper Temper' with open arms and you never know, you just might like it.
Opening track ‘Breaking Point’ pushes the album off to an unfortunately average start, making it unclear what you’ve let yourself in for. Worst of all is the weak guitar solo section which sounds more suited to the likes of Dragonforce than Bullet. ‘Breaking Point’ has all the components of a traditional Bullet song: Matt Tuck’s powerful vocals, the odd screaming section and the chugging drums all tied together with the inevitable guitar solo. However, any fan will tell you this just doesn’t sound right – it’s weak.
Second track ‘Dead To The World’ fares no better being a standard slow, brooding metal song but without the passion that made tracks like ‘Forever And Always’ (from 'Scream Aim Fire') so great. Tuck’s vocals feel exhausted and the oh-so-emotional wailing guitars make for a rather cringey track overall. The tempo picks up near the end but with nowhere near as much spirit as Bullet used to possess. ‘Livin Life (On The Edge Of A Knife)’ contains the first real evidence of the screaming that is so sorely missed from days of 'The Poison', however, the oddly slow tempo leaves this particular track feeling lacklustre. It’s as if it’s yearning to launch into a fast-paced stormer but instead of satisfying everyone’s cravings it stays stagnant and drags.
‘P.O.W’ is a mixture of ballad and anthem which brings a new feel to the album, just about stopping the listener from wandering off and finding something new. Tuck’s vocals, however, are over-produced and would sound just as at home on a pop-rock record as they do on 'Temper Temper'. Second single from the album is the ferocious ‘Riot’ which ups the heaviness and stands out as one of the only tracks with a riff you’ll remember – even if it is a very repetitive one!
Now, as we’re coming to the end of the album, you may be thinking “But I still don’t really like any of these songs!” Well fear not, because next up is ‘Tears Don’t Fall (Part 2)’. A totally risky move for Bullet as ‘Tears Don’t Fall’ (from debut album 'The Poison') was such a massive hit. Many fans think making a sequel was a mistake, that they should never have tried to tamper with such a great song. Nevertheless the results are surprisingly fantastic. In fact ‘Tears Don’t Fall (Part 2)’ is 'Temper Temper'’s only real saving grace. With a similar intro and chord pattern, Part 2 is just as emotional as its counterpart and when played live will likely produce an outstanding sing a long.
'Temper Temper' is difficult to understand as an existing fan, but if you let go and accept the fact that Bullet For My Valentine have evolved, then it isn’t all that bad. More likely to be accepted by the mainstream, 'Temper Temper' is mediocre and void of the energy Bullet used to have, but all good things have to come to an end, right?
Bullet For My Valentine release 'Temper Temper' on Monday 11th February on RCA Records. They embark on a UK tour in March.
Sun February 10th 2013 - Cardiff University Students Union, Cardiff
Tue March 12th 2013 - O2 Academy Birmingham, Birmingham
Wed March 13th 2013 - O2 Academy Glasgow, Glasgow
Fri March 15th 2013 - Apollo Manchester, Manchester
Sun March 17th 2013 - Roundhouse, London
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Opening track ‘Breaking Point’ pushes the album off to an unfortunately average start, making it unclear what you’ve let yourself in for. Worst of all is the weak guitar solo section which sounds more suited to the likes of Dragonforce than Bullet. ‘Breaking Point’ has all the components of a traditional Bullet song: Matt Tuck’s powerful vocals, the odd screaming section and the chugging drums all tied together with the inevitable guitar solo. However, any fan will tell you this just doesn’t sound right – it’s weak.
