Instant Impressions: 'Silver Bleeds the Black Sun...' by AFI

In the realm of rock music, there are very few bands as sonically and aesthetically unpredictable as AFI — as a result of their broad range of influences, they're not the type of band to make the same album twice or to stick to one type of sound. Even in their early years as a punk rock band, there was still a clear musical distinction between each album and a sense of exponential growth and experimentation from one release to the next. That trend has continued throughout their career, with the band dabbling in hardcore punk, alternative rock​, post-hardcore, and everything in between over the course of their career. To match the musical change that comes with each record cycle, frontman Davey Havok has also made a point to change his own appearance and alter his hairstyle, giving each musical era even more of a visual identity. Some transitions are relatively close in style, like that of 2013's Burials and 2017's The Blood Album, but others are outright disparate, with the most prominent example being the difference between from 2003's Sing the Sorrow to Decemberunderground in 2006.

For AFI's latest album, Silver Bleeds the Black Sun..., a lot has been made in the headlines about both Havok's style and the band's sonic evolution from their previous effort, 2021's Bodies. Featuring more of a pronounced focus on their post-punk influences, their 12th full-length serves as their "mood" record, with the intention of having a distinct sound and overall atmosphere from beginning to end. That uniformity is only further solodified visually, with the music videos for the album's first two singles, "Behind the Clock" and "Holy Visions," being interconnected. In interviews, Havok had cited albums like The Cure's Pornography and Echo & the Bunnymen's Heaven Up Here as inspirations early on in the writing process, and also stated how daunting it was to write this album after loving how Bodies turned out. Having a specific sonic tone in mind also allowed him to write lyrics prior to hearing any music that was written, another first-time experience in the band's history.

After months of anticipation and four years since the release of their previous record Bodies, Silver Bleeds the Black Sun... is now officially out. Below are my general thoughts while listening through the album for the first time — feel free to listen along and follow the track-by-track reaction, or scroll further for my overall thoughts on the album as a whole.

1. Bird of Prey (3:09)

• Wasn't expecting an acoustic intro, but I'm not mad about it either
• Big fan of the drum pattern throughout this song, especially the fill that leads into the chorus
• I don't know how to explain it, but after the chorus, there are a couple swells in the background that remind me of the bridge of "Twisted Tongues" — whenever a band releases a new album, I always try drawing parallels to the release that came before it, even if there's no connection at all, which I feel might be the case here, but I still felt the need to mention it because it stuck out to me for some reason

2. Behind the Clock (3:57)

• I've said this when this song first came out and will probably mention it throughout the album, but the bass sounds incredible on this song — Hunter Burgan's one of my favorite bassists, and​​​ he really shines on this track
• As far as AFI's music goes, these are easily the lowest notes I've ever heard Havok hit — it's a real interesting switch, considering how the tone of his voice has normally sounded across all of their albums, and it works so well on this song

3. Holy Visions (3:30)

• The way that "Behind the Clock" transitions seamlessly into this song is so well done
• Despite having more time with this song than the rest of this album (minus "Behind the Clock") and listening to it several times a day, I still have yet to get tired of this song — the chorus is still stuck in my head all the time, and Jade Puget's guitar work might be my favorite part of this song
• Havok's always been outspoken and critical on the concept of organized religion, which has led to a couple angst-driven tracks over the years (most notably "So Beneath You" from The Blood Album), so it's interesting to hear his take in a less musically aggressive fashion

4. Blasphemy & Excess (3:05)

• This is one of those songs that feels like it gets a larger sound and more energy behind it the longer it goes on, and I really enjoy that
• There's a part of me that wonders what this would be like in a live setting — visually speaking, I feel like the lighting setup on the stage could make this song feel even bigger

5. Spear of Truth (4:11)

• I always say Havok's lyrics sound like poetry to me, but that's really on full display on this song — I feel like even without music, this could be performed at some sort of spoken-word open mic and it would make complete sense
• With this marking the halfway point of the record, I'm very impressed so far — from the production to the instrumentation, it's incredibly cohesive without feeling lethargic or outright monotonous

6. Ash Speck in a Green Eye (3:18)

• It's easy to hear why this was made a single — it's instantly captivating, and I'm glad to have been able to wear this song out alongside the other singles
• This one reminds me of one of Havok's side projects, Dreamcar, which included members of No Doubt — the overall pace and instrumentation of this track feels very adjacent to what was on their debut album

7. VOIDWARD, I BEND BACK (2:29)

• I love how the one time I make assumptions about the sound of a new AFI song, I'm immediately wrong — I can't even think of how I formed this expectation, but when the tracklist was released, the title made me feel like it would sound similar to "Back From the Flesh," from Bodies
• I can't stop laughing at how wrong my prediction was, but I'm certain this song will end up being in heavy rotation for a while — given how short it is, I'll most likely end up listening to this song a few times in a row

8. Marguerite (3:05)

• Again, I'm reminded of Dreamcar but with a slightly darker or moodier tone, and that's meant as a compliment because I adore the music Havok made with that project — it's interesting to hear an AFI twist on that kind of sound, and I really enjoy the result
• This is another one that makes me wonder how it would work in a live setting — I feel like this could end up being a great live track, particularly because of the energy of the chorus

9. A World Unmade (4:01)

• The opening line, "the world has its plans, and I have another" feels like one of the most important lines of the record — it was used on promotional items, and it seems to sum up the overall conceptual tone of not just this record, but AFI's overall ethos as a band. They've always done things their way and constantly subverted listeners' expectations, even if it was considered against the grain, which is something I really admire about them
• Havok and Puget's electronic side project Blaqk Audio can be heard all over this song in my opinion, from the instrumentation to the tone of Havok's voice

10. Nooneunderground (3:16)

• I wasn't sure what the buildup was leading to, but as soon as I heard that baseline, I knew this was about to be an epic finale to this album
• This is such an awesome surprise because there's literally no indication that there would be a song like this on the album, yet somehow it still fits so well — definitely wise to have this be the closer, because I have no idea what other place in the album would be better for it
• There's a subsection of AFI's fanbase that only listens to their old material and won't give anything new a chance, but I'm almost certain that even they would enjoy this in a live setting​

Having been a fan of AFI's music for around 15 years now, I've learned to not set expectations or guess how a new AFI release will sound, because I'll always be surprised with what direction they decide to go in. This new record is no exception — this is without a doubt one of their most focused and cohesive releases in their career, and despite such a change in sound, it's still undeniably an AFI record, and a very confident one at that. My one complaint would be that I'm shocked at how fast of a listen it is — Bodies felt short when it first came out, so one can imagine my surprise upon discovering that Silver Bleeds the Black Sun... is even shorter, falling two minutes under the runtime of Bodies. I'm always left wanting more when there's a new AFI record, so it's nice to have that tradition continue.

AFI isn't the type of band to bank on nostalgia because of how forward-thinking they are when it comes to consistently creating new material instead of just doing "greatest hits" tours for the rest of their career, but I can't help but wonder if there are any intentional nods to their previous work — the cover art feels like an inversion of the artwork for Burials, and with next year being the 20th anniversary of 2006's Decemberunderground, I'm curious if there are any intentional tie-ins, aside from the obvious stylization of the closing track's title. Conceptually, Decemberunderground seemed to discuss the idea of having a hidden place of refuge with like-minded people — fast forward 20 years, and a lot of spaces are being taken away, from venues closing down to generative AI taking​ the places of real artists of actual value, along with destroying the environment in the process. Silver Bleeds the Black Sun... seems to focus on that type of dystopia, which has unfortunately become the world we now live in. Additionally, there's been spectaculation about the intro of "Behind the Clock" containing musical elements of "337 (The Fog)," an instrumental that would play on the band's website prior to the Decemberunderground album cycle. There's a very good chance that these are all coincidences and that us fans are just reading into things too much, but it would be interesting if any of this ends up being discussed during this press cycle.

Sonically, Silver Bleeds the Black Sun is a standout in AFI's discography — this can be said about a few of their albums, but there's such a distinct sonic identity that sets this record apart from ​others, and the way it all flows from one song to the next just adds to the overall listening experience. Everyone in the band has fantastic performances and time to shine at different moments, and it's awesome to hear Havok bring some of the vocal styles he uses in Blaqk Audio and Dreamcar onto an AFI album like this. They've historically taken their time between releases, with the average gap between albums being around 4 years, but one has to wonder if that'll be the case with their next release because Havok has stated how the experience of making this album has already begun shaping whatever comes next and how the band is excited to further flesh out those concepts. Regardless, if this release is any indication, the wait will be worth it, and I can't wait to be surprised by their musical direction once again. Until then, I'll be spinning this record many more times, and I'm extremely excited to see AFI live for the first time on October 21 in Myrtle Beach, SC and to experience some of these new songs live.

After the first of what will easily be many listens just today, my top 3 standout tracks from Silver Bleeds the Black Sun... are:

• VOIDWARD, I BEND BACK
• Marguerite
• Nooneunderground

AFI are currently on the road in support of the new album, with dates in the US continuing until November 5, with the last stop taking place in San Diego, CA. For all tour dates and to buy tickets, click here.

If you listened along and also enjoyed the album, you can buy/stream Silver Bleeds the Black Sun... here.

To keep up with AFI, click here.