Lostprophets; Weapon

Kirsty Armitage

I’ve had a very on-off relationship with the Lostprophets. After discovering the Welsh nu-metal sextet through the release of the popular ‘Shinobi vs Dragon Ninja’ way back in 2000 (from their first album, ‘Thefakesoundofprogress’) I was a firm fan; something further cemented with the release of ‘Start Something’ in 2003. However, I found myself out the loop when ‘Liberation Transmission’ was released – although I’d happily sing along to ‘Rooftops’ when it came on the radio but the motivation to discover the album wasn’t there. Similarly ‘The Betrayed’ by-passed me entirely.

With the recent release of ‘Weapons’, their latest album offering, I hoped to rediscover my love of nu-metal and, more specifically, the Lostprophets.

Initial thoughts on this album were ‘They’ve not changed a bit!’ The format of ‘Weapons’ follows ‘Start Something’ almost to the letter. Punchy, likeable opening tracks; leading to the experimental mid-section that explores more ethereal genre-fusion, rounding off with some sock-it-to-‘em anthems.

Nu-metal, by its very definition (a fusion genre which combines elements of metal with other genres), is an exploratory genre – it’s all about taking the listener on a journey of discovery through sound. ‘Weapons’ kind of falls short of my expectations here – the sound is very reminiscent of their early work (2003ish) – not much in the way of progressive sound, innovation or even inspirational lyrical work.

Watkins’ sharp vocal, with a hint of an accent, does lends itself well to the ‘Prophets’ sound – best demonstrated on the catchy anthem We Bring an Arsenal. When teamed with the hefty riffs from guitarists Gaze and Lewis, and the Techno under notes from Oliver (all things keyboard, synths and turntables) it culminates in prescribed nu-metal album. A winning track for this albumn, in my opinion opening Bring ‘Em Down track – an excellent choice for their first single, but engenders a sense of expectation that some of the tracks (like Jesus Walks) just don’t live up to.

On the whole, I did enjoy this album and am really pleased the Lostprophets are still churning out regular work, but would like to see a little more ingenuity from the Pontypridd set up. I can’t say with certainty it’s their best work to date, nor that they have gone on a limb and explored paths anew, but on the flip side it was strangely comforting to step into something so familiar – like when I go to visit my parents and stay in my old (unchanged!) bedroom with tatty, faded posters above the bed. Always nice to leave again, though!

I do, however, eagerly anticipate seeing the tracks performed live. I can’t recommend this band enough from a live perspective. They are so energetic and engrossing; their music transcends the recorded standard, giving every track a completely new dimension.

Well worth having a listen to the album purely so you can rock out at their live shows, which you should NOT miss!