Senses Fail is a band that I’ve followed for the majority of my life. I’ve gone to more of their concerts than I can remember. I’ve made sure to follow every single one of their releases almost religiously. However, Pull The Thorns From Your Heart is the first album of theirs that has honestly completely lost my interest based solely upon the singles they released leading up to the album.
I say this because it is not a ‘Senses Fail’ album. Disregard everything you knew about Senses Fail, this album is a new Senses Fail they are now a Hardcore act that treads the border between Hardcore and Emotional Hardcore/Emo for a few songs. But for the most part this album is Heavy, Heavier than that backpack you had to lug around in college. The lyrics drag you through Buddy Neilson’s emotional journey. They are raw, emotional, and gut-wrenching; much like his screams. They tear apart your eardrums and ask you if you’ve had enough? The simple answer is yes, Buddy we have had enough.
The Fire and Renacer were outstanding albums they showed progression, growth and diversity. Pull The Thorns From Your Heart just feels wrong, it could possibly be my affinity towards every album before this one or it could possibly be the fact that I’m sitting here trying to be inspired to write a review about this album, but I simply can’t. The only saving grace on this whole album is the song “Carry the Weight” save yourself forty-one minutes and just listen to that. Buddy drags us through his emotional journey with this album. Yes, lyrically the album is great; it’s uplifting, positive, inspiring, and gives me hope. Instrumentally, this album is a mess. Pull The Thorns From Your Heart gets an unimpressed 2 tears out of 5 from a man who wishes Senses Fail would have kept a little bit of their emo/post-hardcore roots intact.
Overall Rating: 2/5
Recommended Tracks: “Carry The Weight”
