It’s been a hot second since we’ve heard from British hard rock act Architects. The last recorded music the band released was 2018’s Holy Hell, which made a big impact in more mainstream-reaching metal and hardcore circles. Now, Architects have returned with a fresh single titled “Animals” via a dreamy music video, and damn if the song doesn’t bring a radio-friendly sort of heavy.
The central riff of “Animals” certainly keeps the track kinetic and powerful, providing a firm jud behind which to headbang. But the song is also heavily laced with fuzzy synths that push it towards the pop-oriented hard rock that is currently a mainstay of the radio rock scene. Meanwhile, frontman Sam Carter goes hard in the paint with his soaring vocals, even has he shouts, “We’re fucking animals!” The result is a track that both packs a powerful punch and will undoubtedly draw in less-entrenched new fans for the band.
The music video, meanwhile, goes the surreal route by including flashes of beautiful and inspiring imagery that, while open to interpretation, are none the less devoid of any specific meaning. Blackened hands open and close, liquid clouds and dissipates, a sheet ghost stands next to a man with a fuming head, and someone in a hood and coat shoots off colored smoke flares (is it Carter? Was the extreme close-up on his face at the end some sort of warning?). In this way, the video is a solid accompaniment to the song, full of powerful imagery that at the end of the day is more about inspiration than trying to get across any real message, agenda, or allegiance.
Check out “Animals” below:
Whether or not Architects’ “Animals” is the first single in an upcoming new album remains to be seen. If so, the band’s website and the information in the YouTube video’s caption doesn’t suggest anything, but hey, surprise single could mean a surprise album.
More information on a potential new Architects album as it comes.
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Words by Chris Krovatin
