Senses Fail – Hell Is In Your Head
Release Date: 15th July 2022
Label: Pure Noise Records
Pre-Order
Genre: Post-Hardcore
FFO: The Used, Underoath, Circa Survive.
Review By: Ryan Payne
The inner emo in me is alive and kicking, thanks to the revival by Senses Fail’s eighth album “Hell Is in Your Head”, a record, that described by vocalist Buddy Neilson, acts as a sequel to the 2006 album “Still Searching”. The band have stayed true to its routes while adding a few modern entities into the mix, making this album feel like a complete “blast from the past” while being able to rival more recent releases. A couple of tracks in, and it’s very easy to see that this record is going to be a huge hit to a lot of people; musically, lyrically and emotionally.
The record is very vocal driven: there isn’t anything particularly stand out about the music other than the fact that it’s consistent with the rest of the material the band have released in the past. It’s very well composed, and the production makes it all very enjoyable to listen through, but in a world where bands are constantly shaking things up with blending genres and experimenting with structures, the album feels very safe. That being said, “Death by Water” and “I’m Sorry I’m Leaving” are the heaviest songs on the album and are a very nice addition to break up the record.
As the only founding member remaining in the band, it’s no surprise that the main focus on the record is vocalist Buddy Neilson. He gives a very consistent performance throughout the record, with his singing style that is very accustomed to the emo-era post-hardcore days. His addition of aggressive style vocals throughout the record is also nicely displayed throughout, thrown in just enough to make listeners heads turn when it comes out and not over saturating the songs with aggression. “Hell Is in Your Head” also features the vocal talents of Connie Sgarbossa from SeeYouSpaceCowboy and Spencer Charnas from Ice Nine Kills, which add a nice addition to the album, giving it something else that fans won’t expect.
The way Buddy has written the album and the inspiration behind his lyrics and music almost makes it feel like 2 EP’s put together, which leaves me thinking that Senses Fail may have benefitted more from having 2 releases, rather than taking 2 concepts that dominate each half of the album. It’s a very enjoyable listen regardless, and it’s definitely going to have a lot of attention from fans who are huge admirers of the genre. This band still have the spark with this release, even after 20 years of releasing music, and I don’t think they’ll be stopping anytime soon. 
(3 / 5)
