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Despite being Grammy nominated, I Prevail have ruffled a lot of feathers. Predictably, soaring to fame thanks to a viral cover of Taylor Swift’s Blank Space and then co-headlining with acts as established as Halestorm was bound to rub people up the wrong way. Their knack for spotting music trends – be it pop hits, a resurgence in love for Linkin Park, or Sleep Token worship – and then so bluntly leveraging those influences in their own work is also a bit too on the nose for some.
Whatever the rub, this beloved Michigan metalcore band with their million-plus YouTube subscribers and nearly five million monthly Spotify listeners get dismissed as generic and cookie cutter, while other so-called basic bitches stealing with pride or pioneering nothing new, suffer much less criticism. So, perhaps this band deserve extra kudos for ignoring the shade and riding their fandom and fame as far as possible.
After all, since their successful Swifty cover, they have harnessed the momentum and played a ton of powerful, heavier-than-expected live shows and released albums in smartly regular cycles. Moving from straightforward metalcore to a more melodic style with electronic, hip hop and pop elements, they have consistently produced several belters per album, with tracks such as Bow Down and Bad Things being so shamelessly radio-friendly it aches.
This fourth studio album sees them sharpen their focus with fewer samples, bigger choruses and crushing breakdowns. It also welcomes a significant new chapter. Traditionally, their sound has celebrated the dual vocal attack of clean and harsh vocalists Brian Burkheiser and Eric Vanlerberghe respectively. But in May, the band announced that Brian had left, leaving Eric as the only lead singer on Violent Nature, now tackling both singing styles.
All 10 tracks are deliberately darker and more intense, even when vulnerable, and done great justice by new bass player Jon Eberhard’s more stripped-back production style. However, as revealed by the singles, the songwriting is hit and miss. The title track shows a less distinctive but much heavier side, Rain offers some powerful, soaring melodies but painfully stereotypical lyrics, and Into Hell is indulgently anthemic.
One thing proves consistent, though: Eric’s vocals shine fiercely. His cleans are smooth and strong, and his harsher outpourings are more brutal than ever. Several soft sections can be found here, and he tackles them all with a raw, emotional depth that matches the introspective lyrical themes perfectly.
That said, it’s definitely the more dynamic, aggressive tracks like NWO, Stay Away and God – with its snappy vocals, brutal fretwork, menacing roars and frantic shifting energy – that are most interesting. Overly sensitive songs Pray, Annihilate Me and Crimson & Clover prove either generic or dreary.
Sure, this band may not be groundbreaking, but there’s no denying the massively accessible songwriting and vice-like grip of their best tracks. Violent Nature, the incoming festivals, a surging streaming presence and a devoted grassroots community turned online movement positions I Prevail as a band no longer on the rise, but a dominant force flying the flag high for those who believed in them.
Violent Nature is out September 19 via Fearless. I Prevail play Louder Than Life on September 20 and When We Were Young on October 18.
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