After bands have established career security, their albums tend to feel more labored-over. Part of this phenomenon stems from internal pressures and expectations: Groups feel compelled to one-up (or at least equal) the quality of previous records, or decide to indulge in experiments that by nature are more complex. Plus, early in a career, bands are typically winging it from a creative standpoint; after awhile, acts figure out what they’re doing right (or wrong), and are more deliberate about songcraft and execution.
Ambition and self-improvement are certainly not negatives, although one potential downside to being more self-conscious—especially for punk bands—is muted urgency. Thankfully, AFI is the rare exception to the latter rule. Twenty-two years after releasing its debut album, Answer That And Stay Fashionable—and a decade-plus removed from the chart success of Decemberunderground‘s crisp synthpunk—the California quartet sounds refreshed and rejuvenated on its tenth studio album, AFI (The Blood Album).
Guitarist Jade Puget and vocalist Davey Havok have distilled AFI’s strengths (a ferocious, post-hardcore rhythmic backbone; goth-tinctured, post-punky guitars; and Havok’s desperate, dramatic croon) into 14 taut, hook-driven songs. Standout “Hidden Knives” is the kind of new wave-leaning punk gem John Hughes would’ve loved, while “So Beneath You” is a teeth-baring, roiling tune.