Architects - For Those That Wish To Exist: A Review

Alright, let's give this a go.

I'll start off by saying that I have never been a fan of Architects' music. From what I've seen of the online core community, that's apparently what some people may consider a "travesty," and to be fair I thought that for a while, too. Most would say they influenced the genre as a whole with their heavy riffs and the fact that apparently they, alone, invented the "blegh" for metalcore, and, yeah, sure, I'll bite. The fact is they're regarded as a form of royalty since their arrival on the scene all those years ago, and many of our favorite metalcore bands have taken much inspiration from them. My not being a fan doesn't necessarily mean that I hate everything about them, in fact I gave them a fair shake when their unanimously lauded 'Lost Forever//Lost Together released in 2014. I heard the reviews, saw the reception. I didn't want to miss that train, so I checked it out. Even had it in my rotation. Guys, I took it out. It's not to say that the music wasn't good enough for me or anything, I actually quite liked the songwriting style at the time and very much appreciated the riffage and drops that they were incorporating into their music. My issue was that I absolutely could not stand vocalist Sam Carter's voice. The overly raspy squeal that people have come to love for some godforsaken reason was more than headache-inducing enough on its own, but coupled with the crunchy-in-a-bad-way production of the album, I literally couldn't listen to it. The riffs and breakdowns weren't enough to drown it out, and I sincerely regret that. 

That's all to say, dearest reader, that that album came out in the neighborhood of seven years ago, and Architects has had a few releases since then, and I've grown as a person. I heard the singles for - and subsequently opted to ignore - all of them, solely because I continued to hear more of the same, but these times without the benefit of groundbreaking songwriting helping them out. I can't stress this enough: I want to love this band as much as everyone else does, but I can't just pretend that what they're doing is working on an aesthetic level. Finally, in 2020 we started to get some looks at their next album with a slew of singles released between then and early 2021. I heard them all, and I was intrigued. Not because they were especially great or anything - I wouldn't say the best of them were any better than just right of "average" - but there was a definitive difference between this and what I'd heard from them before. If my ears weren't enough, the internet outcry was enough to suggest that they were doing something different, so maybe they were onto something. The wailing screams were still ever-present on these tracks, but that mix... The guitars felt so heavy, instrumentals felt like they could take the existence of the song and bring it back with every stop and start. And Carter's vocals seemed more refined; like he'd started basing his voice more in his cleans and so the end result was more of a soft bellow than a stinging shriek. The discourse (lol) suggested a change in direction, and I thought this could be my chance to finally love this band. So understand that, for this review, I'm coming in with only optimistic expectations. For Those That Wish To Exist released on February 26th, 2021.

I'll start by reiterating what I said above, that the singles that were released were no better than average, but indicated a change in direction that I assumed would be better demonstrated in the record's accompanying tracks. I was wrong. The singles on this record are undoubtedly the best songs on this album, save for maybe one. While they were essentially empty vessels for a showcase of production prowess, they did offer a look at something mildly entertaining. Black Lungs boasts the trademark riffage that Architects I believe are contractually obligated to deliver at least once per album, and admittedly contains what could be the release's best chorus. All that said, I figured when it was released as a single it was mediocre at best, and it being the "best" of anything on this record says less about the song itself than it does the album as a whole. Animals experimented with some interesting segmenting within the song, something that really paid off with the album's production. 

The soft-to-heavy transitions are what give the song life, and the mix fills in the cracks beautifully. But again, there's practically nothing there. It's a good listen, aesthetically, if you want to hear some full-ass instrumentals, but that's about it. The only single that I found even remotely moving was Dead Butterflies. This song absolutely benefits from the band letting atmosphere drive the music in the song rather than shoe-horning some mismatched lyrics overhead in an attempt to sell tee-shirts. There's definitely an abundance of that in here, but you don't have to notice it if you focus on the other things, and I think there's enough to draw your attention. It's just a pretty song that doesn't sacrifice the heavy to be so. Probably neck-and-neck with Black Lungs for the best chorus on the album; although, lyrically? Even this can't get all the way through without retrofitting an old Smash Mouth lyric and tossing it in the chorus. Finally, Meteor. I guess I can rest easy knowing that we all agree that this was the weakest single. I guess I don't know what "arena rock" means but I certainly understand the aesthetic, given its name. This...doesn't fit. I think this song would actually flourish most as background music, in a small, quiet room. Maybe whilst studying? As with everything else, small moments are worth noting (choir thing before the last chorus is pretty cool), but don't build to anything. 

Now that the easy part is out of the way, let get to it. 

What in the hell is with the excitement for this thing? 

Discourse Is Dead is one of the most hyped songs from this thing since its release, and folks, I just do not get it. Bands like this are what really make me question my own opinion about this sort of thing. I guess that's what taste is at the end of the day, right? There's just absolutely nothing for me here. I'm honestly surprised that songs can be earnestly praised when they still have choruses that begin with some variation of "sing a song" and it makes me question whether metalcore was ever actually approaching the precipice of a true artform or if it really was just a really good marketing scheme created by pop-punk culture. Maybe people loved it because it was the first screamy-verse they'd heard since the singles and it quelled their worries. Whatever the explanation, it's bad. There's no excuse for music that takes itself seriously writing lyrics explicitly for the Instagram captions. It's a nonstarter for me, thank you very much. An Ordinary Extinction comes in with a cool electronicore intro and gives us our  first taste of some really good shoegaze in the bridge. I want to take a second to mention this because if there is anything to praise from this release, it's this. Architects struck gold here, discovering the weight that comes with both strong production and the utilization of soft elements intermixed with heaviness to create juxtaposition within their musical motif. In the absurdly few moments of this record where they touch on this, they reach the plateau. But that's the problem: It's a plateau: Nowhere to go but straight ahead or back down, and they choose back down every. single. time. The rest of the song is average at best, but Mr. Carter wanted to pull one over on me so he reintroduced his raspy shriek from previous releases, just for me. The juxtaposed elements are the strongest part of their new sound and it seems like they are actively working against it. It's quite disappointing. 

Impermanence has this cool "right to it" start, which is a neat angle to carry into the industrial-metal type feel that the rest of the verse brings. Chorus is terrible, both aesthetically and lyrically, but the post-chorus chugs more than make up for it. Again, the production is doing this record a TON of favors. Winston McCall sounds massive in a feature here. As someone who's not a huge fan of Parkway Drive, he feels more at home with the driving force of this song than either vocalist does on their own home court. Perhaps Architects' instrumentalists could start a side project with him? That, I'd gladly listen to. Flight Without Feathers begins with that ambience and softness that I appreciated in the prior tracks and continues with a nice, soothing first verse that dies with a thud when it hits the...chorus? Typically, I'd talk about what the song builds to from here, but it doesn't build to anything. The song feels written to expound on the many ideas that it introduces, but it seems as thought it's fighting its own natural progression for the sake of staying soft, which is an interesting choice for a metal record. I'm all for an interlude track but this is too long and too boring. Next. 

Oh, wait. Next is Little Wonder, a SECOND song that references "singing a song" in the first line of the chorus. Like honestly, just say you want to sell shirts. Next.

All I really have to say about Libertine is that it owes the mix its life. Granted, half these songs don't cut a record without the production value that went into this. Guitars feel heavy and the atmosphere feels full. 

Goliath is another one that everyone is talking about in post-mortem. Although the production is fucking tight, I just don't get it. Do these guys just hate choruses? Chori?

I want to put this part separate from the bad stuff, because that Simon Neil feature? Has no business being surrounded by disrespectful words. Absolutely insane, from his part to the instrumental accompaniment. I take back the singles thing, the features are the best part of this album by far. 

The intro to Demi God is just absolutely pleasing. They finally go back to that shoegaze sound and, if we've discovered anything with this album, it's they need to pull on that thread. Spoiler alert: They don't. I guess I should've known by now that they'd take something pretty and shit all over it with one cliché after another in the form of a chorus. It's very frustrating.

This thing is finally coming to a close with the very surprising Dying Is Absolutely Safe. A soft closer on a metal album is always a gamble, but this one, aesthetically, is heavier than a lot of the songs before it. It's a beautiful song filled with an emotion that isn't earned from the rest of the album before it. Its structure kind of reminds me of Hellions' Nuestra Culpa in the way that it builds to what you expect to be the rest of the band coming in for a core-based crescendo, but it subverts those expectations by bringing in an actual orchestra, complete with a choral accompaniment. It's quite wonderful. If this were the first song released to tease new music from any band, it would have me excited for what's to come. Instead, it's the last thing I'll hear from them because we know that it couldn't be overshadowed by anything on this record. Great closer to a dud of an album. 

In summary, if I was inspired to do anything after listening to this album, it was to invest in a really good interface and home studio equipment because this thing is an absolute beast of production value. Other than that and a couple songs that will end up on your random metalcore playlist with the rest of the bullshit you don't really listen to, there's nothing musical here to be desired. 

I'll take LF//LT remastered with this mix, though, if that's an option. Just saying. 

verdict: 2/5 stuffs