The three Scots in Biffy Clyro are back with their ninth studio album, entitled A Celebration of Endings, and it arrives on August 14, 2020, through Warner Records.
Formed in 1995, Biffy Clyro is notorious for their fast changes in rhythm and volume—and they do exactly this on their latest album. A quick follow-up to last year’s Balance, Not Symmetry, an album which served as a soundtrack to the film of the same name, it proves this band has only scratching the surface of what they can do.
With strong guitar and bass riffs, courtesy of Simon Neil and James Johnston, the band leads you through an album that keeps you attention at all times. Additionally, the rhythm and volume changes, plus solid drumming by Ben Johnston, keep you alert until the very end!
Furthermore, while the lyrics of each song are quite serious and topically heavy, they all carry a glimpse of hope. And, instead of fading out, the songs often end with a big bang, except for the album’s closer: “Cop Syrup” which is an epic track that almost seems like an instrumental because the vocals are so scarce.
There are also moments where wonderful arrangements meet catchy choruses. For example, “North of No South” comes with a melodic intro, while “Weird Leisure” is a super catchy cut that will get you going along easily. This is while “Tiny Indoor Fireworks” has such a catchy chorus that will have you even singing along. Then again, the track “Space” is a dreamy one with epic arrangements that are timeless and extremely mesmerizing.
Overall, A Celebration of Endings is an album with a variety of rhythms, paces, and gorgeous arrangements. Some are fast and cause muscles to twitch, and some cause the thoughts to wander. Throughout the collection, Biffy Clyro takes you for a ride, viewing the world through their eyes with the language of music. In fact, even after listening to the album a couple times through, there is always something new to discover and to ponder… especially with the lyrical take this go around.
Simply brilliant and so catchy, A Celebration of Endings is filled with the band’s notorious rhythm breaks to date. Biffy Clyro has always been a unique band that goes beyond genres. Just when you think they are going in one direction, they switch it up and do something different. All very refreshing, they hit the mark yet again with A Celebration of Endings, and that is why Cryptic Rock gives it 5 out of 5 stars.
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