Let’s be honest, Senses Fail has kept a pretty consistent sound their entire career as a band. Going in to Renacer, I was expecting the same Senses Fail, but with some slight updates/enhancements to their style like the previous albums. To me, Senses Fail plays it safe with their sound, but makes it better every release. However, Renacer does not follow the usual formula. This release is much heavier, and much darker than anything this band has done in the past.
Renacer begins with the title track. Instantly, it’s heavy. It starts a little slower, but with very aggressive vocals. Soon after, the song picks up with a hardcore/punk sounding section, which is followed by a gang vocal part including the yelling of “Reborn!”, the album title actually translates to English as “To be reborn”. Halfway through, the song pauses then returns getting extremely heavy. “Renacer” is followed by “Holy Mountain”, continuing the aggressiveness of the first track. Although this song starts off heavy, it includes a very melodic, dark-sounding chorus. It’s incredible when a band can balance clean vocals and harsh vocals this well. Track three is “Mi Amor”, which was the album’s leading single. Most of the song is in Spanish, but this doesn’t mean it’s not enjoyable if you don’t know the language. The Spanish sections are very fast-paced and fun, while the English chorus is unbelievably catchy.
Following “Mi Amor”, “Closer Rebirth” feels like a very mature take on the old Senses Fail style. This track at times feels very much like melodic hardcore, especially the guitar riffs. The outro to this song was very different and fitting. After a soothing outro, “The Path” begins, which is what seems to be the heaviest song Senses Fail has ever written. I was blown away by the chorus to this track, especially the transition into it. Next up is “Canine”, which explores the fast-paced punk side of the band. The vocal style displayed in the cleans in this song are extremely different for the band. The seventh track, “Glass”, slows things down a bit. The song starts off with a eerie guitar riff, followed by some beautiful clean vocals. The way the two play off each other is incredible. “Glass” gets instantly heavy around the 50 second mark.
“Ancient Tombs” really is just a more mature display of the old Senses Fail style. It’s a great upgrade to what you know and love about the band. “Frost Flower” is for sure one of the darkest sounding songs on the entire record. The screams even sound a lot more angry and emotional. The chorus is, once again, driven by some amazing clean vocals. “Snake Bite” could almost be considered hard-rock. The chorus is definitely something very different for this band, different is good in this case, though. “Courage of the Knife” is a great way to pick up the original pace of the album after the change that “Snake Bite” brought. “Courage of the Knife” brings the heavy for sure. The closing track, “Between the Mountains and the Sea” is different than any other track on the entire record. It’s a very melodic, dark, clean vocal driven song. The lyrics in this one seem to be a lot more personal and relatable than any other track on Renacer. The parts of the song that get a little heavier give off a melodic hardcore feel. This is definitely one of the best tracks on the album.
In the end, Senses Fail has changed a lot when it comes to Renacer. Truthfully, some people probably won’t like it, but you guys always have the previous records to listen to. Anybody who enjoys the heavier side of the band will be very pleased with this release. Bands change, everyone knows that. I believe this sound works extremely well for the band and may even bring in a lot of new fans. Renacer is one of the best records this band has ever released.
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