AFI - Silver Bleeds The Black Sun... (2025)
Let's play a game: we take Placebo and mix them with Peter Murphy. Doing so makes the outcome really predictable. And so it is. However, something from time to time deviates from the prejudice I carry with me after the first track. Rougher sounds and melodies that are both harmonious and epic, like some new romantic fringes from the '80s, are felt. Charming references to the Sisters of Mercy here and there bring a smile. At this point, it's impossible not to pause and reflect on the wave of '80s revival that has been forcefully emerging in recent weeks. Maybe it's a good thing - forgive me, detractors of the decade following the '70s. Maybe in this period of injustices, violence, and powerful forces acting according to logics that are not aligned with the sensitivity and will of their fellow citizens... maybe and I emphasize MAYBE... after the classic self-pity, we will arrive at a furious cynicism that will lead to new avant-gardes and new - perhaps this time unheard of - musical expressions.