The Devils Wears Prada - 'Flowers' Album Review

Sean Friswell
2 minutes ago
5 min read

Tracklist:

1. That Same Place

2. Where the Flowers Never Grow

3. Everybody Knows

4. So Low

5. For You

6. All Out

7. Ritual

8. When You're Gone

9. The Sky Behind The Rain

10. The Silence

11. Eyes

12. Cure Me

13. Wave

14. My Paradise

On November 14th, Metalcore stalwarts The Devil Wears Prada released their ninth album 'Flowers' via Solid State Records.

First comes 'That Same Place', a minute long intro with stripped back piano and strings which are absolutely beautiful, and it transitions perfectly into the full riff of 'Where the Flowers Never Grow.' Mike Hranica and Jeremy DePoyster's voices work so well in tandem, with each vocalist given their own chance to shine. The entire band is extremely tight, working together to produce fantastic music. The mixing from producer Zakk Cervini is top notch, with each facet of the band coming through crystal clear. The breakdown and outro ramp up the aggression to round out the song perfectly.

'Everybody Knows' begins with a more frantic vocal from DePoyster, leading to more brilliant tandem vocals with Hranica backing it up with his signature screams. This song is dynamically amazing, finding the right moments for peaks and troughs, with Keys player Jonathan Gering layering things phenomenally with his programming.

'So Low' is up next. The synth intro works extremely well, giving way to Giuseppe Capolupo's stellar drums and DePoyster's vocals taking charge, with the synth remaining to provide some excellent dynamic accents. Once again the buildup throughout the song is top notch, being added at the perfect time layer after layer, and the guitar work of DePoyster and Kyle Sipress adds brilliant facets of grit to the smooth and polished track.

'For You' leads us into the more emotional side of the band. Gering's keys are distorted in a way that makes them almost sound like they're underwater, and that plays so beautifully with the vocals, once again dialled between DePoyster's cleans and Hranica's screams. Once again it is rhythmically and dynamically superb, hitting each moment with such weight, with the breakdown providing a great counterpoint for the track, showing the range of the band brilliantly all in one neat package.

'All Out' is aptly named, going all out from the off with a quicker riff more reminiscent of the mid-noughties style of Metalcore - especially with the synths in the background playing off the riffs, becoming reminiscent of the kind of music they were releasing at the very beginning of their career. It is punishingly heavy, with many moments dropping down to half time to emphasise the riffs, as well as Hranica's virtuosic screaming, particularly in the dying moments of the track.

'Ritual' comes next, the first song released from 'Flowers' in March of 2024, meaning I've been able to spend a lot of time with this track, and simply put I adore it. The pacing is spot on, with a frantic feeling to it in both the clean and screamed vocals. The balance of those vocals with the heavy, driving guitars playing off of each other, the bass and drums working in tandem to hold down the core of the song and those expertly done synths beings the sound firmly into the stylings of what Metalcore has evolved into.

'When You're Gone' brings a slower pace but does not let up on the heaviness, with driving bass flitting in and out with the lead guitar amping up the brutal feeling in between the choruses and verses. The slow build to the breakdown is intense and menacing, with Hranica's voice creeping up and getting more intense before the instruments crash back in. The two instances of "bring it back" on the lyrics with a pitch perfect percussion fill really are the cherry on the cake.

'The Sky Behind The Rain', an interlude which houses a slightly ominous instrumental under a heartfelt voicemail, which makes me think of mid-2010s Metalcore intros synonymous with bands like The Amity Affliction, leading into 'The Silence'. Once again the programming from Gering is absolutely phenomenal. This is a more stripped back affair, which really lets those synths shine against the dual vocals of Hranica and DePoyster. It loses the aggression that's prevalent throughout the rest of the album, which I think is a great call to keep the pacing even.

'Eyes' comes next, and after a dynamically lower intro it sounds absolutely massive, ramping up through into the explosion of a chorus, picking the pace right back up. The rhythm section really hold things down in the second verse, with each member locking in with each other. The synths in this continue the 2010s Metalcore vibe, feeling like a specific tip of the cap to Motionless In White. The echoey bridge gives me chills with the elongated vocals before the rest of the band comes crashing back in, and paired with that outro it is a perfect ending to the track.

'Cure Me' gives us more amazing harmony from Hranica and DePoyster from the very start. The simple yet effective driving drums from Capolupo hold the track down very nicely, giving it a brilliant base to build off, while still aching in moments with little fills. There's a very groovy feel to the instrumental under the powerful lyrics in places, which provide a brilliant contrast to the darker tone of this late in the game affair.

'Wave' is unexpectedly soft but works extremely well in the context of 'Flowers', it almost verges into the realms of Indie and Shoegaze with the guitar tone. It's an extremely vulnerable and emotional offering, with subtle strings and horns creeping through from the second verse to really punctuate the heartbreaking lyrics of personal struggle. The sudden stop is very powerful on that lyric, "Maybe this world is better off without-", almost as if the thought was cut off.

The album closes on 'My Paradise', a great culmination of everything on the record. Once again the entire band are so tight in the more uplifting and positive feelings instrumental, paired with the contemplative and pondering lyrics that still carry a tonne of emotional weight, in particular the closing line of the chorus "Maybe this mediocrity is my paradise". It brings everything together beautifully and provides an excellent punctuation mark at the end of the record.

I've made reference to the different eras of Metalcore throughout this review, because it truly feels like The Devil Wears Prada went through a journey spanning their 20 year career all within the confines of the album, and it works So. Bloody. Well.

'Flowers' blends together emotion and aggression in such seamless fashion that many bands try but very few succeed with. It's their ninth album, and they definitely do not show any signs of slowing down any time soon.