Release date: 25th October 2024
As soon as The Pronoia Sessions was announced and we got a sneak-peek of it courtesy of their Like A Stone cover, I instantly knew I was going to completely fall in love with this album when I heard it in full. Atreyu translates absolutely beautifully into acoustic (there’s this one video on Facebook from 2018 of Brandon & Dan doing an acoustic set at Rock On The Range that I still listen to six years later) and The Pronoia Sessions is an absolute treat to listen to.
The two cover songs (Audioslave’s Like A Stone and Tom Petty’s Mary Jane’s Last Dance) are stunning in their own right, but for me the real meat on the bones of this album are the reimagined versions of songs from Atreyu’s back-catalogue. Brandon Saller has one of the most stunning voices in the rock and metal scene, and the vocals on this album in particular really shine, so it’s a real treat to listen to.
To cut a long story short, to say these acoustic renditions are stunningly beautiful is almost an injustice. I don’t feel words can fully describe just how breathtaking these songs are. Starting strong with Becoming The Bull, which is actually one of my personal highlights (mainly due to the sheer emotion encapsulated within), Atreyu don’t let up for even one second.
I was especially interested in hearing Right Side Of The Bed in this form, as it is perhaps the heaviest song of the eight in its “usual” form along with its face-melting guitar solo, so I was intrigued to see how they would approach it. But you know what? This melodically-led version really suits it, and it feels extremely on-point to have the solo on saxophone instead.
As a whole, The Pronoia Sessions really brings Atreyu into a fresh light, showcasing their beautifully emotive softer side. My sole complaint? The fact The Time Is Now didn’t feature – now how cool would that one be acoustic?!
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