The World Is A Beautiful Place And I Am No Longer Afraid To Die - Harmlessness

Emo Revival Leaders Create A Life-Affirming Masterpiece Of A Record

The World Is a Beautiful Place And I Am No Longer Afraid To Die are an emo revival band, who really gained commercial and critical success in the emo revival scene after their 2013 debut album 'Whenever, If Ever', after the overwhelming praise for this album, constant rotations in the line-up (Including the loss of lead vocalist Thomas Diaz) and a string of average at best EP's, there was a real worry that Twiabp wouldn't be able to live up to the high standards set by their stunning debut.

But the Connecticut nine-piece have totally smashed expectations and, with 'Harmlessness', have created an album that is engaging from start to finish, with every song bringing in something fresh and exciting to listen to and has surpassed previous record 'Whenever, If Ever' in every way possible. With original lead vocalist, Thomas Diaz gone, David Bello has stepped forward to take the reigns, which is something I'm very happy about, as much as I enjoyed their previous album, I felt that sometimes the overuse of Diaz's emo whines made the album drag on towards the end and became rather dull. Hearing Bello's much stronger voice was always a breath of fresh air to me, and continues to be in this record. But Bello is not alone on the vocal front, he is accompanied by keyboardist/vocalist, Kate Shanholtzer-Dvorak, who also has a much bigger role on this album.

Bello and Shanholtzer work together perfectly on this album and create an amazing balance in their vocal sound and the emotions they deliver. The track that they really shine in is lead single 'January 10th 2014' a track which is beautifully introduced to us by interlude, 'blank #11'. 'January 4th 2014' presents the story of Diana, the Hunter Of Bus Drivers, the lyrics in this song are controversial yet delivered so stunningly and engaging. The instrumental support on this track is also immense, all four guitarists playing their own part to the stories yet working together so elegantly whilst Steve Butterey controls the tempo changes to pinpoint perfection on the drums. My words simply can't do this masterpiece of a track justice, you have to listen to this song to truly believe it's beauty.

The instrumentals are a key part throughout all of this album, showing off a very strong post-rock style, and by mixing this with their usual formula of massive emotional instrumentals building to a huge climax they've managed to completely raise the bar in the emo revival genre and surpass the heights of their previous effort. The World Is' musicians have worked wonders on this record, making what could just be a generic indie-pop song, 'The Word Lisa', and playing around with it instrumentally to create that unique, dreamy sound that you'd expect from classic Twiabp. Another instrumental success in this track, has to be the low-fi opener, 'You Can't Live There Forever' which begins with a very mellow, teen suicide-like, opening. Although the general sound of the vocals and instrumentals sound very toned down in this opener, it still manages to build to a grand finish, beginning with the introduction of acoustic guitars and violins, before the drums become more prominent, with keyboardist/vocalist Kate Shanholtzer-Dvorak harmonizing alongside the instrumentals.

The World Is A Beautiful Place And I Am No Longer Afraid To Die have a record that is nothing short of a masterpiece, every track contributes amazingly to the record's epic climax. I was left speechless by the end of this work of art.

10/10 

EMO / POST-ROCK / MEME-ROCK

FAV TRACKS: You Can't Live There Forever - January 4th 2014 - The Word Lisa

LEAST FAV TRACKS: Shitty Greg