Architects (British band)
Architects are a British metalcore band from Brighton, East Sussex, formed in 2004 by twin brothers Dan and Tom Searle. The band now consists of Dan Searle on drums, Sam Carter on vocals, Alex Dean on bass, and Adam Christianson on guitar. They have been signed to Epitaph Records since 2013.
Architects
Brighton, East Sussex, England
2004–present
- Epitaph
- UNFD
- New Damage
- Get Deluxe
- Zestone
- Century Media
- Thirty Days of Night
- United by Fate
- Distort
- In at the Deep End
- Dan Searle
- Sam Carter
- Alex Dean
- Adam Christianson
- Tim Lucas
- Matt Johnson
- Tim Hillier-Brook
- Tom Searle
- Josh Middleton
Strongly influenced by bands such as The Dillinger Escape Plan, the sound of their first three albums was coarse, chaotic, and rhythmically complex. In 2011, Architects went in a more melodic post-hardcore direction with The Here and Now, alienating some of their fanbase.[1] The following year, they returned towards their original style with Daybreaker, establishing a balance of melody and technical harshness while introducing more politicised lyrics.[2] With the release of their sixth album Lost Forever // Lost Together in 2014, the band achieved lasting popularity and critical acclaim.
Soon after the release of their seventh album, All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us, in 2016, guitarist and principal songwriter Tom Searle died after three years of living with skin cancer, making Dan Searle the only original band member. In September 2017, the band released the single "Doomsday", the last song he was working on before his death, and announced Middleton as their new lead guitarist. The single is featured on Holy Hell, their first album recorded without Tom Searle, which was released in November 2018. Their ninth studio album, For Those That Wish to Exist, was released in 2021, and became their first chart-topper on the UK Albums Chart.[3] Its follow-up and their most recent album, The Classic Symptoms of a Broken Spirit, was released in October 2022.
Artistry[edit]
Style and influences[edit]
In 2009, James Gill of Metal Hammer described the band's music as "pumped with both controlled rage and unhindered heart, accessible and ambitious, aggressive and beautiful".[7] It has generally been described as metalcore[2][102][103][104] as well as technical metal[105][106] and progressive metalcore.[107] Their early releases were categorised by critics as mathcore,[108][109] and their later albums as alternative metal.[110] Michael Wilson of the BBC compared the mass appeal of their aggressive style to that of Enter Shikari.[111] It is characterised by choppy, complex guitar riffs,[106] the use of obscure time signatures and rhythmic breakdowns,[105] and guitarists alternating between a "down-tuned rumble" and "melodic punk" during songs.[112] It is based on both technical proficiency and the use of catchy riffs and choruses.[111]
Architects have made various stylistic transitions and evolutions throughout their career,[113] with Sam Carter stating in a 2011 interview that each album should sound distinct.[24] On their second album Ruin, the band's sound was heavier and darker than on their debut Nightmares.[10] Hollow Crown maintained the aggression and technical proficiency of Ruin while incorporating more melody, catchy riffs and clean singing.[11][114][115] The band also used synthesised instruments such as keyboards and drum machines.[11] The guitars were tuned to Drop B with the lowest string at Ab, giving the "ability to create a really heavy low end sound on the bottom but still give a comfortable degree of tension on the higher strings."[113] A prime example of their signature style is the song "We're All Alone", with its technical, progressive guitar riffs and hardcore punk-influenced breakdowns.[114][115]
Their fourth album The Here and Now represented a stylistic shift considered "ultimately subjective" and "their most diverse".[116] Described as going in a "clean-cut post-hardcore" direction,[117] The Here and Now favours singing over screaming, anthemic choruses and hooks.[116] The album still retains elements of their previous albums, however, including "tortured howls, frenzied riffs, and earth-shattering rhythms, albeit with a slightly more mainstream edge."[118] The album includes the melancholy, glitchy electronica-based 'An Open Letter To Myself' and the rock ballad 'Heartburn'[116][118] both lead into "rousing, fist-pumping choruses".
[103] The band's fifth album Daybreaker featured something of a return to the heavier, more aggressive style of their previous albums, balancing this with the melody and hooks of The Here and Now.[117] Daybreaker also features even more melodic, atmospheric tracks than usual, such as "Truth Be Told", "Behind The Throne" and "Unbeliever".[1][119]
After the release of Daybreaker the band grew confident in playing much heavier music again, also to create the best songs for live shows.[120][121] The album also incorporates blastbeats, which have not been used in any of the band's recordings since Hollow Crown.[122]
Architects' primary musical influences have been described as ranging through artists from the realms of hardcore punk and heavy metal music such as Botch, Converge, Decapitated, Deftones, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Gojira, Hatebreed, Meshuggah, Shadows Fall, Slipknot and Thrice,[2][112] and Alex Henderson of AllMusic considers the band to be influenced by noise rock[102] and math rock.[123] Rock Sound Kevin Stewart-Panko writer sees the band as a "metal/hardcore outfit influenced by Meshuggah's low-end guitar lurch, the throat-shredding howl of Converge's Jake Bannon, The Dillinger Escape Plan's staccato one-two rhythms and breakdowns from the state of Massachusetts."[112] Alter the Press! writer Selina Christoforou considered the band drawing on "the template drawn out by genre-defining bands, such as The Dillinger Escape Plan, Botch, and Coalesce".[115]
According to Carter, "The Dillinger Escape Plan are such a massive influence on Architects. Back in the day, that's what we wanted to sound like when we were younger".[24] He in the same interview also stated that Thrice's Vheissu (2005) is one of his favourite albums.[24]
Songwriting and recording process[edit]
Vocally Carter is seen as having a coarse and "tortured"[102][123] screaming style and implements melodic singing to counter this.[105] Since Carter's addition to the band's lineup the band always aimed to use more of his singing as their style developed, regardless of reaction from fans.[8] During the writing of The Here and Now in California, Carter got vocal coaching to help develop his singing voice.[24] During these lessons Carter learned a lot about techniques, warm-ups and singing to scales.[24] Carter's harsh vocals have also been compared to British metalcore contemporary Oliver Sykes of Bring Me the Horizon and his "raspy-yelling" vocals.[124]
When Sam Carter joined the band to replace Matt Johnson, drummer Dan Searle had commented that the lyrics Carter wrote drew from more personal experience than those of his predecessor.[10] The lyrics of Hollow Crown focus on a number of themes, with some songs dealing with everyday life like sitting in a car with friends or angst against girls,[125] while some other songs, particularly "Early Grave", "Follow the Water" and "In Elegance", were written about Carter's growing dependence on cannabis and him "struggling against his own instincts and self-destructive obsessions".[11][21] Two songs featured on Hollow Crown – "Dead March" and "Left with the Last Minute" – feature "call and response-type" lyrics about a stalker and their victim's response to being stalked, respectively.[11][21] For the lyrics of Daybreaker, Carter and Tom Searle collaborated on writing, focusing on what they believed to be "bigger picture" themes,[121] such as the critique of negative aspects of religion and society.[119] Carter and Searle collaborated again on the lyrics of Lost Forever // Lost Together, and in an attempt not to sound like a "broken record", they no longer only addressed political issues, but also focused on themes that everyone can relate to.[121]
