Black Peaks- Electric Fires
On the 2nd August this year, Black Peaks released their third single ‘Electric Fires’ from their upcoming album ‘All That Divides’. The song has familiar elements of their sound that fans are accustomed to but also expands in the progressive genre territory, featuring clean singing that has only evolved from their past records and groovy, twisting guitar lines that build up into crushing choruses and breakdowns.
The song starts off with quiet guitars and drums that quickly build up into the first verse which will already have the listener banging their heads. This is followed by more grooving start-and-stop riffs and interlacing guitar lines, reminiscent of other prog bands like Mastodon, whom they were possibly influenced by while touring alongside last year. The chorus is classic Black Peaks; belting vocals which shift from cleans to magnificent screams and even some gang vocals in the background to add to the huge atmosphere. All the instruments just come together into a whole and produce a force that no listener can deny.
Overall, out of the two other singles, this song is probably closer to ‘Can’t Sleep’. Whereas ‘Home’ was more of a song that placed emotion forefront and kept the music simpler, ‘Can’t Sleep’ and ‘Electric Fires’ let the instruments show off a bit, exploring a more math-rock and progressive side to the band. This single more so than the others, highlights a lighter, more melodic quality to the band, that is until the end of the song where the band reminds everyone just how heavy they can go, with a ‘take no prisoners’ breakdown to close off the song.
‘Electric Fires’ is a perfect example of what I’m hoping to see of more of in the new album- a mix of the cleaner more melodic, guitar-driven verses, crushing heavy choruses, dynamic shifts between sections to keep the listener on their toes and the sheer and raw heaviness, both production-wise and emotionally.
