Pierce The Veil –Misadventures

Misadventures is the eagerly awaited fourth full-length album from post-hardcore quartet, Pierce the Veil. Since 2012’s Collide with the Sky, and after several years of non-stop touring, along with studio complications, this is the album fans were hoping for and more, and damn was it worth the wait!

“Dive In” starts off the album, with an electric guitar and haunting piano background duo and an interchanging medium-fast paced drumming, similar to 2012’s “Bulls in the Bronx”. “Texas is Forever” follows; previously released in March 2016, it is instrumentally compared to 2012’s “Hell Above”. The album as a whole seems to continue the instrumental feel of previous albums, yet ever so slightly, the lyrical aspects change to more real world situations.

“The Divine Zero” begins slowly until around seven seconds in, when immense guitar strumming and substantial drum patterns begin to be heard. The song’s tempo can be distinguished as a mix between “I Don’t Care If You’re Contagious” and “Disasterology”. Towards the middle of the song, there is a breakdown around vocalist Vic Fuentes’s backing screams that allows drummer Mike Fuentes, guitarist Tony Perry, and bassist Jaime Preciado to chime in. The theme seems to be trying so hard to be with someone and loving them, even with their flaws, such as in the lyrics, “I’m not meant for this world; I just don’t see the point”, “And life is a joke; at least I can love you, naked and tattooed” and “Now, I only pray when it all dies down, I’ll be surrounded by all of the ones I’ve loved and cared about” – classic Pierce The Veil, both lyrically and musically.

“Floral & Fading” is full of Vic Fuentes’s raspy vocals along with a steady drum beat and electric guitar melody. It features a guitar and drum solo in the middle. Lyrically, Vic is singing about not wanting to leave the girl he tries so hard for, but it makes things harder on himself. “Phantom Power and Ludicrous Speed” is one of the heavier songs on the album, also with a deep message relating to self-harm and suicide. His girlfriend finds herself using methods of coping that aren’t good for her, and she won’t listen to anything Vic tries to say, unless it’s what she wants to hear. The song showcases Vic fearing he would start talking to an “invisible friend” in a state of shock if his girlfriend were to kill herself.

“Circles” features a few guitar solos, along with a mix of high drums in the chorus, and medium speed drumming in the verses and bridge, as well as a more clean set of vocals by Vic Fuentes, which could also be viewed as a pop-punk style in this case; some also refer to it as a memoir of A Flair for the Dramatic. It sounds similar to previous tracks, “Stained Glass Eyes and Colorful Tears” and “Drella”. In an interview with Alternative Press, he expressed that, lyrically, the song addresses the Paris terrorist attacks. The song is a dedication to all the lives lost and all the struggles people endured in that time. In the lyrics, “You took my hand, and then we both started running, Both started running. There’s no place to go. Another bullet, and we both started running” the imagery of chaos city-wide, as well as a shocked pile of nations, is easy to visualize as the lyrics flow in the air around the listener.

Following is track “Today I Saw the Whole World”. Coming in louder than 2012’s “Hell Above”, this is a song anyone can jam to. The girl of Vic’s dreams was the only thing he saw, and he was only used by her. “Gold Medal Ribbon” is unique, holding its own sound with loud drums, piano echoes and electric guitar symphonies throughout. Anyone can relate who’s lost someone close to them, as Vic lost his high school sweetheart. Vic explained in an interview to Radio.com, “Gold Medal Ribbon” was her favorite ice-cream flavor that they’d have together. He still hears her and sees visions of her because she was a big part of his life growing up.

“Bedless” also holds a punk rock auxiliary to it. The message of the song is breaking up with someone, or being broken up with, and being ruined by the break-up. Then, when the person wants the other back, they can only be friends once they see the damage done; it is an emotionally toiling song. “Sambuka” is a song that deals with mentally unstable thoughts, and the effects and memories that hit. Vic’s ex was getting married, and he felt she was a bad person, but he begs for her back not realizing he is high when doing so. This illustrates the fault of being under the influence.

Closing out the album is “Song For Isabelle”, with an instrumental resembling 2012’s “I’m Low on Gas and You Need a Jacket”, with a harder rock presence. The instrumentals are infused with lyrics about Vic’s friend whose medications weren’t working, and she was terminally ill. She had been diagnosed with a year to live and refused to go out in public, which can be inferred in the lyrics, “Isabelle hides so I can find my way; I’d give anything just to surround your dreams”. This is a very heartfelt song, as most from Pierce the Veil are.

Through the four-year gap, hyped up rhythms, remembrances of previous works over the years, as well as a new lyrical sense adding real world issues into the mix, Pierce the Veil have made Misadventures an album where there’s a song for everyone to rock out to!

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Review by Savannah Lee, RockRevolt Contributor