After months of wondering and waiting, fans finally got their answer. Pierce the Veil announced their HIGHLY anticipated 4th album, "Misadventures" will be released May 13, 2016. The joke's been overused, but looks as though we'll have to "hold on till may". Click this (link) to get the single on iTunes, or to preorder the album.
The song is definitely touching new territory for the band. It doesn't deviate too far from their previous album's work, but it would definitely stand out if you added it to the tracklisting of "Collide with the Sky".
"Texas Is Forever" is a LOT heavier than anything else the band have written. Not in the sense that it's got lots of breakdowns, or chugs. But the track pulls from Pierce the Veil's more punk rock roots. This won't be one to break into the mainstream radio, that's for sure. Comparing the song to "The Divine Zero", "Texas..." is leagues ahead of its predecessor.
The production still leaves something to be desired, but the instrumentals are stronger than ever. At this point, do we even need to praise the band's skills? Everyone knows how good they are. Let's get alliterative for a second. Dynamic drumming, great guitars, and bad-ass bass. That's PTV in a nutshell. Plus you throw in Vic's vocals, which have thankfully moved away from high pitched whining and closer towards actual singing.
Now, let's address the one glaring issue some listeners might have with the song. The intro. It's very similar to the intro of two metalcore songs. That's right, two. The original intro was from "Unholy Confessions" by Avenged Sevenfold. The first band to rip off that song was Black Veil Brides, whose guitar melody in "Knives and Pens" is an almost exact copy. PTV's "Texas..." intro bears some striking resemblances.
Maybe the band hoped that tuning their guitars to Drop C# instead of Drop D would let them get away with the intro. Really, that's just PTV splitting hairs. Thankfully the intro is the only place where there are any similarities are seen between the three songs. So we only dock 1 point. Because PTV make the rest of the song standout. And in the end, every band has taken something from someone else at some point. PTV just did it better than BVB (seriously go look at a guitar tab for "Knives and Pens" and then at "Unholy Confessions", it's pretty sad)
Summary -
Feels like something straight off the band's debut. But with the modern, more experienced Pierce The Veil behind it. This is a first for the band, embracing some of the more metal aspects of the post hardcore genre. But the track still thrives on Pierce the Veil's intense choruses and Mike Fuentes' high speed drumming. For fans looking for something with more edge and maybe a bit more metal, we highly recommend this track for you.
Rating - 8.5/10