You have to give Atreyu credit.They have endured for over 2 decades now, and their popularity and persistence has seen them outgrow and extend their reach far beyond the scene that spawned them. Where many of their peers have faded away they are still standing. It’s a testament to them as a band that they managed to attain and maintain that longevity and are still thriving all this time later.
The Hope of A Spark follows on from their 2021 full length album Baptize & continues exactly where that album left off. This is their second release with Brandon Saller front & centre as the sole vocalist. Atreyu have come a long way from their strictly metalcore roots, and while this new EP retains a level of aggression it has it’s feet more firmly planted in stomping hard rock rather than metal or metalcore.
It’s a short, sharp & explosive EP with Tracks like Drowning & Watch me Burn feel like they could be new classics for the band and I’d expect to see them in the live set for years to come. Both do the exact thing Atreyu have down to a science, huge anthemic choruses and riffs that’ll have you headbanging to yourself long after the songs have finished. God/Devil is probably the EP’s heaviest moment and the one most reminiscent of the band’s earlier days. It has a grinding almost industrial riff to it that keeps it chugging along. It works as an excellent bridge between the bands past and present.
Capital F is the EP’s only weak spot. It’s not a bad song by any means, it just doesn’t live up to the quality of the other three. Overall, The Hope of A Spark is a good stop gap release for Atreyu between full lengths to keep their momentum going as they roll back into another touring cycle. You have to give the band credit for continuing to push themselves and to keep doing what they are doing. They have more than earned their place and if this EP is evidence of their ongoing growth then long may it continue.
The Hope of A Spark is available now via Spinefarm Records. You can check it out right now on streaming services via the label’s site.
