Bring Me the Horizon Eye Multiple Records in 2020, Consider Ditching Album Format
Bring Me the Horizon just unleashed their new song "Ludens," and while it likely will appear on a release next year, it may not be part of a full album. Speaking with NME, singer Oli Sykes discussed the idea of potentially ditching the album format and issuing music in a more concise manner.
“We’ve got plans, definitely. ‘Ludens’ will be the first song you hear from the new record. We’re not going to do an album again, maybe ever," said Sykes. "We’re thinking about doing shorter records. I don’t want to say we’re going to do something and not live up to it, but the plan is to release multiple records next year."
Sykes says that while he's proud of their Amo album, it was a "fucking ballache" to make. He added, "We spent a whole fucking year of our lives making that record. Part of me was like, ‘For what? We’re never going to get to play all of those songs.' You have to ration your creativity over all your songs. You write a really cool pop song then you have to write a heavy song to balance out, then you need to think about singles.”
The singer says the freedom he experienced working on "Ludens" specifically as a one-off, sole purpose track, impacted him. "When we wrote ‘Ludens,' it was crazy but it was fun. We just had to write one song and it just had to serve the video game. We didn’t have to write the biggest song in the world. I just love to sit and go, ‘Let’s just write a song and not worry about how it needs to be,'” said the singer.
Given that the band has evolved musically in recent years, the approach may provide for a more focused offering. "I’d like to make a bunch of records where each of them has a distinct vibe to it. It doesn’t have to be an emotional rollercoaster, you can say ‘I’m pissed off so I’ll listen to this one’ or go for something a little more somber. There’s always a degree of compromise, but I’d love to write songs that are just the most obscure, electro-y.”
Considering how their fans might react, Sykes says, “I know our fanbase won’t be too happy if we go all the way, but if we release a short record that’s straight-up Bring Me the Horizon then another that’s electro, no one is going to give a shit because there’s another coming. It’s not the only record of the next three years, it’s just the record of that season.”
With "Ludens" out and potentially shorter and more frequent releases on the way, it should keep fans on their toes. Stay tuned to see what 2020 brings.
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