After a hiatus from the music industry hard rock band, Black Veil Brides made its return with the most diverse album yet, Vale. The band known for its glam inspired look and stage presence proved with its fifth album that it has come full circle.
Hollywood, California based Black Veil Brides, got its start in Cincinnati, Ohio where original member, Andy Biersack and former members founded the band. It would not be until 2009 after Biersack had moved to Los Angeles, California that he would officially name the band.
In 2010 Black Veil Brides debuted, We Stitched These Wounds which put the band on the charts literally. They debuted in the first week of release as Number 1 on the Billboard Independent Chart, Number 36 on Billboard Top 200 Chart and it sold over 10,000 copies of the album; Followed with albums, Set the World on Fire (2011), Wretched and Divine: The Story of the Wild Ones (2013) and Black Veil Brides (2014). With each album the band gained notoriety and also a voice for society’s outcasts which has long been the band’s message in its lyrics and songs.
The band consists of Andy Biersack on vocals, Jinxx on guitar, Ashley Purdy on bass, Christian Coma on drums and Jake Pitts on guitar. The lineup is tight and in sync. It embodies the perfect personas of the glam rock style and yet encompass the hard rock and heavy metal spirit that brings its music to life.
On January 12 2018, the band released its fifth album, Vale. It proved to be a powerful album full of what fans have come to expect from the band but with a kick. It has a mass appeal that will broaden its fan base yet still holds true to the sound and style of what the band has created for itself over the years.
The beginning of the album starts off with a short spoken word piece followed by the larger than life “Incipiens and Finem”. It is a song that has everything you can ask for musically; melodic piano, dueling guitar riffs, vocal harmonies, heavy bass and a rolling drum section. Of course, Biersack adds his own flair of powerhouse vocals which add to the hard rock mixture perfectly.
The album as a whole will take each listener on a ride with songs that are each crafted in its own unique way. Black Veil Brides has unique harmonies and catchy choruses that only it can achieve with a sense of style and pure hard rock fury. With songs like “Wake Up” (which also happens to be the band’s first video single), “The Last One” and “Our Destiny” the hard rock and heavy metal elements are there and the harmonies and famous hard rock sound mesh so well, that it makes the songs.
The band has some songs on the album that have a pop-rock vibe to them such as “Dead Man Walking” and “Ballad of the Lonely Hearts”. They add depth to the diversity of the album by giving an upbeat rock vibe style but do not count out the killer guitar riffs, bass and drums mixed with Biersack’s vocals.
Of course, it would not be a Black Veil Brides album without some heavy metal, in your face songs. To name a few that fans will want to look out for are “The Outsider”, “My Vow” and “Throw the First Stone”. These songs are full of dueling guitar solos, killer heavy rolling drum sections, double bass playing and vocals that are strong to deliver a powerful message.
The last song on the album, “Vale” is a rock ballad that truly ends the album leaving the listeners wanting more. You can feel passion in the music and vocals from the first note to the last. This was the perfect piece to end a creative journey of masterful music.
Vale, has already made history in the band’s career with becoming Billboard’s number 1 rock album in the United States and England. This is not a coincidence with the power of the band’s creativity, musical craftsmanship and execution of the music. The band in many ways has come full circle in their career. It is a force to be reckoned with in the hard rock community and has proven itself to be a band that fans truly embrace.
