SCREAM AIM FIRE - Bullet For My Valentine

Bullet for My Valentine: Matthew Tuck (vocals, guitar); Jay James (vocals, bass guitar); Padge (guitar); Moose Thomas (drums).
Audio Mixer: Colin Richardson.
Recording information: Nott-In Pill, Newport, South Wales; Rockfield, Wales; Sonic Ranch, TX; The Dairy, London, England.
Photographer: Chapman Baehler.
Welsh traditionalists Bullet For My Valentine clearly get off on the classics. While they're sometimes lumped in with metalcore acts, they're much closer to old-school American thrashers from the '80s such as Metallica and Megadeth, and harsher '90s acts in the vein of Pantera. SCREAM AIM FIRE represents a significant forward for the band, with twisting dual leads charging ahead of the galloping rhythms and dynamic song structures.
It's not all head-forward aggression, however, as "Hearts Burst Into Fire" flirts with emo and "Say Goodnight" glosses the classic power ballad with a fresh coat of paint. Despite that, the lasting impression they leave is the acrid scent of scorched eardrums courtesy of adrenalized tracks like the warp-speed "Last to Know" and "Ashes of the Innocent." With metal splintering into so many camps, it's good to hear an act just interested in playing it the way they remember it, only faster and harder.

• Genre: Pop
• Released: 1/29/2008
• Format: CD