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Tracklisting Disc 1:
1. Scream Aim Fire
2. Eye Of The Storm
3. Hearts Burst Into Fire
4. Waking The Demon
5. Disappear
6. Deliver Us From Evil
7. Take It Out On Me
8. Say Goodnight
9. End Of Days
10. Last To Know
11. Forever And Always
12. Ashes Of The Innocent [bonus track]
Disc 2:
1. Scream Aim Fire [video/DVD]
2. Scream Aim Fire [making of the video/DVD]
3. Bullet TV [documentary footage/DVD]
4. Photo Gallery [DVD]
Bullet’s second full-length offering, ‘Scream Aim Fire,’ is a strange one, featuring songs that are far heavier than anything on their metal-with-an-accessible-edge debut ‘The Poison,’ but also featuring songs with a distinct pop-polish that is nowhere to be found on their previous material.
Title track ‘Scream Aim Fire’ and ‘Eye of the Storm’ are both steroid-fuelled, thrash-tinged metal monsters, and although their relentless gallop does at times leave you more numbed than swept away by their fury, there is no denying the energy on show here. Furthermore, ‘Scream Aim Fire’s chorus is tailor-made for some serious sing-along action, and will no doubt raise the roof when played live.
On the more radio-friendly side of things, are ‘Hearts Burst into Fire’ and ‘Forever and Always.’ ‘Hearts Burst into Fire’ is instantly likeable, with a huge chorus and the incendiary guitar solos we have come to expect from Bullet, but its dangerously emo lyrics are likely to have the more hardcore fans reaching for the skip button. Album-closer ‘Forever and Always’ is similarly a rather unexpected direction for Bullet to have taken, with the vitriol of debut album ‘The Poison’ replaced by optimism and distinctly poppish vocals. That isn’t to say these aren’t good songs, but they are the sound of Bullet venturing from their metal roots and experimenting with other genres, and whether you think this is a good thing or not, will greatly influence whether you enjoy this album’s more mainstream leanings, or see them as proof that Bullet are ‘selling out.’
In-between the emo/pop and heavy metal extremes of this album, lies the metalcore that made ‘The Poison’ such a great record. Anti-bullying anthem ‘Waking the Demon’ is brimming with furious lyrics and industrial-tinged guitars that are sure to make it a favourite on the alternative club scene; ‘Disappear’ sees a return of the bitterness that made ‘The Poison’ such a hit, while the existential angst of ‘End of Days’ perfectly encapsulates Bullet’s talent for balancing screaming with more accessible vocals.
With their second album, Bullet For My Valentine provide many songs that adhere to the formula of ‘The Poison,’ which will please their existing fanbase. However, they also demonstrate an itch to experiment, which, you have to suspect, might not have been completely satisfied by the few curveballs thrown by this album.
The majority of people will either loath ‘Scream Aim Fire’s heavier songs, or loath those songs that seem to have their eye on mainstream recognition, making this album rather a hit and miss affair. However, with ‘Scream Aim Fire’ Bullet have produced an album that is looking towards how they want to sound in the future, whilst keeping true to what they’ve done in the past. Fans of ‘The Poison’ will definitely find things in here that they love, and expanding their sound will undoubtedly win Bullet some new fans. Ultimately, ‘Scream Aim Fire’ comes across as the sound of a band in transit, and you have to wonder what they might sound like on album number three.
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