The Devil Wears Prada, ‘Space’ – EP Review

In 2010, The Devil Wears Prada released the concept EP Zombies. Five years later, they are revisiting the concept EP idea with Space. It’s their first release without former lead guitarist Chris Rubey, though he did contribute to some of the songwriting. The guitar on the EP was handled by Kyle Sipress, who had been a guitar tech for the band and has also played with frontman Mike Hranica in a side project band.

As to why they decided to do another EP, Hranica told me, “I think there's a lot of worth in doing EPs, and I think it's often overlooked by a lot of artists and releases. I think that, especially when you're a band like us and you're coming up on ten years, you're a metal band, so it easily all starts to blur together to some extent. Creating short, quick, spontaneous releases that have a different kind of ethic or backbone behind it I think is really refreshing for fans.”

Soundwise the album is dynamic. After an intro of a space launch, “Planet A” kicks in. Heavy guitars and Hranica’s screaming vocals ease into a mellow interlude before the rocket boosters kick back in. Subtle spacey atmospherics sprinkled throughout the album add diversity.

Space is a nearly unlimited lyrical topic, and the band covers different aspects relating to it. One of the most memorable songs on the album is “Alien,” which chronicles creatures descending upon Earth, bent on its destruction. The EP’s lead single was “Supernova,” a good choice with a catchy chorus and a good combination of melody and brutality.

It’s a streamlined effort, with the six songs (one of which is a short instrumental) clocking in at around 20 minutes. “Moongod” treads typical metalcore territory with screaming vocals, shoutalong choruses and melodic singing, but TDWP’s songwriting elevates it above genre tropes.

Bands often put out stopgap releases between studio albums ranging from rarities collections to live albums to DVDs. The quality can be hit and miss, but in The Devil Wears Prada’s case, Space is a solid release with an interesting concept that will help tide fans over until their next full-length.