Release date: 8th December 2023
It has to be said that Atreyu are definitely bringing their A game right now. Their live show is better than it’s ever been, and their current output is stunning. After releasing three EPs this year (The Hope of a Spark, The Moment You Find Your Flame and A Torch In the Dark), the band are rounding up 2023 with an album that amalgamates the three EPs into a single unified release along with a few more new songs for good measure.
Addressing the elephant in the room regarding the lead singer change and Atreyu’s route to a more melodically-driven vocal sound, my favourite element of the band’s sound in my almost-20 years of being a fan has always been the massive choruses and sing-along sections so if anything, this works better for me.
Opening with Drowning, which had previously been released as a single, it gets the album off to a great start before reaching the first clear highlight, Insomnia. One of the album-exclusive tracks, this may actually be one of my favourite Atreyu songs of all time. With a massive chorus and a crazy amount of passion to the performance, it gave me shivers the first time I heard it and it’s been stuck in my head ever since I first heard it. In a similar vein, God/Devil is stunning. As mentioned earlier, I love me a good sing-along and the chorus is fantastic. Additionally, I really adore the lyrics for this song; they really resonated with me and keep making me come back to the song as a result.
Later songs Immortal and (i) are also great inclusions but genuinely after listening to this album copiously ever since I found it in my inbox, I can’t say there’s a single bad song on there. Usually there’s one or two duds, especially if an album has fifteen tracks like this one does, but this isn’t the case with The Beautiful Dark Of Life. Every single song is great in its own way, whether its punchy, melodic or stripped-back, and I am totally here for all of it.
2023 has definitely been Atreyu’s year…but somehow, it feels like they’re just getting started again – and I for one am very excited about what the future holds for them!
Get your copy from here!
