Billy Talent – Crisis Of Faith | Album Review

With a whopping six years between albums, it has been a long wait for fans of Canadian rockers Billy Talent.

Last full length Afraid Of Heights was way back in 2016 but now the four-piece are back with sixth album Crisis Of Faith. (Technically their seventh album if you count their debut under a different name in 1999). Yep, these guys have been around for a long while and it appears they’re not short of ideas or inspiration on Crisis of Faith.

Take dramatic opener ‘Forgiveness I + II’, for example. These two tracks (Part I and Part II) were released in 2020 along with an accompanying short film/music video. Here you can check them out in all their glory. ‘Forgiveness I’ starts off sounding like System Of A Down-lite then transforms into a contrastive subtle of classic heavy rock vibe. Then just over halfway through it totally transcends into a completely different song (‘Forgiveness II’) which sounds more like a cut off a David Bowie record, complete with a laid-back jazzy section. If Billy Talent are trying to say ‘expect the unexpected’ with this six-minute start to the record, mission accomplished. From then on in though, it does become more expect the expected territory from the pop-punk band. Catchy, light-hearted uplifting punk tracks with soaring choruses and toe-tapping riffs, ‘Crisis Of Faith’ is a fun collection spattered with moments of greatness amongst more generic elements.

‘I Beg To Differ (This Will Get Better)’ is exactly the kind of uplifting encouragement the world needs right now and is a rallying cry of defiance against hardship wrapped up in an infectious, fist-pumping chorus. Then bringing things down a notch with ‘The Wolf’, the band showcase delicate vocals and a strong melody-line which carry this soaring power-ballad hitting just the right balance between cheese and genius.

A lot of the tracks do seem very familiar with rehashed melodies or chord progressions such as ‘Reactor’ or ‘Hanging Out With All The Wrong People’, although there’s not necessarily anything wrong with that. There’s something warmly comforting about hearing a song for the first time and already feeling like you can sing along; already feeling a connection. It’s an insidious collection; one that will get under your skin without you even realising it. What’s that melody line you’re humming in the shower? Ah yes, it’s off the new Billy Talent record.

‘Judged’ is another great example. No real new boundaries pushed here. It’s just a simple, uptempo shouty little punk number; the type of thing you want to pogo to without a care in the world. ‘End Of Me’ has a bit of a Green Day feel and features Rivers Cuomo of Weezer. As a comeback album, ‘Crisis Of Faith’ is overall pretty solid. ‘We’re still here and we’re having fun’. And clearly they can still write some bangers too. If anyone’s having a crisis of faith in Billy Talent, these ten tracks should make them believe again, although it would be interesting to see the band pursue more of the direction they explored on ‘Forgiveness’ in the future.