Review: You Me At Six’s Sinners Never Sleep

Even though the international version of Sinners Never Sleep by the U.K.’s You Me At Six has been out since October, many U.S. residents may just now be getting their hands on hard copies (or iTunes downloads), and therefore deserves its respective review at the same time. Sinners Never Sleep is the follow-up to the five piece band’s Hold Me Down, which had mostly mixed reviews upon its release.

Opening with mocking “da-da-da-da-da-da’s” and a heavy bass line, the song “Loverboy” is an accurate prediction the tracks to come, the album being filled with heartache and hateful words.  The already popular track “Bite My Tongue” keeps the strong, vengeful emotion and is held together with its catchy chords of the chorus.  The sixth track “Little Death” is an appropriate song for the middle of the record, starting with samples of the drums and guitar riffs.  It features a strong melody along with some of the raspiness of Josh Franceschi’s voice.

Guest vocals are popular additions throughout the music scene, however, they are easily overdone.  Sinners Never Sleep features two sets of unclean vocals, courtesy of Bring Me The Horizon’s Oli Sykes and Parkway Drive’s Winston McCall (two other artists, Dean Dobbs and Jack Howard, are featured on the album as well).  While not being in opposition to either of these vocalists, by the time it’s McCall’s turn on track nine “Time Is Money,” he seems to be overwhelming to the consistency of the album.  You Me At Six may have been better off by choosing one vocalist over the other, and Sykes’ vocals seeming to fit the band’s sound better.

The latter part of the record is a more relaxed sound than the hate filled beginning, with softer ballads such as “Crash” and “Little Bit of Truth.”  The final track “When I Was Younger” talks more about love lost because of family distrust instead of a girl in question.

Sinners Never Sleep seems in line with the band’s previous releases and their sound in general, but it is nothing ground breaking in terms of musicianship or lyrics.  Everyone has heard guest vocals before, Franceschi being featured on Bring Me The Horizon’s most recent release full-length, and there are already an abundance of songs about love and loss. Sinners Never Sleep is a good add to You Me At Six’s discography for themselves, the fans and touring purposes, however it’s unlikely the album will launch the band any higher than where they already sit.